Julian stood on a jutting rock cliff, letting the Dutch officer's uniform he had stolen from the logistics warehouse stand out sharply against the green trees. He no longer wore his painter's cap. His blonde hair, wet with dew, and his sharp blue eyes served as a beacon for the pursuers below.
"Young Master Julian! Surrender! General Friedrich only wants to bring you home safely!" a lieutenant shouted from a distance. The voice echoed in the valley, followed by the increasingly hysterical barking of tracking dogs.
Julian offered a bitter smile. "Home? To that golden prison? Tell Friedrich, I have found a more real home among the mud and the people he oppresses!"
He intentionally fired a shot into the air, then ran eastward toward a steep, rocky climbing path. He could hear the footsteps of dozens of Marechaussee soldiers lured into following his shadow. Every step he took away from the southern route was an extra second for Adrian to reach their horses.
On the other side of the forest, Adrian moved like a ghost. Silently, he slipped into the temporary Dutch logistics camp abandoned by the soldiers chasing Julian. With lightning speed, Adrian cut the tent ropes and released the cavalry horses, creating chaos at the heart of the enemy's defense.
"Just a little more, Julian... hold on just a little longer," Adrian whispered to the wind, leading two of the best horses toward their secret rendezvous point.
Julian reached a dead end—a hidden waterfall plunging into a deep ravine. He turned, facing the muzzles of the rifles now surrounding him. He felt no fear. Inside his uniform pocket, he gripped Kartika's Lurik Handkerchief.
"You are chasing a shadow," Julian said calmly as the mist began to thicken, swallowing his figure.
Just as the soldiers rushed forward, a small gunpowder explosion set by Adrian on the lower path collapsed the walkway behind Julian, creating a wall of dust and stone that separated the prince from his pursuers. In the chaos, Julian leaped toward a large overhanging tree branch, vanishing into the embrace of the forest that was now on his side.