Chapter 14. An Unexpected Encounter
A noblewoman—her high status obvious just from her attire—was angrily confronting a man much larger than herself. Her voice was sharp with fury, and the blood staining her sword made it clear who had caused the man’s injuries.
As he listened in on the conversation, Terban quickly grasped the situation and the reason for the woman’s anger.
‘But that woman is definitely…’
Which made it all the more surprising. He had recognized her identity the moment he saw her—she was a princess of the Zebenica Empire.
The unexpected nature of the encounter only lingered for a moment. As Ellea began to voice suspicion toward Luvain, Terban naturally inserted himself into the situation and approached her.
He saw her eyes widen in shock when they met his. But he had no way of knowing the significance behind that reaction.
Ellea, who had no idea why he was here, couldn’t believe what she was seeing. Her mind screamed that he couldn’t possibly be here, yet the man standing before her was undeniably Terban.
She hadn’t prepared herself for this meeting and stood frozen, even dropping her sword, staring at him as if time had stopped.
‘How is he here?’
She even rubbed her eyes just in case, but Terban’s figure only grew clearer.
Meanwhile, upon hearing his title from Ellea’s lips, Terban also realized that she recognized him.
So instead, he took a moment to calmly observe her. Her disheveled clothes, bloodstained hands—and finally, their eyes met. Her silver eyes trembled, still in clear shock.
‘Well, I guess I did appear suddenly.’
Assuming that was the cause of her reaction, Terban stepped closer and spoke.
“You seem to know who I am, Princess Ellea of Zebenica.”
The group, startled upon realizing they had targeted a princess, became visibly uneasy. But Ellea had no attention to spare for them.
‘His Majesty is truly standing before me…’
She had expected to meet him in Luvain, but to suddenly face him here left her frozen. Terban’s voice finally broke her daze like a splash of cold water.
There was no running now.
Doing her best to keep her voice steady, Ellea finally spoke.
“Of course I recognize Your Majesty, the Emperor of Luvain. I offer my greetings—Ellea Zebenica, Princess of the Zebenica Empire. I ask your understanding for greeting you under such circumstances.”
Thanks to her effort, her gaze remained calm as she met Terban’s eyes.
“I suppose sorting out the situation takes priority over formalities,” he replied.
Following Terban’s gaze toward the group, Ellea stepped over and checked on the knights first.
“Are your injuries all right?”
“Yes. The attacker wasn’t skilled with a blade, so the wounds aren’t too deep.”
“That’s a relief.”
Reassured, she quickly moved to settle the complicated situation, giving orders to her escort knights.
“Take them to the nearest town. Use the carriage and have their injuries treated. I’ll go on from here with His Majesty.”
“We must stay and protect you until the end, Princess.”
“I’ll be fine, don’t worry. And medical treatment takes priority.”
She was concerned for the knight’s injuries. Though none of this had been planned, their wounds weren’t severe, and the journey would be manageable.
“Ask the local lord for assistance once you arrive. And…”
She looked at the worn-out captives and gave another order.
“Take their families with you. Give them a place to live and ask for employment on my behalf. If you say it’s by my order, they’ll take action.”
“Understood, Princess.”
The knights began preparing to depart as she instructed.
Terban stood a short distance away, observing every detail of how Ellea took charge. His blue eyes held a curious glint.
Meanwhile, Ellea turned back to the people about to leave and gave them one final piece of advice.
“I’m only offering you a single chance. What you do with it depends on your own effort. So live well—you have families to protect.”
“Why aren’t you punishing us? We committed a serious crime against you, Princess.”
She smiled at the man, who was standing with the help of others due to the wound she had inflicted.
“Think of it as compensation for the injury I caused. And part of the blame lies with the imperial family for the life you’ve been forced to live. Perhaps this chance could change your fate. I’m willing to bet on that possibility.”
Her words moved the man deeply, tears welling up in his eyes. He hastily wiped them away and bowed low.
“Truly… thank you. And I’m deeply sorry.”
“That’s enough. But save your apology for my knights.”
With those words, Ellea turned away from them.
The knights hesitated, still uneasy about leaving her behind, but they had no choice against her firm decision.
“And remember—today’s events must remain a secret. Just say I traveled safely.”
“Yes. Then we will take our leave, Princess. May you stay well, and we await the day we meet again.”
Ellea stood still until they disappeared from view, hoping that this unexpected opportunity would change their lives for the better.
When they were completely gone, the forest returned to stillness. Now she was truly alone with Terban.
Only now, with everything settled, did her heart begin to pound uncontrollably. She didn’t even have the courage to turn her head toward him.
Then, he broke the silence.
“Why go that far? They threatened a princess.”
“I already explained. And besides, no serious harm was done.”
“You seemed pretty furious, though.”
“You… saw that?”
Ellea was more worried he had seen her wield the sword. It wasn’t a side she wanted Terban to witness.
‘If His Majesty saw my movements, he might suspect something. I need to be careful.’
“Well, I saw the part where the princess pinned down a man and shouted at him.”
Relieved that he hadn’t seen what she feared, she quickly replied.
“I was just a little… emotional. And I also apologize for suspecting Luvain earlier.”
“No harm done. More importantly, I didn’t expect you to know how to handle a sword.”
“My skills still have a long way to go.”
She didn’t deny what he had seen. That, to Terban, was the most surprising part.
He’d never been informed that the sickly princess was trained with a sword.
In fact, her actions earlier—defending her knight—had seemed like those of a seasoned warrior.
“If I hadn’t known you were a princess, I’d have thought you were a knight.”
“I only said what came to mind from watching the knights all this time. But… where are the others? You didn’t come alone, did you?”
“The carriage and the rest of the knights are waiting at the rendezvous point.”
The fact that Terban had come alone left Ellea dumbfounded—she had assumed his retinue was nearby and had sent hers away first.
The rendezvous point was a fair distance away—not something she could walk to easily.
“Then how are we getting there? I don’t have a horse.”
Flustered, Ellea almost scolded him.
He gave her a look that said, Why are you blaming me? She was the one who sent the knights away.
“I didn’t do anything.”
“But the rendezvous point is…”
She trailed off, staring at her attire and wondering if she’d really have to walk, when Terban approached with the reins in hand and offered a solution.
“You’ll ride with me.”
“With… Your Majesty?”
“Do you have a better idea? If we delay the schedule, I’ll be in trouble too.”
Ellea didn’t have a good alternative. But the idea of riding together made her hesitate.
Still, she couldn’t refuse. If they walked, they’d never make it out of the forest before nightfall.
He could have summoned his escort, but that would’ve taken too long.
I can barely keep from collapsing right now—and I have to ride with him?
Seeing her worried expression, Terban misread it entirely.
“You don’t know how to ride? I’ll handle the reins, so you don’t need to worry.”
“That’s not the issue.”
To her, riding was as natural as breathing.
After a moment of hesitation, she made up her mind and climbed onto the horse. Terban followed, sitting behind her.
Just as she feared, the distance between them instantly vanished. Ellea leaned forward, trying to avoid touching him, and spoke without looking back.
“Let’s go. Everyone’s waiting.”
Terban looked at her once, then urged the horse forward. It galloped swiftly with the two of them riding together.
Ellea tried not to think about the man sitting behind her as the wind rushed past her face.
How did things get so tangled from the start?
Meanwhile, riding behind her, Terban caught a whiff of Ellea’s scent—light and natural, not like the artificial perfumes typical of noble ladies. Surprisingly, he didn’t dislike it.
Now that they were close, he observed her carefully. Her posture was steady—clearly, she hadn’t lied about knowing how to ride.
This princess learned swordsmanship?
Honestly, had he not seen it with his own eyes, he wouldn’t have believed it. He had assumed she was delicate and fragile, like glass.
But reality was the complete opposite.
Pretending to be sick all this time would make more sense.
And though she was said to be a cherished princess, she had barely any entourage. No maid, minimal luggage strapped to the horse—she looked more like a discarded royal than a treasured one.
But based on everything Zebenica had done so far, Terban was certain that wasn’t the case.
As soon as they returned to Luvain, he resolved to scrap everything he thought he knew about Ellea—and start a full investigation anew.
