Chapter 48

It was a moment of intense emotion.

My eyes welled up.

Unable to speak, I stood there, and Cheshire saw my expression and chuckled.

“Zephir….”

Cheshire carefully checked the reins and the stirrups attached to the saddle, then slowly led Zephir.

“Hold on tight. Go slowly. Don’t hunch your back, keep it straight.”

“Ah, I won’t fall, right?”

“It’s okay. I’ll be right next to you.”

“Mm-hm.”

Contrary to my worries, the horseback riding went smoothly.

Zephir, being a fine horse, walked very slowly and steadily, matching my breathing.

“Wow. I’m so moved.”

With a lump in my throat, I sniffled and stroked Zephir’s soft mane.

“Zephir…. Thank you so much for carrying me….”

Seeing me almost crying, Cheshire, who was walking slowly beside us, laughed out loud.

“…Congratulations.”

“Yeah!”

* * *

That day, Zephir carried Lirys and walked around the riding field for about half a day.

Lirys’s skills were poor.

She was small and found it difficult to maintain her balance even at a slight increase in speed.

In the end, Zephir couldn’t run fast, worried that Lirys might fall off.

[Finally swallowing your pride, huh?]

Walter sneered from the side.

[Going to the competition tomorrow?]

[…….]

[As a human, no, as a horse, at least give me a proper answer, brat!]

Zephir ignored Walter, who was angrily grumbling.

Competition….

“Zephir, can you go with me tomorrow? It’s not to compete with other horses. Let’s just go for a walk and enjoy the scenery. Okay?”

Lirys smiled shyly and stayed in the stable for a while before leaving.

Zephir smiled slightly, recalling Lirys’s excited face.

[…What, you? What’s that weird sound? Are you laughing?]

[Shut up.]

The night in the stable was drawing to a close.

* * *

The next day, the day of the riding competition.

The Zart Hill on the outskirts of the island, where the competition was held, was bustling with participants and spectators from early morning.

There were only seven participants, including me.

Since everyone was determined to win, the participation rate was low for events with obvious winners.

‘What’s so scary about Daemon Martini that only a few kids showed up.’

I looked around the waiting area.

I saw young nobles checking their horses with their instructors and journalists huddled together with their notebooks, trying to get the scoop.

“My daughter is nervous….”

Dad knelt in front of me, putting on my riding helmet and securely fastening the strap under my chin, worried.

I glanced around and whispered.

“No, Dad. What’s there to be nervous about? I won’t fall off because of the anti-fall magic.”

“Still….”

“Everything here ends up in the newspapers. There are so many journalists. If you stay, there’ll be articles criticizing the Rubinstein Duke for being overprotective. Go on, quickly.”

Can’t he feel these intense gazes?

While other parents were waiting at the award ceremony beyond the finish line, Dad was causing a commotion here.

“You only rode Zephir for the first time yesterday.”

“Yeah, and I practiced for about five hours.”

“Right. Just five hours. So, aren’t you worried?”

“Dad, I’m sorry, but I don’t plan to win. I haven’t even practiced the obstacle course. I’ll just take a slow walk with Zephir and enjoy the scenery.”

I hugged Zephir, who was standing proudly, and rubbed my cheek against his neck.

Zephir was very gentle, and I even kissed him.

“Do you like it that much?”

“Yeah, I really do. Have you ever seen a horse as beautiful as my Zephir, Dad?”

“I haven’t, I haven’t.”

Dad laughed, as if giving up.

Then.

“Oh, Cheshire…, wow?”

Cheshire, dressed in riding gear, entered the waiting area.

“Wow, kid, you look good.”

“T-Thanks.”

Under the black riding helmet, his usual indifferent expression and his well-proportioned legs in black boots were striking.

The young rider, leading the majestic black horse Walter, captivated everyone with his handsome appearance.

‘Stop it. I get it, you’re the main character…. Stop showing off!’

I had to shield my eyes from the illusion of a halo surrounding him.

Dad and Cheshire, with their grand entrances, seemed to be shouting, ‘Look at me! You insignificant extras! I’m the main character!’

“…Are you really okay? At least practice the obstacle course.”

As soon as he arrived, Cheshire was worried about me.

“No. Just walking for five hours yesterday was too tiring. I promised Zephir I wouldn’t participate in the competition. It’s already impressive that he practiced with me this much. If there’s an obstacle, I’ll just go around it. You win.”

I managed to get on Zephir’s back, but my plan to just enjoy the scenery remained the same.

Then.

“Oh, they’re here.”

“Finally, the top contender has arrived.”

The journalists buzzed with excitement.

It was Daemon Martini.

He was dressed in top-quality riding gear and led a well-groomed brown horse.

Daemon, who had entered with a haughty expression, was taken aback when he saw me.

More precisely, when he saw Zephir standing next to me.

“Z-Z-Zephir?”

He then noticed the imposing Cheshire and Walter, and his face turned red and pale.

‘Yeah, the spotlight isn’t yours.’

In front of the main character, who draws attention just by breathing, how could a villain extra take the lead?

I smirked.

“Hello, Duke Rubinstein. It’s my first time meeting you. I am the third son of the Martini family, Daemon Martini.”

Despite his poorly managed expression, Daemon came to greet Dad first.

“Nice to meet you, Martini young master. I hope you have a good competition.”

“Y-Yes….”

Daemon, who had swallowed hard, glanced at me and Zephir.

“I was surprised to see a noble lady on the participant list…. You have a beautiful horse?”

“Hello, Martini young master? This horse’s name is Zephir.”

I deliberately spoke loudly.

At the same time, the journalists raised their notebooks.

‘I’ve been waiting for this moment, you jerk.’

When I first entered the waiting area, the journalists who recognized Zephir were all puzzled.

They must have been curious why the horse of the top contender, Daemon, was in the hands of the Rubinstein noble lady.

“Zephir was an injured horse, and I wanted to bring him home because his story was so touching. The previous owner sold him back to the market because he was injured.”

“Eek!”

“Wow, that’s….”

“Oh my.”

The journalists’ pens moved faster as they wrote down the scoop.

I raised my voice, as if I were in a speech contest.

“I don’t know who the previous owner was, but he must have been a bad person. Injured horses are sent to the slaughterhouse, and he must have abandoned Zephir knowing that. How could he do that to his own friend….”

I pouted, as if I was about to cry, and hugged Zephir.

The journalists scribbled furiously on their notepads.

“What, what are they writing?”

Daemon turned pale at the sight.

‘Sigh.’

Although it started as a performance, holding Zephir made me feel bad.

Zephir seemed to recognize his owner and was staring intently at Daemon.

“W-Well, let’s have a good competition!”

Daemon quickly fled from in front of us.

* * *

“Be careful, my daughter. Zephir, protect our princess. Got it? Be careful.”

Dad, despite my pleas, worried until 30 minutes before the competition started and finally headed to the award ceremony.

After the competition, there would undoubtedly be articles with headlines like “Duke Rubinstein, Beyond a Foolish Daughter, a Dumb Daughter?!”

“Zephir, let’s take a slow walk. Let’s enjoy the scenery…. Ah! If we enter Course C, there’s a lake. If we’re thirsty, we can go there and drink some water.”

I glanced at the map, which showed courses A to E, one last time and climbed onto Zephir’s back.

Of course, I didn’t need to memorize the course, having only practiced light riding at our home’s riding field.

I had already spread the word about Daemon’s bad character, and Cheshire would win, so my job was done.

“Participants, please line up at the starting line. Judges are stationed at the start of each course, so if you have any issues like withdrawing, you can ask for help. When the starting gun goes off, please start.”

Seven horses lined up at the starting line.

I glanced at Cheshire and Daemon. Daemon looked fierce, while Cheshire seemed indifferent.

‘Heh, this should be interesting.’

I would soon hear the villain extra’s usual line, “Ugh, I’m so angry!”

Bang!

The starting gun went off, and

“…?”

I.

“S-S-SCREAM!”

I screamed in surprise at Zephir’s bullet-like speed.

“Ah! Ah!”

I lost the reins in shock.

If it weren’t for the anti-fall magic on the saddle, I would have tumbled off long ago.

“Ah, Ah, Ah!”

My eyes, already struggling to stay open due to the wind, were spinning.

I mustered all my strength, even the strength I used to drink milk as a baby, and finally grabbed the reins.

‘What, what is this! What’s happening! What’s going on!’

Did I enter the wrong competition?

Wasn’t this supposed to be a riding competition where you communicate with the horse and carefully navigate the course?

Is this a racetrack?

Who bet on Zephir and the Rubinstein noble lady?

‘What’s really happening? Didn’t we agree to go for a walk, Zephir?’

It seems it was just my thought.

Zephir was running at an incredible speed, regardless of my will.

The scenery blurred as it rushed past.

Ignoring my queasy stomach, I glanced back.

It felt like we had only been running for three minutes.

I couldn’t see any other horses….