I don't know how to ride a horse

Lydia came out of the inn with a complete set of diamonds in her hoodie, but without the other pair of her earring.

'I'm glad he noticed I'm wearing small ones. Otherwise, I would've to pull out one diamond for real.'

She glanced at Ahmad, who was holding a leather sack. Then, she turned her attention to the innkeeper, who was leading a medium-sized horse towards them.

"This is one of my calmest horses," he said as he stopped in front of them.

'It does look calm and pretty.'

'It's half-closed eyes and gentle gaze doesn't make me nervous too, even though it's just several inches away.'

"Here, my lady," the middle aged man said as he extended his arm. 

With how swift his movement was, Lydia automatically extended her hand. Then she stared at the black leather in her palm. 'I just accepted it didn't I?'

'Now that I look at the horse again, it seems bigger than before. Haha, maybe I should hand the rein to Ahmad first.'

She turned to his direction but the middle aged man was already standing in between them.

When she was about to ask how should she handle the horse properly, she felt a light nudge on her shoulder, making her heartbeat sky rocket in an instant.

'Its the horse for sure,' she thought as she held her breath.

'My gosh I don't know how to deal it. I just hope it doesn't kick me if I accidentally do something it doesn't like.'

Lydia turned to face the horse with her lips stretched tightly into a smile. 

"Hi, horsey," she whispered as she looked into its eyes. "You look so pretty. Let's be kind to each other, okay?"

Lydia stayed still and just observed the horse for a moment. When it lowered its head slightly, she released the breath she had been holding. 'I guess this horse likes me. I'm still hesitant to touch it though haha.'

When the voices in the background grew stronger, Lydia looked at Ahmad and the middle aged man.

"Go now young lad. I'll watch over your guest while your away."

"Thank you, uncle."

"Father in law," the middle aged man corrected as he tapped his back once. "Now go."

After a few minutes, Ahmad returned with his horse and gave Lydia a respectful nod before turning to the middle-aged man. 

"Please take care of Sunha and Lin while I'm away."

"Aye, just hurry back, and come back alive," he said before turning to Lydia.

"Thank you for gracing my inn with your presence, my lady. I hope you send this young lad back home once you reach your destination."

'What? why does it seem like he's implying that I'm gonna do something to him. Excuse me, I've only ever swatted a fly who made me lost my patience. Besides, I don't keep men at home. Even Ivan has never stepped into my apartment, hmph.'

Lydia glanced at the ground to compose herself. Then she shifted her gaze back to his chest since that's the limit of the area she could see without pulling her hood back a bit. "Thank you for your concern. I will make sure to send him back and compensate him properly for accompanying me."

"Then I would hold you to that, my lady. Have a safe trip."

"Thank you."

After the middle aged man closed the door, Ahmad checked the horse's saddles. Then he asked for the rein so he could keep the horse steady while she mounts. However, she just stood still.

"Your highness, the horse has been saddled and bridled well. It is safe." 

'I knew it. That's exactly what his actions mean. I thought we would only use one horse, but after he dropped the dishes, he returned with his own.'

'That probably means this body could ride a horse. With how attentive he was, he would've ask me if I can ride or not.'

'Well... I did mount on a horse at a tourism site before, but that's only so that I could take a picture. Besides, that horse was a lot smaller compared to this.'

Lydia stared at the horse's stirrup which is leveled higher than her knee caps. 'I can climb on the horse for sure, since I know where to step and hold, but even if I'm able to mount, I don't know how to lead it.'

'Should I just tell him I forgot how to ride one? Maybe that would make more sense compared to me saying I suddenly had amnesia.'

'Oh right, I'm wearing a dress. Since I can't walk with big strides in this, I can't sit on the horse properly either.'

'Besides, they talked about the terrain being rough. If a wagon is not suitable, then riding sideways would not be good either. Especially if you're the one leading the horse.'

'Haa… now I have an excuse to ride at the back and just hold onto his shoulders. Even if we travel more slowly as a result, it's fine since I can observe the terrain more and have a better grasp of the surrounding and the people's way of living.'

Lydia purposefully pulled the sides of her dress to emphasize how limiting it was.

"It seems like my dress is not suitable for riding." 

"I fully understand, your highness. If I might offer a suggestion, perhaps you might consider altering the sides of your dress for freer movement. You could then use a surcoat over it. My wife just finished sewing a new one, so I could get it for you."

"Alternatively, if you prefer, we can buy a newly made dress from a villager. However, the fabric might be coarse."

'Oh my, I did not think that far. This why focusing on the excuse rather than the possibilities is no good, haha. His suggestions were good, though.'

'The problem is, if I agree to one of those, I would have to lead the horse for real.'

'Should I suggest using only one horse and sitting at the back?' 

'Oh right, he's married, so maybe he doesn't want to ride with another woman. Besides, a married man and an unmarried woman riding on a horse together at this time might be extremely inappropriate.'

'I see. I get it now. I'll just take one of his offers and mount the horse. Then I'll copy his posture and hand movements. If that doesn't work, I'll hand him the reigns and tell him I do not feel like leading my horse today so he should do it for me.'