"It looks like dawn will break before you get on the horse."
Thierry spat it out coldly.
Of course. I smiled broadly, frowning as if to hide my true feelings.
"I'm sorry"
"Here, I apologize," I said, rushing over to him. He coldly turned around and walked away again.
Half-resigned, I tried to move my legs quickly, telling myself to just think of it as a health run. But something felt off. The distance between him and me wasn't widening mercilessly like it had earlier.
I glanced to the side. I saw a sculpted profile as he roughly swept back his wind-ruffled hair.
The pupils, hidden and then revealed by eyelids that closed indifferently as if thinking nothing, looked like a scarlet sunset, perhaps due to the bright sunlight.
Are you perhaps taking your time out of consideration for me...?
“Move away the snow.”
However, before the idea was complete, he took the initiative and spoiled the mood.
'...Then that's right.'
I naturally turned my gaze straight ahead. He must be doing this simply because being followed from behind is annoying. I almost misunderstood his whim.
***
Standing before the majestic black horse, I did not hide my awkwardness.
"Wouldn't it be too big for me to ride?"
"It's okay because it's not the Princess's words."
"It is His Majesty's black horse. Its name is also Black Horse."
Oscar, who had been strangely quiet the whole time standing next to me, suddenly popped out and spoke with a sly grin.
"Since His Majesty never gives us names, we call each other that. Just like wolves don't have names."
"Oscar, get lost."
Thierry approached the black horse with a sullen expression and said to Oscar
"Your Majesty, are you in a bad mood? If so, why not relieve it through sparring?"
"If I could kill you, I would have said I would do it anytime."
"That isn't possible yet. There are so many fun things in the world. Isn't it too much of a waste to die already?"
I guess he got the nickname 'Mad Dog' because he talked back to Thierry without any fear.
I observed Thierry's expression, marveling at Oscar's audacity. As expected, his gaze gradually grew cold, as if he were annoyed.
"I'm sorry! I will correct it!"
Oscar slyly backed away, as if I wasn't the only one who saw it. It was a skillful response, as if he had struck and run before.
Thierry spat out coldly, as if he had expected Oscar to do so.
"Run until it's over."
"Yes!"
Oscar started running around the outer edge of the wide hunting ground without a word.
'If I'm really bad at teaching horseback riding, aren't you going to tell me to run here too?'
I looked at Oscar with a disgusted expression and shivered. The mere thought of it was so horrible that I would rather forget it immediately.
"Princess, come here."
I stood in front of the black horse with quick steps.
"Get on."
"... Yes?"
“Can’t you ride?”
Of course I can't ride it. I don't know how I'm supposed to mount a horse bigger than me.
Thierry clicked his tongue briefly at my attitude of just standing still and blinking my eyes, then strode over.
"Hiiik-!"
I couldn't help but be astonished by Thierry's strength as he grabbed my waist and lifted me up.
'What is this tremendous power?'
I sat on the horse, looking down at him with a dazed expression, then froze at the agility of him leaping right up behind me.
A body temperature that felt unusually higher than others was transmitted from the hard chest pressing against my back.
Surely we weren't going to ride together? I thought it meant I should practice alone, so I was fidgeting because I didn't know Thierry would go to such trouble.
"Foot."
"Yes, yes?"
"Take your right foot this way. Are you trying to kick me while sitting sideways?"
“Oh. Yes.”
"It looks like the Princess should pray she doesn't fall off her horse and die before participating in the hunting festival."
"Haha, go ahead and curse me." Letting out a clumsy laugh, I let go of the mane I had been trembling as I obeyed his words.
'Come to think of it, we used to say we would ride horses together to a faraway place when we were young…'
I carefully stroked the black horse's mane, crossed my right foot to the other side to sit down, and gripped the reins tightly. Then, with a short shake of the reins, the black horse began to move slowly forward.
'I don't know about far-off places, but at least we achieved the goal of riding horses together...'
I was utterly lamentable about my shallow yet steadfast affection for Thierry, which felt like I was afraid of him yet occasionally felt pity for him.
I thought it was understandable since we had gone through tough times together, but I also wondered what I was foolishly doing all by myself when Thierry would probably just remember me as a fugitive.
'Does he really think I ran away?'
I wanted to ask him directly and hear the answer. Although I had an idea based on the circumstances, I felt a desire to verify it for myself just once.
As the galloping horse picked up speed, the biting wind made my eyes sting more and more. I blinked a couple of times, then looked at Thierry's hands, each holding a rein right next to mine.
His hard, bony fingers and the back of his hand, with prominent veins, were large enough to completely cover my hand and then some. At the sight of him, which seemed to reveal him as an undeniable man, I took a deep breath as if to hide a sigh.
"Princess."
His low voice slowed the pace of his speech.
"Did you say you raised a dog?"
Huh? I opened my eyes wide at the sudden topic.
"Huh? Yes..."
"How did you raise it?"
"How do you mean... I think I just raised it when it was little..."
I answered while staring straight ahead, completely frozen and unable to even look back, when suddenly the horse came to a halt in place.
As it touched my back, my body temperature dropped, and a cold wind brushed against my throat.
Thierry, having dismounted from his horse, just stood close to my legs, as if he had no intention of letting me down.
"I found out that the Ashtad Royal Palace has never kept a dog, which I find fascinating."
Gasp, when did he even figure that out? I could feel his gaze piercing my profile, but I stubbornly kept looking straight ahead.
"I used to look after a dog that was sneaking in and out of the royal palace! That's right. That's it!"
"Aha, so you took care of him secretly?"
"Yes..."
"Do animals usually follow you?"
The emotionless voice, whose thoughts were impossible to discern, made me shiver strangely.
My heart ached, perhaps due to the lies piling up like karma, but since breaking free from this situation was the priority, I nodded slightly.
A few seconds of silence passed, followed by continued silence. I cautiously moved my eyes, trembling with anxiety.
'What on earth is wrong with you? You're making me anxious!'
He was laughing with a deflating sound, as if finding it amusing. My chin trembled slightly at that strangely eerie-looking laugh.
“Is that so?”
"..."
"There was only one person the wolf followed besides me."
I was bewildered. I wondered why he was suddenly bringing this up.
It was a terrifying topic for me to hear rumors that several people who tried to win his heart while dreaming of becoming the next Lari had died.
I lowered my eyes in anxiety and nervously fiddled with the reins.
"Lari."
However, as soon as I tried to avoid eye contact, I found myself looking at Thierry again without realizing it.
Thierry's eyes gleamed sharply, as if he were observing my reaction. I felt as though my whole body were bound by his unblinking gaze, as if determined not to miss a single movement.
For a moment, my mind went blank, and I had no idea how to react. I just instinctively parted my lips and stared at him in stunned silence, and the corners of his mouth curved languidly upward.
"Why are you so surprised? Her name is Lari."
It was clearly a smile, but it didn't look like a smile.
Faced with Thierry's cold gaze, devoid of a smile despite his expression, I slowly caught my breath and barely managed to speak.
"Well... I heard a rumor."
“What rumor?”
"I was told not to mention that name... Oops"
I was fumbling, having no more excuses to add, when suddenly his hand grabbed my waist. Startled, I grabbed his arm.
He lifted me lightly and set me down on the ground, just as he had when mounting the horse. Then, closing the distance between us, he leaned his upper body toward me.
His expression was visible even more clearly because he leaned his face close to me with his molars slightly clenched.
“Is that all?”
As if something were missing. Enough to detect a fleeting anxiety passing by.
I had dismounted from the horse steadily, but I felt a strange shaking sensation at my feet, so I unconsciously tightened my grip. Then I realized that I was still holding onto his arm.
I was startled and tried to withdraw my hand and back away, but he grabbed my hand as if he wouldn't let that happen and came right back within striking distance.
'Why on earth are you doing this?'
What answer do you want? No, more importantly, what are you doubting?
My mind was spinning furiously.
Are you perhaps suspecting that I am approaching you with ulterior motives? Since I was dragged here against my will, it seems you think I'm looking for some weakness.
'If that's really the case, it's a bit unfair...'
"In a situation where I have to be mindful of even breathing, do you think I'd be crazy enough to do something like that? Ha, how ridiculous." The more I thought about it, the more wronged I felt.
"I don't understand what you mean. I just found out while asking if there were any precautions I needed to take in front of Your Majesty. I really don't know anything!"
As my voice grew stronger, the light in his eyes went out. My tearful face was reflected in his dark, chillingly sunken pupils.
"...I can see it. It’s enough to make you look wronged."
His eyes, which had been scanning my face thoroughly, slowly drifted away.
It was Thierry who had been holding me, but he let go of my hand as if shaking it off, stepped back, and covered his face.
“Crazy guy.”
Self-deprecation was evident in the words that fell as if chewed.
I wrapped my throbbing arm around my chest as if to hug it and looked at him in silence.
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