~Chapter 15~
“J-Just wait a moment! Let’s warm up first! Your Grace, why don’t you play with Zeno in the garden for a bit?”
“Woof!” (Are you crazy? Why would I play with this guy?)
Alright, Zeno, I get it. You’re not happy. I ignored Zeno’s protest and hurriedly ran toward the mansion.
“Claire, you might fall if you—!”
Before Cedric could finish his sentence, I almost tripped and fell.
“Chirp chirp!” (You almost fell!)
A flock of birds flew over to me and helped me stay on my feet, preventing a fall.
I sighed in relief, steadying myself.
‘Wow… They really say words have power.’
I turned to Cedric and waved my hand to show I was okay.
Everyone was staring at me with surprised faces.
I’ll deal with this later, I thought, turning back toward the mansion and quickly heading inside.
Once I arrived at the mansion and threw the door open, I called out to the butler, who looked up at me.
“Butler!”
“…Your Grace?”
“Get ready to welcome the knights right away!”
“R-Right now?”
“Yes, right now. They’ve already arrived.”
The startled servants began moving quickly. I rolled up my sleeves and took a deep breath.
“We don’t have much time to prepare… Yeah, we’ll need a lot of hands.”
“Pardon?”
“Give me a list of what needs to be done.”
The butler nodded and hurried off.
Before long, the butler brought me the list, and I started thinking.
“The knights are warming up with hot water, right?”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
“What about the kitchen?”
“They should be able to finish on time.”
“Alright, I’ll take care of the rest.”
“…You’re going to do all this yourself?”
I nodded at the butler’s words. He might think I’m going to do it all alone, but I wasn’t that reckless.
He looked puzzled but quickly left to help the others.
“Alright, it’s time for you all to repay me.”
At my words, the animals began to appear one by one.
“Ahhh!” (I can help too!)
“Hmm… You should probably rest.”
Otherwise, you’ll scare the people in the mansion. I sent the deer, who insisted on helping, back to the garden.
Finally, I started preparing for the banquet with the animals.
“Tie this over there,” I said, pointing to a spot.
The rabbit took the string in its mouth and hopped over to the bear, who tied it to a post to decorate.
The birds carried flowers over to the tables. At this rate, the knights could come out of their baths and go straight to the welcome banquet.
***
The knights looked around the lavishly decorated banquet hall with wide eyes, clearly confused.
“When did all this get done?”
Even Cedric seemed surprised. It would have been impossible without the animals’ help.
But there were still things that bothered me.
Though we’d prepared, I kept noticing small things that felt lacking.
Nervously, I glanced at the knights.
Their expressions didn’t change much, but a look of satisfaction crossed their faces as they ate.
‘Phew, thank goodness.’
I was glad we were able to properly welcome the tired knights.
“I didn’t expect such a grand welcome,” said Sir Aiden, looking at me. He was the commander of the duchy’s first division, the one who always stood by Cedric’s side on the battlefield—one of the people I needed to make a good impression on.
“I rushed the preparations, so I’m sure there are some things lacking, but I’m happy to meet you all.”
I smiled as I replied. Since these knights had fought alongside Cedric, their expressions were all quite stern.
“They’ve all been curious about you,” Aiden added.
“Really?”
That made sense. All the other knights had been away at war, and Cedric had quickly married me in a “stolen” wedding while they were gone.
Not long after, Cedric had to leave for the battlefield again, likely because of me.
‘At least they don’t seem hostile.’
That was a relief.
Cedric, however, paid no attention to the knights. He was only focused on me. I nudged him with my foot, but it didn’t work.
“I’m glad to see you two get along well,” Sir Aiden said.
Cedric nodded at his comment. The other knights, seeing this, started speaking up one by one.
“Did you really prepare all this, Your Grace?”
“It’s my first time, so I’m sure there are many things that could be better.”
“Not at all. We’re overwhelmed by your hospitality and don’t know how to repay you.”
I waved my hand dismissively at the knights’ words.
“No, no. I just hope you all can relax today.”
“May I ask one thing, though?”
“Of course.”
I shrugged. One of the knights pointed carefully behind me and asked, “What exactly is that wolf?”
“Oh, that? I’m training him lately.”
“Did His Grace always like animals?”
Cedric smirked as he looked at Zeno. Zeno, in response, stood up and growled as if he were about to pounce.
“I’ve been looking after that wolf. He’s a bit wild, so His Grace is helping to train him.”
At my words, Cedric’s eyebrow twitched.
“Oh, by the way, did you hear the news?”
Sir Caven hesitated as he brought up the topic. The banquet hall fell silent.
“They say one of the sacred beasts has escaped.”
“….”
“Pfft!”
Cedric shut his mouth, and I nearly spit out my water. A startled maid rushed over, but I wiped my mouth with a napkin and gave her a wink to show I was fine.
‘So it really did escape from the royal family?’
I glanced at Zeno, narrowing my eyes. Zeno avoided my gaze and stopped wagging his tail.
“It seems the royal family is in chaos because of it,” the knight continued.
I laughed awkwardly and focused on his words, even though I was inwardly panicking. I couldn’t let my anxiety show.
Is that why my father suddenly decided to visit the north? Had he figured something out?
A headache started to form.
‘I knew it was too good to be true, that this much good fortune would come my way by accident.’
I clenched my fists under the table.
It was clear now that the Emperor’s visit to the north was related to the sacred beast. But I couldn’t let them take Zeno away.
“My lady?”
Cedric seemed to sense my unease and looked at me closely. He must have realized by now that Zeno was the sacred beast that had escaped from the royal family.
His large, warm hand reached under the table to hold my trembling one.
“I’m fine. Please, tell me more. I’m curious about this sacred beast.”
Since my powers hadn’t manifested, I never had the chance to get close to any of the royal family’s sacred beasts.
If I had known where Zeno came from, I would never have allowed him to bond with me. If he truly had escaped from the royal family, I should have been more cautious.
But then again, I didn’t know we had bonded! Zeno tricked me into it.
“How many sacred beasts are there?”
“Three. As far as I know, there were three. I heard the Emperor captured the others.”
It was unclear why Zeno hadn’t been bound by the Emperor or why he had escaped.
“It looks like we’re going to be busy from now on.”
“We should enjoy this evening while we can,” Cedric said. The knights straightened up at his words. It was obvious that everything would change once the Emperor arrived next week.
Zeno came over to me and rubbed against my leg.
“Woof.” (Don’t worry. Everything will work out.)
“…I really hope so.”
I just had to hope that no one discovered the bond between me and Zeno.
“Anyway, everyone, enjoy the evening! What could possibly happen?”
I smiled brightly, reassuring the knights.
If anything happened, it would only affect me. They had nothing to worry about.
‘Just when I was starting to feel at home…’
I should have known things wouldn’t stay peaceful. The fact that I had gotten my hopes up just made me feel even more foolish.
***
Late at night, I quietly slipped out of bed. Cedric had said he would be late because he had things to discuss with the knights.
“Zeno, are you really doing this?”
“Woof.” (You didn’t ask me.)
“Do you call that an excuse…?”
“Woof!” (How was I supposed to know you were a princess?)
“…That’s true.”
He’d said he was drawn to my power, so of course, he wouldn’t have known. But still, bonding with me without asking was Zeno’s fault.
Once a bond was formed, it couldn’t be undone. What had he been thinking?
“So, what’s this about escaping from the royal family?”
“Woof.” (It’s exactly what it sounds like.)
“…The Emperor is supposed to visit here next week.”
“Grrr…” (That old man still has stamina.)
From Zeno’s hostile tone, it was clear he had a bad history with the Emperor.
“Don’t worry. I won’t let them take you back.”
“Whine. Woof.” (I never said I’d leave your side. We’re bonded, remember?)
Zeno rubbed his face against me, begging to be petted.
But the Emperor could sense the power of the sacred beasts. That meant… I’d have to hide all the animals in the garden.
I couldn’t let him destroy their sanctuary.
“Zeno, we’ve got work to do. Looks like we’ll be having some long nights ahead.”
“Woof.” (So you’re going to work me to the bone again.)
I couldn’t even tell Cedric, so Zeno and I would have to handle this ourselves.
There were only six days left until the Emperor arrived at the duchy.
In that time, I had to hide anything that could reveal my powers. That was assuming Isabel wouldn’t come along with him, of course.
