I turned to Laura as soon as they were out of sight. “What do you think?” 
Her brows furrowed a little. “What do you mean?” 
I sighed deeply, holding her hands. “I don’t think this is right.” 
She closed the gap between us and said, “Tell me what’s on your mind.” 
I looked around again and replied, “I don’t know if I can do this. You might think I’m going all through this trouble because of a horse. However, Lady’s a big part of my life and I never thought the day would come that I’d look for a replacement.” 
I continued, “I have no idea what I should look for in a new champion. I’m not even sure if Lady would want me to find another one.” I hung my head low and sighed. “I don’t even know what I’m doing here.” I met her gaze once more and added, “Perhaps, I’m rushing myself into this.” 
She smiled, gently engulfing my face with her gentle touch. I closed my eyes as I deepened my face into her hands, holding onto her wrists. Her nose kissed mine as she said, “Let the horse choose you. Not the other way around.” 
My eyes opened. Baffled, I asked, “Choose me? How could a horse do such a thing?” 
She lightly squeezed my face and rested her hands on my shoulders. She then explained, “Leo chose me when we became partners. We had something that I didn’t have with the rest. We immediately got attached to each other upon introductions. Isn’t that how you realized that Lady was your companion?” 
My brows furrowed as I tried to remember how I came to that realization with Lady. I didn’t even recall that I made that decision on myself, that Lady would be my greatest friend. The only thing I knew was the more time we spent together, we became the best of friends. We were never separated as horse and master. 
“I believe it was somehow like that. Do you think that’s even possible?” I asked, returning to her. “That a champion could choose its master?” 
Laura retreated her hands and replied, “Grandpa Ben said it happens on rare occasions. But if it does happen, the bond between horse and master would be unimaginable.” She added, “I also believe that if a person forces a horse to submit, the champion would rebel.” 
“But how would that happen to me?” Doubt continued to swirl in my mind, torn if I should take her advice. I’ve never done this before and no one has ever given me that advice. I was taught that the master chooses the champion, not the other way around. But as I continued to share glances with Laura, she seemed so assured, certain. Perhaps, this was an opportunity for me to try what she told me. 
She chuckled and held onto my hand. “How about we walk along the horses?” she suggested. “Should you feel a connection, tell me right away.” 
“And if I don’t?” 
Her hand caressed my stiff hand. “Then we shall return on a different day. There is no rush in finding a champion. It will take time.” 
I nodded, seeing reason in her explanation. “Let’s go then.” I began walking but she quickly pulled me back. 
“We might need the owner to guide us,” she giggled. 
“Oh, of course.” I cleared my throat and called for Lord Roland. 
He quickly returned to the room. His two servants followed closely behind him. “Have you made your decision, Your Highness?” Lord Roland asked as he reached us. 
I briefly turned to Laura for reassurance. She gave me a slight nod and I returned to Lord Roland. “I would like to take a walk along the horses. I want to see them all before I make a decision, if you don’t mind,” I said. 
“If you wish it, Your Highness,” he bowed along with his servants. “Please, this way,” he pointed as he moved to the side. 
Laura and I walked ahead of him and he walked beside us, his servants walked behind us. 
♔♔♔ 
Nothing but silence greeted us as we made our way through the stables. The horses were quiet. The only noises that were heard from them were their snorts and chewing. They seemed to be unbothered. 
“If I may, why are the horses quiet?” I asked. 
“They’re all trained to be well-behaved in all circumstances, most especially when we have visitors,” Lord Roland explained with pride. “Time was invested on each horse to make sure they’re both well-mannered and physically built.” 
Baffled, I looked at Laura and she shared the same expression on her face. I could understand the benefit of having a tamed horse. But to have them silent in the presence of potential buyers seemed wrong. 
“Shouldn’t they be excited when visitors arrive?” I asked another. 
“Most of my clients preferred to have the horses quiet. They can’t make a decision when they’re being too vocal. Some of them didn’t want to spend time training the horses themselves. So, we took it upon ourselves to train a horse when it lands in our care,” he replied. 
A well-mannered horse would be much appreciated. But if it’s not startled by an unknown presence, that would be a bad thing. It would be the proper way to get killed. 
The looming silence was interrupted by a loud whiny from a different room. We all rushed to its direction and saw two men, struggling to tame a brown horse. The horse had a light brown body. Its mane, legs, tail and snout were a darker shade of brown. A white line traced down from its forehead to its nose. 
By the way it behaved, this horse was taken from the mountains. And those horses weren’t used to other creatures other than their own kind. 
I looked into its eyes and it expressed panic, horrified that a rope was holding it back. 
“My apologies for this ruckus, Your Highness,” Lord Roland knelt before me. “This champion still needs more time to train.”