As I swiftly unpacked my belongings and checked the condition of my bow, Eden observed me with curiosity, puzzled by my sudden behavior. While inspecting the arrowheads and ensuring the bow's frame wasn't misaligned, I spoke to him.
"Eden, check the sword."
"Why all of a sudden?"
"Please, just do it."
Though he appeared confused, he obediently complied with my request. After all, there was no reason to neglect weapon inspection. As he unbuckled the tightly bound leather strap around the scabbard, Eden's gaze suddenly sharpened.
"Stay still."
As he uttered to me, I paused what I was doing and held my breath.
After a moment, Eden muttered.
"How did you know?"
"What?"
In response to my question, three men suddenly leaped out, and almost instinctively, I swiftly nocked an arrow onto my bow.
"Urryaaahh!"
Perhaps being a smaller woman compared to Eden, who was a man, they all rushed towards me while Eden came running over.
In that moment, there was no time to think. Even though it was true that I'd been practicing archery in the palace every day, my targets were stationary, like trees. I had never been taught what to do against men running at me with axes.
...Axe.
It reminded me of Henry Jacques on the hunting grounds. The image of Henry Jacques wielding a battle axe on the hunting grounds flashed in my mind with each blink. Without hesitation, I released the bowstring, and the arrow sliced through the air.
Puk!
"Arrggh!"
Fortunately, my arrow found its mark in the left eye of one of them.
It was truly a stroke of luck. As the man hit by my arrow staggered backward, frothing at the mouth, his companions were momentarily distracted by the scene.
'Now...!'
Instead of shooting another arrow, I swung my bow at them.
Puuk!
I aimed for the arm holding the weapon. Even though my strength was lacking, the man didn't drop his weapon, but his grip loosened as if his wrist was hurting.
"Eden!"
In an instant, Eden's sword shimmered with flashes of light. Seizing the opening I created, he skillfully diverted the attention of the three men towards himself.
The four of them engaged in a tangled fight.
At the same time, my hands trembled as I hurried towards a barrel of arrows. I couldn't just stand there and watch.
I aimed my arrows quickly.
The men's movements slowed down due to their injuries from the scuffle. However, that didn't guarantee my arrows would hit their mark.
I bit my lip and hesitated for a moment, not wanting to accidentally harm Eden, before releasing the bowstring. The arrow soared swiftly, but regrettably, it missed its target. Still, it grazed one of the men's temples, causing him to turn his gaze reflexively towards me.
It was a great opportunity for Eden.
A few minutes later, we were catching our breath on the ground where the three bandits had fallen. Eden, bleeding from his right arm after being struck by their axes, furrowed his brow and asked.
"I heard that Actilus' horses would run and fight together when its master was in trouble?"
I replied, squinting at Eden's horse, which was slowly making its way back towards us after having fled in fear earlier.
"That's a story about warhorses. Who would be crazy enough to put me on a ferocious warhorse?"
Fortunately, the arm guards did their job well, and Eden's injuries weren't severe. I couldn't deny that I never imagined running into a band of bandits... I was truly frustrated with my own foolish naivety.
As a makeshift measure, I tightly wrapped clean cloth over his wounds and changed his clothes. Though it pained me to waste water, I tore off some hay and started a fire to boil water and clean the wounds. After roughly tending to Eden's injuries, I searched through the lifeless bodies of the bandits, hoping to find some alcohol or something to disinfect the wounds and keep us warm.
While I was engrossed in rummaging through the corpses, Eden suddenly opened his mouth again.
"How did you know that before."
"Just a hunch."
"Ho."
"Maybe being there seems to have sharpened my instincts. Ha, here it is, a bottle of alcohol."
I was confident it was alcohol. Bandits who roam around in this season, looking for targets to plunder while freezing outside, would undoubtedly prefer alcohol over water. As I shook it, the sound of liquid rattling inside was quite light.
Even though the quantity was quite disappointing, I poured it all into Eden's wounds.
"Ugh."
It was strangely refreshing to see his composed face contorted into a grimace. While he rolled down his sleeves, Eden opened his mouth.
"We'll need to be more careful from now on."
Listening to him, I pulled the arrow out of the bandit's eyes. I didn't want to waste the arrow by leaving it behind.
"Before someone else tries to rob us again, we should quickly head to the Temple."
I looked down at the corpses.
'...Would these people also appear in my nightmares?'
As I entertained that thought, I blinked my eyes slowly.
"...Dream."
Eden raised an eyebrow without replying as I mumbled absentmindedly.
"Come to think of it, I haven't had any nightmares lately."
________________
After a long period without having children following the birth of their first son, the Duke and Duchess of Nerma were finally blessed with the news of the Duchess's pregnancy, bringing them much joy in their thirties.
Duchess Nerma was particularly delighted that she could focus solely on prenatal care during this crucial early stage of pregnancy.
It was fortunate that the Empress had chosen Countess Tocino's residence as her place of convalescence. She thought the Empress had distanced herself from the head handmaiden and sought to establish an independent faction, though her visit to Countess Tocino's residence was a sign of strengthening ties with them.
Needless to say, she was relieved.
Additionally, her husband's good terms with the Emperor had brought only favorable outcomes recently.
Enjoying these leisurely moments while gently caressing her still-small belly, Duchess Nerma was interrupted by one of the maids who approached in haste, wearing a serious expression.
"Countess Tocino has come to visit, Madam."
Duchess Nerma frowned.
"What? Acubella, is that woman sane or not?"
...To suddenly visit the Capital during such a critical time, even when she was fully occupied with the Empress?
Thinking it was pathetic for Countess Tocino not to take advantage of such a golden opportunity, she planned to reprimand the Countess who had come to her house.
However, the state of the Countess's condition was beyond words.
Not only that her face was pale and her lips trembling intensely, but her eyes were bloodshot and bulging. As she realized that something troubling was happening, Duchess Nerma both hands protectively on her belly before opening her mouth.
"What... is going on?"
Countess Tocino responded in exasperation.
"I've been deceived... I've been taken advantage of! That woman asked to borrow my villa and then disappeared! What should I do now?!"
It felt like she had been hit in the back of the head. At first, Duchess Nerma couldn't quite understand what the Countess was saying.
"Acubella, what are you talking about? The woman disappeared? Explain yourself so I can understand!"
Countess Tocino, unable to contain her anger, blamed herself as she rambled on and on while pounding her chest in distress.
The face of the Duchess of Nerma turned pale.
After all, it was someone no one had expected... the Empress ran away. No matter how hard she thought about it, she couldn't fathom why the Empress would run away. It was Countess, who snapped at her, who was frozen while muttering in a daze.
"Why does it matter why? The important thing is that she disappeared!"
The Duchess hugged her belly tightly and regained her composure. If the Empress had truly disappeared, it would be a disaster.
How much the Emperor cherished his Empress? In the eyes of Duchess Nerma, to say that he was madly in love wouldn't be any stretch of thought. If the Emperor were to return from his expedition and find out that the Empress was missing, it was obvious that he would go into a fit of rage and purge those involved.
First and foremost, Countess Tocino, who failed to prevent the Empress from escaping.
Next, considering his temperament...
'...He'll wipe out every family with connections to the County of Tocino.'
In that case, the Duchy of Nerma would be no exception.
'No, this can't happen...!'
As Duchess Nerma let out a muffled scream, Countess Tocino sobbed.
"What should I do? What should I do now? Everything is all wrong... this is a fate worse than death. Maybe I should run away, too."
Seeing her distraught, the Duchess scolded.
"Pull yourself together!"
The Nerma family had achieved great prosperity and honor due to the burning ambition of the Duke and Duchess. This newfound position was perfect for their soon-to-be-born child to grow up in wealth and privilege.
'Oh, no. My baby...'
If nothing else, she couldn't allow her hard-earned second child to live a miserable life. At the thought, sparks ignited in the eyes of the Duchess of Nerma, and she regained her composure in an instant.
"How fortunate that the Emperor is away right now. Let's resolve this among ourselves before his return from the expedition."
In the meanwhile, seeing Countess Tocino had been in a constant state of panic and couldn't stop her tears from streaming down ever since she saw that the villa was empty, Duchess Nerma slapped her cheek without mercy.
Once, twice... and finally, once more.
The out-of-context slap eventually stopped the Countess's tears.
"You said the milkman found that out this morning, right?"
With a still tingling cheek, Countess Tocino nodded.
"Yes, but... I don't think she left today. It must have been a few days ago. Oh, my God. That crazy maid, she said if she didn't come out, we should just leave the basket at the doorstep, and the contents of the basket left at the gate must've been stolen by beggars."
She was infuriated by the foolishness of the Countess.
If it were her, she would have done everything to persuade the Empress to stay, using any means necessary. Even if the Empress showed signs of disapproval, she would have found ways to make it difficult for her to refuse.
'This pathetic woman!'
She realized that she could see why Countess Tocino was being treated so poorly at home. Still, for the sake of the child in her womb, she couldn't afford to dwell on that now.
Taking a deep breath, Duchess Nerma spoke in the most gentle tone she could muster.
"Perhaps she used a forged travel permit, so let's check the stored permits first. In addition, check all the other paths leading outside the estate, especially the illegal routes used by the impoverished residents of the territory!"