Chapter 77

It's the 6th day of the 10-day consecutive update project!

Matcha thought something must have happened when the one who came to greet her was not Livonis, but the master who recently decided to call himself Livio, and he seemed unusually cheerful.

She shifted her gaze slightly. Sophie, standing next to Livio, didn't seem particularly happy or unhappy. However, Matcha felt there was a physical distance between the two.

In other words, it's like this.

The clever Matcha thought that Livio must have done something and was now satisfied with himself.

Livio is a man who is rough and violent, and when he gets angry, you never know what he'll do. He's a barbarian.

When people say he's like his father, he makes a fiercely unpleasant face, but the people in that family are generally like that.

So, you see.

Matcha, who has known Livio for a long time, thought that the angry Livio must have done something and was now satisfied with himself.

Well, Matcha is a horse, after all.

I don't know the details, though.

"Because of that, I'll meet up with you two later."

When Livio whispered this in her ear, Matcha snorted and shook her head. It tickled to have someone talking in her ear.

Matcha has good hearing, so she can hear even small voices clearly, but this was probably to make sure. She understood that they were involved in some complicated situation, so she decided to stay quiet.

Livio, knowing this, shrugged and smiled, saying, "Sorry."

But Matcha felt like the one who needed to be in a good mood right now wasn't her.

Or maybe Matcha's intuition was wrong.

When she met Sophie's eyes, Sophie was smiling.

That smile was indeed as usual, and after that, Livio and Sophie continued their conversation as usual.

While chasing the butterflies flying above her head, Matcha observed Sophie, wondering if she was just worrying unnecessarily.

"It's a nice day, isn't it?"

"Yes, it's a bit hot."

"That's true. If you start feeling unwell, please let me know."

"Thank you. But I'm quite strong, you know?"

"Don't be complacent."

Sophie's smile was as usual.

Livio was also in a good mood, almost annoyingly so.

But when Matcha stretched her neck to look at them with her wide field of vision, the distance between them still seemed a bit off.

Something definitely happened yesterday.

Since no negative emotions were coming from Sophie, it probably wasn't a fight.

So, Livio must have been overconfident about something.

Livio is the kind of person who does unexpected things at unexpected times. At this rate, Matcha might have to deal with his romantic entanglements again. That would be quite annoying.

Matcha doesn't know or care what happened or what Livio did, but she hopes Sophie will keep a firm grip on this fool.

Matcha snorted.

"Hey? Is Matcha sick?"

"Hey! Is Matcha okay?!"

"Snort."

No, I'm not!

As they walked through the vast grounds, a person with golden hair was leaning against the wall.

The person, who seemed to be waiting for them, stood up and waved energetically when he noticed them.

"I came to see you off. I'll guide you to the gate."

Livio and Sophie bowed deeply to the person, who seemed to be important.

"Prince Victor, thank you for your hospitality."

When Livio said this, the person called Victor laughed loudly. The loud laugh was annoying but not unpleasant.

"Of course, it's fun to entertain interesting guests! Raise your heads!"

"Pretty subjective, isn't it?"

Livio laughed and raised his head, and the man said, "So what!" with satisfaction. His voice was loud, but Livio and Sophie could hear him even without it.

Maybe this guy is a bit of an idiot... When Matcha glared at Victor, he suddenly turned his head and looked at her, making her jump.

It's rare to make eye contact with a stranger, especially for a horse. Plus, the timing was too perfect.

Victor looked at Matcha and smiled, showing his teeth.

"What a smart horse. What's your name?"

"Matcha."

"Ahaha, what a weird name!"

"That's rude."

Indeed.

Matcha doesn't think the name is that strange, but she has grown attached to it. She is here because a small person called her Matcha. It's a kind of promise, something important to Matcha. It feels bad to have it laughed at.

But it seems Victor is a person of high status. Matcha knows that humans, like animals, have a hierarchy. Disrupting the hierarchy can lead to punishment.

So, Matcha can't just act out and say, "Hey, you jerk," because the responsibility would fall on Livio. That's what partners are for.

Victor, oblivious to Matcha's internal struggle, laughed.

"Sorry, sorry. But it's unique and individualistic, isn't it?"

"Changing the words doesn't change the meaning."

"I like it!"

"Ugh, liar."

"It's true, though."

Livio's eyes were half-closed, but Matcha thought, "If that's the case, I'll forgive you."

It seems Victor really meant it when he said Matcha's name was weird and that he liked it. Well, if he likes it, that's fine. Feelings vary from horse to horse and from person to person.

Matcha is a tolerant horse.

As they walked, Matcha's eyes caught sight of the large gate. The guards on either side of the gate, which looked big enough for a carriage to pass through, saluted them.

One of the guards looked at Sophie and made a strange face, moving his mouth.

What's up with him? Is he complaining about Sophie? When Matcha looked at Livio, he was glaring at the guard with a look that seemed to be on fire. It was the look he had when he was thinking of something bad. Maybe the guard had done something to Sophie.

But since Sophie didn't seem to be acting differently, it probably wasn't a problem.

Still, Matcha thought it might be a good idea to be prepared to run away just in case. Reflex and speed are key in an escape. She needed to be ready to hear Livio's command, but they passed through the gate without any issues. Huh?

What was that guard's face about? What was Livio's glare about? As Matcha was wondering, Victor stopped.

They were outside the castle gates. It was time to say goodbye, so Matcha stopped as well.

"I thank you for your efforts on behalf of my beloved brother's fiancée and my beloved friend."

Victor said this slowly with a sincere smile.

To be honest, no matter how Livio explained it, Matcha didn't really understand the situation. She doesn't care about human affairs.

For Matcha, what matters is running when Livio says to run and continuing until he says to stop. As long as she knows where to go, the rest doesn't matter.

Running according to her master's will is her identity and pride.

So, Matcha didn't care why Victor was thanking them, but she was secretly pleased that Livio and Sophie were being praised, and she snorted in satisfaction.

"Thank you, both of you."

"Please, Your Highness! In the end, I didn't do anything..."

"What are you saying? You did your best. ...Thank you, Miss Sophie."

"Your Highness..."

Can this guy talk at a normal volume? Matcha was a bit surprised.

She wanted to say, "Can you talk at that volume all the time?" but horses can't communicate with humans like that.

Livio seems to understand what Matcha wants, but that's because they've known each other for a long time.

Matcha isn't even sure if she understands everything Livio wants to say. There's no way to check.

So far, they've been able to communicate without any major issues, but Matcha can't ask, "Can you tell this guy to be quiet?" It would probably be a bad idea, whether he understood or not.

Follow the strong. It's an important rule in nature, so Matcha shook her head.

After that,

The two of them walked through the town without looking back and soon found themselves outside.

They had a meeting, and Matcha was a little excited to meet the other horse.

Meeting new horses is exciting but nerve-wracking.

If they were to run together, it would be good to know each other's habits, but would they be able to chat nicely?

Matcha's sensitive anxiety swelled when a horse with a golden head and a horse with a blue head were eating grass and the black horse lifted its head and showed its big teeth.

"Black horse! Black horse! Your coat is beautiful! You look cool! Can I call you Big Brother?"

"Finally, you're here. ...Just so you know, I wasn't being good for my master. I was just enjoying the grass."

Matcha understood.

This journey, it's probably going to be a hassle!

I thought I had pressed the submit button, but it turned out I hadn't even saved it... I almost lost my mind. I'm sorry for the late update...

I often cry when I close something thinking I've saved it, only to find out I haven't.

I guess I'm just living on momentum...