Translator and Editor: Nana and Elnie
────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Chapter 33
Rose focused on the sound. She could hear a shrill cry coming from somewhere. Rose went out of the barracks carefully and listened to the sound.
The soldiers were trying to light up the fire, so they didn’t hear the sound from inside the barracks.
“Yip… Yip…”
The sound led Rose farther away to the bushes behind the barracks. Rose walked slowly, following the sound, as it became louder and louder until it disappeared under a rock.
She lowered her head and saw a black-grayish creature that looked like a puppy wriggling in a small pit under the rock. It seemed like the creature had been here for a long time, judging by how there was soil and fallen leaves on its body as it trembled.
‘Oh my goodness.’
Rose reached out and took the little thing out of the pit and held it in her arms. The creature whined for a while and squirmed further into Rose’s arms, as if it were in its mother’s embrace.
Crack!
Suddenly, the sound of broken branches from behind Rose reached her ears. Rose was surprised and turned around quickly.
“What are you doing here?”
It was Rishar, the Commander of the knights. He stumbled upon Rose walking alone behind the barracks and quickly followed along.
Rose looked down at her arms, as Rishar came closer and examined it closely and said,
“This is a wolf cub. Maybe its mother is around here.”
She peered through the bushes and looked around the rocks.
“Oh my.”
She found something a distance away from the rock and clicked her tongue.
“I think it entered the wrong area and was bitten to death by another group of wolves.”
Rishar examined the horribly bitten and dead corpse. It was unlike the usual black wolf he had seen. It was a wolf with grey fur.
“Then I have to take this wolf cub with me, or it’ll die alone.”
Rose looked down sadly at the wolf cub wriggling in her arms. With a perplexed expression, Rishar looked at Rose’s back as she went back to the barracks.
‘I’m sure His Majesty would hate it…’
***
This cute little cub. I wonder how long it has been starving.
Rose covered it with a warm blanket and gave it warm milk to heat up its body. After that, the wolf cub snuggled into her arms again. Rose didn’t even know that Maxim had entered the barracks, as she crouched down with the wolf cub in her arms.
Maxim was stunned when he saw her and laughed.
Where did she find a wolf?
What surprised him was that the girl, who acted arrogantly in front of him, was so affectionate towards the wolf cub.
“Are you bringing that home?”
Maxim threw his bow to the side and walked straight to the bed.
Rose was surprised to see him, but answered, “Yes, it doesn’t matter if I raised it anyway.”
“If it’s something you can’t take responsibility for until the end, don’t do it. Let it go right now.”
He didn’t seem interested in the poor creature. He lay down on the luxurious bed and stretched his arms as he closed his eyes. Rose glanced at Maxim, who was unsympathetic towards the creature.
“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of it.”
While she was talking to Maxim, the cub had fallen asleep in her arms. Then, Rose looked at the bed.
‘Wait, where do I sleep if he takes up all of the space!”
Maxim was lying on the spacious bed, but it was so cramped that there was no space left next to him, but she couldn’t sleep on the dirty floor either.
After some contemplation, Rose picked up the blanket and climbed onto the side of the bed.
When he heard rustling sounds, Maxim turned to the side and looked at the source of it.
She was crouching like a shrimp, close to the edge of the bed, as if there’s a transparent barrier between them. Unlike Rose, who had already fallen asleep in such an uncomfortable position, Maxim was wide awake, looking at her.
Regardless, he soon fell asleep again.
***
The forest was quiet at dawn. Someone moved swiftly around the barracks, which were full of grass and fog. He went behind the barracks where the horses were tied and carefully looked around.
The two soldiers who were guarding the place all night couldn’t overcome their sleepiness.
“That’s right. Come here.”
He stroked the brown horse’s back and gave it something.
After the horse chewed on it, he took a small bottle out of his pocket and quickly mixed the powder into the horse’s water.
“Yes, eat slowly.”
He looked around again, stroked the horse, and pulled a dagger from his thigh.
Then, he heard a yawn and quickly hid behind the bushes.
After the sun rose, Rose opened her eyes and saw that Maxim was not next to her. She thought that maybe he had gone hunting again at dawn with the knights. She took the blanket and placed it on the bed.
Jansen was already waiting for her outside the barracks, ready to leave.
“Would you like to take it for a run today?”
“Sure.”
Rose smiled broadly and climbed onto the horse.
Once she entered the castle, she didn’t know whether she could ride the horse again. Rose patted the horse, as she took her time to enjoy the ride, as it might be her last.
“Let’s hurry and catch up with the group that moved off earlier.”
Jansen and Rose sped up to join the leading group when a bird suddenly fell in front of Rose’s horse.
“Neigh!”
When the bird fell to the ground, the horse suddenly raised its two front feet with a distressed neigh.
“No!”
Before Rose could grab the reins, the horse began to run at a tremendous speed. She grasped the horse’s neck tightly.
“Aaahh!”
She felt like the ground and sky had turned upside down as everything just slid past her.
“Your Highness!”
Jansen followed at full speed from behind. The soldiers also did so, but it was not enough to catch the panicked horse. The group that was ahead of them quickly understood the situation.
Rose would be in danger if she falls off the speeding horse.
Rose clung to the horse’s neck for her dear life. She was able to avoid the branches above her head that whizzed by her like blades, but her arms started to get weak.
“Hold on to the reins!”
Maxim shouted as he caught up, riding beside Rose.
Rose trembled but she was able to wrap the reins around her wrist like he said.
The situation was getting more and more dangerous as a large log fell sideways and started rolling towards them. Even if the horse managed to overcome the obstacle, it would still be a dangerous situation for her as the horse was not in its right mind.
Rose pulled the horse’s reins with all her might.
Thump!
Her heart was beating wildly as she felt her body float in the air. Rose closed her eyes as she fell off the horse.
At that moment, Maxim stretched out his arm, wrapped it around Rose’s waist, and pulled her towards him.
As soon as Rose sat on his horse, he slowed the horse down.
“Gasp!”
Rose hugged Maxim’s neck and took a deep breath.
‘I can’t believe I’m not dead! I thought I was going to die!’
Her brown horse, which rushed toward the log, jumped, but it tripped and fell forward. The sound was loud enough to make the ground shake. The soldiers ran and checked on the horse.
“It died. There was foam in its mouth.”
“Foam?”
“Yes, and there are signs of someone deliberately damaging the reins.”
When Rose heard it, she trembled all over. It seemed like someone wanted to kill her.
Suddenly, she remembered the wolf cub and hurried to check on it. Fortunately, nothing happened to the cub. Rose breathed a sigh of relief and hugged it tightly.
‘Damn it!’
The man who was watching her from afar uttered swear words as things hadn’t gone as planned. He removed the bow on his waist. His actions were very bold but no one noticed him because they were focused on the dead horse.
The man, who was far away from the crowd, quietly drew his bow and aimed an arrow at Rose.
‘One… Two… Three…’
Just before he released the arrow, he fell from his horse, face-planting on the ground. Blood gushed out from his neck.
Soon after, the soldiers gathered around the dead man.
“This must be the guy who purposely agitated the horse.” Rishar said, pulling a dagger out from the man’s neck.
After the incident, Rishar kept looking around, convinced that the culprit was among them. When everyone was distracted by the horse, Rishar saw the man as he drew his bow. Rishar immediately threw his dagger to the man’s vital point.
“How dare you!”
Tulio saw the man and quickly spat out abusive words. It was ridiculous that the culprit was one of the soldiers who had accompanied them along. Even fellow soldiers who had never doubted him were stunned.
“Who ordered him to do this…?”
Janssen could only shake his head since the culprit was already dead. Rose looked down at the dead soldier and turned even paler than before. Maxim changed the subject to prevent Rose from seeing the dead body, and ordered Rishar,
“After we arrive at the castle, investigate him.”
Translator and Editor: Nana and Elnie
────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Chapter 33
Rose focused on the sound. She could hear a shrill cry coming from somewhere. Rose went out of the barracks carefully and listened to the sound.
The soldiers were trying to light up the fire, so they didn’t hear the sound from inside the barracks.
“Yip… Yip…”
The sound led Rose farther away to the bushes behind the barracks. Rose walked slowly, following the sound, as it became louder and louder until it disappeared under a rock.
She lowered her head and saw a black-grayish creature that looked like a puppy wriggling in a small pit under the rock. It seemed like the creature had been here for a long time, judging by how there was soil and fallen leaves on its body as it trembled.
‘Oh my goodness.’
Rose reached out and took the little thing out of the pit and held it in her arms. The creature whined for a while and squirmed further into Rose’s arms, as if it were in its mother’s embrace.
Crack!
Suddenly, the sound of broken branches from behind Rose reached her ears. Rose was surprised and turned around quickly.
“What are you doing here?”
It was Rishar, the Commander of the knights. He stumbled upon Rose walking alone behind the barracks and quickly followed along.
Rose looked down at her arms, as Rishar came closer and examined it closely and said,
“This is a wolf cub. Maybe its mother is around here.”
She peered through the bushes and looked around the rocks.
“Oh my.”
She found something a distance away from the rock and clicked her tongue.
“I think it entered the wrong area and was bitten to death by another group of wolves.”
Rishar examined the horribly bitten and dead corpse. It was unlike the usual black wolf he had seen. It was a wolf with grey fur.
“Then I have to take this wolf cub with me, or it’ll die alone.”
Rose looked down sadly at the wolf cub wriggling in her arms. With a perplexed expression, Rishar looked at Rose’s back as she went back to the barracks.
‘I’m sure His Majesty would hate it…’
***
This cute little cub. I wonder how long it has been starving.
Rose covered it with a warm blanket and gave it warm milk to heat up its body. After that, the wolf cub snuggled into her arms again. Rose didn’t even know that Maxim had entered the barracks, as she crouched down with the wolf cub in her arms.
Maxim was stunned when he saw her and laughed.
Where did she find a wolf?
What surprised him was that the girl, who acted arrogantly in front of him, was so affectionate towards the wolf cub.
“Are you bringing that home?”
Maxim threw his bow to the side and walked straight to the bed.
Rose was surprised to see him, but answered, “Yes, it doesn’t matter if I raised it anyway.”
“If it’s something you can’t take responsibility for until the end, don’t do it. Let it go right now.”
He didn’t seem interested in the poor creature. He lay down on the luxurious bed and stretched his arms as he closed his eyes. Rose glanced at Maxim, who was unsympathetic towards the creature.
“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of it.”
While she was talking to Maxim, the cub had fallen asleep in her arms. Then, Rose looked at the bed.
‘Wait, where do I sleep if he takes up all of the space!”
Maxim was lying on the spacious bed, but it was so cramped that there was no space left next to him, but she couldn’t sleep on the dirty floor either.
After some contemplation, Rose picked up the blanket and climbed onto the side of the bed.
When he heard rustling sounds, Maxim turned to the side and looked at the source of it.
She was crouching like a shrimp, close to the edge of the bed, as if there’s a transparent barrier between them. Unlike Rose, who had already fallen asleep in such an uncomfortable position, Maxim was wide awake, looking at her.
Regardless, he soon fell asleep again.
***
The forest was quiet at dawn. Someone moved swiftly around the barracks, which were full of grass and fog. He went behind the barracks where the horses were tied and carefully looked around.
The two soldiers who were guarding the place all night couldn’t overcome their sleepiness.
“That’s right. Come here.”
He stroked the brown horse’s back and gave it something.
After the horse chewed on it, he took a small bottle out of his pocket and quickly mixed the powder into the horse’s water.
“Yes, eat slowly.”
He looked around again, stroked the horse, and pulled a dagger from his thigh.
Then, he heard a yawn and quickly hid behind the bushes.
After the sun rose, Rose opened her eyes and saw that Maxim was not next to her. She thought that maybe he had gone hunting again at dawn with the knights. She took the blanket and placed it on the bed.
Jansen was already waiting for her outside the barracks, ready to leave.
“Would you like to take it for a run today?”
“Sure.”
Rose smiled broadly and climbed onto the horse.
Once she entered the castle, she didn’t know whether she could ride the horse again. Rose patted the horse, as she took her time to enjoy the ride, as it might be her last.
“Let’s hurry and catch up with the group that moved off earlier.”
Jansen and Rose sped up to join the leading group when a bird suddenly fell in front of Rose’s horse.
“Neigh!”
When the bird fell to the ground, the horse suddenly raised its two front feet with a distressed neigh.
“No!”
Before Rose could grab the reins, the horse began to run at a tremendous speed. She grasped the horse’s neck tightly.
“Aaahh!”
She felt like the ground and sky had turned upside down as everything just slid past her.
“Your Highness!”
Jansen followed at full speed from behind. The soldiers also did so, but it was not enough to catch the panicked horse. The group that was ahead of them quickly understood the situation.
Rose would be in danger if she falls off the speeding horse.
Rose clung to the horse’s neck for her dear life. She was able to avoid the branches above her head that whizzed by her like blades, but her arms started to get weak.
“Hold on to the reins!”
Maxim shouted as he caught up, riding beside Rose.
Rose trembled but she was able to wrap the reins around her wrist like he said.
The situation was getting more and more dangerous as a large log fell sideways and started rolling towards them. Even if the horse managed to overcome the obstacle, it would still be a dangerous situation for her as the horse was not in its right mind.
Rose pulled the horse’s reins with all her might.
Thump!
Her heart was beating wildly as she felt her body float in the air. Rose closed her eyes as she fell off the horse.
At that moment, Maxim stretched out his arm, wrapped it around Rose’s waist, and pulled her towards him.
As soon as Rose sat on his horse, he slowed the horse down.
“Gasp!”
Rose hugged Maxim’s neck and took a deep breath.
‘I can’t believe I’m not dead! I thought I was going to die!’
Her brown horse, which rushed toward the log, jumped, but it tripped and fell forward. The sound was loud enough to make the ground shake. The soldiers ran and checked on the horse.
“It died. There was foam in its mouth.”
“Foam?”
“Yes, and there are signs of someone deliberately damaging the reins.”
When Rose heard it, she trembled all over. It seemed like someone wanted to kill her.
Suddenly, she remembered the wolf cub and hurried to check on it. Fortunately, nothing happened to the cub. Rose breathed a sigh of relief and hugged it tightly.
‘Damn it!’
The man who was watching her from afar uttered swear words as things hadn’t gone as planned. He removed the bow on his waist. His actions were very bold but no one noticed him because they were focused on the dead horse.
The man, who was far away from the crowd, quietly drew his bow and aimed an arrow at Rose.
‘One… Two… Three…’
Just before he released the arrow, he fell from his horse, face-planting on the ground. Blood gushed out from his neck.
Soon after, the soldiers gathered around the dead man.
“This must be the guy who purposely agitated the horse.” Rishar said, pulling a dagger out from the man’s neck.
After the incident, Rishar kept looking around, convinced that the culprit was among them. When everyone was distracted by the horse, Rishar saw the man as he drew his bow. Rishar immediately threw his dagger to the man’s vital point.
“How dare you!”
Tulio saw the man and quickly spat out abusive words. It was ridiculous that the culprit was one of the soldiers who had accompanied them along. Even fellow soldiers who had never doubted him were stunned.
“Who ordered him to do this…?”
Janssen could only shake his head since the culprit was already dead. Rose looked down at the dead soldier and turned even paler than before. Maxim changed the subject to prevent Rose from seeing the dead body, and ordered Rishar,
“After we arrive at the castle, investigate him.”
