But unlike her, the knight had an aghast face. He was a man of little words and expression, but did the death of a fellow soldier disturb him so much? After standing there frozen for a while, he finally opened his mouth and said something she wasn't wishing to hear.
"I… have to go."
A simple word that sounded like a curse.
Since the message also asked for his return, she expected to hear it but didn't really want to. Luan took her by the arm and pulled her to the side, away from the other people. Her reaction was too calm like it was the news about someone else, but he didn't dare to pry into it.
"Stay with the merchants. They will take you to the Deneb," he urged.
Suin blinked blankly.
"O-of course, I will go! I told you, haven't I? My family is living in that city, I will join them soon…" She lied to him when they met, she will lie to him when they separate. In the end, she knew she couldn't stop him, and it was better to let him go without worries.
That's right, her cover was the runaway maid, not an illegitimate daughter of the noble house.
"Promise me, then. That you will safely arrive and won't leave your house."
She nodded reluctantly. After they part the way, she wasn't expecting to meet him again.
Luan was in a hurry, but he still wanted to make sure, that she would be safe. He gave the leader of merchants the sum of money to ensure her smooth travel until the end. The knight then prepared to mount his horse but turned to her for one last time.
"Don't worry about me. My family is waiting…" She forced herself to smile. Arianell's face was beautiful, so even if she grinned, it still seemed to be sweet.
"Stay safe…" and wait for me to come back, he really wanted to say. But wasn't it irresponsible of him? The battlefield was unpredictable and even veterans with countless years of experience easily died.
His heart was heavy, as he knew of her and count Randel's connection. How sad and scared she must be after hearing about her father's death, yet she still forced a smile.
"I will see you again," he promised before Ash carried him away.
"Have a safe journey! Take care…!" Suin stood there for a while, waving her hand as long as she could see them on the horizon. Only after their figures couldn't be recognized anymore, her arm fell down lifeless.
"And he is gone…"
Their meeting was unexpected, and their parting was abrupt. But life was like that.
The story from the book is finally starting and she is grateful to escape her original fate. Her destination was close, but if she stayed at the castle until now, she would be met with more humiliation or even physical pain and mental torture.
Suin was sad that the blue knight was gone but at the same time, she felt liberated. Now, whatever happens in society has nothing to do with her. The dream of becoming a homeowner and starting her own farm was getting closer.
She grew up on the farm with her grandparents. Her parents were never there, and they haven't talked about them at home. The time she spent with grandma and grandpa was the happiest moment in her life. They lived a simple life at their farm, growing vegetables and taking care of the land every day. They weren't missing anything.
When Suin got into high school, they sold their property and moved to the city. From the big house in the countryside, they had to stay in a two-bedroom apartment. Certainly, there was less work to do, but they missed the land and fresh vegetables they had access to while living on the farm.
It was the start of Suin's indoor gardening obsession as her grandma taught her how to grow their food in a small space like a balcony. They also started to spend money travelling as her grandparents took her to travel the world whenever possible.
She only found out the reason for their sudden change much later. They moved from the farm because her grandma was diagnosed with cancer. With her sickness progressing, staying in the countryside was impossible for them.
Her grandmother died before she could graduate from university, and her grandfather followed her shortly after. Suin was left alone in a world where no one cared about her.
She hated waking up every morning, forced to live the way society expected of her. She lost all her motivation to break free from invisible shackles and slump, to move back to the farm where all her happy memories were. Every day was a hell and the only salvation she had were the novels with different worlds described in them.
She ended up as a white-collar worker chained to big corporation in her past life, but since she was getting a second chance with life, she is going to make a difference. Far from the hypocrites of noble society, far from the gossip, intrigues, and cheesy love stories. She was going to live a fulfilled life alone.
Even though her impressions of Charissa and Blaine were bad, she genuinely wished them the happiness their fate prepared for them. Her half-sister would make a really narcissistic queen, but as long as she stayed in the west, who was sitting on the throne didn't matter to her.
From now on, she is going to focus on herself.
"Miss, do you want some bread and dried meat?" One of the elderly women offered her.
"Yes, I would love to!" She answered in a good mood.
"Oh? You are rather cheerful for being left behind by your lover…"
"Our relationship wasn't like that…" She kept on smiling, as she bites the hard bread.
It's still like a sand. The food she was eating tasted horrible, like everything else in this world. No, there was also something really tasty. The fish that he caught barehand in the river and grilled over the flame for her. It was one of the best meals she had in recent years.
But it doesn't matter. Even the jerky and hard bread can be considered a gourmet meal, as long as she keeps on smiling.
"Oy, miss! Are you crying?"
"No, you are mistaken… I'm very happy, right now…" she said as her face was stained with uncontrollable tears.
She will be fine. She can survive on her own.