episode_0047

Originally, the Beauren family had not always been active solely in the west as it is now.

It was a time when the empire’s commerce heavily relied on wagons.

The western region, responsible for a third of the empire’s food supply, naturally extended the influence of the Beauren family throughout the empire.

Subsequently, with the discovery of soybeans by Majungseok and the development of magic engineering, a new mode of transportation, the train, emerged.

As the heretics beyond the mountains united under one faction and their attacks intensified, the Beauren family gathered their scattered forces from across the empire and focused them on the western border.

The abandoned mine that Eleanor and her group are currently heading towards bears traces of those times.

With her hair tied back long, the wind passing through the ponytail, as it is called in the world of the West, changed from the warm grassy scent of the prairie to the refreshing scent of the forest and the heavy smell of wood.

The once flat road gradually became rougher. Naturally, the speed of the procession and the distance between individuals began to decrease.

“So, Eli. What’s your relationship with Dmitri? How do you feel about him?”

As the sound of the wind passing by their ears lessened and their voices became audible to each other, Dominique brought up the unfinished conversation due to Eleanor’s earlier outburst of water.

“Hah. Domi. You’re bringing that up again?”

“You ran away like that earlier!”

Dominique’s arm wrapped around Eleanor’s waist began to tighten slightly. Holding the reins with his right hand, he placed his left hand on Eleanor’s stomach.

“Wait, Dominique!”

“I won’t tell anyone else about the princess, I swear.”

Since she was behind her, Eleanor couldn’t see what expression she was making. However, just by hearing her voice, Eleanor could imagine the face she was making.

“Domi…”

Nestled in the predator’s embrace, Eleanor cutely extended the end of her words, unable to do anything else.

“Eli. I just wanted to talk about this with a close friend.”

Even though his voice was quite charming to hear, Dominique’s attitude remained unchanged.

Hah. It was a killer move that worked on her mother, the Empress, and the people of the family.

With a suppressed sigh, Eleanor struggled to lift her heavy lips that refused to drop.

“It’s nothing. We’re just engaged.”

“Hmm? But you two seemed quite interested in each other.”

“No! There’s nothing there!”

Taken aback or embarrassed by Dominique’s words,

Eleanor let out a loud sigh.

“It’s just… a little entanglement between families. Besides, our father… I mean, Beauren Changbaek, likes the nobles who bear the name.”

“So Eleanor has no feelings for Dmitri?”

“The prince, you mean?”

“Yeah. Honestly, I think you two fit together quite well. In appearance, in your personalities. And also for the sake of the family and the future.”

And for the sake of you and me.

Dominique swallowed the last words he should have continued.

Eleanor began to earnestly ponder over Dominique’s words.

Marriage to Dmitri…

Of course, if she had to marry a man, Dmitri would be the best candidate at the moment.

He wouldn’t drive her to death like some others might.

And unlike with others, even though they stared at each other piercingly, her heart didn’t feel like it would burst.

Sure, there were butterflies, but…

Anyway, he looked quite manly. And he would be quite helpful to the family.

Wait.

What am I thinking right now!

Dominique, who had been pulling the reins for a while, gazed at the adorable platinum-haired young lady nestled in his arms, gently smiling as she playfully wagged her head in front of him.

Since her mother’s passing, her life had always been like standing on a sharply honed blade.

The woman who had taken over her precious mother’s palace without permission.

The half-sibling she had picked up from under the legs of an unknown Korean woman.

And her father, who had always been indifferent to her.

Dominique had lived his life always wearing armor to protect himself in front of the blade aimed at his life.

When such a life became somewhat tiresome, Dominique found her facing him.

At first, he had only intended to lightly warn her about the Empress’s schemes.

But there was something about her appearance that emitted a dizzying fragrance between a woman and a girl, somehow capturing his attention.

Moreover, his reactions were quite cute, almost like a boy who didn’t know women.

While still holding the reins, Dominique decided to add another burden to Eleanor, who seemed lost in thought beyond her back, raising the corners of his mouth slightly.

“Besides, Dmitri doesn’t seem uninterested in you either.”

“What?”

Startled, Eleanor jerked her slender body. The horse they were riding on was startled by her movement, but Dominique calmed the running horse down by stroking its brown mane.

“Why are you so surprised? After all, Ellie, as a woman, you should be well aware of men’s gazes.”

Carefully pulling the reins again, Dominique continued speaking.

“If you haven’t received such gazes from men with your appearance, it would be a lie.”

Had Dmitri really shown such a reaction?

Eleanor recalled.

However, in her memories, there was only their lively conversations and her own uncertainty at the end of their meetings.

“Oh! Ellie, you didn’t know?”

With a surprised tone, Dominique asked Eleanor, who was silently bowing her head. Seeing her cheeks flush red, she truly seemed unaware.

“Really. Why is our lovely Eleanor so charming? Louis or some madman might fall for you, really.”

“Stop it, Domi.”

As Eleanor’s voice murmured, she lightly slapped Dominique’s hand, which was exploring above her waist, wearing riding gloves.

“Oh my. How dare you touch a princess’s body like this?”

“Only now you’re a princess? How audacious!”

Laughing softly, Dominique enclosed her even more tightly in his arms.

#.

Having prepared diligently since morning, they could leave the mansion quite early, although it was a bit far from the outskirts of the capital.

Moreover, the road became rougher as they progressed.

When Eleanor’s group arrived at the entrance of the abandoned mine, it was between afternoon and evening, a somewhat ambiguous time.

A day in the mountains passes quickly. The knights who often camped knew this fact well. Although there was still plenty of time until evening, the surroundings were already beginning to darken.

So, as soon as they dismounted, the knights in white robes divided into groups of twos and began moving swiftly.

The strongest among them went inside the mine to assess the situation, while the more agile ones went out to scout for any dangers nearby. The remaining members unloaded the cargo from the cart and inspected the dilapidated buildings in front of the mine to prepare a place to stay for the night.

With another person to look after, Oejeni, the foreigner, who was part of the knights together with the only other woman, Viole, diligently went into the relatively intact building to prepare a place for the princess and her lady to spend the night.

Although Oejeni was a noblewoman from the Marquis Loreselar family, her status was different from that of the prestigious Beauren family, renowned even in the capital.

Thanks to this, unlike others, Oejeni had been assisting in various women’s tasks since she was young. That was why Etie entrusted her daughter and the Beauren mansion to her care.

Distant relatives Dmitri and Dominique were busy grooming the horses they had ridden, engaging in various conversations with each other.

In essence, the only one with nothing to do here was Eleanor.

However, she couldn’t just stand idly by while everyone else was busy working.

“Cough, cough. Oejeni! Is there anything I can help with?”

Entering the dusty building, Eleanor spoke to Oejeni.

“It’s okay, miss. Since it’s still a bit dirty, you can go out and rest comfortably.”

As always, Oejeni pushed Eleanor out of the dusty building with a gentle smile on her face, without showing any signs of difficulty.

“Still, I feel bad leaving you alone like this.”

“Miss. I apologize for saying this, but… You do know, right? Being quiet and staying put is also a way to help.”

Eleanor couldn’t help but feel stung by Oejeni’s words.

She could only watch in a daze as Oejeni pushed her away and re-entered the building.