Before he could properly grasp the situation, an arrowhead lodged into his leg. Taeran let out a scream as he clutched his leg in burning pain.

Startled by its master’s loud voice, the horse reared and threw him to the ground. Taeran blinked through the pain as he tumbled onto the dirt. He saw the king dismounting and walking towards him at an angle.

Noticing the dagger in the young man’s hand, Taeran crawled away from him. It was an instinctive movement.

However, the king’s foot stepped on him before he could put enough distance between them. The riding boot pressed down on his drenched back, wet with pain and fear.

With his foot on Taeran’s back, the king grabbed his neck. The man leaned down and whispered softly.

“I’m quite lucky to be able to cut off your mouth and hands before they touch Ophelia, aren’t I?”

But Idren realized it was a belated statement.

In the previous life, Taeran Rohos’ mouth and hands had already touched Ophelia. He had killed him too easily without knowing that.

Irritation rose towards the man who made him do such a pathetic thing when opportunities to look good in front of her were already rare.

As he pondered how to handle the opponent to meet Ophelia’s standards, Taeran mumbled.

“If, if you do this to me, Prince Mahanas won’t stay still.”

“Mahanas?”

The king, who had repeated the name, lowered his head towards him. Realizing that he had reacted to the Leden prince’s name, Taeran hurriedly nodded.

The young man, who had been staring down at him, slightly tilted his head.

“You know what? Ophelia dislikes that prince.”

And the king shifted his posture as if he would not allow him even the slightest movement. The sturdy knee pressed heavily on his back.

Even in the shadowed face, the gleaming golden eyes curved. Taeran read a sharp anger in his smile.

Still gripping his neck, the king spoke.

“And one more thing, it seems you dislike him too.”

The hand covered in a riding leather glove slowly brushed down his shoulder and arm. A chill ran down his spine at the light movement. The singing voice continued, sounding refreshing amidst it all.

“I heard somewhere that spouses should have similar tastes for a smooth married life.”

The young man whispered. The things Ophelia dislikes, I’m not too fond of either. Isn’t that fortunate?

It was a voice that sounded gentle enough to be kind, even in the face of death.

Soon after, his thumb was bent backward. Taeran screamed in pain as the bone broke. The king, looking at him with cold eyes, twirled the dagger in his hand once. Taeran realized it was the hand movement just before dressing the game.

As Taeran struggled in despair, the king grabbed the back of his head. The face distorted with fear was shoved into the dirt. Only then did the forest become quiet.

Netepel seemed pleased to see a friend after a long time, as he talked a lot throughout the meal.

Ophelia was familiar with that attitude. He often did that in the previous life too. When they ate together, he focused more on conversation than food.

Fortunately, it was also Netepel who led the conversation.

Ophelia gave short responses to what he said while nibbling. Even with her short answers, Netepel, who had been going on about memories from their much younger days, asked.

“Is the food not to your liking?”

“No, the food is fine. I just ate not long ago.”

And Ophelia thought this social interaction was a bit tiring. Netepel was an old friend, so she had to treat him kindly, but she had forgotten how to be nice to others for quite some time now.

If it had been Idren in front of her, she would have just done as she pleased. The thought suddenly occurred to her.

Although she wasn’t close with Idren, he was consistent no matter how she acted. He didn’t say anything even when she broke things or threw a basin.

Thinking about that neglect or tolerance, whatever it was, Ophelia looked down at the plate. Neatly sliced southern fruits were placed there.

It was then that Netepel asked again.

“What are you thinking about?”

“…I wasn’t thinking about anything in particular.”

“I thought you would come with your fiancé today.”

“Something came up, so he told me to go alone.”

At that, Netepel tilted his head slightly. The young man’s sparkling golden hair flowed down smoothly.

Seeing that, Ophelia thought the hair grown long to the waist suited him well. Perhaps it was because his facial features were soft and beautiful.

Looking at her askew, Netepel asked.

“Are you tired?”

“Not a lot, just a little.”

Even though she had slept soundly, she was fatigued. Ophelia knew that fatigue was like her own skin. Tiredness had been with her since the previous life.

The tip of her nose tingled. Ophelia put down the utensils and yawned softly. Netepel suggested to her.

“Then let’s stop eating and watch a play?”

“A play?”

“Yes, I prepared a shadow play.”

Netepel added with a bright smile that she could sit on a comfortable chair and rest while watching the play.

Looking at her friend’s white and beautiful face, Ophelia nodded. Okay.

The play was prepared at the back of the ship. Netepel guided her into a small tent set up there. It was a tent made of thick cloth to better appreciate the play that used light and shadow.

Since the tent was narrow, only one of Netepel’s attendants followed them inside.

Entering the tent, Ophelia sat on a large, long chair. The chair was plush, as Netepel had said.

Netepel sat next to her and gestured to the attendant. The attendant brought a blanket made of soft silk. Receiving the blanket, Netepel covered Ophelia with it.

Fidgeting with the soft cloth on her knees, Ophelia thought of the men’s outer garment that had been wrapped around her shoulders yesterday. The blanket was softer than that but cold.

Soon, the play began with soft music.

The play started in a small village.

There was one cursed boy in the village, and only one girl showed him kindness.

The villagers warned the girl not to associate with the boy. The girl did not listen to them, and the villagers threw stones at her.

Unable to bear seeing the girl, his only friend, being endangered because of him, the boy secretly left the village one night.

On a long and arduous journey, the boy crossed a river filled with stones, climbed a mountain blazing with flames, and even flew in a sky where everything was frozen.

At the end of the journey, the boy’s curse was lifted, and he gained treasures and talents as rewards for his adventure.

The boy, who had grown remarkably handsome to the point where his old, insignificant appearance was no longer visible, returned to the village where the girl who had helped him lived.

The village where the girl lived had been occupied by a black dragon in the meantime.

The black dragon stayed near the village and exploited it, and the villagers offered sacrifices to the dragon. The girl, whose circumstances were not very good then or now, became a sacrifice.

Hearing that the girl had been offered as a sacrifice to the black dragon, the boy went to rescue his friend. The talents he had gained during his adventure helped him achieve his goal.

Finally, after slaying the black dragon, the boy confessed his love to the girl.

When the black silhouette on the small stage knelt down, Netepel leaned his head towards her shoulder and whispered.

“I wanted to show you a shadow play.”

Ophelia remembered that he had often said similar things in the previous life. Netepel said this whenever he did something for her.

It’s not that she wasn’t grateful for his sentiment, but it was also true that it wasn’t new since she had heard it many times. Without taking her eyes off the play, Ophelia nodded roughly. Netepel smiled slightly and added.

“It’s not an empty promise. Ever since you said Haslen showed you a play a long time ago…”

And he closed his mouth. He seemed to have recalled that the owner of that name was no longer in this world.

Watching the girl happily accept the boy’s proposal, Ophelia reminisced about a time that had now become a long-ago past.

From the time he was still a young boy, Haslen always sent her white shoes and a blue dress on her birthday. Ophelia would wear those clothes and go to meet him.

Then Haslen would provide her with a special experience that would become a memory.

One of them was a play made with shadows.

Ophelia narrowed her brows slightly to recall the content of the play. It was then that Netepel, who had been silent, continued.

“…I heard the news that Haslen died. I conveyed it in a letter too, but… I think it’s a truly sad thing.”

At those words, Ophelia was reminded that in his time, Haslen’s death was not something that had happened long ago.

Separate from the memories she had with Haslen being precious, his death was quite an old event for Ophelia. The man who had kissed her lips, held her hand, and shared a room with her was not Haslen.

She did not receive the golden osmanthus oath, but instead recited the marriage vows in the northern castle.

It would probably be the same in this life too.

All of that was so natural to her that Ophelia was a little taken aback when she heard Netepel’s words. It had been so long since the loss she experienced was mentioned so vividly.

Of course, Haslen’s death was an unparalleled sorrow in her life.

But the overflowing grief that seemed to cover everything now flowed calmly. Instead, what boiled and moved her were the desire for revenge and anger.

The three years that had been the most passionate period in her life were erased for him now.

As Ophelia thought about the difference between the future friend and the current him, Netepel spoke to her.

“…I heard the news of your engagement.”

At that, Ophelia unknowingly added inwardly. I even got married.

But those words did not come out of her mouth, and her unfamiliar yet old friend said something he had never said in the previous life.

“If you want, I’ll help you run away.”