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Chaptetr : 27
Tris asked the man,
“Did you hear anything else when you were given the errand?”
“Other than what you said, Lady Tris, they said I’d be killed if it fell into anyone else’s hands.”
Hmm, then it must be something Emblin wrote. If this is true, Emblin’s suggestion was timely. With Wintergarden and the five villages, Tris could accomplish what she wanted. It would naturally create a base of operations.
Of course, Emblin probably didn’t know Tris had left her territory when she wrote it, but she had offered her a place. Then she would go. If she could enter an arranged marriage with a woman she didn’t even know, couldn’t she protect one person?
Tris’s eyes glimmered coldly. She would go to the Redian territory.
“Tris?”
Tris turned her gaze toward Peta. Peta, Ron, and Shaun were watching her. Their expressions were curious.
Tris spoke calmly.
“I’ve decided where we’re going.”
“Where?”
“To the Redian territory.”
Peta’s eyes widened. That made no sense. Isn’t that the territory of the mad Merril? Had Tris been threatened to pay the price for scandal again? Peta blurted out his thoughts.
“Don’t tell me they’re threatening you again?”
Merril’s letter last time had been exactly that—threats, rudeness, the works.
Tris twisted her lips into a strange smile and said,
“No.”
“Then why?”
“They reached out to me.”
Peta frowned and cursed under his breath.
“Reached out? Are you crazy? After all they did to you… the scandal was the very reason you fell out of favor with the lord, wasn’t it?”
“It’s not Emblin’s fault.”
“Anyway! If Queen Merril weren’t crazy, that scandal wouldn’t even exist.”
Tris narrowed her eyes and muttered,
“True. If Queen Merril had been wise, none of this would have happened.”
“A crazy bloodline. Mother and daughter are both insane. Don’t go there. Princess Emblin will probably be another closed-off lunatic.”
Tris chuckled softly.
“I think so too.”
“Then you’ll go somewhere else, right?”
“No, I’ll go. They keep interfering with me, so there’s no reason to stay idle. I’ll go and make proper use of them.”
There was a chilling resonance in Tris’s words. She really seemed set on going to the Redian territory. Peta asked,
“Are you sure it’s okay? I’d rather not get involved at all.”
Tris shook the parchment and said,
“It’s fine. I know how the world sees them; it won’t cost me anything. And if they try to mess with me, this parchment will come in handy.”
Peta’s jaw dropped. He had thought she might not be in her right mind the moment she left the territory, and now he realized she really wasn’t.
“You really…”
“Peta, shut your mouth.”
Peta closed it. But the worry etched on his forehead didn’t disappear. His future was now in Tris’s hands. No matter that Duke Aik was behind him, he was with Tris now. If Tris failed, so would he.
Peta muttered under his breath,
“Stubborn as ever.”
“Shut up.”
Sigh. Such a stubborn person with sharp ears too. Life is always hard when leaving home, but this path ahead was painfully obvious. A long sigh escaped.
Tris, pretending not to hear, said coldly,
“I’ll keep the first watch. Everyone else, sleep. We have a long journey starting tomorrow.”
Rustle, rustle. Everyone curled up under their blankets. Despite the cold making it hard to sleep, once they closed their eyes, they quickly fell asleep.
By now, the snow had stopped, and the sparkling stars adorned the night sky beautifully.
From dawn, there were groans. The cold had made their bodies cry out. Only Tris rose calmly, packing her blanket, checking the errands boy’s injuries and the criminals, then went out for morning training.
Peta, waking late, roused Ron and Shaun, who were still lost in sleep.
“Get up. Come on, wake up.”
Tris had already gotten up, yet these two were still in the middle of the night? Impossible. They had joined to help, not just lounge around. If Tris didn’t say anything, he’d have to do it. No matter how much he shook them, they didn’t wake. So Peta kicked Ron and Shaun on their behinds once each. Thud! Thud!
“Get up!”
Ron and Shaun jumped up. Their messy, sleepy appearances made Peta frown.
“How long are you going to lounge around? We still have a long way to go.”
Ron and Shaun stood awkwardly, then groaned in pain. Their muscles ached from sleeping on a thin blanket on the cold stone floor. They could barely stretch, but they had no choice under Peta’s pressure.
They needed to do something, but they were still half-asleep, sore, and fumbling.
Peta looked at them with disdain.
“You’re supposed to serve us, yet you slept in later than us. You didn’t join us just to do this, did you?”
Shaun scratched his head and lowered it.
“Sorry, Peta.”
“Fetch water to wash and take care of the horses.”
“Yes, sir.”
Despite being dragged out by Peta, the cold made them shiver violently.
“Ugh, we’ll freeze to death.”
Ron muttered quietly but relaxed when he saw the horses. Flapping, the horses acknowledged him.
“Did you sleep well?”
As Ron spread his arms to hug a horse, Shaun fetched clean snow in a bucket to melt as water. Then they gathered firewood. Ron helped, adding fuel to the fire.
Then they went to find bark to feed the horses, as they wanted to conserve the hay they had brought. Rustle, rustle. As Ron checked the forest, he suddenly stopped. Tris was there, shirtless, focused on training.
Unconsciously, he stared. 190 cm tall, well-developed muscles, arms long and taut with movement. His broad shoulders exhaled steam from the exertion.
Sigh… He knew Tris trained every morning. It never failed to amaze him. Movements precise, speed fast. Tris was a different person when wielding a sword, never making a sound. He wanted to see and learn even just with his eyes.
Then Tris spoke:
“When we enter the village this time, I’ll get you a sword. I’ll teach you one from the start.”
Ron’s mouth dropped.
“Really?”
“Yes.”
Tris never lied. Ron was overjoyed.
“Thank you, Tris!”
Tris stopped, sweating, and looked at Ron coldly. Then he said:
“Canceled.”
“What? Why? Why cancel?”
Disappointed, Ron clung to his words.
“You’ve never lied before.”
Tris, putting on his shirt, replied:
“What were my conditions again?”
Ah… Ron lowered his head and muttered,
“Brother.”
“I didn’t hear you.”
“Brother.”
Tris chuckled, tousled Ron’s hair, and walked past. A small gesture, but it warmed Ron’s heart. It felt like his body thawed.
“Let’s go.”
“We’re looking for horse feed.”
“I saw. There’s none here, so better give them hay. Don’t waste energy early.”
“Yes.”
Ron hurried after Tris.
Breakfast was simple: jerky and hard bread, just like last night. Still, hunger made it taste sweet. Peta slowly sipped water from melted snow and said:
“I hope we can sleep in the village tonight.”
Tris glanced at the sky.
“We’ll have to hurry, but at least the weather’s good.”
The snow stopped, and the sky revealed a vivid blue.
Finally, preparations to depart were complete. Tris, cloaked, grabbed the rope binding the criminals’ wrists and mounted her horse.
“I hope there’s a bounty on them.”
Duke Kisling was notorious for cruelly executing criminals, proud of it.
“Maybe Duke Kisling did put a bounty on them,” Peta thought. If so, he might even list the wanted criminals. That would be great. The more bounty, the better.
Peta frowned. Poor guys. He couldn’t believe a duke’s heir was saying this. But reality hit hard: a world without money. Tris probably had a decent amount saved, but with four in the party, it would run out quickly. Then they’d have to sell the two criminals…
At that moment, Tris said to Peta:
“Relax. I’ll make sure you don’t go hungry.”
Peta reluctantly nodded. Tris’s foot was raised as if to kick him playfully. His face warmed. Clearing his throat, he nudged Tris’s side.
They were finally able to enter the village late at night, just as they wished. The errand boy had recovered, so no more worry. After separating from the boy and securing an inn, Tris handed the criminals over to the sheriff—and there really was a bounty. Following Duke Kisling’s orders, they would be hanged in the market immediately.
Tris was surprised. The Aik territory was right nearby, and he hadn’t expected Duke Kisling’s influence to reach this far. Hm… a complex feeling arose in his heart.
