Her physical condition had definitely improved.

Whether it was due to resting well or the antagonist prescribed by the doctor, Ludmila’s complexion had cleanly returned when she opened her eyes in the morning.

She could feel that her body was lighter and her mind clearer than before.

While she should have felt good about this, Ludmila couldn’t.

The fact that her condition had improved meant the medicine was effective, which in turn meant the doctor’s diagnosis of poisoning was not wrong.

Someone had tried to kill her.

The fact that it wasn’t Kedilen but a third party dampened Ludmila’s mood.

And the thought that this third party might be Emma had been haunting her persistently for days, tearing her up inside.

“Haa-.”

Ludmila let out a long sigh full of complexity.

The plan distorted by Emma’s letter had darkened her eyes. But she believed it would get better soon.

If the letters sent to Emma and newspaper editor Dexter arrived on time, things should wrap up without any problems.

Unlike others, Dexter, who had received help when the newspaper was in danger, wouldn’t carelessly handle the debt he owed her. He would definitely give it top priority.

So there was no need to worry like this.

Of course, she didn’t think enduring 4 months here would be entirely easy, but she didn’t expect it to be this difficult.

Ludmila, who had closed and opened her eyes from fatigue, immediately turned her body.

Her mind was complicated, but a promise was a promise. Beressa was waiting. This came first for now.

After organizing her thoughts, Ludmila left the room.

“You came?”

Beressa greeted her while leading a huge horse out of the stable.

Ludmila, who was adjusting her outfit, widened her eyes at the imposing presence of the massive black stallion.

It was a natural reaction for Ludmila, who had never seen such a large horse even in the capital.

“Is that your horse, Beressa? You ride an incredibly large horse.”

Usually, the horses ridden by noble ladies and women were not such massive and majestic stallions.

First and foremost, the horse’s coat color was important, and secondly, the mane was key. Riding for noblewomen was mainly about showing an elegant appearance.

At first glance, Beressa also seemed to be a noblewoman with a burning beauty.

Naturally expecting her to ride quite an elegant horse, Ludmila cleared her throat in embarrassment at her own prejudice.

“No? It’s Ludmila’s horse.”

“Pardon?”

However, that embarrassment instantly dissipated thanks to Beressa’s answer.

Surprised, Ludmila asked back with eyes even wider than when she had seen the horse earlier.

“My horse, you say?”

“Yes. The stable keeper said Aden gave it for you to ride here. By the way, it’s unexpected. This horse, I’ve never ridden it myself as Aden cherishes it greatly.”

Beressa, stroking the horse’s mane, turned her head with a gentle smile.

Seeing Ludmila’s eyes filled with confusion, Beressa let out a small chuckle as if she understood completely.

“Were you surprised because it’s too big?”

“Yes… I don’t think it’s a suitable horse for me to ride. Isn’t there another horse? Even a small one would be fine.”

“There are, but I wouldn’t particularly recommend them. The horses raised grazing in the Send Highlands are all fierce and proud. In that regard, Rubik is perfect for Ludmila.”

“Rubik?”

“His name. It means ‘the wise one’ in the Kan language. I’ll tell you why, so come here.”

As Beressa lightly beckoned with her hand, Ludmila made a strange face.

No matter how brave Ludmila was, approaching a horse taller than herself was frightening.

As she hesitated due to instinctive fear, Beressa came over, gently grasped her shoulder, and led her.

“Beressa, I’m fine. So…”

“Shh-, quiet.”

Beressa, putting a finger to her lips, cut off Ludmila’s words with a grin.

Having somehow led Ludmila in front of the horse, Beressa took her hand and slowly brought it to the black horse’s mane.

The soft mane touched between Ludmila’s fingers, which were pale with slight fear.

The mane, which she thought would be coarse, was as soft as any silk and also warm.

“Prrrrr-.”

“Mmph…!”

The horse, which had been quiet, stirred its body just as she was feeling a strange sensation while stroking its mane.

As Ludmila, startled, swallowed the scream that was about to burst between her tightly closed lips, Beressa let out a soft laugh.

“It’s okay. You don’t need to be scared. He likes your touch, that’s why.”

“This, this is liking it?”

“Yes. I told you, didn’t I? This one will suit you well. He’s a horse that understands his master’s words. He’ll never drop or frighten his master.”

“But…”

“Right, Rubik?”

“Prrrr-.”

As if to give assurance to the hesitant Ludmila, Beressa addressed the horse, and remarkably, Rubik nodded once.

The horse rolled its beautiful black eyes, slowly lowered its body, and then sat comfortably in place as if inviting her to mount, looking at Ludmila.

Feeling an indescribably complex emotion at the sight, Ludmila bit her lip.

“Rubik has given permission for you to ride on his back. Hurry and get on.”

“…Is it really okay?”

“Don’t worry, I’ll catch you if anything happens. Though you won’t fall, of course.”

Where on earth did that confidence and certainty come from?

Ludmila stared intently at Beressa, who was pushing her back saying not to worry, and then sighed.

Having seen the horse lower its body inviting her to mount, she couldn’t refuse. And above all, it was a horse Aden had personally gifted to her.

Though Ludmila herself didn’t know when he had given her such a gift, that man wouldn’t have recommended a horse that would harm her.

Ludmila nodded briefly, then mounted Rubik and grasped the reins.

As Rubik stood up following Beressa’s gesture, her view gradually rose until she could easily reach the stable’s ceiling.

“…”

Swallowing hard, Ludmila gripped the reins tightly, worried that Rubik might drop her.

“Looks like we’re all set.”

Beressa, who had mounted her horse in the meantime, grinned and took the lead.

“I’ll move first. Rubik, follow well.”

Rubik nodded instead of whinnying and began to move, following Beressa who went ahead.

‘This is…’

As the speed gradually picked up and Rubik’s movements flowed through her entire body, Ludmila could understand why Aden had gifted her this horse, and why Beressa had said this horse was suitable for her.

Even as the speed increased, the movement was neither uncomfortable nor excessive.

It felt as comfortable as riding in a luxury carriage rather than being on horseback.

As the tension gradually eased and she relaxed, Ludmila looked down at Rubik.

The beautifully flowing black mane suddenly reminded her of someone’s black hair.

At that sight, she reflexively reached out to stroke the mane, and with a pleasant “Prrrrrr!” neigh, Rubik’s speed gradually increased.

She followed behind Beressa, who was galloping quickly in the refreshing wind rushing past.

For that moment, galloping through the vast landscape of the wide plains, all the distracting thoughts floating in Ludmila’s mind disappeared.

The sound of hooves striking the earth rang in her ears.

Ludmila thought she understood why Aden had gifted her this horse.

Horseback riding was the most excellent way to clear away useless worries and concerns.

“How was it?”

As soon as Aden came out of the auditorium, Benjamin immediately approached.

Rolling his eyes slightly, Aden merely raised the corner of his mouth in a smirk instead of answering, then quickly moved on.

“Seems the esteemed members of parliament were being quite troublesome again.”

Benjamin, who had caught up beside the rapidly departing Aden, drawled out his words.

It wasn’t anything new. Every year at this time, they would summon Aden, pressure him with all sorts of words both relevant and irrelevant, and then conclude by saying they would ‘keep watching.’

Even Benjamin, who thought he had become somewhat accustomed to seeing those who prattled on about how they were showing such interest and saying these things for Havertz’s sake, and how benevolent they were, couldn’t help but feel disgusted.

Benjamin silently stood by his friend, who seemed to want to maintain silence, his mouth tightly shut. After leaving the imperial palace by carriage, Aden got off at the square.

“I’ll take you to the townhouse.”

“It’s fine. I want to walk.”

Benjamin furrowed his brow at Aden’s unfamiliarly cynical response.

Every year when there was an audit, Aden would get furiously angry. Once, he had even broken a door, causing Benjamin trouble in dealing with it.

Yet today, he was quietly maintaining silence.

Though Benjamin wondered what change of heart had caused this, he couldn’t pry into it now.

“More importantly, assign some people.”

“People? To whom?”

“To Duke Erdi and his elder sister, the Countess.”

The thick scent of drugs emanating from the aide was exactly the same as the scent he had smelled when giving Ludmila artificial respiration.

He definitely thought there must be something.

Benjamin felt puzzled by the abrupt order, but sensing that further questions wouldn’t yield answers, he simply nodded silently before getting back into the carriage.

Aden watched the departing carriage with his eyes after the farewell, then turned around.

Though he had entered the imperial palace early in the morning, upon leaving, a red carpet was spread across the western sky.

A faint smile crossed Aden’s lips as he silently gazed at that beautiful color. For some time now, his gaze would follow whenever he saw the color red.

And he had no intention of denying that the reason was Ludmila’s eyes.

On a larger scale, a clue to resolving internal family issues had appeared.

As he had boldly declared, Ludmila was strictly keeping to the contract she had spoken of.

Certainly, it was true that he had been greatly troubled because of it, but the decisive reason he could maintain his composure was ultimately Ludmila.

Going round and round, the name that formed like a reward before his eyes brought calmness.

Even when anger rose at the nonsense of the powerful, if the image of her smiling gently towards him appeared, his fury would gradually subside.

Was that smile contagious or something? Though it was hard to believe, Aden readily admitted it. His attitude had changed because of Ludmila’s presence.

Aden lowered his gaze, closing his tired eyes as he exhaled slowly.

Just then, a flower shop bathed in the sunset suddenly caught his eye. His steps moving towards that scene dyed in red felt entirely natural.

“Welcome.”

A young employee organizing potted plants inside responded with a smile.

She quickly rolled her eyes, examining Aden.

The unfamiliar posture of someone who seemed to be here for the first time, and the awkward expression to boot.

The employee, quickly grasping the situation, approached with a gentle smile.

“Are you looking for flowers to gift your wife?”

At the calm question, Aden’s eyes, which had been looking at the neatly arranged flowers, wavered like a buoy caught in gentle waves.