[Music Recommendation: Yearning Hearts ~ Eternal Eclipse] & [Flight~ Johannes Bornlöf]

Oriana screamed her lungs out with the speed at which the horse was moving. She held tightly to the reins for dear life. This would be the second time she was crying for help on a horse. If she had time to spare, she wanted to know who had startled the horse earlier, but right now her life was in danger.

Everyone cheered, thinking the princess was participating in the race. Their excitement made them not notice the look of horror on Oriana’s face.

"Help me! Please stop the horse!" Oriana shouted at the top of her voice, but nobody heard her. The horse continued to move with great speed and, luckily for her, it moved toward the palace where everyone was waiting.

At the palace, the men in the royal family were already mounted on their horses, ready to take off when the women returned. Fidelis waited for Gwen, while Caspar waited for Jasmine. Nicholas stayed on his own horse, waiting for Adelaide since she was yet to be married.

Adric, on the other hand, wasn’t waiting for Oriana. He knew under normal circumstances, she would be the last person to arrive. His thoughts proved wrong when the first horse got nearer to the palace, and he saw Oriana’s golden hair moving with the wind. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

"I didn’t know the Princess could be that fast," Fidelis said, squinting his eyes to be sure of what he was seeing.

Adric turned, surprised to see Oriana in front while others fell behind. He noticed her lips moving, but he couldn’t decipher what she was saying.

The moment Oriana saw Adric, she felt hope return to her. She shouted, "Adric! Please stop the horse." She wanted to wave her hands but knew that would mean letting go of the reins. She prayed that Adric would understand what she was saying.

Adric tilted his head to the side. He was sure her mouth was moving, but he couldn’t understand anything she said.

Oriana gulped, Adric was looking at her as if she were strange. "Help me! I SAID HELP ME!" she shouted.

Adric smiled, "I see you too," he waved at her, thinking she was showing off her horse racing skills.

"I think Princess Oriana is going to win this race," Fidelis said with a smile, but it was short-lived because, instead of coming forward, the horse diverted, breaking through the arena.

"What is going on? The Princess, she’s..." Caspar pointed, as everyone was shocked, all eyes on Oriana.

Adric sighed with frustration when he saw Oriana change direction; she wasn’t the one controlling the horse. "What’s with her and horses?" he muttered.

"Hyah!" Adric kicked his horse, turning back. He left the race ground, following Oriana.

Nicholas, who was also watching, followed Adric, moving with great speed to get to Oriana first.

Adric noticed from the corner of his eye Nicholas following hot on his tail. He increased his speed, "Come on, girl, Hyah!"

Back at the racing ground, all attention now turned to the contest between The Crown Prince and the Prime Minister; who was going to get to the Princess first. The show had taken an even more interesting turn, making the people forget about the others, eager to see the end of the race between the two most popular rivals.

Oriana screamed when the horse started moving towards the inner part of the palace. If she didn’t get down, she might be thrown off and land on something that could hurt her.

"Adric!" Oriana cried, "Please help me."

Adric, now getting closer, said to her, "Listen to me, Oriana, at the count of three, jump from the horse."

Oriana shook her head, "No, no...I can’t...the horse is moving, it’s not like the last time."

Nicholas moved to the other side, "That’s too dangerous, Princess Oriana. I’m going to try to stop the horse by moving in front. Look at me."

"Do you want to get her killed?" Adric asked with a deep frown on his face.

Nicholas raised his brows, "Telling her to jump is the most dangerous idea, don’t you think so?"

Oriana blinked, feeling sweat running down her face. This wasn’t the time for the two men to show power; all she wanted was for the horse to be stopped so she could come down already.

"Please help me already," she shouted, her lips trembling.

"Jump! Oriana, jump before we get to the pond shed," Adric ordered.

Nicholas kicked his horse faster, "Don’t jump, I’m going to try and stop the horse in front."

"I don’t want to die," Oriana cried, eyes closed. She didn’t want to know how she was to be saved. All she wanted was to be alive; there was so much she was yet to do.

Nicholas moved forward, getting ready to stop the horse with great force.

Adric cursed under his breath; they were almost close to the small shed, which made it even more dangerous. Before Nicholas could stop the horse, leading to Oriana falling off, Adric slowed down and waited.

The moment the horse collided with Nicholas, it moved up, raising its front hooves, sending Oriana almost crashing and falling off.

Oriana closed her eyes, bracing for the impact, but her body didn’t touch the ground because Adric jumped off his own horse, holding Oriana as they both fell into the fresh pond, which received them with a loud splash.

Oriana raised her head, her whole body trembling with fear. She tried to push Adric away, but he held her close.

"I didn’t move the horse, someone did. I didn’t..." Oriana explained, her words breathy as she tried to explain her situation.

"Shh...you’re safe now," Adric held her close, stopping her from moving, and his words seemed to calm Oriana down. She stopped moving and just held Adric tightly.

Nicholas got down from his horse and ran towards the pond, ready to give his help if needed, but other members of the royal family arrived at the scene.

"Is she okay?" Fidelis asked, worried about the princess, who seemed to have a knack for getting into trouble, especially with horses.

Adric nodded, "We need dry clothes," he said, getting ready to come out of the water.

Rowan arrived with two dry jackets and handed them to Adric, who helped Oriana out. He covered her with the jacket, ready to leave as more people were there to help her, but then Oriana held his hand, stopping him.

"Someone take the Princess inside," Gwen ordered.

Adric shook his head slightly, looking Oriana straight in the eyes as she looked back at him. Her eyes were filled with anxiety, like a child who didn’t want to be left by her mother.

"I’ll take her back inside," Adric suggested.

The small crowd that had gathered watched as both of them walked inside the palace quietly.

Adelaide, who was watching from the side, pointed, "Lord Nicholas, you’re bleeding." Everyone turned to look at the Prime Minister.

Nicholas waved his hand, "It’s nothing, I’m fine," he replied, looking at Oriana, who had now entered the palace with Adric. He took his horse and left.

"I guess today’s event has ended," Jasmine sighed, shaking her head slightly as she entered the palace. Everyone else dispersed to their rooms.

Oriana didn’t let go of Adric’s hand until they were inside her room. He walked her straight to the couch. When she sat down, Adric went to add more wood to the fireplace. Bringing more dry towels, he used one to dry his hair, while giving Oriana another one.

"Were you a horse in your former life? Is this how you identify with your tribe?" Adric sighed, touching his pocket to bring out his cigarette box, but it was all wet.

Oriana pressed her lips, "I didn’t want to join in the race, but someone..." Her body shook with the aftershock of what happened.

Adric stared at the girl for a moment. She still looked shocked from what happened earlier, her hands trembling even as she tried to dry her hair. He took the towel from her and sat on his heels in front of her.

"I’m only going to say this once, Oriana. This is just the beginning." Gone was the playful look, replaced by seriousness on Adric’s face, and his eyes were calm.

"You need to be on your toes if you want to survive here, and they are not going to stop because the coronation is drawing near," Adric said, drying her hair gently as her golden hair glistened under the candlelight.

Oriana had never been this scared in her entire life. Back home, she knew who to suspect if anything happened. But here, everyone was smiling, and she didn’t know how to identify who the evil person was.

"Who can I trust?" her voice sounded like a whisper.

Adric moved her hair to the side, "Me. I am the only one you can trust here."

Though it would have sounded absurd to Oriana in the past to trust Adric, now things were different. He had always been the one saving her when she needed help the most. Though she didn’t want to accept it, Adric had helped her from getting killed after she was almost married off to another nation. He hadn’t tried to kill her; instead, he was always there to save her.

The taunting and teasing, which she had gotten used to, was all that Adric ever did. But nothing that harmed her life. Looking at him now, Oriana blinked her eyes as she got drawn into Adric’s soft gaze. Something moved in her stomach, she wasn’t hungry, but it kept moving like butterflies emerging from their cocoon, ready to take their first flight.

"If you’re beside me, then I can protect you," Adric said, breaking into her thoughts. That was all she needed for the butterflies to take flight, fluttering Oriana’s heart.