Provoking a Graceful Bloom Novel

---- Chapter 165 Selena truly pushed the men aside and strode towards the exit. Frederick tried to rise twice, frantic to stop her, but William forced him back each time. "Your Highness, I'll guard Lady Campbell. Don't move again." William was loath to leave the prince, yet watching Selena's back vanishing into the mist set his heart aflame. At last, he couldn't stay still any longer and hurried after her, followed by a dozen or so soldiers. What they found left them dumbfounded.

"Lady Campbell, what..." Though each man trembled at the thought of death and had been startled by the bandits' stray arrows, they were men of honor. How could they stand idly by while Selena ventured forth alone, accompanied by a mere maid, to certain death? Even if it meant death, they vowed to shield her and die with her. But after only a dozen steps, the mist had been swept away entirely, revealing open land ahead. Behind them, the stone forest still lay shrouded and sinister. William and his comrades gaped, disbelief written across every face.

---- "Lady Campbell, this..." "This stretch of stone is strangely formed and has been altered into a kind of labyrinth. Anyone who enters will be caught. Go back and tell the others that it is safe to come out," Selena said, pressing onward. "So, have we finally found the true exit? Are there any bandits nearby?" William asked, though he knew she might not have an answer. That she had guided them to freedom at all was a marvel enough. How could she know whether the enemy still lay in ambush? "Lady Campbell-" "Listen," Selena interjected, pointing to the distance.

The men listened intently, hardly daring to breathe. Faint at first, then clearer, came the sound of conflict-the clash of steel, the cries of men. "What-" "My brother has already surrounded the bandits with the royal army. Your men have been starving for two days and a night, and | fear they are too weak to join the fight. We shall wait here for General Campbell and the reinforcements to arrive," Selena ---- explained If the men had been able to fight, she wouldn't have had to lead them so slowly.

But in their current state, exhausted and starving, stepping into battle would lead to certain death. For now, waiting was the only choice. William quickly turned back, guiding the men as they carried Frederick out of the stone labyrinth. Once they emerged into open land, the soldiers wept with relief, joy breaking through the despair that had gripped them for so long. They waited, nearly four hours passing in tense anticipation. At last, Sebastian appeared, riding at the head of his blood- smeared troops. The men's eyes lit up with pure relief. They were saved!

Frederick had brought fifteen thousand personal troops, yet in the end, only just over six thousand survived That was double what Frederick and William had expected, since only a little over two thousand had been with them. But it turned out that some others had survived, merely separated from them during the chaotic rush through the stone labyrinth. When Sebastian's reinforcements arrived, Selena instructed William to escort Frederick and the surviving soldiers ahead ---- under Eric's protection.

She and Sebastian, with a thousand men, stayed behind in the labyrinth to rescue the remaining four thousand soldiers. By the end, they had slain at least three thousand bandits, yet Frederick's personal guard suffered almost nine thousand casualties. By any measure, they could scarcely call themselves victors. However, fortune had favored them at last. They had finally defeated the bandits of Mount Iron, who wouldn't return anytime soon. Among the citizens of the capital, whispers of what happened soon became the topic of conversation over tea and supper, with different versions being told.

"Lhear it was Lady Campbell who saved Prince Frederick. Is that true?" "| hear Lady Campbell feared not even death, venturing into the mountains alone to rescue Prince Frederick! Her devotion to His Highness is true love indeed!"