Rowan ran into the forest, his eyes scanning the dark, dense woods. He was angry at everyone, the men running around the forest at the moment and also the girl who had started this. How she got her hands on alcohol was something he would figure out later, but right now he needed to find her first and take her back to the palace.
"I found a maiden!"
Rowan turned toward the voice, but when he arrived, the maiden wasn’t Freya. The young man who had caught this one was already trying to undress her, and the woman, seemingly enjoying it, giggled along with him.
Grunting in frustration, Rowan ran deeper into the forest. He wasn’t sure if he could restrain himself from killing any man who got close to Freya. She wasn’t usually this careless, so he never had to worry about her. But now, in just one moment when he wasn’t paying attention, she was drunk and running in the woods, being chased by men who wanted to bed her.
"I’ll be damned," Rowan cursed under his breath. He’d rather be buried six feet under with Freya beside him than let another man have her. Deciding that knocking out as many of these men as possible was the safest option, Rowan picked up his pace.
The first victim ran past him at full speed. Rowan stretched out his hand, grabbing the man by the neck.
"What are you doing?" The young man turned, struggling in Rowan’s ironclad grip. "I’m not a maiden. Let me go!"
Rowan nodded, his expression bored. "I’m not blind."
"Then what are you doing? Let me go! I need to find a pure maiden before the others beat me to it." The man raised his leg to kick Rowan.
Rowan’s fist shot into the man’s stomach. "I’ll beat that idea out of you," he muttered in a calm voice. "Join the game next time when it’s not about claiming what’s already mine."
"Wha—" Before the man could finish, Rowan punched him in the throat, and the young man collapsed into darkness.
Dropping the unconscious man, Rowan continued deeper into the forest, making sure to take down any man who crossed his path.
Meanwhile, Freya kept running, her legs growing weak. She finally stopped, panting. "Lirien? Can we go back now? I’m tired," she called out, rubbing her head.
Her voice echoed through the forest, but the only response was the sound of crickets and night birds.
"Lirien?" Freya called again. When she realized she was alone, her heart began to race. "Where is everyone?"
She heard the snap of twigs not far off but couldn’t tell the direction. Quickly, she picked up a broken stick and held it up defensively.
"Princess Lirien?" she called, the splitting headache returning. "I’m thirsty."
"Oh, look who I found," a young man said, rubbing his palms together as he approached.
Freya squinted, wiping her eyes. She held the stick tightly. "Who are you?"
"Why act coy now? You started the game. Let’s go back, and I’ll take—"
The man suddenly grabbed his back as something hard hit him. He mumbled incoherently before collapsing.
"M-monster?" Freya stammered, turning to run from whatever had knocked the man out.
Rowan sighed. "What is wrong with her?"
Freya kept running, clutching the stick. She finally stopped again, her eyes scanning for a way out. Sensing a presence behind her, she raised the stick, ready to strike.
"Die, monster!"
Rowan caught the stick with one hand, his other arm wrapping around Freya’s waist and pulling her close.
Freya looked up, and when she saw it was Rowan, she started crying. "Rowan... a good man was going to save me, but a monster killed him."
Rowan raised an eyebrow in disbelief. So the man who’d approached her was the good man, and he was the monster.
"He’s... dead..." Freya sobbed, shaking her head sadly.
Rowan exhaled, tired beyond measure. Freya had never been careless or prone to dangerous behavior, so seeing her like this was a shock. If it had only been him watching, he might’ve enjoyed the spectacle, but the thought of other men chasing her infuriated him.
"He’s not dead, just sleeping. He’ll stay alive if wild animals don’t eat him," Rowan muttered.
Freya wiped her tears. "I hope he wakes up before the wild animals get him."
Rowan’s gaze softened as he studied her. The wind blew her dark hair aside, revealing her curious brown eyes framed by long lashes. His fingers brushed her soft cheek a stark contrast to the roughness of his hand. "How did you stay hidden all these years?" he murmured to himself.
Freya, however, took it as a question. "I was hiding over there, under that tree, like a bird. Then I started running again." She pointed at a tree, but Rowan didn’t bother to look.
Rowan brought his face closer. "Your only saving grace tonight is alcohol, or else you’d be under me screaming my name."
"Rowan!" Freya shouted, a bright smile lighting up her face.
Rowan inhaled deeply, closing his eyes as he tried to control himself. When he opened them, he bent down and picked her up.
"Ah!" Freya gasped.
Rowan started walking. "When you’re sober tomorrow, you’ll be punished for this."
"Why?" Freya kicked her legs. "I hate punishment! If you’re going to punish me, put me down! I’ll wait until the good man is awake and he came save me." She wriggled in his arms, her body brushing against him.
Unable to control himself any longer, Rowan put her down and pushed her against the nearest tree. "You know what you’re doing, don’t you?"
Freya blinked and then stood on tiptoes, planting a soft kiss on his lips. "Why did you put me down? You get angry so easily."
Rowan lost all control, ready to rip both their clothes off. He didn’t care that they were outside, he just wanted her. But as he leaned in closer, he heard a small sound.
"Freya?" he called, only to see that she had fallen asleep, snoring softly with her head hanging to the side.
Rowan bit his lower lip, staring at her in frustration. "You little troublemaker. You’re going to pay for this." Lifting her up once more, he carried her out of the woods.
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