Chapter 10
10. A Dangerous Reunion (1)
……She couldn't tell how time had passed. When their lips finally parted, Liene was panting. Her lips felt tingly all over. The man's lips were wet and glistening, so hers must be too.
“I wasn’t expecting this.”
Black muttered, keeping just enough distance to move his lips and speak.
“I don’t dislike it, though. Including the dress.”
The arm that was supposedly injured was wrapped firmly around Liene's waist. Liene felt a dizzying sense of crisis and a rock-solid sense of stability at the same time.
“I think you can let go now.”
Liene pushed against Black's shoulder. She wanted to appear calm, but it was so difficult in front of him. If her legs gave out any more, she felt like she would collapse right onto his thighs.
“I’ll be going now…….”
Liene stopped mid-sentence. It was because she saw Black's eyebrows furrow.
“Oh, dear.”
Of all things, she had pushed his injured shoulder with her hand. Liene quickly pulled her hand away.
“I was flustered…… Are you alright?”
“I’m fine.”
Despite the curt reply, his eyebrows furrowed even more.
“You’re not fine.”
Liene slowly caressed the wound she had just pushed so forcefully, as if to soothe it. Blood wasn't seeping through the bandage. It didn't seem like the wound had reopened.
“Please show some sign of pain next time.”
“I didn’t realize it hurt. ……I was flustered too.”
The lips that said those words were as red and hot as they had been yesterday. Liene didn't know why, but she thought it suited the man better. That he looked better when he was heated. That she wished he would look at her with that heat. ……What on earth am I saying? Liene was frightened by her own thoughts and quickly turned her head away.
“I’ll be going now.”
She had things to do. She had to stop her fiancé before his return escalated into an uncontrollable war.
“Since you say you’re not in pain, it seems you won’t need my help with your meals either.”
For a moment, Black's expression twisted amusingly. Liene, who had turned her head away, didn't see it.
“I wish you a speedy recovery, Lord Tiwakan.”
Liene didn't wait for a reply and left Black's side. It was only after she closed the bedroom door that she realized she hadn't brought the old bandages and medicine, but it was already too late. ……It’s too late. It was too late to go back. She was already realizing that her fiancé and the man were different. She wanted to quickly dismiss the fuss her fiancé made. She had ended up soothing the wound of the man who said he wasn't in pain with her own hands. The man was already her betrothed. She couldn't escape this fact on her own. * * * There were many excuses to visit the Kleinfelter Family. First of all, Lyndon Kleinfelter, who was acting as the head of the family externally, was the Grand Elder of Nauk, and Liene could come up with dozens of reasons to meet him. Above all, she had to deliver the obituary. Her fiancé was also the captain of the royal guard of Arsac, so she had a duty to personally offer her condolences.
“Still, I am against it, Princess.”
Weroz said in a low voice to Liene, who was preparing to go out.
“A visit at this time? It’s like giving them something to be suspicious about.”
“Don’t worry about that.”
Liene turned away from the mirror. All she had to do to prepare was add a floral ornament symbolizing mourning to her hair. All that was left was to put on a black cloak over her mourning dress. Madam Flambard was bringing the cloak now.
“They already know that he’s not dead.”
“Yes? What does that…… Is that true? No, how did you know that?”
“I just had a feeling. I wondered if they had checked something before returning the body.”
The man's warning was actually quite sophisticated.
“They wouldn’t know Lord Kleinfelter’s face, so why would they think that?”
“Well…… I don’t know for sure, but wouldn’t there be a mark on the body?”
“What kind of mark on the body…… Ah, dear.”
Suddenly, Weroz's complexion changed.
“Could they have recognized the helmet’s ornament?”
“Yes? Ornament?”
“The body wearing Lord Kleinfelter’s helmet. The armor would have been plain, without any ornaments. In the Arsac royal guard, Lord Kleinfelter is the only one who wears armor with ornaments.”
“That’s a very plausible explanation.”
For barbarians, their perception was frighteningly sharp. Moreover, their leader and his right-hand man were both quick-witted. It wasn't for nothing that Tiwakan had roamed the continent as an undefeated mercenary for ten years.
“Yes…… Now that I think about it, he was careful with his words when he showed me the man’s sword. He only hinted at things and didn’t say anything directly. He probably knew even then that the dead man wasn’t the captain of the royal guard of Arsac.”
Perhaps coming with blood on his face wasn't because he was an uncivilized barbarian, but because he had deliberately intended to do so.
“Then…… How far are they planning ahead? Those people…….”
“They’re probably thinking beyond anything we can imagine. Lies are useless.”
That was also what it meant to be too late. Tiwakan had already entered the castle as her betrothed. They were no longer just Tiwakan, but the Guardian Knights of Arsac.
“Princess. Then the reason you’re visiting the Kleinfelter Family is……,”
“To tell them to run away.”
Liene said with a bitter expression.
“Does the Princess intend to abandon Lord Kleinfelter and his family?”
“That’s the only way he can live. Tiwakan has been strangely lenient so far, but he wouldn’t spare him. Besides, he shot an arrow.”
“We don’t know that for sure yet, Princess.”
“What does it matter? What’s important is that someone tried to kill Tiwakan’s leader. He’s the only one who can be held responsible.”
“The Kleinfelter Family won’t let it go.”
“Yes, they probably won’t. I’m trying to prevent that from happening. Do you want the Kleinfelter Family to fight against Tiwakan? Such a hopeless battle?”
“Hmm…….”
Weroz must have calculated it too. Kleinfelter and Tiwakan were incompatible. Considering that Tiwakan was in an absolute position of superiority, Liene's decision was wise.
“But Princess, if you do that, you’ll never be able to escape from that barbarian’s grasp. Are you fully aware of that?”
“Yes. I know.”
“Please reconsider. Once you let Lord Kleinfelter go, there’s really no turning back.”
“There’s no way to turn back.”
Liene said firmly.
“You know that too.”
“Yes, I know. But Princess…… You’re the one getting married.”
“I’ve already resigned myself to it.”
That was the problem. Despite her resignation, the man wasn't as terrible as she had expected. In this absurd marriage, the most absurd thing was herself.
“By the way, the cloak is late. I wonder if something happened to Madam Flambard?”
Liene tried to change the subject. As if on cue, Madam Flambard knocked and entered the room.
“I’ve brought the cloak, Princess…… Oh my.”
The Madam, who had just entered the room, frowned deeply when she saw Liene in front of the mirror.
“Princess? You’re not really wearing that as mourning clothes, are you?”
“Yes?”
Liene looked at her clothes in bewilderment.
“Yes. This is the only mourning dress I have. You know that too, Madam.”
“Goodness…… This was that dress?”
Madam Flambard shook her head.
“When was the last time you wore this dress? Was it about five years ago? Goodness…… It’s changed so much. Well, it can’t be helped since you’ve grown up so much in the meantime.”
This was the third time someone had pointed it out. Liene felt a newfound gratitude towards Weroz, who had never shown any interest in her clothes.
“I haven’t grown that much. I don’t think it looks too bad…….”
“Bad? It’s the opposite that’s the problem!”
“Yes?”
It was another moment of bewilderment.
“The opposite?”
“Doesn't black suit Princess Liene so well? Back then, she was still young, so I just thought she was excessively pretty and let it go, but now I can't call it mourning clothes at all. You've lost weight, and your shoulders and upper chest are so exposed. It's like a dress worn on the first night of a wedding. Sir Weroz, were you just standing by and watching this?”
Suddenly, the arrow turned towards him, and Weroz shook his head in embarrassment.
“Well, I… the Princess is so beautiful that I just assumed…”
“Tsk, tsk. Well, what would that knight know?”
Madam Flambard shook her head and stopped Liene.
“Anyway, that dress can't be called mourning clothes at all, so wear something else, Princess. I'm so worried about what those barbarians might think with their rough minds when they see this. Especially since their leader was looking at you like he wanted to swallow you whole.”
“……”
Liene's complexion turned strangely pale. Madam Flambard didn't miss it.
“You've already worn it out, haven't you?”
That was right.
“……It, it doesn't expose any skin.”
“Yes. But it reveals your figure. I think that's more of a problem.”
“……”
Liene closed her mouth at that point. She remembered Black saying he was bothered by the dress. Fermos had openly asked if she had to keep wearing it. So that's what they meant… Madam Flambard's saying it looked like a dress worn on the first night of a wedding was her being polite. If she had been more honest, she would have been much more explicit… Good heavens. What if they thought she wore it on purpose? Even knowing it was an unnecessary worry, Liene couldn't stop thinking. I was the one who… kissed him first. They wouldn't think I deliberately wore a seductive dress and acted that way too… would they? * * * Liene took off the mourning clothes that didn't look like mourning clothes. Madam Flambard had offered to alter it. Since she only had one set of mourning clothes, Liene wore the darkest dress she had, put on a cloak, and set off for the Kleinfelter Family. Even for a princess's procession, it was simple. Her escort was Weroz, as always.
“I think I see Tiwakan's people everywhere.”
Liene looked around the streets from horseback and spoke softly. Weroz nodded.
“They're still searching for the person who shot the arrow, after all.”
“……So, under that pretext, Tiwakan will learn every road in Nauk by going to every corner.”
“That's right.”
Liene smiled bitterly.
“At this point, I can believe that getting shot by that arrow was intentional. Tiwakan is taking everything from Nauk so easily because of it.”
“It would have been different if they had succeeded.”
The smile disappeared from Liene's bitter expression.
“Yes. Everyone in Nauk would have died. In the name of revenge.”
“……”
Weroz, knowing that she was right, lowered his head instead of answering. A few more gray hairs seemed to have grown next to Weroz's forehead.
“It's fortunate that Tiwakan's leader didn't die. And that he chose the gentle method of proposing marriage instead of trying to take Nauk by force.”
“Princess, that's too… friendly towards them.”
“It has to be. Fifteen days, no, now it's one day less than that. After that, Tiwakan's leader will become the co-ruler of Nauk.”
He knew it. But Weroz thought that even if he knew it in his head, it was a fact he could never get used to in his life.
“We're here.”
The Kleinfelter Family's mansion revealed its entrance. It wasn't as tall as Nauk Castle, but it was much larger and more luxurious in terms of area. The number of workers was also incomparably larger than that of Nauk Castle. Bang, bang!
“Open the gates! Princess Liene of the Arsak Family has arrived!”
Weroz knocked on the gate to announce their arrival. After a rather long and tedious wait, the workers came out and opened the gate.
