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“Oh, it’s on.”

Hugo whipped past them, chasing the group. Dagmara couldn’t keep up, for her brain was already spinning from exhaustion, but she let the boys have at it. Claude raced along after them, Pierre and Sacha hot on his trail.

Sabien stepped closer to her, his naked chest against her back. He leaned in to whisper, “Isn’t it sexier when we’re on the same team, and you’re not fighting me?”

Dagmara jerked away from him. “If you don’t stop the inappropriate comments I will start fighting you.”

He smirked. “Noted.” Then he left her side, chasing after the group.

Martine was the only one who remained nearby, her attention shifting between Dagmara and the captain as he retreated.

Instead of chasing after the group, already feeling her heart pound excessively against her chest, she chose to walk casually toward the shade of the trees. Martine followed.

“I can sit by myself,” Dagmara said, taking a seat on the brown grass. “You can play.”

“That’s fine,” Martine sat beside Dagmara, her eyes fixated on Pierre the entire time. “This is more fun anyway.” She flashed Dagmara a grin, and Dagmara couldn’t help but laugh as her own gaze traveled back to the men on the field.

The game was more violent than Dagmara thought. Sometimes, the ball would get lost in the middle of a pile up with more than ten men fighting for it. She could’ve sworn she saw someone break their wrist when they fell. There had to be some reward from this, right? Or was this what they did for fun?

Dagmara found it riveting. She remained in the canopy of the trees, seated. She hated that she didn’t have the stamina to play and would risk becoming dizzy. Luckily, it appeared that she was only concerned about breaking a bone, so sitting on the sidelines wouldn’t raise too much suspicion.

The game never paused for a breather. Pierre and Sacha used the opportunity to wrestle with one another, and Sabien and Claude even shoved one another. She had no idea who was on each team.

In one instance, Sabien collided with Claude, knocking him off course from the ball. Claude wasn’t afraid to tumble with Sabien onto the ground. The two struggled against one another, both equally matched. They were both pure muscle and sweat, and Dagmara had to suppress the heat that raced through her body at the sight of them. When the ball was yards away and the two were still wrestling, she was uncertain whether it was for the sport or not anymore. Sacha approached, and the king and his captain broke away panting, both smart enough not to go up against the giant guard. She saw Sabien’s lips move as he said something to the king, but he was too far away to hear, and she couldn’t read his lips when he spoke Ilusaurian.

The group moved toward Sailonne, then back through the forest in the direction of Lousevve. The forest was the hardest area to play in. People knocked into trees and others dodged until the ball was at the center of another violent pile. Then, it slipped free, skidding in Dagmara’s direction. Adrenaline lit through her body, seeing the ball’s proximity. She would be stupid to not take this opportunity. She rose from the shade of the tree, finding her strength as she approached, the ball rolling closer.

Someone knocked into her side, derailing her. He grabbed her firmly around the waist as they fell to the ground, and he caught her with his other hand to lessen the blow as she fell onto her back. Claude was on top of her, grinning.

“That was not fair!” Dagmara objected.

The yelling from the crowd seemed to get distant. The ball must have been snatched away.

“I’m only getting you back for shoving me earlier,” Claude responded.

She knew he was only bracing himself on top of her with one arm. She shoved his elbow, collapsing his arm before using the momentum to roll on top of him, pinning him down.

“I’m also competitive,” she replied. She was straddling him, her hands against his bare chest holding him down.

The smile that creased onto his lips revealed that he was impressed.

Dagmara was keenly aware that Martine, Pierre, and Sacha were standing a few paces away, watching her. She could nearly feel the weight of Sabien’s gaze on her as he approached. But for some reason, she didn’t care. Her attention was fixated on the king she had pinned to the ground. Luckily, the crowd was chasing the ball toward the opposite side of the forest, so there were no other witnesses to the scene.

Then, the sound of wings flapping caught Dagmara off guard. She ducked as a blackbird swooped over her head and landed on the ground beside them. Its beady eyes with yellow rings seemed to stare into Dagmara’s soul. She felt the muscles in Claude’s chest instantly engage when he saw it.

Not now—not here!

Claude shoved her to the side with a force she hadn’t witnessed before. She skidded on the ground, feeling the dirt scrape against her hands.

“Go away!” Claude’s voice boomed. He picked up a handful of dirt as he stood, chucking it at the bird.

No, no, no!

Dagmara’s thoughts screamed in her head. He couldn’t act like this out here. This was the entire reason he didn’t leave the castle. If the villagers came back this way—if he used his magic on them…

Pierre had her under the arms, pulling her to her feet, much like he had the first day on the balcony. “Run, Princess!”

“No!” she shoved Pierre off her.