Chapter 2

I got out of bed as soon as it was light.

I hadn't slept all night, and my eyes were sore and painful. I brought a bowl of hot soup from the kitchen, sat by the window, and cut myself some bread.

When Rowan came out, he first glanced at the table.

"What about mine?"

"There's still some in the kitchen."

He paused, walked over, put his hand on my shoulder, and lowered his head to kiss my forehead.

I turned to the side to grab my water glass, avoiding it.

Didn't sleep well last night?

"Um."

The hand lingered on my shoulder for a moment before finally letting go.

In the past, I had to beg him for this kiss little by little. At first, he would always forget, saying he wasn't used to such intimate gestures as kissing, so I would tug at his sleeve and look up at him, waiting.

Now that I no longer ask for kisses, he doesn't feel like he's missing anything.

Rowan pulled out a chair and picked up a piece of bread.

"Irving said you entrusted him with the arrangements for the winter tour as well?"

I gripped the water glass tighter.

"We've given him the map, but he still needs to familiarize himself with the route. I'll take him through it today."

“I’ll go with you,” Rowan said. “We can see the mountain pass to the north.”

I looked up.

He had already started eating, and casually added, "Once he can take over, you won't have to run around all day."

I lowered my eyes and finished my soup.

He thought that once I finished this busy period, I would stay by his side.

After breakfast, we set off on horseback.

Before they reached the fork in the road leading to the north mountain, a messenger caught up with them.

“Alpha, Miss Lydia is waiting at the East Gate. She said that if no one accompanies her back to her old house to retrieve her things today, she will go by herself.”

Rowan immediately pulled on the reins.

"Who told her to go by herself?"

She said that her mother left behind some things in those boxes, and she was afraid that if she delayed any longer, she would never be able to find them again.

Rowan turned his horse around: "Tell the guards at the river mouth to go and retrieve her things."

I reached out and pressed down on his reins.

“The people from the river mouth cannot be transferred. A hunter’s trap was just discovered outside the village, and that forest hasn’t been cleared yet.”

"I'll arrange for someone else to fill in for me if I only go for two days."

"Then we should wait for the replacement to arrive—"

"Clara, she's already waiting at the door."

He interrupted me, his voice urging me on.

"I'll go back first and leave her at Stone Castle. You know the way north, so you can take Owen there."

My hand was still on the reins.

He just said he would come with me.

Rowan glanced at my hand, then looked towards the Stone Castle.

I slowly loosened my grip.

"The night patrol at the river mouth cannot be left empty."

"I know."

He sped away with the messenger, never looking back.

Muds kicked up by the horses' hooves landed on the hem of my cloak. I stopped at the crossroads, watching the two figures disappear before tightening my grip on the reins.

In the past, when I encountered something like this, I would always wait a while.

Perhaps he will catch up with her after he has settled her in.

This time, I turned directly onto the mountain road to the north.

Irving and two patrolmen were already waiting there.

I led them across the gentle slope suitable for transporting grain, pointing out the river sections that were impassable in winter. Ouwenhua, like a gray wolf, retraced the route I had indicated.

When he returned, I gave him the map I had kept.

"Next time, you'll lead the team."

He took the map: "Luna, aren't you coming along?"

"I have other plans."

On the way back, we detoured to Hekou Village.

Irving asked the patrolmen who stayed behind, and when he returned, he frowned: "That team of guards set off this afternoon, but the replacement for the night patrol hasn't been decided yet."

I instructed those who remained to guard the village first, and not to scatter into the woods after dark, but to wait for the reinforcements to arrive before taking the original route.

I also wrote these arrangements next to the map I gave Rowan.

I can clearly hand over what I know, but I can't always fill in the gaps he leaves behind.

When they returned to Stone Castle in the evening, Rowan had already come back.

He stood by the brazier in the hall, looking relaxed. When I entered, he reached out and took the map from me.

"They taught it all to Irving?"

"Yes. And the night patrols at the river mouth—"

"I will arrange it."

He unfolded the map, but his gaze lingered on my wrist.

"Where's the bracelet?"

I glanced down. There was a faint mark left where I had worn the bracelet for years.

"Take it off, it's in the way when I do things."

“That bracelet is so old, it should have been replaced a long time ago.” Rowan smiled. “Next time we go to the market, we’ll pick out a new one.”

I looked at him but didn't say anything.

Thinking about the bracelet I took off this morning, I can't quite describe the feeling in my heart.

Lydia called out to him from the other end of the corridor.

Rowan placed the map on the table: "I'll look at it in a bit."

He walked very fast.

I stood there for a moment, turned the side marked "River Estuary Night Patrol" to the top, and then picked up my cloak.

To get back to the bedroom, one must pass through the inner courtyard.

As I walked down the stone steps, I suddenly stopped.

Lydia sat on the veranda, her long hair cascading over her shoulders. Rowan stood behind her, a comb in one hand and a knotted strand of hair in the other.

"Don't move, it'll be untied soon."

She took a soft breath, and he immediately stopped moving.

"Does it hurt?"

"A little."

"Then I'll be gentler."

He put down the comb and slowly untied the knot with his fingers. Lydia looked up at him, and he lowered his head to listen patiently to her.

The map marking the gap in the patrol area is still in the hall.

I gripped the cloak tightly, my knuckles turning white.

Last winter, during a patrol, I was caught in a heavy rain. I barely escaped danger, and when I returned, my hair was so messy that I couldn't comb it. I asked him for help.

He tried it twice, then lost patience and shoved the comb back into my hand.

"I can't do these things, you do them yourself."

That day, I sat alone by the fire for a long time, until my arms ached, before I slowly combed my hair.

I had always hoped that he would comb my hair and warm my hands like a lover, but he has been too busy in recent years, and he is not good at these delicate things, so I have not bothered him anymore.

In the corridor, Rowan finally untied the knot and tucked Lydia's long hair behind her ear.

I looked away and continued walking.

Back in my bedroom, I took the old leather bracelet out of my pocket.

This was hand-woven by Rowan for me when we became engaged.

At that time, he was not yet the leader, and I was always worried about his safety whenever he went out to fight against foreign tribes.

He made this bracelet himself, put it on me, and held my hand, saying that when he wasn't around, this bracelet would accompany and protect me in his place, and that seeing the bracelet was like seeing him.

Over the years, when the leather straps loosened, I tightened them again; and when they wore out, I repaired them twice.

This morning, it took me a long time to untie that knot.

Now, I put it in the fireplace.

The flames licked the leather rope, and the woven strips gradually curled and charred.

I sat by the fire, watching the last familiar shape disappear.

Eleven days left.

This time, I don't need it.