“Bad man!”

What pulled him out of his thoughts was Eve. She had climbed down from the armchair where she had been chattering and was now tugging at his clothes.

“I held it in for a long time, right?”

She held out her finger, showing him the tiny wound she had endured. It seemed she had grown tired of bragging about her father.

“Yes. You did well.”

“Then~ now you have to grant my wish!”

A broad smile bloomed across Eve’s face. She meant to use the wish Shed had promised her.

Shed found himself faintly impressed that she had done so well. He had never intended to deceive a child with false promises, so he nodded.

“What is your wish?”

What sort of grand request had this little one prepared?

“Mister’s horse!”

“My horse?”

“I wanna ride your horse!”

Eve bounced in place, shaking the hem of his trousers.

“My horse… you mean—”

“The big black one!”

Eve stretched her hand high to show how tall it was.

“You don’t mean… Gardwell?”

Shed’s black stallion, Gardwell, was among the finest steeds in history. Its coat shone with the sheen of velvet, its mane rippled like silk in the wind. When its hooves thundered across the plains, the taut weave of its muscles moved with such power it could leave onlookers breathless.

Even to young Eve’s eyes, Gardwell had seemed magnificent. But Shed rubbed his temple, troubled.

“You’re still too young to ride.”

She was barely three years old—how could she ride a horse? And not just any horse, but Gardwell, who was fierce even among steeds.

Once a wild stallion, he had been broken only by Shed himself, and even then, grooms and trainers struggled with him. Until now, the only back Gardwell had ever permitted was Shed’s.

“When you’re older, I’ll let you ride.”

“But you promised you’d grant my wish!”

Eve’s eyes flew wide as she shouted in anger.

“So I said I’ll grant it later.”

“You lied! Liar! I’m telling Mommy!”

“Brat…”

Her whining rang sharp in his ears, and Shed scrubbed his face with both hands in weary frustration. If things went on like this, she would hound him about it until he put her on the horse.

He had learned enough over the past few days: children’s persistence was fierce. Even after sleeping night after night, they never forgot the promises they wrung from you.

“You can’t ride alone. It’s dangerous.”

“It’s fine. I’ll ride with Mommy!”

“Your mother doesn’t know how to ride.”

Never mind Gardwell—he had never once seen Luise on horseback.

Felix Ideana had never taught his frail daughter to ride. Whenever her illness required her to go out, she had ridden in a carriage. And after leaving Ideana, her lowered status would hardly have allowed her to handle an expensive horse herself.

“Then Mommy can learn!”

“…Ha. Fine. I’ll just take you myself.”

“I don’t wanna ride with you!”

“What?”

“I wanna ride with Mommy! That’s my wish!”

“Your mother doesn’t—”

“Waaah! You promised to grant my wish!”

Eve thr*st up her little injured hand as if in protest and threw herself down onto the carpet. Her shrill wails scraped his ears until his brows twisted in irritation.

And yet—watching Eve pout with Luise’s exact same face, he found a laugh slipping out. He had never once imagined Luise throwing a tantrum like that.

“…Fine. I’ll take you there, at least.”

In the end, Shed surrendered to the child’s demands.

🌺⟡───⟡🌺 🌺⟡───⟡🌺

Luise blinked in bewilderment, glancing back and forth between Shed and Eve.

It was surprising enough that he had appeared at all, but more shocking still was how quickly Eve seemed to have warmed to him—clutching his fingers tightly, smiling as though she were perfectly at ease.

And then—

“…You want me to learn horseback riding?”

Even his suggestion was utterly unexpected.

“I didn’t say to learn. Just try it once. With this brat.”

“…Why?”

Suspicion clouded Luise’s eyes. As Shed hesitated, weighing how much to explain, Eve was quick to jump in.

“Bad man promised to grant my wish!”

“Wish?”

“Yeah! He said if I held it in, then…”

“Brat.”

Shed gave Eve’s hand—clinging tightly to his finger—a light tug.

“Ah!”

At once, Eve remembered the secret promise she had made with him and slapped both hands over her mouth.

“She did well, so I told her I’d grant a wish. She said she wanted to ride a horse.”

After keeping the child’s lips sealed, Shed explained the situation himself.

Luise touched her lips, looking troubled. She recalled how her daughter had often begged to ride a horse.

“But isn’t Eve far too young to ride?”

Luise gently voiced her refusal. It wasn’t just her daughter’s age that worried her; it was also the eyes of those around them. To the outside world, ‘Egon’ and ‘Lea’ were commoners, and ‘Liana’ had once been a maid.

Fortunately, the servants of Recherdam treated her and Eve with polite detachment. Luise was grateful that they bore her no ill will.

However, if she and Eve were seen riding with the Duke himself, those same servants might become hostile again. Even if she could endure such looks herself, she could not bear for Eve to be hated.

Then there were men like Carlisle and Hedrick, who already looked upon her with contempt.

“In the western plains of Blancas, children learn to ride at three years old… Safety comes first, of course. I will be with her.”

At Shed’s words, Eve’s eyes sparkled, and she nodded eagerly.

“Come on, Mommy, hurry, hurry!”

She bounced on her feet, tugging her mother’s hand with the one not already holding Shed’s.

“Eve, when you’re a little older, then you can—”

“Now! It’s my wish!”

Luise, caught between her daughter’s plea and Shed’s indifference, looked at him. But he only shook his head with a detached expression, as though there were nothing he could do.

🌺⟡───⟡🌺 🌺⟡───⟡🌺

The outskirts of Recherdam, with their gentle rolling hills and vast plains, seemed perfect for riding. Wide pastures stretched out before us, dotted with cows, sheep and goats grazing at ease.

Beyond a narrow path lined with tall cypress trees stood the Duke’s stables.

From the ridge where the stables were located, Luise gazed out over the vast expanse of Recherdam. In the distance, the white fortress they had left behind gleamed faintly, while golden wheat fields rippled in the breeze, awaiting harvest.

Here and there, the grain had already been cut, leaving warm stacks of hay rising from the earth like humble monuments to summer’s labor.

Birds darted down to peck at fallen kernels, then scattered skyward in restless bursts. Further away, dogs ran swiftly across the fields, driving sheep into tighter clusters. Meanwhile, cattle lowered their heads and grazed contentedly on the grass and hay.

Luise was struck silent by the wide, pastoral landscape.

The breeze was soft, the air serene.

Peace—a peace she had thought never to know again after leaving Ideana. Now the sight of wheat swaying like waves in the wind softened her heart.

Even on dry ground, new sprouts rise.

“Mommy, it’s so amazing!”

Eve, too, looked upon the vast expanse and cried out in awe.

It was a vast continental landscape, unlike anything seen on Janna Island or in Scizlon.

“The ground looks like a golden sea!”

To Eve, so accustomed to the ocean, even the fields appeared like waves.

Staring at the wheat for a long while, Eve tilted her head up to her mother.

“Mommy, is all that bread?”

Luise laughed at her learned little daughter, who knew that bread was made from wheat. Then, from behind, came a short chuckle.

Luise turned in surprise and found Shed clearing his throat gruffly as he stroked his black warhorse.

‘He could still laugh like that?’

Luise thought so as she caught the faint trace of a smile he had not entirely erased. Because he seemed faintly embarrassed, she turned her gaze back to Eve and answered instead.

“Yes. That wheat will be made into bread.”

“Wow, then there’ll be so much bread! No one here will ever go hungry!”

Instead of replying, Luise only stroked her daughter’s head. On the road out to the countryside, she had seen children starving.

“Brat. Enough gawking—get ready.”

Shed’s voice called to the two still gazing at the wheat. At once, Eve remembered why she had come here and scampered toward him.

Shed stood holding Gardwell’s reins.

Like his own dark hair, the stallion’s coat gleamed black as pitch, the sheen flowing along the lines of its muscles.

Though Shed himself was unusually tall, Gardwell’s withers rose a full head higher.

Standing firm beside his black warhorse, Shed appeared more imposing than ever. His stance, grounded beside Gardwell, did not waver in the least.

In that instant, Luise remembered the newspaper articles she had read recently. She looked again at his face, which was leaner than before.

She knew the scars carved into his solid body. He had always been like that, returning from battles as a mercenary slave without ever complaining of pain. He never showed weakness or betrayed hardship.

And yet, knowing this, had she still failed to imagine the weight of his wounds…? Meanwhile, Eve clasped her hands to her chest and gazed up at the big horse.

“Woooow!”

For little Eve, barely tall enough to reach his knee, Gardwell was a creature to be looked up to in every sense.

“Don’t make such a fuss. Gardwell dislikes noise.”

“Ah… o-okay…”

At his words, Eve instantly lowered her voice to a whisper.

“Bad man… when does Eve get to ride Gardwell?”

“The horse you’ll ride is over there.”

Shed pointed to the opposite side.

He had considered it long and hard, but in the end judged it far too dangerous to put Eve on Gardwell.

Following his finger, Eve’s eyes fell on the pony a handler was leading nearby.

The pony had a shaggy mane and tail, its coat a patchwork of white and brown. With its small, gentle With its build and mild temperament, it was the perfect choice for Eve.

But Eve’s face scrunched up like an overboiled ravioli.

“No! Eve wants Gardwell!”

Fearless as ever, she tried to grab hold of Gardwell’s leg as if she meant to cling to it.

Shed swiftly snatched her up, holding her firmly in his arms.

“Brat…! You really do throw yourself in without thinking. Do you want to be trampled to death under his hooves?”