Chapter 150

Chapter 150

The straight road ever so slightly curved like a brush being run across a piece of paper . The fields on each side were barren of crops, likely because of the season, and instead there was a thin layer of snow on top .

Trails of open soil set its sight on the upcoming spring, but the wind stroking my cheeks was still frosty, turning my breath white before it quickly disappeared .

As I squinted to find the end of this narrow road, I finally saw a village built upon a gentle slope .

Many trees lined up around the houses, probably planted to act as a shield against the wind . Behind the village was a small forest, and further still were hills blanketed in pure white .

It took about five hours to reach here from the fort by horse . Finally, I’ve arrived at the first village .

Haaah, I unintentionally let out a sigh .

I was careless, but when I noticed that Sir Leonhard was watching me, I hurriedly held my mouth with my hands .

“Thank you for your hard work . For now, let us take a break . ”

He said with a smile . I felt so guilty from the bottom of my heart .

But that’s because I didn’t even do anything . I didn’t know the way here like Sir Leonhard, nor did I hold the horse’s reins . All I did was sway about uselessly on top of it .

“It’s fine-”

“Princess?“

‘It’s fine, so let’s begin the investigation!’

Was what I tried to say when his voice interrupted me . Despite a smile on his face, right now he was really scary .

‘Didn’t I just say that you shouldn’t overdo it?’ I could hear him say, or was this my hallucination running wild again?

“We should take a break, right?”

“Yes…”

I couldn’t possibly compete with that destructive smile of his and eventually obediently nodded .

Sir Leonhard, with his narrowed gaze, looked at me softly, but the sweetness was that of a teacher looking at their poor student, or a pet owner looking at a pet that doesn’t remember them… Something like that . I felt happy, but at the same time, mixed feelings swirled within my heart .

The horse advanced, its hooves making light noises .

As we rode down the road, I noticed a flock of sheep inside the fences .  Baaaa, the sheep cried out, and mixed in with all the bleating was a Woof! Before I knew it, I found a dog barking at me . Rather than being hostile, though, its feather-like tail swung wildly . I think it was a sheep dog, but the amount of friendliness it was showing had me worried whether it was doing its job properly .

An elderly man working nearby followed the dog’s line of sight to us . His wrinkled, light brown eyes widened, before immediately squinting .

When our eyes met, he took his hat off and bowed, looking slightly confused .

Sir Leonhard got off the horse, pulled on its bridle, and approached the fence .

“Greetings . ”

“Oh, hello… Are you perhaps passing travellers?”

Just by looking at his body language and voice alone, you could tell he was wary .

Are travellers that rare? Or do neither of us look like one?

“Indeed . In fact, we have just finished our visit with an acquaintance stationed at the border fort . ”

“Oh, a border guard!”

The old man was visibly relieved .

The border guards must have been a very comforting existence for the people living in the surrounding villages .

“Are you a knight too?”

“Yes, something along those lines . ”

“Well, you’re well-dressed, and I’ve never seen you in these parts before . ”

Sir Leonhard gave a wry smile as he was scanned from head to toe .

I wouldn’t say you’re just ‘something along those lines . ’ If you’re not a knight, then who is?

The old man’s gaze, now without a worry, caught a glimpse of me .

When he smiled at me, I returned the favour .

“Who’s your companion then? She looks like quite the beauty, ain’t she?”

“Ah, that child is…”

“Don’t tell me, is she your wife?”

“Wif-!?”

A bomb was thrown towards Sir Leonhard before he could reply .

He didn’t expect the conversation to go this way and was having a hard time responding . My eyes were also wide open . The surprise hit me so hard that my brain couldn’t keep up with the development .

We were going to decide our relationship after we saw how the villagers react . If our age gap was too wide, then perhaps I would’ve posed as his niece or daughter .  Not that I mind . I really wouldn’t have minded it .

But I never thought that we would be seen as a married couple of all things .

I feel a little… No, that’s not quite true; I’m extremely happy .  I might not be able to do anything about our age gap, but maybe, at least in the eyes of others, I’ve begun to look like I belong by his side, little by little?

“…She’s my sister . ”

After clearing his throat, Sir Leonhard gave a reply .  Is that red I see on his cheeks, or am I being hopeful here?

“Ah, I see . My bad . There are plenty of couples around here with wider age gaps than you two, you see . ”

“Please don’t mind it . We’re not that similar, and with how our age is, it’s a given we don’t look like siblings at first glance . ”

“With the age difference, not to mention she’s quite the pretty one . I guess it couldn’t be helped with such a cute lass . ”

Sir Leonhard nodded shyly, rubbing the back of his head .

“Yes, well… They get sweeter all the time, don’t they?”

I wanna scream .

I wanna run around while screaming my head off .

I wondered if Sir Leonhard was actually being bashful when talking about me, because on my part, I was embarrassed, happy, and smiling like an idiot .

But in reality, I knew he wasn’t talking about me, the princess, but instead his fictional sister . It was only something we were playing out for now .  Really, it doesn’t mean anything . It doesn’t mean anything at all .

Sir Leonhard turned to me and extended his hand .

“Come here . ”

“!!”

I thought I stopped breathing for a second there .

To think that I would get to hear Sir Leonhard say one of his top ten phrases here, of all places…!!

I tried my hardest to remain calm . It was at the point that if I lost focus, my composure would definitely collapse .

B-But isn’t ‘Come here’ totally unfair? It’s absolutely cheating, right!?

“…T-Thank you, Brother . ”

Taking care to not act suspiciously, I got off the horse with Sir Leonhard’s help .

I bowed my head to the old man who watched over me with a smile .

“Hello . ”

“Hello there . Are you travelling with your handsome brother today?”

“Yes . Brother said he wanted to go see his friends, so I asked him to bring me along as a favour . Brother is always so busy with work that we rarely see each other, so I really wanted to spend some time together . ”

I wanted to come off as a sister who’s close with her brother, but I’m not sure where the line between pretending and reality was anymore .

When I glanced up, Sir Leonhard was stroking my head with a shy smile .  Precious .

I have no more regrets in my life . The world could end today for all I care…

“If you don’t mind dawdling about the empty countryside, then feel free to take your time . ”

“Thank you, sir . ”

While worshipping Sir Leonhard in my heart, I thanked the man with a cat-like smile .

“By the way, uncle . We love looking at old buildings… I heard that there was an old temple around here, do you know where we could find it?”

“A temple, you say?”

The uncle answered with a blink .

And for some reason, a mellow expression followed .

“Well, there is a place, I guess…”

The uncle replied while smiling bitterly .

Without knowing the reason behind his forlorn smile, Sir Leonhard and I looked towards where the man’s gaze was fixed at .

A building could be seen at the outskirts of the village on the other side of the fence .

The structure was made entirely out of limestone .  But, if I’m not wrong, isn’t it still in the middle of construction?

It certainly looked like a temple, though .

But wait a minute . What I was looking for was an old temple lying in the outskirts of a village .

Don’t tell me…

With a sense of foreboding, I looked back at the old man .

“There sure was an old temple there before, but it was rundown and dangerous, so we had it rebuilt . I’m sorry, little girl . ”

At my stunned expression, the troubled man laughed apologetically as he scratched his grey hair .