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"Can I... kiss you again?" he asked softly.
Hedy lifted her hand to cup his chin and, standing on her toes, pressed a kiss on his lips.
They exchanged breath and warmth, even the touch of their fingertips and cheeks felt like delicate entwining.
As he held her close, he felt his heart light and free, as if it could spread wings and fly away.
When would he propose? After the war ends? Would she accept him? Or would they wait a little longer?
Could he kiss her again?
Before he could speak again, she sighed and tightened her armsaround his neck, giving him a long kiss.
The east wind swept through the long night, making the candle flames flicker like golden-red fish tails.
CHAPTER 22
People had begun to grow increasingly nervous.
The native population of La Spezia was quite mixed, with many people hailing from Genoa. More importantly, the Republic of Genoa had already sent troops to besiege the city.
The whole situation had come so suddenly that one could vaguely suspect that someone had foreseen the siege and had gone to the north for help in advance, even before the event took place.
The city walls were not completely finished, but fortunately, defensive checkpoints and formations had already been set up around the perimeter. In recent days, cannons and large crossbows had managed to drive away several waves of attackers.
If the enemy had come with light cavalry at a fast pace, they would have directly opened the city gates to confront them. Though they didn't have many cavalry, the rows upon rows of musketeers would have been enough to send the cavalry reeling.
No matter how fast a horse runs, it remains a creature that fears strong light and the sound of explosions.
When chaos erupted, some horses, despite the sharp pain of the spurs, almost twisted their heads and attempted to turn back.
The sound of the cannons roared like thunder, and the reverberations could clearly be heard echoing through the valley.
As a result, most of the cavalry had been defeated, trying to rely on longbowmen and siege engines to continue the assault.
The city walls, already battered and broken, inevitably lost a few more bricks and stones, but their presence had little impact now.
As long as the watchtower could monitor the situation in all directions and the city had enough ammunition, they could hold out here for a year.
The soldiers, in a state of extreme mental tension, found it difficult to sleep.
At the moment, they had plenty of manpower and enough food and water inside the city. However, the dangers both inside and outside were too numerous—
Outside, there was an intermittent and unstable siege, and within the city, they had to guard against seemingly harmless ordinary citizens.
After a couple of soldiers were attacked and assassinated, rumors and panic began to spread through the barracks.
Some said these were the vengeful ghosts of those who had been killed in the explosions, coming back to haunt them at night. Others claimed that an assassin organization from a foreign land had infiltrated the small city, and anyone who found a Roman numeral carved on their bedside was marked with an infamous death countdown.
—It was definitely not a good sign when the soldiers on rotation couldn't immediately fall asleep.
Hedy pondered for a long while before repeatedly instructing the officers to swiftly investigate and calm the rumors and panic.
She was well aware that there would be bloodshed and panic within the city, but she also knew that assassination squads alone couldn’t save a war — this was more likely a smokescreen from the enemy.
The siege outside was becoming more stable, and even the sentries on guard said there was no cause for concern. The attackers’ arrows could be blown off course in mid-air.
... These rumors were likely spreading from within the city.
