/
It was when he was about to finish the inspection schedule earlier than scheduled and return to the Imperial Palace.
“You look so happy today.”
Wilhelm narrowed his brows and asked at Colton’s sneaking words.
“Me?”
“Yes. You’ve been laughing since a while ago.”
“No way. You must have heard it wrong.”
“No, I’m not. I’m sure you laughed.”
He didn’t remember laughing, but why did he keep laughing? He was going to say something because he was amazed, but Colton was a little faster.
“You’re happy to go back and see Prince Louis, aren’t you?”
“…”
“It’s a relief that you two seem to get along quite well now.”
In a strange mood, Wilhelm remained silent without realizing it.
It was a strange thing. Coulton obviously put Louis in his mouth…
‘Why was I thinking of the Empress?’
But soon he shook his head. It was quite possible. The Empress was in charge of Louis.
‘I heard she’s busy without sleeping because you’re preparing for Foundation Day. I’m worried that she’s getting sick for no reason.’
What’s more, Olivia’s shocking actions would have made her tired even more.
“Oh, but you won’t be able to see the prince even if you return to the palace today.”
“What does that mean?”
“The Empress is going to Asterim today, and she is being accompanied by Prince Louis.”
Colton recited the news he had just received throughout the West.
“It seems that she was worried about Prince Louis, who would be left alone in the Imperial Palace.”
“Hmm…”
“Your Majesty, then we shall depart for the Central Palace….”
“No, change the destination.”
Wilhelm interrupted Colton.
“I’m going to Asterim.”
“What? What’s the matter?….”
“…”
Wilhelm answered after a moment’s thought.
“I thought it would be fun to go and surprise them.”
Wilhelm, who said such words with a calm face without changing his expression, made Colton somewhat astonished.
However, he showed only cautious skepticism without expressing his feelings.
“You don’t have to go that far…. You must be tired.”
“It’s okay. I’m not that tired.”
Wilhelm answered calmly.
“If you’re tired, you should go to the palace first.”
“That’s enough. Do you think that makes sense?”
Colton refused with a straight face.
“I must follow Your Majesty wherever you goes.”
“That loyalty, how great.”
Wilhelm praised Colton with a pleased look after a long time.
“Well, then let’s go.”
~~~~
The middle point between the road from the Central Palace to Asterim and the road from Wilhelm to Asterim was the destination he was thinking of.
There was a lake where you could feed the horses, and it was also a place where most travelers rested.
Wilhelm tried to surprise the two of them there.
Wilhelm, who arrived earlier than Anastasia by using horses rather than crushed, was resting while waiting for her carriage to arrive.
Finally, Anastasia’s carriage stopped at the shore of the lake.
‘Will you be surprised?’
It was when Wilhelm, who had closed the book he was reading, got up from his seat and was about to go to Anastasia’s carriage.
“Oh, the horse thats pulling Her Majesty’s carriage…!”
Suddenly, the horse ran into a trot and ran without a coach, and Wilhelm’s heart began to beat rapidly when he saw it.
“No…”
His head twisted like a skein and drove him into a panic, but he didn’t have time to stand still.
“Hey!”
Wilhelm hurriedly got on his horse and followed Anastasia’s wagon.
‘That horse, it must have eaten maniac grass.’
The situation was very similar to that time three years ago. His mind was dizzy, as if he was in a state of panic.
It felt like his breath was choking at the thought that perhaps the same tragedy might be repeated.
‘No, you can’t die…’
Only with that thought, Wilhelm maximized the horse’s speed.
Finally, he got close to the carriage, and quickly pulled out the sword and cut the chain between the carriage and the horse.
Slice!
The carriage and the horse were separated with a sharp sound, but inertia continued to drive the carriage to the brink of death.
“Please…”
Desperately hoping to stop the carriage, he tried to stop it, but it had already left his hand.
“Anastasia!”
With a scream, Wilhelm reached out his reach for the falling carriage beneath the cliff.
~~~~
“… Ugh.”
Anastasia, who had closed her eyes tightly while hugging herself as tightly as possible to Louis, slowly opened her eyes.
“…Am I alive?”
Anastasia looked around her body with her puzzled face.
Her bones throbbed as she bumped to and fro, but given that she had fallen off a cliff from a moving carriage, it was safe to say that she was hardly hurt.
‘How did I get out of it?’
Anastasia couldn’t believe this situation, so she opened the window of the carriage and looked around.
And she immediately realized why she had survived.
“I should thank Goddess Rosenia…”
The carriage fell over the thick forest of trees. Her leaves acted as a cushion, and she seemed to be safe because she kept the wagon from getting stabbed by her branches.
‘Ah! Louis?’
Anastasia belatedly checked the condition of Louis in her arms. He was also seemingly fine.
“Louis, Louis. Can you hear me?”
Anastasia urged Louis to wake up.
But Louis showed no signs of waking up.
Frightened, Anastasia put her finger under Louis’s nose, feeling his breathing smoothly.
Only then could Anastasia breathe a sigh of relief.
‘… thank god.’
Perhaps he lost consciousness for a moment at his shock as the carriage crashed. Anastasia laid Louis back down and pulled herself out of the window and looked around her.
Fortunately, the wagon was held securely by overlapping branches, thanks to the fact that it fell onto a canopy straight up from a wooden pole.
‘Shall I go down?’
She couldn’t get Louis out of the wagon by herself.
Anastasia decided to go outside and ask for help.
‘Wilhelm knows I’ve fallen here, so he’ll be coming down.’
She opened the carriage’s door and cut her self-defense dagger into a wooden pole, and then she carefully descended.
‘By the way… … How did Wilhelm know about this place?’
She didn’t have time until recently to think because she was going through the crossroads of life and death, but as soon as she sighed, she began to wonder.
‘I sent a letter about going to Asterim, but there’s no reason to come here.’
Anastasia, lost in thought for a moment, immediately shook her head. It was an inappropriate idea for her now.
‘For now, let’s just focus on returning to the Imperial Palace safely.’
After a while, Anastasia jumped down gently from a suitable height.
As she safely set her feet on her land, she sighed again with her sigh of relief.
‘It’s a shame. I wore an activity dress, I almost got in trouble.’
As she moved to and fro and looked around her, she seemed to have a rough idea of the terrain.
‘Oh, if you go down that road, you can go up.’
There was a cliff with stairs on each floor. It was not a safe road, but it seemed the safest among the surrounding terrain.
‘Let’s go over there…’
This was when Anastasia was meticulously examining her terrain and planning her way out.
-puck!
Something bluntly hit Anastasia’s back.
“Ah…”
Anastasia stumbled forward with a thin groan. A strong blow to the head caused severe dizziness.
As she managed to move her body and slowly turn around, she saw Olivia holding a large stone and staring at her with a terrifying face.
Anastasia was stunned by the unexpected person she encountered in a completely unexpected place.
“Here… how.”
“You wicked witch.”
Olivia, who opened her mouth in a dreary voice, strode up to Anastasia with a large stone.
“You almost killed my baby! Where’s my baby? Where’s my baby!”
Anastasia could not grasp the situation at all. She didn’t understand how on earth Olivia managed to get there.
But one thing was certain.
‘She doesn’t know where Louis was yet.’
“This damn thing! You’ve got Louis involved! Why don’t you die once instead of making me work twice?”
Olivia came closer to Anastasia, and Anastasia, who had already reached her limit, slumped to the spot. Her head was pounding and she couldn’t keep balance at all.
“It’s going well, don’t worry too much. I will take good care of His Majesty and Louis.”
“…Lady, why do you think Louis is alive?”
When Anastasia laughed and asked, Olivia’s eyes shook quickly.
“What does that mean?”
“Didn’t you realize when you saw me alone here?”
Anastasia kept provoking Olivia in the midst of difficulties. Olivia’s eyes shook faster and faster.
“Do I look like I have the personality to move around leaving Louis alone?”
“What the hell are you talking about?…!”
“Are you going to kill me? Yeah, try and kill me!”
Anastasia exclaimed loudly and provoked Olivia in confusion.
“But as long as Louis is dead, you will never become Empress!”
“How, how dare you…!”
Olivia, who lost her reason at the words, screamed at Anastasia, and Anastasia took out the dagger she had hidden while Olivia was so excited and slowed down her movement and swung it.
“Argh!”
Olivia screamed and clasped her left eye, but it was only a moment.
Even more excited, she grabbed Anastasia by the neck and stopped her from moving.
“How dare you…!”
It was that moment.
“Ugh!”
Olivia fell over Anastasia’s stomach with a shout.
Anastasia looked at Olivia with her eyes enlarged.
There was an arrow stuck in the back.
“What the…”
“Anastasia!”
Then, someone rushed up to Anastasia.
Anastasia was surprised at first when she saw the man who appeared in front of her, but was soon relieved.
‘Never mind. I’m safe now.’
Anastasia smiled and closed her eyes.