[LUCIELLE’S POV — ASHCROFT TERRITORY]
As soon as we discovered that Ashcroft Territory might be sitting on top of a secret money printer, we decided to personally inspect the rocks and hot pools because if Ashcroft really produced natural mana stones...we wouldn’t merely become wealthy, we’d become the richest territory in the empire and potentially the strongest.
I looked toward the snow-covered mountains ahead of us and...this was it, the moment my entire transmigration strategy changed.
Forget the original plot, forget Cassian walking towards the villain route, and forget dying with poison because some ridiculous romance-novel event decided I had become inconvenient.
If Ashcroft had a natural source of mana stones, then we had resources.
Resources meant money. Money meant power. Power meant security, and security meant... WE COULD IGNORE THE NOVEL.
I giggled in happiness because suddenly, the original storyline seemed hilariously irrelevant. The Crown Prince and Lily Eisenhart were the endgame, weren’t they?
Fine. Perfect and wonderful. Let them have each other, let the universe shower them with divine light, flower petals, orchestral music, and whatever other ridiculous special effects their destined romance required.
I had no interest in stealing their happy ending; they could have the throne, they could have the grand romance, and they could have the dramatic ballroom dances, meaningful eye contact, accidental hand touches, and ten thousand Chapters of emotional misunderstandings.
I wanted none of it. I wanted a quiet life, a safe territory, enough money to never worry about anything again, a calm husband, and preferably a life where nobody tried to assassinate me before breakfast.
I folded my arms. "That’s it."
Cassian glanced down at me. "What’s it?"
I looked up at him with absolute determination, and then I remembered something very important.
Why exactly was I looking up at him?
Because...
WE WERE RIDING THE SAME HORSE.
Yes, the carriage couldn’t travel properly through the heavy snow, so we switched to horses. A perfectly reasonable solution, except, apparently, someone had made a terrible mathematical error when counting the horses.
We were short by one, and somehow, that one missing horse had become my problem.
So here I was, sitting in front of Cassian, on the same horse with Cassian behind me. His arms are loosely around my waist, his chest against my back, and his chin occasionally brushing the top of my head whenever the horse moves.
. . .
I stared straight ahead, and I still couldn’t accept this.
"I still cannot believe we were short of one horse."
Cassian’s chest moved slightly behind me; he was laughing. "Why are you laughing?"
"My beloved," he said calmly, one hand resting securely around my waist, "sharing a horse with your husband should not be surprising."
I sighed.
"Yeah..."
I looked at the snowy path ahead.
Of course it shouldn’t be surprising; I am totally used to it by now. We were married, so this was normal. Husbands and wives probably shared horses all the time, probably. I had absolutely no idea.
Modern transportation had ruined my understanding of medieval logistics; at least in my previous life, if there weren’t enough cars, people didn’t just casually put two adults on a horse and call it transportation.
The horse continued forward, its hooves crunching through the snow. Cassian adjusted his arm slightly when the horse stepped over a patch of uneven ground.
"Are you comfortable?"
"I’m fine."
"Cold?"
"A little."
His arm tightened around me. "Better?"
"...Yes."
He said nothing after that, and neither did I. For once, there was no teasing and no political discussion. Just the sound of the horse moving through the snow and the faint whistle of the winter wind.
His warmth seeped through my clothes, and I slowly relaxed against him.
. . .
This was actually...nice. I wasn’t pretending to be Lucielle anymore. Somewhere along the way, I had started becoming her.
. . .
. . .
No...absolutely not.
I was not going to get sentimental because of a horse ride; that was how romance novels got you. First, you shared a horse, then you shared a blanket, and then you shared meaningful glances under the moonlight.
Then suddenly there were three hundred Chapters of misunderstandings, and somebody was crying in the rain.
No...I refused.
I was going to remain emotionally responsible, and I am a man. I will be a man.
. . .
YES, A MAN!!!
Cassian’s voice broke through my thoughts. "Do you want some cookies?"
I blinked. "...What?"
"Cookies."
He sounded completely serious. I turned my head slightly. "Why do you have cookies?"
"For the journey."
The terrifying Grand Duke of the North carried cookies under his cloak; that’s very surprising.
"Oh...then I can have cookies."
"They’re on the left side, under my cloak."
I reached toward his cloak; my fingers slipped beneath the heavy fabric and there they were, a small cloth pouch. I pulled it out and opened it.
I stared at them, then at Cassian. "I cannot believe you actually brought snacks."
He looked amused. "I know you get hungry."
. . .
Wow.
If I were a woman, I would’ve stood in line to marry this man. Who made him a villain? That damn author. Seriously, what was that woman thinking? Cassian was practically a walking green forest. A ridiculously handsome, wealthy, protective green forest.
I took another bite of the cookie. Cassian glanced down at me.
"Good?"
I nodded while chewing. "Mhm."
I looked at the cookie in my hand, then up at him. "Would you like some?"
His gaze dropped to me; for a moment, he said nothing. Then, instead of taking the cookie, he gently brushed his thumb across the corner of my mouth and wiped away a few crumbs and licked it.
"There were crumbs."
I froze.
. . .
My brain, which had been functioning perfectly well two seconds ago, suddenly decided to take an unscheduled vacation.
Cassian looked at the crumbs on his thumb, then back at me. "You can have them all, my beloved."
I blinked.
. . .
Excuse me? Who licks the crumbs from someone’s lips like that?
My brain immediately replayed that sentence in several different tones, and I simply nodded.
"Okay."
Very mature and very composed. Absolutely no internal screaming whatsoever.
I took another cookie; the horse continued trotting through the snow, completely unaware that its passengers were having a suspiciously domestic moment.
I looked ahead, and the mountains were getting closer. "How long will it take us to reach the back of the mountains?"
Cassian’s arm remained comfortably around my waist. "Once we reach the Misty Mountains, we should be able to reach the other side fairly quickly. Assuming the elves don’t attack us."
I blinked and turned my head with wide eyes.
"...The elves?"
Cassian looked down at me.
"Yes."
"We have elves?"
He chuckled as his tone carried the faintest hint of amusement. "Beloved...why do you sound as though I’ve just informed you that the moon is made of cheese?"
"Because nobody mentioned elves!"
"Why would anyone need to mention something that obviously exists?"
I stared at him, and he continued, "This world has many different races and beings. Elves are one of them. Elves rarely involve themselves with human affairs. They remain within their own territories and usually avoid contact unless their people are threatened."
I nodded slowly.
"So they’re peaceful?"
"Generally."
"Generally?" He gave me a sideways glance. "Like humans, they can be peaceful until someone gives them a reason not to be."
. . .
Fair enough, humans had certainly proven that one already.
Cassian looked toward the mountains. "The elves are unlikely to appear unless their territory is disturbed. As long as we don’t provoke them, there should be no trouble."
I nodded and muttered, "What do they look like?"
"Like elves."
. . .
. . .
I stared at him dumbfoundedly, and he stared back at me with amusement. "That was the most useless answer I’ve ever received."
His lips twitched. "You asked what they look like."
"I meant details."
"They have pointed ears."
"I figured that out."
"Usually fair skin."
"Okay."
"Long hair."
"Anything else?"
He thought for a moment. "They are skilled with magic and archery."
I looked toward the Misty Mountains again; somewhere beyond those peaks were elves, actual elves. Magical beings I’d only ever seen in movies, games, books, and an unreasonable number of fantasy adaptations.
I leaned back against Cassian’s chest. "I want to see them."
There was a brief silence, then I felt his chin rest lightly against the top of my head. "You may. If we encounter them, I’ll make sure you see them."
I nodded contentedly and settled against him again as the horse continued forward. Snow-covered trees passed around us and the mountains grew larger with every step.
And somewhere beyond them waited the mysterious Misty Mountains, the hidden hot pools, the natural mana stones...and apparently...elves.
This world had magic, mana stones, magical beasts, elves, and probably enough supernatural nonsense to fill several encyclopedias but no smartphones to take selfies with them.
I sighed. Civilization had failed me once again. Behind me, Cassian chuckled softly. "What are you thinking about?"
I smiled.
"Nothing important."
The horse padded onward, carrying us deeper into the snow-covered wilderness, toward the Misty Mountains where elves reside and, most importantly, toward our very own money printer mountain.