Chapter 31

Aristine, with a face full of curiosity, gently lowered her hand to touch the horse.

She felt the short, smooth fur and the skin beneath it. It was warm and firm.

‘This is what a horse feels like.’

She had learned something new.

“I’ve never ridden a horse before.”

Another first-hand experience.

“This one has probably never carried anyone other than me before.”

As she said this, Tarqan firmly held Aristine’s waist.

Her waist was so slender that it felt strange. But she couldn’t fall.

“Hold on tight. It’s dangerous.”

Aristine nodded and wrapped her arms around Tarqan’s waist.

The body in her embrace stiffened, and she looked up at him.

“Can you let go a bit?”

“But you said to hold on tight.”

“...Just a little.”

Tarqan tried not to look down as he spoke.

He could imagine what he would see if he looked down right now.

Aristine’s wedding dress was modest in design, but the neckline was quite low.

Even without looking, he could feel it clearly.

Aristine was sitting sideways on the horse, tightly hugging Tarqan, so their bodies inevitably touched.

She was smaller and more delicate than he had thought, and the unexpectedly soft touch made Tarqan frown.

Seeing his displeased expression, Aristine was puzzled.

Thinking she might have made a mistake since it was her first time riding a horse, she nodded.

“Alright.”

As she straightened her back and moved her body—

‘Ah...!’

Aristine’s body wobbled and slipped on the saddle.

Tarqan, startled, quickly pulled her waist and held her in his arms.

Aristine reflexively clung to him.

Tarqan, confirming that she was safe, sighed in relief.

‘Anyway.’

She was a woman who never let him relax for a moment.

Aristine, sticking her head out to gauge the height, asked Tarqan.

“Would it hurt if I fell?”

“It would.”

He was used to pain, but he still didn’t like it.

“Can’t we just go like this?”

Tarqan didn’t answer.

His brows were still furrowed, and Aristine, feeling a bit dejected, watched his expression.

Tarqan still didn’t answer and didn’t look at her.

But his hands, which were wrapped around her waist, were tightly gripping.

Enough to pull her into his embrace.

Aristine smiled and leaned into his embrace.

Holding his waist tightly to avoid falling.

Clippity-clop, clippity-clop.

The massive black horse marched slowly down the wedding parade route, making a heavy yet brisk sound with its hooves.

* * *

People looked at Aristine and Tarqan with dreamy, dazed expressions.

They had been watching with their mouths agape since Tarqan mounted the warhorse, his cloak billowing in the wind.

Is this what a beautiful princess and a black knight who saves her from a fairy tale look like?

Even though they felt it was childish and embarrassing, people felt as if they had returned to their childhood, when they would fall asleep with a fairy tale book tucked under their pillows.

They waved their handkerchiefs at the two lovers who had overcome the trials of love.

“It was really touching...”

The wedding parade route stretched on, and people who had been waiting without knowing the situation nodded at the sight of Aristine and Tarqan.

They couldn’t understand why they were on a warhorse instead of a carriage.

Though they couldn’t understand it.

“They look good together...”

The visual effect was impressive.

It was a special wedding parade fitting the start of the peace everyone had wished for.

The white princess in the arms of the guardian and military god of Ailugo.

Even on the back of a massive warhorse, she was more visible than in a carriage.

“A fairy has come to our country...”

“She must be the fairy of peace.”

“Small, precious, and the best.”

Their relationship looked so good that it was even more satisfying.

Everyone knew what a political marriage was, but as subjects serving the royal family, they naturally hoped for a marriage full of love.

The wedding mishaps that spread from person to person and through the news made people’s hearts even more excited.

“She was surprised to see the people waiting outside the venue and waved to them with a smile. Look at this picture.”

“I thought the princess of Silvanus would be arrogant, but she’s not...”

Unlike the intimidating Tarqan, her friendly appearance made people smile broadly.

Their contrasting personalities actually balanced each other out.

“This is the scene I mentioned earlier. The carriage was tilting, and the horse was causing chaos, but His Highness saved the princess. It’s already in the news.”

“Oh, it looks so good in the picture...”

“To throw himself into such a dangerous moment to save the princess...”

“Ha, it’s a fiery love.”

A girl, looking at a picture of Tarqan holding Aristine and drawing his sword, clasped her cheeks and had a dazed expression.

“She must have been worried that the princess would get hurt. He won’t let her out of his arms.”

“Usually, he would have helped the princess onto the horse first, but they rode together.”

“How is that possible? The picture looks so cool, but...”

“It’s only possible because it’s His Highness Tarqan. There’s quite a difference in their body sizes.”

People who had been gossiping turned their attention back to the news.

In the picture, Tarqan was seen pulling Aristine into his arms and mounting the horse, with his cloak billowing.

“This reporter who captured this moment should be awarded.”

“He’s the candidate for the Journalist of the Year.”

The reason the news was selling so well wasn’t just because it was a royal wedding.

It felt like everyone would go home with a picture in their hearts.

A woman who had been looking at the pictures for a while asked,

“...Is this impossible for my boyfriend?”

“Yes.”

The firm answer made everyone in the room solemn.

Chapter 10. Just hold my hand. Do you trust me, sis?

“What!”

The queen, upon receiving the report from the palace attendant, slammed her hand on the table.

“Tarqan completed the wedding parade unscathed!”

Despite all the excuses and delays to prevent the carriage from being sent.

It was all for nothing.

Instead, she only earned the king’s disapproval.

“After all, it’s a weed with a tenacious life, hard to kill.”

The queen’s father, Duke Skiera, rubbed his chin and muttered.

“Ha! Riding a horse! Who rides a warhorse, used for slaughter during the wedding parade?”

“That’s what I’m saying. It’s a marriage for peace, and a warhorse doesn’t fit.”

“Yes, as the duke said. The people’s reaction wouldn’t be good. They wanted peace so much. Isn’t that right?”

The queen asked the palace attendant, who was reporting.

It was a rhetorical question, expecting a “yes” in response.

But if the attendant lied, she would be furious.

The attendant, swallowing hard, prostrated himself.

“I apologize, Your Majesty.”

The queen’s eyes narrowed at the answer.

“That... the reaction was even better than when they were in the carriage. Being together on the horse...”

Clang!

The teacup the queen threw shattered against the pillar decorated with amethyst.

“Your Majesty!”

“Your Majesty, please calm down.”

The attendants knelt and pressed their foreheads to the ground.

“People are ignorant by nature, aren’t they?”

“With Your Majesty’s guidance, they will find their center.”

In other words, manipulate public opinion.

Rumors spread easily in a crowd.

With money and power, it’s not hard to control which direction they spread.

The queen, pleased with this answer, calmed down and leaned back on the sofa.

‘Public opinion...’

Duke Skiera, after a moment of thought, spoke with a heavy face.

“Your Majesty, Tarqan’s warhorse is quite symbolic. Treating it like an ordinary warhorse could backfire.”

Duke Skiera was right.

Tarqan, revered as a hero, had a horse that was also treated as a legendary being, always fighting alongside him.

Would people respond positively if such a being was labeled with terms like “slaughter” or “destroying peace”?

People may be ignorant, but they aren’t fools.

If suddenly, many people start making such claims simultaneously, they would be suspicious.

“...That’s true.”

The queen agreed.

Earlier, she was so angry that she needlessly criticized Tarqan, but riding a warhorse wasn’t something to be criticized.

In Ailugo, a land of warriors, the most important thing is a warrior’s sword.

Next is the warrior’s warhorse.

“After all, you can’t say bad things about a warhorse just because it’s a warhorse.”

“Yes, especially since Tarqan, that lowborn, rode the horse to slay the monster...”

The warhorse that rode alongside Tarqan to slay the monster.

‘It’s likely seen as a guardian that brought peace to Ailugo.’

The queen was furious.

“I thought it was an unparalleled opportunity!”

There was no other way to turn the tide.

Today’s wedding further elevated Tarqan’s already high popularity among the people.

“It’s not just the people. The nobles are also quite impressed.”

“Until the political marriage with the princess of Silvanus was decided, there were almost no waverers.”

“Many people mocked, saying that Tarqan’s blood wouldn’t become noble.”

Though it was a flattering statement, it was the majority’s opinion.

No matter how much Tarqan was favored by the king and popular among the people, the nobles sneered at him.

They were convinced that the one to ascend the throne would be Hamir.

Most of the nobles didn’t want a lowborn like Tarqan to become king, and most importantly—

‘Tarqan himself was too poor at politics.’

He should have used his popularity to pressure Hamir or solidify his position by leveraging the king’s favor.

But Tarqan didn’t do that.

When other royals mocked him with their eloquent words at banquets, he only emitted a threatening aura to silence them.

He never once used political or social skills to counter them.

Thus, everyone concluded that Tarqan couldn’t handle politics.

‘But he changed.’

When the princess was in danger of being seated at the end of the table, Tarqan stepped forward to protect her.

Contrary to the queen and nobles’ expectations, Tarqan’s speech was fluent and unhesitant.

He pressured the queen politically and got what he wanted.

It was impossible not to think that Tarqan hadn’t been unable to do politics but had chosen not to.

‘And now, the princess too.’

The princess, who would become Tarqan’s wife, was not only of noble blood but also politically astute.

It was like giving wings to a tiger.

That day, the nobles had no choice but to see Tarqan in a new light.

And today, they held a wedding that was even more perfect—

As the newlyweds left the venue, the people inside the hall gathered in small groups to excitedly discuss the wedding.

Even the low-ranking nobles, who had no chance to be involved in the royal succession, and the influential nobles—

“The nobles, who used to act one way, completely changed their attitude at today’s wedding...”

Thinking of the noble faces, awestruck by the stunning Aristine and Tarqan, made her furious.

“It’s absurd. How can they be so moved by the wedding of a lowborn!”

“They’re not ignorant of how important this wedding is! Instead of hindering it, they praised it...”

“Even if they don’t belong to our faction, I can’t understand it at all.”

The more people there are, the more people who share the credit, so the queen’s faction is limited to a select few.

It was enough.

Moreover, the other factions were rubbing their hands, saying they supported Hamir and asking for better treatment.

“Surely, they’re not reconsidering Tarqan because of this wedding.”

“How dare they compare that lowborn to His Highness Hamir!”

“Those who used to follow us blindly...”

“To weigh us and Tarqan on the same scale from such a lowborn family!”

The queen and the duke couldn’t contain their frustration.

In fact, they were so angry because they were anxious.

“Your Majesty, what should we do?”

Duke Skiera asked with a heavy expression.

“We can’t act rashly. Because we prevented the new carriage from being sent, we’re already in the king’s bad books...”

“He may not say it, but he’s watching us.”

The queen sighed in frustration.

She thought it was a crisis for Tarqan, but it turned out to be a gain for him and a loss for her.

A complete defeat.

“Your Majesty!”

At that moment, the parlor door burst open, and a loud voice echoed.

It was Yenikarina.

“Have you seen this newspaper?”

Yenikarina, pale, held up an evening newspaper.

On the front page was a large picture of Aristine and Tarqan kissing.

“Read this article! Goodness, it says the other half is the hope of Ailugo! A bringer of peace!”

Yenikarina, agitated, was jumping around.

“How can they write such things? I am the joy, hope, and happiness of this country!”

Forget about being a wife, I just want to make money.