Chapter 22 :

When his sturdy body, glowing pale in the firelight, filled her vision, her tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth as though glued there, and she could not move.

She swallowed dryly and slowly looked him over.

Perhaps he had just washed away the dust he had been covered in during the march, because his faint blond hair looked darker than usual and was dripping water.

Moisture also clung whitely to his sculpted shoulders and broad back.

Thalia followed with her eyes the droplets of water sliding down along the firm curves of his taut muscles, then flushed and hurriedly lifted her head.

The generously tailored legs of his trousers were also soaked through, clinging tightly to his long, powerful legs.

It was the first time she had seen him so defenseless since the year she turned fourteen, when she had ordered him to enter the lake out of spite.

Thalia moistened her dry lips and struggled to gather the words that had shattered inside her throat.

Just then, a dry laugh came from nearby.

“To hear the word hierarchy from your mouth is enough to make even a dog laugh.”

At his mocking voice, her embarrassment receded like the tide, and irritation took its place.

She glared at him with sharp eyes and gave a snort.

“Hierarchy exists so those above can invoke it against those below. And you knights are in a position where you must obey me, a member of the imperial family. So make sure you clearly impress upon your subordinates whose orders they should prioritize. Unless they want to be whipped for irreverence.”

Varkas, who had been sliding his arms into the sleeves of his shirt, sent her an icy gaze.

Thalia tensed her body.

Through experience, she had learned all too well how mercilessly this man, who was usually so terribly silent, could wield his tongue once he decided to.

She stared fixedly at his mouth, as though watching a viper that might spew poison at any moment, but Varkas picked up the robe hanging on the wall.

Then, without giving her even a single glance, he walked straight out of the tent.

Thalia stared blankly at his retreating back, then immediately chased after him.

If he had instead hurled cruel words at her or cast an angry look her way, she would not have been this furious.

But she absolutely could not endure being ignored as though she were a pebble rolling on the roadside.

Thalia caught up to him in an instant and raised her voice.

“You only feel satisfied when you ignore every word I say, don’t you?”

At her ringing voice, the soldiers who had been busily carrying luggage stopped and looked back at them.

But Varkas himself did not even pretend to hear her.

Seeing him walk silently forward as though she was not worth dealing with made heat rise all the way to the crown of her head.

Thalia roughly grabbed and pulled at the hem of his clothes.

Perhaps because he did not want to suffer the humiliation of having his clothes torn in front of the servants, Varkas finally stopped walking.

Facing that arrogant expression of his, Thalia spoke as though chewing and spitting out each word.

“You must have been waiting for this so eagerly all this time. You must be thrilled to death now that you no longer have to follow the orders of that tiresome girl. That’s why you don’t even pretend to listen to anything I say!”

“I would at least pretend to listen if you said something worth calling speech.”

He coldly responded as he heartlessly pried her fingers from the hem of his clothes.

Thalia clenched her teeth.

The sight of him brushing off his shirt as though something filthy had touched him filled her with humiliation.

Perhaps it would be better if this man disappeared from the world.

Then she would never have to feel this miserable.

Thalia, who had been glaring at him with hostile eyes, suddenly let out a harsh laugh.

“My words don’t sound like speech to you? Then should I speak in the language of beasts, as your barbarian ancestors did? Would you understand that?”

As though shocked by the insult that had gone too far, the servants who had been watching them anxiously turned blue.

But Varkas himself only looked down at her silently.

To that cold face, Thalia continued babbling.

“If you want, I can imitate a horse’s neigh for you. I’m sure you would understand that better. You like horses more than humans, don’t you?”

“It would be better to talk to a horse than deal with you.”

Varkas spoke with a sneer.

“My stallion communicates better than you do. He also does not whine day after day until he makes people sick of him.”

Thalia’s shoulders trembled with humiliation.

Seeing that, Varkas twisted the corners of his mouth as though dumbfounded.

“You blush even at a counterattack of this level, yet you do not hesitate to dig into other people’s vital points... Do you act out like this because you believe others cannot become as vile as you?”

She sent him a venomous glare.

Her throat tightened with the desire to refute him immediately.

What do you know about me?

Who in this world knows human vileness better than I do?

Because I know to the bone just how merciless humans can become, I decided to become cruel as well.

Because if I do not trample you first, you will trample me.

But if she rambled on about such things, it would only expose her own weakness.

She took a step back and put on a detached expression, as though she had never been shouting.

“I did not come here to engage in this useless argument. As I said earlier, I want to move my campsite somewhere else. Tell the knights to pack the luggage immediately.”

Varkas drew in a long breath as though gathering his patience.

“I have no intention of dancing to your whims. Stop wasting your time and go back to rest.”

“I am not saying we should move the entire camp! Why can’t it be done?”

“I am not obligated to explain every one of my decisions.”

“I am the Emperor’s daughter! If I demand it, you should naturally obey...!”

“Enough.”

Suddenly, a deep shadow fell over her head.

Thalia flinched and hunched her shoulders.

Varkas, having thrown aside even formal courtesy, spoke coldly right into her face.

“I have already used up the patience I had set aside for you today. After going this far, you should at least know to wait for tomorrow.”

Despite the rough tone, the face looking down at her was endlessly elegant.

He was a man who did not lose his dignity even when anger made him harsh.

That part of him made her even more miserable.

“Escort Her Highness the Princess back to her quarters.”

He straightened and gave the order to the knights standing nearby.

Those who had silently watched their confrontation immediately obeyed that command.

“This way, Your Highness.”

Thalia sent a sharp glare at the knights blocking her path, then turned her gaze back toward Varkas.

He had already moved far away.

Thalia stared obsessively at his back as he walked away elegantly, without the slightest disarray, and ground her teeth.

That man did not even ask why I wanted to move the campsite.

He must not be curious about my thoughts at all.

I really do hope he dies.

She found it ridiculous that she had made such a fuss because she was worried something might happen to him.

Once this journey ended, he would become another woman’s man anyway.

A man who would never become hers...

What would it matter if she saw his corpse tomorrow morning?

Thalia turned around roughly.