Chapter 10: A Moment of Vulnerability

Iris felt the sensation in her sword hand fading.

Yet, she gripped the sword tighter, as if it were a lifeline, gritting her teeth.

‘This isn’t enough.’

It felt as hopeless as searching for an answer to an unsolvable problem, but she couldn’t give up.

No, she hadn’t learned how to give up. She couldn’t give up.

The hilt of her sword was soaked with her sweat and blood, a gruesome sight, but no one could stop her.

She swung her sword again, carving another arc in the air.

The whoosh of displaced air was accompanied by a spatter of blood and sweat, leaving small marks on the ground. Such marks surrounded her.

Wincing at the pain in her hand, Iris raised her arm again.

But it stopped, trembling, as if blocked by something.

She couldn’t lift it any further. She saw a pale hand gripping hers. She looked up to see who dared to stop her.

“Stop it.”

“…Evrys.”

Evrys’s eyes, filled with concern, met hers. It was the last face Iris wanted to see right now.

“This is nothing.”

Iris tried to steady her trembling hand, feigning composure.

Seeing her tremble, Evrys sighed.

“Let’s go.”

“Where?”

“Anywhere but here…”

Evrys pulled Iris’s hand.

Her abused hand screamed in protest, but Iris didn’t show it.

Or so she thought.

“…Sorry. That must hurt.”

“…”

Iris opened her mouth to say it was fine, but no sound came out, as if something was stuck in her throat.

Evrys led her to an unexpected place.

“Did you take care of what I asked?”

“Of course. But are you sure about this?”

“…Probably.”

“…”

“Why did you bring me here?”

Evrys, exchanging glances with the knight who had approached her, replied.

“We’re going out.”

“Now?”

Evrys nodded silently. Iris didn’t know what she was thinking, but she had her father’s orders, so she had to comply.

The knight, watching them with a complicated expression, bowed to Iris and left.

“I’ll trust your judgment since you have orders… No, never mind. I’ll excuse myself.”

Only a single horse, Evrys, and Iris remained.

“You know how to ride?”

“Probably.”

“Probably…?”

“I have a feeling I can.”

“If you say so. But why only one horse? It’s not like we don’t have others.”

“How are you going to hold the reins with those hands?”

“I can manage.”

Evrys shook her head, placed her foot in the stirrup, and easily mounted the horse.

Thanks to her enhanced physical abilities, she didn’t embarrass herself, but it still looked somewhat awkward.

Evrys on horseback was a picturesque sight, yet it felt strangely out of place.

After watching her for a moment, Iris gave up and mounted behind Evrys.

Held in Iris’s embrace, Evrys hesitated briefly, then, as if familiar with the action, took the reins and urged the horse forward.

“…Shouldn’t I be the one holding the reins?”

“Just hold on tight.”

“Hold on… is a bit…”

“What?”

“Nothing.”

Unable to change Evrys’s mind, Iris held on, focusing on keeping her balance. Contrary to her concerns and Evrys’s vague answer, Evrys handled the horse quite skillfully.

‘Come to think of it, it makes sense. If she can handle a sword like that, riding a horse should be easy.’

Iris looked up from Evrys’s back, held within her arms.

Observing the passing scenery, she realized where Evrys was heading. It was a place she remembered.

“So, where are we going?”

“…I wonder.”

“Is that a secret too?”

“Yes.”

Noticing the backpack attached to the horse’s saddle, Iris guessed Evrys’s destination.

“Turn right here.”

“Huh? Oh…?”

“You’re going to where the cyclamens bloom, aren’t you?”

“How did you know?”

“…” ‘That’s where Mother and I often visited. I had forgotten.’

“There’s nowhere around here I don’t know.”

“Really? That’s unexpected.”

“What is?”

“I didn’t think you’d be interested in such things…”

“Knowing the surrounding terrain is essential.”

“I see.”

The words that came out weren’t the ones she wanted to say.

There was no one left to listen to her vulnerable whispers.

So she didn’t want to show weakness in front of this small girl. She didn’t want this small girl, who she could crush in her arms, to see her vulnerability. She didn’t want to reveal her weakness.

Iris felt a sudden urge to snatch the reins and change direction.

But she had neither the reason nor the strength to do so.

The horse slowed down, and the scent of the wind was replaced by the fragrance of flowers.

Iris steadied her trembling hand and dismounted. After confirming that Iris was down, Evrys dismounted as well.

Tying the horse to a tree, Evrys took the backpack from the saddle and followed Iris.

They arrived at a small clearing surrounded by flowers the color of Iris’s eyes.

“This is where you wanted to come, right?”

“Uh… yeah, I think so.”

“Why here?”

Evrys, seemingly troubled by the question, changed the subject.

“More importantly, come here for a second.”

Seeing her blatant attempt to deflect, Iris gave up on asking and approached.

Evrys rummaged through her backpack, took out a cylindrical object, and told Iris to hold out her hand.

Iris complied silently.

A white cream was applied to her hand.

“Ah…”

“It hurts, doesn’t it?”

The cream, the color of Evrys’s hair, covered the wounds caked with dried sweat and blood.

Then, Evrys’s expression turned to one of dismay.

“Wait, shouldn’t we clean it first?”

“…Too late for that.”

“No, no, let’s wipe it off and reapply.”

Evrys’s small hands carefully cleaned Iris’s larger hand. Then, she reapplied the medicine and bandaged it.

“All done. Let’s rest over there.”

‘Did she bring me all the way here just to apply medicine?’

Evrys gestured towards the base of a tree.

Watching her, Iris asked in a low voice,

“Did you bring me all this way just to apply medicine?”

“Not really…”

“Then why?”

Evrys’s small mouth, which had been pursed in thought, opened.

“Why do you push yourself so hard?”

‘Because of you. Because I can’t stand being weaker than you.’

“…”

The unspoken words echoed in Iris’s mind.

She had never learned how to express such feelings, so she remained silent.

“Is it… because of me?”

Iris’s gaze wavered like a flower in the wind. Evrys’s expression wasn’t any better.

‘Why are you making that face? Why?’

“…Yes.”

“…”

‘Why do you look so pained? Why? Even if you are the Previous Duke, because of me, someone you’ve just met… why…’

To Iris, Evrys was no different from a stranger. The Previous Duke was a distant figure, and their appearances were completely different. They shared no resemblance whatsoever.

She acknowledged Evrys as her ancestor because of her father’s words, but she didn’t truly feel it. That’s why she couldn’t understand Evrys’s actions.

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize.”

“…Was it?”

Evrys’s murmur was lost in the wind.

“I’ll keep coming out like this for a while.”

“How long?”

“Until you stop pushing yourself.”

“I…”

“You’re fine? Can you really say that with a straight face?”

Iris touched her face, but she couldn’t feel anything different. Evrys muttered softly,

“You’ll be fine…

I’ll… help you.”

To Iris, Evrys, saying those words, looked like she might vanish at any moment.

She was reminded of her mother, who smiled at her even as she died, before turning to ash and scattering in the wind.

But Iris couldn’t say anything.

Because her time had stopped there.