“Lilia?”
I smiled slightly at the sight of Lilia, who had come earlier than I expected, and stepped out of the tent. I was about to go find her, so I was grateful that she came to me first.
If our timings hadn’t matched and I hadn’t been able to give her the handkerchief, I would have regretted it for a long time.
As soon as I emerged with the handkerchief intended for Lilia, I was greeted by her dressed in an elegant riding outfit.
The shade of the riding clothes, slightly darker than her hair color, highlighted her firm body line and seemed practical for activity without being restrictive.
Whether it was because of the silver fabric adorned with neat patterns or because Lilia was wearing it, the riding clothes somehow appeared more luxurious than others.
Lilia smiled broadly upon seeing me. Her hair, tied up high, swayed, making her seem like a personification of summer. Just when I tightened my grip on the handkerchief I was holding, Lilia glanced at the servant standing by her side and said,
“I will personally escort the lady to His Majesty, so you may go back to your duties now.”
“Yes. Then, I shall take my leave.”
Following her dismissal, the servant bowed and carefully walked away, disappearing in the direction where dozens of horses were tethered.
It seemed that he was not a servant brought by Ruth but rather one who worked in the stables here.
I watched a servant moving away and then turned to look at Lilia, handing her a handkerchief. The handkerchief, embroidered with a hydrangea pattern in blue on a white background, seemed flawless in the sunlight, hiding my clumsy craftsmanship. Feeling unnecessarily proud, I opened my mouth.
“Here, the handkerchief I promised. I’m not sure if you’ll like it since I’m not good with embroidery, but I hope you’ll accept it happily. It’s the first time I’ve ever given one to a woman.”
I handed the handkerchief to Lilia’s empty hand with honesty.
Exchanging handkerchiefs between opposite genders could lead to various meanings and happen even without a romantic relationship.
However, it wasn’t common among the same gender. Especially considering that very few women participated in hunting contests directly, and even if they did, they would only receive handkerchiefs from very close friends, not from someone they had no relation with.
So, giving a handkerchief to Lilia was my first experience of presenting one to the same sex, and it tickled a corner of my heart.
Lilia chuckled softly at my words and carefully tied the handkerchief near the hilt of her sword, then showed it to me, as if promising to treasure it dearly.
“It’s very beautiful. Thank you, my lady. I will cherish it.”
“Don’t just cherish it; use it if you need to. Like if you get hurt.”
“How could I use it? I’m afraid it might wear out just by looking at it.”
“I’ll make one for you again next time. So please use this for Lilia. This is my request.”
“Since you say so, I understand. I will make good use of it.”
Standing my ground, Lilia finally gave in, shaking her head in refusal as she sheathed her sword back at her waist.
Her sword seemed to belong to the Harvest family, as a small emblem of the Harvest family was delicately drawn in the middle of the scabbard. It was quite a sight to behold.
After handing over the handkerchief, Lilia and I picked up another handkerchief for Ruth and headed to the imperial tent where he was.
Although it was unclear why he had sought me out in advance, I had a feeling it wasn’t bad news, so my steps were light.
The imperial tent was made of purple and silver. It seemed to be twice as large as I had thought the Obelton family’s tent, which was already quite big, might be.
The empire’s flag was fluttering in front, and perhaps because of that, there was an indescribable sense of pressure. If I had been in the same situation as other nobles, I certainly wouldn’t have had the courage to enter.
After taking a deep breath, I exchanged glances with Lilia and slowly entered the imperial tent. I was greeted by the warm fragrance of black tea soaked into the air, with the distinct scent of cedarwood from Ruth mingling within.
Truly, the scent was both familiar and something I hadn’t smelled in a long time, making me unable to stop the corners of my mouth from turning up. I was overjoyed to see Ruth, whom I hadn’t seen in almost two weeks.
“Have you come?”
Sitting astride the table and polishing his sword, Ruth lifted his chin and murmured as he noticed me making a sound. It seemed he had been working while drinking black tea, as a half-empty teacup was placed beside him.
I approached Ruth with a small nod in agreement to his question.
“I was surprised it was quieter than I had imagined.”
“I didn’t feel the need to bring much, so I came lightly. After all, there’s no one left here for me, and I’ll mostly be in the forest all day. But I did bring some snacks, would you like some?”
“Oh, no, I’m still okay. But why did you call me?”
After I waved my hand and moved on to the reason he had called, Ruth gently put down the sword he had been holding and took out a palm-sized piece of paper from his trouser pocket.
“The master of the Tower asked me to give this to you.”
“The… Tower master?”
Feeling an unexpected chill at the mention of Tommy, with whom I had not been in contact for a long time, I tried my best not to look strange and calmly took the paper from him. I then unfolded the slightly creased part and read the content inside.
[Be wary of the Dragon’s Tears where the roots point west, young lady. I, too, could not stop it this time.]
“Hmm?”
The note ended there, with only those two meaningful sentences.
A tree root facing west, the tears of a dragon? So we couldn’t prevent it this time either? What does this all mean?
My head involuntarily tilted in bafflement amidst surging doubts. Judging by the handwriting, it seemed to be Tommy’s, yet I couldn’t grasp what he was trying to convey.
It appeared to be some sort of warning, but the unintelligible expressions further hindered any logical thinking.
As I frowned and glared at the note, Ruth, who had sneakily stretched out to peek at the note, quietly said,
“If it’s about the dragon’s tears, it seems to be a reference to a waterfall.”
“A waterfall?”
“Yes. Here, there’s a huge waterfall that’s completely pristine, and people say it looks exactly like a great dragon shedding tears, hence it’s called ‘the dragon’s tears.’ Coincidentally, it’s located precisely to the west.”
“Ah… Is that place somewhat dangerous?”
“Not at all. It’s actually quite safe, frequented by tourists. It’s quite far from being considered dangerous.”
“Then why warn us to be cautious of that place?”
Since there was no need to keep it a secret, I sought Ruth’s opinion, and after pondering for a moment, he answered,
“Hard to say.”
“It bothers me to think it’s just a prank…”
“Let’s leave it be for now. I’ll look into it.”
“Yes, I will do that.”
I obediently followed Ruth’s instructions and slipped the note into my pocket. What troubled me more than the mention of the dragon’s tears was the phrase “this time as well.”
There had been more than one or two instances where Tommy had acted as if he knew something about the future.
While I was deep in thought, the sound of a horn came from outside the barracks, signalling that all the nobles had finally gathered. This meant that it was time for Ruth to deliver a speech to the assembled nobles.
“We should go.”
“We need to go.”
We said the same thing simultaneously, shared a smile, and briefly nodded to each other in greeting.
“Take care.”
“Yes. You too, be safe. Even with knights around, the forest with animals awakened from hibernation can be dangerous.”
“Yes.”
After Ruth gave his light admonition, we left the barracks together. Ruth headed towards where the nobles were gathered, and I went towards the Obelton family’s barracks.
“Huh?”
As I was walking slowly, I unexpectedly ran into someone and couldn’t hide my surprise.
“Cayena?”
“Miss?”
Standing there, dumbfounded, was Cayena, the woman I had rescued from the slave auction with Ruth last time. As soon as she recognized me, Cayena displayed a mixture of astonishment and joy.
It seemed she had never dreamt of meeting me like this. Cayena, looking much more beautiful than before and freed from the miserable state she was in at the slave auction, had a beauty that one might mistake for a noblewoman just passing by.
After all, I knew Cayena to be a commoner living in the countryside; how did she end up here? I couldn’t help but ask the question that came to mind.
“What brings you here?”
“Ah, I had the chance to work as a maid for the Delphert Viscountcy by coincidence, along with my younger sibling. So, I came here to attend to the lord and lady.”
“I see. That’s good to hear. Seeing you in such fine spirits eases my mind.”
“It’s all thanks to you, Miss. If it weren’t for you and the young master, I…”
“We were merely acting on behalf of His Majesty. It would be good to give thanks to him. Oh. So, your sibling is here with you as well?”
I continued the conversation with Cayena, laughing, and then suddenly turned the topic to her sibling’s whereabouts, to which Cayena responded with an even brighter laugh and confirmation.
“Yes. Unlike me, my younger sibling decided to serve the Delphert family’s young master during hunting. My sibling is surprisingly fast on their feet.”
“Oh. Serving during a hunt must be quite difficult; your sibling must be exceptional.”
As I admired her sibling, Cayena seemed pleased with the praise. Just by that, it was apparent how much Cayena loves her sibling.
“Yes. That’s about right.”
