Chapter 262 - Gavrael (Part XIX)
Since the moon was not fully visible that night as the clouds were thick and covering the sky, Gavrael carried Evie off in his arms as they ventured into the Forbidden Lands. Of course, the young prince was thoroughly enjoying himself. He could carry and hold onto her freely without censure from his Little Butterfly and he felt ever so liberated.
However, they soon encountered a pack of dark wolves. Gavrael had never ventured this deep into this so called forbidden lands before because since the very first time he set foot on the surface, he had spent all the available time – whatever little that he had – with his Little Butterfly.
He had yet to find out anything about the dangers that existed within the deeper part of the land and that was why he was being a little more careful than usual. Of course, the main reason was heavily due to the fact that he had a delicate little butterfly in his care right now. He would never go forward carelessly and unknowingly put her into any kinds of danger, no matter how small or big it was.
"So, there are more of these beasts as we go further, huh." Gavrael murmured as he leapt from the ground and landed on a tree branch.
"I believe so. I also think that there might be more ferocious creatures ahead. So far, all of the beasts that I've seen are already different from the normal ones we see on the outside. There is no telling how much more unique and dangerous the beasts are as we go deeper into the forest." Evie told Gavrael as they notice that the wolves that are around them were starting to climb the trees as well. The beasts growled and snarled as they went after the two of them.
Evie tightened her grip around his neck as Gavrael leisurely avoided them. He wanted to fight them and kill them all off. But on the other hand, he also did not want to waste his precious time fighting. He would rather hold onto his Little Butterfly like this! Of course, there is also the issue of him having only a limited amount of time to be up here on the surface.
"How far did you reach the last time you went in on your own?" he asked, not minding the wolves that were chasing them.
She looked around, restlessly. It seemed that unlike him, she was unable to ignore their chasers as easily as her protector. "Oh, there! At that lake! That's as far as I've gone." She pointed towards a glimmering lake.
"Oh, you're one brave butterfly." He praised her as it truly was quite far in with the ferocious beasts that are around as well. He then headed towards the lake. "I can't believe you dared to come this far all alone."
"That lake seemed safe. I was once chased by the wolves and when I arrived there, the wolves just disappeared. It's like they can't seem to get into that place. I believe this might be some kind of sacred place that the beasts aren't allowed to set foot into."
"Hmm… that's interesting." He said and they landed at the bank of the glimmering lake. "Then I guess, we should stop here for now." Gavrael stood just at the lake shore and looked around, appreciating the calm beauty of this lake with glittering waters. The sight of it was truly a stunning one.
Evie looked at him, surprised that they were already stopping.
"There are more beasts within the deeper parts of the forest, and they are more dangerous." He reasoned out. "And they are very active during the night time. So, I think it's better for me to wait for the moon to come out before we venture further. I need you to at least be able to fly so that when there's a fight, you'll be able to fly and stay in the air where it's safe while I fight to get rid of them all on the ground." He explained and Evie creased her brows.
"Then why did you agree that we come here tonight if you already have such a plan?"
"Well," he smiled and let go of her. "I just thought that we needed to go somewhere else besides the usual thing of just roaming around the citadel. I bet you're already bored with the same scenery and since you told me you can't venture anywhere else out in the human realms, then this our only choice."
"What would we do here, then?" she asked. She was a little disappointed, but she understood where he was coming from. He would certainly be put into a tight spot and would not be able to fight if she was being cradled in his arms.
He looked at the water and then that knowing smile curved across his lips. "Oh, there are interesting things that we could do here as well while waiting..." he said and then he stepped away from her towards the water.
Then without a word, he started to undress.
Evie gaped, speechless, as she watched him slowly shed his clothes. He did not stop until he was almost naked. She turned away, blushing.
"W-what are you doing?" Her voice was a little shrill, as she felt her face turning red.
"Did you try going into the waters for a swim when you were here the last time?"
"Of course not." Evie answered, still making sure she was facing the other way.
The next moment, she heard a sound of something splashing into the water. She immediately whipped around to take a look, and she saw that he was gone. Oh dear, he really went ahead and swam! They did not come all the way here just to swim!
Seeing that he was not coming out of the water yet, Evie worriedly approached the bank.
"Gavrael?" she called out, looking at the glimmering waters, trying to get a glimpse of some movement.
Suddenly, she felt a presence behind her and before she could whip around, Gavrael wrapped his arms around her tiny waist and the next instant, they both fell into the water.