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I walked over to Marie, noticing her occasional limp as she struggled with her leg. She quickly grabbed my hand and began to lead me to one side so that people wouldn’t hear our conversation.
“Ha, ha… Princess, I’m sorry.”
“Marie?”
“Forget everything I said earlier, that place is a crumbling abandoned house, there’s nothing to see there, and it’s rather scary.”
She couldn’t help the rising tone of her voice, even though it was a whisper. Like someone being chased by something, Marie’s eyes filled with tears of anxiety and guilt.
“Please don’t go to the Labyrinth Forest, it’s a labyrinth you can’t get out of, you mustn’t go there!”
“Marie…”
“And this dagger, keep it hidden, just in case something happens… It’s dangerous to go bareback, even if you have an escort knight following you.”
“…”
“Princess, you’re going to be embarrassed, hmmm, and I’ll take any punishment sweetly, so please… Suck- please tell me you’re not going to the maze forest, okay?”
I stared at Marie for a moment, tears streaming down her face, then said.
“Then will you tell me?”
The gasping breathing stopped for a moment.
“Who ordered you to do this?”
“Princess…”
Wet, grass-colored eyes fluttered pitifully in the rain. I reached out and wiped her damp cheeks coolly.
“Then I’ll honor Marie’s wishes and not go to the Maze Forest.”
Pooh-pooh.
The second trumpet sounded. I had to move now, because if I heard the third trumpet, I would have to leave.
I held up one hand to Oscar, who was staring at me from afar, to tell him to wait a moment, then looked at Marie.
“… I’ll tell you when you get back, but be safe.”
I stroked the back of Marie’s hand affectionately as she clutched mine, trembling as if she were holding on to a dangling rope from a cliff.
“Okay. Have a good night’s sleep and I’ll be back when you wake up. See you later!”
And she smiled broadly. As if to say, “Don’t worry about anything.
I patted Marie, who barely let go of my hand, and turned around. As I stood in front of the horse, Oscar fell in step beside me and asked with a questioning look.
“Are you all right?”
I answered as I swung up onto my horse and stared at the entrance to the hunting grounds.
“Yes, let’s go.”
The last trumpet sounded long and loud. It was hunting time.
***
“The hunting grounds are quite large, and the deeper you go, the more ferocious the beasts, so it’s best to stay at the entrance.”
“Aha, so there are mostly herbivores at the entrance?”
“Yes, there are, but with all the people that have come in, they’re all hiding and won’t be easily spotted.”
“Maybe we should find a place to hide…”
“Are you trying to catch a rabbit or something?”
“Yes.”
“Do you want me to catch it for you?”
“Oh, I guess you could, but…”
Thierry said there were no rules, but I knew that if I enlisted Oscar’s help, I’d better not get caught, because he’d probably call it invalid because I didn’t catch it myself.
“I’ll give it a try, and if it doesn’t work, I’ll ask you to do me a favor.”
I glanced around thoughtfully. I could see people scattering through the thick evergreens.
They were all heading deeper into the woods, galloping their horses, and I and a few others were the only ones moving slowly.
“Which family is this? I see Lord Velik is stuck with them…”
“Yes. I’ve never seen Lord Velik escorting anyone but His Majesty before.”
“Oh, her? I heard she’s a Princess from the Kingdom of Ashtad, and she’s staying at the main palace.”
“Alas, that…”
“Well, isn’t she a bit of a prima donna? She’s not even here to play, and yet she’s shamelessly participating in the hunting festival.”
I could hear people whispering in my ear as they glanced in my direction. I tried to speak softly, but it didn’t help, as the loudest noise I could hear was the sound of distant hooves.
“You don’t think he really cares, do you?”
“I’m kind of curious.”
“Hmmm-what do you think? Shall we take a look?”
Don’t come. I pressed my lips together and sped up the pace of my horse.
But they were faster, galloping with excitement, and I was forced to slow down again by the nobles who fell beside me.
“Lord Velik, you have been in high spirits, how have you been?”
His eyes flicked to me, dismissively, but it was clear he intended to speak to Oscar first.
I decided to stay with the sack and watch their behavior, but Oscar was having none of it, scanning the crowd gathered around him with a blatantly annoyed look on his face.
“It’s a narrow street,” he said, “so why don’t you spread out a bit, so we can get out of the way?”
He looked like he was ready to do it himself.
“Lord Velik, I’ve heard you’ve mellowed a bit since you became Deputy Templar, but your demeanor doesn’t exactly suggest it.”
“Watch your language, you noble people. I’m more of a physical communicator.”
A few screams erupted.
“How rude!”
“Oh, you are a disgrace to the Duke of Velik. You’re too frivolous for your own good!”
Oscar… The son of a duke?
That’s a bit surprising to me as well. Ah, maybe it’s the high family name that makes him more confident?
“Princess, why don’t you lead the way, and I’ll take care of it from behind.”
Take care of what…?
Oscar’s mood was unnerving, as he asked me to speed up a bit.
‘No. I think he would have done this even if he wasn’t a draftsman.’
At my awkward laughter, the nobles, who had misunderstood that I was going to stop Oscar, rejoined him.
“Well, I’ll be going then.”
I was a scullery boy, after all, so I didn’t really need to worry about their safety. I grinned and obeyed Oscar’s wishes, and as I moved ahead, I heard gasps and intakes of breath from all directions.
“What is this?”
A cold voice that shouldn’t have been heard in unison came from behind them. Everyone’s heads snapped back as if they’d been snapped out of it.
“Your Majesty!”
I turned to see Thierry coming toward me, doing another Red Sea miracle.
“Have you all come to play?”
I glanced around, a frosty glint in my eye. Yes, they were here to play, for a hunt is a social gathering.
We all kept our mouths shut, knowing that if any of us answered yes, we’d have nothing to eat.
I had come with the idea of a quiet horseback ride, but somehow the situation was turning out differently than I had envisioned.
‘Should we sneak up on them?’
I looked at Oscar and gestured ahead. He took my cue and followed.
“Your Majesty, would you like to join us?”
… Oscar, are you crazy?
The nobles looked at Thierry, who turned his gaze to Oscar, as if gauging the timing of their dispersal.
But instead, Thierry glanced at me. Beyond me, to be exact.
His eyes sharpened, as if he’d sensed something, and he gave off a menacing aura.
“Princess. Toward me-.”
Thierry’s words were unfinished. An arrow flew through the air with a fierce wind and struck the leg of the horse I was riding.
“Kaaaak-!”
“Princess!”
It was a blink of an eye. Thierry and Oscar were within striking distance, but it was impossible to control a horse that was in agony.
The horse screamed and bucked and began to gallop away. I hugged him tightly around the neck to keep from falling off the wildly bouncing horse.
“Princess!”
Thierry’s voice called after me. I couldn’t see around me, but I knew he was still following.
The horse galloped frantically on sore legs. The speed was out of the ordinary.
‘Crazy, isn’t it normal for an arrow in the leg to knock you down?! How can you run if it hurts? It’s not like you’re drugged or anything. Whatever it is, please stop!’
***
Thierry chased after Alicia’s horse as it sped away.
‘She took an arrow and she’s going that fast.’
This was abnormal.
Thierry’s black horse was one of the finest in the Empire, and he had given Alicia the gentlest of his horses. Despite Thierry’s full gallop, and the white horse’s injured leg, the distance between them was not closing at all.
On the contrary, the distance was widening at an overwhelming rate, making the situation even more chaotic.
“Your Majesty!”
“Summon your knights and follow me.”
Thierry barked orders at Oscar, who ran after him, and followed Alicia into the labyrinth forest. Dense trees obscured their view, and only the sunlight filtering through the branches cast a pure white glow.
“Ball…”
At that moment, the fragmented light created a strange afterimage. Thierry’s red eyes fluttered wildly.
It was a terrible vision. It was a vision that had haunted him for years, but now it had come to this.
A slender body, a strong running back, familiar brown hair, and a hearty laugh that pounded in his ears. The nostalgia that flashed through his mind was colorful each time.
“… Rather.”
As if to answer the call, the girl turned toward Thierry, her green eyes twinkling and her smile wide.
Even though he knew it was an illusion, Thierry couldn’t dismiss it, and his eyes flushed red as he reached forward to grab her as he always did.
“No.”
The azure light flickered in his grasp, then dispersed, and the glimmer of Alicia’s backside disappeared completely from view.
“Come back!!!”
Thierry screamed at the top of his lungs, his voice echoing so desperately that birds flew into the sky.
