The Forgotten Field - Chapter 89

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 89
Barcas turned without a word of protest.
As she was practically dragged from the chamber, Talia cast anxious glances around her surroundings. The worry that someone might take issue with the ceremony’s disastrous conclusion had struck her belatedly.
Yet most of the retainers bore expressions of relief, as though a great burden had been lifted from their shoulders.
“With this, the discipline of the Eastern Territories shall be restored.”
A man who had fallen into step beside them spoke up. His face seemed oddly familiar—he appeared to be someone she had encountered on the day of Barcas’s duel.
The man, dressed impeccably in formal attire, offered her a light bow before turning his gaze back to Barcas.
“Do you intend to begin your tour of the domain immediately?”
“Provided there are no pressing complications.”
Barcas replied in his characteristically blunt manner, his eyes descending to Talia as he posed a question.
“Will you be prepared to depart at once?”
“…Where are we going?”
“It is one of the principal ceremonies of the succession. A ceremonial tour through the Eastern Territories to present the new ruler’s face to the domain’s people and to assess the regional circumstances.”
The man interjected with an explanation. Talia looked up at him with an expression of bewilderment.
“Do I really have to go too?”
“Typically, the Grand Duchess would accompany him as well, but…”
He trailed off ambiguously, casting a sidelong glance at Barcas. Barcas, who had been walking quietly down the corridor, suddenly came to a halt.
Talia felt a hand brush against her cheek and instinctively drew her neck back. Barcas, lifting her chin, spoke in a measured tone.
“Your Highness must accompany us.”
Talia’s eyes widened. Since injuring her leg, this was the first time he had demanded something of her in such a manner.
“Did you not instruct me not to hide you away?”
He added curtly, his gaze turning cold.
“I intend to honor that command. Henceforth, there shall not be a soul in these lands unaware that you are the Grand Duchess Sierkan.”
She opened her mouth in shock. She had assumed it would end with merely showing herself to the retainers, never imagining she would be paraded before the entirety of the Eastern Territories.
Talia swallowed hard.
“I… I can’t leave right now. I need to pack, and my Nursemaid and my Healer…”
“Your attendants have already been notified in advance. By now, all travel preparations should be complete.”
He cut off her words as though severing her means of escape.
Talia’s eyes darted about. But before she could conjure another excuse, Barcas bent down and hoisted her into his arms with one sweep. Talia stifled a cry, wrapping her arms around his neck.
Heedless of her flailing, Barcas descended the stairs in long strides, crossed the grand hall, and issued orders to his retainers.
“Ready the Spear Knight Order. We ride toward the Norden Plain.”
Then he passed through an arched doorway flooded with brilliant light. Talia squinted against the glare, and as her eyes adjusted, the figures of attendants filling the Inner Courtyard came into focus.
Talia’s body went rigid under their scrutiny, as though they were observing some peculiar creature.
The memory of a strange beast she had once seen in the Imperial Palace surfaced in her mind. She could still recall the fascinated gazes of those who had peered at the caged monster.
As the sensation of nausea intensified, Talia buried her face against his shoulder.
“Tell them all to stop staring at me. It’s making me sick.”
“…I wonder whether they would obey such a command from you.”
Barcas replied in a tone devoid of warmth. Talia glared at him incredulously.
“You’re a Grand Duke now. Tell them that anyone who defies your orders will be executed, or better yet, impaled on a spear like before.”
A faint smirk played at the corner of his mouth.
“Do you wish for me to slaughter every last person from the Eastern Territories?”
Talia’s brow furrowed. Was this man actually jesting with her?
As I studied his inscrutable, expressionless face as though dissecting it, Barcas added in an even tone.
“If you execute everyone who gazes upon you, the Khan People will soon face extinction.”
“Don’t talk nonsense. I meant you should merely threaten them.”
“Those from the Eastern Territories do not make idle threats. Once words leave our lips, we must see them through.”
Talia found herself enveloped in a haze of confusion. I couldn’t fathom that I was having such an absurd conversation with Barcas. My head felt oddly numb, though I hadn’t burned any sleeping herbs.
She moistened her parched lips and muttered irritably.
“You certainly do take your time explaining something so simple.”
“I’m relieved you understand.”
Barcas twisted his lips in a sardonic smile and turned her head to face forward. Talia shrank her shoulders. A soft, low voice brushed against her ear.
“Lift your head.”
Barcas adjusted her posture so that her head tilted upward toward his, and whispered in a hushed voice.
“You said you would hide yourself, but I cannot hide you—is that not so?”
A sudden gust of wind swept across their bodies. Talia lifted her head as though drawn by an invisible force.
Cool air carrying the scent of withered grass billowed through their garments. The unpleasant sensation that had been crawling across my skin gradually subsided. Talia blinked her eyelids slowly.
Thin silk fabric wrapped softly against her skin. After gazing up at the brightly shining sky for a moment, Talia lowered her gaze back to the clearing.
The people still watched her without so much as a blink. Yet Talia could discern something different in their stares.
It was something akin to reverence. A strange thrill ran down her spine. They gazed upon her as they would upon Senevir. Upon realizing this truth, Talia turned her eyes back to Barcas.
Was it because this man stood beside her? I couldn’t believe that no one had noticed how broken I truly was.
“We greet the Grand Duke.”
As Barcas crossed the vast courtyard and approached the castle gate, one of the Knights standing in neat formation stepped forward and bowed. It was a mounted warrior named Tyron.
Barcas came to a halt before a large traveling carriage and replied with indifference.
“I am merely acting in that capacity for now.”
“Yet you already hold all the true power, do you not?”
The man crossed his arms before his chest and released a playful laugh.
“Everyone is enthralled by the emergence of a young and formidable new leader. Do not dampen their spirits.”
Barcas deemed him unworthy of response and quietly passed by him, opening the carriage door.
Talia’s eyes widened as she surveyed the comfortably appointed interior. I understood now why he hadn’t shown his face for an entire week. Securing the loyalty of his retainers, pressuring the Grand Duke to expedite the succession ceremony, and simultaneously completing all travel preparations—even two bodies would have been insufficient.
He climbed into the carriage and set her down upon the spacious seat. As he reached for the door handle to close it, the mounted warrior waiting outside seized the door.
“There is one matter I wish to propose. Please permit Lucas to accompany us on this journey.”
“Did you not hear that I have placed that boy under house arrest?”
The man released a small sigh.
“I am aware. However, Lucas is your younger brother. In a few years’ time, he must become your Young Aide, must he not? Rather than confining him to a desk as though he were a mere child, would it not be better for him to learn through direct experience?”
A faint crease appeared between Barcas’s brows. He studied the man’s weathered face with a contemplative expression before exhaling as though sighing.
“Very well. Assign him to me as a page knight.”
The man withdrew with a satisfied expression. Barcas immediately closed and locked the door, then settled into the seat across from her.
Talia glanced at him with an awkward expression. Barcas always rode Torque when traveling. As a considerable time passed without him showing any sign of leaving the carriage, Talia carefully opened her mouth.
“You’re not riding your horse?”
Barcas, who had been unfastening the ornate dangling ornaments around his wrist, cast a cool gaze toward her.
“Do you wish me to step out of the carriage?”
“Who said that? I was merely curious and asked a question.”
His tone seemed sharper than usual, and I lowered my gaze, offering only a small murmur in response.
Given what I had done, I could not afford to push back as I normally would. I pressed myself against the carriage wall, pretending to gaze absently out the window.
He leaned back against the seat, running his fingers through his disheveled hair.
“As you are well aware, our marriage has stirred considerable gossip. To quell the rumors, we must appear as a proper couple, at least for the time being.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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