Lord Simeon was the first to recover from shock.
“Are either of you hurt?” he demanded.
“N-No...” I stammered.
He threw open the carriage door. I had to get off first to make room for the princess, though that was impudent of me. I readjusted my glasses and let Lord Simeon lift me out.
After setting me down, he leaned back into the carriage and reached out to Princess Mira. “You too, Your Highness.”
Once she was safely on the ground, I took in the fresh outdoor air, feeling relieved. Agh, it’s like I’m still swaying. My knees might give out any second now.
Taking a gander at my surroundings, I noticed that our carriage had stopped right at the edge of the river, meaning we would’ve fallen in had we tipped over. That realization sent chills down my spine.
Suddenly, I whipped around. “Is Mr. Mace all right? And Roxy too! Is she okay?!”
I hurried to the front of the carriage, but I couldn’t find Mr. Mace near the driver’s seat. Don’t tell me he fell into the river!
Princess Mira also went pale. “Mace!” she cried out. “Where are you?!”
“I’m over here, Your Highness.”
His response came surprisingly fast. He hobbled over to us from a ways away, supported by one of the knights. Thank goodness! He didn’t fall in after all. The tension in both my and the princess’s shoulders ebbed away.
“I was thrown off the carriage as it lurched.” His voice was strained. “Neither of you is hurt, I take it?”
“We’re fine.” Her Highness kept her eyes trained on him in relief.
He made sure the princess could stand on her own two feet, then let out a huge sigh. “That’s great... I’m truly, truly sorry. I’ll never be able to atone for putting you in such danger...”
The knight supporting Mr. Mace let him go, and the man fell to his knees in front of Her Highness, bowing so low that he was almost horizontal. As far as I could see, he didn’t have any broken bones or severe injuries—aside from a slight limp.
“You weren’t hurt, were you?” Princess Mira leaned down kindly.
“It’s nothing serious.” Mr. Mace didn’t lift his head. “I’m just glad you’re in one piece.”
He was probably the most relieved out of all of us. Nothing but trouble would’ve awaited him had anything happened to the princess.
There were knights clustered all around us. A few were directing the carriage we’d almost collided with and were letting it pass through. Lord Simeon’s aide, Sir Alain, was looking after the Flauberts’ horse.
I went over to ask about her. “Is she hurt?”
“No worries.” Sir Alain smiled at me. “None of her legs were broken. She’s fine.”
“Thank goodness... I’m so sorry, Roxy.” I stroked her neck. Her breathing was still ragged as she nuzzled me. “You must have been so scared. I’m very sorry... There, there. Um, but don’t eat my hair, please.” Still petting Roxy, who continued to ask for affection, I turned back to Lord Simeon. “I’m not even sure where to begin. Er... Could it be that our carriage didn’t stop on its own? You were the one who stopped it?”
Sir Alain cut in brightly. “That’s right! It was the Vice Captain’s long-range attack. As expected of a superhum— Ack!” Lord Simeon had smacked him. “You don’t have to hit me! Well, anyway, he kicked your carriage back the other way when it started tipping over.”
“He...kicked it?”
“Yes, right before it went completely diagonal.” Lord Simeon answered me as if he were talking about the weather. “That carriage’s body is very light.”
He was being so nonchalant about it that everyone around us, including Princess Mira and Mr. Mace, began staring at him like he was remarkably odd. I fully understand, everyone. But he really does do things like this. Despite his gorgeous face, he’s actually a gorilla.
Lord Simeon and his knights had been directly behind the oncoming carriage. They’d rushed over once they’d realized our carriage was spinning out of control. Lord Simeon had arrived first, jumping out from behind our horse to the side of the carriage—he’d used that energy to put all of his weight into his leg and tip our carriage back onto its wheels.
Putting that action into words sounded simple, but had he failed, he could’ve ended up crushed by the carriage or pushed into the river. As expected, only someone like him could’ve maneuvered through such a situation as if it were nothing. I honestly wished I could’ve seen it for myself. It was unfortunate that I hadn’t had the leeway to notice him.
“But why were you all here in the first place?” I couldn’t help but wonder.
“To retrieve Her Highness, of course. We had not expected her to be aboard this carriage.”
Lord Simeon turned a sharp glare to Princess Mira. Usually, his eyes would’ve carried respect for a state guest, but now, they seemed to be giving her a cold scolding. It was so intense that the princess had to turn away. Mr. Mace stepped in front of her to protect her.
My husband adjusted his gloves. “We received a message from Ambassador Van Rail, which is why we hurried out. There is a mountain of things I’d like to ask you, but first and foremost, I’m glad everyone is safe. We’ll take your reports once we return to the palace. Let’s get the carriage back on the road.”
He gave out orders to his subordinates without waiting for the princess’s reply. The knights put the reins back on the Flauberts’ horse and began to lead the carriage.
“Can you walk? Let us go.” Lord Simeon put his arm around my shoulders, and Princess Mira leaned on Mr. Mace. The knights formed a box around us as we slowly made our way back to the road.
It was difficult to walk through the long grass. Would the dew cling to my skirt? As I struggled, conscious of every heavy step, the sound of clattering hooves hit my ears.
Three horses came down from the top of the hill. The people riding them were in casual clothing, not knights’ uniforms. They weren’t mere bystanders, however.
“Your Highness! Are you all right?!”
They stopped their horses nearby. I remembered the man in front—he was one of the Visselian attendants. I’d seen him waiting alongside Mr. Mace at the ball last night. This person also had darker skin and hair than the usual Visselian. Perhaps Vissel had more of these types of people than I’d assumed? My perception might have been warped. The two following that man were ones I’d never seen before. Judging by their builds and demeanors, they were most likely soldiers.
“Mr. Meyer...” Princess Mira addressed him. “I’m fine. Nothing’s wrong. Why are you here?”
“You should have taken more than one guard with you! I understand that you wished to only take one, but we were guarding you from afar.” This Mr. Meyer person was a man with black hair, perhaps in his thirties, seeming a bit older than Lord Simeon and Mr. Mace. His expression was stern, perhaps from shock. “We were waiting outside of the embassy. We found it strange that you never exited, so we went in to check, but they told us you’d already left. We never expected you to use a different carriage... So we hurried after you.”
“I see. My apologies. There was an issue with my carriage that made it perilous to use, so I borrowed Mrs. Flaubert’s.”
“That’s what we heard. Kessel!” Mr. Meyer angrily turned to Mr. Mace. “What were you thinking, going so fast?! Did the thought of danger never even cross your mind?! How could you do that with Her Highness on board?!”