Carl, King Alan, and Jerald left Everton, going in search of Zara, and they all took different routes to enable fast and better results...
Nadia and king Neil argued amongst themselves, due to fear of leaving Everton.
"Nadia, you should pray that Carl finds Zara, else, I'll make you get married to Lord Brad," King Neil rasped.
Nadia stared at her father in disbelief. "Father I can't believe you're saying that! You know Lord Brad is old and has up to five wives, how can you get me married to him?"
King Neil scoffed. "That's what you get for acting rashly."
"Father, you should also pray for Zara's return, instead of thinking about getting me married to old Lord Brad," Nadia said, frowning in annoyance.
...
Meanwhile, Carl made his way back to Everton with a heavy heart, after failing to find Zara. He felt ashamed and hated himself for not being able to find her.
'Where on earth could she be?' He pondered. Although he didn't find her, he still had plans of going to the other nations in search of her. he knew that if the other kings knew anything about Zara's whereabouts, they would have informed him, except king Arthur and king Darian who were his enemy. It can even be possible that they abducted Zara and kept her as a hostage, but he didn't want to jump to conclusion.
Now that he was returning to Everton, it was only to know if king Alan and Jerald have any good news, or if they found her. but if they didn't, he would emback on a journey to Neptune and Crystal Ville, the enemy nation.
The people of Everton stood in front of the palace awaiting Carl's return, and also anticipating the return of their queen. And if by any chance, Carl did not return with her, he would have to divorce and oust Nadia and king Neil there and then.
King Alan was the first to return to Everton after his failed attempt, with Jerald following suit and then Carl.
"The King is back!" they chanted, when they saw Carl and his troops.
But it soon died down once they didn't see any sign of Zara.
"Your majesty!" Jerald called, walking to him, with King Alan trailing beside him.
"We didn't find queen Zara, our search was futile," he told Carl. Carl sighed, a sad expression plastered on his face, then he said, "I also didn't find her."
Once the people heard that, they broke into a state of uproar. "The king did not find Queen Zara, could it be that she's dead? could it be she left the seven kingdoms going across the sea to a faraway land?
Carl's heart clenched in fear when he heard what the people were saying. 'No, she can't be dead, and she won't go to a faraway land. She has to be in one of these nations, but where?'
Carl raised his hand, silencing his people, then he said, "Queen Zara, is not dead, and I'll make sure I find her wherever she is, and bring her back. I will leave Everton now, and would not return until I find her."
The people were flabbergasted. There was no way they would allow their king to leave them. What if something were to happen, or the enemy attacks during his absence?
"No, your majesty! You should send the troops in search of the queen. You can't leave us without a monarch," Someone spoke, making the crowd continue their uproar.
Although he understands where they were coming from. And it was for the same reason he didn't leave Everton to go search for Zara all this while. It was the fear of leaving his people without a monarch, and open to enemy threats.
As a king, it was his duty to protect his people even if it meant, sacrificing his love. Just like now, he was torn between, choosing his people, or his love.
"Your majesty, what will you do now? You can't provoke the people just to go in search of the queen, or they'll turn against you," Jerald reasoned.
"He's right King Carl. In my case, the reason I was able to leave Azrael, was because my queen was there to rule in my stead, unlike you. I would have suggested that you leave queen Nadia in charge, but as we all know, the people do not like her," king Alan chipped in.
Carl sighed, thinking of a way that he would go search for Zara without his people knowing, and after a while, his lip twitched into a mischievous smile, then he said, "You don't have to worry, I will not leave Everton, I will send the troops instead. It was then the people relaxed.
Jerald tilts his gaze to meet Carl. He could tell by the smile playing at the corner of Carl's lips that he was up to something. And he hoped that it was not what he was thinking. He hope that Carl was not planning to leave the palace in disguise, and his intuition was right, Carl was planning to sneak out of Everton in disguise.
...
Meanwhile, Zara rode to Everton, with Lia, Jamie, Gage the knight, and his men who offered to go with Zara to Everton, after pledging their allegiance to her.
Although Zara had blatantly refused him, he kept begging and even said, there was nothing to live for, if she didn't accept him as her knight.
The fact that Gage saved her, made it hard for Zara to refuse him, so she decided to give him a chance, even though she was suspicious of his persistence. And also because Lia and Jamie interceded on his behalf...
Once they got near the gate, Zara started to panic. she could see that many people were gathered outside the gate. 'What could be going on?' she thought.
"Zara, look there are many people outside the palace, what do we do now?... they would want to know why you went missing, and everything that happened," Lia muttered.
Zara nodded, then she said, "Then we have to tell them everything that happened. How I was sent a fake letter, and how we were abducted."
When Zara got to where the people were, it was then she noticed that Carl and her father, were also amongst them, more like in front of them. 'Could it be that this uproar is because of me?' She pondered, somehow feeling guilty that she made them worry...
On the other hand, Carl was about to make his way back inside the palace, when someone amongst the crowd noticed Zara's presence.
"It's queen Zara," the person yelled, pointing toward her direction, and everyone gasped.