Naturally, Lucas had no intention of complying with this ridiculous command and kept on running.
His plan was simple, his pursuer was stronger and faster than he was, but he knew the terrain better; he would have a chance if he could lose her in the narrow streets and back-alleys of town!
Running with all his might, Lucas dared not look behind him as he parkoured over crates, under carts, and through gaps between the various other items which had been strewn across the street when the townspeople had originally evacuated in panic to the safe-zones.
He figured that by doing this, his opponent would have a harder time catching him than if he tried to run around all these obstacles.
Right now, Lucas was thanking the Heavens he hadn't slacked a single day on his training, especially his early-morning long-distance runs that built up his leg strength and familiarized him with every part of Redwood Town.
"Stop! Stop for This Princess!" Christina's voice called out from behind, which Lucas completely ignored as he dove into an alley and disappeared into the shadows.
…..
Christina was stunned when Lucas refused to obey her, even after she dropped all pretense and ordered him using her identity as a member of the royal family. Although it wasn't like everyone bowed down before her wherever she went, at least no one in her age group had ever disobeyed a direct command from her before!
As Christina stood there in disbelief, however, Lucas actually managed to open up a significant distance between them, further infuriating her.
Seeing her target getting away, Christina knew that if she didn't act fast, the little bastard would surely escape, so she put strength into her legs and shot out, intent on catching the boy and 'modifying' his memories.
Her birth mother, Cynthia, had told her before that the best way to make a man forget things was to get him dead drunk, and the First Queen, or Mother Marianne as Christina called her, had added that a good whack over the head once they passed out was sure to finish the job.
Christina trusted her mothers implicitly, as they were some of the smartest, most experienced women she knew and would never lie to her.
Unfortunately, there was no way for her to get Lucas drunk right now, so she would have to settle for punching his head extra hard!
If one hit wasn't enough, she would hit him twice!
If twice wasn't enough, she would do it thrice!
In pursuit of her prey, though, Christina was repeatedly frustrated by all the trash and debris in her way. It also made her wonder just what kind of wild upbringing Lucas had to be able to leap over, swing around, duck under, and weave through all these obstacles with such fluidity.
If she tried to imitate her foe's actions, Christina knew she would only wind up slipping or tripping somewhere, delaying her further, so she chose the simplest and most direct method available, crashing through and knocking away everything in her path.
It was hardly behaviour becoming of the Rockwell Kingdom's 12th Princess, but Christina couldn't afford to care right now. She had to catch this boy post-haste and deal with him before he could flee any further!
Still, just because Christina understood what she had to do, that didn't stop her from growing more and more frustrated as the gap between her and Lucas refused to shrink. Not only was this preventing her from completing her important mission, it also further fueled her rage.
There was something odd about this little brat, of that Christina had no doubt. In their clash just now, she clearly felt Soul Qi coming from him, which was a sign he had opened his Soul Sea; however, Christina could also tell that Lucas' true cultivation was still somewhere in the Body Tempering Realm.
Regardless what kind of special circumstances this peasant boy had, it was still undeniably the case that a no-name child from a backwater town with barely any cultivation to speak of was actually escaping from her, the Genius Princess of the Rockwell Kingdom who had just recently reached the Third Step Sea Establishment Realm!
Just you wait! Once I catch you, I'll hit you 4, no 5 times! 3 times to make sure you forget everything, and another 2 for embarrassing This Princess! Christina swore to herself as she shouted out loud, "Stop running and face me like a man!"
By now, Christina completely saw Lucas as her enemy and held none of her strength back.
Watching the boy suddenly duck into a dark alley-way; Christina hurriedly raced over in pursuit; however, upon reaching the back-road, she suddenly lost track of her opponent and couldn't help coming to a halt.
Christina was a monstrous genius, but unlike Lucas, her Soul Sense was still relatively weak.
This had nothing to do with talent, it was simply a matter of circumstances.
The princess had opened her Soul Sea in a relatively safe and stable manner, while Lucas had his blown open, forcefully expanded, then reinforced by his fallen benefactor, making it much stronger than it should have been for his Realm.
For the moment, Christina wasn't able to use her Soul Sense to locate another person, especially someone as weak as Lucas, who wasn't right in front of her.
Left with no other choice, Christina desperately looked for any clue which might tell her which way to go, and as luck would have it, she soon heard the sound of something being knocked over coming from another alley up ahead on her left.
Without hesitating, Tina dashed off in that direction, intent on tracking down the boy who had witnessed her at her lowest and 'persuading' him to forget all about it, thus restoring her sullied honour.
…..
Only after he was certain the huntress had run off did Lucas peak out from behind a hidden nook at the fork in the alley. This was one of the best hiding spots he had found when playing with the other children in town, and it had come in handy today.
After ducking into this backstreet, Lucas swiftly dove into this nook before grabbing a nearby stone and chucking it down one of the paths, knocking over a piece of wood in that direction.
Just as he anticipated, Princess Christina, who was completely unfamiliar with Redwood Town, raced off as soon as she heard the clatter, allowing Lucas to escape.
For now, at least.
Lucas was well aware that sooner or later, he would run into this wild princess again; and given how determined she looked just now, he was certain she would beat his head in until he no longer remembered his own name!
There was only one person who could save him from that terrible fate, his Master. As long as he could meet up with Celestina, the evil princess wouldn't dare to punch him!
Thinking so, Lucas tried to sense what was going on with the battle in the west, and was shocked to discover that while he was busy escaping from certain doom, the fight had actually ended.
Doing a quick count, Lucas was relieved to find that all the Spirit Initiates, as well as his Master, were still alive; though some of their auras seemed weaker than before.
I need to find a way back home without being caught, Lucas thought before slowly emerging from his hiding spot and into the open again. Looking around to triple check his pursuer wasn't nearby, the boy began slinking his way back to the Manor, where he sensed his Master was also heading.
…..
Christina ran up and down several alleyways, but after encountering not a single soul or finding any trace of the dastardly little boy named Lucas, she quickly realized she had been tricked.
Understanding she had been made a fool of once again, the indignation and rage she felt swelled to new heights as she swore to herself, 10 times, if I don't punch that boy 10 times I won't be surnamed Rockwell anymore!
Although her anger had increased, her focus also became sharper and she began thinking strategically. Her enemy was both cunning and dastardly, so she had to be equally cunning to catch him!
Christina now understood that she couldn't treat Lucas as just another kid her age, but instead needed to think of him as a dangerous opponent to be confronted with all her wits and strength!
Adjusting her mentality, Christina began plotting, He's from this town, so naturally he knows it better than me. If I keep running around blindly, I'll never find him! I need to anticipate his next move… he may have his advantages, but I also have mine!
Swiftly coming up with a plan, Christina scrambled up onto a nearby rooftop and began scanning her surroundings, looking for where the largest concentration of people was.
It didn't take her long to spot a large complex where many people seemed to be walking about. Christina didn't know what this place was, but given its central location, she assumed it was of some importance. With her destination set, she leapt off the roof and dashed through the streets, determined to make Lucas pay for repeatedly defeating her.
In her fervor, however, Christina failed to notice that her original objective of making Lucas forget about her embarrassing episode had taken a backseat to her new goal of simply winning against this strange boy she had just met.
She also didn't realize that, at some point, a smile had crept onto her face, one that somehow made her look prettier and more dangerous all at once.