The man had prepared a horse in advance and rode off endlessly with Hinael.

On the horse, she was completely subdued by the man, making it hard to resist.

She desperately wished to go slowly…

The passing scenery felt so merciless.

Knowing she could only wait for morning with her hands tied was frustrating.

If it was Kailo’s doing, he must have targeted Lutz, so Lutz would definitely take action. That was the only thing she could rely on at the moment.

Hinael trusted him as a prince of the empire and an experienced knight.

Despite having all her senses heightened to the point of goosebumps, she couldn’t stay awake due to exhaustion.

Hinael dozed off on the horse and then startled awake, trying to grasp her surroundings. Unless they were heading to the capital of Sarr, everywhere else was unfamiliar to her, but she felt she would die of fear if she didn’t try.

The horse carrying them continued to gallop long after dawn.

‘Are we heading north?’

The weather was too cold.

Compared to the summer weather in Sarr, the northern territory of Trycas was hit by a cold wind even with a slight ascent. Moreover, she was only wearing a negligee.

If it weren’t for the man holding her tightly from behind, she thought she might freeze to death.

Fortunately, the clouds covering the sky cleared, and the morning sunlight peeked through the thick foliage of the seven-leaf trees.

As the faint warmth seeped in, the biting cold seemed to subside a little. But the lingering fatigue spread through her body again, making her drowsy.

How long had they traveled?

Hinael, who had been dozing like a sick chicken, was startled awake by an annoying hand slapping her arm.

“Get down.”

“Where… is this?”

“Ask him.”

The man spoke curtly, then jumped off the horse and grabbed Hinael’s waist.

Dazed, she got off the horse and shivered violently. Snow was piled up to her ankles.

This place was truly in the middle of winter. The snow touching her bare feet felt like it was freezing her entire body.

“Follow me.”

Fog surrounded them, making everything look blurry.

Though she wanted to run away into the fog, she had no choice but to follow the man because getting lost would mean no way out.

Crunch, crunch, she walked on the snow, observing the scenery. The branches, the ground, and the low bushes were all covered in snow.

‘This must be a region north of Dwen, right?’

It was so cold that her bones seemed to freeze, so it still seemed to be Trycas.

By now, she could guess who was behind this.

‘Kailo Viant. I don’t know if you will become a match for His Highness the Second Prince, but you better do it moderately.’

Lutz was someone who would become the emperor. I don’t think he rose to that position without any foundation.

If he had overpowered the Third Prince, who was backed by the Empress and her forces, it must have been achieved by skill, not luck. Compared to Lutz, the Third Prince was an amateur.

Hinael trusted only Lutz and stepped forward.

However, her expectation that they would enter a remote place was quickly shattered.

Had they walked about 50 steps? The man suddenly stopped.

Fortunately, the fog quickly cleared. Looking up at the sky, the sun, which had been hidden behind low clouds, reappeared.

Hinael lowered her head and stared straight ahead.

It was at that moment. Hinael’s body began to stiffen.

Her blue eyes trembled violently.

“This, this place…”

Familiar.

Eerily familiar.

The wind brushing her skin, the cold air filling her lungs with every breath, the dazzling white snowfield.

‘Ah, no! This can’t be happening!’

It was the very place where she had died in her previous life.

Nuhol Mountain.

She had fallen off the steep cliff of this mountain and met a pointless end.

Hinael’s hands, reddened by the cold, trembled as she instinctively wrapped her arms around her belly.

‘A dream, it must be a dream… Ah… This isn’t happening.’

Whether she was kidnapped or lost her way, it didn’t matter. What was now overwhelming her was the damned despair.

No matter how much she struggled, she resented the fate that had brought her back to the same place.

Hinael stopped walking and looked blankly at the forest path she had walked with Dea after getting off the broken carriage. The fog hadn’t completely lifted yet, so maybe she could escape into the dense forest.

If she didn’t try anything, she would surely meet her death here.

‘I have to run away!’

Just as she was about to muster the strength in her toes to dash away.

“Nice to meet you, Your Highness.”

The voice was soft but firm enough to be heard clearly from afar.

Hinael froze, unable to even exhale the breath she had taken in.

“Th, th… This is… not real.”

Chetter stood beyond the faint fog.

Her body stiffened with extreme fear, and she felt as if the ground beneath her was collapsing with an unbearable sense of helplessness. She barely managed to hold back from collapsing and crying.

Hinael, unable to control her heated eyes, exhaled the breath she hadn’t managed to release.

“Ha, ha… Why is this happening again?”

She muttered to herself, gritting her teeth.

The fear that fate would repeat itself overwhelmed her. She would once again be led by that demon to stand on the ice cliff.

She thought it couldn’t be Chetter’s doing…

She judged that there were too many risks to take if he gets discovered, and thus he wouldn’t have dared to do something so reckless.

But it was Chetter.

He was crazier than she had thought.

‘I have to get out of here right now!’

As soon as she made up her mind, Hinael ran with all her might.

“Hinael!”

She ran madly, not caring if sharp branches scratched her face. She was so terrified that she completely lost her sanity.

“Damn it! Go catch her quickly!”

At Chetter’s shout, the man immediately moved.

Hinael ran through narrow gaps without looking back. Her breath hitched, and her head felt dizzy, but she kept moving her frozen feet with the single thought of surviving.

“Stop right there! You’ll get caught anyway, so stop struggling!”

The man shouted viciously.

The fog provided some cover, but escaping through an unmarked path was extremely difficult. Being a woman and barefoot, she had her limits.

“Ah!”

Her numbed foot twisted over a stone. At that moment, the man lunged and tackled Hinael.

“Got you, you b*tch.”

The man panted with a resentful expression as if he had played an unnecessary game of tag.

“Can you behave a bit? You call yourself a princess, but where’s your dignity?”

“Get off! If I survive this, I’ll kill you first!”

“Try if you can.”

“Don’t touch me! Aaargh!”

The man, smirking wickedly, grabbed her by the collar and yanked her up. He seemed eager to slap her, clenching and unclenching his fists in the air.

But he seemed hesitant to leave any marks on Hinael, considering the client.

“Hinael!”

Soon, Chetter arrived.

The man, as if waiting for this moment, dragged Hinael and displayed her proudly, as if boasting about earning his gold coins.

“She was so fast that I had a hard time catching her.”

“Well done.”

Chetter extended his hand.

“Hinael, come here.”

“I don’t want to! Let me go. Please… Please let me go!”

As she shook her head violently, tears scattered everywhere.

Hinael scratched the man’s wrist with her nails and then bit his hand hard.

“Argh! Is this b*tch out of her mind? Damn it!”

The man cursed even in front of Chetter.

She thought at least in front of the client, he wouldn’t dare treat her so roughly, but it seemed that wasn’t the case. It appeared that Chetter intended to ruin her with his own hands.

Since he perceived her as an outlet for his anger, the man didn’t bother to show any respect.

Chetter slowly closed the distance with his hand outstretched.

Hinael desperately leaned her upper body back to get away from the man who was rudely shaking her by the collar. The sound of snow crunching underfoot echoed as loudly as a grandfather clock.

Crunch, crunch, her desperate resistance was crushed beneath her feet.

“Don’t, don’t come any closer!”

“If you knew how long I’ve waited, you wouldn’t say such things.”

He smiled faintly with a face as pale as the snowfield. It was terrifyingly eerie.

Unable to bear the fear, Hinael sobbed and clasped her hands together, begging.

“Please… Please spare me. If you let me go, I won’t make an issue of this. Sobs. So, just this once…”