‘Strange, I’ve done everything I needed to.’
Sena’s ambitious plan had gone to waste.
‘…Why does she look even happier instead of hating me?’
Sena glanced at Astria’s yellow back of the head, swinging her feet right next to him.
A while ago, he even used his secret weapon, stealing the strawberries saved for lunch.
-‘Is it delicious?’
-‘Yes, yes.’
-‘Good. The new court chef seems to be quite skilled. Betty, double his salary.’
It was just Sweet Astria mode.
According to Betty, in the past, a nobleman was executed for this kind of behavior, and since then, all meals with other nobles were entirely abolished.
He was truly an enigma.
“Your Majesty, I am Nicholas, a merchant.”
Sena blinked and looked at Nicholas, who bowed his head.
He was a handsome man, the kind that would make ten out of ten people nod in agreement.
“You are permitted to speak, Nicholas.”
“Yes. Recently, I returned from a trading journey near the neighboring territory. I encountered four ogres.”
“Where exactly?”
“Near the ‘Giaanan Mountain Range’.”
“That’s quite close.”
“Because of those monsters, it’s difficult to engage in trade.”
‘After dealing with the monsters in the north, now it’s the monsters in the south causing trouble.’
The Giaanan Mountain Range is a huge range to the south of the Empire. It was used as a shortcut to the south in the past, but after Astria built the ‘Gold Road’ after her accession, it was rarely used.
Astria squinted her eyes. She looked at Nicholas with disdain.
“Merchant. Are you confessing to tax evasion in front of the Empress?”
“Well, that’s…”
Nicholas laughed awkwardly. The Gold Road is a well-maintained road that couldn’t be found in any other country.
What would have taken a month originally was reduced to 10 days, thanks to this groundbreaking road.
However, there’s a downside. The toll for merchants is extremely high. So merchants without money would take a detour through the mountains. They prioritized money over safety.
“Fine. You people would sell your souls for a single gold coin. However, consider the losses due to the monsters and the value of this information compensated.”
“You are merciful, Your Majesty, how could I dare ask for such a thing? I’m just satisfied that you listened to me.”
“Get out.”
With Astria’s dismissive words, Nicholas left with a smile.
After he left, Astria descended from the throne.
If the monsters are not dealt with promptly, they will burst out and threaten the people. Astria didn’t want to lose her people to something as trivial as this, not even in wartime.
“Summon the Imperial Knights.”
‘Besides, it’s a good opportunity to give them some experience.’
The importance of real combat goes without saying. To also check the skills of the newly recruited knights, Astria decided to take care of the monsters immediately.
“Will you go yourself?”
“Yes. It’s been a while since I moved my body. Before my sword rusts.”
“Ah, I see.”
‘Why is he smiling like that again?’
Sena smiles so often. Sometimes he communicates more with his smile than with words.
Now Astria roughly understood the meaning of Sena’s smiles. This one clearly showed ‘I don’t want to do it’.
That guess became reality. Sena folded his hands neatly and spoke with a gentle face.
“Please come back safely, Your Majesty. I’ll be waiting.”
“Hooh.”
This was indeed interesting. Did he really believe he could escape from her embrace even for a moment? Truly?
That was never going to happen. Astria had never let go of what she held in her hand.
Sena was hers. Forever—.
So, she had a duty to remind this insignificant furball of his place. To whom he belonged. Astria spoke arrogantly.
“I’ll give you three seconds. Embrace me.”
Blushing, Sena embraced Astria.
**
To be honest, he didn’t really want to go.
Monster hunting. As a member of the swordsmanship club at the Academy, he had done it before. But it was the outdoor activity Sena hated the most.
Because it was brutal.
Monsters harm humans. They are malevolent creatures incomparable to modern predators. They were born solely to kill humans.
Of course, he wasn’t suggesting that ‘Monsters are life too!’ Even Sena didn’t think that far.
But, teabagging was a problem. It wasn’t hard to find someone with a grudge against monsters. Even without a personal vendetta, many people hated monsters for killing countless humans.
As a result, three out of ten people would do various things to a monster’s corpse. Cut its face, skin it, and enjoy the act itself.
Barely keeping them alive to torture them, and so on. Sena had a physiological aversion to such things.
‘…Wait. Isn’t this actually an opportunity?’
-Her Majesty hates incompetence.
Suddenly, Betty’s words came to mind. When talking about incompetence, Betty emphasized it so strongly that she used the word “hates” instead of merely “dislikes”.
So, more than anything else, what Astria hates the most is incompetence?
‘This is it.’
A spark lit up in Sena’s eyes. He would display thorough incompetence. Like those frustrating characters you sometimes see in zombie movies.
Sena felt confident. He had a knack for frustrating people.
“What are you thinking about?”
Inside the moving carriage, Sena abruptly stopped his thoughts and faced Astria.
“Just thinking about what would be good for dinner tonight.”
“Pathetic fool.”
“Ahaha.”
Sena laughed awkwardly and looked out the window. The knights escorting the carriage were the newly selected Imperial Knights. Their posture while riding their horses was filled with vigor.
In addition, Sylvia and Chris were also accompanying them as escort knights.
‘But why is Her Majesty riding in the carriage?’
Sena tilted his head. It was a trivial question. Usually, wouldn’t they ride horses on such occasions?
“Your Majesty. Isn’t riding a horse more comfortable than a carriage when going on a hunt like this?”
“…I find the carriage more comfortable.”
Astria quietly turned her head and spoke softly. That was Astria’s reaction when she felt embarrassed.
At that moment, the carriage suddenly came to a halt.
The unpleasant ride made Astria’s eyebrows twitch. Sena quickly waved both hands.
“Even coachmen make mistakes sometimes…!”
“Humans lose their lives over a single mistake. The coachman surely has no regrets.”
“T-The coachman probably has a lot of attachment to life.”
As Sena hurriedly tried to placate Astria, the carriage door opened, and Chris appeared with a troubled expression.
“Your Majesty, you need to step outside for a moment.”
“Alright.”
Sena got out first, followed by Astria, who hopped down lightly. Seeing the scene before him, Sena’s mouth dropped open. A boulder the size of a house was blocking the road.
“That’s one huge rock.”
“It’s a boulder, Senior.”
Sylvia, who had followed and jumped off her horse, drew her sword. She raised it high into the sky, gathering a significant amount of aura into it.
…Was she planning to smash it? Such a huge rock?
“Sylvia, look below.”
Sylvia glanced downward. A village was visible.
“I almost got in trouble.”
Sylvia hastily sheathed her sword and, feeling embarrassed for acting rashly, hid behind Sena.
Chris chuckled and approached the boulder. He lifted his foot and kicked it hard near the edge.
Bang!
The rock shattered, creating a space large enough. Chris looked at Astria and spoke.
“Your Majesty, there’s now enough room for the horses to pass, but the carriage won’t fit.”
Sena looked around. Fortunately, there were plenty of spare horses.
“Thank goodness. We can ride the horses then.”
But Astria’s reaction was strange.
She kept her lips tightly shut and stood still like a stone.
“Your Majesty?”
Puzzled, Sena approached her, but Astria turned her head slightly.
Sena moved closer to get into Astria’s line of sight.
But Astria kept avoiding his gaze. This was the first time something like this had happened, making Sena’s hair stand on end.
“…I will ride the Dragonot.”
“Your Majesty, if you do that, people might think a war has broken out.”
“Be quiet.”
“Dragonot?”
Chris explained with a smile.
“It’s Her Majesty’s mount. A creature passed down in the Empire, only Her Majesty can ride it. It’s called the Dragon of Terror on the battlefield.”
‘So, there’s such a thing.’
As expected of the Empress of the Empire, she possesses many fascinating things.
But Sena didn’t understand. Why was she insisting on the Dragonot when there were horses right in front of her?
“Well, His Majesty does not know how to…”
“Chris.”
Astria glared at Chris as if she would kill him.
“Do not cross the line.”
“Yes, I apologize, Your Majesty.”
“??”
Sena put his hand to his lips and pondered.
No way.
Could it be…?
‘This is strange.’
Ahaha. Sena smiled awkwardly.
As the Empress of the Empire, could it really be possible that she doesn’t know how to ride a horse?
This is the medieval era. Horses are the only means of transportation, and without them, life becomes extremely difficult…
“Your Majesty, forgive me for asking, but do you not know how to ride a horse?”
Unable to contain his curiosity, Sena asked.
Astria’s pupils visibly trembled.
Seeing her reaction, Sena was convinced. With a glint in his eyes, he thought, Really?
“Your Majesty, Your Majesty.”
“Do you really not know how to ride a horse?”
“Come on, that can’t be right. After all, you are the Empress.”
“Yes?”
Sena openly teased Astria.
Astria’s face turned red with embarrassment.
Sena’s eyes sparkled.
‘Wow, it’s cute.’
She had never looked so adorably flustered. Sena covered his mouth and chuckled, then brought over a horse and mounted it lightly. Extending his hand to Astria, he said with a bright smile.
“It’s okay if you don’t know how to ride. I can ride, after all.”
**
How insolent.
Astria thought as she watched the silver-haired person swaying in front of her.
Truly insolent.
“I don’t particularly not know how to ride a horse. It’s just that there’s no need. Why should I ride a horse when I can fly?”
“Yes, yes.”
A frown appeared on Astria’s forehead. She sighed. Sena glanced back slightly.
“More importantly, Your Majesty, you shouldn’t talk while riding. And you should hold onto my waist, or you might fall.”
“And yet you are talking.”
“We’re walking right now, so it’s fine for someone as good at riding as me.”
But Astria did not grab Sena’s waist.
‘That’s the last bit of pride.’
In fact, it was the first time she had ridden behind someone else. The old Astria would never have allowed such a thing.
But, wouldn’t it be okay if it was Sena? … That thought just occurred to her out of nowhere.
A cool breeze blew, causing Astria’s blonde hair to brush against her cheek. As she pushed it aside, she glanced at Sena’s back.
It should have been the same small frame as usual. But for some reason, it seemed larger. By about 1 cm. Maybe it was because of the hair at the top of his head swaying in the wind.
Astria placed her hand on her chest.
‘What is this?’
Her heart beat a little faster. More than usual. Did she get sick again? She would have to ask later.
Sylvia caught up with Sena’s pace and rode beside them.
“Your Majesty.”
Gulping, Sylvia swallowed nervously. But she had to say it. No, she wanted to say it. She couldn’t stand the envy anymore.
“…Isn’t it uncomfortable? Senior isn’t that good at riding.”
“What are you trying to say?”
“Don’t talk while riding… Ouch.”
Astria looked at Sylvia with disdain after watching her bite her tongue, and then turned back to her.
Sylvia took a deep breath and spoke.
“I will carry Your Majesty.”
Astria raised the corners of her mouth.
“Miss Sylvia.”
Then, as if to show off, she hugged Sena and rested her face on his back.
“Don’t even think about it.”
