Chapter 8

In response to that slogan, I slammed my body against the door. Because the lock was loosely released, I was able to jump out without any problems. Because of the speed of the carriage, I only had to jump into the wind.

It was a beautiful feeling.

“Selinia!”

Aeon’s voice rang out along with the sound of running horses’ hooves. Every time I heard my name from those lips, my blood felt cold. But not as much for now. The one who was desperately calling me, I could even feel a sense of jolt in his voice.

“Selinia!”

It was a voice full of regret and despair over losing all the game that had been won. It wasn’t bad to hear.

It was only a small moment of my victory. As expected, there were hills outside.

Due to the speed at which the carriage was running and the slope of the hill, I just kept rolling around on the ground at a fairly high speed.

“Ugh!”

A moan came out without me knowing. I knew very well that the ground was hard because it was not a bed or a carpet, and that there were stones and rocks embedded here and there.

But there was a world of difference between knowing and experiencing it physically.

‘What about Aeon?’

The first thing I checked after barely stopping my rolling thanks to the bushes which obstructed me, was Aeon.

Since I rolled over far away from the place where the carriage was traveling he was not even visible, there was no way Aeon could have seen me. If he wasn’t visible to me then I too wouldn’t be visible to him.

Just as I was about to breathe a sigh of relief, I realized that it didn’t really matter whether I could see Aeon or not. She couldn’t help but realize.

[I can’t believe you put that foolish idea into practice. I am truly sorry for you.]

I heard Aeon’s voice in my head. I grabbed my head tightly because his voice vibrated like a ringing bell.

‘Is this the power of the subordination contract?’

[Don’t act foolish anymore and stay where you are.]

The red mark engraved on the inside of my wrist seemed to be calling to Aeon. I rubbed it a few times even though I knew it wouldn’t go away.

‘Do you really know where I am?’

If that was the case, I couldn’t afford to stay like this. I even fell off the carriage, but it was so unfair to get caught like this.

“I definitely saw it going this way.”

It was then. Suddenly, a voice was heard from somewhere.

‘It was a person’s voice!’

It was pretty much expected. This is a place that can avoid the eyes of Aeon but it is also not too remote. This hunting ground was a place where I could get help even if I couldn’t move freely, because there were people coming and going.

“Help!”

Perhaps because I inhaled dust, my voice did not come out properly. But I couldn’t send them away like this.

‘If you miss those people, you’ll really die.’

I shook the small tree branch next to me with all my might. I waved it with my hand and kicked it with my leg. In the middle of winter, the dry branches made quite a loud noise.

“Hey, I think it’s there.”

It seemed like one of the group had finally spotted me. It was when I waved the tree branch again with joy.

Hwiik.

The unnatural sound of the wind passed by my ears. Somehow I didn’t have a good feeling about it.

I carefully turned my head to check something that had fallen next to me. There was something which resembled metallic rod with a bird’s feather attached to it, was hanging from the end of a long tree branch, and one more sharp iron was stuck in front of my feet. It was stuck to the ground.

‘Aarrow?’

Swish-.

A second arrow struck my foot succeeding the previous one. So now I was being hunted as a prey.

“People, people!”

I didn’t even think about the fact that I could be mistaken for an animal the moment I fell on a hunting ground.

I had to let them know that I was human before they fired arrows again.

“Wait a minute. Did you hear something?”

Fortunately, my cry seemed to have been heard.

“It seems to be a woman’s voice.”

“Is there really someone beyond those bushes?”

“Yes, Pardien, it was definitely the sound of human voice.”

Meanwhile, the last name Fardien caught my ear.

‘Could it be Rudis? Are you referring to Rudis Fardien?’

Sam Rudis de Pardien was the male protagonist of this novel.

‘Rudis is here now?’

Suddenly her heart started pounding. Her heart was pretty much indifferent and frozen from the moment she was with Aeon.

But It was my own body which was reacting to an unexpected hope.

‘Yes, it was written that he often hunted here on the weekends.’

A story setting that had been sleeping in my memory was awakened into my mind. Even so, I never imagined it would be today.

As if the timing was right, a rope fell in front of me.

Rudis is a curious and resourceful male protagonist. According to the original story, it was not yet time for him to intervene in this case. But right now, I was in no position to be concerned about the timing of the original work.

‘Wouldn’t Rudis be able to help me? You can help me, right? Yes, he will definitely help.’

I could hear leaves rustling nearby. Soon, a man with black hair and red eyes appeared.

“This…”

Rudis’ face showed both embarrassment and worry. That ignited my hope.

“Miss, are you alone?”

Rudis’ group looked around as if something was strange.

“There are circumstances.”

“But still….”

Even under those circumstances, this was not a suitable place for a woman to stay alone. It was natural for the man to have doubts.

“You said there are circumstances. It’s not a gentleman’s duty to inquire into a lady’s private life.”

It was a remark befitting Rudis, a romanticist. Rudis turned his gaze back to me, and there was a handkerchief in his hand.

“Excuse me.”

He gently placed the handkerchief on my forehead. When he smiled, his eyes folded into thin lines, the bridge of his nose is delicately stretched out, and his lips are plump.

The face that captured Karina’s heart was in front of me.

“I can’t leave a Lady’s face covered in dirt.”

“Oh, that’s okay….”

“Oh my, there’s blood here.”

In this situation, I didn’t even care about the scratches on my body or the dirt on my face.

I thought he was being overly careful when he handed over the handkerchief to me and was tending my injuries himself. But since he didn’t know my situation, I thought it was bound to happen that way.

When he finished providing simple first aid, I opened my mouth.

“Lord Rudis. Is that correct?”

His red eyes displayed embarrassment for a moment, but then he smiled.

“I am honored that the Lady recognizes me.”

He was a famous writer. His homeland was a kingdom which was on the east of the empire, but it’s name was not as widely known in Bainan. Despite coming from such a small Kingdom he became very popular for his books.

His new book was out of print as soon as it came out, and everyone knew the rumor that his library was filled with fan letters.

Thanks to this, he seemed to think that it was because of his fame that people recognized him. And he loved his fans.

‘Now that I think about it, there was an article a few days ago saying a new book was released.’

To get his help in this situation, she had to do something to become at least a little likeable to him.

Her body was too tired to do anything, so the only thing she could trust, was her tongue.

I barely remembered the title of the new book.

“ ‘A Thousand Years of Waiting’ was definitely a bestseller book. Even in Bainan, the bookstores were crowded with ladies trying to buy Lord Rudis’ books.”

“Haha, that’s too much praise. I’m just happy that there is someone who reads my writing.”

“It’s just a shame I don’t have a pen and paper. I never dreamed I would meet Sir Rudis in a place like this.”

I said it in an exaggerated voice, as if I was sorry.

“I wonder how such a dignified lady ended up in such an accident.”

“I can’t believe Lord Rudis is interested in me. I’m touched.”

“A writer must be interested in everything that happens around in this world. I can’t just pass this situation, especially when it comes to a lady who likes my writing.”

He was very curious. The reason he first started helping Karina was because he was interested in a case where only women with brown hair and green eyes were disappearing.

“Then will you listen to my story?”

I carefully shook the fishhook.

“I think it is the duty of every gentleman to take the Lady to a safest place before anything else.”

I nodded quietly. Don’t be too hasty. First, I held his outstretched hand as if I was holding a rope.

“Can you walk?”

“Sure. I don’t have any problem.”

I answered with vigor, but that was just my words. The moment I set my foot on the ground, a tingling pain came from below. It seemed like my leg was broken.

“You look like you’re having a hard time.”

“Oh, no. It’s because I woke up suddenly.”

I stood up on my two legs with all my strength. Then he gritted his teeth and moved. I felt people’s anxious gaze, but what was important now wasn’t the wound.

“Lord Rudis, are you aware of the recent incident that occurred in Bainan?”

However, Rudis’ interest was not on my story, but on my leg.

“I can’t do that. I know it’s rude, but can I touch Lady’s body?”

Because he said it in a roundabout way, I had to think about what he meant. It was only when I saw his gesture of raising both his hands that I realized, he wanted to carry me.

“It will just take a moment. If we just go upto that hill, we can call you a carriage.”

I don’t know what the etiquette of nobles is, but it wasn’t a problem at all.

I thought that it is easier to talk about Aeon if I was held in his arms.

I smiled and answered apologetically.

“Yes, I am grateful.”

“No, that won’t work.”

At that moment, my voice was drowned out by the low, cold voice.