I took a moment to calm my bewildered heart and relax my tense body. To avoid any misunderstanding that I might reject him, I closed my eyes quietly.
“Mmm…”
As I accepted him, Ares’s forceful advances softened slightly. He released his tight grip around my arms that had almost hurt me, and instead, he wrapped his arms around me from behind, pulling me firmly into his embrace.
His warm and soft touch continuously enveloped my tongue. Our lips pressed tightly together, mixing our hot breaths seamlessly. Whether it was because of the difficulty in breathing or because I was intoxicated by Ares’s scent, my mind became hazy and blurred.
I stopped any small movements and simply surrendered myself completely to Ares. He relentlessly kissed and explored my vulnerably open self.
Though it seemed like he was holding me close, in reality, he was clinging to me. I couldn’t understand why Ares, who lacked nothing, was doing this to me, why he was making me sad.
Eventually, his lips gradually parted from mine. However, his arms around me didn’t loosen, so I remained trapped in his embrace.
I didn’t open my eyes as I tried to clear my clouded mind. In my ears, I heard Ares’s subdued voice.
“Look at me, Bianca.”
“…”
I quietly opened my eyes and looked at him.
In his eyes, I saw sadness, anger, and even a hint of despair. Ares, who revealed his emotions so easily, was not someone who did this lightly.
He spoke hoarsely, almost choking on his words.
“Don’t leave me. Don’t go.”
Inside, I wanted to scream instead.
Those were the exact words I wanted to say to Ares. I wanted to cry out to him not to leave me, not to go to Leia!
But I suppressed the urge to burst out.
In the world we lived in, in this novel’s setting, we couldn’t defy the author’s plot. Someday, when he left for Leia, I hoped he would remember that I had asked him not to leave, so I wouldn’t feel guilty later.
It wasn’t his choice to leave. It was predetermined that he would leave. I kept repeating this to myself.
Instead, I decided to say the only thing I could say with certainty to him.
“I won’t leave you, Ares.”
“…”
“I mean it. I promise. No matter what happens, I won’t abandon you.”
“But why did you look like you were about to leave? It seemed like you were going to disappear, leaving everything behind!”
Ares said to me in a fading voice. His eyes were slightly reddened around the edges.
I didn’t know how long he had been awake, watching me lost in thought, but he seemed anxious seeing me lost in my thoughts. I tried my best to reassure Ares.
“It was just my mood. Why would I suddenly disappear? Maybe you misread my expression while I was half-asleep.”
“…”
“How long have we been together? Why would I start thinking like that already? Ares, trust me.”
It seems I should practice maintaining a more sophisticated poker face. It was becoming too risky to continue revealing my true feelings to Ares.
Ares seemed somewhat relieved by my earnest persuasion.
“…Alright. I trust you.”
He let out a deep sigh and added with a weak smile,
“Lately, I don’t know what’s gotten into me. Even though you’re clearly right here by my side, I keep feeling strange. Just thinking about it makes me anxious. I don’t know why…”
I swallowed my breath inwardly as I listened to him.
Was he sensing something as the protagonist of this world? Unconsciously feeling some warning that this world was throwing, whispering love with someone who wasn’t destined, rather than with me?
I looked at him silently with a smileless face and spoke.
“Nothing in this world is eternal. Even though we love each other like this now, it will change someday.”
Ares nodded firmly at my words.
“Even if everything else changes, I won’t.”
“…”
Protagonists in novels often love as if it will last forever, only to reach an ending.
However, what if there’s an epilogue in the novel? In my opinion, we probably won’t love each other as passionately as we did at first. Bean pods have a way of shedding, and ultimately, what lasts till the end isn’t love but trust.
So, to conclude, it means I don’t believe Ares’s words.
Of course, right now Ares probably isn’t even considering that he’s destined to leave me, but won’t the moment of realization of destiny come unexpectedly one day? If suddenly he develops special feelings for Leia, it wouldn’t be surprising. Isn’t that how protagonists always fall in love in romance novels?
As I remained silent, Ares’s expression clouded slightly.
“I really mean it. I can promise I won’t change.”
“For now, I’ll say the same. But none of us can predict what the future holds.”
“People in the world say that, but I’m different.”
His stance was very stubborn. I reluctantly decided to pretend to agree with him for now.
“…Alright. I’ll trust you.”
It was a bit bewildering that Ares, who knows enough about the world, still stubbornly believed in such fairy tale-like things. However, considering that Ares himself is the protagonist of the novel, I could understand it in a way.
Despite my response, Ares hesitated for a while, unable to release his arms that held me. Only after I gently coaxed him did he reluctantly let me go.
We remained silent like that for a while.
Feeling the awkward silence, I felt the need to change the submerged atmosphere.
“Ares.”
As I called him, he quietly met my gaze in response. I smiled broadly at him and asked casually,
“What do your parents think of me? I’m curious how they reacted when you first told them about us dating.”
At that, Ares’ lips curled up subtly. He chuckled as he replied,
“They really like you. As soon as they heard, they started joking about ‘future daughter-in-law.'”
My heart fluttered, but I didn’t forget to smile shyly.
“Already? You’re ahead of the game.”
“Haha…”
Ares’ laughter seemed a bit forced, probably because he found it awkward to say such things.
“Well. Soon, I should greet the Duke and Duchess, right? You’ve already met my parents.”
“Whenever you’re ready to come, I’m okay with it. I’ll adjust my parents’ schedule.”
“Adjusting the Duke’s schedule… I think it’s better if I visit when both of them are at the mansion.”
Ares finally smiled brightly.
“Whenever you want to come is fine with me.”
Meanwhile, I grimaced slightly.
No, that’s not the answer I was looking for! How can I, just a 20-year-old viscountess, ask the Duchess to adjust her schedule for me! It would be better if I simply said we should visit when your mother is at home and comfortable.
“Ares. If I’m to properly meet the Duke and Duchess, it’s better to visit when both of them are naturally at the mansion.”
“Oh my, do I really have to teach Ares everything?”
But Ares’ response was even more baffling.
“Of course, according to protocol, that would be the correct way to do it, but both my parents and I want to treat you with as much respect.”
I cut in calmly, with a pretty smile.
“I don’t think we’re that close yet. So please, help me understand my position so that I can show proper respect.”
Ares, his shoulders slumping, finally nodded.
“…Alright. I’ll ask my parents and let you know in a letter.”
Hmm. It seemed Ares was a bit insensitive when it came to being seen as his parents’ first son’s lover.
Well, when he met my parents, it wasn’t a formal greeting, but a surprise meeting for a date, so maybe that’s why.
…Or perhaps, has Ares also been influenced by Leia?
Given how closely they’ve been together, it’s possible they’ve unknowingly influenced each other’s personalities. However, if the issue lies in Ares learning Leia’s free-spiritedness rather than Leia adopting Ares’s formality, then that could indeed be problematic.
We spent quite a while on the mountain. Despite it being midday, we considered heading back to our spot, mindful that it gets dark quickly in the mountains.
“If we want to get back home before it gets too dark, it’s best to leave now,” Ares suggested.
I agreed. Soon, we packed up and mounted our horses.
It was quiet both on the way up and on the way down. The only sounds were the rustling of leaves in the wind; otherwise, the forest was eerily silent.
The silence didn’t sit well with me. I purposely spoke up to Ares.
“It seems like not many people come around here.”
Ares replied with a light-hearted tone.
“It’s a beautiful place, but everyone tends to gather towards the valley. Still, it feels nice to think I’m the only one who knows about this place.”
“Hehe…”
I tried to lighten the mood with Ares, but despite our efforts, it remained unnervingly quiet. Unlike the ascent, even the sound of birds was absent, which made me more tense. Now, even the wind sounded harsh.
How much farther down had we gone? Suddenly, I felt a chill down my spine.
There was something ahead!
I quickly tried to stop my horse. But at that moment, just as my horse took another step forward, it seemed to stumble on something and lurched forward uncontrollably!
“Ah!”
“Bianca!”
Ares shouted from behind me, but I was already screaming as I fell off the horse.
Instinctively, I executed a practiced fall to the side.
How fortunate it was that I had diligently attended riding lessons! Among the things I had learned was how to safely dismount from a horse. Thankfully, I landed relatively unscathed, despite the fall!
As Ares jumped off his horse and rushed towards me, 5-6 figures emerged from among the trees in the forest.
“!”
“Are they robbers?”
While I sat stunned on the ground, forgetting about the horse, Ares muttered with an eerily cold tone.
Although it was a popular spot for hikers, remote areas like this always posed such risks. It appeared they had clandestinely set up traps upon seeing us climbing the mountain.
Ares calmly pulled out a handgun from his holster. His cool demeanor seemed to naturally calm me down as well. With this composure, I could assess the situation calmly.
There were a total of six robbers. All of them were armed with knives and similar weapons, but none had firearms like Ares. As I sat on the ground, stunned, I finally noticed a faint string-like object in front of me. It seemed my horse had stumbled upon that string. My ankle felt as if it were broken, and I lay on the ground, groaning in pain.
“Ugh…”
I groaned softly as I struggled to stand up. Ares pulled me close to his side.
With Ares brandishing his gun and us surrounded by armed robbers, a suffocating silence filled the air.
My heart pounded as I faced a situation I had never experienced before. But I knew that panicking here would only make things worse, so I desperately tried to calm my breathing and remain composed.
Unlike my scattered thoughts, Ares remained consistently calm. He kept his mouth shut firmly, his hand on the gun ready to pull the trigger at any moment, showing no sign of shaking.
