Chapter106

"I have absolutely no clue," he whispered back, giving her a small shrug. "Maybe you two knew each other before?"
She let out a quiet scoff, her tail swishing fast behind her.
"Please don't joke around like that," she muttered, looking away from him with a deep frown.
He kept walking, but his mind completely stalled as the rest of her sentence finally processed in his head. 
'Wait... did Juna just call me master?' he thought, blinking a few times while staring at the side of her face. 'Eh? Am I dreaming right now?'
Ever since he summoned her, she had either ignored him or spoken to him like an annoying roommate, so hearing the title drop so casually caught him completely off guard. He opened his mouth to say something, but decided it was better not to ruin the moment.
A few hours later, the massive walls of the capital finally came into view. 
The moment they approached the main road leading to the entrance, a watchman on the wall spotted them. A loud horn blew across the courtyard and in less than a minute later, a squad of heavily armored knights came rushing out of the main gates. 
They immediately ran past Hajin and Juna, forming a tight protective circle around Didi while keeping their hands resting near their swords. 
A tall man stepped forward from the formation, wearing a golden captain's insignia on his chest plate. He dropped to one knee right in front of her before quickly standing back up, his eyes scanning the dirt on her clothes. 
"Your Highness," the captain said, his voice completely panicked. "What happened to your escort? And who are these people?"
Didi completely froze up.
She opened her mouth to speak, but the words got stuck in her throat. Her mind suddenly dragged her back to the forest, replaying the exact moment Sir Gazel was pierced by the monster. She looked down at her hands, her body trembling slightly while she struggled to form a coherent sentence.
The captain watched her shake, his eyes narrowing rapidly. He looked up, glaring straight at Hajin with sudden, fierce hostility.