After Roderick left for the hunt, Lee-Jae became increasingly idle.
This was because all the influential nobles who might request an audience had gone hunting together.
She wrote down the things that were on her mind on a piece of paper.
「1. Visit the Emperor’s bedroom
- Talk to the foreign spirit again
- Exorcise and help the spirits in the castle find peace
- Finish reading Hailey’s diary
- Understand the history of the Kingdom of Cayenne」
All of these tasks were burdensome, but Lee-Jae found number 4 to be the most challenging.
Around this time, Lee-Jae began to have a serious question.
Why was Hailey’s diary, which consisted of short entries, so difficult to read?
Moreover, Hailey had stopped writing in her diary about a month before she died. Perhaps she had made up her mind to die around that time.
「March 11th, 499
Lawrence said let’s dream of another fate here instead of running away.
He said he would become the Queen’s knight.
That way, we could at least be together.
I know that can never be the same as what his heart desires.
It’s painful.」
“Ah… I can’t read any more.”
Lee-Jae closed the diary in pain.
Ever since encountering Lawrence, the stinging sensation had grown worse.
Before she knew it, the spirit of the chest was beside her, reading the diary together with her.
They both had their chins propped up in the same pose, looking like friends.
“Hey, isn’t this kid practically a vengeful spirit at this point? Her resentment is too deep.”
– Lee-Jae.
“Yeah.”
– I don’t know!
“…Why are you all so utterly unhelpful?”
She immediately added the next item to her list.
「6. Visit the lake where Hailey threw herself in.」
She wanted to go there in case Hailey had become a vengeful spirit, to console her and help her find peace.
Distressed, Lee-Jae repeatedly opened and closed the ten volumes of the diary.
And in one of the open pages, she found an entry like this.
「September 10, 497
Father is going to do something terrible.
I want to tell him that he shouldn’t do it.
But he won’t listen
And I don’t want to be slapped again.」
What terrible thing did Duke Duncan do?
This time too, there was no memory of it.
Still, as she flipped through the diary, there were occasional signs that Hailey had tried to understand her father. She seemed fundamentally kind-hearted. Lee-Jae spoke to the chest’s spirit again.
“Which is worse, a parent who abandons their child or a parent who abuses their child?”
– Both are bad parents!
“…That’s the right answer.”
Lee-Jae sighed. But then, she realized something a bit strange.
Memory was imperfect.
However, people usually have clearer memories of recent events than distant ones, except for very memorable experiences.
Lee-Jae sifted through her memories like flipping through a book. And she realized that her memories of Hailey’s recent past were even more unclear than those of her childhood. In fact, almost nothing remained from the past year.
Why was this? Lee-Jae closed the diary, her face confused.
* * *
Jade and the royal knights continued to watch Roderick’s reactions. This was because the King did not seem interested in the hunt at all. In fact, he had been like this throughout the entire hunting competition. Roderick had only caught one deer and had been looking disinterested ever since.
Riding his horse at a very slow pace, Roderick found a suitable spot and stopped.
“Let’s rest here,” he said.
Knowing that the King had not slept well for several days, they dismounted without a word. Someone brought a blanket to sit on, but Roderick waved his hand to decline. He leaned against a tree trunk and sat, lost in thought for a moment.
He was thinking about the Queen, and he realized that he hadn’t been able to stop thinking about her throughout the hunt. He laughed emptily. From inside his shirt, he took out peculiar works of art that the current world couldn’t embrace—a handkerchief and a wooden bracelet.
People stole glances at the King as he looked at these objects, chuckling softly. But as he examined the peculiar artifacts, the King’s blue eyes grew sharper.
The bracelet had carvings on each bead that looked like doodles. Roderick had seen Lee-Jae carve them with a keen eye. This time, he unfolded the handkerchief with a flick and stroked the embroidery at the bottom.
Roderick held the handkerchief and the rosary side by side, examining them closely.
‘What is this?’ he thought.
The patterns weren’t identical, but they were strangely similar. Roderick looked up and narrowed his eyes. A sharp intuition was about to cross his mind.
But then, Roderick furrowed his brow and put down the handkerchief and the bracelet.
“Come out!” he commanded.
Suddenly, the King drew a dagger and hurled it.
The blade sliced through the air, narrowly missing the knights, who turned in shock to see where the dagger had landed. Their faces went pale as they spotted a snake writhing on the ground, pinned by the dagger.
The venomous viper had been about to strike one of the warhorses, which reared in panic, neighing loudly. Its rider hurried over, wearing an abashed expression, to calm the frantic animal.
Roderick scowled as he turned to the guards who were supposed to be on watch.
“Let’s do better, shall we?”
“Y-yes, Your Majesty.”
“Unless, of course, you’d prefer to walk the rest of the way to the castle. I won’t stop you.”
“My apologies, Your Majesty.”
Letting out a weary sigh, Roderick tucked the bracelet and handkerchief back into his coat. He intended to catch up on some much-needed sleep, but his thoughts refused to stray far from Lee-Jae.
At this rate, it felt as though he were bewitched by a fox spirit with fur the color of ripe apricots.
‘I just want to ask that you don’t go too far, enough so that your pride doesn’t get hurt. You must have your own reasons for doing things. So, the only answer I can give you is to stay safe and return healthy.’
Roderick murmured to himself.
“That’s scarier than outright saying ‘don’t do it.’ Is this why married men listen to their wives?”
The King’s muttered words caused Jade and the knights to exchange worried glances. They had been growing increasingly concerned about his recent strange behavior.
Yet, despite frequent flare-ups of his peculiar mood during hunts, this time, he showed no signs of his usual volatility. Other than struggling with a lack of sleep, he seemed perfectly fine.
“Jade,” Roderick called out.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“This time, you take the lead instead of me.”
“Excuse me? What do you mean?” Jade asked, confused.
“Whether you win the hunt or bring down a lion, that’s up to you. Just handle it for me.”
“Are you saying you won’t participate?”
Roderick stroked his chin thoughtfully before giving a short nod.
“Exactly. You don’t have to bag the most game—just make sure you get more than Albert Duncan. If they keep pestering me about reinstatement, I’ll use you to put him in his place.”
That was the King’s reasoning. He was tired of hearing the Duncan family’s incessant requests for Albert’s reinstatement. Originally, Roderick had planned to make a statement himself, but he decided it would be better not to engage at all than to halfheartedly participate.
As the Commander of the Knights and the King’s personal guard, Jade acting on his behalf would send the message loud and clear.
Understanding the situation, Jade rose from his seat. Roderick added, almost as an afterthought,
“Oh, and make sure you catch more than Lawrence, too.”
The spite in his tone made Jade grimace.
Jade was the finest knight in Cayenne. With his swift and precise actions, the knights had achieved results that were more than satisfactory and were now on their way back to the castle in time for the closing day of the hunt.
In stark contrast to Jade’s impressive haul, Roderick’s game bag was woefully light. It held only a single deer.
In truth, even that deer had been hunted because of Lee-Jae. Roderick couldn’t bear the thought of returning to his wife empty-handed; it would have been a blow to his pride.
As they trotted along at a leisurely pace, Roderick suddenly stopped his horse and gazed at something in the distance.
“Jade.”
“Yes, Your Majesty?”
Following Roderick’s line of sight, Jade nodded in understanding.
“A squirrel.”
A squirrel had its tail caught in someone else’s trap and was staring at them with wide, pleading eyes. Roderick dismounted and approached it.
The others, puzzled by the King’s actions, exchanged glances but followed his lead and dismounted.
The squirrel’s expression was clearly one of desperation. But as Roderick drew closer, it panicked and began thrashing about, chittering loudly. It seemed eager to escape, but its tail remained hopelessly ensnared.
When Roderick hesitated and took a step back, the squirrel looked up at him again with teary, imploring eyes. This time, it seemed to beg for help.
“….”
Letting out a sigh, Roderick approached the squirrel once more, only for it to resume its frantic struggle, chirping furiously.
He rubbed his temples and turned to his companions.
“Why is it acting like this?”
“….”
In the end, Roderick decided to keep a safe distance. He crouched a few steps away, propped his chin on his hand, and studied the creature intently.
Was it asking him to come closer, or to stay away?
Did it want his help, or was it telling him to leave it alone?
Was it lonely, or was it fine as it was?
Its wary attitude toward humans was undeniable, yet its eyes spoke of a need for human intervention.
“Jade. Free that little thing, will you? I want to take it to the Queen.”
It was a significant breach of etiquette to meddle with another’s trap, but Roderick was a man who could ignore such concerns with ease.
“Will you use it as a coat ornament?”
“No, I just want to show it to her. Treat it and bring it along alive.”
Jade’s expression turned apprehensive. Historically, many royals had kept cats as pets, but never a squirrel. He hesitated before asking cautiously,
“Wouldn’t a fine coat be more fitting?”
“I doubt it. Hailey doesn’t seem to care about those things.”
“….”
“She never lies about that sort of thing, anyway.”
Roderick shrugged as if, even he couldn’t fully explain it. Then he mounted his horse again, glancing back at the squirrel.
