Chapter 35
I thought Kallios was playing a prank and was about to get angry at his rudeness.
But then he really did lift me like a bundle and mount his horse with me strapped to his body.
The sudden sensation of being lifted so high made me gasp for air.
Just clinging to Kallios already had me high off the ground, but his horse was astonishingly tall—it felt like I was on the second floor of a building.
The ground seemed so far away that my vision spun.
“W-Wait a second!”
I struggled, but my body was wrapped tightly in cloth and fastened securely to him, so I couldn’t move much.
He said calmly,
“Please don’t move too much. It’s dangerous.”
“You’re saying we’re leaving like this?”
“From here on, we have to climb the mountain. We’ll be moving quickly through steep and rough terrain.”
Each time he spoke, his breath, visible in the cold air, brushed my nose and made it tickle.
‘Too close…!’
Despite both of us wearing thick clothing, our bodies were so close that I could practically feel his heartbeat, which made me incredibly self-conscious.
“Can’t I just sit upright instead?”
“You’ll be thrown off.”
His voice left no room for argument.
“But I feel like such a burden. You’re going to be carrying me while riding fast… that must be heavy…”
Even though I was seated on the saddle, he had me bound to his body—it had to weigh heavily on his shoulders.
But when I expressed concern over my weight, Kallios just stared at me in silence.
His gaze seemed to ask, “Are you seriously saying that?”
He looked so unbothered that my excuse felt silly.
‘Well… I mean, just one of his arms looks four times thicker than mine…’
With such a difference in build, my twig-thin frame might not be a big deal to him after all.
“If you really want to help, then hold on to me tightly.”
“…Okay.”
I silently wrapped my arms tightly around him.
“Is this really the best way…?”
“Yes.”
“But, um, there’s a sled over there…”
I pointed to the luggage sled his subordinates were attaching to a horse.
Kallios shook his head firmly.
“Sleds often overturn when the rope snaps, and sometimes they fall into deep cliffs, never to be found again.”
I imagined myself tumbling down a cliff with the sled and gripped his body tighter.
Then I suddenly realized—my precious teddy bear and cushion shouldn’t be in that dangerous sled either.
“Wait a second!”
* * *
Alex stared down at the shiny, round, black eyes of the stuffed bear under his chin.
He was now carrying both the teddy bear and the cushion on his front and back.
“These are things I hold dear as life itself. Please take good care of them.”
Those were Chloe’s special instructions.
She repeated the request several times, as if entrusting him with her own child.
A teddy bear, really?
Even his youngest sibling, who had just turned ten, had long grown out of stuffed animals.
My little brother hunts actual bears in the mountains…
In Ronhaim, ten was the age to start hunting.
So seeing a grown woman—a princess, no less—trembling and unable to part with childhood comfort items was honestly a little funny and fascinating.
She really has a pure side. But why entrust them to me, of all people?
Considering his rough, blunt nature—and admittedly subpar hygiene—it would’ve made more sense to leave them with her maids.
Chloe’s maids were seated in pairs on saddles with handles.
Each of their horses was led by a fellow soldier, who was warning them that letting go of the saddle handles could mean falling off and dying.
Alex glanced at the maids—except for one named Lamia, most looked deathly pale.
Well, I guess they don’t exactly inspire confidence.
Alex cradled the teddy bear gently.
Then he heard a faint rattling sound from inside. It sounded like metal clinking.
Did something just rattle inside the bear?
He tilted his head in curiosity and squeezed the bear’s head—only to recoil when he saw a stain transfer onto his leather glove.
Ack!
He tried blowing on the bear’s head and wiping it gently with his sleeve, but it was no use.
Damn, I’m dead.
So worried about the stain, he completely forgot about the metal noise he had heard earlier.
Kallios’s warning that I might get flung off the horse was no exaggeration.
“Hyah!”
Leading the charge, Kallios kicked into a gallop.
As he said, we began the mountain ascent. Beyond the Avène walls lay snow-covered rocky terrain, which the horse navigated at an astonishing pace, as if it knew the way by heart.
We leapt from rock to rock, passed over narrow and steep paths that felt terrifyingly close to the edge.
Each step the horse took jostled my body violently.
If I weren’t tied to the Marquis, this would’ve been a disaster.
At first, I clung to him tightly out of fear of falling, but it wasn’t long before my strength gave out.
If it weren’t for Kallios holding me, I would’ve been flung off and plummeted down the endless cliffs long ago.
I curled up against him to escape the biting wind and clung to him like a cicada.
One small comfort was that being so close to him kept me warm enough that I didn’t lose too much body heat.
Still, my legs and feet, which weren’t as closely pressed to him, were growing numb from the cold.
As I huddled there, barely maintaining my body temperature, I happened to glance up—and was startled to see sweat beading on Kallios’s face.
“Are you alright?”
He asked occasionally if I was okay.
I didn’t dare open my mouth, afraid I might bite my tongue, so I just nodded.
But on the fourth time, I shook my head.
Kallios slowed the horse’s pace.
“Are you in pain?”
“M-Motion sickness…”
The world was spinning.
Seeing my pale complexion, Kallios clicked his tongue softly and had the horse slow to a walk.
“I hope you’ll understand—I can’t stop. We have a long way to go.”
“I’m sorry… it’s because of me…”
“Don’t worry about it. Taking breaks now and then keeps people from falling behind.”
He looked over his shoulder to check on the others.
Only then did I lift my face from his chest and look around.
The path we were on was a narrow ledge carved into the side of a cliff, much narrower than I had expected.
If someone were coming from the opposite direction, how would we pass them?
The stone path was so narrow it made me nervous.
There’s no way a carriage could come through here.
Snow piled up along the road.
Where sunlight hit, patches of ground were visible, but most of the path lay in shadow, buried in snow.
Looking ahead at the path made me nervous, so I turned my gaze farther off into the distance.
Wow…
The scenery I saw near the northern teleportation gate had been beautiful, but the view from halfway up this mountain was breathtaking.
To think there are people living beyond such deep, vast mountains…
I couldn’t help but wonder what kind of place Ronhaim was.
Of course, I know a bit from the history books.
According to historical records, Ronhaim was a small kingdom built on barren land that was covered in snow almost all year round, save for a couple months.
A poor kingdom where over half the population were nomads who lived off hunting and herding.
The reason the Arental emperors had sought to conquer such a place was because of a legend.
It was said that the mountains of Ronhaim were filled with divine treasures—immense gold and silver, and mysterious herbs that could grant immortality.
In truth, while no one had seen the gold, many travelers who had visited Ronhaim claimed to have witnessed strange and miraculous things.
According to them, Ronhaim’s people were highly resistant to disease and lived long lives.
Some old records even said that terrible epidemics that swept across the continent always bypassed Ronhaim.
That’s why the Arental emperors believed the legend of the life-giving herb wasn’t just a myth.
Honestly, just looking at this mystical landscape… it’s not hard to believe.
I stared at the scenery in a daze.
Then, perhaps worried by my silence, Kallios asked,
“Are you struggling? Should I tell you a fun story?”
“A fun story?”
“Like about your friend, perhaps.”
“…!”
I looked up at him warily.
Why does he keep asking about Kal…?
