~Chapter 16~
“Well, anyway, it’s gonna take around 4 hours to get to the Cheloti estate, so you might as well get some rest.”
“Wow, thanks for the consideration. I’ll try to get some sleep then. Ugh, I really overdid it last night.”
Jin lightly tapped the window shut with his finger and stretched dramatically before turning back toward me from where he’d been facing the coachman.
He slumped comfortably in his seat, glanced at me, and gave a cheeky smile.
“Why don’t you take a nap too, my lady? No one’s watching anyway—no need to sit up so stiff like that~.”
He started whistling and joking around.
I just stared at him.
“Ah, is there something you want to say?”
“How can you trust that coachman enough to sleep?”
At that, Jin smirked and raised the corner of his mouth crookedly.
“Man, you’re so uptight.”
He waved it off like it was no big deal.
“Not that I was actually planning to sleep either.”
He gave a sharp whistle, sat up straighter, and looked me in the eye. His blue eyes had a strange, sharp glint.
“I figured you seemed tense since yesterday, so I thought if I acted like it was nothing, you might relax a bit. But clearly, that was a miscalculation?”
He smiled again, like he was really enjoying this. It felt like he was watching a funny show. What’s with that attitude?
“Obviously, I already looked into the coachman. That’s why I can be so chill, my lady.”
“Oh, so what? The Estella estate didn’t check their coachmen properly and that’s why you guys got jumped by the Red Scorpions?”
His face instantly froze at my comment.
I must’ve hit a nerve because he raked a hand through his hair and his lips twitched as he replied.
“…Ahem! Even monkeys fall from trees sometimes, alright? And that time was… unavoidable. There were circumstances, okay?”
His thick eyebrows twitched.
“And even if the Red Scorpions are infamous, their small fry goons are nothing I can’t handle. I’m not at the top of the business for nothing. Don’t believe me?”
He leaned in close and pointed at his face.
“Just look at this face. Doesn’t it make you feel a sudden rush of trust? Huh?”
“…”
I calmly reached out and pushed his face away.
Clearly, he knew he was good-looking and used it shamelessly.
“What does your face have to do with trust? Anyway, from what you’re saying, the coachman’s safe, right?”
Jin sat with his legs spread, looking a bit annoyed, and leaned forward to whisper to me.
“He’s got no suspicious recent activity, and more importantly, he’s got a wife and two daughters.”
He snapped his fingers with a grin.
“Having a family makes it way less likely they’ll be up to shady stuff. Especially with two daughters. Unless he’s suddenly buried in debt or something.”
He chuckled, leaned back against the wall, and rested his head on his hands.
“Anyway, don’t worry. My lady. Unless we’re in a ‘fight 100 vs 1’ kind of deal, even if orcs suddenly pop out on the road, I’ll just—”
Right then, the carriage jolted hard.
I stopped watching his little stand-up show and looked out the window.
Somehow, we’d entered a forest path, and it had gotten noticeably darker.
Jin, who’d been all cheerful and joking, suddenly tensed up.
“…”
Without a word, he tapped on the window to the driver’s seat.
Then he looked straight at me.
A few seconds later, his brows furrowed deeply.
A chill ran up my spine.
I moved slightly to check what was going on, and Jin immediately leaned toward me.
He gently covered my mouth with one big hand, and I instinctively held my breath.
Cold sweat started trickling down my back.
‘What the hell? What’s happening?!’
I just rolled my eyes in panic while Jin stayed still, hand still on my mouth.
He looked me dead in the eye and signaled me to stay silent, slowly pulling a sword from his waist.
He pulled me into his arms, as if shielding me, and closed his eyes like he was trying to sense something.
His expression twisted slightly—then without hesitation, he suddenly rammed the sword through the window.
“KIEEEEEEEK!”
A horrifying shriek I’d never heard before rang out. Something thumped and hit the ground, and something wet splattered against the wall.
Thwack.
The sword came back inside, now dripping with thick green goo.
It didn’t take much to guess what had just happened.
Jin looked completely unfazed, like this was all routine.
Meanwhile, I was frozen in panic.
A monster? Of course I’d never seen one.
I was just a noble lady who barely attended some banquets—how would I know what monsters looked like?
‘A monster? Near the Reton Church territory? Why?!’
I struggled not to panic.
My muscles were stiff, and I couldn’t move well, but I forced myself to act calm.
Damn it.
What’s the point of being from a mage family if I never learned any useful magic?
All I know is how to make potatoes and corn grow faster.
I should’ve learned attack spells when I had the chance!
While I was off in useless thoughts, Jin flipped the sword around and stabbed it up into the ceiling.
CRACK! The carriage groaned, and another screech rang out.
“KERURK!”
Then—BAM!—a giant eyeball slammed against a crack in the broken wall.
It was the size of a fist, bloodshot and staring straight at me. I felt goosebumps all over.
“KERUK! KEK! KEKKEK!”
Creepy laughter echoed from all around the carriage.
The moment that monster and I locked eyes, a huge, hot hand came down over my face.
Thud.
SPLAT.
Jin removed his hand again.
I was shaking like crazy and glanced down at the floor of the carriage.
Red liquid was seeping through a crack in the wooden floorboards.
“…”
My mind went completely blank.
A flood of thoughts rushed in.
Why? Why now? Sure, this place isn’t the safest, but we’re still near the Reton Church’s territory—it’s supposed to be patrolled.
Why do things like this keep happening to me? First at the Estella estate, now here?
Was I too naïve to think I could just go look for the male lead like it was nothing? I mean, it’s just one kid—did I really need to risk this much?
I finally understood what it felt like to have death breathing down your neck.
It was like someone had dumped ice water on my head.
Reality.
Yeah, I finally got it.
I’d been way too clueless.
Even if I thought this class system was dumb, disgusting, and unfair, I was still someone who grew up cushy within it.
After a few minutes, everything went quiet again.
I was still frozen, staring at the blood soaking into the floor.
“…”
I had nothing to say. I didn’t know what to do.
Meanwhile, Jin calmly slid open the door and peeked out.
After glancing around, he turned to me and held out his hand.
“Let’s go.”
“…”
I looked up at him in silence.
“There’s no need to be so shocked. Stuff like this happens all the time in remote areas.”
He really looked like he meant it—totally used to it.
“We need to move before the blood draws more of them. Sorry about the coachman, but we don’t have time to mourn. Come now.”
He must’ve seen me staring at the puddle of blood.
He held out his hand further, urging me to take it.
His leather gloves looked unnecessarily expensive.
“My lady?”
I bit my lip and grabbed his hand as hard as I could.
It probably didn’t feel that strong since my body was still stiff.
My throat burned from how dry it was.
I swallowed hard and forced my legs to move.
Jin must’ve noticed I was totally freaked out, because he quickly wrapped his arm around my waist to support me.
