CHAPTER 5: HERE, NOW, AND YOU (XII)
Part 108
“Princess?!”
Oh my god, something really crazy was happening. The princess and Lord Ban rode on horseback, and dozens of people followed them as if they were escorting the princess. A militia group could also be seen chasing them from a little distance away. She sneaked in and slept and now she didn’t know. She threw off her blanket and ran out of the carriage.
“Your Majesty!”
Princess Remina, who heard her voice, stopped her running horse and looked at her. Her eyes widened and her face looked surprised, then she smiled brightly, showing her teeth. It’s the first time she had seen her smile so brightly since she met her. She thought it was a tense moment, but when she saw the bright smile, she couldn’t figure out what was happening. As she stood there in confusion, the princess, who had exchanged a few words with Lord Ban, came towards her. The soldiers who came with the princess lined up around the carriage she was riding in. Lord Ban went to the front of the line, and the princess came to her side.
Everyone looked tense, but the princess was still smiling.
“Lord Ethart, your timing is amazing.”
“Huh? Princess, what are you doing here? Is this all a mess?”
“They came back nicely.”
Princess Remina, with an indecipherable answer with her smiling face, nodded her head towards her radius, and he shouted loudly:
“We will defend this place until reinforcements arrive!”
The soldiers lined up in front of them all drew their swords. Homer also stood in front of her with his back to her and drew his sword. Several of the militiamen who had blocked our carriage were quickly subdued by the men who had quarreled with them. The men who took the bookie approached Ban.
“These are members of the Capital Army’s cavalry who are being demobilized. Let’s join them!”
When Sir Ban nodded, the cavalrymen with great enthusiasm joined the ranks. As soon as a soldier climbed the castle wall and ran into a narrow alley, the militia filled the wide street and stormed in. There seemed to be less than a hundred soldiers forming a semicircle around the princess and me, but even a quick glance at the militia visible between them showed that their number was overwhelming. As they gradually narrowed the distance and a battle was imminent, the princess got off her horse and approached me. She then spoke sweetly.
“Sir, stay in the carriage. We may have to leave the castle.”
Homer nodded, and when she turned around, she saw the Count of Madeira also gesturing from inside the carriage, but she shook her head. In a truly urgent situation, no matter how physically fit you are, you can at least get on the carriage right behind you. The princess was careful not to let me see the bloody battle, but she had no intention of hiding this time. She stood next to the princess, who resolutely kept her position. The princess smiled and she held out her hand to me, and she took it. As she straightened her back and stood up straight, the princess also straightened her body to face her. The hem of her dress was wrinkled, her bun was all disheveled and her hair was falling down, but seeing her straight figure without a single movement gave me strength again. This was the world she lived in, and people who live in the same world as me risk their lives to protect her. She would not bow her head, close her eyes, or shed tears, but would look with her eyes straight open. She was scared and nervous, but she would still look straight at you. Besides, Adrian will come running towards me across the road. she won’t hang my head down, she will greet him with a smile and hug him tightly.
And then, the battle began. The tense tension quickly turned into chaos. Homer stood in front of me and swung his sword, and Sir Ban, who was at the front, cut down the militia like crazy. However, there are too many enemies. A soldier who was dealing with several people at the same time fell down bleeding, and Homer gritted his teeth and blocked his empty space. One by one, the soldiers who had firmly held their ground collapsed, breaking the entire line. It wasn’t long after the battle started, and even though I didn’t know anything, she thought it would be difficult to continue like this. The hand I held with the princess naturally gained strength. Homer turned away from the rushing sword and looked back at the princess and shouted.
“Get on the wagon! I think we need to get out.”
No. How did you come back? You have to run away again. She was so angry that tears welled up in my eyes, and cheers erupted from afar. The militiamen charging at us began to become visibly agitated. And someone shouted in astonishment.
“It’s Duke Birgo!”
That’s it. It’s Adrian. Adrian has arrived. She knew it before his name was called. In the distance, Adrian’s dark blue hair shone as he made his way through numerous militia. Although the number of militia was still overwhelmingly large, they were pushed out by the fiercely rampaging Bigor Knights. Adrian, who was first in line, had flashing red eyes that made her tremble even when I saw him. She watched the battle without turning a blind eye, as red blood splattered and screams of dying people continued for a long time.
Not only Adrian, but also Ethan, Franz, and the other knights all had grim faces and were swinging their swords as if they were venting their anger. The battle soon ended as the collapsed militia members turned their backs and began to run away without even having a chance to straighten their lines. Adrian, who had seen the fleeing militia and instructed his knights to do something, rode towards her. As the Knights of Bigor and the gathered soldiers scattered everywhere in pursuit of the fleeing militiamen, and when Tongeg’s black horse could not move forward, Adrian jumped off the horse. And he came running straight to her. It was as if the princess standing next to her couldn’t even be seen, and her red eyes were looking at her without blinking. The princess, seeing him like that, smiled and let go of her hand. She pushed my back, letting me take a step forward and walked towards Ban. Adrian stopped about two steps in front and just looked at her without saying anything flattering. His lips opened as if he wanted to say something else, but no sound came out. She was so worried that he would look like this, but what is that face? The weight has dropped to the point where her cheeks were puffy. She was even more upset because her face was an absurd color.
Last time, he appeared and surprised her, looking like a bloodied reaper, but this time, he looked lifeless like a wax doll, and tears welled up from the moment she met him.
“Adrian.”
She pressed down with swirling emotions and called his name. Tears suddenly fell from red eyes. Adrian called her name with tears welling up in his eyes.
“Damian…”
Adrian cries. He cries with bright red eyes that look painful. A person who is stronger than anyone else in Laurentine is crying loudly in front of her. As she took a step forward and extended her hand, Adrian immediately closed the distance and held her hand. Then he cupped her cheek with his other hand.
“Why is your face like this, Adrian?”
She wanted to smile, but the tears in her eyes started to fall. As her tears wet Adrian’s hands, his shoulders trembled.
“I’m sorry. Damian, I’m sorry…”
“I’m fine, don’t cry.”
Why was he crying and apologizing? She could understand without even he telling her how worried he must have been and how upset he must have been. As she hugged Adrian, he also hugged her back. Her body was shaking and she couldn’t stop crying. As he kept repeating her name and saying he was sorry in a crying voice in her ear, she patted his back and held him for a long time until his emotions subsided. After a while, he pulled away, touched her face with his trembling hands, and asked if she was okay. Tears continued to flow from the red eyes. Was there any way it could be okay? Even when she was crying like this and shivering with shame in a cold cell without being able to eat properly, it was better than this. Even when she ran away through the dark basement and when she fell into the icy water, she was better than she was now. She thought that’s better than seeing Adrian’s tears. It hurt so much, so she raised the corners of her mouth. If she cried more people would come, so she laughed. She smiled as she wiped Adrian’s cheek.
“It’s okay now. Adrian is here.”
He smiled and wiped away my tears, but tears poured down again. Still, the corners of his mouth rose, albeit faintly. He was the person who always laughs along when she laugh. This person was probably trying to smile at her with the same feelings. It wasn’t the bright smile she wanted to see, but the brilliant golden light came back to her eyes. She thought he was pretty, so she stroked his head and his faint smile became a little brighter.
* * *
Even though all the militiamen had run away and Princess Remina and Ban Gyeong were seen resolving the situation and I had escaped from his arms, Adrian continued to apologize to her.
“I’m sorry, Damien.”
“No more apologies, no more tears. Are you going to just keep crying?”
“Damian…”
“You’ll cry again later. I’ll hug you again then. But now, you have to go catch the bad guys, right?”
When she asked Adrian while wiping his face, Adrian laughed with tears at the corners of his eyes. Oh, he smiled so beautifully.
‘See, you’re prettier when you smile.’
“Damian, you really are…”
Without speaking, he smiled brightly once more. As she waited for the next words, Adrian lowered his lips to her forehead and then removed them.
“I love you, Damien.”
She was a little surprised by the sudden confession, but since the answer was predetermined, she smiled and said.
“I love you too.”
Adrian kissed her forehead once more and turned his head while holding her hand, and Ethan came over, leading his horse. Ethan’s face was just as broken as Adrian’s, and his eyes were moist as he looked at her. When she greeted him with her eyes, Ethan opened his eyes and opened his mouth. Then he lowered his head and retreated. Franz was also seen behind him. Oh my, Franz’s face was speechless too. He raised his hand in joy, but Franz bit his lower lip, lowered his face, and bowed his back. Franz, who had been bending his back for a long time, over ninety degrees, raised his head and looked as if he was going to sit down at any moment, then turned around and ran away. Franz must have been in a lot of pain, too. How frustrating must it have been to have to back down just because you were following my orders. Still, thanks to Jenny, she survived, so I’ll have to praise her later. She got on the horse with Adrian. The last time she rode it, she was scared, but she was glad to see the horse purring and poking its head as if it recognized her. After everyone entered the inner area, the princess and Lord Ban headed towards the royal palace with the soldiers. Homer was seen following the princess, but Adrian turned his horse’s head in the other direction. Is this the direction where the duke’s residence was?
“Isn’t Adrian going to the palace?”
“Yes.”
“Huh? You don’t have to go? What about those guys?”
“I’ll take Damien to the Duke’s residence, and you can go later.”
Was that so? They said they were occupying the palace, but it seemed like everyone was flocking there? Wasn’t that Sir Cale who was bowing his head towards them over there? Adrian raised his hand to Cale and made an unknown hand signal, and then turned his back on the palace. Now that Sir Cale has come out, the army has headed to the palace. Was it okay for the commander of the capital army to not go? When she turned her head and looked up at Adrian’s face, he smiled sweetly with a calm face and just tilted his head and asked her why. Well, now that she was back safely, there’s no need to be swayed by bad guys anymore. Since everyone has gone, they will be taking care of themselves. There was no way Adrian would leave the princess in a dangerous situation, so can she let go of her heart now?
‘Well then, let’s go home now.’
“Then, let’s go home. I want to go home.”
Adrian smiled and nodded his head.
Going home. At home, she could also meet Jenny! At one time, it was a road she passed every day. When she thought that the Duke was at the end of this road, she became more anxious.
“Adrian, can’t you run a little faster?”
“Your butt is going to hurt.”
“I’ll be patient.”
When she looked back at him with eager eyes, Adrian smiled and kicked his horse’s waist. Then our greenie increased his speed and started running. Not long after, the Duke’s residence appeared before her eyes.
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Translator Note:
Hello there! This is RJR. I hope you liked it <3
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