TPCP – 3.1

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“Oh my God, it’s Lucerne de Kayas, the high general!”

   Elisha wiped away her tears with the back of her hand. Freckles was whispering. They were now snooping among the trees near the outer road and gazing at the carriage.

  “He’s got an angel’s face—so handsome! I would have never been able to imagine such a face,”

  said the girl. Even from afar, they could tell man’s face was not ordinary.

“Then take your time looking,”

Elisha murmured.

“Huh? How do you expect me to do that?”

On the other side of Lucerne’s wagon, another wagon was running at a gallop.

‘Gallop Gallop’—the sound of hammering hooves rang in Elisha’s head. Lucerne’s wagon stopped just before the carriages crashed into each other, and both came to a standstill.

   The carriage came to a rough stop, splashing muddy water on Elisha’s dress hidden between the shade of the tree. Elisha quietly frowned.

Whoa, whoa, whoa!

shouted the horseman.

Creak— the carriage door opened.

***

The wagon that blocked Lucerne’s carriage was white. It was a carriage plastered with the motif of the Cartier crest.

  Freckles’ eyes opened wide with realization, and looked at Elisha in shock.

‘What? Did you know the carriage would stop?’

  It seemed that way.

  “They must be crazy; if they had stopped a little later, both carriages would have turned to powder,”

  Freckles whispered. Lucerne’s carriage door was firmly closed.

 Wham— 

  Instead, it was the white wagon that opened the door.

 “Oh! General! This Carola, she is so surprised. She can’t believe you’re here. Are you going to the main residence?”

  What got off the wagon was a woman in a white dress with glamorous lace embellishments. Her brown hair was lifted into an elegant bun. A soft, birdlike slender body with a girly face. However, she looked a little odd because of her big breasts. 

“… …”

When Elisha saw her, she clenched her hands. This was the woman who would ruin Elisha’s face in the future. It was Jacob’s wife, Carola.

  A few days ago, Elisha was wearing a lace carefully sewn. The maid said it was an important dress, so she rushed to Elisha. Now it seemed she was trying to get noticed and impress Lucerne.

  Only then did Lucerne’s carriage door open slowly.

“Carola is always curious about how you are doing, General.”

  Carola said coquettishly, leaning against his carriage like a child and talking in the third person.

   “I want you to stay away from my carriage.”

   Soon a voice came from inside the carriage. It was deep, low-pitched, and intense—hardly forgettable. 

  “Yes?”

Carola’s voice broke, distorted.

   “You’re blocking my carriage door now, so get out of the way. Or do you want to cling on the door like this instead and go inside?”

  From Elisha’s position, one could see the back of Carola’s neck. Her throat turned red. Carol stepped aside.

   At last, he got off the carriage. The moment she saw him, a light piercing blow penetrated Elisha’s bosom.

   The man’s hair was black, and his eyes were very dark and impressive. They seemed to be reddish-brown at first glance, but when sunlight hit those eyes, everyone noticed that the man’s eyes were intensely red.

The man was tall enough to have to stoop down from the tall carriage, and he had very broad shoulders. On the other hand, his waist exposed under his cape was narrow, and his thighs were solid and firm. He was wearing a military uniform that was tailored perfectly and tightly against his whole body.

Even from a distance, his hot energy seemed to hurt. He was an overwhelming male.

Freckles never saw a man like him before in her life. Elisha watched her hands trembling gently as her eyes were filled with joy.

 “Oh, my gosh. It’s really him. It’s him…”

Lucerne clicked his tongue while looking at Carola. It was the natural arrogance and dominant temperament of a ruler.

“I would have told you not to come out. Such an unpleasant reception.”

Carola blinked, undeterred.

“Carola was on her way out, and then she saw a nice carriage and told them to stop. She pondered if the horseman needs to be educated again. He stopped the carriage suddenly. Carol was also very surprised,”

 said Carola, twisting herself like an embarrassed toddler.

 Lucerne, with dark eyes, just stared at Carola. He soon turned away as if he had lost interest.

Suddenly Lucerne’s gaze turned to the shade where Elisha hid. Elisha was stunned.

“Who’s there? Come out.”

Elisha hesitated, then stepped out of the shade. Freckles followed with a shudder.

 Freckles was astonished and watched Elisha, her mouth agape. She didn’t notice because she was so excited to see Lucerne, but Elisha’s appearance was extraordinary.

“How did you…”

  From Elisha’s exposed white cleavage to her clinging skirt, muddy water was everywhere, dripping slowly off of her. Lucerne’s wagon had stopped in a hurry and baptized Elisha with dirty water.

“………”

 Additionally, Elisha’s eyes were still red and shiny; her tears were still flowing as she held some ruined laundry tightly in her arms.

***

Lucerne’s gaze slowly searched Elisha. It was a gaze that seemed to gently investigate her whole body.

Elisha felt naked in front of him. 

Self-conscious, she felt like she was going back to the Elisha of her previous life, who had sustained burns on her face.

 He was a man with eyes who could make taste sensations through its power: a man who would make you doubt yourself, a man who was perfect and would hurt others.

At the same time, the memory of the day before the return came to mind.

***