They hear the sound of wheels rolling against dirt followed by the soft thud of horseshoes. Excited, she gets up to go meet it, but the duke holds up a hand to stop her from leaving the coach.

“Those aren’t palace horses,” he utters. “Stay here.”

He grabs the lantern and leaves her in complete darkness. Sounds of metal being scratched fill the coach. Terror starts crawling up her throat, and it doesn’t take long before she abandons the safety of the coach to run after the duke.

“Well, what do we have here?” A boisterous voice calls out. “Deven, stop!”

The carriage is definitely not a palace one: it has a driver and lacks any sign of the royal emblem. The horses, too, are much thinner and smaller than the ones she’s seen.

Lanterns dangle from its exterior, putting the carriage in a spotlight. From that, she can tell the coach is a luxury one; its maroon color is worn but well maintained with flowers painted around the edges.

A heavyset man with a ridiculous mustache leans out the window to stare at the duke greedily. “What expensive armor you have!”

“I noticed your carriage is not lacking either,” the duke smiles, eyes glinting in the moonlight.

“Why, of course, of course, I am the mayor of Helmbeck you know! Huber’s the name!” He pulls his greedy eyes away long enough to notice her coming up behind the duke. “I see a lovely woman peeking at me!”

She tries not to show her disgust. She can already tell this is not someone she wants to deal with.

“Helmbeck, you say?” The duke asks airily. “I am John,” he grabs her arm and pulls her to him as if she weighs nothing, “and this is my wife, Aira. We were just wed!”

She pastes a smile on her face and tries to pretend she’s a madly in love newlywed who hasn’t just had this information dumped on her.

“Oh? Congratulations are in order.” Huber’s disappointment is clear. His eyes go straight back to the duke. “Your ceremony armor is quite fetching.”

“My thanks, but I do believe my dear wife has outdone me,” her so-called husband says with so much tenderness that it sends shudders of repulsion down her spine.

“Oh, yes, I noticed,” Huber looks her up and down, eyes lingering on her diamond accessories. “Where did you say you were from?”

“Kreeva,” the duke says without hesitation. “The duke loaned me the wedding attires for a hefty amount of coin. Helmbeck has a postal messenger, correct? I have no doubt he will be grateful for its return.”

It’s an obvious way to ask for a ride. She hopes in vain that the carriage will take off and leave them here.

“Why, yes,” Huber nods as if he is the one who made the suggestion. “I’m on my way back to town. Come in, come in! It’s dangerous out there!” His eyes rake over her body disgustingly. “I’m afraid the seats can’t stand the strain of such heavy armor. There’s a spot by Deven.”

She tenses up, but the duke rubs her arm soothingly.

“I am afraid I was quite injured in that crash. I do not think I can weather riding the coach box,” Duke Wulf says apologetically. “Neither do I know how to take this armor off. Someone was going to help remove it once we reached our destination, so I can enjoy my honeymoon.”

Huber narrows his eyes. “Of course, you shouldn’t aggravate your injuries,” he says, expression screaming annoyance. “Deven, get their things in the carriage.”

The driver, a pale man with a dead-eye stare, jumps down from the coach box with a lantern hanging from his belt. With stiff muscles, he starts grabbing every luggage chest he can see, making not one noise of complaint. She feels somewhat guilty until the duke steps in to help after grabbing his cloak.

Though, considering all the royal emblems have been scratched out, Duke Wulf only does so to prevent the driver from looking too closely at their carriage.

With all the luggage tied to the back of Huber’s carriage, her darling husband helps her in and onto the vacant seat. With the way Mayor Huber stares at her, she takes care to keep as far away from him as humanly possible.

The duke climbs in and wraps an arm around her as if wanting to cuddle with his dear, sweet wife. His armor is hard and uncomfortable, but it makes her feel safer all the same. If the duke can kill a hundred demons, then these two men don’t stand a chance.

The carriage begins moving, taking them on to Helmbeck.

“Terrible days, terrible days,” Huber mutters, playing with a string of beads that dangle from the light on the ceiling. “Why the days of safe traveling is like a dream!”

“So why are you out, if I may ask?” Duke Wulf plays idly with a strand of her hair. “Are you not terrified of the false night?”

“Men of Helmbeck do not bow to demons! No, we are made of stronger stuff than that,” Mayor Huber exclaims. “Though I must ask, were you not originally going to Helmbeck?”

“No, we were on our way to the beaches of Darrum, but then a demon began chasing us.” Duke Wulf shakes his head sadly and pinches her waist. She puts on a face of pure distress. “It ate the driver and the horses, sadly.”

“A shame, a shame! But it must have left after getting a full stomach, eh? Must have saved your life!” Mayor Huber nods before shaking his head. “Such a terrible, terrible thing to go through on your wedding day.”

She buries her head in the duke’s shoulder to avoid giving anything away. Acting is not her forte, she’ll break after too long.

“Why, you should spend your honeymoon at the hot springs! They just opened, don’t you know!” Huber tells them excitedly. “They’re so popular we have to make appointments! I’ll book a private bath just for you!”

“We would be honored. I can only imagine the memories we will make in the hot springs.” There’s a smirk in the duke’s voice, and she tries to bite him through his armor.