Madam Sinelliburn’s lips trembled faintly. A flood of information flashed through her mind.

The countless talented people of low birth produced by the Diltai System in Aisha.

Sinelliburn conceded cleanly.

She had suspected Kaiden’s summons might be a “poisoned chalice,” but she had not realized it would be a poison this dangerous. Nor had she imagined it would be a chalice this enormous.

“Today’s conversation will create a crack in your smooth business operations, Madam. But I trust you will willingly bear it. Am I right, Madam Sinelliburn?”

Sinelliburn had never in her life met a woman who captivated people the way Ajean did. Ajean’s spirit struck her heart hard and made it resonate.

She knew that kind of woman well.

A dangerous flower that would seize what she wanted without fail…… that had also been Sinelliburn herself, once upon a time.

Sinelliburn rose lightly from her seat. With the crisp rhythm of snapping her open fan shut, her lips parted.

It was a confident declaration, and a promise to prove her worth.

“Two weeks is all I need. I will dispose of everything at the highest price and deliver the ledger to you.”

The day had grown dark before she knew it. The moonlight filtering through the window fell across Sinelliburn’s face. The cheekbones of the middle-aged woman, full of excitement, rose beautifully.

She acknowledged today’s bittersweet defeat and made up her mind to take a small revenge on the victor, Ajean.

Her relationship with His Highness seems, how shall I put it, rather complicated. I will absolutely not tell you. Wallow in the pain a little longer. You need not feel too aggrieved. Even the noble Silvia, they say, soaks her pillowcase with tears every night. How desperate must she be to create something as laughable as a harem, and seek comfort even from those below her.

Having drained the poisoned chalice in one go, Sinelliburn smiled with satisfaction and walked out of Belrang Castle.

❀❀❀

Ajean skipped her etiquette lesson and made her way to the stables of Aktukan Palace in the early hours of dawn.

It was because Kaiden had sent word that he would teach her to ride.

That bet made while completely drunk during their last secret outing.

She had been loaded into a carriage Kaiden called and brought back to Belrang Castle, or so she was told, and she could not remember it at all.

So why was the moment of the bet so vivid in her memory?

Ajean shook her head vigorously, as though trying to erase the memory. Then she forced herself into self-justification.

“There’s no reason to be embarrassed. Competition is just like that. Thinking this way only makes it more embarrassing.”

Steeling her mind with every step, Ajean entered the stables.

The sight of Kaiden stroking Pegasus’s mane came into view. The dim light of early dawn pressed through the stable window and fell across him.

The long whip in his hand suited him as well as a sword, and his riding clothes were as striking as his uniform.

He’s just handsome, but the kind of handsome that’s genuinely irritating.

Ajean awkwardly turned her head and looked around.

The stable was wrapped in quiet stillness. Only the occasional sound of a horse’s whinny proved that time was still passing.

Ajean announced her arrival only after a long pause.

“Why summon me at dawn? There is morning, and midday, and evening too, so why of all times.”

Kaiden held out the whip he was holding and said.

“It seems you’ve grown quite fond of Empress Devolia’s etiquette lessons.”

Not a chance. Ajean could not bring herself to answer and kicked at the bare ground.

How much longer would she have to endure those meager etiquette lessons with nothing left to learn from them. Her patience was nearly at its limit.

“Are you ready to learn?”

Ajean gestured to her own attire. It was the training outfit Bistel had arranged, and she was quite pleased with the active design.

Women in Aisha wore dresses even when riding, but Decan was different. The trouser design cinched at the hem was more than enough to make her heart flutter.

“Look at this. I could go straight to the battlefield in this.”

Kaiden gave a light laugh and then tapped Pegasus’s chin, pat pat, trying to unsettle her.

“Pegasus is difficult even for experienced trainers to handle. He’s so sensitive it took over a month just to tame him. But he is a loyal horse who serves only a single master.”

Ajean looked at Pegasus and spoke with a rather sorrowful expression. The beast could not possibly understand, so it was naturally said for Kaiden’s ears.

“Poor Pegasus. You were a loyal horse who served only His Highness the Crown Prince, yet your very own master went and wagered you in a bet. I, for one, will never treat you carelessly the way your former master did.”

Having gotten in a satisfying jab at Kaiden, Ajean continued to look around.

Her unpredictable behavior had always been interesting, so Kaiden crossed his arms and watched. His gaze tracking her movements was unhurried.

“That over there, it is yours, is it not, Your Highness?”

The cloak Kaiden had taken off caught her eye. Without asking the owner’s permission, Ajean draped it over herself.

The cloak was far too large. It enveloped her entire body and still had length to spare, trailing along the ground.

Kaiden’s head tilted slightly. A deep shadow fell beneath his eyelids.

His gaze still followed Ajean. Very slowly.

Ajean swallowed once and slowly approached Pegasus.

“Whoa, easy now, Pegasus. It’s not like we’re meeting for the first time.”

She had expected him to breathe out roughly in displeasure, but Pegasus let out a gentle whinny.

Confidence growing, Ajean extended her hand, and Pegasus, seeming quite pleased, kept whinnying and nuzzling his neck against her palm. Then he repeatedly nudged at the cloak she was wearing.

Pegasus was the renowned warhorse who had charged across battlefields, the most fierce of all the horses in the imperial stables. A bad-tempered beast who would kick even Bistel viciously when in a foul mood. Yet now he was fawning over her, as though he recognized his new owner.

The head that had been tilted returned to its proper position. Kaiden, who had been briefly lost in thought, spoke in a serious tone.

“How unusual. Is it that they like each other because they are alike?”

Dawn moved slowly through the stables.

Yet it was neither dull nor quiet.

The hesitation she had felt upon entering the stables vanished quickly.

The achievement of having tamed the supposedly unruly Pegasus in an instant brought an immense rush of satisfaction.

Filled with excitement, Ajean went out of her way to respond to the meaningful remark Kaiden had let slip.

“Alike? In what way do I resemble Pegasus? It is simply that a fine horse recognizes its master.”

“Pegasus’s master was me, until just a moment ago.”

“Then he recognized his master’s companion……”

Speaking freely, she awkwardly swallowed the end of her sentence.

The rush of achievement faded quickly. Ajean tapped at the bare ground again with her foot.

“An intelligent and sensitive horse. He and you are very much alike, so it makes sense that you understood each other.”

From Kaiden’s mouth came an unexpected, open compliment. Ajean looked up with a puzzled expression. That did not seem likely.

“The fierceness is truly alike. The imperial princess is more than worthy of being Pegasus’s true master.”

It was, as expected, a foundation laid to provoke Ajean’s nerves.

It was because he kept goading her like this that she kept making verbal slips. Ajean felt a sting in her chest from the injustice of it.

“Huu……”

After letting out a long, open sigh, she asked back sharply.

“For someone who knows fierceness so well, why do you provoke me every single time? And for that matter, I am not fierce, I am simply a competitor. That is precisely why I always win bets.”

“When you lose a bet? What does a competitor do then?”

“A competitor acknowledges even defeat. Naturally, you accept it cleanly and pay the price. So Your Highness should hurry up and teach me to ride, as befits a loser. Stop teasing me.”

Kaiden looked at Ajean for a long moment, dressed in a well-fitted training outfit. His gaze lingered on her flat abdomen in a moment of impropriety.

“Riding!”

Ajean’s fierce voice cut through the air. Cracking the whip at the empty space was an added bonus.

❀❀❀

The long hair and hem of her clothes whipped in the fierce wind.

Ajean felt as though she might lose her senses in the dizzying rapture. It felt as though she were soaring into the sky on the wind sweeping across the open plain.

That Ajean was able to ride in just a single day was, apart from her natural talent, entirely thanks to Pegasus.

Pegasus had not earned the name of a great horse simply for being fast.

The intelligent beast restrained his instinct to gallop and kept to a measured pace, attentive to his new owner’s condition.

“Your Highness, I feel as though I have become a bird. I feel like I could fly away just like this.”

Kaiden steered his horse alongside Pegasus. The two horses galloped side by side across the plains of Decan, their manes streaming in the wind.

At the far end of the vast plain stretching in every direction, the majesty of a high mountain range stood in solemn grandeur. The nature of Decan was truly beautiful.