The Abandoned Empress Will Not Return

“Because it’s a place similar to you.”

 

Rodelia’s cheeks turned red.

 

Doesn’t it sound as if he likes it because it resembles her?

 

Her toes tingled at her embarrassment.  Cerdian chuckled and took out a whistle from inside his arms and blew it.
A little later, a white horse ran out of the woods, showing off its noble appearance.

 

The white horse whinnied and stopped next to Cerdian.
Then it rubbed its face against his arm almost as if it was acting cute.

 

“Is this child your horse?”

 

“Yes, this is Sally.”

 

Cerdian responded by patting the bridge of Sally’s nose affectionately.

 

“Oh, then it must be a female…? I thought she was a male because she looked dignified.”

 

As Rodelia looked at the white horse with a little surprise, Sally snorted and blinked her eyes.
It was an arrogant attitude as she stayed next to Cerdian.

 

Rodelia giggled a little at the sight, then asked cautiously.

 

“Can I touch her?”

 

“Of course.”

 

When Cerdian’s permission was granted and Rodelia stretched out her hand, Sally swung and turned her head to avoid Rodelia’s touch.
Her outstretched hand hovered in the air and lost its way.

 

“… I guess Sally doesn’t like me.”

 

“She’s usually not like this but I guess she’s not in a good mood.”

 

The flustered Cerdian said, trying to appease Rodelia with his sullen voice, but Sally seemed very happy.
Still rubbing her head against Cerdian’s arm, guarded against Rodelia.

 

“No.
It’s her first time meeting me, so it’s natural for her to be wary.”

 

With a soft smile, Rodelia walked toward a cluster of flowers in full bloom.
She carefully plucked purple hydrangeas, the richest and most splendid out of all the colors of the hydrangeas and carried it to Sally.

 

“I’m sorry I mistook you for a male.
I didn’t do it on purpose so I wanted to give you this beautiful hydrangea that looks just like you.
Will you accept it?”

 

Rodelia smiled brightly and handed over a bunch of hydrangeas.
Sally purred and snorted then extended her head out as if she was saying that it’s alright to touch her.

 

“Are you accepting my apology?”

 

Sally closed her eyes gently as if to affirm her words.

 

“Thank you, Sally.”

 

Rodelia’s eyes curved like crescent moons.
Reaching out her immaculate hand and caressing Sally, she turned her attention to Cerdian.

 

“She’s a lovely horse.”

 

Instead of answering with a smile, Cerdian reached out to Rodelia with his hand.

 

“Now then, shall we practice horseback riding?”

 

 * 

 

Rodelia’s assumption that it would take a long time to get used to horseback riding was quickly broken.

 

Despite her age, her own body fully remembered the sensation.
Thanks to that, it didn’t take long for her to ride as skillfully as before.

 

The reason why she stopped enjoying horseback riding was Marquis Florence and Kane….

 

Rodelia’s horse, enjoying its ride against the wind, gradually slowed down.
What interrupted her enjoyable time was the sudden appearance of Marquis Florence’s afterimage.

 

Come to think of it, didn’t Cerdian say he was bringing him?

 

Her happiness seemed to be shattered in an instant.
As long as he existed, it was impossible for her to be happy.

 

‘I, when will I be able to get away from him…….’

 

She closed her eyes as she erased the figure of the Marquis of Florence.
But the more she did, the thicker his afterimage became and he tormented her.

 

‘Can’t I at least be happy here?’

 

A dark shadow settled on the face that had a refreshing smile.
Seeing her suddenly hardened appearance, Cerdian quickly approached Rodelia.

 

“What’s wrong?”

 

Cerdian asked anxiously.
Rodelia, who was staring blankly in front then turned to him, got off the horse.

 

“But what about my father…? Didn’t you say you were bringing him with you?”

 

Her uneasy voice cut through the heavy air.
It was only then that Cerdian realized why Rodelia’s mood had subsided.

 

What the hell did he do to this woman that made her so anxious….
He had a lot of questions but he had found out nothing yet.
So he shouldn’t make it worse.

 

Rodelia is also trying to be indifferent and not reveal her own feelings.

 

Cerdian calmly brushed her tangled hair and answered calmly, pretending not to know anything.

 

“Ah, I heard that he’s not coming because he still has a lot to do….
He probably won’t be coming for a while, so don’t worry and enjoy your daily life in Luvenia.”

 

“Worry…?”

 

Rodelia’s face went pale.
Does Cerdian possibly know something? The inside of her mouth burned at the thought of it.
If so, then she…

 

“Aren’t you worried about your father?”

 

Cerdian’s determined voice cut off her concerns.

 

“We are protecting the Marquis of Florence well, so don’t worry.”

 

“Ah….”

 

Rodelia internally swallowed a sigh of relief.
Fortunately, Cerdian didn’t know anything yet.
That fact took her one step out of the deep water.

 

“More than that….”

 

“…….”

 

“I told you I prepared something.”

 

As Rodelia stared blankly at him, waiting for his words, Cerdian’s red eyes bent, then he approached the stump of a large felled cedar tree.
He opened the box next to it and pulled out a shotgun.

 

“Did I tell you that I am good at shooting?”

 

Cerdian, wearing a mischievous expression, slowly walked towards her.
Then he handed the gun to Rodelia and spat out some serious words.

 

“I don’t think it’s bad to learn shooting as a hobby….”

 

“Shooting?”

 

Shooting. It was something she had never thought of.
Of course, she didn’t have any negative thoughts about it either.
It was just that it was so unexpected that she was embarrassed.

 

“Why…?”

 

“It would be nice to learn anything.
Shooting is almost essential in Luvenia.”

 

“Women too?”

 

Cerdian laughed and nodded his head.
And he added why she had to learn to shoot.

 

“As you know, Luvenia is surrounded by mountains.
So sometimes wild beasts come down.”

 

Rodelia swallowed her saliva upon hearing the words ‘wild beasts’.

 

Somehow, in order to adapt to this place, it would be better to learn how to shoot as he said.
It was impossible to live under Cerdian’s protection forever and she would have to leave the grand duke’s residence sooner or later.

 

She must learn all that could be learned.

 

When Rodelia frowned and seemed troubled, he gave her one last reason.
For Rodelia, the last reason was the most important in making up her mind.

 

“If you hit the target properly, it relieves your stress.”

 

“I see… Alright, I’ll try learning it.”

 

Rodelia, staring at the gun he had handed her, straightened up with a stern face.
With an awkward stance, she pointed the gun at Cerdian, tilted her head to one side and asked.

 

“Now what do I do…?”

 

“You shouldn’t be standing so stiff.”

 

Cerdian let out a chuckle at the absurdity and moved behind her.

 

“Hold the handle with one hand and grip the forearm with the other.”

 

“Huh…?”

 

Warmth enveloped her body.  Rodelia took a short breath as it felt as if Cerdian was hugging her from behind.

 

But Cerdian didn’t seem to mind.
He took her hand, corrected her posture and began to explain how to shoot.

 

“Keep your cheek against the stock.
Then you look at the target and pull the trigger.
You shouldn’t close your eyes.”

 

“…..”

 

“The recoil is great, so hold on tight.”

 

He kept explaining things, but none of it reached her.
It just felt like he was wrapped around her and her head went blank.
His scent was so warm that her body shrank at his touch even more and her heart beat loudly.

 

Because of the quiet surroundings, she could hear her wildly racing heart.  Rodelia caught her breath, trying to focus on shooting.

 

In the meantime, Cerdian’s explanation was over.
He whispered to Rodelia who had regained her senses in a low voice.

 

“We’re going to hit the red dot on that tree over there now.”

 

“…Yes?”

 

“It will be pretty deafening.”

 

“No….”

 

She wasn’t prepared mentally.
The moment she was about to request for a moment, a bang rang loudly in Rodelia’s ears.
Her eyes widened at the louder-than-expected sound.

 

There was a ringing noise in her ears.
She couldn’t adjust to the sudden loud sound.

 

“Bullseye.”

 

She came to her senses at the sound of Cerdian’s voice and looked at the tree.
The bullet was stuck exactly where he said it was.

 

“Wow….”

 

For some reason, a feeling of joy spread from her heart to her whole body.

 

Of course, she didn’t hit it with her own ability but the feeling of shooting from her hand and the deafening gunshot were enough to awaken her to the charms of shooting.

 

For some reason, she was confident that she would be able to do well.
The thumping heartbeat suddenly turned into anticipation.
Rodelia turned towards Cerdian and with an expectant voice she said.

 

“I want to learn properly.”

 

“I knew you would like it.”

 

Cerdian’s lips raised smoothly.

 

After that, the practice continued.
Rodelia was quite good at shooting and thanks to that, her skills improved quickly.
Before she knew it, the sun’s shadow had deepened and colored the surroundings darkly.

 

Bang-

 

The sound of a final gunshot traversed quickly through the still woods.
Confirming that she had hit her target, Rodelia put the gun down and faced Cerdian.

 

“Shall we go now?”

 

Her blushing red cheeks had become lively.

 

The eyes reflecting the greenery had also firmed a little.
Cerdian, who was looking at her with satisfaction, stared into her eyes.

 

“With a little more practice, you might be able to protect me.”

 

“Pardon? I don’t think it’s to that extent….”

 

“It will be enough to protect yourself.”

 

He said it playfully, but the meaning was significant.
Rodelia’s face darkened as her anxiety crept up.
If he had a reason for asking her to learn how to shoot….

 

“… Could it be, has Thebes noticed that I was here?”

 

“No, it’s nothing like that.”

 

“Really?”

 

“If there was anything like that, I will tell you.
So don’t worry.”

 

Cerdian reassured Rodelia.
He said she just needed to forget the past and live happily here.
Of course, there was a high chance for something unexpected to happen but it seemed like Cerdian would take care of it no matter what.

 

Rodelia nodded her head slowly.
Cerdian lightly stroked Rodelia’s cheek and smiled.

 

“Nothing will happen.”