Chapter 44. Only She Has His Attention
“You want to learn horseback riding?”
Leonard asked in a slightly surprised voice.
I nodded.
“Yes. The hunting festival is coming up soon, and I feel like there will be many occasions where I’ll need to ride…”
I leaned in a little closer.
Perhaps he hadn’t expected me to come this close, as Leonard stiffened slightly.
I whispered quietly into his ear.
“Actually… I’m not very good at riding.”
“Of course, if Your Majesty the Empress wishes to learn, it would be my honor, but… you collapsed not long ago. Isn’t this pushing yourself too hard?”
“I’m fine. That’s how important this is.”
Staring into my eyes, Leonard soon nodded.
Thus, I began to learn horseback riding from Leonard — up to that point, everything was fine.
‘But this… this really isn’t easy, is it?’
A few days later. Once I actually tried riding, regret crept in.
“You need to balance yourself better, Your Majesty.”
Leonard’s voice came from beside me.
“Straighten your back more and match your breathing with the horse.”
“L-like this?”
“Think of it not as trying to control the horse with your will, but matching your movements to the horse’s rhythm.”
Well, I understood the explanation.
But my body wasn’t cooperating.
Sitting on a horse was far from a comfortable position.
And apparently, I had been sitting for quite a while.
My leg muscles felt like they were tearing apart, and even my hips hurt.
Watching me struggle, Leonard spoke with a troubled expression.
“It seems there’s a limit to explaining with words.”
Exactly!
I could feel there was no progress staying like this.
Maybe if he demonstrated by riding next to me, I could understand better?
Yes, it would be much easier to follow if I saw it with my own eyes.
I was just about to ask him to bring another horse and show me—
“Excuse me for a moment.”
“……!”
Before I could say anything, he climbed onto the horse, behind me.
“I think it’ll be faster to show you directly.”
“E-eh…?”
Seeing my reaction, Leonard tilted his head innocently.
“Would it be uncomfortable if I showed you directly?”
His deep blue eyes, so sincere and pure, sparkled as if he had no other intentions.
No, I did think it would be easier to learn if he showed me directly.
‘That’s not the issue here!’
There was a lot I wanted to say.
But in the end, I couldn’t say anything aloud and just shook my head.
“Is anywhere uncomfortable?”
Uncomfortable?
His words only made me even more aware of my position.
I could feel the firm body behind me.
His warmth seeped into me.
‘No. Stop thinking.’
This was purely for learning horseback riding.
Judging from his serious face, he was genuinely trying to teach me.
And yet, my mind kept running off into strange directions.
I gripped the reins even tighter.
“No, I’m perfectly fine.”
“Then, I’ll hold the reins with you.”
At the same time, he pressed closer.
He reached out and took hold of the reins next to where my hands were.
At least he wasn’t directly overlapping my hands — that was a relief.
Still, as soon as he grabbed the reins, I ended up completely enclosed within his strong arms.
As Leonard guided me from behind, I kept my gaze firmly fixed forward, trying to clear the useless thoughts from my head.
Time passed like that, and eventually, I felt like I was getting the hang of riding.
We gradually increased the speed and went around the field a few times. I then stroked the horse’s mane.
With a proud smile curling on my lips, I turned to Leonard and said,
“I think I’m riding quite well now, don’t you think?”
At that moment—
Maybe startled by a bug or something, the normally calm horse suddenly reared up, lifting its front legs high.
I lost my balance and was thrown backward.
“……!”
Ahhhhh! I’m falling!
Just as I instinctively squeezed my eyes shut in fear—
A firm, strong force caught me.
I was wrapped in warmth.
By my ear, a low, pleasant voice sounded.
“You let your guard down, Your Majesty.”
***
Just a little before Helena fell from the horse—
Fay was walking at a slightly faster pace than usual.
‘It’s been so long.’
She was excited at the thought of spending time alone with Jerome again.
Sensing Fay’s excitement, the maids around her spoke.
“Your Highness the Imperial Consort, you seem to be in a good mood today.”
“His Majesty has been so busy lately that I haven’t been able to see him. How could I not be happy?”
Fay smiled brightly.
The maids, agreeing with her, continued the conversation.
“Indeed. His Majesty has been very busy recently.”
“I hear the drought situation is becoming quite serious.”
As the maids chatted amongst themselves—
One of them clapped her hands as if remembering something and asked.
“Your Highness, have you heard the rumors?”
“Huh?”
The maid glanced around, and after confirming no one else was nearby, she whispered quietly.
“About Her Majesty the Empress.”
“Ah, yes, I’ve heard a little… not in detail, though.”
“Recently, the rumors about Her Majesty haven’t been good. I hear they’re really bad.”
“Yes, that’s right. Isn’t it actually good for us?”
The maids were, without question, on Fay’s side.
“…Is that so? But… could it really be that serious?”
“You have no idea. It seems much worse than you think.”
“But I heard His Majesty declared he would punish anyone spreading such rumors severely…”
At that moment, Fay’s steps came to a halt.
‘Jerome said that?’
Fay asked in an indifferent tone.
“Are you saying His Majesty defended Her Majesty the Empress?”
Her voice trembled slightly.
The maids waved their hands hurriedly and answered.
“No, no. It’s not that he defended Her Majesty personally—he just wants to stop the rumors.”
“It’s merely a matter of formality. As you know, His Majesty only has eyes for Your Highness.”
Fay lowered her gaze.
“Of course…”
At that moment.
“Ah! His Majesty is over there!”
One of the maids exclaimed excitedly.
The maids sent encouraging looks toward Fay, urging her to go.
Fay turned her head in the direction the maid had pointed.
Just seeing his face made her heart race.
She nearly ran toward Jerome.
And with a heart full of longing, she called out to him.
“Your Majesty.”
But contrary to her expectations—
Jerome did not respond to her call.
Without even glancing at her, his lips remained tightly pressed together.
‘Did he not hear me?’
She thought she had called out quite loudly.
Looking closer, she noticed his brows furrowed tightly.
As if he had seen something he didn’t like.
Where exactly was he looking?
Fay followed his gaze.
‘Ah… it must be that.’
It wasn’t hard to guess what Jerome was staring at.
Where his gaze rested—
There were two people riding together on a horse.
The one sitting in front looked somewhat tense.
But the one behind, holding the reins, had a slight, natural smile on his face.
A bitter emotion, rising from an unknown place, filled her heart.
Her dazzling smile slowly stiffened.
Fay raised both hands and grabbed Jerome’s arm.
It was a desperate gesture.
“Your Majesty.”
Only then did Jerome turn to look at her.
“Ah, I didn’t see you coming. When did you get here?”
“Just now. What were you looking at?”
Even though she already knew the answer, she asked.
At that, Jerome’s expression darkened as he recalled what he had seen.
He shook his head.
“…It’s nothing.”
A lie.
She could tell instantly he wasn’t speaking the truth.
How could she not recognize the gaze of the person she loved?
Fay understood immediately.
No, she could have recognized it even with her eyes closed.
It was evident from the coldness in his voice.
Suppressing the complex emotions swirling inside her, Fay changed the subject.
“I heard there’s been a lot troubling you lately. Do you know how long it’s been since I last saw you, Your Majesty? How could you not visit me even once, just because you were busy?”
Fay put on a sorrowful expression.
“Do you have any idea how much I missed you?”
“…I’m sorry.”
With only a short reply, Jerome brushed past her.
“Let’s go. Tell me if you’ve thought of something you want to do today.”
“…….”
Fay couldn’t move her feet easily.
It felt like her legs were rooted to the ground.
When she didn’t follow, Jerome, who had walked ahead, called back to her.
“Consort.”
“…Ah, yes.”
Snapping out of her daze at his call, Fay turned around.
As she approached Jerome’s side—
From behind, the neighing of a horse rang out.
“Neigh—!”
Reflexively, Fay turned her head.
She saw a woman nearly falling off a horse, being caught securely in the arms of a man.
Fay’s eyes widened.
‘Did Jerome see that too?’
She quickly glanced at Jerome.
Luckily—or perhaps unluckily—
Jerome was still looking straight ahead without glancing back.
It seemed he hadn’t heard the horse’s cry.
Fay bit her lip hard.
Standing by his side once more, she grabbed his arm again.
“Your Majesty. Look over there.”
Now, he would see it too.
The sight of Leonard Hilbert holding Helena von Schwaben securely in his firm arms.
Following Fay’s words, Jerome turned his head.
His eyes narrowed sharply.
—
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