Chapter 3.1 (1/2)

He couldn’t believe it.

Garan, the Red King, stood on top of the wall, completely astonished. He watched as Jukmu frantically ran down the road, carrying the girl on its back. Garan had never been this dumbfounded in his life. If it weren’t for the wound on his chest, he wouldn’t have let her escape like this.

“Jukmu, you son of a bitch.”

Jukmu was an incredibly intelligent horse. The war horse was able to discern its master’s mood and the situation it was in. But after they had returned from war, they separated him from the mare he had taken a liking to. And he had been like this ever since.

But still… How could it allow the person he was pursuing to ride on its back? And now they were running away together?

He couldn’t believe it. The horse never allowed anyone other than its master ride him. But that woman was definitely riding Jukmu right now as she ran away.

Rather than the fact that he had let the woman get away, Garan was even more furious that Jukmu, that bastard, was the one who was letting the woman ride on its back as she made her escape.

A woman. It was definitely a woman.

Was she the Heukra?

No, probably not.

The people claimed that the Heukra was the guibin’s vengeful spirit. His mother was known as a peerless beauty and had been incredibly gorgeous and seductive.

However, the woman under the hood was as cold and as sleek as a snow flower. Her eyes had an odd trace of blue and looked as sharp and as wild as the eyes of a hawk.

Just who was she?

“Over there!”

Suddenly, a shout from behind pulled him out of his thoughts.

Garan glanced behind him and clicked his tongue. Nobody must know that he had been here today. He immediately jumped down from the wall. He suddenly realized again that Jukmu wasn’t here and angrily clenched his jaw.

“Whoa.”

The horse ran frantically as it helped her escape. Yujo pulled on the horse’s reins once they were safely inside the forest where she had agreed to meet Jewol. She looked behind her nervously.

The dark forest path was densely packed with trees, its leaves rustling in the wind. It was completely silent. Like a prey being chased, Yujo nervously looked around before letting out a sigh of relief.

Her hands holding the reins were damp with sweat. She hadn’t felt this nervous in a long time. Her back was stung painfully from from the man’s blow.

Just what kind of man was he? Was he another person who was looking for the Heukra?

“Ugh.”

Her back hurt even more as she moved. She carefully touched her back and realized that the fabric wet, but her back wasn’t bleeding. The stinging flesh felt like it was whipped.

What a terrifying man. How could he make an attack such as this?

And he’d even gotten a glimpse of her face.

“I can’t believe I made a mistake. And right at the beginning, too.”

She felt as if she’d go crazy from the disappointment. No matter what happened, she needed to be even more careful moving forward. She finally jumped off the horse.

The horse was clearly well taken care of. Its coat had a glossy sheen, and even though they’d run such a long way, it was barely panting. And it was a lot larger and more muscular than an average horse. It was a top-quality, powerful horse.

“What’s your name?”

The horse whinnied. Yujo chuckled. The people of Yeha reared horses so well that it was said they were born on top of a horse.

Yujo had been riding horses since the age of five, and she even reared them, so she knew them very well. She also had an extraordinary ability to communicate with animals.

“You’re truly amazing.”

Yujo thanked the horse for bringing her all the way here and began to stroke its neck. If it weren’t for him, she really have really been in trouble.

The horse glanced at her. Its eyes were filled with an endless arrogance. It was probably the strongest stallion she had ever seen.

“Are you a horse from the judicial office?”

Neigh, the horse turned its head away.

It was a well-trained war horse. If it was known that she had stolen such an important horse, they might decline the peace treaty. She needed to send this horse back as soon as possible. But it was so cute.

Fweeeet!

Suddenly, she heard Jewol’s whistle. It was the sign they had agreed on to alert the other of their presence in the forest. Yujo whistled back to let him know where she was. The horse’s ear twitched as it cautiously looked around.

“Thank you for today.”

The horse was quite intelligent, so it would be able to find its way back home easily. Yujo let go of the reins and lightly slapped its bottom. The horse whinnied once more before it raced back home.

“Yujo!”

Jewol exited the carriage with a pale face.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m okay.”

Yujo sighed and entered the carriage. Her back twinged, causing a groan to escape her lips.

“Are you hurt?”

“No.”

“Let’s hurry back.”

Jewol hurriedly dragged her back home. The cry of a bird rang in the night sky.

She looked out the window to calm her unsettled heart. Yujo recalled the man’s black eyes. She still felt as if she were being purused by that man, making her feel extremely anxious.

“Are you really okay?”

As soon as they returned home, Jewol immediately went and brought back some medicine. Through her torn clothes, he could see her red, swollen back.

“Ah, damn it.”

An unexpected curse left his lips.

“Ha, Brother, you know how to curse?”

Yujo asked laughingly as she turned her head around. A part of her tried to brush off the pain to ease Jewol’s worries.

When one trained in the martial arts, it was normal to receive wounds like this. It was nothing to worry or cry about. The only mistake she had made today was revealing her face.

She should have been more careful.

Yujo frowned with displeasure. It bothered her that she’d been caught by someone with such amazing military prowess.

“I need to find out who that man is.”

“I’ll find out who he is in the morning. For now, let’s apply some medicine to your wound.”

“Brother.”

Yujo blocked Jewol’s hand.

“I’ll apply the medicine myself.”

“But it’s on your back. How will you reach it?”

“I can do it, so give it to me. You’ll press on my wound and only make it hurt more like last time.”

“That wasn’t me. Yuha did it to mess with you…”

“It’s fine. I can’t trust neither one of you.”

Yujo pushed Jewol’s hand away. She felt like she needed to. Although they had been on close terms for seven years now, held a marriage ceremony, and even slept in the same room at times, this felt a bit uncomfortable for her. No matter how close they were, he was still a man, and she was still a woman. She didn’t think this was proper.

“…Fine.”

“Are you disappointed?”

“No.”

“You’re annoyed.”

“I’m not.”

Yujo laughed apologetically. But no matter how close they were, it would be best if she kept her distance.

“No matter how much you trust Jewol, you must never show him your body.”

Before she left, Brother Yuha pleaded her.

“Brother!”

Yujo burst out of her seat with disgust.