Heading to the palace

When she thought about it, the snow in Ahmad's village was not that thick either.

'Right, when I descended the hill, the depth differed from the other side.'

'Maybe it was a localized blizzard, but the trees were different too.'

'That's certainly odd.'

'Should I ask Ahmad?' Lydia thought as she glanced at him. 'Better not, I had already been asking him about various things in a roundabout way.'

'If I ask more, he might suspect me…'

'Actually, he might already have, since I kept feeling his eyes on me.'

Lydia glanced at Ahmad. When she did, he turned to her.

"Is there something you need, your highness?"

"None," Lydia said before looking away and focusing on the path.

Somehow, meeting his eyes reminded her of how his wife looked at her earlier.

'She altered my dress with care, but her eyes... they bother me.'

'Was it discomfort and hatred?'

'No, dislike is more appropriate, but why?'

'She only seemed surprised at first, but after Ahmad introduced me as the princess, her demeanor changed.'

'Was it because of what they were arguing about earlier? Did the original owner of this body really fired him? Or does she just have a terrible reputation?'

'I would surely know once I reach this body's home, but until now I am hesitant.'

'Not only am I unaware of who she is as a person, I also have no clue about what her relationship with other people is like.'

Lydia took a deep breath in and released it to lighten the burden that was creeping in at the corners of her heart.

She had never been looked at like that before.

She encountered conflicts and arguments while growing up, but what she faced was momentary anger, often caused by a clash of perspective, practices, and behavior. 

The angry looks, the judgement, they were directed to parts of herself and her actions.

However, Ahmad and his wife's gaze makes her feel like she was being judged as whole... like she was rotten to the core and she cannot grow and change. 

It was stifling.

'Ahh… I don't like this.'

Lydia took one more deep breath in. When she exhaled, a ball of mist rolled out of her lips.

Somehow, looking at it disperse and vanish in thin air relieved her.

However, after a few minutes, unease set in.

No matter how many times she tried, she could not access the original owner's memory.

The bit of information she gathered from observing and asking questions to Ahmad was not enough to give her a clear picture of who she is possessing, either.

'This is no good. I don't know how to act like her.'

'Heading to the palace is like going to a battle unarmed and blindfolded.'

'This is a risky move. However, if I want to go back home, the palace might be the best place to be.'

'After observing Ahmad's house and the village… it's clear it would be hard for me to access information there, much less find someone who can help me go back to earth.'

Lydia closed her eyes briefly. As she did, the cold air blowing past her face was replaced with the warmth of the morning sun she was blocking with her hand several hours ago.

'I want to go back.'

'Until now, I'm hoping this is just a long dream.'

'Hopefully, it is,' she thought as she opened her eyes, making the warmth dissipate in a second.

'If this is a dream, I hope I'll wake up before I reach the palace. However, if it is not, how should I say I lost my memories?'

'I woke up alone on top of the frozen lake. No one saw me.'

'I have no serious injury, either.'

'I don't know what this body is made off, but luckily I have no frostbite.'

'Since my body has warmed up after I ate… I probably look well now, so I better come up with a convincing excuse or stage something believable.'

'As planned, I'll drop by a town first to gather as much information as I can.

'Depending on the result, I might even abandon the plan to head to the palace and go somewhere else.'

'After all, I desire a peaceful life…'

'If I need to abandon this body's identity, I will.'

'Wait… why is he slowing down?' Lydia thought as she glanced at Ahmad.

When he halted his horse, she did too.

'What are we stopping for?' she thought before looking around.

'Everything seems fine. We're nearly out of the rocky terrain, too.'

Lydia turned to Ahmad with a questioning look.

"Your highness, we have been traveling for quite some time. It would be better if we let the horses rest briefly while there's enough cover to keep them warm."

'I see.'

Lydia was about to nod. However, when she remembered how he introduced her, she paused.

'Nodding might be inappropriate.'

'I'm not aware of the culture here yet, but princesses usually follow a decorum.'

'Hmn…'

"Very well," she said, basing her response on the books she had read.

When Ahmad dismounted, she did too. Then she watched him unroll the blanket at the back of the horse's saddle.

After he used it to cover the horse's back, Lydia glanced at her horse and approached it before taking out the blanket at its back too.

When she did, the stick she tucked at the side fell, but she ignored it, thinking it was about time to get rid of it. 

However, Ahmad rushed to catch it before handing it to her with both hands.

"Here, your highness. Let me take care of the horse instead."

"T… thank you." 

Lydia took the stick from him and moved aside. Then she studied the piece of wood in her hand.

'Does he think this is valuable?'

'Earlier, when I left it at the inn, he gave it to me with both hands too, like it was something precious.'

Lydia twirled the stick before looking at its sharp edges.

'I'm sure this is a regular stick though, since I just took it from the make-up shelter for self defense.'

'Luckily, I did not need it on the way.'

'Should I tell him it's not really important to me, so I could finally throw it away?'

Lydia turned to Ahmad.

When she was about to speak, she caught him standing still while scanning their surroundings.

'Is there something wrong?'