No matter how vast the Actilus Empire was, there was no end to the speed at which rumors spread. Although it wasn’t an official announcement, the story about the hunt was already spread throughout the aristocratic society.
The date was the summer solstice.
The place was a newly created hunting ground.
The preys were the Jacques’ mother and son, and the hunters were the Emperor, Empress, and Sylvia Jacques.
If the news spread like this, it’d be great…
However, the fact that I (embarrassingly) collapsed while walking around the gym and received the Emperor’s nursing care, and the Emperor waited for me for two hours today. Even the fact that he then trained me for an hour by demonstrating superhuman patience… In addition, I received a bow from the Emperor in the process…
There was nothing the Capital’s aristocrats didn’t know.
I gave strength to my eyes and stared at the maids one by one. Their sources of information must be these women.
‘Haa…’
I was going to scold them for being so light-mouthed, but…
It wasn’t right for me to be angry because the Empress’ maids were also meant for that. They hid the bad internal affairs though secretly bragged about the stories of the Emperor and his wife that looked good. Because of that, the act itself strengthened my position little by little.
If it was conventional wisdom, should they not deserve to be commended?
While it was a little burdensome for the social world to focus on me, whose ultimate goal was to escape the Actilus Empire. Still, at least for now, I needed to give the impression that I was on good terms with the Emperor to prevent the appearance of the second esteemed mother of Marquis Jacques.
There was no need to shy away from the image of being carried on the Emperor’s back. Of course, once I get that image, I’d have to be more careful than I am now.
“Everyone, please be careful.”
I lightly scolded the maids.
To be honest, I’m on the dull side so I may not have realized it when the rumors spread. However, now, I couldn’t help but acknowledge it… It was because there were mountains of gifts that arrived in my bedroom.
“It’s likely that Your Majesty will continue to receive as much as this for several days.”
Duchess Nerma smiled kindly before continuing.
“Because it takes several days for the word to reach the provinces.”
“Hahaha.“
I forced a laugh.
Let’s not create discomfort. I’m a princess, so this amount of gifts was nothing.
Jewelry was the most common gift. After all, they couldn’t send shoes and dresses without knowing my size. The rarest thing was magical artifacts. Upon opening the enclosed card, I saw that it had been sent by the Duke of Nerma.
Meanwhile, the Duchess of Nerma laughed as if she knew nothing.
Ohuu—
‘…She’s a fox.’
The contents of the cards that were splendidly decorated to imprint the name of the family on me were one-of-a-kind.
‘We’re looking forward to the hunt.’
I’m going crazy.
They shouldn’t count on it. Was my skill not spread through rumors? Even after Raniero left the gym, my muscles drooped just from exercising alone. How much could I improve in a month?
I pushed aside the gift and the people’s expectations.
“By the way, when will the hunting ground be established?”
Cisen replied.
“They say it’ll be over soon. Your Majesty should be able to visit it in three days or so?”
I nodded my head at her words.
No matter how much I crammed for a month, it’d be difficult to win a fair match against the Jacques’ mother and son. Even if I developed physical strength, visual acuity, and muscle strength, the overwhelming gap must be widened unconditionally in terms of information that certainly could give me an edge. While I aggressively chewed the chicken breast salad I requested for a snack, I decided to ask Duchess Nerma to wield a dagger to show me.
As I paid attention to the body trajectory that Raniero had taught earlier, I looked forward to being able to read the daggers’ trajectory.
Of course, nothing so wonderful happened.
——
“When I look at you…”
The dark blue-edged dagger fell helplessly to the floor.
…How many times have I died from this? Thousand times? Two thousand times…?
“I feel skeptical about the brains of human beings.”
Raniero’s arms wrapped around my waist tightly as if to crush it.
To borrow his words, it meant that there was no improvement in my dull body and head even after several days. No matter how much I heard his words nagging me, I unconditionally lay flat and believed his claim that fermented soybean lump can be made from red beans*.
[ T/N: It’s an idiom which means ‘to blindly believe what someone says.’ ]
However, rebelliousness began to grow in my heart which was determined to agree fiercely.
‘Your Majesty, who’s telling me that I am not improving, doesn’t seem to have much ability to teach as well!’
“…Should I develop my running skills? So that I can run away well.”
“Well.”
[ T/N: In this chapter, Raniero says ‘well,’ a couple of times, although the meaning is more sarcastic since the word he used was “잘도.” ]
Scoffing, Raniero then kicked a dagger into the air with the tip of his toes.
Hiik.
I didn’t dare to catch it.
At my reaction, he dropped the dagger and gave me a faint chuckle as I quickly picked it up.
“Let’s go see the hunting ground.”
It was what I was hoping for.
I put a dagger around my waist and swiftly picked up my bow. Since I didn’t get to shoot even an arrow today, I’d need to make time to practice in the evening separately.
‘Geniuses have no talent for teaching, but Raniero…’
I took a peek at his side as he strode with long legs like a deer while I sprinted to match his stride.
‘…He’s strangely helpful.’
He pointed out unnecessary movements well and scolded me about them. Besides, I was the type of person who wouldn’t get hurt easily even if I got scolded, so Raniero’s words weren’t a problem—only the content was what mattered.
I wanted him to show me how to shoot a bow today…
Still, he would then correct my posture with harsh words such as, ‘Is your neck made of a piece of wood?’ and ‘Are you unable to focus your eyes properly?’
While I was lost in thought while gazing at Raniero’s side, he suddenly looked this way.
Eeek.
Before our eyes met, I hurriedly turned my head forward and slipped back because I couldn’t outrun him. However, why was he stopping his steps…?
‘Eeup…’
What should I do if he was dissatisfied with me looking at his face?
“Why did you stop looking?”
“Because it’s too blinding…”
“Your back is turned toward the sun.”
“Your Majesty shines on his own…”
“Well.”
Raniero scoffed again.
I murmured to myself before shutting my mouth and quickly teasing my feet. After walking for a while, an open space appeared. The hunting grounds were separated by a fence around the edges. Since a rule of thumb was to kill the prey as soon as they crossed the fence, knights were scheduled to be deployed near the fence at regular intervals.
I could see the hunting grounds for the first time in front of the fence.
‘Oh, my. This is exciting…!’
I covered my mouth with happiness.
Like the Actilus Empire, which made anything grand, the hunting grounds were truly vast. It was a scale large enough to understand why it took so long to build. There was a tall structure that I could secure a wide field of view, and there was a slope in the hunting ground itself.
It was an environment where the bow could dominate enough.
Despite the fact that there weren’t many trees or thickets, it seemed to be a deliberate attempt to prevent prey from spending their time in hiding.
‘If you’re up there, it’d be no joke to secure your sight.’
Clenching my fist, I tried not to be overly excited. As Raniero glanced at me like that, he opened his mouth.
“I want you to know that I’ve given you a lot of conveniences.”
“I’m moved to tears with Your Majesty’s gratitude.”
Being with him for a couple of hours almost every day, flattery came out almost as though it was a spinal reflex. Not only that, but I was somewhat less afraid of him as well.
“Ah. I’m giving you such an advantage, I’m sure you would show me a good performance. I hope that the tip of my sword won’t mistake the hunter for prey because it may be so boring that day.”
…I took back what I just said. Being in front of Raniero was utterly frightening.
The structure of the hunting ground was similar everywhere, so it was supposed to spin around. The four sections were similarly constructed like a pinwheel around the structure that stood in the center like a landmark. Because of that, it seemed easy to get lost in a state of extreme tension. It made me feel like I was circling around the same place and might be able to read the intention of the fed-up and panicked prey.
Then, I climbed up the structure with Raniero. It looked like a small observatory or tower.
“Wow…”
As I climbed up, I could see the hunting grounds at a glance.
‘If I use this as the base, hopefully, I don’t have to move if I do well.’
The field of view was open in all directions, so if I saw something suspicious, I’d be able to notice it immediately.
‘As soon as the hunting starts, I must secure this place no matter what.’
The view here was incredible though it had the disadvantage of being inconvenient and isolated. As long as you didn’t choose a bow like me, there was no advantage in coming up. The information that I’d chosen a bow as a weapon was never mentioned to the prey.
…Well, it might be in the future.
“Do you like it?”
Sitting on the railing, Raniero smiled as he asked.
“Yes…”
I muttered ecstatically.
Emperor Raniero Actilus… For now, he seemed like my ally.
The breeze blew the light drops of sweat from my forehead. Looking down at the hunting grounds at a glance, I was surrounded by groundless confidence that, somehow, I’d survive if I just occupied this place that day. I sat casually on the high railing, gazing up at Raniero, who was gazing down at me, and smiled broadly.
His beautiful eyes suddenly narrowed. He spoke as he stared into my face with an unknown expression.
“At first, I thought it’d be fun just to run around, but now, I’m in trouble.”
“Yes?”
“I taught you myself, shouldn’t I receive tuition?”
“…Ah.“
“The midsummer hunter, my winter prey…”
Goosebumps rose as I saw him laughing terrifyingly beautifully.
“I look forward to it.”