The Mad Princess and the Dying Prince novel Chapter 105

Having met Lucia before, Lady Forrester hurried forward the moment she crossed the threshold.

Though Roderick had heard much about her, seeing the girl in person still left him stunned.

She appeared no older than fifteen or sixteen and was alarmingly thin. Yet, her face possessed an ethereal beauty, and her eyes were strikingly calm and radiant.

That Physician Finch held such a fragile-looking girl in absolute reverence pushed Roderick's curiosity to its peak.

"Lady Lucia, you have come. I beg of you, please look at my daughter. Seeing her like this... it feels as though a blade is twisting in my heart."

Weeping, Lady Forrester grasped Lucia's hands and nearly dropped to her knees in desperation.

Lucia steadied the older woman with a surprisingly firm grip.

"Do not panic, Lady Forrester. Let me see her."

It was strange, but those simple, calm words instantly washed the panic from Lady Forrester's mind.

"Lady Lucia, I am Roderick Forrester." Seeing his wife pulled from the brink of a breakdown by a single sentence, Roderick felt a surge of profound gratitude. He stepped forward, bowing deeply with utmost respect.

He did not dare underestimate this girl who was the same age as his own daughter.

Lucia met his gaze.

In that brief second, Roderick felt as if his very soul had been laid bare before her. A jolt of shock went through him.

Those eyes held none of the innocent, sheltered naivety of a nobleborn maiden.

"Let me examine Eleonora first."

Lucia broke eye contact and moved toward the bed.

"Has she fainted again?" Physician Finch asked Lady Forrester.

Lady Forrester wiped her eyes. "She could not bear the shock. She lost consciousness."

Waking up again would only plunge the girl back into a pit of despair.

Lucia stood beside the bed, gazing down at Eleonora.

Roderick and Lady Forrester exchanged bewildered glances.

"Lady Lucia, my Eleonora is a kind soul," Lady Forrester said frantically. "She is always the one giving to the poor. She would never take anything from a stranger."

"Physician Finch mentioned you were together the entire journey back to the capital?"

"Yes, yes, we were."

Lucia kept her eyes on the sleeping girl. "But she definitely accepted something cursed. Was there a moment when she wandered off on her own, or spoke to a traveler? You couldn't have watched her every second of the day and night."

"Well..." Roderick frowned in thought.

A sudden realization struck Lady Forrester. "My love, could it have happened in Whitestone? If we ask Poppy, she will know."

She immediately ordered a servant to fetch the maid.

Turning to Lucia, she frantically explained.

"Poppy is Eleonora's personal maidservant; she never leaves her side. We spent a single night in Whitestone. We arrived at dusk, and while my husband and I were securing rooms at the inn, Eleonora complained of feeling stifled. She went for a short walk outside."