By the time Rienne finished getting ready and went outside, Black already had his horse prepared to leave for the funeral.
[ Rienne ] “Ah….”
Seeing him standing there, she paused.
Perhaps it was because he had gotten ready with the intent to accompany her, but he was completely dressed in black. Not only him, but all the Tiwakan soldiers standing behind him as well.
With every piece of his outfit completely black, it was understandable why rumors about him having been abandoned by the God of Death and rejected by the earth spread so easily. (1)
But when Black suddenly turned and made eye contact with her, Rienne unconsciously frowned.
…..It was unfair how well such a dark color suited him.
It wasn’t appropriate to have thoughts like that right before leaving for a funeral, but she couldn’t help it. It was such a prevalent idea in her mind.
He must have been wearing black armor when we first met…. I wonder why I never noticed before….
[ Black ] “You’re here.”
As Rienne stood perfectly still, he approached her first, his eyes gazing across her neck and shoulders.
[ Black ] “Your clothes are different.”
[ Rienne ] “Mrs. Flambard altered my dress for me so it would fit better.”
[ Black ] “…..Is that a good thing?”
Black muttered under his breath. Though Rienne didn’t seem to notice his reaction, he also thought the color looked unfairly good on her.
While the two of them were distracted, one of the mercenaries walked towards them, tugging on the reins of Black’s horse. It was a dark horse and more imposing than Rienne would’ve thought. Just by looking at it, she could tell exactly who it belonged to.
[ Black ] “Get on.”
Black reached out his hand to Rienne.
[ Rienne ] “On this horse?”
[ Black ] “You’re riding with me.”
Rienne subtly shook her head.
[ Rienne ] “That’s alright. I have my own horse.”
She wasn’t sure if she could stand riding the same horse as him again. Rienne could still clearly remember what happened the last time she did. It was too much for her to handle.
It wouldn’t be a good idea to purposefully put herself in a similar position where something like that might happen again. Not right after she told herself she needed to be on her guard around him.
[ Rienne ] “I can ride by myself.”
[ Black ] “You can’t.”
But he responded firmly.
[ Black ] “We don’t know if or when we’ll be attacked with another arrow. If we’re too far apart, I won’t be able to react as quickly.”
[ Rienne ] “. . .”
Though Rienne knew Rafit to be the culprit, the person who shot the arrow still had yet to be officially identified. She knew he would never shoot an arrow at her, but she couldn’t say that.
[ Rienne ] “….If you insist.”
Eventually, Rienne reluctantly agreed and nodded her head.
[ Black ] “I’ll help you up.”
Without even waiting for her to reach out her hand, Black pulled Rienne into a hug and lifted her up onto the horse.
His shoulder was still hurt and it wasn’t possible for it to have healed already, yet she was completely struck by how he handled her. It was like she weighed nothing to him.
It felt like the more she noticed about this man, the more confused she got.
[ Black ] “Let’s go.”
Once he made sure Rienne was securely in place, he pulled himself onto the horse with a motion so practiced, he made it look like the easiest thing in the world.
What a strange man, Rienne thought as the sound of horse hooves swept through the air.
In more ways than one, he was a very mysterious person. No matter what he did, Rienne couldn’t imagine him ever making a fool of himself. Whether it was riding a horse or just about anything else, he handled it skillfully and effortlessly.
[ Rienne ] “. . .”
If she allowed this train of thought to continue, Rienne would eventually remember how skilled his kisses were too, so she quickly crushed the thought before it could ever surface.
I can’t forget…. I need to be careful around him.
Clip, clop. Clip, clop.
As their horse picked up the pace, the sound of its hooves hitting across the ground grew even louder. All the while, Rienne could feel herself getting dizzy—an undeniable feeling of reassurance growing in her chest as she felt this mysterious man grip the reins around her.
.
* * *
.
The Temple was located at Phillyon Hill, just north of Castle Nauk. Already Rienne could hear the clergy of the Temple ringing the bell, announcing the funeral. It was such a mournful and dreary sound.
[ Black ] “Wait.”
Arriving at the steep staircase leading up to the entrance, Black told Rienne to stay put. But before she could ask him why, he dismounted the horse first and extended his arm out to her.
[ Black ] “You can come down now.”
Looking at his big hand reaching out towards her, Rienne swallowed nervously.
Why was he being so kind to her?
Acting this way wasn’t necessary if he was just here for revenge.
Why are you doing this to me? Why me?
[ Rienne ] “. . .”
Without saying her thanks, Rienne finally took his hand.
But it didn’t end there.
Pulling on her hand, Black wrapped his other arm around her waist and pulled her into his chest. Helping her down, Rienne’s feet gingerly touched the ground. With how he was treating her, anyone would think she’d entirely forgotten how to ride a horse on her own.
[ Black ] “Do we have to walk up all those stairs?”
[ Rienne ] “Yes. It’s the Temple, after all.”
It was all part of how they worshipped God. Not even the royal family of Nauk was an exception to it.
But the difficult trek up to the Temple was part of the reason why so few people were even able to visit. People who were sick or injured and in need of help couldn’t make the journey and never dared to try.
Even as a child, whenever she would visit the Temple, Rienne would always have terrible pains in her legs and would be overtaken by exhaustion from the trip.
[ Black ] “Then let’s go.”
Rienne started walking first with Black quietly trailing after her, but the silence didn’t last. Just as the two of them started their ascent up the steep stairs, shadows made of white suddenly cut into their vision.
They were priests.
Priests insisted on wearing white clothing, which contrasted plainly against the dark black mourning clothes of Rienne’s party.
[ Rienne ] “What are priests doing out here…?”
Rienne instinctively frowned. She didn’t have a good feeling about this. Going down the stairs was just as much work as it was going up, so the priests stood completely still.
[ Priest ] “We’ve come to deliver the words of the High Priest to the daughter of the Arsak family!”
Suddenly, Rienne’s bad feeling became very real. The priests who had rushed out were now shouting at her.
[ Priest ] “In the name of the great God of Nauk and the High Priest, you are forbidden from attending this funeral!”
[ Rienne ] “….?”
The priest who yelled was rather far away so for a second Rienne thought she might’ve misheard him.
[ Rienne ] “What did you just say?”
[ Priest ] “So long as she cohorts with those who defy God’s will, we cannot allow the daughter of Arsak to breach the Temple! Such were the words of the High Priest himself!”
[ Rienne ] “You mean to say my fiancé is one who defies the will of God?”
[ Priest ] “Precisely.”
[ Rienne ] “. . .”
This was no message from the High Priest. This was near identical to the words of Linden Kleinfelder. That man was determined to isolate Rienne from all aspects of Nauk.
Rienne looked up—her words firm and resolute.
[ Rienne ] “I cannot accept that. Stand aside.”
[ Priest ] “We have the High Priest’s orders.”
[ Rienne ] “I am a member of the reigning royal family of Nauk.”
[ Priest ] “Only God may claim reign over the clergy!”
[ Rienne ] “How dare you….”
Rienne could feel her hands ball up with shock and anger.
This was completely unbelievable. Even if the High Priest was allied with Linden, with his pockets fattening from the friendship, he had no right to so openly ignore the royal family of Nauk.
[ Rienne ] “Call the High Priest. Tell him to say that to my face.”
[ Priest ] “He’s currently presiding over the funeral rites.”
[ Rienne ] “That’s just an excuse.”
[ Priest ] “….But….the High Priest said there is a way to fix all of this.”
As soon as Rienne’s words turned fierce, the priest, hesitant only for a moment, suddenly changed his tune.
[ Priest ] “If you, the daughter of Arsak, cast aside those who have abandoned the will of God, we will forgive all your sins and accept you once more as one of the faithful children.”
What they wanted from her was simple. Turn her back on the Tiwakan and quietly obey. Rienne was so angry, she could feel her ears burning up just hearing it.
[ Rienne ] “Was the dissolution of my marriage arrangement truly what he asked for? That’s really what the High Priest wants?”
Anyone with half a brain knew something like that wasn’t possible.
The Tiwakan Mercenaries surrounded the castle for fifteen days in order to pressure her into accepting the proposal. That alone made it clear this was not an arrangement she could simply dissolve. There was no way Linden Kleinfelder didn’t know that.
This was just his way of turning everyone in Nauk against Rienne.
If Rienne was turned away from the Temple and denied access to the funeral, rumors would run amok.
Though God gave her the choice of salvation, the brainwashed Princess fell to the whims of the barbaric monster and abandoned the divine. They’d feel her unfit for her position. They’d depose her.
He was trying to pass it all off as God’s will.
[ Priest ] “That’s what the High Priest told me to say.”
[ Rienne ] “Then tell him to come out and speak to me! He shouldn’t hide in his Temple like a cowardly dog!”
The priests widened their eyes in shock as Rienne raised her voice the moment she couldn’t keep it in.
[ Priest ] “Bow your head before God, daughter of Arsak! His Holiness will not tolerate such disrespect here!”
[ Rienne ] “And who showed disrespect in the first place…!”
This whole situation was entirely unacceptable, there were no words to aptly describe it. Rienne loosened her fists, instead gripping the fabric of her dress.
[ Rienne ] “Then allow me to meet with him in person. We’ll see if he speaks the same words you did.”
[ Black ] “Wait.”
But suddenly, Black’s low voice froze Rienne in place.
[ Black ] “You shouldn’t go.”
[ Rienne ] “What…? Why?”
With a keen look in his eyes, Black looked past her at the priests.
[ Black ] “They’re not stupid.”
[ Rienne ] “Ah…”
Rienne bit her lip.
He wasn’t wrong. Even if the High Priest was a fool, he knew better than to show his face like this. The Temple didn’t have adequate military power to use against the Tiwakan. If they truly wished to enter, there would be no way to stop them.
And yet, despite all of that, the priests were speaking with such obvious disrespect.
Unless they were stupid or had a death wish, they wouldn’t do that.
[ Black ] “I think they’re trying to provoke us.”
[ Rienne ] “But why….”
[ Black ] “They might want us to storm them.”
It was clear they were up to no good.
[ Rienne ] “But…I have to attend the funeral. If I don’t, they’ll only use it against me.”
[ Black ] “We’ll figure it out one thing at a time. But until we’re certain what’s going on, you shouldn’t go.”
[ Rienne ] “. . .”
Black was right.
Dealing with the political apprehension caused by the Kleinfelders was one thing, but as the leader of an undefeated mercenary company, he had experience dealing with much worse. He would know what the best tactical decision would be.
[ Rienne ] “…Very well. It would be wise to follow you, Lord Tiwakan.”
Rienne breathed in deeply as she talked. Turning to head back down the stairs, she took a quick look back up the hill. She could already see the priests floundering amongst themselves in embarrassment.
It was undeniable that Linden Kleinfelder had manipulated all of this in order to provoke her. Remembering that made the anger swell up inside of her again. He was openly trying to usurp control over Nauk from her now.
This was no different from a declaration of war.
So what could Rienne do now?
At least back when she was dealing with the Tiwakan’s siege, she knew who her enemy was. Though it was difficult, her path was clear.
But now she didn’t know who she could trust.
[ Black ] “Careful.”
The complex, spiraling ideas distracted her from one of the displaced stone steps. As Rienne felt herself stumble, Black quickly embraced her.
[ Rienne ] “Oh… my apologies…I was looking down, but I wasn’t watching where I was going.”
[ Black ] “That’s fine. I was.”
[ Rienne ] “. . .”
Was this man her enemy or not?
Rienne wished she knew for certain either way.
He didn’t want her to fall down and he didn’t want her to get hurt, but all that did was confuse Rienne even further.
Is it normal for revenge to feel this kind?
It was funny such a thought even came to her.
.
* * *
.
[ Linden ] “Dammit!”
Leaning over the railing of the balcony overlooking the entrance of the temple, Linden Kleinfelder looked down and twisted his lips in irritation.
[ Linden ] “They didn’t take the bait. Clever little snakes.”
Taking his uncle’s side, Rafit Kleinfelder was the next to speak.
[ Rafit ] “….And it’s a good thing too. If Princess Rienne had died, the Kleinfelders would’ve been the first to face the fury of Nauk.”
Rafit, now known as Lopez Kleinfelder, looked down at the entrance with a look of concern on his face.
At the top of the steps to the Temple was what looked to be a catapult with a heavy boulder precariously bound to it—something that definitely didn’t belong there.
[ Linden ] “. . .”
Linden looked at his nephew, turning his shoulders towards him.
[ Linden ] “Are you serious? We missed a great opportunity to kill the head of that barbaric tribe in one fell swoop.”
Once the Tiwakan took the bait and tried to storm the Temple by force, he was planning on releasing the boulder and rolling it down the steps. Everyone would’ve been crushed to death or they would’ve been forced to jump over the side of the cliff in order to escape it.
Of course the priests and Princess Rienne would perish as well, but Linden hardly cared about that.
[ Rafit ] “You can’t deny it. Princess Rienne is beloved by the people of Nauk, so killing her recklessly would be unwise.”
[ Linden ] “You fool…. Don’t tell me you still love her? That dirty wench?” (2)
[ Rafit ] “Watch your tongue, uncle.”
The man, once the eldest son now with a new name, narrowed his eyes. A flash of blue rage cut through his expression like a blade.
[ Rafit ] “I won’t allow anyone to speak that way about Princess Rienne in front of me. Not after what she put herself through to save me.”
How do you feel?
