#34
“…Anture…”
“Yes, Enrique.”
Anture replied with joyful eyes. Enrique waved his hand dismissively at him.
“Go back to your country now. I’ll return to the castle with the people who came to meet me. I don’t want to see your face right now, so leave quickly. Go on, get out of here.”
At Enrique’s weary dismissal, Anture’s face immediately hardened. His expressionless face exuded a strong pressure that Enrique had never felt from him before. Enrique furrowed his brow at this sudden change. He didn’t like feeling pressured by someone so much younger than himself.
Anture’s hardened expression didn’t last long. He soon relaxed his face and gently embraced Enrique.
“I’m not going. I can’t go. We’re getting married soon anyway. I’ll be by your side until we marry, and even after that.”
“Hey…”
“Do you know how much I’ve missed you since I left like that? Do you know how anxiously I waited for a reply every time I sent you a letter, how heartbroken I was when not a single reply ever came? Even though you were so cold, I wanted to rush to Shamier dozens of times a day because I missed you so much. But I held back. I didn’t want to appear small and young in front of you, I wanted to stand before you as a proud man… I endured for years dreaming of this day, and now that it’s finally here, how can I leave you again?”
Anture’s husky baritone was so sweet it seemed like honey would drip from it. But Enrique, still filled with unexpressed anger, roughly pushed him away.
“I don’t even have the energy to be angry, so just leave quickly. If you want to be with me, come back for the wedding. Then, whether I like it or not, I’ll be with you.”
The smile disappeared from Anture’s face as he was pushed away. He stared at Enrique silently with an expressionless face. Just being stared at by those pitch-black eyes devoid of expression and emotion was chilling. Enrique finally realized it then. This boy, no, this young man before him was indeed the alpha who had inherited the Ruben Emperor’s blood most strongly.
Of course, that didn’t mean he was going to yield easily. Enrique glared at Anture as if to say, “What are you going to do?” Seeing that Enrique showed no signs of backing down, Anture suddenly let out a faint sigh.
The pressure that had been enveloping Enrique’s entire body suddenly disappeared. Just as Enrique was inwardly relieved—
Whoosh-!
His body suddenly floated into the air. Anture had picked up Enrique, who was tightly wrapped in the cloak.
“Hey…!”
Just as Enrique was about to protest, Anture approached the cabin door and kicked the shabby door hard.
Bang-!
With one kick, the door came off completely and fell outside. Anture walked steadily out through the now open doorway and shouted loudly.
“Come here and escort Lord Enrique!”
Anture’s voice echoed through the quiet winter forest. Then, from the forest where only snow-covered trees had been visible, a group of people appeared and began running towards the cabin.
“Shit.”
Enrique cursed, thinking about his predicament of being naked, wrapped tightly in a cloak, and dangling in someone’s arms. He wanted to punch Anture in the face right then and there. But now wasn’t the time. Enrique tried to maintain a calm expression as he watched the familiar faces rapidly approaching.
“Your Highness-!”
The first to rush forward was none other than Pol. He ran towards Enrique with a face pale from the cold.
“Pol? Why are you here?”
Enrique asked with a bewildered face.
“When Your Highness went missing, who else but the head servant would come running?!”
Pol shouted. His eyes quickly turned red as emotions welled up.
“What about your wife? Isn’t it about time for the baby to be born? How can you be here?”
When Enrique asked worriedly, Pol finally wiped his eyes with his sleeve and said,
“The baby has already been born. The day after Your Highness left for the hunt, she gave birth to a beautiful daughter. I was holding my daughter, overjoyed, when I heard the news that Your Highness had gone missing, so I came running immediately.”
After saying this, Pol glanced at Anture with slightly reproachful eyes.
“I was so worried when I heard about the wolves… But now this…”
Pol trailed off, unable to finish his thought.
Enrique looked away from Pol and surveyed his surroundings. About a dozen knights and even more soldiers were positioned around them. The figure standing at the very front caught his eye immediately. It was Damiel, standing with a pale face, bandages wrapped tightly around his arms, legs, and chest.
“Count Persi!”
Enrique called out happily. At Enrique’s call, Damiel walked over steadily and knelt on one knee.
“I am relieved to see you safe like this. I will accept punishment back at the castle for failing in my duty as a guard knight to safely escort Your Highness.”
Deep guilt could be felt in Damiel’s voice. Enrique couldn’t even imagine how much despair and guilt Damiel must have felt during the time Enrique was missing.
“Are the other knights and soldiers alright?”
Enrique asked, deliberately using a businesslike tone.
“Yes, they all returned safely. There were some injuries, but none severe.”
“I see. That’s good.”
Enrique felt deeply relieved inside.
“Except for the forces needed to escort Your Highness, everyone else has returned to the royal castle. The King is deeply worried. We should hurry back.”
Damiel said. Then Pol unpacked a bundle he had been carrying on his back. Inside the bundle were Enrique’s clean new clothes, neatly folded.
“Please prepare to return to the castle. I will assist you.”
Pol said this while glancing at Anture. It was a signal to put Enrique down quickly. But Anture, still holding Enrique, snatched the bundle from Pol’s hands. Then, before Pol could react, he strode back into the cabin.
“What are you doing?”
Enrique asked irritably.
“I’ll dress you.”
Anture replied casually. Anger surged again. But it wouldn’t be a good look to quarrel with the Ruben prince in front of the knights and soldiers.
Anture carefully set Enrique down in a corner of the cabin, out of sight from outside. Then he removed the cloak wrapped tightly around Enrique’s body. As he was about to completely remove the cloak, Enrique’s hands tensed involuntarily. But given the situation, showing embarrassment would serve no purpose. Enrique finally surrendered himself to Anture.
The cold air of the winter forest hit his skin as the cloak came off. Enrique frowned. Fortunately, Anture was not clumsy in dressing Enrique. His hands were so deft and quick that it didn’t take long for Enrique to be fully clothed.
“You’re good at this.”
Enrique blurted out, watching Anture meticulously adjust his clothes. Anture gave a faint eye-smile.
“I practiced imagining dressing you someday. Fortunately, I got the hang of it quickly. I’m glad I practiced in advance, since I got to use it right away when we met.”
‘Why would you practice dressing someone when you’re not even a servant? And you’re a prince, for goodness’ sake.’
Enrique grumbled inwardly. His mouth twitched, wanting to say something, but he held back.
After confirming that his attire was perfect, Enrique composed his expression. It was time to return to being the prince of Shamier again.
Enrique kept nodding off in the carriage returning to the castle. His whole body felt languid and unbearable. Eventually, Pol offered him a cushion and suggested he lie down. Enrique didn’t refuse and fell into a deep sleep with his head on the cushion.
Enrique slept sweetly without dreaming. If Pol hadn’t carefully woken him, he might have slept through the entire night. When he opened his eyes to Pol’s voice, the carriage was already entering the royal castle.
When he pulled back the curtain covering the window, he saw Anture riding a horse right next to the carriage. Alertly sensing Enrique’s gaze, he immediately turned his head to look at the carriage window. When their eyes met, a faint smile spread across his face.
Anture, who had just become a young adult, was, though Enrique hated to admit it, truly a handsome and beautiful male that one couldn’t take their eyes off. Intimate acts he had shared with Anture flashed through Enrique’s mind. Just recalling them made a deep part of his body throb.
‘Is this what sex with an alpha is like?’
Enrique thought, leaning back against the seat. He remembered how his friends who had married earlier had gone on and on about how betas and alphas were as different as heaven and earth. He had just listened indifferently then, but indeed, it was clearly different enough to warrant such fuss.
‘This isn’t good.’
Enrique muttered to himself inwardly.
