216: Chapter 216 Iceridge City Inn! Caroline's Memories and Sadness! A Good Opportunity!

On the inn terrace.

The night wind blew against them, carrying a slight chill.

The terrace railing was made of thick ironwood, its surface having taken on a deep silver-gray hue after years of wind and rain.

Rowan rested his hands on the railing, looking into the distance.

In the night.

The Northern Border Wall, which spanned across the land, wound and undulated, stretching endlessly.

It extended all the way to the edge of the horizon.

The torches on the wall flickered in the wind, like a string of flowing stars, outlining the silhouette of this ancient defense line clearly and magnificently.

Garuvi stood beside him, shoulder to shoulder.

The breeze blew her light red hair, and a few strands brushed against her cheek.

She did not reach up to fix them, just quietly gazing at the outline of the Northern Border Wall, her eyes filled with memories.

A moment later, Garuvi spoke:

"When I was a child, the first time my father brought me to Ice Ridge City, I was only eleven years old."

Her voice sounded somewhat ethereal in the wind:

"Back then, I thought this wall was so high."

"Father pointed at the knife marks and arrow holes on the wall and told me that every mark was glory exchanged with the blood of the empire's ancestors."

She paused, reaching out to point at a certain section of the wall:

"See that? The marks on that section of the wall are particularly dense. That was left behind during a large-scale southern invasion by the Snowfield Kingdom thirty years ago."

"Father said he was there for that battle. Twelve knights of the Lance Family died in battle, and both my uncle and my third uncle perished in that conflict. It was after that battle that my father took over as the head of the Lance Family."

Rowan looked in the direction she pointed. Although it was hard to see clearly in the night, he could feel the melancholy in Garuvi's words.

He did not speak, just listened quietly, while increasing the intensity of his [Charm] skill.

According to his experience, this was a good opportunity!

Garuvi continued, her voice gradually becoming low: "I grew up in these border cities."

"Ice Ridge City, Cangyuan City, Ice Peak Fortress... I am intimately familiar with every city and every road."

"I once thought that I would spend my whole life protecting this land just like my father..."

She gave a bitter smile, "But I never expected that the ones who would eventually destroy all of this would not be the iron cavalry of the Snowfield Kingdom, nor the curved blades of the Blood Barbarian Tribe, but..."

She stopped, not saying anything more.

Rowan thought for a moment, then spoke slowly:

"One day, you will return to that land and take back everything that belongs to you with your own hands."

Hearing this, Garuvi turned her head to look at him.

The lights of Ice Ridge City shone on her profile, outlining her features softly and clearly.

In those sharp eyes, a certain light seemed to be flickering slightly.

She looked at him for a while, then a faint smile appeared at the corner of her mouth: "Do you know? The tone you used to say that is sometimes really like my father."

Rowan was slightly startled, then he also smiled: "That would truly be my honor."

The atmosphere between the two seemed to soften instantly.

Garuvi seemed to have opened up, starting to talk about more past events regarding the Northern Border.

Her experiences following her father to patrol the borders in her youth.

The nervousness and excitement of her first time independently killing a Snowfield magical beast in a blizzard.

The pride and thrill of putting on the family's heirloom light armor for the first time.

...

As she spoke, she would sometimes stop, gaze into the distance in silence for a moment, and then continue.

Rowan would respond every now and then.

He could feel the [Charm] skill silently increasing her favorability.

As Garuvi continued to speak, her voice gradually lowered. She leaned against the railing, turned her head, and looked at Rowan.

That well-defined profile, those amber eyes that seemed exceptionally deep in the night, that composed and steady demeanor.

She suddenly felt that there was a reassuring power in this man, an inexplicable sense of reliability.

This was a feeling she had never experienced before, making her feel a kind of ease, as if she could let down all her guard.

Her eyes gradually became a bit dazed.

Rowan keenly noticed her change.

He did not speak, just slowly moved closer to her.

The distance between them had unknowingly closed, so close that they could feel each other's breath.

He reached out, his fingertips gently brushing the hair that had been messed up by the night wind, tucking the stray strand behind her ear.

His movements were gentle and natural.

He had done it countless times; he was very skilled.

Garuvi did not dodge.

She tilted her head slightly, looking at him, and in those beautiful eyes, a thin layer of mist seemed to be brewing.

Rowan knew that he should not miss this opportunity.

He leaned down.

Their nose tips touched, their breath mingled...

The rose-petal-like red lips were warm and soft.

Garuvi's body stiffened slightly.

But soon, she relaxed, closed her eyes, and wrapped her arms around Rowan's neck.

...

A long while later.

The two slowly separated.

On the terrace, the night wind was gentle.

Garuvi was breathing heavily...

The inexperienced Blood Rose Knight lady was clearly no match for the veteran Incubus, Mr. Rowan.

Her cheeks were flushed with a moving rosy hue, and her eyes held a trace of lingering daze, mixed with a shyness after having sobered up.

She lowered her eyes, her gaze falling on the slightly wrinkled collar of her clothes, her voice lower than before, carrying a rare awkwardness:

"I... I will go back to my room first. We have to travel tomorrow, you... you should get some rest too."

After she finished speaking, without waiting for Rowan's reply, she turned and quickly walked into her room, gently closing the door.

Rowan stood on the terrace, looking at the closed door, a faint smile appearing at the corner of his mouth.

He stood in the night wind for a while longer, feeling the residual temperature and scent that belonged to her. Then he turned around, pushed open the door to his own room, and walked in.

In the room, the fire in the fireplace made the whole room warm and cozy.

He took off his coat and hung it on the coat rack nearby, sat on the edge of the bed, and was just about to lie down.

Then, he suddenly realized—

He was a bit unaccustomed to it.

For some time now, he had gotten used to feeling the warm, soft body beside him before falling asleep, used to hearing the steady breathing beside him...

And at this moment, in this spacious room, he was all alone, so quiet that he felt a bit unaccustomed to it.

He leaned against the headboard, smiled helplessly, and thought to himself that it was a miscalculation.

If he had known it would be like this, he should have brought Anna along when they set off.

Although that girl from the countryside did not talk much, she was efficient, and her figure had become tall and sturdy, and her skin had gotten much better; she felt quite good to hold.

After pondering for a moment, he shook his head and cast these distracting thoughts aside.

He closed his eyes, began to adjust his breathing, and gradually, his consciousness sank into sleep.

In the next room, Garuvi lay on the bed, looking at the ceiling, unable to fall asleep for a long time.

She gently touched her own lips, as if savoring something, and a blush quietly spread across her cheeks in the darkness.