Chapter 101
I gathered a little more courage as the horse seemed quite gentle before sweeping the bridge of its nose.
“Hi.”
As if answering my words, the horse whined softly.
“Now that it’s your horse, why don’t you give it a name?”
Name… Come to think of it, Declan’s horse was also named Carl. Which one would be good?
“…Ari.”
It was like a younger sibling, and it was easy to call.
“Ari, please take good care of me.”
As I finished my words, the horse rubbed the back of its nose against my hand softly as if it knew that it was its name.
“It tickles.”
I burst out a chuckle, feeling like I wanted to laugh for some reason.
“Since you like it, it’s worth preparing.”
“Thank you… thank you for giving me such a wonderful gift.”
When I smiled and kissed his cheek, Declan’s eyes widened slightly as though he wasn’t expecting it.
“Now, shall we start by getting on the horse?”
Soon, He started teaching me how to get into the saddle. When I was a soul, I didn’t know because my body moved as I thought though it wasn’t easy to get on a horse.
“Haa, I didn’t know it would be this hard to get on.”
After several challenges, I eventually got on the horse while wiping the sweat from my forehead when I heard Declan’s laughter.
“It’ll be fine once you get used to it, or I can lift you up every time.”
Even though I was tempted, I shook my head. It was because I couldn’t ask for help from him every single time.
“It’s okay. I can’t say I want to learn to ride a horse if I can’t even ride it.”
Declan showed regret but did not offer any more.
“You have to keep your back straight and your gaze forward.”
As he slowly began to lead the horse, I naturally became nervous and he went on, “You can’t put too much pressure on your legs. If you’re nervous, the horse will be nervous as well.”
“But, it looks like I’m about to fall…”
“Don’t worry about it. As long as I’m by your side, that won’t happen.”
The confident words eased the nervousness a little.
“When can I run?”
“Not yet.”
…He meant don’t even dream about it.
‘I want to feel the wind, too.’
Remembering the feeling when I rode with Declan in the past, I couldn’t help but feel more sorry. At the same time, Declan stopped walking as I unknowingly sighed.
“Well, since you’ve learned the basic posture, shall we go to the lake after this class?”
My eyes lit up with anticipation, and I smiled brightly.
“Lean on me. Otherwise, you won’t be able to wake up tomorrow.”
In an instant, Declan, who climbed behind my back, made me lean. As soon as his skin touched me, a heavy yet cool scent hit me.
“I wanted to hold you like this even then, but I couldn’t.”
He wrapped his arms around my waist and gripped the reins with his other hand.
“I like it better now than then because I can feel it.”
Declan seemed to be of the same mind, and his arms wrapped around my waist tightened.
“I’ll speed it up little by little. So, if you feel uncomfortable, just tell me anytime.”
When I nodded at his words, the horse, which had been walking slowly, soon began to speed up little by little. At first, I was afraid of the speed, although I calmly closed my eyes and stretched out one arm to the side.
“Is it okay?”
A low voice came from above his head.
I nodded and opened my eyes, and the green trees quickly passed by. While enjoying the feeling of my chest being opened, a familiar lake came into view.
“It’s not the first time you’ve seen it.”
As I moved my butt as if I wanted to run at any moment, Declan spurred the horse and let out a laugh.
“It’s the first time since I’ve become a human.”
As soon as I got off the horse, I was soaked with emotion and dipped my hand in the lake and looked back at the scenery.
“Now, our memories will be engraved here.”
The place where I confessed to him about my past life and the place where I first rode a horse after becoming a human.
“…Right. It has now become a place where our memories are kept.”
Enjoying the warmth that wrapped around me, I sank into his broad chest deeply.
“It is a very pretty place.”
“Not as much as you.”
The moment I thought I was about to fall into the approaching eyes, his hot lips met mine.
“Your Excellency, this is really inadequate.”
Duke Otien stared blankly at Marquis Berchen, who expressed his dissatisfaction.
“What do you mean by that to someone who is already dizzy?”
At that moment, Count Noike glanced at Duke Otien and dissuaded the Marquis.
“No, this is something I have to say. Now, is this something you all know about?”
The nobles gathered together did not dispute the Marquis’ words even though they were wary of Duke Otien.
Watching them like that, Duke Otien twisted his mouth. The chess piece he had been working with difficulty had something wrong, so he could not afford to lose his precious limbs and was almost cornered.
‘I thought he was clever, but it turns out he was this stupid.’
He should have asked Salihan to deal with it when Salihan wanted to throw it away. How much was the loss now because of a girl blinded by jealousy?
“How could you hold hands with Princess Tierra without saying a word?”
“Why do I have to report to you one by one?”
“What?”
Marquis Berchen flinched at the cold tone.
“Your Excellency, don’t be angry. It’s because you give us a chance to help and lend our strength, so it’s a bit sad.”
Count Noike interjected with a big smile.
“Yes, that’s right. Aren’t we comrades on the same boat?”
“Anyway, we’re in a bit of trouble because of Princess Tiera.”
Soon, the Count opened his mouth while secretly looking at the Duke.
“Ah, I’m sorry about Salihan.”
When Duke Otien noticed his intentions and mentioned his name, the Count’s eyes widened as expected.
“Don’t talk like that. My son has caused great harm to His Excellency.”
“No, everyone here knows how loyal he is.”
“That loyalty was too much. I apologize.”
Count Noike lowered his head slowly.
“Don’t worry, I’ll try to save you as much as possible.”
“Thank you, Your Excellency.”
Significant glances passed between Count Noike and Duke Otien, who raised his head.
“And, Marquis Berchen…”
“Oh, yes. Yes.”
The Marquis responded in surprise at Duke Otien’s call. Unlike before, it seemed that the Duke’s tone softened.
“Don’t be too sad. The Princess was just a chess piece trying to shake the Emperor.”
Soon after, he moved his gaze to Marquis Berchen and added his words.
“Isn’t your precious daughter different from that vulgar girl?”
“I don’t know what to do because you think so highly of my lacking daughter.”
He trembled in humility, unable to hide his greedy eyes.
It was a greeting that was impatient to raise his daughter to the empress. While the Marquis sometimes climbed up without knowing his place, he was a good person to use because of his greed.
“Pardon me, didn’t another woman already occupy the seat next to the Emperor?”
Yes, that was the problem.
Duke Otien frowned at the words that stabbed him to the core.
“The engagement was unexpected.”
“That’s right. The Emperor who said he would never marry has changed so much.”
“Looks like we’re the only ones who didn’t know. It’s like getting hit in the back of the head.”
The gathered nobles each expressed their dissatisfaction.
“Still, the Emperor leaving us out makes sense. Did you see that face?”
“For a moment, I thought he might be crazy.”
“If she weren’t the Savior, I would have thought he was possessed by a witch.”
They were still perplexed, thinking of Erica, who looked just like the Emperor’s doll.
“So, it’s a big problem… He’ll never look at another woman.”
When someone let out a sigh, a shadow fell on everyone else’s face.
“The bigger problem is that the woman is the savior.”
“Besides, she can use divine power, right?”
“If this happens, the power of the temple will grow day by day.”
“The power of the Emperor with the temple on his back will be strengthened.”
Duke Otien, who had been quietly listening to the stories, rested his chin.
The Emperor’s engagement…
This was one of the things that bothered him right now. He never thought the kid was plotting something like this behind the scenes.
Even though he was suspicious from the time he suddenly went undercover, in the end, Duke Otien was one step behind. He tried so hard to weaken the imperial authority, so what kind of development was this?
‘Besides that Savior…’
Did it make sense that a face identical to the doll existed in this world?
“What the hell happened in the Great Temple?”
Annoyance came again to the hole that could not be filled.
“It’s not too late. We need to stop him before he officially gets married.”
Marquis Berchen showed impatience.
“How are you going to stop it? She is the savior who is called the representative of God.”
“If you touch her wrong, the whole temple will rise like a swarm of bees.”
The nobles each expressed their concerns and clicked their tongues.
“If we lose the position of empress like this, our position will diminish, so are you just going to watch?”
Marquis Berchen hit the table and expressed frustration. Nevertheless, it was a situation that could not be rushed.
“No matter how great her divine power is, it must be far from enough to protect herself.”
The eyes of those gathered shone when they heard of Duke Otien’s words.
“Still, it seemed like she could do most magic.”
“The only way is to form an alliance.”
There was raw emotion in the corner of his mouth that was raised crookedly as he continued, “The Emperor has a lot of alliances. Isn’t everyone aiming for this opportunity to raise a fiancée?”
Those who understood his meaning swallowed a gulp at those words.
“Marquis Berchen, how about taking the lead in this matter?”
“M- me?”
“Yes. It only makes sense for the owner of the position of the empress to be your daughter.”
“Of, of course. Leave it to me.”
He quickly took the bait with the promise to guarantee his daughter’s position as empress.
“I’m looking forward to it.”
“I will never disappoint you.”
Duke Otien nodded his head and smiled contentedly. Her appearance, identical to that of the princess’ doll, may rather be an opportunity.
‘If I take care of that woman, the Emperor will go crazy.’
Returning to his office, Duke Otien spat out in a small voice towards an empty space.
“Han.”
At his call, a masked man appeared.
“Find a way to get Salihan out.”
“Understood.”
“And look at the dynamics of the Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Jemina and report it.”
Finishing his words, the masked man, with his head lowered, disappeared again. Although he entrusted the work to Marquis Berchen, he couldn’t just trust it anymore…
Before the temple started in earnest, an incident was needed to break down the imperial authority.
“It’s probably the only way left.”
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