“Is there… only one tent…?”
“Yes. Unfortunately.”
Rustle.
Yerina said while stealthily hiding the backpack with the extra tent behind her back.
Just one cramped tent.
What kind of person will this man show himself to be when we have to spend the night in this deserted mountain?
‘He claims to have taken a cross-country train to Palana for sightseeing? All alone? Ridiculous.’
No matter how you see it, it’s suspicious.
Palana is a place where the number of tourists in the last ten years could be counted on one hand due to poor transportation.
Did he really try to walk this mountain path alone without a local guide in such a place?
There was no way to believe it.
‘I need to test him as someone who will become a ruler.’
The great ruler of Palana, Yerina Frost.
By coincidence, she happened to meet this suspicious man while out collecting bear gallbladder.
He had no clothes or accessories to prove he was a ruler and not even a weapon.
To him, I must look like an ordinary village girl.
Yerina decided to take advantage of that point and test the man.
“T-The nights here get cold quickly. You should hurry into the tent.”
“Uh. Understood…”
Once the man entered the tent, it became quite awkward.
Even though they tried to stick to opposite walls, their backs were inevitably touching due to the cramped space.
The inside of the tent was soon filled with the sound of the wind blowing outside and the rustling of sleeping bags.
“Can I use this sleeping bag?”
“Yes. Why? Do you have a complaint?”
“No. I don’t.”
She purposely threw a thin, less warm sleeping bag to the man.
Yet the man accepted it without any complaint or dissatisfaction.
Looks like he’s not the type to play the victim.
‘Will this man really do nothing even if he shares a bed with a pretty, gentle, cute, pure, and naive country girl like me?’
It’s best to nip any criminal tendencies in the bud.
If he tries anything funny, I’ll bind him up and toss him to the wild animals.
Yerina closed her eyes, waiting for the imminent attack.
Hmm?
After a long time, nothing happened.
Feeling a sense of something being off, Yerina glanced back.
She found the man already covering himself with the sleeping bag and turning his back to her.
‘Am I out of my mind? Would he really poke at a woman who tears bears apart with her bare hands?’
At that moment, Yoo Jin was clenching his teeth in fear.
With a glance, it was clear Yerina was extremely tense, her ears perked up.
Just touching her would surely lead to him screaming like a little girl, and he could see his future clearly, so he decided to pretend to sleep.
Seeing that Yoo Jin showed no signs of moving, Yerina too gave up and turned over.
‘I must not let my guard down. He might try to attack while I’m asleep.’
He might try to lower my guard and do something foolish in the middle of the night.
Thinking this way, Yerina sniffled.
For some reason, her ears drooped down in disappointment.
“Hey, are you awake?”
“…”
Tap, tap.
Every now and then, when their backs touched, she could feel him flinch.
Thinking she might provoke him more, he jumped a bit more.
Realizing he hadn’t fallen asleep, Yoo Jin had no choice but to open his mouth.
“Yes. It’s too cold to sleep.”
“What’s your name? I just realized I haven’t asked that.”
“My name is Yoo Jin.”
“What’s your family name?”
“The Yu family name.”
“Ahaha, I was joking!”
“Uh, well… let’s go with that.”
What an amusing commoner.
But for a commoner, his looks, attire, and speech seem quite dignified.
He must have received quite a good education.
She began to wonder if he might be the child of a noble family employee.
“What’s your name, miss?”
“My name? My name is… Ekaterina.”
“Huh. Ekaterina. That’s a pretty name.”
Yoo Jin couldn’t hold back his laughter at the name she thought up like it was some great revelation.
After all, the name Yerina was derived from Ekaterina.
In the initial setting, she was called Ekaterina, but due to suggestions that it was too long, they chopped it down to Yerina.
Certainly, the person involved never had a clue about the backstory of her name.
“Ekaterina. Can I ask you one thing?”
“Sure, go ahead.”
“You’re willing to take me to Palana, right?”
“…”
A serious question devoid of any laughter.
Yerina fell momentarily silent, picking her words.
There was no way she didn’t understand what that question implied.
‘He must have caught on that I’m not going straight to Palana but am going around.’
It sounded like there was a bit of fear mixed in his voice.
From his perspective, I must seem suspicious.
Like I’m planning to lead him around the mountains to kill him.
Realizing that too late, she bit her lip.
It wouldn’t do to be misunderstood.
“I’m s-sorry! I didn’t do it on purpose!”
“Haa…”
“Yoo Jin?”
In a hurry to clear up the misunderstanding, she turned around, only to discover that Yoo Jin was making weird breathing noises.
She reached out and touched his forehead.
It was cold.
His breathing and pulse were irregular, and despite calling his name multiple times, he didn’t regain consciousness.
“Hypothermia…!”
He had lost a significant amount of body temperature.
Only then did Yerina remember that unlike Beast-folk, humans were much weaker to the cold.
It was all because I hadn’t taken him straight to Palana.
No, it’s because I threw him that thin sleeping bag.
“Please don’t die…”
Yerina quickly started to tear up.
No matter what, she had to save him.
If he dies, it’s all my responsibility.
“Ugh… Ugh…”
There was barely enough time to consider other options.
Yerina swiftly pulled Yoo Jin out of the thin sleeping bag and moved him into the thicker one.
But to raise his body temperature, this alone would not be enough.
“Ah. Ahh. Hold my hand. What to do? It’s so cold…”
Without hesitation, Yerina crammed her own body into the cramped sleeping bag.
In the cramped tent, two bodies intertwined in the even smaller sleeping bag shared warmth.
She wrapped her fluffy tail around Yoo Jin’s cold legs.
Yoo Jin’s hands were like ice.
Yerina desperately prayed that he wouldn’t die and fidgeted with his pale blue hands throughout the night.
*
“We’re almost there…”
“It was closer than I thought?”
“I’m truly, really sorry…”
“Haha. No, it’s okay.”
On an early morning with birds chirping.
After two hours of traveling, they finally arrived in Palana.
With a sheepish smile, Yoo Jin responded to Yerina, who had been repeating apologies like a parrot since waking up.
It’s really okay.
If I was really going to die from hypothermia, I would have already become a cold corpse during the survival training.
Thanks to that, I got to snuggle up against Yerina’s warm, almost hot body, so one could even say it was a benefit.
At that time, I was somewhat conscious but pretended to be asleep since it was embarrassing to shiver in this much cold…
I never expected such an event to occur.
“Oh.”
Passing through the treacherous forest, as the branches cleared, the view was filled with the sight of the city.
Just seeing the chimneys of tightly packed wooden buildings spewing smoke made it feel warm inside.
It’s a place that distinctly differs from the blocky, modern cities of Petenburg or the Renaissance-style cities of Hameln.
Definitely a city of Eastern flavor, and with a high population density, one can smell the scent of people clearly, which is nice.
“Could I ask you to guide me around the city?”
“Yes, well. I made a mistake, so that much is fine… Ah, ah! Of course, I’m just a simple, naive country girl who doesn’t know every nook and cranny of the city!”
“…”
Is she still trying to keep up the act?
I’m a little tired of it.
Following Yerina around the city, visiting every corner.
Of course, it was all according to the game’s setting, but one couldn’t be careless in exploration.
There could be changes or added settings due to the system patching up any plot holes, so it was something to keep an eye on.
“Palana exports many natural resources, including iron, sulfur, and gems. Many great powers have invaded seeking those resources, but we’ve repelled all of them. Everyone in Palana receives basic military training.”
“…”
This setting immediately reminds one of a certain country in Northeast Asia that has mandatory military service for all adult men.
“And here is the palace. This is where the great ruler, Yerina Frost, resides.”
“Is it okay to come this far?”
“Of course.”
“My lord. You’ve returned.”
Finally arriving at the royal palace.
The attendants hurriedly placed a luxurious fur coat and crown onto Yerina.
Looking back at him, Yerina’s eyes sparkled with pride.
“Surprise, huh?” her expression seemed to say.
“Wow. Wow, you’re the Frost Duchess! I never imagined.”
“You weren’t surprised at all!”
“I was surprised.”
“Lie!”
I was surprised.
Her acting was so wretched that it surpassed my imagination.
What surprised me the most was that she thought it would actually work.
“Ugh…”
Feeling a bit insulted by my reaction, Yerina’s face turned crimson.
She glanced at my waist and parted her lips.
“You. You seem to wield a sword?”
“Yes. I’ve learned swordsmanship.”
“Then let’s have a match. Of course, it’s fine to run away if you feel you’ll lose.”
It seems our Frost Duchess wants to take out her frustrations on me.
She wants to legally vent her anger on me.
The opponent is one of the strongest in this world, capable of tearing bears apart with her bare hands.
Outwardly, the odds don’t seem favorable at all.
Running away rather than becoming a coward who gets beaten here seems better than getting battered.
“Alright. Let’s have a match.”
But I gladly grasped Yerina’s outstretched hand.
It seems this was the most unexpected answer for her as her eyes slowly widened.
I have a plan.
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