After the meal, the cleanup of the tent began. Evelyn sat on a chair the maid had prepared and watched the tent being tidied up.

Just then, a cup was suddenly extended in front of her. She looked up to see who was handing it to her. As expected, Reynard was standing beside her.

“Take it.”

“Thank you.”

Evelyn accepted the cup politely with both hands and offered a brief word of thanks to Reynard. Reynard nodded slightly in acknowledgment.

Inside the cup was a crimson-colored tea. As she took a sip, warmth spread throughout her body.

“You’ll have to ride again. Will you be alright?”

Reynard suddenly asked, turning to her.

Evelyn nodded lightly to indicate she was fine and replied.

“Yes, I think I’ll be okay.”

“If you’re okay, you’re okay. What’s with the ‘I think’?”

Apparently displeased with her vague answer, he questioned her.

“I meant that I’m fine. I apologize if it sounded unclear.”

Reynard briefly shrugged, then turned his gaze to the path ahead.

“You managed today thanks to the medicine, but you can’t rely on it forever. Don’t get too tense today either. The fatigue will accumulate for Epha as well.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

Even if it wasn’t something she could control at will, she gave the answer anyway.

It didn’t take long before preparations for departure were complete. Reynard handed the empty cup to a servant and extended his hand to Evelyn.

This time, Evelyn placed her hand in his without hesitation.

“Let’s go.”

“Yes.”

With her response, Reynard began to escort her. He led her to where Epha was waiting, then mounted the horse first. He reached out to assist Evelyn in getting on the horse.

That’s when it happened.

“Ah!”

As she stepped onto the stirrup, Evelyn lost her balance and swayed. She was on the verge of falling off the horse and crashing to the ground.

Seeing her body tipping, Reynard quickly reached out, grabbing her forearm and pulling her toward him. With his other arm, he wrapped around her waist to steady her.

Thanks to that, Evelyn was able to mount the horse without injury.

Her heart pounded rapidly, likely from the shock. Catching her breath, she looked up at Reynard, who had caught her. His amber eyes looked down at her.

“Are you alright?”

Reynard asked in a calm voice. Evelyn nodded belatedly to indicate she was fine.

“Yes, I’m alright. Thank you for catching me.” 

“Don’t mention it.”

After their brief exchange, Evelyn properly settled herself into the side saddle. Only then did Reynard release the hand that had been supporting her.

“Are we ready?” 

“Yes. We can depart immediately.”

At Lieutenant Martin’s response, Reynard nodded and began to lead the horse forward. This time, Evelyn knew she had to work harder to stay relaxed—unlike yesterday.

***

Two days after crossing Bait’s border, they finally arrived at a village.

Unlike Hesta, which Evelyn had passed through until now, the village felt bright and full of life. It was hard to believe this country had endured years of war.

Evelyn looked around, watching the village residents greet Bait’s army with great enthusiasm.

“Amazing, isn’t it?”

Noticing her reaction, Reynard smiled with interest and asked her.

Evelyn flinched slightly, then nodded in agreement.

“Everyone seems cheerful.”

Her short response was filled with unspoken curiosity.

“Well, of course. Bait has long since moved past the aftermath of the war.”

Although Bait suffered damages from Hesta’s attacks the first two times, it had not lost a single battle since.

Because of that, the aftermath of the war inevitably focused on Hesta rather than Bait.

Moreover, as soldiers passed through and spared no expense on lodging and food, the economy flourished.

Some people even reached the point of welcoming the war—needless to say more.

Realizing this, Evelyn firmly pressed her lips together.

Hesta’s assault on Bait had been a miscalculation. Arrogant greed had corroded itself from within.

Whatever the reason may have been, the war had been delayed by a year, but in the end, Bait was poised to place Hesta beneath its feet.

Thinking that none of this would have happened if Hesta’s king hadn’t been so greedy from the start left a bitter taste in her mouth.

Reynard, watching the disheartened back of Evelyn, let out a small sigh.

Then he lightly dismounted from his horse.

Evelyn’s gaze naturally turned to Reynard.

Reynard extended his hand toward her.

“Get down.”

“Huh? Right now?”

They had not yet reached the tavern.

Contrary to Evelyn’s assumption that they would head straight to the inn upon arriving in the village, Reynard seemed to have a different destination in mind.

“Yes. Come down.”

Reynard gave her a nod, urging her.

Hesitating, Evelyn reached out her hand to Reynard, who immediately took it and pulled her toward him with strength.

“Kyah!”

Caught off guard by the sudden drop, Evelyn screamed with her eyes tightly shut.

Reynard timed it perfectly and wrapped his arm around her waist as she fell toward him.

Suddenly embraced in his arms, Evelyn’s face flushed red.

Even if it was inevitable, being helplessly held in a man’s arms was deeply embarrassing. She felt it again—Reynard’s embrace was warm and firm.

Evelyn, snapping out of her daze a beat too late, hastily pulled away from Reynard’s arms. Reynard, watching her, chuckled softly and extended his hand to her again.

It was a different gesture than when he had urged her to dismount.

Evelyn recognized the meaning behind his action. It was a gesture she had seen countless times on the nights of balls at the royal palace.

She hesitated, looking at Reynard’s hand.

Reynard did not rush her, waiting patiently for her to respond.

It didn’t take long for Evelyn to accept his escort.

She wondered if it was really okay, but decided to go along with his lead for now.

After all, the one holding her life in his hands was none other than Reynard.

Pleasing him for the sake of survival wasn’t such a hard thing to do.

“Are you alright to walk? How’s your injury?”

After only a few steps, he glanced down at her, checking her condition.

“As long as I don’t overdo it, I’m fine. That’s what they said.”

Those had been the words of Heinrich, who had checked on her condition earlier that morning.

Just as she had said, walking didn’t seem to be a problem.

She wouldn’t be able to run or sprint, but it wasn’t likely that Reynard would demand such a thing anyway.

“That’s a relief. If it gets hard, let me know.”

“Your Majesty!”

As Reynard began to walk away, his aide Martin called out to stop him.

“What is it?”

“I’ll come with you.”

Martin also jumped off his horse and ran up behind Reynard and Evelyn.

Reynard stared at him with a slightly bored expression before shaking his head.

“No. This time, I’m going alone.”

“But, Your Majesty!”

“This is my decision. I won’t hear objections.”

As Martin tried to protest, Reynard cut him off firmly.

Then he turned his body and started walking again.

Evelyn hesitated for a moment, unsure of what to do, but she had no choice but to follow, led by Reynard’s hand into the village.

“……”

Martin silently watched the backs of Reynard and Evelyn as they walked away, then eventually turned around.

***

“Is this alright?”

Evelyn looked at Reynard with concern.

“What do you mean?”

Reynard feigned ignorance and asked in return.

“Just now. And whether it’s okay for you to be walking around alone like this……”

Reynard was the Emperor of Bait.

For someone like him to move around without even an aide or guard knight certainly seemed problematic.

She couldn’t help but wonder—what if Hesta had sent an assassin?

“I understand what you’re worried about, but there’s no need for that. I’m quite strong, you see.”

Evelyn shut her mouth at his confident words.

She didn’t know much about swordsmanship, but the calmness he’d shown when detecting and handling the wolf’s presence had left a vivid impression on her.

So perhaps there really was no need to worry about his skills.

The problem would lie elsewhere.

Still, since Reynard himself said it was fine, there was no need to ruin the mood.