# 5
Ever since Angelica heard Hugo's name, her relationship with him began to grow quickly.
More precisely, the periods in which she spoke alone without stopping increased.
The day was quiet, no different from previous days.
-Knock knock, knock knock.-
The horse galloped through the forest, stirring the fresh air.
Angelica leaned her body against Hugo's chest, which had become so familiar to her that she felt comfortable there.
Then she raised her head slightly. He wasn't speaking, but she was sure he was looking at her.
“Hugo, I have a request.”
Finally, I said the words I had thought about hundreds of times over the past days.
Her request might seem ridiculous, especially since she was kidnapped, but she couldn't take it anymore.
"What is it?"
Fortunately, Hugo seemed willing to listen, so he responded with a calm question.
Angelica lowered her eyes slightly, then tapped her finger on the arm that was tightly around her waist.
“Um… can we take a long break during the day today?”
There was no specific reason as always. However, Hugo did not insist on knowing the details.
After several days in her company, he had a general idea of her personality.
She was very cautious and suspicious, but at the same time she could not bear to cause trouble to others.
Therefore, if she could not provide a convincing justification, she feared being misunderstood, and she found herself making unnecessary excuses.
As he expected, the silence did not last long before she whispered, blushing:
“Um... I... I want to... take a shower...”
Of course, she would wipe her body with a wet towel after every meal, but she would not immerse herself in water, which left a constant feeling of discomfort.
“I can't go alone at night.”
How can a person who cannot see reach the lake in the forest?
Just not tripping and dying on the way would be a miracle.
But she didn't want to ask Hugo for help, it was a burden on him.
He drove the horse all day, and when they paused to eat, he was the one to prepare her food before he ate himself.
He was always preoccupied with her, even sleeping late due to dealing with her constant fears of the darkness of the forest.
'When I think about it, it seems like I'm living a lavish life despite being kidnapped...'
For the first time, she felt like her situation wasn't all bad.
But when she noticed that Hugo was still silent, she coughed lightly, trying to break the deadlock.
“Hey… Hugo, you can also rest… It wouldn’t be bad if we took a few hours, right?”
'Please say yes.'
Without realizing it, she was expressing her thoughts through her fingers as she gently shook his arm.
Hugo noticed her touch for a moment, then met her gaze again.
Her clear eyes were reflecting the sunlight, shining with a warm glow, making him blink slowly.
“A few hours won't hurt.”
He found himself suddenly convinced, even though he was not the type to change his plans easily.
But for some reason, he wanted to fulfill her request.
“Two hours max.”
"That's more than enough! Thank you, Hugo!"
Angelica smiled brightly, revealing her white teeth, a smile that instantly melted hearts.
Even Hugo found himself subconsciously giving a slight smile, although it faded quickly, its traces remained in his eyes.
After that, he slowly led the horse towards an area near a lake, then forced Angelica to sit down and eat lunch, even though she claimed that she was not hungry.
Although she has become accustomed to being blind, Hugo still makes sure to feed her himself.
“Hugo, I can eat on my own now, give me food.”
"truly?"
The last time he trusted her words, he gave her the bowl, but she blew on the hot soup and dropped the piece of meat on her hand.
“The burn marks are still here.”
He gently took her hand, rubbing her back with his thumb.
"Yes!"
Her skin was sensitive, and it was difficult to treat in this position, so the pain remained.
“It was because of your cruel hand, Hugo!”
He didn't seem to realize how hard his hands were. Even if he passes it on her skin without pressure, she will feel pain!
But despite her complaining, he didn't back down.
“Ah~.”
Faced with his insistence, she had no choice but to open her mouth as she was accustomed to, so he could feed her.
Even the temperature of the soup he knew very well now.
As she chewed, Angelica thought again about how “privileged” her situation as a kidnapper was.
After lunch, I had a tart cherry dessert, and finally, after a week of waiting, it was time to shower.
“Hugo, just take me to the lake, then you can rest!”
She said confidently, hugging the new robe he gave her.
“You haven't been sleeping well lately, so take the opportunity to rest.”
"Good."
Hugo nodded calmly, as he carried some of her few clothes that he had taken when she was kidnapped.
Then, with the skill he was accustomed to, he had her cling to his arm as he led her slowly towards the lake.
❈❈❈
As soon as Hugo walked away, he heard the sound of clothes hitting each other.
“Huh?”
I could hear voices mixed with embarrassment as if nothing was wrong, but this time I closed my eyes tightly.
Well anyway, I can't help her with something like this.
“…”
I deliberately plugged my ears.
Strangely enough, the sound was so annoying that it made me frown.
Fortunately, the sound of rustling clothes stopped soon after.
She seemed in a good mood and continued singing a song I had never heard before.
I could hear the sound of flowing water.
Although I thought I had covered my ears, I subconsciously followed Angelica's actions.
“As the princess said, it would be better if I at least sleep.”
He headed deeper into the forest to make the sound of the water he kept hearing a little fainter.
But at that moment.
“Ah!”
I heard screams of fear from Angelica.
- to run! Run!–
Soon my steps turned into the forest towards the lake. Without any time to think about what happened, Hugo ran.
The second it took to see her again seemed like an eternity.
She was soon seen struggling to get out of the water.
Fortunately, the river water she swallowed only wrapped around her waist.
“Ha.”
For a moment, I felt relieved.
But...that didn't make sense.
The drops of water falling on her body warmed his mind amazingly.
Drops of water were falling quickly and non-stop on the thin, white neckline that was completely different from my own.
The back appeared pure white, without any scratches, and sparkled more clearly where it met water and sunlight.
“Ahh!”
“…!”
Angelica's crying suddenly brought me to my senses.
He immediately picked up the robe from the ground and wrapped it around her.
He held the robe firmly with one hand, put his hand in its crook, and lifted it.
“Haa!”
The water around Angelica fell into the lake with a loud crash.
However, the sound of her moans reached Hugo 0
More deeply.
“Ah, Hugo…”
Angelica hurriedly reached into her familiar embrace and wrapped her hand around his neck.
The arms that emerged from among the deeply covered robes were particularly white.
“There is something strange in the lake, as if... it is pulling me down...”
There were no dangerous fish in the lake, which had clear visibility because there were no people coming and going.
There are only very small fish that you don't have to worry about.
“...Okay, it's okay now, Angelica.”
Hugo didn't bother telling her that fact.
Is it because he is afraid that Angelica will feel embarrassed if she finds out the truth, or is it for another reason...?
“Huh...”
Angelica gradually began to stop crying due to the awkward relief.
However, she still clings to him out of fear.
“Hugo...Hugo”
She called his name over and over again, wrapping her arms deeper around his neck.
Her face was wet, and he wasn't sure if she was crying or if it was water from the lake.
He was shocked.
The strange thing is that his body became stiff.
Is it because of that voice calling his name so harshly, as if the only person in this world he could rely on was himself?
Maybe it was because of her hot face and her breath hitting the back of his neck.
Or maybe both.
Even in the moment of angrily thinking about the reason, Hugo didn't feel the need to let her go, so he put more strength into the arm holding Angelica.
The water waves created by Angelica were still rippling in the lake.
Inadvertently, Hugo thought that the wave might not just stay in the lake.
Since it was a huge mountain range, the lake was very large.
“The lake is deep, don’t take more than five steps.”
“Yes, I understand.”
Those were bold words.
But Hugo still can't trust her.
After saying that, an internal scream rang out a few seconds later.
“Damn, why am I so worried?”
He didn't understand why the strange feelings suddenly swept over him.
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