APTB | Ch 14

The next morning, a carriage arrived at the castle gates to take Tia.
Vincente, looking tired, was standing in front of the carriage.
“I heard you don’t ride horses, so I prepared a carriage. But the roads aren’t great, so you might need to get off and walk or ride a horse part of the way.”
He looked more relaxed today than he did yesterday.
His usual formal jacket was gone, and instead, he was wearing a doublet with a cape, showing off his neck. His silver hair wasn’t neatly styled either—it was hanging loose around his face.
Oriana immediately scowled. She looked like she was holding back something she wanted to say, her lips twitching.
“Did you see the dark circles under the lord’s eyes? He must have stayed up all night thinking about the princess! How cute!”
As soon as they got in the carriage, Marisol, laughing, started tapping on the seat.
“…You’re lucky, Marisol. At your age, you find fun even in rolling leaves.”
“You were the same when you were thirteen, Ori. Always frowning and nagging, but now you act like you’re an adult just because of this?”
Orianna had always been like this. Of course, she had. I guess I’m the same now, just like they said ten years ago…
Tia, gazing out the window, listened to the maids’ conversation while lost in thought.
The breeze, a little wet because of the nearby sea, felt chilly.
Would it rain if the sky got darker? Or maybe snow?
Would she be able to see plenty of snow before heading back to the capital?
A moment later, the carriage stopped.
“You’ll need to walk from here. Is that alright?”
Vincente got down from the horse and personally escorted Tia.
As they walked slowly side by side, Tia observed the surroundings.
The path was narrow enough for them to walk together. The ground was covered with rustling fallen leaves.
Above them, branches twisted like vines, and she could hear small animals, like squirrels, scampering away at the sound of their footsteps.
“Ugh, it’s already overgrown again. Even though we clean the path every week, the animals and trees here just grow nonstop.”
The servants walking ahead muttered quietly, pretending to complain.
“It must be uncomfortable for the worshipers to walk here,” Tia commented.
Vincente responded, “This area is only used by the residents of the lord’s estate, so they mostly ride horses. The temple in each village is used by the locals.”
Tia understood.
The people here must still be deeply tied to the old kingdom traditions, as they served the Cali family closely. They probably didn’t visit the Dignato Temple, which worshiped the royal family.
At least the temple itself was clean and peaceful, located in a quiet spot in the forest.
“The Princess!”
As they entered through the gate, an elderly priest, wearing his ceremonial robes, rushed up and bowed deeply to the ground.
Behind him, two men, likely priests, followed and also bowed flat on the ground.
“It is an honor for you to visit Karayan. The Emperor’s grace, watching over us to the very edge of the empire, is as vast as the sky.”
The old priest had mostly gray hair, but it was clear that he originally had dark brown hair, likely from the empire.
He was probably sent here from the mainland.
“Please, rise, Priest.”
Tia said, concerned that the priest might hurt his knees. He looked up with a grateful face and slowly stood.
“I never imagined I’d get to see the Princess in person… I can’t believe this…”
If he was really from the empire, he must have seen Tia at royal events, even from afar. But now, he looked as if he had just met a character from a painting.
“The noble Princess Ortensia… You truly have inherited the grandeur of the Emperor, Leona, as well as the noble eyes of Duke Hassel…”
Suddenly, Tia’s heart dropped.
Did he mistake me for Duke Hassel’s daughter…?
“Priest, aren’t you from the empire?”
An imperial priest shouldn’t be confused about royal lineage.
“Ah, my appearance must have confused you, Princess.”
The priest smiled, looking a little embarrassed.
“My paternal side has some imperial blood, but I was born and raised here in Karayan, Princess.”
He smiled proudly.
“I’m from the small Sirena tribe. Unlike people from the North Sea, we have dark hair and bright eyes. I take great pride in being from the same lineage as Duke Hassel.”
Tia’s eyes flickered slightly.
“Duke Hassel… was from Karayan?”
Tia had always imagined Duke Hassel as someone with dark hair and an elegant build, more typical of the empire. She never suspected he might have come from Karayan.
No one in the capital ever spoke about his origins. The emperor and his wife, who had no children of their own, only referred to him as a wise and noble duke, leaving his background a mystery.
It seemed the empire didn’t focus on such distinctions, and they treated everyone with similar appearances.
“I see. I didn’t realize Duke Hassel was from Karayan…”
Tia was struck by a sudden sense of closeness to Karayan, something that had felt distant before.
“Do you know much about Duke Hassel?”
Her mother never mentioned him.
No one in the palace spoke about him openly.
The emperor, while loved by the people, rarely spoke of himself only honored once a year during a memorial, and the emperor never mentioned his name outside of that.
It was almost as if the emperor tried to erase his memory.
Tia often wondered if her mother had hated him.
“Do you know about Duke Hassel?”
Just then, a loud screeching sound filled the air, drowning out Tia’s voice.
A dark shadow swept across the small temple yard.
Tia flinched, looking up at the sky, hearing the sound of something huge and monstrous.
It was a giant bird, its shape now clearer than ever.
Its head was large, and its wings stretched wide, but its body and tail were oddly blunt.
“A monster…?”
She felt like she was being watched. Was it just her imagination?
“It’s a native monster from this region. Despite its size, it’s harmless and only eats fish,” Vincente explained, stepping in front of her as if to shield her from the creature’s gaze.
“It’s not dangerous, but it’s noisy and distracting, so we should head inside and talk.”
But Tia leaned slightly to the side to look at the bird again.
‘It feels like it’s staring right at me…’