Dimidius sent Olentia back first and quietly stared at the spot where she had been. As it was an indoor garden, there was a fragrance of flowers, but it was hard to distinguish whether it was coming from the flower bed or from Olentia who had been by his side until a moment ago. Dimidius always caught a fresh floral scent from Olentia.

“That fragrance seems to linger still.”

The reason he decided to attend this hunting competition with Olentia was because of the tears she had shown him. He had thought it would be difficult to be together for a long time, like the wish she had written on her back on the day of the masquerade, so he had given up on his feelings. But when she ran to him and shed tears in his arms, the emotions he had tried to bury welled up.

In that moment, Dimidius felt the colorless world transform into a vibrant one. All because of one person named Olentia. It was quite a special experience.

So this time, he planned to gather some courage and approach Olentia little by little. Of course, he could get hurt again. Olentia might suddenly come to her senses and leave far away. But Dimidius felt like he could handle all of that.

He took a long look at the spot where Olentia had been before rising from his seat. He had to return to his bedroom, but he already missed her again. How wonderful would it be if they could sleep together? But approaching too hastily would only lead to trouble.

Dimidius held back and returned to his bedroom.

On a day with pleasant weather.

Olentia changed into her riding clothes for the first time in a while and mounted a horse. Although she had learned horseback riding from Sokol when she was young, she hadn’t ridden a horse in a long time, so her skills must have gotten rusty. To participate in the Imperial Palace hunting competition, she had to become friendly with the horse and ride well, so she planned to practice intensively from now on.

The horse Olentia rode was a white horse. It was said to have a gentle personality, making it perfect for beginners to ride.

Today’s riding instructor was Podion. He readily accepted her request to teach her horseback riding again.

Podion watched Olentia slowly riding the horse and spoke kindly.

“When you put strength in your legs and rise, your heels lift and your legs or body go forward. So remember to keep your heels down and ride with care, my lady.”

Olentia nodded her head while bouncing her body.

“If I can’t endure it here, I’ll have to keep practicing.”

“Yes. Only when your posture is right can you match the rhythm with the horse’s movements.”

Perhaps because she hadn’t bonded enough with the horse yet, she was extremely nervous. She should have gone to the stable, picked a pretty horse, and practiced consistently. She had always ridden comfortably in a carriage, so she never thought she would ride a horse.

With this level of skill, forget participating in the Imperial Palace hunting competition; she would only be ridiculed.

As Olentia’s face hardened severely, Podion softened the atmosphere with praise.

“Your posture seems to be stabilizing, my lady. You’re doing well.”

Olentia still found it awkward to be on a horse, so she couldn’t take Podion’s words at face value. Perhaps because she was gripping the reins too tightly, even her fingers hurt. When she shook off her cramping hand, Podion stopped the horse for a moment and took Olentia’s hand.

“Excuse me for a moment, my lady. I’ll quickly release it for you.”

Podion skillfully released her hand with his large hands. When she frowned slightly from the momentary pain, he widened his eyes in surprise.

“Does it hurt?”

Olentia shook her head.

“No. It’s fine. Sir Podion’s massage feels incredibly refreshing.”

“Then that’s a relief.”

Podion, who had been fiddling with her hand, let go as if the massage was over. Olentia gripped the reins, lightly kicked the horse with her foot, and focused on horseback riding again. She had to practice hard to participate in the Imperial Palace hunting competition next week.

She didn’t want to disappoint Dimidius, who had been cold all along but asked to go together.

Only when her waist started to hurt did Olentia dismount from the horse and let out a deep sigh. The white horse that would accompany her from now on must also be tired, so it seemed like she should wrap up for today.

Olentia carefully stroked the mane of the horse that had worked hard. She was very grateful that it followed well without whining.

At that moment, Podion brought over some cut carrots. Olentia smiled, took the carrots, and fed them to the white horse.

“It’s eating well. Good boy.”

Podion stared intently at Olentia. When Olentia turned her head, feeling the gaze was a bit intense, Podion quickly bowed his head deeply.

“What? Do you have something to say to me?”

Then Podion froze like ice and only moved his lips.

“Ah, no. My lady.”

Since he said no, there was nothing more to say. Olentia returned to her room after sufficiently bonding with the white horse. She wanted to wash her body right away, perhaps because she had sweated.

When Dimidius heard the news that Olentia was practicing horseback riding at the stable, his feet unknowingly headed in that direction. He was curious if she was doing well and wanted to see her face.

However, Olentia’s horseback riding skills were quite terrible. Her skills were so poor that he thought it would be difficult for her to participate in the Imperial Palace hunting competition.

As Dimidius was watching Olentia with worry-filled eyes, suddenly Podion took Olentia’s hand and touched it as if giving a massage. Dimidius was so surprised that he almost ran to them right away.

Podion must have been trying to release Olentia’s cramped hand. But every time Podion’s hand touched Olentia’s, flames surged in Dimidius’s heart. He felt so childishly like summoning Podion right away and scolding him harshly. Even though Podion had done nothing wrong.

Dimidius trembled with his clenched fists. It was hard to endure even though he had to. In the end, he turned around and returned to the Grand Duchy. If he continued to watch, he felt like he would ruin the friendly atmosphere between the two.

When Dimidius arrived at the office, he huffed and puffed loudly. Seeing Dimidius’s agitated appearance, Killen flinched for a moment and inhaled sharply.

“Wh-what happened? Did you discover a spy inside the Grand Duchy?”

Killen thought it must be related to that since Dimidius had recently declared he would catch spies inside the Grand Duchy.

But Dimidius was engulfed in petty jealousy, so he couldn’t say a word.

During the horseback riding practice, Podion was always by her side. Even though her clumsiness must have been frustrating for him, he was always kind and gentle. Thanks to that, she was able to practice without losing courage.

And when she became able to ride a horse somewhat naturally, Olentia requested various desserts from the Grand Duchy’s pâtissier. The table in the garden full of lush plants and trees was filled with the desserts she prepared and fragrant tea.

Olentia sat Podion down and pushed a chocolate cake in front of him.

“I heard from the maids that Sir Podion likes desserts. So that’s why you received cookie gifts when you were confessed to?”

At Olentia’s words, Podion blushed.

“When managing my body, I can’t eat them often, so I occasionally enjoy them as a delicacy. I-I don’t like them that much!”

He was quite cute when flustered. How lucky would the woman be who could have a man like Podion?

Olentia smiled brightly and sipped the tea in front of her. Although it was summer, the Belial estate was rather cool compared to the geraniums, so it was fine to drink warm tea outdoors.

Podion took a bite of the chocolate cake and showed a subtle smile. He clearly liked it.

“It’s delicious, right? The pâtissier of the Grand Duchy seems to have excellent skills.”

Then Podion agreed.

“Yes. You’re right. It’s really delicious. Thank you, my lady.”

Podion ate the desserts very well along with the tea. He said he occasionally enjoyed them as a delicacy, but today seemed to be the day he let loose.

Olentia spoke slowly, blinking her eyes in the languid atmosphere.

“Now that I can ride a horse well, I’ll have to shoot arrows on horseback. That worries me too.”

Podion, who was carefully wiping his mouth, quickly stepped up.

“I will teach you that as well. Just trust me.”

Podion’s eyes sparkled unusually. Had he somehow found joy in teaching her?

As Olentia nodded with a chuckle, Dimidius approached from far away. He was walking so fast that it seemed like he had an urgent matter.

‘Wh-what?’

When the startled Olentia looked up at Dimidius, who had quickly come close, he said,

“I will teach you how to shoot arrows, my lady.”

“Could you hear me from that far away?”

Dimidius must have good ears too.

Podion politely greeted Dimidius, and Dimidius looked at Podion with slightly cold eyes.

‘What? Why is he like that?’

Olentia smiled awkwardly and said to him,

“Wouldn’t Your Highness be busy? I’m fine learning from Sir Podion.”

“I also have time to help you, my lady.”

“Ah, yes. I understand.”

Since Dimidius said so, it seemed nice to receive his help as well. Of course, the thought of being with Dimidius made her body tense up automatically, but she felt like she could pleasantly accept that tension.

Dimidius had already occupied a seat in the garden and started eating desserts. She thought he didn’t like them because he rarely touched them when desserts were served at the dinner table, so this was quite unexpected.

“Your Highness. You’re eating a lot of sweets today?”

To Olentia’s puzzled question, Dimidius sighed deeply and said,

“I know how to eat these things too.”