***
The carriage, having departed from Tien towards Lotheir, had been traveling nonstop for half a day.
The sun was already sinking beyond the horizon, but Judith’s condition was far from ideal.
They were still far from the last village near the border, making an overnight stay unavoidable.
She felt nauseous and her head throbbed, making it difficult to focus.
‘Even in death, my weak body remains unchanged.’
It was a natural thought considering her past.
She had always been a picky eater, and Illand constantly berated her for being unladylike.
Whenever she lost weight, she would restrict her meals even further to avoid his harsh words.
This led to her stunted growth, and she felt like a wilting plant, unable to thrive.
She had never truly experienced a restful sleep or enjoyed a moment of peace.
The situation worsened after arriving in the Lotheir Kingdom.
Surrounded by aristocratic young ladies, as vibrant as freshly bloomed flowers, she felt inadequate and ugly, which only added to her anxieties.
Determined to change, she had forced herself to eat more than usual at lunch, surprising even Marianne, her attendant.
Perhaps her enthusiasm had been too much.
The nausea wouldn’t subside.
She could have asked for the carriage to stop, but she chose not to.
She was consumed with the desire to reach Lotheir as soon as possible and put her plans into motion.
Moreover, she didn’t want to give Franz the impression of being a burdensome princess.
They had promised to stand together in faith, but even without asking, it was clear that Franz didn’t believe her.
He was currently like a fragile twig, standing alone, with nowhere to lean.
This insecurity prevented him from trusting anyone, trapping him in a vicious cycle of isolation that only fueled his anxieties.
To approach him, she knew she couldn’t rush things.
She needed to acclimate him to her presence gradually, starting with the smallest, most insignificant actions.
‘Is this how people hunt sparrows…?’
Judith chuckled softly, clutching her throbbing head due to the nausea.
The carriage jolted violently as the road grew rougher, making it harder to bear.
“Ouch…!”
Judith winced, having bumped her head against the window.
Franz, who had been looking out the window, opened the door leading to the driver’s seat without even turning towards her.
“Stop for a while.”
Her eyes widened, but Franz merely glanced at her before abruptly opening the door and stepping out.
Before she could even process what was happening, Marianne’s head poked in through the open door.
“Your Highness!”
“Marianne, could you get me a glass of water?”
“I already brought it, knowing you would ask.
Here you go, take your time.”
The water, stored in a leather pouch, tasted bitter and astringent, but Judith wasn’t in a position to be picky.
Even after drinking, her headache persisted.
“Come out and get some fresh air.”
Judith took her hand and stepped out of the carriage.
The wind was lukewarm, as summer was just beginning, but the open space felt refreshing.
While Marianne rubbed her shoulders, she closed her eyes and looked at Franz, who stood alone in the distance.
It seemed like Berzi’s secretary was trying to speak to him, but he shook his head.
Once the secretary retreated, Franz stood there, staring blankly at something.
‘What’s going on?’
“Marianne.”
“Yes, what is it?”
“The man in the carriage with you, see him?”
Marianne, who was riding in the same carriage as Berzi’s secretary, nodded.
Judith gently removed her hand from her shoulder and said, “Go and ask him if he knows why His Highness stopped the carriage.”
“His Highness stopped the carriage?
I thought you had asked for a break, Your Highness.”
“No, His Highness suddenly ordered the carriage to stop.
I’m worried something might have happened, so go and ask him.”
“Yes, I’ll be right back.”
Judith watched Marianne trot towards the secretary before her gaze returned to Franz.
He remained in the same position, staring into empty space.
He was like a statue.
‘I’ve seen that back so many times.’
In the Lotheir palace, she had occasionally caught glimpses of him from afar.
He was usually alone, standing by a window or on a balcony, silently gazing at the sky, just like now.
There was a time when she wanted to approach him and speak to him, whenever she saw him like this.
Once, she had even overcome her fear and tried, but their conversation didn’t last long.
Franz’s response had been indifferent, and she was afraid of him.
It had become a habit to avoid him whenever she saw his back turned.
Should she have acted differently then?
If she had ignored her fear and kept talking to him, maybe he wouldn’t be so lost.
‘No, it’s useless.’
The Judith and Franz from before had already died once.
The girl who feared her husband was gone, and the boy who had been lost, unable to deal with his fragile wife, was gone too.
“Your Highness!”
Marianne, her braided hair bouncing with each step, rushed towards her.
“What did he say?”
“Well, he said… he didn’t know either.
He said if you asked His Highness, you might find out….
But I don’t think it’s a good idea for me to go and ask His Highness.
Maybe you could ask him, Your Highness?”
“Me?”
“You’ll be married soon, anyway.
What could he say, really?
Go on, then.”
Marianne playfully nudged Judith probably thinking she was just shy.
Pushed forward by Marianne, Judith hesitantly took a step, clutching the front of her dress.
She quietly approached Franz.
Whether he hadn’t noticed her presence or was pretending not to, he stubbornly refused to turn his head, even as she drew closer.
“Your Highness.”
In the end, Judith was the one to speak first.
He slowly turned his head.
His eyes, normally amber, appeared red in the setting sun.
“Why… did you suddenly order the carriage to stop?”
He remained silent.
She was accustomed to his lack of response, but she was still taken aback.
Was it because she was so eager to reach Lotheir as quickly as possible?
“Your Highness.”
“Are you truly asking out of ignorance?
Or is this another one of your tricks?”
“Tricks?”
“Like when you extended your hand to me in the carriage.”
“That was… why do you think it was a trick?”
“Unless it was a trick someone taught you, a princess raised as weakly as you wouldn’t say such a thing to me.”
What in the… Judith stared at him, dumbfounded.
He had completely misunderstood.
She hadn’t expected it would be an unpleasant first step, even if he didn’t believe her.
Had she underestimated his dark nature?
As she tried to stifle a sigh, Franz added, “If I had let you be, you would have vomited all over your dress before nightfall.
I ordered the carriage to stop because of that.
If you’re pretending not to know or trying to act like it never happened just to get my attention, you’d be better off not doing it.”
It was a ridiculous accusation, but for a harsh reprimand, Franz’s expression wasn’t particularly malicious.
His voice was low, and his tone calm.
She turned her back to the sun and silently looked up at his face, which was partially shaded.
In his sunken eyes, there was only sadness, and at the very bottom, an abyss of hatred.
It wasn’t directed at her.
Judith tried to compose herself, taking a deep breath, and lowered her gaze.
“So, it seems Your Highness was worried about me.”
Franz’s eyebrows furrowed slightly.
“What did you just say?”
“You couldn’t stand to see me suffer from motion sickness, so you ordered the carriage to stop.
That means you were worried about me.”
“I…!”
“Thank you.”
She bowed in the Tien style, stepping back slightly with one foot.
Franz stared at her in surprise.
There was no forced coquetry or feigned obedience in her.
Her expression, gestures, her tone and gaze, all were as calm and detached, as a still lake.
Taken aback by her unexpected behavior, he bit his lip, his mouth twitching slightly.
“…When you go to the palace, you’ll meet the queen.”
Judith, who had been bowing, lifted her gaze.
This was the first time he had spoken to her first since they met.
And to mention Queen Gilsis, of all things.
She waited to hear what he would say, slowly straightening her bent knees.
“Don’t bow like that.”
His tone was softer than she had ever heard.
Realizing the change, Judith’s eyes widened in surprise before she then blinked slowly.
Upon arriving in Lotheir, Judith planned to demonstrate flawless Lotheir etiquette in front of Queen Gilsis—in a way that would leave no room for criticism.
She hadn’t been able to do that in her previous life.
No one, not even the maid who had taken her to the queen, had taught her the appropriate etiquette.
She was determined not to be ridiculed again in front of those peacocks for failing to follow etiquette rules she didn’t even know.
But Franz had warned her first.
He must have interpreted her silence in his own way, because he bit his lip, shifted his gaze restlessly, and then suddenly knelt down.
Not only Judith, but even Marianne and the others standing further away were taken aback by his actions.
The people of Lotheir were even more surprised, because in Lotheir, kneeling was reserved only before the king and queen.
Franz, however, looked at her with an indifferent expression and said,
“For your first audience, you’ll kneel like this, with your hands hidden under your dress, out of sight.
And you’ll remain like that, with your head bowed deeply, until you receive permission to look up.”
“Oh, I understand, Your Highness.
Please get up now.
People…!”
“Of course, don’t expect to be praised for following etiquette properly.”
He got up, speaking with a hint of self-deprecation.
Judith instinctively squatted down in front of him and began to brush the dirt off his knees with her bare hands.