Episode 51

I flinched for a moment.

“Hahaha!”

Soon, a clear laugh came from behind me—it was Aria.

‘Ah.’

The servant must have smiled after looking at Aria behind me.

‘It’s natural. Most people would smile when they see her.’

Just as I thought that and approached one of the horses, the servant, who had just laughed, smoothly suggested a horse to me.

“Why don’t you ride this one?”

It was a larger white horse, bigger than the brown one I had originally intended to choose.

“Isn’t it a bit too big for me?”

“It’s a gentle horse, especially calm around ladies. We often recommend it.”

The horse softly nudged my hand with its snout. After a moment of consideration, I nodded lightly.

“All right, I’ll take this one.”

Once I was mounted on the horse, I noticed Aria holding the reins of the horse I initially wanted. I tried not to pay it any mind.

“Let’s go.”

I gently patted the neck of the white horse I was riding. I figured there had to be a good place to take a casual ride along the outskirts of the hunting grounds. That’s when I heard it.

“Alone again, no friends?”

Seth, mounted on a large black horse, sidled up next to me, sneering.

“Then again, who would want to accompany filth like you?”

He shoved past, deliberately nudging the horse I was on. I shook my head at his antics.

“Prrrr.”

The horse, almost as if reading my mind, trotted off toward a quieter area. I couldn’t help but smile.

“You’re quite smart, aren’t you?”

The scenery soon began to change. Verdant trees grew densely around us, their fresh scent filling the air.

“……”

Other than the occasional chirping of birds, the surroundings were silent. I liked that.

‘I wonder how Chris is doing.’

I wasn’t particularly interested in whether Chris was performing well at the hunting festival or not. It wasn’t because I doubted his skill.

“To be honest, he could easily wipe out every last beast in the hunting grounds if he wanted.”

It was more about whether he would hunt normally or intentionally hold back.

“Either way, there will be problems.”

If his performance is too good, the Crown Prince or the Empress Dowager will likely nitpick. If he doesn’t perform well, the other nobles might mock him.

‘They’d say something like how he’s great at slaying monsters but falls short in a mere hunting competition.’

Knowing Chris’s personality, he wasn’t the type to hold back on purpose. The former scenario seemed far more likely.

“The Crown Prince’s interference wouldn’t really bother him, but…”

If the Empress Dowager were to get involved, things could become troublesome.

In truth, the Crown Prince gets away with his poor behavior largely because of the Empress Dowager’s protection. She also holds considerable power in the social circles.

‘The Emperor only sees Chris as someone to use.’

Today’s event was proof enough, grouping Chris together with the Crown Prince, as well as the scions from the western and eastern regions, under the guise of imperial unity.

‘He’ll likely turn a blind eye even if Chris faces disadvantages.’

“Is there anything I can do?”

Lost in thought, I absentmindedly patted the horse’s neck.

The soft trickle of water could be heard nearby.

Somewhere, I heard the sound of water flowing.

‘Water…?’

I knew there might be ponds in the imperial hunting grounds, but I hadn’t heard anything about a stream or river.

“This is strange.”

I must have wandered too far while lost in thought.

“Come on, let’s head back.”

I urged the horse, patting it gently, but it merely continued to walk forward. Feeling something off, I leaned forward to take a closer look at the horse’s face.

“Ah…”

Its eyes looked dazed, as if it were intoxicated.

That’s when it happened.

Thwip.

A sound of something cutting through the air came swiftly. I saw the horse’s front legs slowly rise into the air, each movement sluggish as if time had slowed.

I turned my head slowly.

Something was lodged in the horse’s hindquarters.

An arrow.

“Neigh! Neighhhh!”

“Ugh!”

In the next moment, as if waking from a trance, the horse went wild, bucking and thrashing madly.

Time snapped back into its usual pace.

“Whoa! Whoa!”

I tried desperately to calm the horse, but more arrows flew at its feet. Sunlight filtered through somewhere, causing the horse’s white coat to gleam brilliantly. In the shadows of the forest, it was the perfect target.

My heart pounded in my chest, so hard that I could feel my whole body shaking with the force of it.

‘Calm down.’

I closed my eyes tightly.

And just as the horse twisted violently beneath me, I let go of the reins.

“…!”

The hot wind slapped against my face as I felt my body slowly descend.

“Neighhh!”

Thud!

Luckily, I landed on thick moss between the tree trunks. I had fallen from quite a height, but the impact was softened significantly.

Not that the pain was entirely gone, though.

“Ugh.”

I grimaced at the dull pain radiating from my side and ankle. The hem of my dress was soaked green from the wet moss, but I didn’t care.

Neighhhh!

The horse sped off somewhere.

“Huff.”

I scrambled to my feet and began to run.

While running, I frantically tore off anything that gleamed, like my bracelets and necklace, and discarded them. Anything that glittered in the dark would make for a good target.

‘…Thank goodness I didn’t wear anything Chris gave me.’

Even in such a situation, that thought crossed my mind first. I smiled bitterly, realizing that I was more relieved about that than the fear of death. It seemed I’d grown far too accustomed to such things.

Tap, tap, tap!

The sound of someone rapidly chasing me echoed from behind.

‘Can I outrun them?’

Realistically, I wasn’t very athletic, nor did I have great stamina. It was only a matter of time before they caught up to me.

Ahead of me, a shallow cliff opened into a wide gorge. The water I had heard earlier was from there.

“…I can’t let them catch me.”

Besides, if they were targeting me because of my rumored connection to Chris…

If I were taken hostage, Chris wouldn’t refuse a negotiation.

Not because he cared for or loved me, but because we had made an alliance.

‘I don’t want to become his weakness.’

So I…

“…Catch her!”

“No!”

Without hesitation, I threw myself into the gorge.

* * *

“Did they really release the game properly?”

One of the young noblemen ahead of the group grumbled, and another one nodded in agreement.

“For some reason, none of the animals are showing up. Did they get scared or something?”

The Crown Prince, leading the group on horseback, clicked his tongue and held his bow at the ready. Behind him, the Grand Duke silently followed on his horse.

The sons of the Eastern and Western regions kept sneaking glances at the Crown Prince and the Grand Duke, nervously gauging the situation. Suddenly, the Crown Prince turned around, smirking as if to provoke.

“Must be the scent of monsters around here.”

“……”

“Animals have a natural instinct to sense when a monster is near, don’t they?”

At that, several people’s gazes briefly landed on Chris before scattering away. Chris simply held his reins without reacting.

‘Not an entirely wrong assumption.’

The Crown Prince had said it to insult him, but Chris didn’t feel particularly offended.

After all, it wouldn’t be unreasonable to think that his body or belongings were stained with monster blood, given that he was a man who slaughtered them regularly.

It wasn’t self-loathing or regret, just an acknowledgment of reality. Slaying monsters that descended from the north was his duty as the Grand Duke of Elzerian.

What bothered him wasn’t the insult itself but that the one to inherit the throne was someone who treated such duties so lightly.

“Come to think of it, there might really be a monster’s scent…”

“Hey, quiet down.”

Not only the Crown Prince, but a few others who were sneaking glances at Chris also snickered, finding amusement in the perceived insult.

“……”

However, when Chris remained indifferent and expressionless, those same people hesitated, their spirits dampened by the icy aura he exuded.

Occasionally, he’d heard that some noble ladies found his reputation as a monster butcher unsettling.

‘…But she wouldn’t care at all.’

The thought of her suddenly crossed his mind, and Chris instinctively turned his head, gazing off into the distance. A strange sense of unease welled up in him.

When he glanced earlier, he’d seen Mindia riding off somewhere alone.

Perhaps she had her reasons for doing so, but…

‘It’s dangerous.’

Mindia had an unusually careless attitude toward her own safety. It often seemed like she treated her life with a casual disregard.

Granted, this was the imperial hunting grounds, and it was a royal hunting festival. There shouldn’t be any truly dangerous animals here.

Perhaps that’s why she was so relaxed, but Chris often felt uneasy.

He couldn’t shake the feeling that she might one day abandon or sacrifice herself without a second thought. It was a thought that had resurfaced ever since the pickpocket incident, whenever he thought it had been forgotten.

‘…Why?’

Chris unconsciously clenched and unclenched his fist. He felt a sensation as though blood was pooling in his hand again.

The blood of those precious to him.

His mother’s face flashed before him, lying carelessly discarded on the ground, her neck offered up to a monster.

“……”

It was at that moment he felt something crawl up his spine.

A sensation similar to the sharpened focus he experienced just before entering combat.

“Where the hell have all the animals gone…”

The Crown Prince had been about to speak when the sound of rapidly approaching hoofbeats echoed from a distance.

“Who would recklessly ride at full speed like that…?”

One of the young noblemen grumbled. At the same time, everyone turned to look in the direction of the sound.

Neighhh!

A riderless white horse burst out from the underbrush, running wildly before disappearing into the thicket on the other side.

“What?”

Everyone stared at the scene in dumbfounded silence.

“Yah!”

In the next instant, both Chris and the Crown Prince spurred their horses forward, galloping in the direction from which the white horse had come.