Chapter 12

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Whoosh-!

A fast-flying arrow penetrated the rabbit’s neck while running through the snowfield.

Seeing the rabbit collapse, I ran and pulled out the arrow. Then Nathan poured praises with no spared.

“Good job. It really only takes one breath away. It’s really a great skill.”

“It’s been a while since I’ve taken a break, what if I make a mistake, but it’s a relief.”

What Nathan taught me was not only how to deal with divine power.

“You can’t make mistakes just because you took a break.”

Nathan taught me how to shoot an arrow. Very harshly.

As Nathan wanted me to protect my body, I rolled to death under its command, as a result, I have the ability that I’m not ashamed to use anywhere.

“Looking at the calluses on your hands I have guessed that you may be a soldier, but I didn’t know that you use the bow so well.”

As I put the rabbit I caught on the sack, Dillian admired it.

“Of course, our Ria’s skills are the best.”

Nathan stuck out its chest and snorted. As if it itself had been praised.

“Right, the skill is not that bad.”

What is humble? Something to be eaten? I feel proud together with Nathan.

“It is not on the not that bad level but it’s really a great skill.”

Nathan, who couldn’t hide its face twitching at Dillian’s praise, sat on Dillian’s shoulder and bragged about me.

‘One fox and two rabbits. It’s a good harvest.’

Then, shall we get up now. I’m slowly getting hungry.

I stumbled when I got up from my seat. My feet stumbled deeply on the snow.

It’s not a swamp tho, but why is it so deep?

“Hold it.”

I hesitated then held the hand. A strong force embraced me.

After being pulled out like a radish, I blushed in embarrassment.

“Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it.”

We unexpectedly moved forward while holding hands.

“Sir Dillian, the hand…”

I feel thankful for the help, but how long are you going to hold me?

When the hand that gave warmth touching on his palm wiggled awkwardly, Dillian stared at the hand he held.

“Pardon me, Sir Dillian?”

“Let’s just go while holding it. I think you’re going to fall again.”

“No way. I’m not that clumsy, ah!”

Scarily, as soon as I said that, Dillian held my body that leaned forward stably.

I heard a playful laugh next to my ears.

“The no way is catching a person.”

My earlobes were itchy. After rubbing my ears and return my body to be steady, I buried my face inside the scarf.

Like a turtle hiding in a shell.

“I will go while holding you.”

“I see…”

There was no choice.

“That brat, that, with crap intentions.”

Nathan stared at Dillian with fierce eyes.

“What do you mean with crap intentions, with that bad word choice coming from your mouth, are you really a great guardian?”

“Hmph, I am Ria great guardian, not your great guardian.”

“I’m not going to have you even if you given to me.”

“Me too, I’m not going to you even if I’m given, no! I’m going, then throw you!”

They’re not even kids. How can they fight every single day?

As I was moving forward using the childish fight I am used to as background music, I soon paused hearing Dillian’s words.

“I can’t believe the divine creature is so undignified, the empire is going to be ruined.”

“… What do you mean divine creature? Nathan is a very intelligent animal.”

Dillian gently touched under my eyes.

“Miss Ria, do you know that your under eyes shake when you lie?”

I was unknowingly touching under my eyes, then I put out my hand in surprise.

Crap. I got caught. I can’t take it out.

Nathan landed on Dillian’s shoulder.

“How did you know?”

“There’s talk about you in the Bible.”

I was surprised at the unexpected source.

“The Bible?”

Dillian read the Bible? Of course there must be a Bible between the books I gave to.

The Bible and Dillian. It was an unimaginable combination in the original.

Dillian hates the temples.

When he was child, it was because of what the couple Duke of Sinaize had done to him.

The couple Duke did not accept that a cursed child was born in the prestigious Sinaize family.

Sinaize’s child always had to be flawless, to become the perfect owner.

However, there was a defect from the beginning.

The couple took him to the temple to try to fix Dillian somehow, but the result was a failure.

The reason does not appear clearly, but it was expressed as a very painful time.

After that, due to the hatred deeply rooted, Dillian refused the treatment using divine power and did not step near the temple.

Even though Rohaim is a holy country.

As he hates the temple, he also hates the priests, and of course he hates Aina, the Saintess.

‘Probably he was the only one in the book, right? The person who hated Aina.’

She is loved by everyone, but her loveliness did not work for Dillian.

If Aina can lift Dillian’s curse, the ending would have been different.

Dillian would not be eaten by the curse and destroy the world, and Aina would not have died.

‘Dillian life too, is very rough. He died after living in agony all his life because of the curse.’

When I remembered his end, my heart was broken.

But this is not the time to feel sorry. What am I going to do with this?

“Ahem, you will keep it a secret, right?”

“If I keep it a secret, what will Miss Ria do for me?

Wah, as expected, a villain. As he can’t get anything anywhere, he get blood from the stone*.

* A South Korean saying means to make someone give or tell you something, when it is extremely difficult because of the character or mood of the person or organization you are dealing with.

“I will give both of the back legs of the rabbit to you.”

Here it is. As I made up my mind to give both legs, Dillian burst into laughter.

“Yeah, it wouldn’t be that bad either.”

We sat in a quiet place and bit into the poor sandwiches.

As the amount of sandwiches was not much, the meal ended quickly.

While organizing a few pieces of luggage, Dillian’s hand suddenly stroked my cheek.

“Wha, what?”

Surprised, I moved my body back at my fumbled cheek, he smirked then reached out his hand.

“This.”

His index finger was smeared with white bread crumbs.

“Did you save it for later? Like a squirrel?”

“There’s no way!”

I grabbed Dillian’s wrist and shook off the bread crumbs.

“What kind of misunderstanding did you think to make your face get this red?”

“Ho, it’s because I got angry.”

“Hmhm, is that so?”

What do you mean hmhm. My face is getting heated up by the purposeful sound.

“Come to think of it, it’s unfair that I’m the only one working. Sir Dillian please wrap it up. Then cut the firewood. You have to pay for the meal.”

After she let out threatening words, Dillian nodded while bringing an ax he brought from home on his shoulder.

“Is today’s concept the madam with the woodcutter?”

“What? Concept?”

“Before, it’s the maid with the king. The teacher with the student. This time the madam with the woodcutter, isn’t it?”

No way, did he remember everything? He really did remember everything useless.

“Why is it madam this time?”

I’m not a madam in any way.

“Recently I read it in a book.”

“A book? What kind of book do you…”

It’s chilly. What is this ominous feeling that something is about to explode?

“Why did the madam give the woodcutter meat side dish?”

“Aarrgh!”

I screamed a crying sound.

“Very passionate…”

“Aaarrgh!”

I screamed every time Dillian opened his mouth. I had no choice but to do so.

That was a novel with a red label on it.

“That is not mine! That is my friend’s!”

“Ah, I see.”

Crap. You don’t believe me. You’re not listening at all!

“It’s really not mine!”

“So madam, will you have a meat side dish for dinner tonight? Is it the rabbit back legs you promised earlier?”

“Shut up please! I say please shut up your mouth!”

Dillian’s cheekbones were on the verge of bursting, perhaps it was fun to see me jumping around.

“And today’s role is not the madam with the woodcutter but the hunter with the woodcutter! The hunter will go hunt and come back, so you must work hard to cut the firewood!”

“Ria!”

After running forward despite Nathan’s call, I sat down and buried my face in the snow.

‘Let’s die. Die.’

I wanted to die because of embarrassment.

“May, I’m not going to let you go.”

Mayme Altran. My damned friend and my next-door neighbor.

The person who moved the red book to my house, saying there is no place to store it!

The culprit of all this, she is currently away from Wilhelm because of a request from a client.

Therefore, it means that I had no chance to escape the misunderstanding until May returned.

‘I’m going crazy. What should I do!’

Far from hunting, I was exhausted from cooling my face, so I trudged around the way I came.

Bang, bang. The sound of the ax was getting louder. The closer I am, the faster my heart beats.

Ah, I don’t want to go. Because of May this crap is happening. And my face is still burning.

I could see the firewood piled up.

‘It can’t be carried if it is that much…’

Kooo. I heard a strange sound.

‘Is that Nathan’s snor?’

I sat on a branch and looked at Nathan snoring, but it was not the sound it made.

It was a lower, more unpleasant sound.

Like the sound of phlegm.

“Dill…!”

It was then. A monster that was invisible and hidden between the trees appeared.

That thing rushed toward Dillian while drooling.

I quickly hung an arrow and pulled the bow.

Whoosh, tok!

At the same time, the flying arrowhead was accurately inserted into the monster’s forehead and the monster’s head burst.

“What this.”

Dillian burst the monster’s head with an ax.

It was a tremendous reflex. He might can’t hear it because of the sound of the ax.

“It’s a monster.”

“Is there a monster in this forest?”

“There are a lot. There are so many that they are destroying the ecosystem.”

That strange-looking monster looked like a bullfrog. It was the main culprit of destroying the food chain by eating animals randomly.

‘I didn’t know it would come all the way down. ‘

I carried the bow on my shoulder and picked up the luggage that Dillian had packed.

“It’s enough with the firewood, we will go down now. It’s starting to get cloudy again.”

Seeing the movement of the clouds, it seemed that another round of snow would fall.

“Wait. If there’s a monster in this forest, why do you live here?”