Whether it was because Pristin was by his side or because of the mysterious medicine she said she had made. Or both of them. Jerald was able to finish his forest tour safely with Pristin.
Although they didn’t venture deep into the forest, Pristin considered it quite an achievement, given that Jerald couldn’t have approached the forest at all originally.
“You’ve done a great job today, Your Majesty.”
Pristin sincerely praised Jerald upon returning to the Summer Palace. Jerald responded with a faint smile on his lips.
“Thank you, Pristin. It’s all thanks to you.”
“It’s because of the courage of Your Majesty.”
“If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have had the courage.”
Jerald then naturally grabbed Pristin’s hand again, and Pristin’s face quickly turned red. It was fine in the forest, but when they returned to the palace, the atmosphere seemed strange. Pristin cleared her throat lightly and changed the subject.
“Anyway, if Your Majesty repeats this process a few more times, you should be able to participate in the hunting competition safely.”
“Are you participating?”
“No. I can’t ride a horse.”
“Is that so?”
Jerald thought for a moment and suggested.
“How about learning then?”
“Thank you for the offer, Your Majesty, but I’ll have to decline. I have no talent for physical activities.”
Rather, her sister, Christine, was more talented in such things. Pristin became depressed for a while at the thought of her sister that suddenly came to mind, but soon she changed her words casually.
“And my main duty is to handle herbs. I need to be prepared for any unforeseen circumstances and hold my ground.”
“That makes sense.”
Jerald was quick to accept it.
“I’m glad you’re not going to be absent at all anyway.”
“If you practice a lot, you’ll do well without me.”
“Are you putting too much trust in me?”
“Because I don’t think the person I once liked is that weak.”
“Once liked?”
Jerald asked, staring straight at Pristin.
“What about now?”
“…Even now.”
Pristin paused and looked at Jerald. The gaze that demanded an answer followed tenaciously. After a brief internal deliberation, Pristin uttered the most fitting answer.
“I don’t hate you, even now.”
“It’s an ambiguous answer.”
And Jerald didn’t seem to like the answer very much. Or more accurately, it wasn’t quite satisfying for him.
He thought for a moment and asked.
“You’re not afraid of riding horses, are you?”
“Not to that extent.”
“Good.”
Jerald nodded with a smile.
“Tomorrow, let’s go out to the woods together on horseback.”
“What? But…”
“You can ride behind me.”
Jerald spoke to Pristin with a voice meant to give relief.
“Don’t worry; it’ll be safe.”
“No. That’s not the problem.”
“Then?”
“I was wondering if the pace was too fast. Would that be all right?”
“Well, there was not much time left until the hunting competition.”
Jerald continued, making eye contact with Pristin.
“And I think it would be fine if you were behind me. In the end, in real situations, you have to move around on horseback.”
“Yes, I understand.”
“Then tomorrow…”
“But tomorrow is difficult.”
“How come?”
Jerald asked, with his brow slightly narrowed.
“Do you have an appointment?”
“That’s…”
Pristin hesitated for a moment. She couldn’t reveal the truth—that she had plans to go gathering herbs with Akkad tomorrow.
“I thought we could take a break for a day since we already went once today…”
Not anticipating this turn of events, Pristin quickly turned her head. However, it was impossible to keep it from Jerald.
“You don’t have an appointment with the duke, do you?”
“It’s not such a private appointment.”
Pristin responded, watching Jerald carefully. After all, he was quick to catch on.
Actually, from the moment Pristin hesitated to answer in front of Jerald, the answer to the question was already predetermined.
“The collection of herbs I mentioned last time.”
“…Can’t you put that off a little bit?”
“It’s been a while since I made a promise.”
Pristin tried to calmly persuade Jerald.
“It’s not urgent, so let’s put it off until the next day.”
“Not urgent? The hunting contest is just around the corner. You can always gather herbs.”
“That’s true, but there are herbs that need to be obtained before the hunting competition begins.”
“An herbal medicine that you need to get?”
“Yes, just to be prepared for any emergency situations.”
“…”
“So please understand a little, Your Majesty.”
“Okay. All right.”
With Jerald’s cooperative response, Pristin breathed a sigh of relief internally. However, Jerald’s voice was heard again.
“But there’s one thing I want in return.”
“If there’s something you want…”
Pristin asked in a slightly perplexed voice.
“Can I give it to you?”
“It’s something only you can give.”
“Only me?”
“A wish ticket. Just give me one.”
“A wish ticket?”
“Yeah. When I want it later, grant me one wish. How about that?”
“You’re not thinking of making an unreasonable wish, are you?”
“Well, of course not. I’m not so inflexible.”
Jerald asked softly, looking at Pristin with a smile on his face.
“What do you think? Can you give it to me?”
“As long as you promise not to be jealous of my meeting with Lord Bachell tomorrow.”
“…I’m still jealous, actually.”
Jerald’s smile on his mouth shook slightly.
“I’ll try my best. In return, promise to come back early.”
“After all, you can’t stay in the forest when it gets dark.”
“Four o’clock.”
“Your Majesty, the sun sets at seven these days.”
“After coming back, you need to bathe and have dinner.”
“That’s true, but…”
“And have dinner with me.”
“Are you using the wish coupon there?”
“No. This is separate.”
“You’re greedy.”
Pristin sighed in disbelief. Then Jerald, with an unwavering smile, looked at Pristin and asked,
“So, is it a no?”
“All right, Your Majesty, but please refrain from being too obvious about your concerns with Lord Bachell.”
“That too, I can endure.”
Jerald said with a slightly amused tone.
“Well then, go in, Pristin. I would like to hold you longer, but you must be tired.”
Jerald affectionately patted Pristin’s shoulder.
“You’ve worked hard today.”
“…Your Majesty, too.”
Pristin replied in a small voice.
“Have a good rest.”
After a very gentle greeting, the two parted. Walking to her room, Pristin was lost in thought for a moment.
‘Tomorrow, I’ll go herb picking, and the day after that, if I go to the forest with His Majesty…’
And then, Pristin collided with someone turning the corner. Pristin let out a short groan and looked up.
“Ah…”
“What the…”
A sharp voice passed by her ears.
“Countess Rosewell, isn’t it?”
It was Tanya. An unwelcome face that she hadn’t seemed to have met for quite some time. Pristin was taken aback, but soon she regained composure and greeted her dryly.
“Yes, Princess Gennant. I’m sorry.”
“Be more careful and watch where you’re going. I almost got hurt.”
“I’m afraid what just happened was the fault of both parties.”
With a slightly smug smile on her lips, Pristin replied.
“I think the princess needs to watch where she’s going, rather.”
“What did you say?”
“It’s just a word of caution. Don’t take it the wrong way. Well then.”
Thinking that being together might lead to a fight, Pristin quickly bowed her head and tried to leave.
If only there hadn’t been a single phrase that followed, it would have undoubtedly been like that.
“You didn’t enter the palace because of Her Highness in the first place, did you?”
Pristin stopped there, turned her head slightly, and looked back. Tanya could be seen glaring at her fiercely.
“What do you mean by that?”
“Her Highness is an excuse, and in fact, you entered the palace to take the seat next to His Majesty.”
Tanya spit out her words with force, emphasizing each syllable.
“I don’t know why the empress candidates like you, but I will definitely expose your true face to everyone!”
“I don’t know why you’re saying that all of a sudden.”
“How long do you think you can deceive others?”
“Yes?”
“I heard that you and His Majesty went out alone today.”
“His Majesty is very interested in herbs these days.”
Pristin calmly brought up an excuse she had prepared.
“We just went out briefly to take a walk. That’s all.”
“Without servants.”
“His Majesty likes to keep things simple.”
Pristin asked, looking Tanya in the eye.
“Is there a problem there?”
“While there are clear candidates for empress, it’s best to avoid getting too close to His Majesty.”
“If anyone hears you, they’ll think I’m deliberately approaching His Majesty and seducing him.”
“Isn’t that the case, now? I still don’t understand why the candidates view you favorably. You’re their biggest enemy!”
“At least I don’t use dirty tricks like the princess.”
Pristin spoke one by one, with a gentle smile around her mouth.
“I didn’t put infertility herbs in the expensive soap you gave as a gift.”
“It was an accident!”
“It was a deliberate accident.”
Pristin murmured in a dry voice.
“Think about how much it damaged the trust the candidates have in the lady. If you were a lady, would you forgive a woman who tried to make a healthy person infertile?”
Absolutely not. Recognizing this, Tanya only stared at Pristin, her lips tightly sealed. After Tanya fell silent, Pristin briefly lowered her head and was able to leave the spot.
“Ha…!”
Tanya then gritted her teeth as she watched Pristin’s back. Brelin, who was anxiously watching Tanya, who was about to explode, urgently asked,
“Are you all right, Miss?”
“No.”
Tanya could not hide her anger and replied in a sharp voice.
“Nothing is okay. Nothing!”
“Miss…”
“Wait and see! I’ll make Itidian the last place for that woman.”
“Everything is ready, miss. Don’t worry too much.”
Brelin, trying to comfort Tanya, earnestly played along.
“Everything will go according to your wishes. Countess Rosewell won’t be able to return to the palace. Absolutely not.”
