The morning air was chilly. The sky was still dim, and the air was cold and damp. White puffs of breath rose here and there.

Lilline fastened Amel’s clothes more securely as she spoke.

“My lady, the morning air is cold. Please get inside the carriage.”

“It’s fine. I’ll be riding in a carriage until I’m sick of it anyway. I’ll get in later.”

“Then, my lady, shall I bring you a thick robe?”

“I’ll be getting back in soon anyway. There’s no need.”

Amel took a deep breath. The cool air filled her lungs. She wanted to stay outside a little longer and enjoy the pleasant morning air. The breeze was clean and gentle.

Still, the air was cold.

Amel gave a small cough.

“Shall we go to the carriage, my lady?”

“Yes. I suppose we should.”

Amel rubbed her arms and walked toward the carriage.

Two carriages were waiting.

Just then, a soldier who had been inspecting the carriages approached.

“Everything is ready for departure.”

“You finished early.”

“Yes. Please get into the carriage.”

The soldier opened the carriage door for her and offered his arm.

The moment Amel looked inside, she already felt as though she were getting motion sick.

“My lady?”

Amel stopped with one foot on the step, and the soldier asked cautiously,

“Are you not getting in?”

“No. I am. I should.”

Amel accepted his escort and climbed into the carriage.

When Amel took the seat by the window, Lilline followed her inside.

Amel opened the window and rested her chin on the windowsill.

“The sun is completely up now.”

“Isn’t it? The weather has completely cleared, too. It’s a lovely day to set out on a journey.”

Lilline spoke as though trying to lighten the mood.

She was right. Now that the weather had cleared, the autumn sky was crystal clear.

‘Maybe it’s because it’s autumn, but the sky looks so high.’

Lilline sat down beside Amel.

“We’re finally leaving.”

“I know. We stayed here far too long, didn’t we?”

“Who would have thought the rain would last this long?”

Amel rested her chin on her hand and looked out the window. Just then, Cervel was coming out of the inn.

“Grand Duke Cervel is coming out, too!”

“Yeah.”

“He said he was going with us, right?”

“Yeah. He’ll ride in our carriage.”

“But how did you end up traveling together?”

“Didn’t I tell you before? His Grace has business in Bliana as well, so we decided to travel together until our routes diverge.”

“Ah, I heard about that. I was just wondering how that conversation even came up.”

“We’d been staying together for two weeks. It just came up naturally.”

“True. We did stay here for quite a long time, didn’t we?”

Lilline readily accepted the explanation without much thought. Then she pointed toward the driver’s seat.

“My lady, should I just ride up front with the driver?”

“Why?”

“It looks like the carriage might be cramped.”

“You can stay here. You only just recovered from your cold, remember? Don’t go out into the cold wind for no reason and end up getting sick again.”

Amel shrugged.

Lilline leaned forward and looked out the window.

“But why isn’t His Grace coming?”

“There he is.”

Just then, the carriage door opened, and Cervel climbed inside.

He calmly looked around the carriage before giving Amel a slight nod.

“Excuse me for a moment.”

“You’re here.”

Amel returned his greeting lightly.

Once Cervel boarded the carriage, someone outside closed the door. The knights of the Grand Ducal House emerged, dressed in their formal uniforms.

“Did I interrupt your conversation?”

“No. We had just sat down ourselves. Please, make yourself comfortable.”

“I’ll impose on you until Blianna.”

“We’re going the same way anyway, so we might as well travel together. There’s no need to call it an imposition.”

“Thank you for putting it that way.”

Amel gave a small bow.

Cervel took the seat opposite her.

Amel glanced at him cautiously. He was wearing an overcoat and leather gloves.

Perhaps sensing her gaze, he looked up. He greeted her with a brief nod.

Amel carefully returned the greeting.

Tap.

‘What was that? Something touched me.’

Her knee had brushed against Cervel’s.

“My lady, may we depart?”

A soldier came to the window and asked.

“Let’s go.”

The carriage slowly began to move.

***

The carriage jolted noisily.

The mountain road was rough and uneven. The recent rain had left deep ruts in the ground.

Bang—!

The carriage shook violently, swaying back and forth.

Amel hit her head against the wall.

“Ah……”

She rubbed her forehead and woke with a start.

‘Ah…… I’m dizzy.’

Every time her head struck the wall, her temples throbbed.

Amel rubbed her temples and opened her eyes.

She had closed her eyes for a while because of the motion sickness, but she had accidentally fallen asleep.

Amel glanced to the side.

Lilline was asleep.

“Are you awake?”

Amel looked at Cervel, who was sitting across from her.

“Yes. I must have dozed off.”

“You were asleep for quite a while.”

“How long was I asleep?”

“About an hour. Your maid only just fell asleep.”

“……Is it all right for her to sleep like that?”

Lilline was repeatedly bumping her head against the window.

“Miss Amel, you were doing the same thing.”

“I was?”

No wonder her forehead felt a little sore. Amel rubbed it absentmindedly.

The carriage jolted again, shaking violently.

“The carriage is shaking so much.”

“We’re taking a detour because the landslide blocked the original road.”

The road they had originally planned to take was blocked by a landslide, so they had to take an alternative route. Unfortunately, the conditions here were not much better. The road was deeply rutted and uneven.

“Perhaps we should have rested for another day.”

“Resting another day wouldn’t have made the road any better. How’s your motion sickness?”

“I feel a little better after sleeping. Are you all right, Your Grace?”

“I don’t get motion sick.”

“That’s a relief. At least one of us is fine.”

“Did you say you already took motion sickness medicine?”

“I did, but I don’t think it’s helping.”

Amel closed her eyes.

She wanted to know what time it was, but her head was shaking too much.

“What time is it now?”

“Now?”

Cervel took out his pocket watch. After checking the time, he answered,

“Eleven.”

“We’ll be stopping soon, then.”

“We’ll travel for about another hour before stopping. We’re on a sloped section of the road, so there isn’t a good place to stop here.”

Amel opened her eyes again.

With her head still swaying, closing her eyes only made her feel dizzier.

Every time the carriage jolted, her head bumped against the window.

And Lilline had fallen completely asleep through all of this.

‘With the carriage shaking this much, the fact that she’s still sleeping makes it look like she’s passed out.’

Amel pulled the blanket that had fallen by her feet over Lilline.

When she raised her head, she found Cervel watching her from across the carriage.

“……Why are you looking at me like that?”

Amel touched her cheek cautiously.

‘Is there something on my face?’

When she asked him carefully, he answered matter-of-factly.

“You seem close to your maid.”

“Yes. We’ve been together since we were young.”

“Since you were young?”

“Yes. She’s the only daughter of my late wet nurse. We grew up like sisters.”

She was three years older than Amel.

“So that’s why you’re so comfortable with each other.”

“I suppose so. Still, we know when to be careful.”

“Do you?”

“She’s smarter and more perceptive than she looks. She knows to avoid private matters when necessary.”

In other words, Lilline knew when to discreetly turn a blind eye to things like her young mistress’s private affairs.

“She may look like that, but she knows how to keep a secret. We may seem very close and familiar, but she knows where to draw the line.”

“You have a good person by your side.”

“I’m glad I do.”

Amel slowly closed her eyes.

The carriage fell quiet.

Amel listened to the sounds of the carriage.

Rattle, rattle.

The wheels rolled roughly along the road.

The carriage moved slowly onwards.

Each time her head hit the window, her temples ached. Each time it did so, her temples ached.

Amel rested her head against the window and frowned.

The autumn sunlight was glaring.

‘Ah, it’s so bright.’

Amel yawned slightly and looked at Cervel.

He was sitting opposite her, quietly gazing out of the window.

Following his gaze, she looked up at the clear sky.

It was blue and spotless. The calm, cloudless, high-autumn sky made the sunlight seem all the more intense.

As Amel leaned her head against the carriage, Cervel reached across and touched her leg.