Rosie and Aslan moved to a wider table. Aslan didn't like it when Rosie blatantly called him with all kinds of affectionate nicknames. Every time he showed disapproval, Rosie deafened her ears.
"Princess, you shouldn't be so reckless about calling me like that. People will misunderstand."
Rosie, who was biting her fried chicken, stopped eating because she felt Aslan was too loud.
The girl pushed a plate of turkey sandwiches. "Eat, Husband. You must be hungry."
Aslan's right eye twitched. It seemed that the princess had not listened to any of his complaints. Aslan chose to remain silent and let Rosie eat more than fifteen dishes the waiter had prepared.
The people at the side table stared at Rosie in amazement that her small body could eat all the food in the menu. Meanwhile, Aslan didn't even drink a glass.
"Is your husband not eating?" asked a man who approached Rosie. The man stared at the entire plate Rosie had finished in the blink of an eye.
Rosie, who felt her belly was about to burst, just laughed out loud while holding her bulging stomach. One of the large buttons on her stomach was torturing her that Rosie had to unbutton a few buttons of her vest, so she could breathe easier.
"Wow… I've never seen a woman eat as much as you. When my wife was pregnant, she also had a high appetite but not like you. You're like someone who has not eaten for days," the man said jokingly. Rosie responded to the joke with a loud laugh.
"Would you like to join our table? I can pay for your husband's beer," said the man.
Rosie almost said yes before Aslan stopped the man's hand from touching the princess's shoulder.
"Keep your hands off her," Aslan threatened the man. He didn't like seeing the princess being too casual with strangers.
"Oh, no need to worry, Buddy. I just wanted to invite you and your wife to have a drink with the others."
"I said, keep your hands off," Aslan said again, tightening his grip on the man's hand.
Rosie could see the man's jaws clenched tightly, a sign that he was serious about his threat. Rosie, who didn't want Aslan to make a fuss, grabbed his hand while apologizing to the man.
"Sorry for my husband's impoliteness. He's a bit possessive when it comes to me," Rosie said. The man clicked her tongue and left her table.
From under his hood, Aslan was glaring at the man who had rejoined with his friends. Aslan took Rosie's hand. After paying for all the food the girl had eaten, he dragged Rosie to go back to the castle.
The day quickly turned into night, and the two had to return to where they had left their horses.
"Aslan, can we go a little slower? My stomach hurts so bad," Rosie said, pulling Aslan's hand to slow him down.
His stomach felt heavy from eating too much. Even so, Rosie really enjoyed all the food that was served, she did not expect the food in this fantasy world to taste so delicious. She even forgot her limits.
The sensation seemed to be reading an excellent book and kept turning each page non-stop.
The girl took her hands off Aslan, and she leaned against the wall of a house. Rosie was panting from carrying her heavy stomach.
"Hufft… I can't walk anymore. I'll just wait here, you take the horse." Rosie ordered as she leaned her body against the wall of the house.
"This is the result if you are too greedy. You should know when to stop."
"Alright… alright… I've learned my lesson not to be too greedy," said Rosie, not wanting to hear Aslan's endless rebukes.
Aslan pulled Rosie's arm back to her feet. "I can't leave you alone in a place like this. You must return to walk with me."
Rosie groaned, not wanting to continue walking. Her stomach was cramped. "I don't want to, I promise I won't run away. After all, how can I run away with a stomach like this?"
Aslan frowned. He did not understand the way the princess thought. The girl seemed not to understand the danger that lurked in this place. Leaving the girl alone could invite all kinds of evil. What if someone had evil intentions towards her?
Aslan ignored the princess's refusal. If he continued to listen to the girl's wishes, they would spend the night on the side of the road. Even though it took more effort because Rosie kept refusing to walk, Aslan continued to drag her until the two of them arrived at where their horses were tied.
Rosie was breathing hard. She couldn't stand up anymore. She looked around at that desolated place. Aslan took his hand off Rosie's arm, and the girl chose to sit on the ground.
"Where are our horses?" Rosie asked with breathless gasps.
Aslan scouted the area to see if he had returned to the correct place where they had tied the horses. Rosie had a bad feeling about this. Aslan held his temples, feeling so unlucky today.
"Did I say that? This is not a good place to keep horses. So what now?"
Aslan ignored the girl's question. He continued to search for the whereabouts of their horses but to no avail.
Aslan walked over to Rosie and looked at the girl who was sitting on the ground.
"We still have to return to the castle. After that I can get some people to look for the horses."
"How?"
"Walking."
"No way! I don't want to! Aslan, my stomach hurts so badly right now!"
"We have no choice, Your Highness," Aslan replied, trying to explain their current situation to the princess. They had to return to the castle right away.
From the letter Howland gave Aslan, the man said he might be back tonight. It wasn't that late at night. There was still time for them to return to the castle before Howland arrived.
Aslan looked at Rosie who was clutching her stomach. This was the result of being a greedy person. If the person in front of him wasn't a princess or Howland's sister, Aslan would have long left her behind.
At the age of seventeen, Aslan had made a vow at the procession of his knighthood. There, he had vowed to serve and protect the Villiers family, and Rosie was a part of the Villiers family. If Aslan came back to the castle alone, it would be the same as betraying his own vow.
Aslan had no choice.
The man crouched down in front of the princess with his back to her.
"What are you doing?" Rosie asked, confused as to why the man offered his back.
"We have to go back soon."
"Without the horses?"
"Without the horses," replied the man.
"So, we will walk?" Rosie asked again.
"I will walk."