Chapter108

'If there was one place in this entire kingdom I wanted to avoid, it was definitely the royal palace,' Hajin thought, leaning his head against the seat.
'That place is just completely filled with overbearing guards, annoying nobles, and people who will ask me way too many questions.'
He genuinely wanted to just turn around and walk away, but Princess Didi had been extremely insistent. 
He shifted his weight, putting his elbow on the small armrest so he could look out the carriage window. The capital streets blurred past them due to the fast pace of the horses, but his eyes easily picked out the squad of knights riding directly alongside the carriage. 
His gaze locked onto the tall knight serving as the captain, specifically noting the bright red handprint perfectly outlined across the man's left cheek. 
'She really slapped the soul out of him back there,' he thought, keeping a perfectly straight face while he stared at the red mark. 
The man had genuinely believed he was acting like a heroic, loyal knight when he tried to grab Hajin in the courtyard. Instead, Didi had walked right up to him, completely dropped his ego with one lightning-fast slap across the face, and then ordered them both into her carriage. 
The memory almost made him laugh, but the carriage rattling over a bump dragged his attention back inside. 
Juna sat directly next to him, her arms crossed tight against her chest while the tip of her tail flicked angrily against the seat. She clearly hated being locked in such an enclosed space, but she stayed completely quiet. 
Sitting across from them, Didi leaned forward a little, her sharp eyes studying him from head to toe. 
"You look completely malnourished," she said, finally deciding to break the long silence.
He blinked a few times, genuinely caught off guard by the bluntness of the statement. 
'Well, that is definitely one way to start a conversation,' he thought, looking down at his cheap clothes before looking back up at her. 
"I prefer the term lean," he said, giving a small, casual shrug. "But realistically, cooking deer meat over a fire every single day isn't exactly a perfectly balanced diet. I just eat whatever I can afford to hunt on the edge of the border."
She crossed her arms, her brows pulling together as she looked at his thin frame.