Chapter 131
Lynette stared blankly at the distant horizon.
Traveling, as it turned out, was unexpectedly dull.
Or perhaps she was simply doing it wrong.
She should have been thrilled and excited at the sight of new things, yet her heart only sank deeper instead. Maybe it was because she thought that none of this really meant anything.
Sillian handed her a small bowl. Inside was a clear soup.
“Even if you’re not hungry, it’s better to eat a little.”
When she accepted it, he then handed her some bread. It was what they had bought before leaving the village, and it still felt soft to the touch.
“Thank you.”
The man smiled faintly and sat down a short distance away.
She had thought that, being a prince, he wouldn’t be good at such things… But surprisingly, Sillian was quite adept at everything. Gathering branches and leaves to start a fire, preparing simple meals.
“We’re still near the Imperial Capital, so if we travel for half a day more, we’ll reach another village. But later, there will come a time when we’ll have to sleep outdoors.”
“It’s fine.”
Lynette took a sip of the soup, which had cooled to just the right temperature.
“We should buy a good blanket later.”
She nodded vaguely.
As she tore small pieces of bread and ate, she quietly gazed at the sunlit fields.
When she sat still like this, she kept thinking of Euphen. The more she consciously tried to stop, the more those thoughts came.
Without thinking, she raised her hand and gently grasped her pendant. It still carried warmth, almost as though it were him.
She felt Sillian’s gaze quietly resting on her. Meeting his eyes for a moment, she gave a faint smile before finishing the piece of bread in her hand.
‘I need to stop this.’
What was the point of thinking about what was already over?
Still, what she was truly grateful for was that the man beside her quietly waited for her. Back at the Imperial Castle, he had been the one to lose his temper, telling her to throw everything away and stop this foolishness. Yet now, he was helping her calmly sort through her thoughts.
Perhaps it was because there was nothing left consuming her life anymore.
Even if she thought about Euphen all day long, it no longer affected her survival. Judging from how he’d once said that, someday, it would all simply become a memory… He must have believed that time would solve everything.
‘Will it really?’
It had only been three days. Too short a time for anything to truly change. So Lynette was still floundering, lost in her own thoughts, not knowing what to do with herself.
“What should we have for dinner?”
Sillian asked casually.
Lynette thought for a moment, then shrugged.
“I want pie. Meat pie.”
“As soon as we reach the next village, I’ll find a place that makes good ones.”
He gave a short laugh.
She knew that the way he spoke so casually like this was, in its own way, his form of comfort.
Instead of letting her sink further into her emotions, he gently pulled her back to reality.
When she finished the bread and soup, he rinsed the empty bowl with some water. Then he stomped out the small fire that they used to boil it, carefully checking several times to make sure no embers remained before packing their things.
When Lynette stood, he picked up the blanket he had laid beneath her and shook it clean.
‘Come to think of it, Sillian always sits on the bare ground.’
Why was she only noticing that now? Whenever they stopped to rest, he would quietly spread the blanket for her to sit on. She had sat there without a thought, while he always sat directly on the ground.
“Is something wrong?”
Sillian tilted his head slightly with a faint smile.
“It’s nothing.”
Shaking her head, Lynette walked toward the horse tied to a nearby tree. Though she had mounted and dismounted it several times over the past three days, doing it alone was still a bit difficult.
Just as he came over to assist her, her body was suddenly shoved roughly to the side.
“Ah!”
Her back hit the ground hard, and only a beat later did she realize she had been pulled tightly into the man’s arms.
The moment she felt his weight against her, Sillian twisted his body to the side.
“Are you alright?”
His urgent voice made her blink.
“Y-yes…”
Her voice came out dazed.
What on earth had just happened? It had all happened so quickly that her mind couldn’t keep up.
As she tried to stand up, the man’s hand pressed firmly down on her shoulder, and he drew the sword from his waist.
“Keep your head down.”
Before she could even comprehend what was going on, a thwack! rang out.
When she turned her head toward the sound, she realized it was an arrow. It had struck the tree right where she had been standing just moments ago.
He must have noticed it in an instant and thrown himself toward her.
“Sillian, wha-what’s happening…?”
She barely managed to speak, her voice trembling, when another arrow flew. The sound of it slicing through the air was sharp and fast.
And this time, it wasn’t just one.
Several thuds struck in succession, arrows embedding into the ground near the horse, causing it to rear and cry out.
“Show yourself!”
Sillian stepped in front of her and shouted loudly.
But instead of revealing themselves, the attacker loosed another volley.
Deflecting several arrows, Sillian gritted his teeth and spoke quietly to her.
“Hide beneath that rock over there.”
“What about you? Wouldn’t it be better to run?”
Lynette whispered urgently, keeping her body pressed close to the ground.
The man glanced at her and gave a bitter smile.
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