Chapter 205: The King’s Son
One of the nobles had mentioned the rumor in passing, and although it had taken some time to uncover anything useful, Cedric had eventually managed to learn the name of the village.
From there, he had traveled with several of his men and begun searching for the woman called Rebecca. They hadn’t found her house immediately and had spent a considerable amount of time asking questions and searching through the village before they were finally led to it. However, upon arriving, they discovered that the house was empty. Some of the belongings had clearly been packed away, and the place felt cold and abandoned.
"But there’s no one here," Cedric had said to the neighbor who had brought them to the house.
"She must have fled," the woman replied.
"She’s a rather strange woman and doesn’t really associate with anyone," another woman added, and that was largely because Rebecca believed the villagers disliked her. After enduring years of whispers and cruel remarks about herself and her fatherless child, she had learned to keep to herself. Her life revolved entirely around working and caring for her son.
"I was coming back from relieving myself last night when I saw Rebecca and her son," an elderly man suddenly spoke up, and by then several villagers had gathered around the house. Cedric immediately turned toward him with interest.
The elderly man explained that he had seen Rebecca and Julian hurrying away in the middle of the night. Finding their behavior suspicious, he had quietly followed them from a distance. However, his curiosity had quickly turned into alarm when several strangers suddenly appeared and surrounded them.
The men had captured both Rebecca and Julian before forcing them into a carriage and taking them away. Throughout it all, he had remained hidden behind a wall and watched in silence, afraid that they would notice him if he intervened.
After hearing the old man’s account, Cedric’s brow furrowed immediately. Rebecca and her son had not simply disappeared on their own. They had been taken, and wherever they were now, he had no way of knowing.
"Thank you for this information," Cedric said, giving the elderly man a slight bow.
The man nodded in return.
At that point, Cedric knew he had no choice but to report everything to the king.
"The boy’s name is Julian, and his mother is Rebecca. She’s still a young woman, and Julian is believed to be around thirteen or fourteen years old. They lived in Westmere," Cedric explained as he relayed everything he had learned to Rowan.
"Fourteen?" Rowan’s eyes narrowed.
Cedric nodded. "That’s what the neighbors believe. They’ve lived there for many years."
For a moment, Rowan said nothing.
How was it possible for Alaric to have a son that old?
Then realization slowly dawned on him.
Rosalind noticed the change in his expression immediately and turned to look at him. "What’s wrong?" she asked.
"It was during the time he was banished," Rowan said. "That must have been when my brother fathered the child."
Cedric nodded as well as the possibility became clear to him.
"Did he ever acknowledge them?" Rowan wondered aloud, although he already doubted the answer. If Alaric had acknowledged them, he would not have left the woman alone in a village to raise his child by herself. The thought left a bitter taste in Rowan’s mouth. Even now, he struggled to understand the kind of person his brother had been. At times, it felt as though Alaric had been completely incapable of caring about anyone but himself.
"They must be found, Cedric," Rowan said firmly. "And once they are found, I want the physician to examine the boy and determine whether he truly carries royal blood. If that proves to be true, then he must be protected at all costs."
"Very well, Your Majesty," Cedric responded.
Shortly afterward, he was dismissed and left the study with a new mission before him: finding the missing woman and her son before anyone else did.
"It’s unbelievable that after all these years, news of his child is only surfacing now," Rosalind muttered quietly.
Rowan could not help agreeing with her.
Rosalind moved closer and took his hand in hers."They’ll be found, alright?" she asked softly.
He glanced at her before giving a small nod.
****
Meanwhile, Rebecca found herself trapped inside a small, dark room where the only source of light came from a tiny window high above. Her eyes darted around frantically as panic gripped her chest.
"Julian... Julian," she called desperately.
Then her gaze landed on her son sitting in the corner of the room.
Relief washed over her immediately.
She hurried toward him and dropped to her knees beside him. Julian had pulled his legs tightly against his chest and was quietly crying to himself. The moment he saw his mother, he lifted tear-filled eyes toward her, and Rebecca felt her heart ache at the sight.
"Mother... where are we?" he asked.
"I don’t know," Rebecca answered honestly, her voice trembling. "But don’t worry. I’m here, and we’re going to be alright."
Julian hesitated before reluctantly nodding.
Rebecca pulled him against her chest and wrapped both arms around him.
"Oh, Julian," she whispered.
Not long afterward, the sound of approaching footsteps echoed through the room. Rebecca immediately went still as she listened. The footsteps grew louder and louder until they finally stopped outside the door.
A moment later, the door swung open.
The instant her eyes landed on the minister standing there, Rebecca scrambled backward and instinctively pulled Julian with her. Minister Griswold stepped inside while the other minister remained outside the room.
"Rebecca," Griswold called calmly. "You didn’t have to bring all this trouble upon yourself. If only you had listened to what I told you."
"You’re delusional if you think I’ll let you take advantage of me or my son," Rebecca said, her voice firmer than before, and it immediately caused Griswold’s eyes to narrow at her.
"You speak with a lot of confidence now," he commented, and although Rebecca glared at him, he merely smiled in return. "Look, Rebecca, you have the opportunity to pull both yourself and your son out of this miserable life, so you would do well to be sensible and accept my proposal. Otherwise, you’ll only end up rotting in here," he said.
