Chapter 12

Livonis has spent most of his life training.

He formed an alliance with his younger brother, vowing to make their strict father cry someday. The instructors at the knight academy seemed to take great pleasure in pushing their students to the limit, and once he joined the knights, it was no different. Training oneself was part of the job.

Senior knights would apparently give Livonis guidance on various weapons and tactics even during breaks, but compared to his father's training, which was so intense it bordered on insanity, the academy's training felt like a picnic. After all, there were meals, breaks, and tents, and no nighttime attacks.

At first, he was on edge, thinking that fierce instructors or his father might suddenly appear in the middle of the night, but it was always quiet until morning. Perhaps the intense training would interfere with his duties, or maybe his father, who was involved in planning the academy's training programs, was a bit off. Matcha, being a horse, couldn't quite understand.

Matcha, being a horse, didn't understand complicated things.

However, he knew he was born into a prestigious family and was expected to work as hard as his parents. So, ever since he was named Matcha, he had accompanied Livonis in training and monster hunts without ever losing heart.

In short, staying up all night in the forest to keep watch was no big deal for either Livonis or Matcha. Livonis sighed.

"Matcha, isn't Lady Sophiaria just too cute?"

"Neigh."

"Hey, don't say that."

Matcha shook his head, thinking, "Not again, you."

The girl Livonis liked was in a difficult situation, and he couldn't just tell everyone, "I like that girl!"

Indeed, Matcha was the only one Livonis could confide in. They could have what humans call a "heart-to-heart" conversation. Don't say, "With a horse?" or anything like that.

Livonis knew it wasn't something he could talk about with others, but he wanted to. He was caught in this dilemma. The only thing to do was to listen. Here was a friendship that transcended species.

"That Lady Sophiaria is right here, breathing, making eye contact, talking to me, allowing me to touch her, and now she's sleeping right in front of me! And just now, did you see that?! What was that?! To get such a reaction...!!! Oh, I wonder what expression she had. It's a shame I couldn't see her face, but maybe it's for the best. I might have shown her my pathetic state!"

You should have seen it.

Matcha thought but, feeling the bond of their interspecies friendship, kept quiet. He found it a bit disgusting but kept quiet. Matcha was a kind horse.

By the way, Matcha couldn't tell if humans were beautiful or not. He was a horse, after all.

But he liked that Sophiaria, despite being afraid of him, was considerate and called him "Matcha-san" with a slightly different pronunciation than Livonis. He liked the honorific "san."

Matcha was proud to be the horse that carried the eldest son of the Warian family. He enjoyed being praised by his fellow horses at the knight academy, saying things like, "You're a great horse!" and "You have a great master!"

So, when Matcha learned that Sophiaria was afraid to ride him and even felt unwell, he was a bit hurt.

When the small girl, pale and trembling, apologized, saying, "I'm sorry, Matcha-san," Matcha's pride was a bit wounded. His large size and speed were his pride, but they had caused harm to his partner's precious girl.

But his partner...

He was so giddy. Matcha found it ridiculous.

Of course, this wasn't out of consideration for Livonis. From head to toe, inside and out, he was just a giddy fool.

"It's like a dream, and when I think about how much she must have suffered, I just... What do you think, Matcha?"

I don't know.

"What if she had returned to being the prince's fiancée? What do you think? Just thinking about it makes me so angry, I'd kill the prince!"

"Neigh."

I don't know, but you shouldn't say that.

As Matcha coolly looked at the giddy barbarian talking to himself, Livonis pouted, saying, "I get it."

When Livonis made that pouty face, most people would look sloppy, but it annoyed Matcha. Maybe it was because he was a horse, but he wanted to ask his father or brother, though unfortunately, he could only talk to Livonis. It was a shame.

"Just from being petted, she's so incredibly cute, and it makes me so angry. I wonder if I'll be okay from now on."

"Neigh."

"Yeah, you're right."

Livonis smiled.

"It feels like a dream. I still can't believe it. But..."

Livonis looked at the sleeping Sophiaria.

Apparently, a lot had happened today.

This morning, Livonis hadn't said anything.

He had gone on duty with his father, who said it was a night guard duty and that Matcha could rest. They had gone in a carriage.

But in the evening, a young butler, who often talked to Livonis, came to call him.

Only Livonis could understand Matcha's words, but Matcha could understand human speech. He was smart. Heh.

So when Matcha was told to follow quietly, he ran through the night with the butler and a woman he recognized. He stood still when they tied up the luggage. See, Matcha was smart. He didn't know what was happening, but he understood it was an emergency and that it was for Livonis.

Thinking about complicated things was Livonis's job.

Matcha just needed to be ready to run at full strength when Livonis called. It was simple.

But Livonis, the thinker, seemed to have a lot on his mind.

"Lady Sophiaria must still be in shock and very tired. She's so strong, yet she's been crying all this time. I wonder if it's a good thing or a bad thing."

Livonis's shoulders drooped as he stared at Sophiaria.

It looked like he was watching her closely to make sure nothing was wrong.

Or maybe he was just a creepy stalker.

Matcha, being a horse, didn't understand human etiquette.

But even a horse would feel uncomfortable being stared at like that. Matcha might have kicked him.

So, in Sophiaria's place, Matcha gently nudged Livonis's head with his nose.

"Ouch."

"Neigh."

"Ah, yeah. I guess I was."

Livonis laughed.

He seemed to have worries and self-restraint, but his happiness was overwhelming. He was grinning like a fool.

Would this be good for Sophiaria?

If she got tired of him right away, Matcha would give Livonis another nudge. Stay focused, friend.

"Ouch. I get it."

"Hmph."

Really?

It didn't look like he was running away. There was no tension. If he was disappointed and abandoned, what would he do? But Livonis was so popular with both men and women, maybe it was a needless worry.

"Yeah, you're right. I need to focus. ...Thanks to everyone's help, I can be with Lady Sophiaria like this."

From what Matcha had heard, Livonis and Sophiaria were supposed to be reported as missing. The butler and the woman had returned to the mansion quietly, just as they had come.

Matcha and a familiar knight were supposed to play the role of being knocked out by bandits. The knight was smiling despite the dishonorable role.

"...Thanks, Matcha."

Suddenly, Matcha looked at his friend.

Matcha didn't dislike this side of Livonis.

He was thick-skinned and arrogant. That's what he liked about him.

They probably couldn't return to the mansion.

Matcha wouldn't see his parents or the family who always took good care of him.

But Livonis said "thank you" instead of "sorry."

This human-like yet inhuman quality was something Matcha didn't dislike.

"Neigh."

"Hey, that's mean. You're so loud."

Matcha liked Livonis's unchanged, cheerful smile from childhood.

"Hey, Matcha, about Lady Sophiaria that time..."

But still.

This was a bit much. "Shut up, I get it!!" A normal horse would have kicked him, but Matcha was smart and kind.

He had decided a long time ago to live with this troublesome friend.

Well, it couldn't be helped.

But, so this is going to last until morning?

Matcha thought.

They had endured many harsh trainings together, sometimes with Livonis's brother and his horse, Val. Matcha, too, had the confidence to run without rest or food, carrying both Livonis and now Sophiaria.

He would gallop through cliffs and forests, charge into a horde of monsters without hesitation. He could even take down low-level monsters. He wasn't insulting humans or knights, but he was confident in his combat abilities.

He wasn't just any horse. He was the horse that carried the Warian family's men.

He had pride and the strength to back it up.

Even if Livonis and Sophiaria were sleeping soundly, he could keep watch. He could add wood to the fire. He hadn't done it before, but he was sure he could. He had seen it done.

But.

But still.

"So, that face she made, you know..."

"Neigh..."

Is this going to last until morning?

He hadn't trained for this type of situation.

Let's see how long he can endure.

Maybe he should just knock him out. Matcha thought about practicing adding wood to the fire.

But he couldn't bring himself to kick his happy friend. He sighed deeply.

Matcha knew he was being soft on Livonis, but he didn't realize it.

Early morning.

When Livonis started trembling, saying, "Wait, no way, Lady Sophiaria, you knew my name? I didn't even introduce myself!!!" Matcha almost cried.

The question was, can horses cry? Let's try.

After some research, it seems there are quite a few stories about horses crying.

But they were all sad stories, and it almost broke his heart.