Aiden had no choice but to agree.

He was well aware of the Duke’s wealth, and he knew that Brody knew the Duke’s character better than he did.

However, seeing Brody so sure about the Duke made him uncomfortable.

‘I should’ve cut off his breath.’

It would have been better for Brody if that person were gone.

However, he had seen Brody’s reluctance to kill Jax.

Was her refusal to kill Jax, who had treated her so recklessly, an act of generosity? Or was it lingering affection?

Aiden, not knowing what was in Brody’s heart that rejected murder, tightened his hold around her as he sat in front of him.

The horse, which had been trotting at a leisurely pace, suddenly started running at a terrifying speed as they left the village.

It seemed that leaving Jax behind was bothering him.

To throw off Jax’s pursuit, it seemed Aiden intended to cross the Ferdan Fortress as quickly as possible.

‘Ah…’

As her body shook on the horse after being bedridden for so long, Brody felt a splitting headache.

Although Aiden held her tightly, a galloping horse was a galloping horse.

How could she expect comfort like in a car on top of it?

If it hurt whether she ran slowly or quickly, then it was better to run fast and shorten the time of pain. Holding back the pain, Brody eventually tugged on Aiden’s lapel.

“Brody…”

With a worried gaze, Aiden looked at the woman in his arms.

She couldn’t even say she needed a break, and merely nodded with her pale face.

Judging that further forced marching was impossible for the day, Aiden quickly surveyed the area and set up a small tent in a spot with good wood cover.

‘I should have killed him after all.’
Laying Brody down on a blanket and swiftly lighting a fire, Aidan heated a warm water bag and placed it against her. Clenching his teeth, he made sure his actions were unnoticeable.

Drained of energy to even stir, Brody closed her heavy eyes while watching Aidan’s brisk movements.

Boiling dried meat to create a broth that would be easy for Brody to consume, Aidan suddenly looked up at the sky.

As he blew a strange-looking flute, no sound came out, but a white dove landed on his shoulder.

It was a well-trained messenger pigeon from the North.

Although he had seen it appear multiple times while searching for him without permission, he had intentionally ignored it, not wanting to give away his current location.

Only now did Aidan summon the pigeon. He quickly wrote something on a piece of paper, tied it to the pigeon’s leg, and sent it flying.

Winter was coming to the continent.

As they ascended rapidly, the climate and vegetation noticeably changed.

As the weather grew colder, Aidan’s horse galloped faster.

However, Brody began to feel the cold and slowly pressed closer to Aidan.

Willingly, he opened his chest to her. Generating heat while driving the horse, Aidan was sufficiently warm. He removed his outer garment, letting Brody directly share his body heat.

After holding her against him, he wrapped them both in a robe to conserve body heat.

Doing so made it appear as if there was only one person riding the horse; Brody was barely visible.

Still, Aidan regretted not bringing windproof clothing, despite not being susceptible to the cold.

Brody lowered her eyebrows, watching Aidan who was doing everything he could for her and still seemed uneasy.

“I’m sorry, Your Highness.”

“Why apologize? You’ve done nothing wrong.”

“…”

“I’m not struggling at all. Didn’t I come down from the Northern fortress like this before? There’s no difference now. Why are you sorry?”

Brody didn’t respond, but simply smiled weakly.

‘Back then, I was participating in Your Highness’ matters, not mine.’

She had accepted his goodwill without concern since she was assisting him, not the other way around.

But now, because of her situation, she had to accept his goodwill. There was no other way.

Accustomed to standing alone and fully responsible for herself since her past life, Brody found it odd to accept such unconditional goodwill.

Layers of indebtedness built up in a corner of her heart.

Suppressing her uneasy feelings, she once again sank into the darkness.

How long had they been running?

The sound of hooves hitting the ground snapped Brody back to reality.

Glimpsing at the sky tinged with yellow and deep red, it appeared the sun was beginning to set.

She squirmed, trying to lift her body and looked around.

The horse carrying Aidan and Brody walked on a neatly arranged stone path.

The stone path was built higher than other places, allowing a panoramic view of the surrounding scenery.

‘What is this sound and smell…?’

Glancing around, Brody was stunned when her eyes met the landscape she had anticipated.