The Emperor.
That was the title most often used for Symboli Rudolf.
Undefeated. Unrivaled. Unflinching…
As if, the moment that name settled on her shoulders, she could only ever be the sovereign who looked down upon everything from the track.
But in private…
She had a lazy side, too.
She wanted to pout, to tease, to play around, to curl up on a sofa and doze off…
And only beside Wu You could she drop every layer of armor and let that softness show.
Just like now.
His fingertips brushed the corner of her eye.
Symboli Rudolf released his hand, then slowly rose and moved closer.
Chiemi silently shifted aside, giving her space.
Rudolf sat down next to Wu You, lifting both hands with a tremor as if to pull him into her arms.
Her fingertips barely grazed the fabric of his coat before snapping back, as though she'd touched a live wire.
She was afraid.
Afraid that Wu You in front of her was only another fragile dream—
a dream that would shatter the instant she touched it.
And yet…
Wu You lifted his own hands and gently looped them around her neck.
He applied only the slightest pressure.
The Emperor bowed without resistance, lowering her head until her cheek pressed against his chest.
A sweet, familiar scent filled her lungs. A warm hand stroked her hair.
At last, Rudolf embraced him properly, burying her face against him.
"I'm sorry… I'm so sorry… I really… I missed you so much…"
Wu You patted her back, light and steady.
"I know."
That simple reply—three short words—made Rudolf break down even harder.
Two years of suppression, guilt, longing—all of it burst through the dam in an instant.
She wasn't the Emperor who dominated meetings with a single look.
She wasn't the Symboli Rudolf who never lost composure in front of cameras.
She was just Luna—
a girl who had once lost the most precious thing in her life, and now had it again, yet didn't know if she was even allowed to hold on.
Chiemi quietly stood and walked to the window.
Outside, the city lights were flickering on one by one, and her heart felt just as crowded.
As Rudolf's closest friend, she was sincerely glad to see this.
But when she looked at Wu You, something sour and hard-to-name seeped into her chest.
She shook her head and forced it down.
At least not now.
Not now.
…
After a long while, Rudolf's sobs finally slowed.
She loosened her hold and looked up at Wu You with red-rimmed eyes, as if she wanted to carve his current 모습 into her very soul.
"Your eyes…" she asked shakily. "Can they… be healed?"
Wu You shook his head. "I'm used to it."
"…Then your health."
"Don't worry. I'm not as weak as you think."
But Rudolf only felt her heart twist again.
The meaning beneath both answers was clear—
It won't heal. It won't truly recover.
Rudolf didn't know Wu You was a fairy.
She believed he'd collapsed from exhaustion and pressure back then, and that stress had taken his sight.
"Forget that," Wu You said gently. "Luna—have you been doing well these past two years?"
Rudolf froze.
After the harm she'd caused him, the thing he cared about was whether she was okay.
In a low voice—half report, half confession—she began listing what she had done:
"Tracen's selection system was reformed. No one will be discarded so easily because of an injury…"
"I pushed through career protection for retired horse girls…"
"And… and…"
She spoke in a rush, almost tripping over her own words as she named everything, as though stacking achievements could prove she deserved forgiveness.
To an outsider, it would have looked almost comical—
a tall, heroic horse girl curled up like a child in the arms of a slender young man.
Wu You listened without interrupting. When she finally ran out of words, he said softly:
"You did well, Luna. I'm proud of you."
Rudolf pressed her lips together and smiled, small and trembling.
Then Wu You's tone tightened—just a fraction.
"And what about you? Have you been eating properly? Sleeping on time?"
Rudolf fell silent.
Silence, more often than not, was an answer all by itself.
"She hasn't."
Chiemi had already returned to the seat Rudolf had been using.
She propped her cheek in her palm, staring out the window—cool, composed, and unmistakably sulky.
"For the past two years, she's been running herself into the ground. When she gets busy, she lives on stomach medicine."
"Chiemi…" Rudolf murmured.
She'd always shared the good news and buried the bad. She didn't want Wu You to worry about her any more than he already had.
Wu You's brow knit.
"Luna."
Rudolf lowered her head and, for once, obediently admitted fault.
"Sorry, Yuu… I… I was wrong…"
"From today on," Wu You said, voice leaving no room for negotiation, "three meals a day, on time. In bed before ten. And on weekends, at least half a day belongs to you."
Rudolf's lips curved into a quiet smile.
It felt exactly like two years ago, back when they were partners.
"Did you hear me? That's an order."
Rudolf bit her lower lip, lowered her gaze, and asked in a voice so soft it was almost a whisper:
"Then… Yuu… will you stay by my side to supervise me?"
Silence.
The moment the words left her mouth, her heart nearly leapt out of her chest.
It was shamelessly loaded.
It meant exactly what it meant—
Can you come back to me? Can you be by my side again?
Wu You hadn't even answered yet, and Chiemi was already done holding back.
She'd been unable to get a word in earlier. She'd even had to yield her seat to Rudolf.
And now Rudolf was pushing her luck—right in front of her—trying to poach her trainer?
Did Rudolf think she was some helpless wife who couldn't protect her home?
Fine.
If you play dirty, don't blame me for playing worse.
Friendship be damned—no regrets!
Chiemi slammed a palm on the table and shot up, ready to reclaim the spot beside Wu You that should've been hers.
"Rudolf! Move!"
She reached out and grabbed Rudolf—
only to discover Rudolf didn't budge an inch.
Worse, Rudolf actually turned to Wu You and pouted:
"Yuu… Chiemi's really strong…"
"You're joking, right?! You're way stronger than I am!"
Wu You couldn't help laughing. "All right, all right. Stop it, you two. Sit down."
"But, Yuu…"
"Yuu!"
"If you keep this up," Wu You said, still calm, "then you two can sit together. I'll sit by myself."
That hit like a stun.
Rudolf and Chiemi went still, then exchanged a quick look.
Compared to the disaster of neither of them getting to cling to Wu You…
sitting on either side of him was clearly the lesser evil.
No negotiation needed.
Instinct overruled pride. Desire did the math.
They moved as if they'd rehearsed it—one to the left, one to the right—taking up positions beside Wu You in perfect synchronization.
…
A few minutes later, Wu You began to sweat.
He had just dug himself a very deep hole.
Symboli Rudolf. Chiemi Representative.
Both of them were among the tallest horse girls around.
Picture it—two towering beauties pinning you between them.
It sounded like bliss…
It felt like pressure.
And though neither of them was openly "fighting" anymore, the covert sparring never stopped.
"Yuu, try this coffee. It's good."
"Rudolf, don't lean in so close. Yuu will get too warm."
"Chiemi, Yuu's health isn't good. If he catches a chill, that's worse."
"…Mm."
"If you can't take proper care of Yuu, then perhaps I—"
Chiemi's face finally went red. She snapped.
In a burst of panic and anger, she blurted out the exact same line Rudolf had screamed an hour earlier—
"Don't you dare take Yuu away from me!"
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