Chapter 3
Rustle.
Instead of answering her question, Hugo placed the spoon on the table with a light clink.
In the oppressive silence where not even the chirping of birds could be heard, the sudden sound echoed like a thunderous reverberation. Angelica’s body tensed immediately.
‘Ah… I shouldn’t have asked.’
She had momentarily forgotten her situation; she wasn’t on equal footing with him, but merely a kidnapped prisoner.
‘It’s impossible for him to tell me the reason anyway.’
“……”
“……”
The deadly silence swept through in a fleeting moment, as if the air had frozen, and her breath caught in her chest. She bit her lips involuntarily, as if trying to break the tension.
And suddenly,
“Oh…?”
She felt a rough touch on her tightly clenched hand before she had a chance to think. The man passed something round between his fingers to her.
“It’s a blackberry. It can be considered an acceptable dessert.”
“Ah. Thank you.”
Fortunately, there was no irritation or annoyance in his tone. On the contrary, his voice remained rigid, completely devoid of emotion.
She hesitated for a moment but brought the berry to her mouth, and as soon as she bit into it, its sweet-tart juice flooded her mouth.
“It’s really suitable as a dessert…”
It was so delicious that she had no complaints. For a moment, she forgot the tension raging within her as she swallowed the berry, and only then did the man open his mouth to speak.
“I have no intention of harming you, Princess. Quite the opposite; I was forced to kidnap you to protect you.”
“Forced…?”
If the kidnapping wasn’t for harm, did that mean it was for her protection or some specific purpose?
“I don’t understand anything.”
She tried to recall what remained of “Angelica’s” memories, but she found no clear explanation.
When the man saw her tilt her head in confusion, he gave her another berry while continuing his explanation.
“Yes. Because you possess the ‘Sage’s Eye.’ Your kingdom, as a vassal state, had kept this from us until now.”
“The Sage’s Eye…?”
She remembered that phrase; she had heard it right before being kidnapped. At the same time, another memory from the past echoed in her mind.
“A rare eye seen only once every thousand years. According to legends, its possessor reaches the pinnacle of magic.”
If she truly possesses the Sage’s Eye, all we need to do is hand her over to them. And then… what we do with her is our business.
It was a terrifying conversation.
Even without proof of the rumors about the “Sage’s Eye,” they were obsessed with it.
Therefore,
“They had no reason not to keep me.”
She now understood, at least partially, the reason for her kidnapping.
But even so,
“But… my eyes now…”
She had become nearly blind, or rather, completely sightless. What use was the “Sage’s Eye” if she couldn’t see?
“And it doesn’t seem they’re certain it will return to normal.”
Then, the man took the berry from her hand and brought it to her lips, as if he thought offering food was the solution to everything, even the fear gnawing at her.
But strangely, as soon as the berry entered her mouth, she felt a slight relief. As if all her fears had receded for a moment.
“Your eye hasn’t lost its sight; it’s just adapting to the ‘Sage’s Eye.’ Don’t worry.”
His voice remained cold and emotionless, but somehow, she found herself believing him.
As if the sweet-tartness of the berry had eased some of her tension and freed her mind from anxiety.
And on top of that,
Clink.
Every time she swallowed a berry, his hand extended another without hesitation.
After a while, she felt his hand becoming more moist, perhaps from the berry juice bursting between his fingers.
“Hehe…”
Why…?
She was supposed to be terrified, to remain filled with anxiety, but instead, she smiled involuntarily.
She imagined how his rough hands, which seemed indifferent, gently picked the berry and placed it in her palm as if handling something precious.
“Hmm.”
She barely suppressed her laugh before asking her final question.
“So… am I really safe? I won’t die, and I won’t suffer?”
“Yes.”
“Can you promise me that?”
She couldn’t escape even if she wanted to.
In the end, what was the point of her kidnapper’s promises?
“And yet…”
The man who was feeding her, even though he didn’t have to. The man who made sure she got dessert after the meal, even though it wasn’t necessary.
The man who answered her questions patiently, even though he wasn’t obligated to.
‘Maybe… I can trust him a little.’
She lifted her head toward the direction of his voice, wishing their gazes would meet.
‘Did our eyes meet?’
She didn’t know, but she wanted to believe so.
And in the face of this silent plea,
“I swear on my honor, on everything I possess, on my family’s name and my chivalry, I promise you that, Princess.”
The man gave her the answer she needed to hear.
More than that—
“Huh?!”
Suddenly, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her toward him with unexpected force.
She panicked, and with her other hand, she involuntarily touched his body.
She felt the hardness of his muscles beneath the fabric of his clothes, and her face flushed slightly.
But before she could pull her hand away, she felt something cold touch her fingertips.
“If I break my promise, use this sword to kill me.”
He had placed something cold in her hand and wrapped his hands around her fingers, making her grip the sword tightly.
Was it because it was the first time in her life she held a real sword? Her throat suddenly tightened, and her heartbeat dropped as if slamming into the ground with a force audible even to the man in front of her.
Whether he noticed her turmoil or not, he continued his explanation in his usual calm tone, teaching her how to hold the sword, draw it, and where to stab to finish off an enemy instantly.
“If I ever betray you, do that.”
“Y-Yes!”
Angelica nodded her head quickly.
In truth, she hadn’t fully absorbed his words, but she felt that admitting her ignorance would make the situation more awkward for her. Her hand holding it began to sweat gradually.
“You learn quickly.”
Fortunately, he showed no suspicion and released her hand, standing up.
The cool breeze began to temper her flushed body’s heat for just moments before—
“Ah!”
Suddenly, his arm wrapped around her waist, and she found herself lifted upside down!
“Ah!”
She grabbed at anything in front of her in haste, but the man didn’t budge even with her sudden rush.
Without a word, he carried her steadily and mounted his horse with her.
In moments, she found herself in a strangely familiar position—
Sitting in front of him, her back against his chest, his strong arms wrapped around her waist, with her hands placed over his.
“Let’s depart then.”
Neigh!
The horse whinnied, and they set off. She was still kidnapped, but the initial anxiety she felt began to fade somewhat.
* * *
“How much longer do we have to keep traveling?”
Her inability to see made estimating time difficult. She felt as if half a day had passed since lunch.
While fighting off sleepiness, her head bumped against the man’s chest repeatedly.
“We still have a month until we reach the empire, Miss.”
“Hmm?”
Had she spoken aloud? She thought she was just thinking it…
“You’re dozing off; it’s clear you’re delirious. We’ll camp here tonight.”
As soon as his words reached her ears, she began to feel her body shaking less.
Before she realized it, he had picked her up again. This had become familiar to her now, having happened two other times during the day.
Thud!
He landed lightly on the ground, finally allowing Angelica to touch the earth.
“Where are we?”
She gradually woke from her drowsiness and looked around.
Even though she couldn’t see, her other senses told her where she was—
The biting cold breeze stinging her skin, the monotonous sound of insects, and the scent of trees permeating her nose.
“This… this is a forest! We’re sleeping here?”
She hadn’t expected a hotel, but since she possessed the “Sage’s Eye” and lived in a world of magic, she had at least hoped for…
‘To pull out a magical tent from his magical bag!’
At that moment—
“Awooooo!”
“Ah!”
A beast’s howl she had never heard in her life echoed.
She froze, then immediately clung to his arm.
No matter how terrifying humans were, they couldn’t compare to mindless predators!
‘Isn’t this a fantasy romance novel world? Aren’t there supposed to be scary monsters here?’
“What is that… I’m scared…”
She was on the verge of tears and clung to him even tighter.
“They won’t come near you.”
His words didn’t reach her mind; she just shook her head violently and shrank further into his embrace.
For his part, Hugo Bernstein opened his mouth to say something but closed it again.
The trembling from her body was intense, meaning no words would calm her now.
Instead, he emitted an aura of threat into the surroundings.
“Awooooo!”
The howl rose at first but soon turned into a weak whimper.
This was natural; he was one of the few master swordsmen at the top of the continent.
And yet—
“Explaining that to the lady wouldn’t help.”
There was no choice but to prepare a bed for sleeping here.
He had known from the start that this kind of detail would be part of his responsibilities, so it wasn’t particularly bothersome.
But what he hadn’t anticipated was another source of annoyance—
“Um… can I… borrow your arm? No, no, even just your hand?”
The monsters weren’t the problem; it was Angelica Ratley, who was trembling in terror even from the mere sounds of insects.
