CH 94

The second day of the Summer Festival. The morning of the hunting festival dawned.

The hunt had begun in the Imperial Forest, and small outposts and tents had been set up around the area for people to rest, and knights were stationed everywhere to guard against any possible danger.

Lucia, who had just arrived, walked around awkwardly with Bern.

After dancing with someone else last night, they were a bit awkward, to say the least.

Lucia was being Lucia, and Bern was being Bern.

‘If Bern knew that I had changed my mind…….’

‘If Lucia knew how I felt…….’

Both of them were swayed by their loved ones. It was so precarious that the slightest breeze could blow them away.

However, neither Lucia nor Bern dared to say anything, feeling guilty for the other.

After a long silence, Lucia awkwardly spoke up.

“There are quite a few people here.”

“Yeah, there seem to be more people this year than last.”

For a random comment, Bern’s response was pretty good. Lucia relaxed a bit, and she was finally able to look around.

Bern was right, it was crowded.

“Is there a reason there are so many people?”

“I don’t know, the prizes are similar to last year’s, so it’s not like they’re here to win a prize…….”

Compared to last year, and the year before that, there wasn’t much of a difference, but there were a lot of people this year. 

“Huh? What’s that?”

They noticed a cloud of people gathered in one place.

Bern and Lucia, who didn’t know why, looked at each other and approached there.

The people have surrounded a cage. They seemed to be watching something, but there were so many people, they couldn’t see.

“Excuse me, what is this place?”

Bern asked, finally catching up to the others.

“There’s a baby orc.”

“Orc? You mean monster?”

The word orc startled both Bern and Lucia.

“No, what’s a monster doing here?”

“Ethan told me that they caught one recently. Isn’t it interesting that a monster that’s supposedly only found in the north is here?”

“Oh my God, Ethan was right…….”

Lucia suddenly remembered what Ethan had said yesterday.

“A monster… I’d heard that one had been spotted near the capital, but I didn’t think it had been captured by Phoenaeus.”

“Haha, I see. By the way, do you know about that?”

The informant whispered to Bern in a low voice.

“I heard that the hunt this time includes monsters.”

“……Are you saying that monsters are part of the hunt?”

“Yes, I’m not sure, but I’ve heard that monsters are on the hunt list. Apparently, it’s that little orc’s pack. It might be dangerous, but His Majesty is preparing a big reward, so there will probably be a lot of people participating.”

Bern suddenly realized why there were so many people this time.

“What are they thinking? Even if the reward is coveted, it’s still a monster-catching job…….”

Lucia, who had been listening to the conversation from the side, blushed and clutched the hem of Bern’s robe.

“Probably not because of the reward, they’re attending for the honor, since they can prove their hunting skills by catching a monster.”

“You mean honor is more valuable than life?”

“Some people do.”

Lucia frowned, not liking the sound of that. 

Knowing how much damage Herwin and the Phoenaeus clan had suffered from monsters and how hard they had fought them since she was a child, she couldn’t understand people taking them lightly.

“What are they going to do if people get hurt like this…….”

“No way would the imperial family make such a suggestion without any measures, they would have done something.”

“That’s good, but…….”

“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of it.”

A familiar voice sounded in the distance. They turned to see Herwin standing there. 

“Herwin, when did you get here?”

“Just now. You’re worried about the monsters, aren’t you?”

“Yes…….”

“Well, I’m afraid the imperial family has gotten complacent about monsters, but I’ll take care of them before anyone gets hurt, so you can rest assured.”

It was a relief to know that Herwin was willing to take the initiative rather than someone else. Still, the danger wasn’t entirely gone, and Lucia couldn’t help but frown.

Herwin smirked and went to stroke Lucia’s hair as usual, then lowered his hand when he realized Bern was in front of him.

“The Marquis isn’t interested in monsters, is he?”

“No, I know my place, and don’t do anything dangerous.”

“I’m glad you’re not like that, Marquis, because I’ve seen a lot of people who are willing to do things in honor.”

For a moment, Bern wondered if Herwin was mocking him, but when he saw the seriousness in his red eyes, he realized he was serious.

“You’re thinking of catching a monster, Phoenaeus.”

“If not me, then who? I’m the only one here who’s ever handled a monster, and it’s not like I haven’t slain one or two, so I’ll do it before anyone else is in danger.”

Herwin didn’t care about rewards and honor; he was just worried about the monsters causing casualties.

“I’ll give you a piece of advice, just in case: don’t go too far into the forest. There were reports of monsters entering the imperial forest last night, so they probably haven’t gone deep into the forest yet.”

“Yes, I’ll keep that in mind.”

Just then, a trumpet sounded, announcing the entrance of the imperial family. People naturally turned toward them and bowed their heads.

As he had done yesterday, the emperor began his speech.

“……Finally, I have something very special for you this year, everyone, look over there.”

The Emperor proudly pointed to a caged orc.

“That’s the monster I captured a few days ago.”

The word “monster” caused a stir among those who had not yet seen the orc.

“However, we have yet to capture the two monsters that are believed to be the parents of the cub, and we now know that they are in the Imperial Forest. If you manage to capture them in this hunt, Jim will give you a special prize. You can look forward to it.”

The emperor’s confident words boosted their morale. Herwin clicked his tongue in discomfort as the crowd cheered.

The speech was over, and it was time for them to go hunting.

As Bern readied himself for the hunt with his sword and armor, Lucia quietly approached him. 

“Don’t get hurt.”

Lucia pulled out the handkerchief she’d prepared just for today and handed it to Bern.

Bern took it with a smile, then stiffened when he saw the pattern on the border of the handkerchief.

“Lucia, this is…….”

“It’s forget-me-nots. You seemed to like forget-me-nots the last time I saw you, so I thought I’d give it a try, okay?”

It was a slightly different shape than the one Celine had placed, but it was a forget-me-not. 

Bern felt guilty like he was looking for a trace of Celine in Lucia, who knew nothing about her. 

“Lucia, I’m……!”

His breath caught in his throat, and as he tried to speak his mind, he found himself unable to speak at all when he saw the wall between them. His mouth twitching, he finally turned away.

“I thought you had something you wanted to say?”

“Not now… maybe when the hunt is over?”

Lucia nodded nonchalantly at Bern’s newfound seriousness.

Then Bern frowned even more and took the handkerchief from Lucia and tucked it into his arms.

When Bern left to fetch the horses, Lucia was left alone, looking at Bern, who looked smaller than usual.

“What’s wrong?”

Lucia pondered, trying to figure out what Bern wanted to say, and suddenly realized something.

“No way…….”

“Lucia.”

Before she could finish her thought, a dark shadow fell in front of her. It was Herwin. 

Lucia panicked at the sight of Herwin, who she thought would be the first to leave. 

Looking around, she realized that most of the men had already left for the hunt.

“Why didn’t you go? Did you leave something behind?”

“Yes.”

“What is it?”

Herwin quietly lowered his gaze from Lucia’s face to her small hand. Just a moment ago, he had seen Lucia give Bern a handkerchief.

They’re engaged to be married, so there’s nothing special about giving a handkerchief at a hunting festival, but-

‘Of course, I feel bad.’

His stomach twisted at the thought of Bern receiving Lucia’s carefully embroidered handkerchief.

Herwin grinned, trying to calm the fluttering in his stomach.

“What do you mean, you were supposed to give me a handkerchief the other day.”

“What, what?!”

Lucia exclaimed in great panic. When Lucia stammered and couldn’t say anything, Herwin looked as disappointed as he could.

“Didn’t you keep your promise to me? I was waiting for you to give me a handkerchief…….”

“That’s…….”

Lucia hesitated, her heart weakening at the sight of his drooping eyes. There was a handkerchief in her pocket that she had made to give to Herwin.

She had sworn in front of Sean that she would never make it, but at night, her heart weakened and she secretly made it.

She brought it with her just in case….…

Lucia fiddled with the hem of her skirt where the pouch was located and glanced up at Herwin.

He still looked pitiful, his sharp eyes downcast.

‘I suppose I should give it to you since I made it, but…….’

Her thoughts turned to Bern, who had been by her side only five minutes ago.

She couldn’t leave her fiancé and give another man a handkerchief.

Lucia released her grip on the hem of her skirt and lifted her head.

“I’m sorry… I thought you were joking.”

Lucia’s answer gave Herwin a sour look. He grumbled at her for being so mean, then blurted out.

“Well, actually, I was just saying it out.”

“Oh…really?”

For some reason, Herwin’s words hurt. If it was a joke, she should have laughed it off, but she wasn’t sure she was laughing right now.

“So, I prepared a handkerchief separately.”

Lucia’s head snapped up at the words. A familiar handkerchief waved in front of her.

“This is…….”

“This is the handkerchief you gave me before.”

Lucia was dumbfounded when she saw the handkerchief that Herwin handed over. 

“Then why are you giving it to me?”

“Because I want to get a handkerchief from you.”

Herwin held out his arm.

“Tie it around my wrist.”

“What? But…….”

“Aren’t you going to do me a favor and tie my handkerchief around my wrist?”

Herwin whined as Lucia stepped back. The women around him giggled as the man who had been so cold to others loosened his expression and began to flirt.

Lucia looked down at her handkerchief, speechless.

‘Yes, it’s Herwin’s handkerchief, but….…’

She felt a little weird because she had made it herself. 

“Come on. I’m going to be last in line.”

She looked around and realized that there weren’t many participants left. Worried that Herwin wouldn’t be able to catch anything at this rate, Lucia hurriedly tied a handkerchief around his wrist.

Seeing the handkerchief tied tightly, Herwin smiled with satisfaction.

“That’s it, hurry up and go, you’re going to run out of the game.”

Henry bent down to look at Lucia, who was now looking worried. He gently squeezed Lucia’s hand and kissed it lightly.

“I will bring you much game, my lady.”

Lucia froze in place, too stunned to move until Herwin was gone.

She tried to call after him, but Herwin had already reined his horse into the woods.

“Did you see that?”

“Yesterday, too, and it seems that Phoenaeus is in love with Agnes.”

“But Agnes is engaged to the Marquis of Casper.”

“What the hell is going on?”

She could hear the chatter around her. Lucia sighed heavily and swept her hands across her flushed face.