Chapter 5

Yelker, with a dazed mind, slightly moved his neck to look around.

The bed was the worst. His back hurt, probably because he was lying on the ground. The smell of soil and grass was so strong that he was amazed he could sleep in such a place. He was impressed with himself for managing to sleep here.

There was a sound of someone moving nearby.

He chuckled wryly. It must be one of his classmates who overslept, Yelker thought, still half-asleep, and turned his head in that direction.

"......Wow"

The classmate had turned into a woman. He didn't know who it was, but she looked very attractive. No, rather, it might be more appropriate to say that a woman had turned into a classmate. If that were the case, it could even mean that Helge's true form was this, which would be a ridiculous situation.

The woman was frantically trying to put on her clothes.

Yelker sighed in relief. Her agile movements didn't seem like Helge's. When Yelker saw her, she was already wearing her underwear, or perhaps she had been wearing it from the start, so she only needed to put on her jacket and pants. She did this with such skill that Yelker was impressed, and then she turned to look at him.

Their eyes met.

It was Stina, Yelker's subordinate and a knight-in-training.

As he remembered this, the blood drained from Yelker's face.

"Whoa!"

With a scream, Yelker hastily sat up and turned his face away. A voice came from behind his head.

"...Well, you've seen everything, so what are you doing now..."

Yelker, still sitting on the ground, turned his back and desperately tried to explain.

"N-no! I thought it was one of my classmates, and I didn't expect a woman to be there! I didn't turn away immediately because... well, it's... it's... you know..."

He couldn't come up with an excuse right away.

A sigh came from behind his head.

"Ha, I guess I was careless too... But, it felt really gross to put on wet clothes..."

As his consciousness became clearer, he began to recall the situation. Yelker had slid down a slope and flown through the air from a cliff. Yet, he was puzzled as to why he was still alive. He decided to voice his honest question.

"Hey, Stina. Why am I still alive?"

Yelker, who didn't need to turn away anymore, remained turned away, and Stina, sitting on the ground, explained the current situation.

"Because you fell into the river. I pulled you out right away, so you didn't drown."

After thinking for a moment, Yelker asked.

"...So, that means you fell off the cliff too, right?"

After saying this, he hesitantly turned his head to look behind him. Stina was sitting with her legs folded to the right.

"It's a river below. I aimed for a deeper spot, so I thought you'd be fine."

Yelker had many things to say, comparing this to his own common sense, but since they were both unharmed, it was hard to complain.

Moreover, he recalled Stina's behavior since they entered the mountains. During the rock climbing and cliff climbing, she didn't show her true strength and acted as a guide to match Yelker's pace. Even when they were walking along the ridge, she was unusually calm and cared for him. In the end, when he fell off the cliff, she fell with him.

After straightening himself, Yelker bowed his head slightly.

"Thank you, really. Stina, you've been taking care of me ever since we entered the mountains. I'm sorry."

Stina, looking down, gazed at the ground in front of her rather than at Yelker.

"...Aren't you going to blame me?"

"Blame you? Why?"

"If I had chosen a better path, there would have been a less dangerous way to help. Or, if we hadn't gone through such a mountain..."

Yelker peered at Stina's expression.

"...Are you worried about it?"

"A little, but..."

Their eyes met as Stina looked up at Yelker with a slight upward glance.

Yelker chuckled softly.

"If you can say 'a little' to that extent, it means you're not that seriously thinking about it, right?"

"...I don't really think it's my fault. But..."

Yelker understood what she meant. "I get what you're saying. But, I think I understand the situation I'm in. If I do things properly, I'll only return to the country as a corpse. That's why I decided to go along with your reckless plan. Besides... I know. Falling off the cliff was completely my fault. I was so scared that I fell, and I feel so ashamed that I want to cry."

Stina's face lifted sharply.

"No, I also forgot about the first time I climbed that mountain. I was so scared then, even though I'm used to it now."

Yelker was surprised by her words.

"You? This isn't a story to comfort me, is it?"

"What do you think of me? I also get scared and want to run away sometimes, just like anyone else."

Yelker exhaled, as if he couldn't imagine it.

"Then, if I train, will there come a day when I won't be afraid of that?"

"Of course. If you have someone to compete with, that day will come sooner."

Yelker shrugged.

"Airi, I guess. Does she also get scared sometimes? ...Ha, don't be angry. It might be easier to imagine her being scared than you."

Stina pouted at Yelker's light-hearted remark.

"Really, what do you think of me, Your Highness? Besides, that girl never showed any fear on the mountain, not even on the steep cliffs. She even laughed when she first encountered a bear."

"......What kind of life has she led?"

"Who knows. No, I did ask her, but even if I followed the same path, I don't think I could become like her. No matter how dangerous the situation, she never imagines herself dying. That's why she fears nothing, but she's strangely afraid of being scolded. I don't know what to do with her."

Yelker, leaning closer to Stina with a puzzled look, whispered.

"Does such a person really exist?"

Stina, leaning closer to Yelker, whispered back.

"Well, it's hard to believe, isn't it? I've never seen anyone like her except for her."

Yelker, impressed and amazed by the existence of such a person, suddenly realized how close Stina's perfectly composed face was to his and jumped back in a panic.

Stina tilted her head in surprise at his sudden movement. Yelker, sliding back, tried to explain.

"N-no, it's just that, Stina, you're so easy to talk to. I end up acting like we've been friends for years. I'm sorry."

Stina waved her hands.

"Ahaha, I feel the same, Your Highness. But, Your Highness, I think I'm being quite rude, and you're not even complaining or showing any signs of being bothered."

"Ah, I knew that. For me, it's actually more comfortable if you speak your mind. It means I can do the same, right?"

Stina laughed heartily, a sound that didn't quite fit her ladylike demeanor but was so cheerful that Yelker couldn't help but widen his eyes.

"That's what I mean, Your Highness, you really don't seem like a noble. You don't even have the air of a noble. I might be able to talk to you so easily because of that. I might not have been able to do this with anyone else except family."

Yelker, feeling a sense of accomplishment that he could make her smile, laughed heartily as well.

"I'm often told that. I know I'm weird, so don't say it too much. I actually care a lot about it."

Stina looked up at Yelker with a playful gaze.

"That sounds more like the truth. But, you can't really change your nature, so let's just accept it together."

"Hey, don't try to seduce me. Seriously... By the way, Stina, your casual way of speaking, is it only with certain people?"

"......Sort of."

"Hey, do you often say things you shouldn't?"

"......Well, sometimes. You know, words just slip out, especially when you're dealing with fools."

"You should be more careful with your words, especially when dealing with fools. ...Well, you should be careful with smart people too."

Stina pouted.

"Well, I'm not as well-mannered as Your Highness."

"Don't pout. You're so cute when you do that. Is it calculated?"

Stina replied calmly.

"It is, to some extent. My father always gave in to me when I did this. But, I don't think it works with you, Your Highness. You seem like the type who's wild at night despite looking so cool."

"Stop it. I'm a prince, and I have sisters and brothers. Some of them are beautiful, but they're so terrible that even I, their brother, am repulsed. They're really something."

Stina recoiled even before hearing the content.

"Royal decadence, I really don't want to get involved with that."

"Me neither. One of the reasons I joined the knight school is because of that. My sisters and brothers treat me like a butler or a servant."

Stina laughed lightly.

"Your Highness, you seem like a good person."

"It's just that they're really bad. I'm normal. When I said I wanted to become a knight and join the military, their faces... It was enough to make you forget a hundred-year love. You should be careful, Stina. If you're beautiful, your ugly expressions stand out even more."

Stina, unable to contain her laughter, clutched her stomach and rolled around.

"Ah, ahahaha, I'll keep that in mind. But, really, Your Highness is so interesting. If the candidates for marriage that my father brought were as fun as you, I might have fallen for one of them easily."

"That's an honor. But, I'd say no. I wouldn't live long."

"Ugh, you really say that yourself."

"......Well, if I knew I was being set up by Marshal, I'd want to run away somewhere. If it were possible, I'd run away right now."

"If that's what Your Highness wants, considering we've faced death together, I could say we died in the mountains if you want."

"I'm joking. I have no place to run to, and I have no intention of abandoning my country. No matter what happens, I won't give up my pride as a royal."

Stina smiled gently.

"You're so cool, Your Highness."

"Stop teasing me. Where's Airi? Is she still up on the cliff?"

"Yes, but she'll probably run down the mountain, so we should meet up with her soon..."

Yelker, about to ask "run?" noticed a sound approaching from behind. The light, quick sound of someone kicking the ground and trampling the grass quickly approached.

Yelker, on guard for wild animals, and Stina, waving her hand, looked up.

"Oh! Are you both alright!"

Airi burst out of the bushes.

She braced herself to stop, but the momentum was too strong, and she slid along the ground, dragging her feet. Despite this, her posture didn't waver at all.

Airi and Stina were chatting as if nothing had happened, but Yelker couldn't do the same.

He looked in the direction Airi had run from. Beyond the bushes she had burst through, the grass and plants were clearly flattened in a path. Yelker, thinking about how it would look if a reluctant horse were forced through the bushes, glanced at Airi.

Airi, who had run at twice the speed of Yelker's full sprint, had flushed cheeks and her shoulders were shaking, but that was all.

Yelker, feeling a bit scared, asked Airi.

"Airi, where did you run from?"

"Me? Well, from the top of the mountain."

Yelker looked up at the sky, which was already getting dark. Only then did he see the ridge they had walked earlier.

He shuddered, realizing how far they had fallen.

Moreover, it was hard to believe that she had run from there. If it were true, it would be more than just a shudder.

"Hey, Airi. Could you and Stina cross this mountain in a day if you were alone?"

"Well, if we started in the morning, we could probably make it by night... Ah! That's it!"

Airi, suddenly understanding something, answered enthusiastically.

"If I or Stina run seriously, we can cross the Lanoem mountains in half a day! If you need a messenger to cross this area, please let us do it!"

"......Run seriously? I don't think you could run through a mountain and survive."

"That's just a lack of training."

Airi said this calmly. Despite the rudeness of the statement, Stina panicked, but Airi seemed to have no such intention and remained calm.

Yelker, on the other hand, was impressed.

"Amazing. So, it's