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Chapter 10
“Ughhh, I hate Herwin so, so much….”
Her tearful sobbing, laced with resentment, wouldn’t stop.
Birds, squirrels, rabbits—creatures of the forest all stared at the crying Lucia. But suddenly, their ears pricked up and turned back all at once.
The animals bolted in a frenzy, as though they’d sensed something.
Grrr—
A strange growl came from nearby. Lucia froze and turned around.
“Uh…uh…?”
Through her blurry vision, she saw something huge and brown. Wiping her tears, she finally realized what it was that was coming closer.
“A… wild dog?”
It was a feral dog that roamed the forest.
For an adult, it was only medium-to-large size, but for eight-year-old Lucia, it looked as terrifying as a wolf.
Woof! Woof! Grrr!
“M-mom… Dad…”
Lucia’s legs gave out and she collapsed onto the ground, scooting back on her bottom as far as she could.
The dog bared its teeth as if it would pounce on her at any moment. Drool dripped onto the grass with an eerie hiss.
Grrr, Raaaagh!
Lucia instinctively raised her arms to shield her head and squeezed her eyes shut.
Yelp—yipe!
But then, the sound of the dog’s whine rang out.
She opened her eyes and saw the dog that had been right in front of her now lying on the ground.
“Get away from Lucia!”
“H-Herwin…!”
Herwin stood panting on the path she’d come from, gripping a stone as big as his fist.
Another heavy rock lay near where the dog had fallen.
Thud!
Herwin hurled another stone at the wild dog. It dodged with quick reflexes.
“I said get away from her!”
This time, Herwin drew the wooden practice sword from his belt.
When he raised the blade and charged forward, the startled dog backed away.
As soon as the dog put some distance between itself and Lucia, Herwin rushed to her side and planted himself in front of her, sword at the ready.
Lucia’s tear-stained blue eyes fixed on his back.
It was a small, fragile back—nothing like an adult’s—but to her, it looked as large and steady as her father Johan’s.
She couldn’t take her eyes off the small head of black hair in front of her.
The dog, perhaps realizing these were only children, bared its teeth again and advanced menacingly.
Herwin swallowed hard, but his grip on the sword never wavered.
It’s okay. I can do this.
He hadn’t learned swordsmanship just for show. His father himself had praised him for his talent.
Believing in his own skill, Herwin glared at the dog with blazing red eyes.
Raaagh!
The dog lunged, teeth flashing.
Herwin didn’t flinch, raising his sword to meet it.
Thwack! Yelp!
His strike landed true. The dog, hit in the face, rolled across the ground, blood streaming from its head.
But its eyes hardened with fury. It sprang at him again.
“Urgh!”
“Herwin!”
The beast leapt and clamped down on his wooden sword. If he hadn’t had it, his neck would’ve been in danger.
Woof! Grrr! Woof woof!
Its sharp teeth chewed into the wood like a dog toy, pressing harder and harder, aiming for his throat.
The raw strength of a wild beast was too much for an eight-year-old to handle.
But Herwin clenched his teeth, knowing if he faltered, both he and Lucia would be badly hurt.
Lucia trembled like a leaf where she sat, fear rising that Herwin might be injured.
Frantically, she scanned the ground. Then she spotted a rock—one Herwin had thrown earlier.
She crawled over, snatched it up, and staggered to her feet.
“Yaaahhh!”
Her cry echoed loudly.
The dog’s gaze snapped to her.
Her legs shook and she looked ready to burst into tears, but she clung tightly to the stone.
“Don’t hurt Herwin!”
Squeezing her eyes shut, she hurled it with all her might.
It didn’t have the force of Herwin’s throws, but she was close enough. The rock struck the dog’s head.
Clang!
The pressure on the sword weakened. Seizing the moment, Herwin swung hard.
The beast yelped as his strike landed on its flank, and it staggered back.
This time, its spirit faltered. Realizing it couldn’t win, the dog limped off into the trees, glancing back once before disappearing.
“Hah… hah… hah…”
Herwin kept his eyes fixed on where the dog had gone, just in case it returned. But it didn’t.
Finally, he wiped the sweat from his face and turned back.
“Lucia, are you okay?”
“Y-yeah… Herwin…”
Tearfully, Lucia flung herself into his arms.
“I-I was so scared…!”
“I told you not to go too deep in. There are worse things here than wild dogs.”
“Hic, sniff… I-I know. I was wrong…”
Her words tumbled out between shaky breaths. Her soft brown hair brushed Herwin’s cheek.
The heart that had dropped to the pit of his stomach when he first saw her in danger was finally steady again.
With the tension gone, Herwin himself nearly wanted to cry, but he held it in, unwilling to show weakness.
“Don’t ever come into the forest alone again. Got it?”
“Mm-hm!”
“And here. Take this.”
He wiped her tears and pulled something from his pocket.
“Huh? A four-leaf clover…”
“I found it after you left. Take it—just don’t cry anymore.”
“You’re giving it to me?”
“…Well, it’s my fault you came into the forest.”
Herwin blushed, looking away, as he placed the fragile clover in her hand.
Though wilted, to Lucia it was more precious than anything.
“Hehe…”
Seeing her smile again, Herwin sneaked a look at her.
“Come on, let’s go.”
“Sniff… yeah!”
Hand in hand, the two left the forest together.
Their palms were sweaty, sticky. They could’ve let go, but neither did. Afraid of losing each other, they held on even tighter.
When they returned safely to the castle, the household was thrown into an uproar.
“My goodness! Herwin! What happened to you?”
“Why are your clothes like that?”
Both children were a mess—dirt and grass stains everywhere.
Lucia’s clothes weren’t too bad apart from a fall, but Herwin’s were filthy, his face and hair smeared with soil after wrestling with the dog.
It was obvious something had happened.
“Did you fall or something? But this looks worse than that…”
“I fought a dog.”
Herwin answered Scarlet firmly.
“What?”
“A wild dog threatened Lucia, so I defeated it.”
It sounded unbelievable. But the seriousness in both children’s eyes made it hard to dismiss as a lie.
“You’re not badly hurt, are you? It didn’t bite you?” Scarlet asked, gently wiping his face.
“I’m fine, but… my wooden sword’s ruined.”
The sword was full of bite marks and scratches—clear proof of how fierce the fight had been.
The adults, who had doubted at first, began murmuring among themselves.
Scarlet couldn’t even speak for a moment. She was proud of her son, but terrified by what could’ve happened.
“Let’s have the doctor check you, just in case.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Servants rushed to fetch the physician.
Meanwhile, Julian asked Lucia if she was hurt, but she didn’t even hear him—her eyes were fixed on Herwin.
“Herwin!”
Suddenly, she called out with all her strength.
“I love you best! So I’m definitely going to marry you!”
Her declaration silenced the entire hall.
Heil and Johan, who had hurried over at the news, Lucas and Henry in fresh clothes, and all the servants—everyone froze, staring at Lucia.
Her blue eyes shone with a feeling none of them had ever seen in her before—love.
“…Huh.”
Julian let out a stunned sigh.
While everyone was shocked, the most shaken of all was Herwin himself.
Just minutes ago, he’d seen that emotion directed at him.
Thump, thump, thump.
His heart, so still before, now pounded in his chest.
But then he noticed the other children, the vassals’ sons, whispering and watching.
Thump, thump, thump…!
His heart raced again—but now with dread and unease.
Once aware of their stares, he realized all the adults’ eyes were also fixed on him.
His stomach churned.
The flush in his face drained to pale.
“I-I don’t want that!”
He rejected Lucia’s confession and ran out of the hall.
The air, once tense, now chilled into silence.
No one dared breathe too loudly, afraid of disturbing the little lady.
Lucia had confessed boldly, and Herwin had rejected her just as openly. The room froze.
“…Lucia, are you alright?” Julian asked gently.
Everyone waited, certain she would burst into tears.
But she didn’t.
To their shock, she wasn’t sad or embarrassed. She only stared at the spot where Herwin had disappeared, lips pushed out in determination.
“Mother, let’s go wash up.”
“Huh? Are you sure…?”
“Yes! You said I need a bath. Come on!”
As if nothing had happened, Lucia grabbed Julian’s hand and led her upstairs.
