Episode 14. A Light Tease

“Oh, there’s a carriage over there!”

Brienne shouted, pointing to the middle of the downhill path. Looking in that direction, Hereis slowly brought the horse to a stop.

“Is that the carriage the Marquis rode in?”

“Yes! It has our family’s crest engraved on it, so it must be.”

“Then we’ll have to go on foot from here.”

Hereis dismounted and quickly surveyed the path before returning. While he tied the reins to a sturdy tree, Brienne remained seated alone on the horse.

“Um…”

Brienne looked at Hereis with an awkward expression. It was time to get down, but it was difficult to jump off while wearing indoor clothes and slippers.

“This path used to be accessible, but we don’t know how deep the water is now. If there’s a ditch connected to the sewer in the middle, it could be dangerous. So I think it’s best for you to stay on the horse for now, Lady Ford.”

But Hereis wasn’t so oblivious. His firm words made it clear he wasn’t helping her down on purpose, and Brienne hurriedly shouted.

“I’m fine!”

And as always, her habit of acting before thinking caused trouble. As she tried to grab him, Brienne lost her balance and staggered. Hereis, quick to react, immediately reached out his arms.

Thud.

“…It doesn’t seem like you’re fine right now.”

She ended up in his arms. Not quite on the ground, but not on the horse either, Brienne hastily lifted her head from the awkward position.

“Ah…”

A soft sound escaped her lips before she realized it. Hereis was looking at her intently. A warm, gentle scent wafted from where their bodies were touching.

Why did it feel like something was stuck in her chest?

“Uh, Young Duke, could you… move your hand a bit…”

At her words, Hereis gently set her down on the ground.

“My apologies.”

“It’s alright. Thank you for helping me.”

Brienne, for some reason, buried her flushed cheeks into her jacket.

All he did was help her off the horse, yet why did it feel like this earlier too?

She hadn’t noticed when they left due to the urgency, but being held in his arms was rather embarrassing. Brienne cleared her throat loudly and took the lead.

“Let’s hurry. We might miss my father.”

Hereis nodded and silently followed her. Because of the difference in their strides, he caught up to her quickly.

Seeing Brienne awkwardly avoiding his gaze, Hereis lowered his elbow toward her, an invitation to hold it.

“Just in case. I have no intention of trying anything like earlier, so feel free to grab on.”

“That earlier… was that you trying something?”

Brienne widened her eyes in surprise. Hereis, enjoying the sight of her light green eyes, let out a soft chuckle.

“Of course not. I was joking.”

Hereis whispered calmly, then looked away from her. As Brienne hesitated, he reached out and firmly pulled her hand onto his arm.

“Hold on tight. Like when you had your arms around my neck earlier.”

“Huh? Arms around you? When did I ever…!”

“You took my first hug. Don’t tell me you’re trying to deny it?”

What is he even saying? Brienne’s face turned red as she stared at Hereis, who teased her shamelessly.

“T-That was unavoidable. That doesn’t count as a hug.”

“Unavoidable, huh…”

As if understanding, Hereis nodded and glanced at Brienne.

“Then I guess I’ll just have to create another unavoidable situation.”

How could someone be like this? Brienne glared at the relaxedly smiling Hereis with sharp eyes. The thought that she was thankful for his lightheartedness earlier was now revoked.

And one more thing.

“I must have been mistaken. If you keep teasing me, I’ll take back what I said about you being kind.”

“You’re taking it back already? That was my first compliment, and you’re taking it away so quickly. Lady Ford, you’re really quite cruel.”

“Too bad you didn’t know sooner! I’ve always been cruel.”

Turning her head with a huff, Brienne continued walking alongside Hereis. Thanks to him clearing the way slightly ahead of her, it was easy to move forward.

Their conversation soon ended as they approached the carriage, which was now half-submerged in water. They both fell silent. Hereis narrowed his eyes as he looked around.

“There’s the carriage, but no people or horses. Strange. With water this deep, they wouldn’t have been able to pass through on horseback…”

“Where could they have gone?”

“Most likely, the water rose too quickly, so they couldn’t return this way. Is there a place nearby where the land rises sharply?”

“Oh, there’s a hill surrounding Mount Riffel over there. From the fork in the road, it also connects to Luman Square!”

Brienne pointed toward the mountain. Luman Square. If they went there, they could take a direct shortcut to the lord’s castle. Just as Hereis was about to nod at the now narrower search area—

“Brienne…!”

Without any warning, the tree to which the carriage was tied began to slowly tip over, right above Brienne’s head.

***

Damon Ford walked along the hill following the man who introduced himself as Zen. Zen led the way, cutting through the thickets with a pocketknife, and the Marquis followed behind him, guiding the people.

Zen occasionally scanned the surroundings, saying there might still be people to rescue. His subordinate Russel was with him through it all.

“Sir Zen, the mountain’s to the right. This is dangerous, so let’s hurry out of here, yes?”

“I know! I’m trying.”

Wondering who these people even were, Damon glanced at Zen, who nudged the man beside him and laughed aloud.

“Oh, this guy? Right, he’s… Ah, Russel. Russel is my subordinate.”

Unlike the solidly built and dark-skinned Zen, Russel was quite a delicate-looking man. In both height and build, compared to the massive Zen, he appeared quite young. He looked more like someone who had held a pen all his life than a sword, yet he moved deftly through the terrain, which was rather fascinating.

Before meeting Damon, they had already passed by a shelter. But even that had flooded, and they had encountered people wandering there.

Damon, deeply remorseful, promised to lead the people to the lord’s castle.

“Come to think of it, I forgot to introduce myself. You’re the lord, right? Thank you for your help.”

“What thanks? Compared to his life, this is cheap.”

Russel’s clear voice and polite tone were also different from Zen. As Damon compared Zen’s deep voice and rough speech, he looked back and forth between the two.

“They really don’t seem to match.”

Misunderstanding his gaze, Zen raised an eyebrow. “…What? Am I wrong? That debt includes my lips too!”

What a man with no sense of decorum. And to say something so strange after saving people… Damon shook his head while staring at Zen’s handsome face.

As they say, appearances can be deceiving. Just because someone had a good face didn’t mean they had a good character.

“You know… I truly am grateful that you saved me, but if you say things like that after we get to the castle…”

Damon was just about to scold the man.

Rumble! Ruuuumble!

Suddenly, the ground shook violently, as if an earthquake had struck. Cracks started to spread beneath their feet. At the deafening sound, Zen crouched low and shouted.

“Damn it…! It’s a landslide!”

At his words, the people following Damon screamed.

Looking up at the ridge Zen pointed to, they saw soil tumbling down like a waterfall, collapsing the ground.

Frozen in place by the sight he’d never seen in his life, Damon turned pale as Zen urgently shook him.

“What are you doing, Ahjussi! Snap out of it!”

In that brief moment, a massive tree at the top was ripped from its roots. It began rolling straight toward them as if to crush them.

“No…!”

Snapping back to his senses, Damon turned and reached for the children. With his rough hands, he pulled their delicate shoulders close, shielding them with his back like a sturdy wall.

But as he shut his eyes tightly, no pain followed—only a tremendous noise.

Crack.

‘What… what is this?’

Expecting intense pain or to faint, Damon recalled the faces of his family and slowly raised his head.

A wall.

A solid dirt wall.

A massive shadow loomed over the heads of the people Damon had tried to protect.

Damon, blinking at the enormous wall that had suddenly jutted from the ground like a canopy, finally looked around as the startled murmuring began.

In the distance, through the torrential rain, the figure of a man appeared, walking hastily toward them.

The noise that had filled Damon’s ears seemed to fade away. Watching the figure with half-lidded eyes, Damon finally let out a gasp.

“…Y-Young Duke Belif!”

The man stepped into the looming shadow. Breathing hard, Hereis appeared, his expression twisted.

“The wall will collapse soon! Please evacuate to a safe place!”

Despite his urgent tone, no one moved. The sudden wall and the man’s appearance made it hard to grasp reality.

Appearing in the downpour like divine judgment or the end of days, the man was strangely untouched by a single drop of water.

But on his abdomen was a long, deep wound. Blood mixed with rain pooled at Hereis’s feet. Everyone, from the stunned Damon to the usually flippant Zen and gentle Russel, stood frozen in shock.

Hereis Belif, standing atop the darkened earth, looked like a god incarnate.

***