“Harchen! I’ve waited for so long. You’ve returned safely.”

Patricia looked up at him with large blue eyes filled with moisture, biting her lower lip tightly.

She was trying her hardest not to reveal her emotions, but her undisguised longing and affection were clearly visible. Harchen now knew when this expression of hers appeared.

It was a face he had yearned to see and touch so desperately and intimately.

“I missed you so much that I rushed here without rest, and now you’re before my eyes.”

The fierce feelings of jealousy subsided, replaced by a heavy sense of possessiveness.

It was a solid desire that bundled together not just the physical and material, but also the mental and all things subconscious.

Patricia’s white hand touched Harchen’s large-knuckled hand. It wasn’t quite holding hands, just her fingertips touching the back of his hand, but his protruding veins quivered.

He wanted to touch her more, to embrace her tightly until she was crushed.

His pulse raced wildly, different from when riding a horse.

“Harchen, you’re the benefactor who saved me from the assassin’s attack.”

As Patricia came out from beside the chair, limping, Harchen frowned and looked down at her leg.

“Are you badly hurt?”

He turned his gaze to Bark. Bark bowed his head in greeting.

“I am Bark, the Heun tribe hunter.”

Calip approached Bark’s side and spoke in a low voice.

“Pay your respects to His Majesty the Emperor.”

“I don’t know the imperial etiquette.”

“You said your name was Bark? I think we should first check on the Empress’s condition. I’ll formally invite you to the palace tomorrow.”

“Yes.”

“Calip, find Lean and prepare for the return to the palace.”

After instructing Calip, Harchen tilted his head to examine Patricia’s complexion, then lifted her in his arms.

“Ah, Harchen. Put me down.”

“I need to check how badly you’re injured.”

Is it too obvious?

Harchen looked at Calip, who was standing with his mouth wide open.

Well, what can I do? I want to be alone with her.

“Calip, call Claudine for me.”

Harchen gazed intently at Patricia in his arms and asked where she had been staying. Patricia raised her hand to indicate the direction.

Patricia was flustered.

How could he embrace her so suddenly as soon as they met?

And in front of others, no less. Shouldn’t he at least seriously receive a report on the situation from Bark, the Heun tribe hunter captain who saved her, and express gratitude?

To be held so closely without first confirming their longing or affection for each other.

Moreover, she had lost most of her memories of the Emperor. Could it be that this Emperor had forgotten about her memory loss?

“Your Majesty, I’m saying this just in case. You do know that I’ve lost my memory, right?”

“I know.”

“Then, please observe basic etiquette.”

Harchen smiled, his eyes curving as if amused.

“How ridiculous. You don’t remember clinging to my neck and crying on your hard bed until dawn on the day I left the palace?”

“Stop it.”

Patricia covered his mouth with her palm, afraid the people behind might hear.

Then her face flushed red as she removed her hand.

Harchen’s hot lips pressed against her palm, sucking on it. The sensation stimulating her palm was more intense than the pain from her shoulder wound.

Patricia, get a hold of yourself.

This was a closed Heun tribe hunter village. She needed to relax after safely returning to the palace. Above all, that Bark had said he had met her before.

When, where, and how had they met?

Patricia tried to pull her hand away, applying force to the hand touching Harchen’s sharp nose bridge. But Harchen wasn’t one to let go easily.

He grasped her thin wrist and licked the blue veins visible on the inside of her wrist.

The thrill from her wrist was greater than the pain running from her shoulder to her arm and hand.

Harchen entered the room where Patricia had been staying and set her down on the bed. Then he sat down on the empty space beside her waist.

“This bed is hard too.”

“It’s palm wood. The Heun tribe even makes coffins from palm wood.”

Coffins? Why…?

Come to think of it, the young maid and the strict lady-in-waiting who said she would stay by her side even in death were nowhere to be seen. Harchen stroked Patricia’s cheek as she lay on the bed.

He lightly pressed her plump lips with his thumb. Touching her soft lips made him ache to press his own lips against them.

“What about your maid and lady-in-waiting?”

“Annie went to wash cherries by the stream, and Eva, Eva…”

Patricia’s blue eyes filled with water, rippling before overflowing to the side.

“She was with you at the scene of the assassin’s attack, wasn’t she?”

“Yes, but Eva…”

Harchen leaned down to embrace Patricia.

“Shh, don’t. Tell me later when more time has passed.”

He wiped away the tears flowing down her cheek and into her ear.

How frightened and scared she must have been. How sad.

Harchen felt as if the blood vessels in his chest were being torn out one by one. He gently stroked her hair until her sobbing subsided.

When her eyes, which he had been gazing at closely, became as calm as a windless lake, he brushed away the hair sticking to her forehead, tucking it behind her ear, and said,

“Now let’s go back together. Let’s go to Aster Palace.”

Harchen pulled the rope hanging from the bedpost. Soon, Claudine from the imperial palace and the young maid entered.

“Your Majesty.”

Annie rushed in recklessly, but stepped back when Claudine grabbed her arm. They bowed together in greeting.

Harchen instructed Claudine to check the wound condition and Annie to prepare for the return to the palace.

“Your Majesty, forgive my impertinence, but returning to the palace is still too risky.”

“What, why?”

Claudine approached Patricia. As Patricia turned to her side, Claudine gathered her curly golden hair to one side with familiar hands and untied the laces at the back of her dress.

That bastard. What does he think he’s doing?

Harchen’s anger rose even at the court physician untying the dress laces for treatment. He restrained himself from pushing him aside and saying he would do it himself.

Claudine unwrapped the gauze covering the wounds, revealing the injuries on her calf and shoulder.

Thin new skin like a plastic film was filling in between the wounds on her calf and shoulder, but the wound on her back was still raw and open, with moist blood pooled in the deep flesh.

Harchen frowned involuntarily.

This kind of wound wasn’t from a dagger thrown from afar, but from being stabbed up close and twisted.

How cruel and cold-hearted must the person be who stabbed this small, bony shoulder and thin back?

If the knife had been stabbed in the front instead of the back…

For a moment, Harchen recalled Kazan trying to stab him in the back and the look in Eden’s eyes as he plunged a dagger into Kazan’s chest.

How great must Eden’s hatred and resentment towards Kazan have been to stab him with such a look in his eyes?

“Can’t we just keep the back wound from reopening?”

“That’s correct, Your Majesty.”

“I’ll hold her in the carriage. If there’s a steep path, I’ll carry her and walk.”

Claudine responded with a voice full of emotion, her eyes glistening with moisture.

“Yes, Your Majesty. That should be sufficient.”

Claudine bowed her head towards Patricia and said,

“Your Majesty, since we’ve seen the wounds, I’ll apply some herbal medicine. As you know, it stings when disinfecting with mugwort water.”

“Mmm, alright.”

Claudine soaked three white gauzes with mugwort water and wiped the shoulder, calf, and back in sequence.

As Claudine lifted Patricia’s dress hem and white lace petticoat further, grasping her slender white calf, Harchen gritted his teeth.

You want to die, Claudine.

“Move aside!”

“Pardon?”

“I’ll do it. I’ll apply it.”

Harchen stood next to Claudine and grasped the slender ankle. Just holding her ankle made his blood flow faster and his pulse race. Even his breathing became rough.

And this bastard has been doing this all along?

“And you, when I’m here I’ll always do it, but when I’m not, have the maid apply the herbs.”

“Yes? Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Give it to me.”

Claudine handed over the wooden box containing the herbs. Harchen followed Claudine’s instructions, coating his index finger with the herb and applying it evenly to the slender calf.

Ah, what’s this? From the moment Harchen’s hot hand grasped her ankle, Patricia felt strangely tingly and sensitive all over her body.

This had never happened when Claudine applied the herbs, but every time Harchen stroked her calf with his herb-coated index finger, her body flinched.

Ah, how embarrassing. It must be noticeable.

Unlike Patricia, Harchen applied the herbs coldly without saying a word. That bothered her even more.

“Your Majesty, preparations for returning to the palace are complete. We’ve prepared two carriages.”

Harchen lifted Patricia easily to his side.

When they went out to the courtyard, most of the Heun tribe people were there. Patricia, held in Harchen’s arms, scanned among them, but while Bee and Kay were there, Bark was nowhere to be seen.

“You and Claudine ride in the front carriage. We have to turn and climb steeply right from the start. Calip! I’ll meet you up there.”

“As you command.”

As Calip set off in the lead, the two carriages followed. Lean and Bern dismounted their horses, intending to walk behind Harchen.

“Bee. I don’t see Bark. I wanted to thank him.”

As Harchen was about to turn around, Patricia, growing urgent, spoke to Bark’s subordinate.

“I’ve already invited him to the palace tomorrow, so you can do it then.”

Harchen turned sharply, jealous at seeing the disappointment on Patricia’s face.

“Look, Chief Bark is coming.”

“Harchen, stop for a moment.”

Harchen frowned but stopped and turned around.

Amidst the flying white birds, Bark approached with quick steps, brushing back his sweat-soaked bangs. Beads of sweat formed on his forehead, which had never seemed likely to hurry in his life.

He handed Patricia a bamboo basket. The basket was full of cherries.

“You seemed to like them a lot. I washed them.”

“Thank you, Bark. You’ve helped me so much. And thank you for saving my life.”

Patricia felt awkward speaking while held in Harchen’s arms.

“Ah, you said we’ve met before? When and where did we meet?”

Bark took another step closer to Patricia. Of course, this also narrowed the distance between him and Harchen, who was holding her.

Bark bowed his head and spoke in a low voice.

“At that time, you were completely undressed.”

This bastard. Harchen ground his teeth and his eyes flashed.