Riding a horse on steep mountain terrain was not as easy as it seemed. Especially for Nian, who had only learned basic horseback riding. Though she was trying not to show it, her face clearly revealed her fatigue.

Noticing this, Dade slowed his horse’s pace and eventually sighed.

‘Such stubbornness. Who would say anything if we rested?’

Dade shook his head and stopped his horse.

“We’ll rest here for today.”

At his words, the knights and escort soldiers in the advance party all stopped. Although it was still early evening, the surrounding escort soldiers looked at the Emperor with puzzled eyes as he decided to camp, but Dade ignored them and dismounted.

“Come, get down.”

Dade approached Nian and extended his hand. When Nian looked down at his hand in slight surprise, he moved closer and wrapped his arm around her waist.

‘She really needs a lot of help.’

Dade smirked as he embraced her and helped her down from the horse. As Nian looked at him with a bewildered face after being lowered from the horse, he pretended to be busy with something else, perhaps feeling a bit embarrassed.

In fact, even he seemed surprised at how naturally he had embraced her. He had often desired her sexually, but this was the first time he had gently embraced her like this for her sake.

‘Well, I couldn’t leave her in another man’s hands.’

Dade justified it to himself and looked at Nian. Nian spoke in a small voice.

“I could have gotten down by myself.”

“Hardly.”

“……”

“We’ll rest here today and depart tomorrow morning, so you should rest now too.”

“Yes.”

When Nian answered with her head bowed, Dade’s lips moved as if he wanted to say something more, but he soon gave up and turned away.

Only after he turned away did Nian cup her cheeks with both hands. Was it because of the hot early summer weather, or because his hands had unexpectedly touched her? Her face had suddenly flushed red.

* * *

Night had deepened.

It was the middle of the night, with occasional hoots of owls, and the moon was hiding behind clouds, making it darker than usual. Nian tossed and turned in the tent for a while before finally getting up.

Despite the weather not being particularly hot, the humid forest air made her feel quite uncomfortable. Remembering the lake she had seen near the tent in the evening, Nian left the tent with the intention of cooling off a bit.

As she went outside, the guard at the entrance of the tent bowed his head, and when he tried to follow her, Nian raised her hand in refusal.

“Empress, the night is deep. It’s dangerous for you to go alone.”

“I’m going to the lakeside just ahead to cool off. I’ll be back soon, so don’t worry.”

The guard hesitated, seemingly reluctant, but eventually stepped back at Nian’s insistence. After dismissing the guard, Nian walked to the lakeside.

‘Haa. What terrible weather, really.’

Nian murmured softly as she dipped her feet in the lake. In truth, it wasn’t that hot, but after sweating quite a bit during the day, combined with the humid forest air, her entire body felt sticky.

Moreover, the heat couldn’t be dispelled just by dipping her feet, due to the multiple layers of clothing she wore. Defeated by the heat, she slowly removed her thick outer garment to cool off a bit more.

As she removed one layer of her multi-layered clothing, a thinner undergarment was revealed. In that state, she tied up her thick, long hair high.

Feeling much cooler with her lighter head and clothing, her mood improved, and she splashed her feet in the water.

Just then, with a rustling sound, someone emerged from the forest.

“……”

She was so startled when she identified this someone that she almost jumped straight into the lake.

It was Dade.

“You seem to have not a speck of caution.”

He approached her without any hesitation. His face was quite hardened, suggesting he was quite angry.

Anger? Why? Nian looked at him somewhat blankly, wondering why, and stood up, and he, who had already reached her feet, continued in a cold tone.

“Were you planning to bathe outdoors?”

“What do you……”

“What if someone had seen you?”

Nian looked at him, unable to hide her bewilderment at his unexpected misunderstanding. Then his gaze, which had been facing her, turned to the outer garment she had placed beside her. Only then did she sigh in understanding and answer.

“I just took it off because I was hot, Your Majesty.”

“Oh, really?”

“……”

“You still look hot, why don’t you take off more?”

At his sarcasm, Nian bit her lip tightly.

He was truly unpredictable. Just a few hours ago, he had kindly embraced her as she was getting off the horse, but now he was as cold as if he had chewed on winter frost.

‘What exactly is the problem?’

She had thought they had grown a bit closer, but it seemed to be just her own delusion. Nian reached for her outer garment with a hardened face, without answering.

She intended to go back. In any case, no matter how much she asked, he wouldn’t explain why he was angry, and he wouldn’t listen to her explanations either.

As she lowered her head without answering, his face hardened further. He grabbed the wrist of her hand that was bending down to pick up her outer garment, pulled her roughly, and embraced her waist as she stumbled toward him.

Nian looked at him with surprised eyes at his rough action.

“What? You were acting like you didn’t care who saw you, but you don’t want to undress in front of me?”

“Think whatever you want.”

“I will.”

Nian pushed against his chest, trying to escape his embrace. At this, his expression grew colder, and he pulled her closer with more force.

“Let me g…!”

Nian couldn’t finish her sentence. Before her angry words could end, he lowered his head and pressed his lips against hers.

She let out a muffled breath under his rough kiss. He grabbed the back of her neck, pulling her closer, and sucked hard on her plump lower lip, and eventually, unable to endure, Nian opened her mouth.

His tongue invaded through her parted lips, coiling around. When Nian struggled as if suffocating, he briefly removed his lips. Then, at a distance close enough for their breaths to tangle, he whispered coldly.

“What? Surprised?”

“Your Majesty.”

“You should have been more careful.”

Dade’s eyes deepened. He had been taking a night walk, liking the forest with the lake, when he encountered Nian and became quite angry.

In fact, it was embarrassing to call it an encounter, as only he had seen her, and she hadn’t seen him. Dade had intended to ignore her and go back.

That is, if she hadn’t started to undress her white clothes as if she were going to bathe.

Though the night was deep, there were men all around. If someone other than himself had seen her, would they have revealed themselves as he did?

Sometimes she acted defenseless, as if completely unaware of what stimulus she gave to men, and that made Dade angry.

He swallowed Nian’s lips again as they moved as if to make an excuse. She noticeably stiffened in surprise, but he firmly embraced her with his entire body and roughly showered her with kisses as if punishing her.

He could fully feel her soft body against his through the thin clothing between them, and his breathing gradually became rougher.

When Nian, who had been squirming, finally seemed to resign herself and calmly accepted his kiss, his kisses became a bit gentler. The lake splashed from their earlier struggle, wetting their clothes, but they didn’t mind.

After a long while, Dade finally released Nian, and she, finally freed, took somewhat rough breaths.

The dim moonlight, reflected off the lake, softly illuminated the two. He stroked her red lower lip, which was slightly swollen from the previous kiss, with his thumb. Nian glared at him a bit angrily and coldly brushed off his hand.

“Though it’s not surprising as you always do as you please, don’t touch me like this.”

“What?”

“I’m asking you to at least show some courtesy.”

Dade laughed incredulously.

“What courtesy?”

“……”

“Is the courtesy you’re talking about me generously forgiving a wife who was about to undress outdoors where other men might see?”

“If you want to blame me for my mistake, then just punish me.”

“……”

“Prison would be better. It’s better than this.”

His kisses, though rudely always taken at will, were fragrantly intoxicating, making her delusional.

As if he were her real husband. As if she were truly his wife.

At Nian’s words, Dade looked at her with a hardened face, but Nian dared not avoid his gaze. In the end, he laughed coldly.

“Don’t tell me you’re hoping for a gentle kiss like lovers would share?”

“……”

Nian bit her lip slightly at his mocking tone.

I know. I know we’re not lovers. She knew well that they were just bound by a royal marriage, maintaining a cold relationship out of necessity. It was just hurtful that he had to point it out.

As her eyes welled up with tears from the surge of emotion, Dade approached and painfully sucked at the end of her white neckline.

“In the future, I’ll keep kissing you—sometimes as if taking, sometimes as if punishing. And one day, if the mood strikes, I might even take you.”

“……”

“Always without courtesy and rudely, as usual.”

He slightly pulled down her top with his finger, scattered kisses to her collarbone, and then raised his head. Nian’s cheeks were already wet with tears she had shed, but he didn’t care.

He turned away coldly, and Nian stood dazed in the lake. Her body began to tremble slightly. It had been a long time since she had shaken off the heat.