Episode 33
“Alright.”
Dahlia caught her breath and dismounted from her horse.
Lily, Rose, and Lady Mary followed suit.
While the three spread out a blanket and prepared lunch, Reina looked around.
The sight of snow-white trees towering over the sky was breathtakingly beautiful.
It felt almost regretful that she hadn’t known such a vast world existed until now.
Reina breathed in the crisp air deeply, fiddling with her snowfox scarf.
“Is this really for me?”
“You kept saying you were cold. I just happened to get it. Snowfox fur is light and warm, practically a must-have for northern noblewomen.”
“I see.”
“It’s common enough, so don’t get too touched.”
“Well, it’s rare for a husband to hunt it himself. I’m touched.”
“Ahem. It’s not a big deal.”
As Kaiden said, the snowfox scarf was light and warm.
Thinking of how he’d hunted it for her, sensitive to the cold, brought a smile to Reina’s lips.
She was grateful he remembered a passing comment and cared so thoughtfully.
Yet, she felt anxious, realizing she hadn’t given him much in return.
It had been a long time since she felt the urge to give someone a heartfelt gift.
As Reina kept touching the scarf, Lily spoke up.
“That’s a gift from the Duke, right?”
“Yes.”
“It suits you perfectly. You and Lady Dahlia look like mother and daughter with matching scarves.”
“Hehe.”
Dahlia blushed and beamed at the mother-daughter comment.
Deep down, she looked up to Reina like a mother, so her reaction was natural.
“You might spill food on it during lunch, so I’ll hold onto it.”
Lady Mary stepped forward.
Reina, considering the possibility of staining it, handed over the scarf readily.
“Thank you.”
Lady Mary took Dahlia’s scarf as well and stepped back.
After a light meal of sandwiches, Reina and Dahlia mounted their horses again. Lily called out.
“We’ll clean up here and follow. Don’t go too far.”
“Got it.”
Reina and Dahlia wrapped their scarves back on and headed deeper into the forest.
With the safety ribbon in place, they thought there’d be no issue wandering together.
As the two leisurely took in their surroundings, a rustling sound came from the bushes.
Dahlia perked up, thinking it might be a squirrel or rabbit, her excitement rather adorable.
But unexpectedly, a white-bodied fox emerged from the bushes.
Its vivid blue eyes gleamed with a chilling intensity.
“A fox…?”
Dahlia’s face paled.
Following the first, several snowfoxes surrounded her.
“R-Reina, ma’am.”
Dahlia called out to Reina in a trembling voice.
A calm voice responded.
“Dahlia, on the count of three, ride back the way we came without looking back. Understand?”
In an instant, snowfoxes swarmed around Reina as well.
Their gazes were fixed on Reina and Dahlia’s scarves.
It was strange. They’d followed the safety ribbon, yet so many snowfoxes had gathered.
Even if it was for pack vengeance, this was an absurd situation.
Even if a snowfox habitat was nearby, the ribbon should’ve kept them at bay.
‘Could the ribbon’s effect have worn off?’
No way.
It wouldn’t be managed so carelessly.
There had to be another variable.
Reina scanned her surroundings with a tense expression.
For now, escaping was the priority.
Fortunately, she recalled a nearby refuge from the map she’d seen earlier.
Determined to get Dahlia to safety first, Reina gripped her scarf tightly.
Dahlia, terrified, nodded, waiting for the signal.
With a tense face, Reina counted.
“One, two… three!”
Hiiiing!
At Reina’s shout, Dahlia galloped back the way they came.
Simultaneously, Reina rode in the opposite direction.
Returning to the others with so many snowfoxes would endanger them too.
Reina waved her scarf ostentatiously to draw the foxes’ attention.
Since their gazes had been fixed on the scarf, it was a half-gamble.
Thankfully, it worked. More foxes chased Reina than Dahlia.
As she rode swiftly, Reina recalled Kaiden’s words.
“If you encounter a beast, head to the nearest refuge and fire a flare. Refuges have protective magic, so they’re safe.”
“And if the refuge is too far, go to a dense forest and shoot a flare. A patrolling knight will come quickly.”
His caution was proving invaluable now.
Reina had memorized the refuge’s location during lunch, just in case.
Luckily, it wasn’t far.
She urged her horse forward with all her might.
But when she reached the spot, Reina was stunned.
“The refuge is gone?”
The map clearly marked a refuge here, but the spot was empty.
It was an open plain with nowhere to hide.
Meanwhile, the snowfoxes that had fully surrounded her growled, slowly closing in.
Reina tightly gripped the pistol in her coat.
Firing a flare first, she began to flee from the foxes.
* * *
Dahlia, as Reina instructed, rode forward without looking back.
The snowfoxes chasing her fiercely had vanished at some point.
Unaware of this, she kept riding, too scared to glance back.
Then, noticing her neck felt bare, she turned around.
She must’ve lost her scarf while escaping.
“Reina, ma’am?”
Realizing she was riding alone, Dahlia panicked.
She’d assumed Reina was following, but she was nowhere in sight.
“Where are you? Reina, ma’am!”
As Dahlia clutched her bare neck and called out desperately, Lily approached, puzzled.
“My lady? Why are you alone?”
Seeing Rose and Lady Mary too, Dahlia burst into tears.
“Hic, R-Reina, ma’am is in danger!”
“What do you mean, in danger? What happened to Her Grace?”
Lily, alarmed, looked for Reina as Dahlia sobbed.
“S-Suddenly, snowfoxes swarmed… hic, Reina, ma’am tried to save me…”
She was too shocked to speak coherently.
Then, a gunshot rang out from afar.
Pi-yu—Bang!
All eyes turned toward the sound.
Rose, instantly recognizing it, muttered.
“A flare?”
It had to be Reina, who wasn’t here.
As Rose hurriedly prepared to ride after Dahlia’s account, a massive shadow loomed over them.
Instinctively stopping, Rose looked up, stunned.
“Your Grace?”
Dahlia, recognizing him, murmured softly.
“Big Daddy…?”
It was Kaiden, riding his favorite black horse for hunting.
The horse, carrying Kaiden, galloped toward the flare’s direction, its black mane trailing like claws.
That damn witch! She put some sort of scent on the scarves! I cannot believe she would endanger the child as well. What if Reina had been the one to lose her scarf and only the child had hers?! She’s INSANE!!!!