"Marry me~"
That was the first thing Meliora blurted out when she laid eyes on the strange man before her. Blood splattered across his face and clothes.
Yet... Meliora looked at him with hearts practically glowing in her eyes and uttered those words. He had deep blue eyes and ink-black hair—seeing a real-life Casanova was too much for her to handle.
"Excuse me?" He raised an eyebrow, confused, his sword still dripping with blood. That didn't seem to faze her. Was she not afraid of him? It was the only thought that crossed his mind.
Realizing what she had just said, Meliora shook her head violently. As the situation sank in, she grabbed his hand.
He pulled her out of the carriage, and as soon as her feet touched the ground, Meliora almost slumped, breathing hard.
'Why would the story change? Did my presence and actions cause this? And who is this stranger? I never got past the selection process because I always died before it ended.'
Meliora panicked internally as she leaned over, hands on her knees, panting.
"Princess, are you okay?" Her knight, still frozen in place, finally moved forward, a worried expression on his face, though he was silently cursing himself.
He was there, yet he couldn't guarantee her safety. If this strange man hadn't shown up in time, she would have died, and the king would have killed him.
"Does it look like I'm okay?!" Meliora snapped, raising her head to glare at him. Her eyes spitting fire, he lowered his head in embarrassment. That's when she noticed the severed head beside him.
She felt her stomach churn, "Oh my God, I think I'm gonna throw up," she lurched, pushing the strange man aside as she rushed toward a tree.
With her hands against the tree, she heaved, her stomach convulsing in painful spasms.
[Master, you forgot that you can't handle blood…]
Crucifix reminded her, and Meliora clenched her fist, hitting the tree hard. "You think I don't know that?" she snapped.
Slowly standing up straight, she noticed the strange man offering her a bottle of water. Unlike in her past world, it looked like animal skin with a nozzle. She accepted it and chugged the water down.
Once she'd had enough, she sighed contentedly and turned to fix her eyes on his cold blue gaze.
"Mr. Knight, get that freaking head away from me!" she ordered, and the strange man kicked the head aside while Meliora kept a steady gaze on him.
She didn't notice the interest gleaming in his eyes as he wondered who this girl was and why she wasn't afraid of him.
"Are you also an assassin?" Meliora mumbled, raising her chin defiantly. She knew he wasn't here to kill her, but she had to ask to deflect from the embarrassing thing she'd said earlier.
"What do you think?" He replied, a cold smirk tugging at the corner of his lips, making him look even more terrifying. A vein popped on her forehead.
She clenched her fists tightly but smiled back at him, appearing unfazed.
"Sorry for saying that when you pulled me out of that mess… For now, we'll be on our merry way," she giggled, turning to Lucie, who stood there staring at the sky.
At first, Lucie had been scared, but now that it was over, she couldn't help but admire the night sky. Were they always this beautiful?
"Lucie? Are you okay?" Meliora asked, her voice full of worry. Lucie nodded in response.
Meliora rubbed Lucie's hair, flashing her a weak smile, wondering how Lucie could stomach everything that had happened. Every time she thought about it, her blood ran cold.
The only people who could do this to her were Abella and the Queen. Meliora thought of Abella as the prime suspect, which only worried her more.
"I suggest we leave now. Those mercenaries will be back soon enough to finish what they started." The stranger interrupted, his deep voice sending butterflies fluttering in Meliora's stomach, which only pissed her off more.
She whipped her head to glare at him, hands on her hips. "And what's that got to do with you? I don't even know who you are! Just fuck off already," she snarled, sticking her tongue out.
If she could, Meliora would have used Crucifix to get away, but she needed to unblock her mana channel first.
The strange man raised an eyebrow, his lips thinning. His expression seemed to ask, 'Was she talking to me?'
'Fuck off?' He didn't even know what that meant. Rolling his eyes, he took steady steps toward Meliora.
Feeling threatened, Meliora took a few steps back and hid behind Lucie. "What do you want?" she asked warily, peeking her head out from behind Lucie's shoulder, who didn't mind.
"Let me introduce myself then," he stopped before Lucie, who blinked innocently at the strange man's brooding figure. When her eyes met his, she quickly looked away, her body trembling.
Meliora was shocked. This young lady wasn't scared of me, but she's scared of him? Not because of the blood either… Was it his eyes? Meliora gazed deep into his eyes but didn't feel scared. Instead, she was mesmerized.
But for some reason, that only annoyed her more.
"I am the king of Arcania's knight, Kaid. Nice to meet you, Princess Meliora." He flashed a warm smile as he bowed his head slightly. Meliora's eyes widened in shock.
"How do you know my name?!" she gasped, the idea that he'd been watching her dancing in her mind, her brows furrowing in suspicion.
"Everyone knows the princess of the Clariant Empire. If I didn't know you, I'd be insulting royalty," he snickered. Meliora half-gritted her teeth, glaring at the look on Kaid's face.
"Don't get all mushy on me. I don't like you," she retorted, keeping her head hidden further behind Lucie.
Kaid's face returned to its neutral expression as he leaned closer to Meliora. Her cheeks flushed red when his face came closer, and she ducked further down. Cold sweat dripped down Lucie's forehead and back.
"Your maid is practically dying here. Are we leaving or not?" He pointed out, and only then did Meliora notice Lucie was still trembling and sweating buckets.
She quickly stepped aside, and Lucie collapsed, gasping for air. When she was half-relaxed, she managed to say, "Don't worry, Master! I'm fine!" and forced a smile.
Meliora's heart throbbed as she pulled Lucie into a tight hug, patting her head with a big smile. But when she looked at Kaid, the smile turned into a huge frown.
"We're your enemy, though. Why help us?" She pressed her lips together in curiosity, and he shrugged.
"You needed help, and I'm sure my king would never let a candidate for his future queen get killed by those goons," he said matter-of-factly. Meliora wanted to retort, but then he suddenly grabbed her hand and started running into the bush.
"Princess!!!" Lucie and her knight screamed in surprise and ran after them. Just when they thought they'd finally caught up and were about to grab Meliora's hand, Kaid shouted.
"Meet us at the imperial city square!" And with that, he and Meliora disappeared into thin air. Meliora shouted, "Fuck you!" but the wind swallowed her words.
Meliora had a strong urge to unseal the mana locked inside her.
*****
"Princess, don't run!" Lucie warned as she chased after Meliora, who was hopping from shop to shop like she'd never seen the outside world. The commoners didn't spare her a glance since it was night.
"Is your princess always like this…?" Kaid leaned against Meliora's knight, who shook his head. Though something bothered the burly man, he decided to keep quiet about it.
"I became her knight only yesterday, but the rumors seem false. The look in her eyes is always bright, and for an abandoned princess, her manners should still be better than what I've seen—sorry if I've spoken too much." The knight flashed a weak smile as he rubbed the back of his head.
Kaid tapped his chin lightly, thinking deeply. For some reason, he felt like coming to see the concubine selection himself wasn't a bad idea. "She's an interesting little one…"
His gaze darkened with interest, and a cold smile hung at the corner of his lips. The knight beside him shuddered and put some distance between them.
Who exactly was Kaid?