Holly approached Cahill, who had a sullen face, placing her hand on his shoulder. Lifting her heel, she whispered into his ear, her lips brushing against it.

“We need to eat plenty of meat to get what you want.”

When they locked eyes, she playfully raised the corners of her eyes.

“I thought it was only in Your Highness’ mind, but it seems Holly isn’t any different.”

Adam said sarcastically, mocking between the heated exchange of gazes. Holly felt embarrassed as she realized her discreet words had been heard by others.

‘Well, everyone probably saw everything anyway.’

However, as she quickly recovered with a nonchalant face, Adam’s face twisted.

“They make quite the pair.”

Cahill, scoffing at Adam’s sarcastic comment, spoke with an unusually warm gaze.

“Did you just figure that out now?”

He was looking at Adam with a warmth that hadn’t been there before.

* * *

Fortunately, it was a bright, moonlit night. Climbing up the mountain path, Holly stumbled as the sole of her shoe got caught on a rock.

“Aack!”

As Cahill caught her body, preventing her from falling, startled, she clutched her surprised chest and turned to him.

“Thank you.”

Looking down at the ground, she found her big toe peeking through the torn sole of her shoe. The old, worn-out shoes, whose purchase she couldn’t recall anymore, were so tattered in various places that it wasn’t surprising they had ripped.

“Can you walk?”

As Adam asked, Holly lifted her foot instead of answering. The sole hung loosely, detached from the rest.

“We still have a long way until we reach the village. What should we do?”

In contemplation, she rummaged through her bag and pulled out a piece of cloth used for washing. Then, she tied it around the torn part of the shoe.

“How about this?”

Cahill’s forehead narrowed as he looked at her bare foot wrapped in cloth. The toe wasn’t covered, and the cloth-wrapped sole would surely hurt if it stepped on a stone. After contemplating, he took off his own shoes and offered them to Holly.

“Put these on.”

Holly glanced at the shoes placed in front of her, then looked at his barefoot standing on the ground. He wasn’t wearing socks, revealing his white bare feet.

“Why are you doing this? Put them on right now!”

She attempted to put on the shoes on Cahill again. However, before she could sit on the ground, he bent down, tying a handkerchief around his foot.

“Will this work?”

As she blankly stared at his foot that he wiggled in front of her, the small handkerchief couldn’t fully wrap around his foot compared to its size.

“It can’t be enough with that!”

As Holly belatedly exclaimed in frustration, Cahill stared at her intently. His gaze conveyed the message, ‘You knew that but still did it on purpose.’ Without anything to refute, she closed her mouth.

“…You put on the shoes.”

She offered Cahill his shoes again, but he just stared at her outreached hand without accepting it. In the end, faced with his determination, Holly sighed deeply.

“Then, you wear the shoes and carry me.”

“Ah…”

Cahill let out a soft sigh at Holly’s suggestion. His face showed realization as if he hadn’t thought of that solution.

As she was about to lean on his back again, she raised her upper body.

“If it’s too hard, let me know, okay?”

“Yeah, yeah.”

As he immediately nodded to her concerned words, Holly narrowed her eyes. However, Cahill promptly stood up, and the only thing she could do was cling tightly to his neck so she wouldn’t fall.

* * *

In the journey from Lauriue through the ‘Land of Spirits’ to Centuria, Cahill never stopped once. Meals were hastily composed of jerky and fruits while on the move. Perhaps due to having a spirit contractor in the group, there were no dreams during their time in the ‘Land of Spirits this time.

Thanks to this, the group could reach Cenutria quickly.

‘Hanging onto Cahill from the beginning might have been a good idea after all.’

Holly pondered briefly but soon shook her head to dispel the thought.

The ‘Wanderer’s Path,’ where the group decided to stay in Centuria, was an inn facing ‘Hallidem’ where she used to work, with a river in between. It was just a bridge away, but the difference in the living standards of the two areas was enormous.

Before stepping into the village with the inn, she cautioned the group.

“Since there are hardly any laws here, you need to be especially careful.”

This place, known as the ‘Crossing Bridge,’ had an abundance of criminals far scarier than the Torimas group. They were meticulous and skilled, making them formidable opponents even for regular thugs.

“Don’t flaunt your wealth here.”

Holly looked at each member of the group, who kept showing off their gold coins and warned them. Cahill nodded silently while Badin and Adam, unlike them, expressed confusion.

“If it’s so dangerous, why not go to a safer place?”

Holly shrugged her shoulders and answered Adam’s question.

“Actually, there are people looking for me.”

She told the truth, half-expecting Adam to shout at Cahill to break up immediately, just like when they first met.

“Wouldn’t it be easier to kill them all?”

However, Adam, calm as ever, nodded without any change in expression. He was indeed Cahill’s loyal subordinate…

‘I wonder if life in the Eisen Kingdom doesn’t value human lives?’

With an anxious thought crossing her mind, Holly sighed.

“As long as we stay on the main roads, there shouldn’t be significant issues, so don’t worry too much.”

Ignoring Adam’s words as if she hadn’t heard them, Holly spoke. She pretended not to see his disappointed face.

“Before unpacking, let’s find out when the next ship will come.”

“We also need to replenish supplies.”

He added to her words. Initially, Adam had calculated provisions, including hunting for meat in the forest. However, due to the elves’ surveillance, making it impossible to hunt for meat, they consumed more provisions than expected.

“Then let’s split up and move.”

Adam, who accepted this, looked at Holly. He was giving her a choice.

“Let’s go to the market.”

Wanting to explore the harbor, he was thrilled by her suggestion.

“Can’t you go alone?”

Badin protested, looking at Adam with open eyes.

“No, you can’t. In dangerous places, we have to move together.”

Adam, ignoring Badin’s displeasure, took Badin with him. Leaving behind the two friends getting along well, Holly turned her head towards Cahill.

“Shall we go now?”

She buried herself deep into Cahill’s back. As her lips brushed against his neck, his lips, which had been delighted by the fact that they were now alone, parted even wider as if they were about to tear.

* * *

As they entered the square, Cahill spotted a fountain and seated her there. Holly, who had received heated gazes from people on the street throughout their walk, let out a small sigh.

“Just wait here for a moment.”

“Where are you going?”

He chuckled at her reply. Holly couldn’t help but feel uneasy with his sly smile, though as Cahill walked away, he returned to her.

He grabbed her shoulders, lowered his body, and said with a worried face.

“If anything feels off, summon the spirit immediately.”

“Of course. Don’t worry.”

Holly nodded obediently. Although she didn’t summon Shiver to avoid attracting unnecessary attention, she was always prepared to call it when needed.

Seeing her confident response, he resumed his steps.

However, his face turning back repeatedly seemed uneasy. It was Cahill who left her behind, but Holly couldn’t help but feel concerned as he looked somehow like a lost child.

__