I Met You at the End of the Run - Chapter 3

As if he already thought they were family just because they had promised to be siblings, Leon’s expression kept contorting, finding it amusing how much he cared.

Come to think of it, it was the same in the prison. Leon, who was locked up, wondered how strange it was to see an unknown woman’s hand suddenly appear through a small hole. That hand would fumble for a small candle, replace it with a larger one, and disappear — this was repeated twice a week.

If he hadn’t been bound by chains even inside the prison, would she know that he had imagined wanting to put something other than a candle in that position? Moreover, he wasn’t the only one who had such thoughts. Whenever Diane left, dirty talk would continue for a good hour throughout the prison.

Sometimes, he wanted to agree with those words. No, he had even gone a step further and imagined a face to go with that hand. And today, he finally got to see her face.

‘Soon, something big will happen in the castle… If not now, there won’t be another chance.’

Looking at Diane who suddenly blurted this out, Leon thought about how poor his imagination had been.

“Don’t even think about going to the north. They say there’s trouble brewing over there.”

As if on cue, a loud boom was heard from far away. Then black smoke rose, and the sound of trumpets that started from the north spread gradually downward. It took less than a minute for it to reach the ears of those in the south.

“It’s happened after all! Everyone, grab your equipment first!”

The guard hurriedly turned around and started running towards the castle walls. Following that, boom! Bam! Loud explosions were accompanied by slight vibrations.

“Hu-hurry!”

Diane led Leon, who was blankly staring at the rising smoke. The speed at which she grabbed his wrist and ran was not much different from Leon walking a bit faster.

The place Diane headed to was a stable not far from there. As if she had scouted it out beforehand, she quickly ran and stopped in front of a huge black horse.

Without fear, she stroked the large horse’s chest and whispered something. Then, with a soft neigh, the black horse knelt down.

“You know how to ride a horse, right?”

Diane waved her hand at Leon as if beckoning him to come quickly. Leon kept letting out incredulous laughs.

This black horse was his. It was a companion he had been with for life, even naming it Muspel. It had never allowed anyone else on its back, but now it was kneeling. For a woman it had just met.

“The world’s gone mad.”

As he approached, shaking his head, Muspel even pretended not to see him.

Leon’s impression that the world had gone mad was not wrong. The booming sounds continued to grow louder as if the castle was about to collapse. Judging by the occasional gusts of wind, it seemed the distance was gradually closing.

“Who’s there!”

The time wasted in this ridiculous situation caught up with them. The stable keeper, who had returned after checking on the precious horses first, spotted the two and shouted.

At the same time, Leon lightly mounted Muspel’s back. It wasn’t difficult since the horse was already on the ground. Then he wrapped his arm around Diane’s waist, who was standing beside him, and pulled her up.

“Ah!”

With a short scream, Diane ended up sitting in front of Leon and struggled while lying face down. He should probably help her adjust her posture, but well, Leon didn’t want to, so he just spurred the horse.

The fierce wind, as they were approaching winter, was very cold, but Leon felt refreshed as if it was cooling his hot breath. He had always thought about escaping, but he didn’t know it would be today. He decided to consider the loud booming sounds as a ceremonial send-off celebrating their escape.

“Stop!”

The arched castle gate was closing. Seeing the black horse showing no signs of stopping, the gatekeeper shouted while waving a spear. However, Leon increased the speed instead. As if enjoying running after a long time, Muspel pushed off the ground strongly, almost as if taking flight.

“Catch them!!!”

They were lucky because of the incident that occurred in the north. The fact that it was a close distance from where they started also helped. Muspel passed through the gate in an instant, and fortunately, no arrows were fired.

After passing through the gate, shouts were heard from behind. It could have been someone ordering to catch people who left the castle gate without permission, or it could have been someone who had discovered what happened in the prison and was chasing after the two.

However, that was already in the past. The castle was getting farther and farther away, and hundreds of paths spread out widely before Leon. This, filled with the scent of winter, was freedom.

“Huh, aaack.”

However, the woman who grabbed his ankle brought him back to his senses. Of course, she was also the benefactor who had grabbed his ankle and managed to drag him out of the castle.

But among family members, such things aren’t considered favors.

It was just natural behavior. Well, something like that.

A natural thought. The law of nature…

“Ha, s**t.”

“Why are you suddenly cursing…! Just a bit sl-slower… Ugh.”

There was something else that was natural. Diane’s buttocks, as she lay prone, kept swinging back and forth, repeatedly hitting the front of Leon’s pants. If she had stayed still, it would have been half as bad, but because she was trying hard not to move her body, the stimulation was even more intense.

Blood kept rushing downwards, making his pants feel tight. What was he trying to do in this urgent situation?

“Hey, can’t you stay still?”

“What? Wh-what did you say…? Ah.”

They had agreed to pretend to be siblings, but she really didn’t know it was valid even when no one else was around.

Moreover, it was the first time someone had called her ‘hey’… Ah, come to think of it, it wasn’t the first time, but it was certainly a form of address she hadn’t heard in a very long time.

“Where did you get such clothes… This is driving me crazy.”

The thin piece of cloth was gradually opening up due to her prone position. The wide skirt was somewhat okay, but the tight waist area was gradually revealing bare skin as she shook in her prone state.

His first impression of her had been correct. The skin hidden beneath the old clothes was clean and fair. The contrast between her clothes and skin was so stark that it was clearly visible even as they galloped forward without stopping.

“If, if we’ve come this far, maybe we could slow down a bit…”

“Is this your first time riding a horse?”

“Y-yes!”

As though she finally heard a welcome question, she answered immediately. Diane tried to turn her head slightly to look at Leon, but finding it impossible, she buried her face back into the flying mane.

She gripped the horse’s neck with both arms, her small hands were clutching the black hair so tightly that even her knuckles turned white. Her fluttering skirt occasionally flipped upwards, and her bare legs, without stockings, flashed in and out of view.

Meanwhile, her lower back was gradually peeking out as if it was trying to see the outside world.

With a ripping sound, the undergarment tied like a bandage inside her exposed lower back suddenly became visible.

“This is really driving me crazy.”

“Why do you keep…”

Sensing that the atmosphere had somehow turned hostile, Diane’s voice came out. Due to the particularly loud wind noise, these words didn’t reach Leon’s ears.

“Don’t you dare ask me to ride a horse again.”

“…Huh?”

Was there another way besides horseback? They didn’t have money for a carriage right now… Diane, judging that he seemed angry because of her poor horse-riding skills, struggled to raise her upper body.

Leon, who had been watching this precarious scene, finally uttered a last curse and grabbed Diane’s waist as she was about to tilt sideways.

Diane gasped when she suddenly felt his hand. How did this happen? His hand had penetrated her clothes and was now resting on her stomach.

“Why are you so thin? Have you been eating properly?”

Grumbling, Leon shamelessly kneaded Diane’s waist and stomach. What did it matter? He was just trying to hold onto his sister who looked like she might fall off the horse.

His cold hand casually roamed over her hot stomach. Diane’s face turned bright red at this touch she had never experienced before.

“Ah, no, wait!”

“…Hmm.”

“Brother!”

He had no intention of listening, but the title she uttered melted his heart. It was a magical word that tickled somewhere in his chest.

“Don’t struggle unnecessarily and fall off, just lean on me.”

“How can I do th-that… Ah.”

“Should I really let go then? If you fall off the horse, not only your arms and legs, but even your head might crack open.”

“What?”