The Princess and the Pauper (Arabella and Romeo) novel Chapter 1306

"Like he's any match for us." Jack glanced over at Frank with a smirk.

If Frank hadn't pulled that sneaky move and knocked them out cold, who knew who would have come out on top?

Frank bit back the urge to give Jack a thorough pounding after hearing that.

On their way to the restaurant, Jack was utterly gobsmacked by Bard's lavish estate, his compliments spilling out one after another, much to Bard's amusement, who laughed heartily, clearly in high spirits.

Bard, still chuckling, told them to make themselves at home and take a look around before turning to Arabella, "Bella, come with me for a moment, would you?"

Arabella shot Jack a look that said 'behave yourself' before following Bard's steps.

"Bella, do you remember that a long time ago, you saved me?" he asked.

Arabella was taken aback, seemingly unable to recall the event.

"Back then, I'd heard about a place by you guys. It is full of miraculous herbs. Since a bunch of top-notch doctors couldn't do a thing for your grandparents, I decided to take a risk and have a look, hoping to find something worthwhile, so I led a group there. Even though I'd heard the place was a bit rough, I thought we'd be safe with enough hands. I didn't expect to walk into an ambush. You were the one who showed up and saved every last one of us. I didn't lose a single man."

Now it clicked for Arabella. In those times, several powerful factions dominated the area, and countless unknown groups sprouted up like mushrooms after the rain, all vying for territory and resources.

Anyone unfamiliar who stepped foot in there became a target.

Arabella had intervened when she saw her uncle's men cornered – not just out of solidarity for a fellow Solterran, but also to set an example to the other factions. Those under her protection were untouchable.

"Turns out, our paths had crossed long before," Bard said with a warm gaze, "Considering even my men couldn't stay there long, how did you manage all these years? I heard from Jack that you've been through a lot."

"It's nothing. Which young person hasn't faced hardships?"