Even after receiving Greta’s apology, Evelyn couldn’t easily let go of her wariness toward her. No matter how sincere it seemed, there was no way to know if that was truly how Greta felt.

Since it was a matter of life and death, she had no choice but to be as cautious as possible. Greta understood Evelyn’s continued vigilance.

If the situation had been reversed, she too wouldn’t have trusted so easily.

“I came today to greet you and offer my apologies, so I’ll be taking my leave now.”

With that, Greta rose from her seat. Evelyn also stood up to see her off.

“Then, I’ll see you again next time.”

“Take care on your way back.”

After one last courteous bow, Greta gracefully exited the drawing room. Evelyn simply stared blankly at her retreating figure.

****

“There you are.”

After finishing her morning schedule, Evelyn changed into her riding attire and headed to the stables. Reynard, who had arrived earlier and was waiting for her, greeted her warmly.

“You arrived before me, Your Majesty.”

“I heard you met Lady Emmett this morning. How did it go?”

As soon as Evelyn bowed respectfully toward him, Reynard gave a faint smile and asked her. Until breakfast, Evelyn had been worried about meeting Greta. But now, in the afternoon, her expression didn’t seem particularly troubled.

He found it curious and couldn’t help but ask.

“Judging by your rather bright expression, I take it nothing happened?”

“Yes. Nothing special occurred. But…”

“But?”

“Out of the blue, Lady Emmett apologized to me.”

“For what?

 Even Reynard couldn’t understand why Greta had apologized, and he tilted his head in confusion.

“For becoming conversation partners. She said the Duke of Emmett acted on his own accord and that she was sorry things turned out this way.”

“…I see.”

Reynard responded a beat later, nodding slowly.

“Did she say anything else?”

“No, nothing more. But… is that okay?”

“What part concerns you?”

“Given my situation, I’m worried there might be some hidden motive. I don’t know much about Bait or how society works, so I’m not sure how I should treat Lady Emmett moving forward…”

Evelyn trailed off, her concern evident. Reynard understood what she was getting at.

“I don’t think you need to overthink it that much.”

“Really?”

“Yes. You won’t be here for long anyway. Just keep your guard up enough so it’s not obvious.”

“Oh…”

As Reynard said, Evelyn’s time as empress would last, at most, a year. And that included the time needed to subjugate Hesta—meaning her time in the imperial capital would be at most six months.

Besides, it had only been about a month since their marriage. With roughly five months remaining, all she had to do was avoid arousing suspicion and get through it.

“That’s true.”

Realizing she had become overly immersed in her role, Evelyn blushed. Seeing her reaction, Reynard let out a soft chuckle.

“If you’re ready, let’s get started. The hunting competition is soon, so you’ll need to get as comfortable on horseback as possible.”

“Yes.”

Evelyn responded and approached Epha. Recognizing her, Epha rubbed her face against Evelyn’s cheek.

At the soft, warm sensation, Evelyn smiled gently and slowly stroked the bridge of Epha’s nose.

“Let’s do our best today too, Epha.”

As if understanding her words, Epha let out a quiet sound. Then, after circling her once, Epha knelt down so Evelyn could mount easily.

Now a little more skilled, Evelyn climbed into the saddle, and Epha slowly stood up. Sensing Evelyn on her back, Epha walked with slow and gentle steps.

Though Reynard had said Evelyn needed more riding practice for the hunting competition, seeing how Epha carried her made it seem like further lessons might not be necessary.

“You’ve improved a lot in just a few days.”

Now Evelyn looked quite natural on horseback.

“By the way, Your Majesty, since the hunting competition is coming up, is there anything I should be aware of?”

While riding, Evelyn thought to ask, just in case.

“According to Sir Martin, the Hesta envoys might try to target me during the event.”

At Evelyn’s question, Reynard let out a faint sigh.

“We’re keeping an eye on them too since we don’t know how they’ll act. Until we secure some evidence, it’s hard for us to move rashly. Come to think of it, I heard a hawk flew into the Hesta envoys’ residence a few days ago. Most likely, it delivered a message about you and brought back a reply.”

“Do you think it was sent from Hesta?”

“Undoubtedly.”

Reynard gave a short nod.

“It must’ve said… to kill me, right?”

Evelyn’s voice trembled with unease. Reynard glanced sideways at Evelyn and let out a small sigh before nodding.

“Most likely. Given the situation, you’d be a thorn in Hesta’s side.”

“…”

Evelyn’s grip on the reins tightened involuntarily.

“Still, they probably won’t act carelessly.

But since we don’t know exactly how they’ll move, we should remain cautious.”

“Yes.”

Reynard glanced at Evelyn. Her anxious gaze was fixed near Epha’s neck.

“Straighten your back. Lift your head. I feel like I’ve told you more than once—if you act anxious, Epha will pick up on it.”

“Huh? Ah, yes.”

Snapping back to reality, Evelyn corrected her posture.

“We’re doing everything we can on our side too, so try not to worry too much.”

“…Yes.”

Though Reynard told her not to worry, she couldn’t truly relax. To Evelyn, this was a matter of life and death. At least until the Hesta envoy failed in their mission and left, she couldn’t afford to let her guard down.

“If only I knew how they were going to act, I probably wouldn’t feel this anxious. Do you think they might use poison or something? Like slipping it into food?”

“I doubt it. Not here in Bait, at least. Besides, you’re the empress. You eat every meal with me. If they tried to poison you, I wouldn’t be safe either. Since I ascended to the throne, the head chef responsible for meals in the imperial palace has been one of my people, so there’s no need to worry.”

As Evelyn let out a breath of relief, Reynard gave a soft laugh.

“Even if something were to happen, I’d save you.” 

There was a strange level of confidence in Reynard’s voice. Evelyn felt an odd but comforting belief that he really would save her.

Just then, Reynard tilted his head.

“This time, you didn’t ask again.”

“Pardon? What do you mean?”

“You always do that, don’t you? Even when I say something, you always ask again to make sure. But this time, you didn’t.”

Realizing what Reynard meant, Evelyn gave an awkward smile.

“Did that bother you?”

“Bother me? No. It’s fine. Double-checking is a good habit. It might be a little annoying for the one answering, but still.”

“Thank you for saying that.”

“You’re welcome.”

Reynard gave her a gentle smile.

“So why didn’t you ask this time?”

Reynard asked the question directly. Evelyn hesitated for a moment, then relaxed her grip and replied slowly. 

“Because Your Majesty said you would. You once said you’re someone who always keeps your promises. I want to believe that.”

“…”

Reynard’s gaze settled on Evelyn’s teal eyes.

At least in that moment, he could clearly feel the unwavering trust in her eyes. As the one who had spent the most time with her—even in a short span—Reynard found her change surprising.

The Evelyn he had known was someone who always distrusted, doubted, and remained on guard.

She likely had no idea just how unstable and fearful her eyes had looked all that time.

But now, Evelyn had decided to trust and rely on someone. Though that trust in her eyes felt unfamiliar and awkward to Reynard, he didn’t dislike it. Especially since that trust was directed at him—it felt curious and amusing above all else.