DSFL | Chapter 33

 ~Chapter 33~ 

As I stood frozen, I heard someone draw their sword and step toward Ricardo.

“Your Grace, allow me to handle it.”

At that, I instinctively took a step back.

But Ricardo, without taking his eyes off me, responded calmly:

“…It’s just the wind. Don’t worry about it.”

His voice was so composed.
But his eyes—the ones still looking at me—were visibly shaken.

“Anyway, about that woman…”

As the man kept talking, Ricardo finally managed to fix his expression.
Then, as if nothing had happened, he turned his back on me.

I stared at his broad back, my fists tightly clenched.

“She’s being so careless! Going off to have fun in a situation like this?”

“…”

“We didn’t gain power just to trail behind her like lost puppies.”

The man seemed to be letting out all his frustration.

“If we had been just a bit late, everything we planned would’ve fallen apart!”

“Elliot, mind your tone in front of His Grace.”

“I can’t help it! If it weren’t for that woman, Idette—!”

I gasped silently at the familiar name.

“Enough.”

Ricardo cut him off. The air around them went completely still.

I held my breath.
I didn’t even dare to breathe too loudly, afraid they’d realize I was there.

Just then, a female knight spoke cautiously:

“…I think we’re being followed.”

“Take care of it.”

At Ricardo’s command, all sounds vanished.

…Was it safe to leave now?

But more importantly—what just happened here?

Suddenly, something soft was draped over my shoulders.
Startled, I looked up—

 But Ricardo gently pulled a hood over my head, blocking my view.

“…!”

Then he grabbed my hand and tugged me forward.

“Follow me.”

I wanted to ask—
Don’t you need to hide your face too?  Why are you giving me your coat?

But before I could speak, a terrifying voice shouted from behind:

“There they are!”

The scream pierced my ears.

Ricardo gritted his teeth, wrapped an arm around my waist, and suddenly lifted me up.

“…!”

My feet were no longer touching the ground. Goosebumps ran down my whole body.
Panicking, I instinctively wrapped my arms around Ricardo’s neck.

He flinched noticeably.

I knew it—I knew he wouldn’t be happy with this.
But hey, better this than me screaming in fear, right?

He didn’t say anything, but I was already nervously making excuses to myself in my head.

It sounded like a lot of people were chasing us.

All this chaos… just because I took a wrong turn?

How long we ran, I didn’t know.
But finally, I saw light at the end of an alley.

“Come try our refreshing orange juice!”

“Only today—don’t miss this amazing dish!”

I’d never been so happy to hear people’s voices before.

Suddenly, we were back in the light.

My eyes, still used to the dark, couldn’t adjust to the bright lights. Everything looked blurry.

 Meanwhile, Ricardo walked into the crowd. I finally came to my senses and loosened my grip around his neck.

My heart was pounding in my ears.

 I let out a shaky breath, full of fear—

 And then, Ricardo and I made eye contact.

“…”

There was blood on his cheek.

From what I could tell, Ricardo had followed Idette here.
The men he killed must’ve been trying to harm her.

Still, there’s no way Ricardo would just stand by if someone insulted Idette.

I found myself staring at him, deep in thought, and maybe a bit too intensely.
Noticing this, Ricardo awkwardly set me down.

“There are too many people around. They won’t chase us here.”

Ricardo carefully reached out a hand toward me—
But then hesitated, realizing it was still stained with blood. He quietly closed his hand instead.

Wasn’t it too late to be shy now?

I grabbed his hand without hesitation.

“Let’s go. Weren’t we in the middle of running away?”

Ricardo’s throat shortened as he swallowed. Then he led me into the bustling crowd.

What if I lose him in this crowd?

As if reading my mind, he gripped my hand tighter.

I had so many questions for him—
But this wasn’t the right time to ask anything.

As I silently followed him, he suddenly spoke.

“You seem to be here in Dians alone. Do your family members know?”

“…No.”

Ricardo let out a short laugh.

I suddenly felt like a reckless kid and quickly tried to explain.

“I’m not alone. I came with a friend. She just had to leave early.”

“You must be very close, then.”

He said that with a mocking tone.

I was about to argue back, but stopped.

‘Neither you nor Lord Ricardo ever brought it up, so I kept my mouth shut.’

Rayla’s words flashed through my mind.

…Does Ricardo know about a past I can’t remember?

If the “child” Ailins mentioned was Ricardo, then what happened between us?

It was nearly midnight, but the festival was still going strong.

I decided to stop thinking about what just happened and focus on the present.

“…I’m sorry.”

Even with all the surrounding noise, Ricardo’s voice rang clearly.

“I didn’t mean to ruin your evening.”

I thought he was just being awkward, but when I looked up, his face was full of guilt.

…He apologized?

And honestly, this wasn’t even his fault.

It was just bad luck that I got dragged into this mess.

“Ricardo.”

“…”

“I’m fine.”

It was unexpectedly difficult to look at his downcast expression.
Especially right now.

“Shouldn’t you be heading back? Weren’t there still enemies chasing you?”

Instead of answering, Ricardo just pulled my hood down more tightly over my head.

As he blocked my view again, I protested.

“Wait—aren’t we in danger?”

“The knights of House Hessen aren’t weak.”

That’s not what I meant!

Weren’t you in Dians for an important mission?

Apparently, I was the only one treating this like a serious matter.

 Ricardo casually tried to lighten the mood:

“As your fiancé, I have a duty to protect you. Diance isn’t safe right now.”

…Excuse me?

Since when were you acting like a fiancé?

And why are you so confident about it?

I frowned and asked him,

“Did you even sign the engagement cancellation papers? I sent them ages ago and still haven’t gotten a reply…”

“I threw them away.”

His voice was so casual that it caught me off guard.

… You what?

Did I mishear him?

But Ricardo continued, now sounding almost angry:

“I ripped them up as soon as I got them.”

“Are you crazy?! Why would you do that?!”

Is this guy serious right now?!

“Wasn’t it all decided? You were the one who wanted the engagement to end!”

“I told you before—I prefer it when you hate me.”

Chills ran down my spine.

Right.

 He did say something like that before.
That I looked prettier when I hated him.

Now I was sure—he saw me as some kind of toy.

He must be fascinated by how different Bianca was acting now.

As I was thinking this, Ricardo glanced sideways at me.

“If you really wanted to break off the engagement, you should’ve brought the papers yourself.”

…Wait.

So what he’s saying is—
Because I didn’t hand him the papers in person, he just refused to break up?

Then he said, with a firm voice:

“From now on, don’t avoid me.”

“…”

“That is… if you truly want to end things.”