There is no flower with one leaf (12)
It wasn't a slope, it was a cliff.
The water in the valley below was swirling, spewing out white foam.
I fell down a steep cliff with my horse. A dizzying sense of floating took over my whole body.
"If possible, don't get out of the carriage."
"Especially outside the capital, stick close to the little Duke. I will endure the jealousy."
Did Kalit know this would happen and warn me?
Before I could even catch my breath, a tremendous shock hit my body.
Soon, the cold water enveloped my whole body.
My body is sucked into the water and then suddenly floats up.
"Phew, slurp!"
I barely managed to get my face above the water, but there was nothing to hold onto.
The angry waters engulfed me.
My body sank down again and floated back up. The current was shaking my body as it pleased.
No matter how hard I struggled, the land just kept getting farther away. The current was too strong to swim against the current.
I was helplessly swept away by the current. No matter how hard I struggled, all I could do was stick my face above the water for a moment to catch my breath.
My body, which had been floating absentmindedly, suddenly stopped. The hem of the thin dress I was wearing as pajamas had become caught in a crevice in the rocks.
"...!"
I pulled at the dress with all my might, but it didn't work.
I'd rather take it off.
When that thought occurred to me, I didn't even have the strength left to struggle.
My limbs twitched in an instinctive search for oxygen.
I went back in time and ended up drowning. Even in the midst of all this, I found myself laughing.
Why did God send me back? If it was going to be like this, why didn't He just let me die? At least it would be less painful than burning to death in hell.
'I wanted to find my benefactor...'
Something slipped out of my arms and floated up. It was the handkerchief that Chevio had given me.
No.
I gathered all my strength and reached out for the handkerchief, but I couldn't even touch the tip. I looked up listlessly at the handkerchief rising toward the surface of the water.
'I decided to return it, but...'
The lukewarm tears melted into the cold water.
"I want to go on a trip with my youngest sister too..."
"Come back on time. If you're late, you'll get in trouble with me."
"Have a nice trip."
I left the food my father gave me for our last dinner. I shouldn't have. I should have held back and eaten it all, no matter how full I was.
I should have told my brother that we should definitely go on a trip together next time. I shouldn't have whined at my big brother for treating me like a child.
Everything was just regrettable.
'I want to live."
My consciousness began to cloud over. It was really the end, that's what I thought.
Something grabbed my wrist tightly.
This is Ian.
He tore my dress without hesitation.
My body, which had been motionless, suddenly rose up. Soon, a firm embrace wrapped around me.
Ian was holding me and swimming towards the surface.
***
"Millenia!"
Ian jumped off the white horse.
But Millenia could not be held back. She was already falling off the cliff.
The black horse fell first with a huge splash, followed by Millenia.
Ian, having confirmed the location, immediately threw himself down.
Plop!
A large body was thrust like an arrow into the violently swirling water. Ian, who was sucked into the water, jumped out of the water a moment later.
The stream had swollen to the brim due to heavy rain. The flow was also unusual.
Could Millenia swim in such rough waters?
Impossible. Millennia would have been swept away.
Fortunately, it was sunrise time and the sky was getting brighter. He could see the white face of Millenia floating down the valley.
"Millenia!"
His screams were drowned out by the thunderous sound of the water. Millenia's face, briefly visible, sank into the water.
Ian immediately stretched out his arm and parted the water.
He reached the point where he could see Millenia in an instant, took a deep breath, and dove deep into the water.
Could she have been swept away further?
Even though Ian dived to the edge where light could reach, he couldn't find Millenia.
Just as he was about to rise towards the surface, something gray floated up from below.
lan snatched it up.
Handkerchief...
It was a lucky charm that Chevio gave to Millenia.
The moment Ian saw it, he was sure that Millenia was somewhere there.
'Where?'
As he was waving his arms vigorously to turn his body, something caught his eye.
A particularly white light shines in water where dust has risen. It's a hand.
Millenia was floating like a doll, her clothes caught in a crevice between the rocks.
Her pale face was ominously still. Her long hair flowed and wrapped around her as if it were alive. Ian cut through the water with all his might. Millenia's hand finally reached the tip of his outstretched fingers.
As he tore the dress she was wearing, a slender body rose up with a thud.
Ian pulled Millenia out of the water.
"Millenia, come to your senses, please."
He laid her down on the floor and breathed into her through his mouth.
After several breaths and chest compressions, at one point Millenia spat out water and started coughing violently.
Ian quickly covered Millenia's face.
"Are you okay?"
"Yes, yes. Cough."
Ian gently rubbed Millenia's dry back. Fortunately, her cough subsided, but her condition did not improve.
Millenia, dressed in a thin chemise, was shivering pitifully. Her lips were blue and goosebumps were all over her cheeks.
"Are you cold?"
"A little, a little, a little..."
Ian hugged Millenia and rubbed her back quickly. But Millenia's trembling did not stop.
"This can't go on. I need to find a place to rest."
As they continued down the valley, this must be the downstream area he have already ordered his men to depart as soon as dawn breaks.
Here, the family's mountain lodge was closer. They would arrive before the knights who had to cross the mountain.
Ian sat with his back to Millenia, recalling the location of the lodge at the end of a long stream.
"Please get up."
Fortunately, Millenia knew that she was not in a condition to walk.
She whispered softly as she rode quietly on Ian's back.
"...Sorry."
"I'll go to the mountain lodge. It's closer to here than the campsite."
"Do you know the way?"
"Yes."
Ian started walking downstream.
"If you feel even the slightest bit strange, you must tell me."
"Don't worry. I'm not that weak."
He laughed at the sharp voice.
"There was a time when Chevio appeared in a corpse."
"Is it so?"
"If a kid who is always cheerful during class suddenly becomes gloomy, there is only one reason. There is something wrong with the youngest sister who he is loved and cared for."
"No way."
"So I asked him, and he said the youngest was sick. He said she had a cold. Even though it was the middle of summer."
"Ah. I tend to catch colds more easily in the summer than in the winter. In the winter, Nadia wraps me up really tightly."
"He said the same thing. So I said. 'Why are you making such a big deal out of a cold?'"
"So what happened?"
"I got hit once."
"What do you know to say something like that? If our youngest gets a cold even once, it turns into pneumonia!"
"Have you ever seen someone who can't eat because they're coughing? Did you see that little kid coughing so hard she can't breathe and faint?"
It was only then that Ian realized that Millenia was weak. This was also the reason why the family was so protective of the youngest.
"There aren't many people in our territory who catch colds. So we took it lightly."
"..."
"Are you listening?"
There was no answer from Millenia.
Did you fall asleep?
Ian, who had been absentmindedly thinking, opened his eyes wide. The body temperature he could feel on his back was so hot.
He put Millenia down in the bushes and checked her temperature. Her forehead was boiling like a fireball.
Ian gently patted her cheek.
"Young Lady? Young Lady!"
Her head shook limply and then dropped. Ian's voice became urgent.
"Millenia!"
In the end, Millenia did not answer.
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