Subliminal Wayfarer

“Hi-yah!”

Grace rode on Luki’s back through the pitch-black night.

It was like diving into a deep sea of darkness, where nothing could be seen.

Riding at such speed in a place where nothing was visible was a terrifying experience.

Nevertheless, Grace trusted the black horse she was riding.

 

“Can I ride for a bit? I really want to run wild.”

 

With just one word, the noble horse extended its back, as if it would carry her and run into the darkness as far as the world’s end.

The cold wind brushed against her cheeks, its touch as sharp as a blade.

Grace leaned forward and pressed her body close to the horse.

It felt as though her heartbeat and Luki’s heartbeat were synchronizing, maybe because her own heart was beating too loudly.

Grace stubbornly opened her eyes and aimed into the pitch-black darkness.

Breathing was difficult. Confronting fear head-on was an incredibly daunting task. But even so, she had to do it.

She clung tightly to the horse, her eyes fixed on the black void.

Then, the two of them ran for a long time and reached the end of the darkness.

 

* * *

 

“Wow!”

Grace, who had stopped at the edge of a steep cliff, lay down with her arms outstretched, looking back. Below, the sound of the waves crashing against the rocks was more terrifying than the sound of the wind.

How long had they been running? An hour? Two hours? She didn’t know.

Well, it didn’t really matter.

Her legs trembled as they had been carrying her weight for so long, and she had been exerting a lot of force on her thighs.

She lay on the ground and looked up at the black sky with only stars and the moon visible.

Suddenly, shkk— a long face covered her face.

Bhhhhr!

“Ah, what is it? It tickles.”

Grace laughed and tried to avoid Luki, who was tickling her, and rolled over to the side.

The horse played around with her for a while, but when Grace burst into laughter, he settled beside her.

‘Oh, horses can sit too…’

Grace looked at him with a hint of wonder and chuckled.

They sat in silence for a moment, gazing at the vast expanse of sky and sea.

“I want all of this,” she murmured suddenly. “In such a wide space, can’t I have just a small part of it?”

—……

“Luki, I want to fly.”

Grace thought she must be drunk.

She couldn’t believe she was saying something so absurd to a horse.

“I want to soar through the sky, visit places. It would be nice if I had sturdy legs like yours, so I could leap around.”

She looked at Luki’s bright blue eyes.

“You have it all, Luki. I envy you.”

It was a sincere longing, and the beast’s blue eyes shimmered mysteriously.

With a smile on her lips, Grace closed her eyes and listened to the sound of the winds of the dawn. She breathed in the breeze and felt the weight of the damp air.

When she opened her eyes again, she thought of Lucas Blacke.

Perhaps, without him, this moment might never have happened in her lifetime.

“When is His Excellency coming back?”

She murmured, raising the arm with the archaic language tattoo.

The black horse glanced at her. Even though it was a pitch-black night, the archaic words on her forearm seemed to shimmer more than usual.

Was it emitting light when it’s gotten dark?

‘Now that it’s come to this, I can’t just casually talk about breaking off the engagement as before.’

Just a few days ago, she had been certain that she could never marry the man, someone she had thought she couldn’t possibly marry. Yet, she easily accepted it now, and her heart even fluttered a little.

 

—If you marry me, I can’t say that you’ll always be happy, no matter what.
—But until you feel happy,
—I’ll do my very best.

 

For her happiness, someone was promising to try.

‘…This is the first time.’

In her innocence, she wanted to believe those words, at least a little.

There’s a possibility that he might be just as scary and wicked as he appeared on the surface, but…

‘I don’t think he’s like that.’

Naively, Grace once again found herself wanting to believe in him.

His deep, blue eyes that always looked straight at her.

The eyes that resembled those of the black horse standing silently beside her.

“Hmm.”

Regardless, she was now sharing his secret.

No matter what happened, Grace wanted to protect his secret and the secret of House Blacke to the end.

‘…In that case, is marrying him the right choice?’

Even the biggest reason she couldn’t marry him had all but disappeared, as the fear she felt of him had diminished.

But would she really not be frightened once she met him again?

His enchanting voice alone didn’t offer any clues.

This was how it turned out.

“…I want to see him soon.”

Before her father could force her to meet him.

Grace closed her eyes and remembered Lucas’s voice.

—Grace.

That’s right, it was just like that.

He pronounced the first syllable of her name with strength and let the last one glide softly.

—Grace O’Ellin.

As if her name was melting on the tip of his tongue.

—…So cruel.

‘Huh?’

…Wait, he had never said anything like this before though?

—You’ve been thinking about me whenever you have a moment. Yet you didn’t reply once the entire day.

…Oh, this wasn’t a voice from her imagination.

It was Lucas’s real voice.

Startled, Grace suddenly opened her eyes and sat up straight.

‘W-What should I do?’

She didn’t expect that this man would be thinking about her at this hour. No, she didn’t expect him to initiate a conversation with her at all.

‘Did he just hear my inner thoughts?’

Gulp.

Her dry throat made a noticeable swallow.

The enormous horse sitting beside her stared at Grace, then lightly tapped the ground with its tail.

—Like playing with a man’s heart.

Grace flinched.

‘Playing with his heart…? Who? Me?’

It was both absurd and embarrassing.

This guy… Did he really think that someone could play with him?

—You must know that you have a beautiful voice, so is that why you’re keeping it to yourself? Yes, well, it’s worth treasuring, no doubt.

‘No, but… what in the world is this man talking about?’

Grace’s face turned bright red.

The black horse peeped at her and wagged his tail again.

—Hmm… no, it might just be your looks. After all, among the people I’ve seen, you possess the most elegant profile. And why are your eyes so clear and deep like that? The more I look, the more unique and more beautiful your features become. Come to think of it, with this level of beauty, you could be the witch from the founding legend…

In the end, Grace couldn’t take it anymore and murmured.

“That’s enough… Please, stop.”

Grace blushed intensely and sighed heavily, burying her face in her hands.

His words had embarrassed her to the point of feeling like she might burst.

—Hmm? Did I mishear something? I swear I just heard Grace’s clear, elegant, and rare voice…

“W-Why are you doing this? Please, stop.”

Grace pleaded.

—Oh, was it not my imagination? Grace, can you hear me?

Lucas replied with a laughter-infused voice.

“I can hear you. It’s because I can hear you so well that I’m begging you to stop saying strange things.”

—Oh, haha. I thought you couldn’t hear me at all since you didn’t respond. Well, I see. Beautiful Grace. You can hear my voice now.

To hear the words ‘Beautiful Grace’ in his voice. Grace felt like her ears were about to burst.

“Stop teasing me. I know I’m not that pretty.”

—You are pretty. To that extent.

“…Stop teasing me, please.”

—I’m not teasing. I mean it. Grace, do you not realize how pretty you are?

“I mean, I’m not that pretty.”

—Yes you are, Grace.

“……”

Grace couldn’t reply, instead biting her lip.

—If it’s not to that extent, how pretty do you think you are?

“You’re really being mean. No, I’m not pretty. So please, stop it.”

Blushing all the way to her neck, Grace mumbled against the black horse’s neck, burying her forehead in it and soothingly running her fingers over its smooth mane.

Twitch.

She felt the horse’s strong muscles tense beneath her touch.

Grace met the horse’s eyes and spoke to calm it, her fingers gliding smoothly over its velvety muzzle.

—…You’re beautiful, Grace. Truly.

After a long while, Lucas spoke again in a somewhat subdued voice. His voice now sounded more powerful and sincere than before, leaving Grace unable to even refute.

Eventually, with her forehead resting against Lucas’s head, Grace burst into laughter.

—When you smile, you’re adorable. When you’re stubborn, you’re cute. When your face turns red, you’re like a human peach, I thought… like it would be juicy if I took a bite…

…But Lucas’s words didn’t stop.

Grace covered her ears and shook her head, but there was no way to block out his voice echoing directly in her mind.

He continued to ramble, laughing.

—Your eyes resemble the stars in the night sky, and when you get angry… Well, I haven’t seen you get angry yet, so let’s skip that for now. What else is there?

“Are you doing this on purpose right now?”

—If it bothers you, try giving it right back. Come on, how are my eyes to you, Grace?

“I don’t want to. I won’t say anything!”

—Why not? I’m a little hurt.

He said with a voice that sounded disappointed.

Grace flinched, wondering if she had genuinely upset him.

“I’m sorry. But really, it’s a bit embarrassing and awkward for me… I just can’t do it.”

—Is this embarrassing, Grace? That’s a problem. Once we become a couple, there will be even more embarrassing things to do…

“P-Pardon?”

Hearing the shock in her suddenly raised voice, Lucas laughed.

—Things like love vows or a kiss of commitment. Or were you thinking of other things, Grace?

“No!”

Grace quickly responded and sat up, her cheeks positively flushed as she started pacing.

It wasn’t her intention, but she had imagined it.

More embarrassing things to do as a couple!

‘…I must be crazy!’

She closed her eyes tightly.

Even though it was a brief moment, she had imagined lying down in bed beside Lucas Blacke, kissing him…

—Grace?

Lucas called her name, but she didn’t respond. She just paced around in place, her face turning as red as a beet. The black horse sitting beside her watched her intently.

Pu-hiiing!

The horse chuckled.

The sound somehow felt like His Excellency was right next to her, laughing.

Grace stared at the horse with a puzzled look in her eyes.

The horse sat quietly, as if asking why she was behaving like this, and swayed its tail gently.

Grace sighed silently and took a seat next to Luki.

Her chest was tingling with embarrassment.

She quickly buried her face in the horse’s neck, worried that someone might see her like this.

The horse seemed startled by her sudden movement, and he flinched. She gently stroked his mane to calm him down.

…Huu.

She couldn’t tell where the sigh came from. Whether it was His Excellency’s voice echoing in her mind, her own sigh, or even the horse she was embracing. She couldn’t distinguish it.

Soon, she heard him murmuring in a subdued voice.

—I really… really want to see you soon.

And in response, Grace whispered softly, her voice so quiet that only the horse beside her could hear it.

‘Me too.’