Chapter 13: 13

Chapter 13

※ Heads up! There was supposed to be an illustration in Chapter 12, but we forgot to put it there. It’s been added now though~!

Jiwoo understood belatedly in the middle of the forest why she was told to hold on tight. If she had let go, she would definitely float in that state.

Lanceil jumped through the trees and started moving quickly. He did not show any signs of difficulty even when he was carrying Jiwoo in one arm.

He wasn’t slow at all, either.

It felt like a cool breeze was blowing as Lanceil moved between the large branches. She had to hold it with one hand as the hood came off in the strong wind, but the clear breeze felt good.

The surrounding scenery moved quickly.

“Wow…”

Jiwoo lifted the hood slightly and looked around.

If it wasn’t for Lanceil, she wouldn’t have been able to see the forest from such a high vantage point. She knew what kind of place this forest was, but it was even more amazing.

Before the carriage accident, Jiwoo knew where she was heading. Jiwoo wanted to distance herself from the crown prince even for a while, so she forced herself to go to the most barren land in the empire.

And this was a forest close to what the empire called the ‘border’.

It wasn’t a complete realm of magical beasts, but it wasn’t a place frequented by humans either. It would never be considered a safe place.

As Jiwoo also confirmed firsthand, beasts roamed in this forest. Even Lanceil, who seemed accustomed to the forest, had suffered severe injuries from a beast and was dying when they met.

Also, there were rumors that there lived people of the other race who rejected humans. Of course, the first one Jiwoo met was Lanceil. Although Lanceil was kind to her, there was no guarantee that the others would be the same.

In the first place, in the empire, there was a reason that these races called ‘Children of Elandos’ were called ‘pointed ears’. It was their characteristics of having long ears, but they did not stop at excluding humans, but mercilessly killed them when they encountered humans.

They live on the border facing the realm of the beasts, so humans rarely encounter them, but if the access is easier and the dangers of the beasts have increased, the militant empire may have declared war earlier.

As such, humans and these races did not get along well.

Crucially, they did not believe in divine power.

The crown prince saw them as objects of indoctrination, not as equal beings who people could coexist or exchange with.

‘What Lanceil said is true…’

However, Lanceil’s attitude was somewhat unexpected to Jiwoo. They had been frantically intermingling their bodies for days and days, but his initial promise hadn’t changed.

It seemed like he was willing to let her go if she really wanted to go back. Jiwoo thought he would tell her not to go.

‘I thought you fell in love with me, but you didn’t…’

What Lanceil said wasn’t just a kind of goodwill. He thanked her for saving his life, so he declared that his life now belongs to Jiwoo.

But in fact… words were just words. There was a high possibility that Jiwoo had misunderstood.

Jiwoo came to this world and experienced countless nonsensical words. The temple was like that, and the Crown Prince was like that as well.

The crown prince would also go outside the temple with Jiwoo and say that Akarna has the meaning of ‘lovely lover’ without any meaning and she was the only one who mistook it and her heart fluttered for nothing.

So Lanceil’s words may not have been completely special either. Perhaps the word of him giving up his life is just… a kind of thing they say to seduce a woman for one night.

‘Well, I must have acted very strangely…’

No matter how ignorant she was of their culture, she seduced him by touching his ears and she craved for him madly in that cave, so truthfully speaking, it wasn’t normal behavior either.

He must have thought she was a strange woman.

Even so, she moved closer to him, and now she’s embarrassed. It’s strange that she’s more ashamed to simply be hugged by him now compared to when they frantically had s*x.

‘Then, until the rescue team arrives… Let’s be patient. Because it’s the only place I have…’

The only place in the world where Jiwoo could stay—that was the temple, where she could be recognized because of her position.

Again, the crown prince’s face came to mind. Her good mood subsided in an instant.

It was as if Jiwoo was digging the soil on her own while sinking endlessly. While she did so, Lanceil was actually thinking no differently than Jiwoo.

‘Was I too terrible at it? I mean, if she must have such a dark expression…’

The two were so awkward with each other that they just kept their mouths shut like clams. It was a side effect of using their body to get closer rather than to have an earnest conversation between them.

* * *

The signal that they had arrived at their destination came quickly.

Surprisingly, it was recognizable by the smell.

At some point, a good smell wafted out. The thick scent of grass and flowers, and the sweet scent of honey mixed in the wind.

Even though they had traversed through the forest so far, she had never smelled a strong scent like this.

Jiwoo lifted the hood slightly and looked around. There was a more marvelous sight unfolding before her eyes than when she went through the forest.

A green village.

There were a lot of trees that were much thicker and bigger than the trees that they had just passed through the forest.

The tree trunks extending from the huge tree were so thick that it completely covered the sky. The sunlight pouring through the branches gave the feeling of a sanctuary. The green of the forest and the golden light pouring from the sky gave off a warm atmosphere.

It looked like a place where people live, but it seemed to create a dwelling place in harmony with nature, rather than providing a space by offloading nature.

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In fact, some houses were sandwiched between trees or the trees themselves became living spaces.

At the entrance to the village, there was a river and an arch covered in moss, and there was a path that was often used.

It was a beautiful village, but she felt strangely uneasy. She was wondering where this feeling came from, but if she looked any further, the hood she struggled to put on would be useless.

As Lanceil approached the entrance, some young men outside turned.

[ Lanceil? ]

[ Is that Lanceil? ]

[ What, Lanceil? ]

It was a language of the other race that she had heard once through Lanceil.

Judging from their reaction, it must have come as a surprise to them that Lanceil returned. It seemed like everyone knew he had gotten injured.

Among them, there was one who was running towards this direction the fastest.

[ Lanceil! You’re alive? ]

As the crowd approached, even Lanceil, who had insisted on carrying Jiwoo, put Jiwoo down on the ground.

Lanceil hugged the first person to come. Although it was a reaction to a person who thought he was dead and came back alive, she thought that it looked like too extreme of a reaction.

Jiwoo, who has lived as an Akarna, knew well that this was an act that would be seen by those close to death.

‘What’s going on here?’

Half of the people were noticeably relieved, and the other half were genuinely happy.

And they all glanced around the whole time as they talked, very concerned towards Jiwoo, who was standing still behind Lanceil. Finally, someone couldn’t stand it and asked.

[ But what about that? ]

Lanceil said it instead.

[ She is a guest. I found her in the woods, she’s the one who helped me recover, so I think I’ll let her stay for a while. ]

At those words, everyone that was gathered around Lanceil was astonished.

[ Recovered? How did you do that? ]

[ Nonsense. If it was a wound that could be healed, I would have grabbed you instead of leaving you alone. ]

[ Anyway, I came back alive. I’ll explain later. ]

[ Well, even if that’s the case… ]

[ …However, for you to bring an outsider here. ]

Since Lanceil was a person who had died and had come back alive, there was an atmosphere in which they could not say harsh words. Still, there was no warmth in the gazes that looked at Jiwoo.

Although they weren’t completely hostile because of Lanceil, it was clear that they were annoyed. Lanceil ignored the reaction.

[ By the way, Tevon, is Callan here? ]

[ Why Callan? You said you recovered… is that a lie? ]

Lanceil shook his head.

[ No, I’m really fine. I want this guest seen because she hurt her leg, not me. ]

[ Ummm… ]

The man called Tevon looked at Jiwoo up and down with no sincerity.

Tevon was the one who immediately ran to Lanceil after checking his face and gave him a gentle hug. His silver hair, as light as Lanceil, was mixed with yellow.

It was a mysterious color that went between silver hair or blond hair. And looking at it up close, his features resembled Lanceil.

Compared to Lanceil, he looked younger though.

[ He is here, but today he can’t because of Helka. Callan is here because of Helka… ]

Tevon touched his forehead in trouble.

[ We have a full moon tonight. ]

[ Ah… Already? ]

[Helka said that he would pass away before then… It’s not the time to bring in outsiders. Well… Anyway, follow me.]

Lanceil whispered softly close. It was an imperial language out of his consideration for Jiwoo.

“I’m sorry, it’s like this. Follow me.”

Jiwoo leaned close to Lanceil and followed him while holding her breath.

The news that Lanceil had returned alive and that there was an outsider had already circulated, everyone in the village snuck a peek. They didn’t forget to glance at Jiwoo while talking with Lanceil.

Jiwoo looked around, cringing at the feeling of rejection that hit her flesh, and realized one thing.

There were no women in this village.

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