What Will You Do?

A pig was divided equally among all the cavalrymen.

Two troopers worked together to skin and butcher it.

As the chunks of meat were thrown into a large pot and began to boil, a savory smell filled the encampment.

“Man, this is great.”

As one of the troopers said, smiles appeared on the faces of the cavalrymen, exhausted from continuous battles.

“Ah, it would’ve been better grilled.”

Yohan grumbled regretfully as he began serving the meat stew from the pot.

“Why don’t you just ask for some wine while you’re at it?”

Anna, who was helping with the serving beside him, snapped back, causing Yohan to pout.

“Give me more.”

“Here you go.”

As one trooper with a bowl spoke, Yohan grinned and raised his middle finger.

“Fucking bastard. That’s why you don’t have a girlfriend.”

“Nope~ Still not giving you more.”

As the trooper spat on the ground and walked away, Yohan laughed heartily like a general who had won a battle.

“Are you a child? So childish.”

Anna scolded him, but he just shrugged, seemingly unbothered.

“Did you set aside some for the guards?”

Yohan asked, watching the line of troopers.

“Yeah, I took care of it beforehand. Added extra meat too.”

“What about the Captain’s?”

“…I set it aside separately.”

Anna trailed off, glancing subtly behind the pot.

Something wrapped in large leaves was cleverly hidden there.

“Hold on… you set aside meat, not just stew?”

Yohan’s eyes narrowed.

“Wow, life is so unfair. Why don’t I, who’s handsome, eloquent, and cheerful, have a girlfriend, while the stoic Captain has girls lining up to be his?”

Anna, at a loss for words, pursed her lips and resumed serving, while Yohan lamented.

And Anna reacted to his lament.

“Girls?”

She asked, as if implying, “Besides me, there’s more?” Yohan widened his eyes as if asking if she didn’t know.

Yohan stretched out his palm as if telling her to look closely, and folded his fingers one by one.

“Lily, Kelly, Ena… who else was there? Layla, I think? And you.”

“……..”

Anna’s face stiffened as if she had heard a hidden secret about her birth.

“Hey, don’t go gathering them and punishing them for no reason. That’s abuse of power.”

Yohan warned her, wanting to prevent any possible situation.

“Um… stop talking and serve the food…”

Yuda’s voice cut in between the two who were talking.

“Ah, sorry.”

“Yuda, did you see the Captain?”

While Yohan ladled stew, Anna asked Yuda.

“I went to his tent to check his wound, but he seemed to be sleeping, so I just came out… Ah, give me a little more meat.”

“Yeah, get lost.”

Yuda challenged him with a glare as a sign of protest, but Yohan was unmoved.

“He’s sleeping?”

“Yeah, he must be tired. It wasn’t a minor injury.”

Leaving behind his disappointment about the extra serving, Yuda averted his gaze and looked at Anna.

“Should we just let him sleep?”

“No. He needs to eat. He needs to eat something and regain his strength.”

Anna nodded at Yuda’s words, who was in charge of medical care.

Anna looked at the serving line. The long line was starting to dwindle.

She took off her apron and grabbed the meat hidden behind the pot.

“Hey, I’m leaving. Finish up well.”

Anna patted Yohan on the shoulder and left, and Yohan sighed in disbelief.

“I hunt, I serve… I’m just a slave.”

Lights were scarce in the encampment at night.

Only the bonfire burning in the center of the encampment and the candlelight illuminating the inside of the tents.

“Captain. Are you awake?”

Even when Anna entered the tent with the special stew made with the best cuts and various spices, the Captain was asleep.

Anna placed the stew on the makeshift desk and sat on the edge of the bed.

“……..”

Her hand almost unconsciously reached out to touch the Captain’s face as he slept, breathing evenly.

“Ahem, ahem… Captain, wake up. You need to eat.”

Anna cleared her throat and carefully grabbed the Captain’s shoulder, shaking him gently.

It wasn’t enough to wake him, and the Captain’s eyes showed no sign of opening.

Anna adjusted her posture and shook the Captain with a little more force.

Agnes’s Lute music could be heard in the distance.

“Captain. It’s time to eat.”

Anna whispered, bringing her face close to his ear.

She lifted her face to meet the Captain’s, to see if he had woken up, and met his eyes, hidden in the dim atmosphere.

“Gasp!”

With a short scream, Anna gasped like a goldfish.

“…I need an explanation.”

Anna shook her head to regain her senses at the voice of the Captain, who had just woken up.

“Ah, you need to have dinner….”

“…The sun has set.”

The Captain cast his gaze at the darkness outside the tent and then got up.

Anna quickly got up from the bed, picked up the stew from the desk, and handed it to him.

“It smells good.”

Anna smoothed the corners of her lips at the Captain’s compliment.

The Captain slowly scooped up the stew with a spoon and put it in his mouth. As he chewed the chunk of meat, the juices burst and spread in his mouth.

“It tastes good too.”

“You had such a poor lunch. I, I put some effort into it.”

“Thank you.”

It was a blunt remark, but Anna felt a tickle in her heart.

The Captain’s meal continued quietly and slowly.

Agnes’s Lute performance continued, and the chatter of the troopers who had satisfied their hunger could be heard in the distance.

It was a peaceful atmosphere, if only the great trials that lay before them did not exist.

“Captain. May I ask what you are planning to do?”

As the bottom of the Captain’s bowl became visible, Anna asked carefully.

“I haven’t decided yet. No, I couldn’t.”

“…Is it because of the traitor?”

The Captain did not bother to answer Anna’s question.

“There is a high probability that the traitor is someone who can freely move outside the encampment.”

She told him about what happened in the forest today and explained the conclusion she had reached.

“I see.”

The Captain did not react to her words.

“Captain. Catching the traitor is one thing… now, we need to decide what to do.”

The mad Emperor spoke of three days.

And one day has already passed.

“Anna. What would you do if you were in my place? If you were the Captain leading this cavalry, what would you do?”

The Captain asks the same question. Anna bit her lower lip.

“Captain, that is the wrong question. Only the Captain can decide what to do.”

“But….”

“Don’t say that the cavalry could be in danger because of the Captain’s decision. We’ve always been like this.”

It hurt, but Anna said firmly.

“Just decide as your heart leads you.”

Anna, receiving the empty bowl, gave a short bow.

“I’m sorry for saying something presumptuous. But it was something I had to say.”

Anna left the tent as it was. The Captain could only stare at her retreating figure.

Anna’s steps were heavy as she left the tent.

‘Was I too harsh?’

Shouldn’t I have been a source of strength beside the weakened Captain?

She asked herself, but she shook her head.

“Hey, why the long face? Did you get dumped?”

Yohan, gobbling down the stew and showing off his pearly whites, prompted Anna to throw the empty bowl at his face.

Very hard.