Episode 18
“Beep?”
Golden Bunny immediately asked back. From its expression, it seemed to wonder why I would need to meet Cassium.
But somehow, I didn’t feel like talking about the marriage proposal myself.
It felt as though saying it out loud would make everything too real.
“I’ll tell you later. After I meet him, I’ll explain during dinner.”
That was the only way I could postpone answering for now.
***
It was the day of reckoning.
Hedel adjusted the tie inside his black formal jacket and took a deep breath.
“Sir, why are you preparing so carefully?”
Nervan peered curiously from behind Hedel as he asked.
“There’s something important.”
“What is it?”
Hedel slowly shook his head.
He had decided not to mention that the division leader was currently a rabbit.
“And why aren’t you wearing your knight’s uniform? Why black…?”
“I’ll be back.”
Leaving Nervan behind, Hedel stepped out of the Erne Knights’ headquarters.
He had to complete the mission entrusted to him by Division Leader Cassium, not just for the leader himself, but also for the peace of mind of the other lieutenants who were always worrying about their leader from dawn till dusk.
Hedel made his way to the stables. A few knights of the Golden Lion division were chatting there.
“Didn’t Leader Lize say he had something to do this afternoon?”
“Will she take that Kim toki with him to the house?”
“Right? It’d be great if she left Kim toki behind.”
‘What’s Kim toki now?’
Hedel thought as he quickly mounted his horse.
He arrived in front of the Duke of Balteire’s mansion and waited in the shadows.
After a short while, the grand gates of the mansion opened.
A carriage with golden embellishments on navy blue walls rolled out.
‘That’s the one…!’
Matching the carriage’s speed—neither too fast nor too slow—Hedel began to follow it.
‘At an appropriate spot, I’ll cause a commotion, make them stop, and in the ensuing chaos, I’ll snatch the marriage proposal letter.’
That was Hedel’s plan.
The carriage headed toward the square, and Hedel continued to trail it silently.
Everything was going smoothly.
Until now.
“Ah!”
Just as they entered the square, a middle-aged woman tripped and fell with a thud.
Hedel scanned the area within a 50-meter radius.
“Ah…!”
He immediately realized he was at a crossroads.
There was no one nearby who could help the woman to a healer.
“Someone, please…!”
The woman, grimacing in pain, tried to get up from the ground.
The Duke of Balteire’s carriage was slowly disappearing into the distance.
‘If I don’t take her to a healer now, she might miss the critical window for treatment. But if I do, I’ll lose the carriage.’
Caught between his superior’s request and the chivalric code, Hedel deliberated intensely.
“Hold on, ma’am.”
In the end, the pride of Erne Knights sided with chivalry.
Helping the woman didn’t mean the mission had failed yet.
If he quickly resolved the situation, he could still catch up to the carriage.
‘I just need to hurry…!’
Hedel lifted the woman and, with almost superhuman strength, placed her onto his horse.
Casting one last glance at the distant Valtaire carriage, he started toward the healer.
Five minutes later—
“Thank you!”
The woman waved from the healer’s entrance as Hedel saluted her and grabbed the reins again.
Hedel drew on the riding skills he had honed in his younger days to race his horse.
‘At least I know a shortcut…!’
He directed the horse into a forest path beside the road.
Though he didn’t know the exact destination of the Balteire carriage, the route it had taken would inevitably lead to a point that passed through this forest.
‘Division Leader, just wait a bit longer!’
As he deftly maneuvered the horse along the winding forest trail, various thoughts crossed his mind.
‘Why is Division Leader Kassium, in rabbit form, with Division Leader Artiel?’
Did Artiel find him somewhere along the way?
But even so, couldn’t Cassium have escaped by now?
Anyone familiar with the relationship between Division Leaders Cassium and Artiel would wonder the same thing.
The two had a notoriously bad relationship.
Despite being academy classmates and having fought on the battlefield together, they weren’t close at all.
Cassium often went out of his way to provoke Artiel, even creating situations where they would have to interact.
— Division Leader, why did you call Artiela? Was it just to see her angry?
— …Yes, I wanted to see it.
Everyone who heard Cassium mutter that was left speechless.
To the point of hosting parties just to provoke her—it was an extraordinary level of enmity.
But now, those two were together?
Why would Division Leader Cassium let himself stay quietly under Artiel’s control?
‘Could he be a hostage?’
The thought made Hedel grit his teeth in frustration.
When you think about it, there was no other answer.
The Golden Lion Division must have found Division Leader Cassium’s weakness, which is why he had been captured.
‘What kind of weakness could Division Leader Cassium possibly have…?’
Cassium was someone who seemingly had no vulnerabilities.
He had nothing but strengths: unparalleled swordsmanship, connections to one of the most prestigious families in the empire, immense wealth, and an appearance so radiant that even the sun would be shy to compete.
Hedel was relieved that his younger sister and older sister were already married.
If they hadn’t been, he might have annoyed the division leader by begging him to meet his sisters.
But still, what could possibly be the weakness of such a person?
‘Could it be… us?’
The knights of the Black Leopard Division. Could it be that Cassium had allowed himself to be captured to protect them?
Hedel secretly swallowed his tears at the thought.
Meanwhile, the end of the forest path was coming into view.
‘The carriage!’
The back of the Balteire family’s carriage appeared.
Relieved that he had taken the shortcut, Hedel exited the forest—
“Horse!”
It was a child’s voice.
Hedel instinctively stopped his horse and looked in the direction of the voice.
“Wow, a horse!”
“A horse!”
Children as small as chicks were staring at Hedel, their eyes sparkling.
“Is this a real horse?”
“Can I touch it just once?”
Hedel, seeing the children’s bright eyes, closed his own tightly.
“I’m sorry…!”
“Horse man!”
It was true that he wanted to gift the children a moment of wonder and joy, but he had a critical task to complete right now.
If he delayed any further, Division Leader Cassium might really end up married.
***
‘Please.’
He couldn’t betray the trust Cassium had placed in him.
Hedel urged his horse to quicken its pace.
He caught up with the carriage again.
The carriage climbed a hill and stopped in front of a certain mansion.
Hedel also stopped his horse and hid in the shade of a nearby tree to observe the carriage.
‘I’ll quickly grab the marriage proposal papers and get out of here.’
He had heard that the head of a ducal family rarely personally delivers marriage proposals.
Usually, a proxy or attendant would handle the delivery, and the proposal would come with formal certification from a temple for legitimacy.
Of course, stealing the marriage proposal wouldn’t completely nullify the engagement.
But it would buy time.
The family would need time to report the incident and reassess the situation.
And it would take several more days to secure new certification from the temple.
That would give Division Leader Cassium time to take action.
‘Ideally, he’d return to normal within that time.’
Steeling himself, Hedel moved closer to the carriage.
He watched as the carriage door opened.
His plan was to snatch the document the moment someone from the Erne Balteire family stepped out and then escape through the narrow paths in the trees.
Though he felt guilty, Hedel believed that since he was acting in line with the marriage candidate’s will, even the Balteire family would eventually understand.
Just as Hedel stepped forward—
‘…The Duke of Balteire?’
The man who stepped out of the carriage was none other than the Duke of Valtaire himself, Cassium’s father.
The mansion’s gates opened in sync with his arrival, and the household’s members came out to personally greet the duke.
“…!”
Hedel’s eyes widened at the sight of the lady who emerged from the mansion.
A woman with curly red hair neatly tied back stood with her lips tightly pressed together.
She was stunning in a cream chiffon dress that suited her perfectly.
Under the clear blue sky, she exuded an aura that set her apart.
For a fleeting moment, Hedel thought:
‘Maybe I should just tell the division leader to marry her…’
But that thought only lasted an instant—
“Wait, hold on… What…?!”
Because if he hadn’t recognized her, that might have been an option.
‘Division Leader Artiel…?!’
• ❁ • ❁ • ❁ •By Esraa• ❁ • ❁ • ❁ •
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