The hunting competition was held in the eastern forest not far from the palace.
The lush green forest was so quiet and obscured that it gave off a slightly gloomy feeling.
The straight-growing oak trees seemed to pierce the sky. In short, it was a perfect forest to get lost in.
“The forest is dangerous, so don’t wander around unnecessarily and stay here.”
Zion, who had approached unnoticed, said. Arundel hurriedly tugged down her sleeves to hide the bandage at the sudden appearance of Zion.
Arundel, who had tidied up her clothes, looked at Zion.
‘Hmm… He’s handsome.’
Zion, who was riding a horse, had neatly tied his hair that reached his shoulders and was wearing armor.
A large bow was attached to his left shoulder, making him look like a mysterious elf from a novel.
“You still seem to be close with that woman.”
Zion’s fingertips were pointing at Bianca.
“Yes, Bianca is a good person.”
“You don’t know how to judge people. You’d be shocked if you knew what that woman’s father recently tried to do.”
“Duke Hellen? That’s because her father is bad, not Bianca.”
As Arundel spoke, she realized that there was a great contradiction in this situation, but she had already blurted it out.
In fact, the reason why Zion had tormented Empress Irina was because of his hatred for Irina’s father, who had framed Zion’s mother.
In other words, Empress Irina would have been innocent. Like Bianca.
“Do you want to talk about yourself?”
It seemed to have sounded that way to Zion’s ears as well. Fortunately, he didn’t seem to be in a bad mood.
“No… I didn’t mean to…”
“Regardless of what you think, if that woman and Duke Hellen do any more foolish things, I will cut their throats at any time.”
From Zion’s stern face and tone, it was felt that he was ready to execute them at any time.
Although Arundel couldn’t understand why Zion was so angry, he believed that at least Bianca would not do the ‘foolish’ that Zion mentioned.
“Your Majesty, shall we start the tournament now?”
Cain came running from afar at a good timing. Thanks to him, the uncomfortable conversation was cut off.
“Go.”
The nobles who prepared for the hunting tournament lined up in a row, each holding their weapons.
Most of the nobles brought swords or bows, and occasionally someone brought a staff.
Among them, a burly man riding a horse stood out.
His large body and stern appearance, which stood out among people, attracted attention.
Royden was Royden even when seen from afar.
Arundel, whose eyes met his, smiled slightly. Royden also responded with a light smile.
“Your Majesty the Empress, you can sit there.”
At Cain’s kind guidance, Arundel took her seat.
The chair located at the top seat had a clear view and was located in the shade.
Other nobles who followed the participants also took their seats in the prepared chairs. Among the seated people, Bianca with red hair stood out.
‘Should I go to Bianca.’
Zion had just warned, but she had no intention of distancing herself from Bianca.
There was a time when she doubted Bianca, but she overcame it with the true appearance of Bianca, who punished the girls who backstabbed her instead.
‘No. Still, I have to sit.’
She thought about going to Bianca, but she thought it wouldn’t look good if the empress couldn’t sit for long and wandered around, so she gave up.
Arundel sat quietly in her seat and looked at the blue forest.
After some time had passed, Arundel couldn’t stand it and asked Cain.
“Cain.”
“Yes?”
“How long does the hunting tournament take?”
“Oh, in principle, it’s until 6 p.m. It’s because it’s dangerous when the forest gets dark after that.”
It’s ruined. There are still 12 hours left.
I didn’t know the hunting tournament was so boring. I thought I was watching, but all the attendees did was sit and wait.
Arundel stared sternly ahead, reminding herself of patience.
****
“…Huh!”
Arundel, who had fallen asleep, opened her eyes in surprise.
She looked around to see if anyone had seen her sleeping, but fortunately, no one was looking at her right now.
‘I can’t.’
Feeling that she would fall asleep again if he sat still, Arundel got up from her seat.
“Where are you going?”
“…I think I need to go out to sober up.”
Cain must have seen her drowsy appearance, so he spoke honestly.
“Shall I go with you?”
“No. I’ll be back soon.”
Arundel refused because it felt cumbersome for Cain to follow her around.
Arundel, who got up from her seat, went to the lake she had seen on her way here. The lakeside was a peaceful place with no one, a perfect place to stay for a while.
When she dipped her hands into the clear lake, a cold sensation was transmitted through her fingertips.
The temperature of the lake water located in the shade was like an ice rink, and she woke up sharply.
Arundel did not stop there and washed her face by putting her hands deeper.
“Ah!”
Arundel felt a moment of regret. The bandage wrapped around her wrist was soaked.
The damp bandage wrapping around his wrist now felt uncomfortably.
‘Hmm… I’m just sitting alone anyway, I can untie it for a while…?’
Arundel untied the wet bandage. She saw the mark of Hills on her wrist for the first time in a long time.
If knights or related people see the broken star shape drawn in a circle, they will soon realize that it is the mark of a demon.
But at a glance, it would be difficult to know that the red circular picture the size of a coin is a symbol related to a demon.
‘I have to rewrap it again when the bandage dries.’
Arundel put the wet bandage in her pocket.
Just as she was about to return to her seat,
“There’s an injured person here!!”
A man who looked like a participant in the hunting tournament appeared at the lakeside, dragging a man with a bloody face.
“…!!”
Arundel, who was about to leave, froze in his place. Suddenly, what was this situation?
“He was attacked by a bear! He got hit in the face and lost consciousness!”
“Well… first, lay him down here!”
Arundel was alone at the lakeside.
She was worried and was about to call someone, but because the person seemed to be in a hurry, it was a priority to check the condition first.
Arundel approached the man. And she scooped up the water from the lake in her palm and wiped the man’s bloody face.
By the time she had almost wiped it off with her hand, fortunately, she found out that the man’s wound was not deep.
Arundel took out the wet bandage from her pocket and wrapped it around the man’s forehead so that no more blood would come out.
Everything happened urgently. Arundel’s mind was all about the injured person.
She quickly stopped the bleeding, but she thought she needed to stitch the wound quickly, so Arundel hurriedly got up from sitting.
“I’ll call someone. Please watch him.”
At Arundel’s urgent cry, the man who had supported the injured man slowly nodded his head with a blank face.
Arundel quickly got up and ran to where the doctor was.
The man left alone was staring at the back of Arundel who had run away.
“That star shape…”
The man muttered to himself.
“Cain!”
“Oh! There’s blood on your…hand!!”
Looking at Arundel’s bloody hand and sleeve, Cain’s face turned pale.
“It’s not my blood. There’s an injured person at the lakeside. His forehead is torn, and we need a doctor right away.”
“Yes…! I’ll take him, so please stay here.”
“No, I’ll go too.”
Arundel followed Cain, worried that something might go wrong with the man.
Fortunately, nothing happened until the doctor took over the injured person, and the injured person opened his eyes after a while.
“…Huh. Where is this…”
“You were attacked by a bear and your forehead was torn, so you fainted. It’s really fortunate that you woke up.”
Arundel sighed with relief and explained the situation to the injured person.
“I don’t know who you are, but thank you very much.”
“Hmm, the person who helped you is Her Majesty the Empress.”
Cain subtly revealed Arundel’s identity next to him.
“…!!”
“…!!”
The injured person and the man who had supported him looked very surprised to find out that the person who had helped them was the empress.
Especially the man who brought the injured person seemed very surprised.
Arundel modestly waved both hands.
“I just happened to be there.”
After receiving a few words of thanks, Arundel was able to return to her seat.
‘It’s a good thing I was there.’
Although it was not a big wound, it was definitely a dangerous situation because he was bleeding a lot.
Arundel felt proud that she had been able to help someone, and her mood improved.
‘What time is it?’
Fortunately, the sun had set a lot.
The tournament seemed to be over soon, and it seemed like she could safely get through the day.
As Arundel sighed with relief, suspicious movement was caught in her sight.
Several black shadows moved secretly between the trees.
‘…Should I ignore it?’
I just sat down…
Arundel wanted to pretend not to see it.
However, because Arundel’s seat was the highest place, there was a high probability that other people located lower would not see it.
From a distance, only the movement of black was visible, so it was impossible to tell whether it was a person or another being.
If a demon appears, this place will become a battlefield.
She hesitated for a moment, but Arundel remembered her duty.
Originally, she was an angel who protected people.
‘Yeah… If I don’t step up, who will.’
Arundel, who made a decision, quietly got up from her seat. Cain asked where she was going, but she vaguely mumbled that she was going to the bathroom.
She thought about asking someone for help, but since it might be nothing, she thought it would be better to call people after confirming the identity.
Arundel ran to where the black shadow was seen.
She looked around the place she arrived, but nothing was visible. She looked around in case it was nearby.
While turning her head, a part of the black shape was slightly visible, hidden by a rock.
Arundel hid her body behind a tree and approached quietly.
When she got close, she stuck her head out a little and eavesdropped on the shadow’s conversation.
“…Isn’t it better to do it?”
“Idiot! Didn’t you hear what the client said!”
Four people dressed in black were having a conversation. From their voices, they all seemed to be men.
They were all covered in black clothes, and their faces were also covered so that only their eyes could be seen slightly.
Arundel, worried about being discovered, tucked her head back in and focused on the sound of the conversation.
“That guy, he’s known as the empire’s greatest magician.”
“Isn’t that just a rumor? He’s hardly ever shown himself using magic. He even came out with a bow today.”
From the man’s explanation, Arundel thought of one person. She needed to listen more, but the person who was known as the empire’s greatest magician and came out with a bow today was ‘Zion’.
“So what!”
“Let’s aim for the woman, wouldn’t that be easier?”
“Hey, men have pride. If we’re going to do it, let’s aim for the man.”
A woman…?
The person the shadows were talking about seemed to be Zion, but it was not clear who the woman was.
“Okay. Let’s go for the man!”
The shadows skillfully pulled out their weapons. And they headed towards the deep forest.
“…!!”
Arundel’s thought process momentarily stopped.
She looked at the forest where the shadows had run. They were targeting Zion.
The forest was so dark and damp that no matter what happened, it couldn’t be known.
‘Should I call someone?’
At times like this, the weak Empress Irina was very hateful.
Even when she helped the injured person earlier, the wound could have healed quickly if she used divine power, but with Irina’s body, she could only use a weak divine power.
Even now, if she follows the shadows right away, it was uncertain whether Irina’s body would be helpful.
She also had the expectation that Zion might be able to handle it alone, but no matter how strong Zion was, it seemed difficult to win in a 1 vs 4 fight.
The situation was urgent. She had to make a choice right away.
Whether to call someone or chase after where Zion is and let him know.
‘Ah, there’s really no quiet day.’
Arundel took a deep breath.
And she ran into the black forest following the shadow.
