After resting for a full day back in Clara's apartment, we woke up on our bedrolls at the woodland campsite.
Captain Richard stood right over my sleeping bag, staring down at me. The sight of his armored frame startled me awake.
"What are you doing?" I asked, sitting up.
"Lord Leonardo thought the Countess was missing," Richard replied, his deep voice low and steady. "He dispatched riders to search the woods in every direction."
"Missing?"
"Every time you two fall asleep, you vanish into air," Richard said, crossing his arms over his chest. "We need to offer the Lord an explanation."
I rubbed my temples. It made sense. I hadn't thought about how our departures looked to the locals, but it explained why whatever clothes and items we held crossed over with us each time.
Nearby, Clara rose from her blankets.
"My Lady," Richard said, stepping forward to assist her. "I was just explaining our situation to the young man..."
"I heard," she said, raising a hand. "I will handle this."
Still half-asleep, I scrambled to my feet. Clara raised her hand, channeling a flare of golden mana into the sky to recall the search parties.
"The Countess is here!" a scout yelled from the tree line.
"Over here!"
Leonardo rode up moments later, leaping off his stallion with dramatic flair. "My Lady! Where were you? And you, where did you two disappear to?"
"You know of the curse we share," Clara said softly, she put on a look of fragile distress. "When sleep takes us, the curse pulls us out of this realm. Even the Court Witch struggles to comprehend its mechanics."
"Pulls you away?" Leonardo's brows drew together. "To where?"
"You would not wish to know," she murmured, lowering her head as if the memory brought physical pain.
Leonardo swallowed the bait hook. He puffed out his chest, stepping forward to play the noble savior. "You have suffered, my Lady."
"Noble Leonardo, I regret causing you such distress," Clara replied, her voice refined.
Leonardo dropped to one knee on the damp grass, taking Clara's hand to press a kiss against her knuckles. "My sword and my life are ever at your service."
"Thank you. Your support means a great deal to me."
She was born to be a celebrity, I thought, watching her performance in silence. The noblewoman standing before these knights bore no resemblance to the her in Jackson Heights, let alone the woman who had pulled me onto the couch yesterday. It made me wonder if the crossing altered our very personalities.
Still, while she laid the acting on thick, she hadn't lied about the curse itself. She merely left out the uncomfortable parts. Her allies clearly knew about her affliction; that was why they were here.
"So, where do we head next?" I blurted out.
Richard stepped between us, cutting me off. "It is not your place to speak."
Clara glanced in my direction with cold detachment, giving a subtle shift of her eyes that told me to stay silent.
It was frustrating how she had to put on an icy front whenever we were around her people, though I couldn't tell if I found the secret dynamic amusing or just confusing.
"Noble Leonardo, there is a favor I must ask of you," Clara said.
"Speak, my Lady. Anything."
I watched the two of them with no expression, feeling like an unwilling audience to a second-rate stage play.
"Could you grant us an escort to the Imperial Capital of Ordanskrone, so that I may seek an audience with your lord father?"
"My father? For what purpose?"
"The Court Witch proved uncooperative," Clara said. "I have exhausted my options. Perhaps your father, the honorable Imperial Chancellor Aldric von Falkenmoor, can point us toward salvation."
So, Clara already had a backup plan. Here I was, wondering why she kept this blue-haired peacock around, when all along his father was some high-ranking political heavyweight. The old man sounded like a real player, and likely just as dangerous as Luna.
"My father bears heavy burdens," Leonardo mused, pausing as if trying to craft the most romantic response possible. "However, since it is your wish, my Lady, this duty shall be mine. Order your knights to follow my standard."
"Words cannot measure my gratitude," Clara said, dipping into a slight curtsy.
"No thanks are needed!" Leonardo beamed. "My only hope is that my warmth may at last melt the frost around your heart."
Melt the frost around your heart... I almost choked on my own spit. Even with a head full of weed, I couldn't come up with a line that cheesy.
The cringe was so intense I couldn't stop my face from twisting in disgust.
Leonardo caught my expression, and his smile vanished into a glare.
"However, that man does not come with us," he declared.
Clara spoke up immediately. "Sir Richard can keep him under guard within the inner district..."
"No. I will not have a cursed outlander defile the heart of our capital," Leonardo said firmly. "He remains outside the walls."
"Works for me," I said with a shrug.
Richard stepped in front of me, shooting me a stern look. "Yes, my Lord. I will keep him under close watch."
"Very well. Mount up," Leonardo ordered. "We depart at once."
[Leonardo Affection decreased to -10]
Yeah, likewise. Fuck you too, man.
As the camp broke apart and Leonardo walked off to fetch his armor, Clara brushed past me.
"I am sorry you have to endure this," she whispered under her breath.
A quick whisper isn't going to make up for…
Before I could finish the thought, she leaned up and planted a fleeting kiss against my cheek.
The warmth on my skin sent my pulse racing, my face heating up in an instant. I looked around, terrified one of the knights might have seen it. By the time I turned to tell her how reckless that was, she was already walking toward her mount.
A moment later, Richard approached, tossing a notched short blade onto the grass before me. "Goblin steel. Fits your style well enough."
I shook my head and tapped the Glock resting inside my jacket pocket. "Keep it, pal. I have a tool that works much better."
"Suit yourself," Richard grunted, turning toward his horse.
I looked down at the rusty dagger. Having a backup blade wasn't a terrible idea. I quietly picked it up and tucked it into my belt beneath the fur vest.
Once the retinue assembled, Richard hoisted me onto the back of his horse like a sack of grain. Leonardo threw another glare of disgust my way before leading the column forward.
We rode hard for several hours. The deep woods gradually gave way to open farmland, then clusters of roadside hamlets, and finally a sprawling settlement beneath towering stone fortifications.
Leonardo and Clara led the main vanguard through the towering portcullis, leaving only Richard and me on the outer perimeter.
"Is this the Imperial Capital?" I asked from behind his saddle.
"This is Falkenreach," Richard grunted. "Count Leonardo's ancestral seat."
"Then why am I stuck outside?"
He didn’t reply, as if I had asked a stupid question. Turning the warhorse, he rode toward the lower settlement that hugged the base of the stone walls.
"Where are we going, then?"
He offered no answer, pulling up outside a noisy wooden tavern.
Classic. A guard captain who loves his ale.
Richard swung down from the stirrups, turning his back on me.
"Hey, help me down!" I called out.
"If you cannot climb down, stay up there," he said, walking straight through the tavern doors without looking back.
[Richard Affection decreased to -2]
The old bastard really hates my guts. I didn't care for his attitude either. If I were still the angry kid from before my military service, I might have been tempted to put a round in his backplate.
Left alone, I had to figure out how to dismount on my own. The warhorses here stood taller and broader than anything back home, and a single kick from those hooves could easily kill me.
I tried speaking to the beast to calm it down, but the stubborn animal shifted restlessly the moment my boot neared the stirrup, clearly trying to throw me into the dirt.
A few regulars wandering in the tavern doorway chuckled, watching me struggle like a circus act.
I reached into my pocket and felt a few foil wrappers.
Oh right! I have Candies!
I pulled out a fruit candy, peeled the paper back, and held it out toward the animal's muzzle.
The horse sniffed the sweet scent and froze, its ears pricking up. In a world where raw honey was a luxury, modern processed sugar must have smelled like heaven.
"Look at you, stuck in this backward place," I whispered, holding the treat steady. "If you had better luck, you would have been born in my world, eating fresh apples and sweet oats every morning."
The horse snorted softly, as if understanding the sentiment.
I dropped the candy onto a flat stone. The warhorse dipped its head instantly, licking up the treat and crunching down with obvious delight.
"Good boy. Enjoy your treat and hold still..."
Using the distraction, I planted my boot into the stirrup and eased myself onto the ground.
With zero base stats, even getting off a horse took actual effort. I couldn't entirely blame Richard for thinking I was useless.
The horse lifted its head, nudging my shoulder for another piece. I checked my pocket; three candies remained. I needed to save one in case this happened to me again, but out of gratitude, I unwrapped one more and fed it to the beast.
[Taming increased to 7]
[Whitemane is your friend now!]
Two pieces of candy and the horse likes me that much? Richard must have treated the poor beast terribly.
I patted the white mane along its neck. "Don't worry, buddy. You are with me now. Did that old bastard treat you poorly?"
The horse let out an approving snort.
"Yeah, thought so," I said, turning toward the tavern. "Time to go settle the score."
I pushed through the heavy wooden door, but before I could take a second step, a cold steel blade pressed firmly against the side of my neck.