ALMSK 04

CHAPTER 4

The next thing that caught Rahan’s eye was a mess of silver hair.

The woman had just emerged from the sack and collapsed onto the floor with a big puff, exhaling deeply.

“I thought I was going to die!”

For someone who had just been kidnapped, she sounded unusually cheerful.

But of course—that was only natural. It was a staged kidnapping, after all.

For reference, the conversation during the “kidnapping” had gone like this:

“Uh, so you’re…?”
“The guy sent to kidnap you. No time to waste, get in.”
“Oh, okay! Should I go in feet first?”
“No, go in headfirst. It’s easier to carry that way.”

Even thinking back on it now, it was a ridiculous conversation.

Rahan let out a faint chuckle. Then his eyes shifted to the woman fighting with her tangled wedding clothes as she emerged from the sack—Erishi Ahen.

Her neatly braided hair was now a complete mess. Her round cheeks, still bearing signs of youth, were flushed red from heat and excitement.

Was this really the same woman he’d seen earlier?

Rahan was usually good with faces. As a knight of the Grand Duchy, it was a job requirement. He had to recognize threats, even unfamiliar ones, at a glance.

But strangely, he couldn’t quite remember the face he had seen earlier when he lifted her veil.

He didn’t want to stare openly, so he stole glances at her instead. But her hair and veil kept her face mostly hidden.

Regardless, Erishi held out her hand cheerfully, having given up trying to get up on her own.

“Um, could you help me up?”

“Ah, of course.”

Heris quickly assisted her. As soon as she grabbed his hand, Erishi deftly maneuvered out of the sack.

She was surprisingly agile.

“Thank you. Wow…”

Standing up, the woman looked around as if curious about where they were. Heris jumped in to answer.

“This is an inn in Bandel.”

It was likely a name she recognized. As expected, Erishi’s expression lit up.

“Oh! I know it. The village down the hill. I thought you’d take me farther from the monastery.”

“Well, we couldn’t go too far, so we brought you here. By the way, I’m…”

Heris was about to introduce himself, but she beat him to it.

“Is that man over there the one I’m supposed to marry?”

“Huh? Oh, no—”

Heris answered, flustered. The woman blinked and then laughed brightly.

“Ahaha! Then that must be Sir Rahan, right?”

Her tone was cheerful. Her voice was bright and lively.

Rahan furrowed his brow unconsciously and stared harder.

She looked very young.

Round cheeks that hadn’t lost their baby fat, smooth skin slightly tanned by the sun, slender limbs, and a petite frame. Her face and earlobes were flushed pink, giving her an almost radiant charm.

But most of all, her eyes caught his attention—like the delicate leaves of early summer shimmering in the sunlight.

It was strange.

“She’s not someone whose face I would normally forget…”

“Um…”

Maybe because he had been staring too long, the girl looked away toward Heris, seemingly flustered. Heris, equally awkward, muttered under his breath.

“Captain.”

“Ah.”

Rahan finally came to his senses and answered curtly.

“That’s me.”

“Wow.”

The girl looked at him with wide eyes. Her green irises grew larger and then sparkled brightly.

Ah.

Only then did Rahan realize why he hadn’t clearly remembered her face earlier.

It was as if, the moment their eyes met, his entire sense of balance had tilted for a second.

The world blurred—and only the girl stood out, suddenly vivid and sharp.

It was a feeling he’d never experienced before.

Being the cautious man he was, Rahan briefly wondered if she had cast some sort of spell on him.

“No… That’s ridiculous.”

He dismissed the idea quickly. No mage would risk casting spells in the middle of a monastery.

He was probably just tired from climbing the cliff.

Meanwhile, the girl, apparently about to say something, suddenly remembered to lift the hem of her dress and curtsy.

It was clumsy, but clearly an attempt to mimic a noble lady’s greeting. Having mingled plenty with high society in the Grand Duchy, Rahan found it strangely endearing.

“May Eridrahan bless our union. I am Erishi Ahen.”

Rahan finally focused and looked at her properly.

She looked far too young to be wearing a wedding dress.

“I was expecting someone older, since they said she was almost twenty…”

At twenty, people already had two kids—depending on who you asked.

But standing before him now, Erishi Ahen looked incredibly youthful.

“I’m glad we’ve met safely!”

And her tone—so cheerful. It sounded like she thought this whole “kidnapping” was a fun adventure.

“Has she just grown up too sheltered in the monastery?”

Well, then again, people probably saw him as a reckless troublemaker too.

“Rahan Norwich.”

“Oh, and I’m Heris, Sir Norwich’s aide. I don’t have a surname.”

After exchanging introductions, an odd silence fell over the three of them.

Which made sense.

A kidnapped bride, and her two kidnappers.

Even if it was all planned, facing each other now made things awkward.

Especially considering what had to happen next.

That’s when Erishi chirped:

“So, should I take off my clothes now?”

Pfffft.

Heris, who had been sipping water in the heat, immediately spat it out.

“O-oh, your clothes?”

When Heris choked and asked again, the girl blinked and replied:

“Well, we have to consummate the marriage for it to be official, right? That’s what I heard.”

“Uh…”

Heris was at a loss and turned to Rahan with pleading eyes: Please handle this.

But Rahan was equally flustered. He responded with his eyes:

You’re my aide, aren’t you?

Heris glared back:

You’re the one with the womanizer reputation. Why me?

It really was an awkward situation.

Because yes, technically they did need to consummate the marriage. That was the only way to nullify the marriage contract with Philrod Ahen.

Rahan recalled what the Grand Duke had told him:

“You do know what kidnapping and marrying her actually means, right?”
“Not really.”
“It means you kidnap her and sleep with her as fast as possible.”
“You’re making me into a devil.”
“It’s all agreed upon. She knows what’s coming.”

Even so, Rahan never thought the “first night” part of the kidnapping marriage would go so smoothly.

After all, this girl was just as suddenly married off as he was.

“But Captain, you’re handsome. She probably doesn’t mind.”

Heris had teased him like that, but Rahan disagreed.

Yes, he was known for his looks in the Grand Duchy.

Even if he hadn’t been, he was certainly better than middle-aged Philrod, which may have been why she agreed to the marriage.

But still—how many women would be glad to sleep with a man they’d just met?

“Is that not it?”

But Erishi was surprisingly enthusiastic—or rather…

“Why is she saying it like it’s no big deal?”

It left Rahan utterly speechless.

He didn’t even know where to start.

Should he ask if she even knew what that meant?

Or should he say, “Well, since that’s the case, shall we roll around right now?”

Or maybe: “Are you always this carefree and sunny, or is this just today?”

“Um, Sir Rahan?”

The cheerful girl tilted her head and called his name. Rahan grabbed his head, which was now throbbing. This really was too much.

And then—

“Hyah! Ahh!”

Bang! The locked inn door flew open with a loud crash.

Tumbling in was a priest, cloaked in a robe. Heris immediately threw both hands in the air.

“Yes!”

Rahan, instinctively drawing his sword and shielding the girl, gave Heris a baffled look.

The fallen priest also looked up at Heris in confusion.

Realizing all eyes were now on him, Heris sheepishly lowered his hands and added:

“I was just… relieved, is all…”

Rahan, still overwhelmed by the awkward talk of consummation, actually understood how Heris felt.

Even if… this wasn’t the time.

Then the girl exclaimed:

“Father Marid!”

“Oh, Erishi! Are you alright?”

The priest stood, brushing off his robe and beaming at her.

Only then did Rahan realize—this was the priest who had been up on the cliff with them earlier.

He must have busted open the locked door by force and fallen in.

Heris quickly shut the door. Marid, now fully upright, let out a deep sigh and turned to them.

“I’m impressed!”

“…Excuse me?”

Rahan and Heris exchanged confused glances.

But Marid smiled and waved enthusiastically.

“No, I mean it! I saw you two galloping away on horseback and thought, these people have lost their minds! But Philrod Ahen’s knights immediately tried to follow—on horseback too!”

“Ah.”

Rahan chuckled.

“They probably didn’t even glance at Bandel.”

“Exactly!”

Father Marid was genuinely amazed by the strategy of Erishi’s second husband.

“This isn’t going to work…”

After bagging the girl at the bell tower, Rahan and Heris had realized they couldn’t carry her back up the cliff.

It was too steep, even if the girl was light.

And they couldn’t take the normal road—two men carrying a sack would scream kidnapping.

They’d get caught before reaching anywhere.

So Rahan decided: If he was already a criminal, why not add theft to the list?

They stole two horses belonging to Philrod Ahen’s men, slung the girl over one of them, and rode down at full speed.

“Philrod Ahen! From today, Erishi Ahen is my wife!”

…Yes, he had shouted that too.

The sheer cheesiness of it still made his face burn. He rubbed under his nose awkwardly.

Back at the wedding site, Philrod and his knights had been horrified.

They tried to give chase, but on foot, they couldn’t match riders.

And thanks to Heris and Rahan releasing the rest of the horses in advance, the pursuers had to waste precious time rounding them up.

“Because of your loud declaration, they assumed you ran off far away. You did well.”

Father Marid patted Erishi on the back.

“You too, Erishi. Well done.”

Erishi gave a faint smile.

“It’s you who’ll have it hard now, Father Marid. What will you do? The Ducal House is going to be furious.”

The young priest seemed like a deeply emotional person. The tears welling up in his eyes were proof enough.

“Oh, Erishi. Such a sweet child. Headmaster Wilbert and I will be fine. Are you hurt anywhere?”

“I’m fine.”

Then Erishi glanced at Rahan and smiled—like she was thanking him.

It made Rahan feel oddly unsettled.

What is she thanking me for, in this situation?

Before he could dwell on it, Father Marid urged them forward:

“This isn’t the time to relax. Even if they’re still searching, Philrod Ahen is still at the monastery. They’ll return soon. You need to consummate the marriage as soon as possible.”

…He wasn’t wrong.

But still—Rahan sincerely wondered:

Should a priest really be saying that?

Not because he wanted to dodge the awkward topic—really.