The run ended far sooner than Evan had hoped.
Or rather—
His legs ended it for him.
"I can't… feel my legs…" Evan muttered weakly, his voice barely louder than the wind brushing through the grass.
The moment those words left his mouth, his body tilted forward.
His exhausted legs refused to move another step.
Then—
Thud.
He collapsed face-first onto the grass.
Lyra stopped walking and looked down at the small figure lying on the ground.
For a moment, she simply stood there in silence, staring at him as if deciding whether to laugh or worry.
Then she sighed softly.
"My prince…"
Evan didn't respond.
His body was completely spread across the ground, arms and legs unmoving like a fallen doll that had lost all its strings.
Lyra crouched beside him, lowering herself so she could see his face.
"Are you still alive?"
A weak voice came from the grass.
"…Barely."
Lyra pressed her lips together, clearly trying not to laugh at the pitiful sight.
"You only ran half the distance."
Evan slowly turned his head to look at her, his cheek still pressed against the grass.
"That hill… looked much closer from the house."
Lyra finally let out a quiet chuckle.
"You collapsed before we even reached the halfway mark," she said, glancing back at the distant hill behind them.
Evan groaned.
"That information is not helpful right now."
He tried to push himself up.
His arms trembled from exhaustion.
Then they immediately gave up and dropped back to the ground.
"Okay," he muttered tiredly. "That's not happening."
Lyra watched him struggle for a moment before shaking her head.
"You're not walking back like this."
Evan frowned slightly and lifted his head just enough to look at her.
"What do you mean?"
Instead of answering, Lyra turned around and knelt in front of him, presenting her back.
"My prince."
Evan blinked in confusion.
"Get on."
"…What?"
She glanced back at him with mild impatience.
"I said get on."
Evan stared at her back for a moment, still trying to process what she meant.
"You mean…"
"Yes," she said calmly, tapping her shoulder.
"I'll carry you."
Evan stared at her for a few seconds.
Then his eyes narrowed suspiciously.
"You just want to laugh at me later, don't you?"
Lyra raised an eyebrow and looked over her shoulder.
"My prince, if I wanted to laugh at you, I would already be doing it."
Evan sighed.
"…That's not comforting."
She remained kneeling patiently.
"Well?"
Evan sighed again.
He honestly didn't have the strength left to argue.
Slowly, he pushed himself up and climbed onto her back.
The moment he settled there, Lyra stood up effortlessly.
Evan blinked in surprise at how easily she lifted him.
"…That was fast."
Lyra adjusted her grip slightly.
"You weigh less than a sack of rice."
"Hey."
"That wasn't an insult."
"It felt like one."
Lyra simply ignored him and began walking back toward the house.
The road was quiet again.
The only sound was the soft rhythm of her footsteps against the dirt path.
For a few minutes, neither of them spoke.
Evan rested his head against her shoulder.
Her back was warm.
Strangely comfortable too.
He hadn't realized how tired he actually was until now.
Lyra suddenly spoke, breaking the comfortable silence.
"You did well today."
Evan blinked slightly and lifted his head.
"…Really?"
"Yes," she said calmly.
"For someone who only started body cultivation this morning, you pushed yourself farther than most beginners would."
Evan thought about that for a moment.
Then he sighed.
"I still collapsed."
Lyra smiled faintly.
"That's normal."
She adjusted her grip slightly to support him better.
"Training means pushing your limits until your body refuses to move. Only then will it begin to grow stronger."
Evan looked at her curiously.
"Did you collapse during your first training too?"
Lyra didn't answer immediately.
Her gaze drifted forward as if remembering something.
"…Many times."
Evan raised an eyebrow.
"Really?"
"Yes," she said quietly.
She kept walking.
"But I didn't have anyone to carry me back."
Evan was quiet for a moment.
Then he leaned his chin on her shoulder.
"Well," he said casually, "that sounds like a tragic childhood."
Lyra almost laughed.
"You're making fun of me now?"
"Maybe a little."
She shook her head.
"You're the one who collapsed."
"And you're the one giving free piggyback rides."
Lyra sighed dramatically.
"What a troublesome prince I ended up serving."
Evan grinned slightly.
"You say that, but you look happy."
Lyra paused mid-step.
For a brief moment, she didn't move.
Then she continued walking again.
"…You're imagining things."
Evan smiled quietly but didn't argue.
After a while, he spoke again.
"Lyra."
"Yes?"
"You're really strong."
She glanced back slightly.
"Of course I am."
"That's not what I meant."
She waited patiently.
Evan rested his head more comfortably against her shoulder.
"I mean… it feels safe."
Lyra froze for half a second.
Her steps slowed slightly.
"…Safe?"
"Yeah," Evan said, yawning.
"Like nothing bad can happen if you're around."
Lyra didn't say anything.
But her ears had turned slightly red.
She continued walking quietly.
After a while, Evan spoke again.
"Lyra."
"Yes, my prince?"
"Are you blushing?"
Her steps stopped instantly.
"…No."
"You definitely are."
"I am not."
"Your ears are red."
"That's because of the sun."
"It's almost evening."
"…The evening sun is strong."
Lyra kept a perfectly deadpan expression, as if nothing was bothering her.
Evan laughed weakly.
"You're terrible at lying."
Lyra resumed walking immediately.
"If you keep talking, I will drop you."
"You wouldn't."
"…I might."
Evan rested his head back down.
"You like me too much."
Lyra nearly stumbled mid-step.
She quickly regained her balance and continued walking as if nothing had happened.
But Evan noticed.
"You almost dropped me," he said with a faint grin.
"I did not."
"You did."
"I did not."
Evan chuckled.
"You're very defensive today."
Lyra kept walking, her expression completely calm.
"You're imagining things."
Evan tilted his head slightly, resting it more comfortably against her shoulder.
"If you say so."
For a moment, the road fell silent again.
A gentle evening breeze passed through the trees, rustling the leaves softly. The golden light of the setting sun stretched across the path, casting long shadows ahead of them.
Evan watched those shadows sway with each of Lyra's steps.
"…Lyra."
"Yes, my prince?"
"Have you carried people like this before?"
Lyra answered immediately.
"No."
Evan blinked.
"Not even during training?"
"That's different."
"How?"
"They were injured."
"And I'm not?"
"You're exhausted."
"That sounds like the same thing."
Lyra shook her head slightly.
"It's not."
Evan thought about it for a moment before smiling.
"So I'm special?"
Lyra stopped walking again.
This time she didn't immediately start moving.
"…You're my prince."
"That's not the same answer."
Lyra resumed walking without responding.
Evan laughed softly.
"You avoided the question."
"I did not."
"You definitely did."
"…My prince."
"Yes?"
"If you keep talking like this…"
Her voice turned slightly threatening.
"I might actually drop you."
Evan tightened his arms around her shoulders dramatically.
"See? You care too much to do that."
Lyra didn't respond.
But the faint redness on her ears returned again.
A few minutes later, the house gates finally came into view.
Lyra walked through them calmly.
She finally stopped near the entrance of the house.
"Alright."
Evan lifted his head.
"We're back."
She gently lowered him to the ground.
Evan tried to stand.
His legs immediately shook.
Lyra sighed.
"You're still exhausted."
Evan nodded.
"Yeah."
Then he looked up at her.
"So…"
Lyra crossed her arms.
"Yes?"
"What's next?"
A mischievous smile slowly appeared on her face.
"Well, my prince."
She pointed toward the training yard.
"Now that you've rested…"
Evan's eyes widened slightly.
"Wait."
Lyra smiled brightly.
"We start the next round of training."
Evan stared at her in disbelief.
"…You're evil."
Lyra laughed.
"Welcome to cultivation."