If You’re Being Held Hostage, Wiggle the Carrot! - Chapter 123 - The Snake's Coil

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“Shall we go then?”

Ivan extended a hand to Ruby. She looked up at him with curious eyes. His silver gaze seemed to silently urge her to take his hand and step up.

To think that the first carriage ride of her life would be in something so luxurious and grand.

With a fluttering heart, Ruby took his hand. The interior of the carriage was cozy and comfortable like a little private world of its own.

As Ivan climbed into the carriage behind her, Liam closed the door. As the carriage pulled away, Ruby locked eyes with Isabelle, who stood outside.

The sight of the young woman biting her lip in frustration made Ruby shift uncomfortably in her seat. But then, something beyond the siblings caught her eye — a spirit, quietly standing behind them.

It seemed to have approached only after Ruby had disappeared from view. The spirit gently embraced Alex and caressed Isabelle’s cheek with a tender gesture.

It was immediately clear from her appearance that she was their mother. The resemblance to Isabelle was striking.

But as the spirit turned to look directly at Ruby, her expression soured.

Her gaze was cold, disdainful, like she was looking down on something lowly and unwanted. Ruby swallowed hard.

“Is the seat uncomfortable?”

“…No?”

“Then why the grim face?”

“It’s nothing.”

She wanted to ask about the Morado siblings’ mother, but she kept her mouth shut. There was no reason to bring Isabelle up to him, especially not now.

Instead, Ruby turned her attention outside, letting her thoughts wander. Come to think of it, this was her first time stepping outside the ducal estate.

Not just that., it was also her first time seeing a place beyond her own village. Enthralled, she leaned closer to the small window, her eyes spellbound as she watched the passing scenery.

Ivan watched her with a soft smile tugging at his lips.

“Is it really that interesting?”

Still lost in the sights, Ruby nodded absently.

“The rooftops look really strange.”

“They’re designed that way so snow doesn’t pile up easily.”

“Ah, so that’s why the slope is so steep?”

“That’s right.”

But it wasn’t just the rooftops that differed from her village. Everything felt foreign — the bricks, the shapes of the window frames, even the way the houses lined up.

And like the ducal estate, most of the people here were wolfkin.

For the first time, it truly hit Ruby: she was in someone else’s territory.

The realization, oddly delayed until now, struck her with quiet awe… and a faint ache. It reminded her of her kin.

Her family was probably in some unfamiliar, terrifying place right now. Unlike her, they wouldn’t be gazing out a window in wonder. They’d be trembling in fear, not knowing what would happen to them next.

Ivan, watching her expression shift from wonder to worry, understood instantly what weighed on her mind.

His silver eyes dimmed slightly. He needed to find the Pink Rabbit Tribe as soon as possible.

But the thought of finding them also meant something else. Once they were found, she might leave. That bold little rabbit, so full of spirit and unpredictability, might vanish from his side.

And the thought of that left a quiet, sinking feeling in his chest.

The carriage came to a smooth stop near the heart of the bustling town, not far from the ducal estate.

“We’ve arrived, my lord!” announced Liam from outside.

Typically, a full tour of the domain took several days. But given Ivan’s current circumstances and the necessity of bringing Ruby along, he had opted to visit only the key areas that could be covered in a single day.

He stepped down from the carriage first and turned, offering his hand. Ruby glanced at the hand extended toward her — twice the size of hers, rough and solid — then quietly placed her fingers into his and let him help her down.

One by one, the noisy and busy passersby in the area began to pause, their attention drawn toward her. And Ruby, who had never stepped into another town before, suddenly became very aware of how foreign she must seem to them.