Chapter 8

Elise had thought they would only encounter a small stream, but she was clearly mistaken. As they made their way through the forest, a lake came into view, its waters cascading down in a spectacular waterfall.

“Is the water going to be too cold for you?” Rezette Kyrstan asked, his voice as monotonous as ever.

“No, it’s fine,” Elise replied, studying his face intently. It was no different from the first time she had laid eyes on him – those emotionless eyes, that meticulous nose, that stubbornly closed mouth. She could still remember vividly the heat emanating from his muscular frame when he had held her in his arms just a few days ago, despite his generally stoic demeanor.

“Just be careful not to get any water in your wound,” he cautioned her.

“I will,” she promised, nodding obediently.

Perhaps I’ll just test one thing, Elise thought, letting her cloak slip from her shoulders and fall to the ground. It hit the earth with a soft thud.

Her dress, which she had worn when she fled from Argan, was long past its prime—stained and threadbare. But in an army made up entirely of men, there were no women’s garments to be had, so Elise was forced to don an expensive linen shirt and pants, provided for the knights.

She knew whose they were. They had to belong to this man; there would be no one else willing to part with his clothes. Unfortunately, Rezette’s clothes were far too large for her, rendering her formless and sack-like.

The man simply watched as Elise unfastened the buttons on her dress, not saying a word or even turning away. I still don’t know what he’s thinking, Elise thought to herself. The only time she had ever seen a clear emotion in those eyes was when she had boldly shrugged her shoulder at him.

What about now? As her gaze remained fixed on the deep pools of his eyes, she undid the second button, revealing her slender clavicles. By the time she had unfastened the third button, her modestly curved chest was visible, and by the fourth button, her slender waist and smooth, moonlit skin were on display. Finally, the linen shirt fell to the ground, revealing her thighs as it brushed against them and landed on top of the discarded cloak on the grassy field.

A chill ran through her naked body, causing her to shiver. She couldn’t tell if it was because of the man in front of her, who was staring at her intently without blinking, or if it was due to the still-cool night air.

He showed no reaction, but she could feel his gaze moving over her body. Everywhere his eyes lingered, goosebumps rose on her skin and her cheeks reddened.

But she had to see it through to the end. Unable to contain herself any longer, Elise reached for the undergarments that clung to her waist and hips, her arms shaking.

As she tried to pull the remaining cloth down, her hand was seized. Elise was startled, and it was only then that she realized she had been holding her breath.

“What are you doing?” Rezette asked quietly, his overly intimidating gaze fixed on her.

“I- I just want to take a bath.” Elise stuttered, startled by his sudden presence.

“The water is still cold. It’s only been three days since you caught a fever.”

“B- but I need to wash…”

“And besides,” he continued, his voice low and almost threatening, “you’re still not fully recovered. Your body needs time to heal.”

Elise felt a tightness in the pit of her stomach as she stood before the man. She tried to control the twitching of her fingertips and the nervous tingling of her toes, but the cold air and his gaze heightened her senses. She desperately wanted to cover her exposed bre*sts with her arms, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it under his intense scrutiny. It took all her effort to avoid his piercing blue eyes, which seemed to strip her bare, but Elise held her ground.

Finally, the man looked away, suppressing a groan.

“Don’t test me, Your Highness,” he said. “I’ve already told you, I can’t be of any help to you.”

Rezette’s words hung heavy in the air. A month had passed since Elise had first met him, and yet this was only the second time she had witnessed the storm brewing in his piercing blue eyes.

Her hands were enveloped by his large, warm ones as he took a deep breath and closed his eyes. “The rocks will be slippery with moss,” he warned.

Elise remained silent, unable to find the words to respond.

“We will arrive at the village with the inn tomorrow. Can you not wait just one day?” he asked.

Again, Elise said nothing.

“Even if you catch a cold again, it will be difficult to delay the schedule at my discretion this time. You understand, I’m sure. It won’t work to delay the scheduled arrival date anymore.”

It was the first time the Grand Duke Kyrstan had spoken at such length to Elise.

As she looked down at her own body, exposed before the foreign man, she couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity of it all. Here she was, the princess of Argan, standing in front of the commander of the enemy army, looking as defenseless as a prostitute.

She was selling herself like a cheap commodity, while he was an honorable knight, upholding his dignity. Neither words nor seduction worked on him. She didn’t know if she should feel relieved or despairing. After all, she hadn’t had any expectations to begin with. All she could do was resign herself to the situation.

“I’ll just wash my hands and feet,” Elise whispered, her voice breaking through the silence. Her mind was racing with the implications of Rezette’s lengthy words. He had said it would be difficult to delay the schedule at his discretion this time.

This time…

Her heart began to beat quietly. Elise returned to the campfire after washing her hands and feet in the lake, still wrapped in Rezette’s cloak.

Even after returning, she spent some time thinking about his words.

And she had a little wish that maybe, just maybe, the man would forgive her for what she would do when they arrived in Van Yela.

***

After the incident at the lake, time passed quickly. Finally, a month and a half into March, Elise arrived in the mighty kingdom of Van Yela, located in the northwest of the continent. 

As soon as the archduke’s troops crossed the drawbridge and entered the imperial castle, dark-skinned soldiers clad in exotic armor stood in their way.

“They’re from Ugel,” Ruben remarked with distaste. The Van Yela knights seemed intimidated by their presence. Ruben grabbed the reins of his horse and moved closer to Rezette. “That is Yanok Sihat, the fourth prince of Ugel,” he muttered. “I had no idea he would be coming here…”

Even Rezette’s normally stoic expression betrayed a moment of discomfort at the mention of Yanok Sihat’s name. He knew that Yanok had helped his older brother, the first prince, conquer the capital of Argan.

Van Yela had only sent reinforcements to Ugel, and the 10,000 strong army led by Rezette had dealt with Argan’s allies on the left wing. This meant that he had never met Ugel’s army, which had attacked the royal castle at the heart of Argan.

“Are you the Grand Duke of Kirstan?” Yanok Sihat grinned as he pointed his finger at Rezette. His torn lips revealed his yellow teeth. “I heard you caught the princess running away from Argan’s western border. Is that woman in that cart?” Rezette glanced back. The cart escorting the prisoners was covered with a bronze canopy, making it impossible to see inside. However, the cloth was too thin to conceal the conversations outside. 

Elise was huddled inside the cart.

Ugel’s barbarians.

The glint of a bloody sword with a single edge flickered before Elise’s eyes. Just three months ago, barbarians wielding leather armor made from the tough hides of beasts had stormed through the gates of Argan, flooding in like a tidal wave.

They had hacked down Argan’s soldiers with their wide, curved swords, leaving no mercy in their wake. The captain of the royal guard of Argan had fallen to one of these threatening blades as he tried to help Elise escape.

The barbarians had slaughtered everyone in their path, from young servants to old. It was even possible that Andrei had met his end at the edge of one of these swords.

Elise’s body shook with fear and anger as she faced the enemy on the other side of the cloth.

“I went to great lengths to enter the royal palace of Argan just to see the face of the beautiful princess, but it seems she has already been taken away. I wasn’t the one who let her go, of course. I was told that I must see her beauty before I die, so this is quite disappointing. That’s why I asked the owner of Van Yela to kindly bring her to me, carefully and respectfully.” Yanok Sihat swayed towards the cart, his words causing Rezette’s expression to crumple slightly.

“Since the diplomat of a brother country has personally captured the princess, I will graciously accept her. Was she brought here safely?”

Elise glared at the bronze canopy covering the cart, as if she wanted to tear it open. Did the command of the emperor of Van Yela to bring her body safely mean that she was to be handed over to the barbarians alive? In the end, the emperor was no different from the Ugels.

If she was handed over to the Ugels so easily, her plan would be doomed before it even began. Elise gritted her teeth as the sound of clattering footsteps grew closer.

Yes, come. It would be better if you came and laid a hand on me!

As soon as an unwelcome finger touched her body, she would activate the magic engraved on her skin. If the prince of the enemy country was to be her companion in the afterlife, it wouldn’t be so bad. If death was her fate anyway, it was the most honorable way to go.

The rough, furry fist grabbed the bronze canopy covering the cart. Cold sunlight, filtering through the wool, invaded the dark interior of the cart. As the light passed through Elise’s slender body and shoulder, illuminating her tense jaw and clenched lips, a sound of clashing armor rang out right in front of her. A careless voice followed.

“Please step back.”