Chapter 74

Chapter 74

Part 7: The Hunt Festival

“Then… let’s do that.”

At the young marquis’s words, I finally nodded and answered that I understood. A satisfied smile played across his face, then his gaze shifted to the Duke.

“Understood?”

The Duke didn’t answer. He just turned to look at me silently.

“……Fine.”

Then, with his eyes still fixed on me, he slowly parted his lips. He’d apparently reached an acceptable compromise within himself.

“Then I take it this matter’s settled?”

The young marquis clapped his hands together as if about to applaud. He was playing bridge between us, that natural affability of his seeping into the moment and keeping it from turning awkward.

“Oh, and Laura—unfortunately, I didn’t turn up anything on the imperial princess. Hardly any information at all.”

He went on, shifting to the subject we’d been searching for—the imperial princess.

“Ah…… I see.”

Children of secondary wives really did leave fewer records than legitimate heirs. Stripped even from the imperial lineage, and with no personal documentation to be found, any further searching would be pointless.

Still, at least one meaningful gain remained: I’d seen the ghost’s memories. And that was my only consolation.

“Actually, when I was possessed earlier, I saw that ghost’s memories…… and I learned the legend about dragon blood flowing through the imperial house is false.”

“What? What do you mean?”

At my words, the young marquis turned to me, puzzled. The Duke was also watching me, waiting for an answer.

“Strangely enough, the dragon did exist—I saw it clearly. But the founding king set it up as a god and claimed to be its son.”

I spoke slowly, feeling through the memory. It wasn’t easy to say that our nation’s founding king was far from the mythic figure he was made out to be. Like raising a hand against the hero tales I’d heard at my bedside as a child. But if the memory I saw was certain, then the truth was brutally cold.

“Clever move to secure his throne.”

The Duke offered a short assessment of the founding king.

“Yes. Exactly.”

I nodded in quick agreement. He was absolutely right—the founding king’s string of victories in his conquest wars had been possible only because of the halo of being a god’s son. And that was a false title earned through his cunning mind alone.

“Then that girl isn’t a descendant of the dragon.”

“No. I thought her ability came from the dragon’s blood, but it seems that assumption was completely wrong.”

Whether Shion was the imperial princess or not, the dragon had left no descendants with the imperial house. That meant her ability didn’t come from the dragon. In the end, all those days we’d spent coming and going from the Imperial Castle had been for nothing.

“Then… should I try forming a new hypothesis?”

The young marquis tilted his head as if deep in thought, then asked me.

“That’s right, isn’t it? But my head’s so tangled I don’t even know where to start over.”

“Hmm… it’s difficult. Still, that kid—Shion—is staying at Cuvershaiden. You’ll keep running into her, and one day, a chance might suddenly come.”

“You think so…? Yeah. You’re right. I need to look on the bright side.”

After all, wallowing in disappointment wasn’t going to conjure up a solution. So I decided to think of it as just a bit more time before I’d have to part with the kid.

‘The banquet’s over anyway. I can just dig for more info from Shion. Maybe I missed something.’

And so, forcing myself to see the bright side, I hurried my steps toward Cuvershaiden. The banquet was done, and it was time to return to routine.

* * *

News came that a hunting festival would be held in the south. The festival was an imperial-hosted event, and in principle, most nobles were expected to attend. The Duke was, of course, no exception. And so I began packing to follow him.

“Abanbark must be terribly hot, right?”

Inside the carriage heading for the hunting festival, I gazed out the window and broke the silence first.

“I’d imagine so. It’s a hot region.”

“Hunting in the middle of summer? That’s bound to be brutal. Especially in a hot place like that!”

“The festival used to be held in autumn, but this year it got moved up. Still, the interior of the detached palace stays fairly cool.”

The Duke replied. That was cold comfort, though—only relevant to those staying inside all day. What I worried about was the Duke, who’d have to hunt in this heat. But I couldn’t very well tell him to skip the event. In martial competitions, results brought honor… So I decided to keep my pointless worries to myself.

“Mmm… well, that’s good to hear then…”

In the end, that was the only answer that came out of my mouth. But inside my head, a long thread of worry about the scorching heat kept unraveling.

After that, we drove the carriage on and didn’t reach Abanbark until late afternoon. As we stepped into the detached palace, encircled by high stone walls, the servants there guided each of us to our assigned rooms.

In my room, a spacious bed, wardrobe, display cabinet, and other furnishings were neatly arranged. I flopped down heavily onto the bed, cushioned by thick bedding. After such a long carriage ride, my whole body felt weighed down with exhaustion. So being able to lie down in a luxurious bed, even if only as a secretary, felt like an incredible stroke of luck.

According to the Duke, this room had already been inspected by a priest. In other words, I didn’t need to worry about ghosts popping out. The problem was the Imperial Castle always teemed with ghosts, and being a detached palace probably wouldn’t make much difference.

“Well… as long as I don’t step outside this room, I won’t run into any ghosts…”

Of course, it was a shame I wouldn’t even get to sightsee, but there was no helping it. I didn’t want to cross paths with a ghost just for stepping out. What’s more, with a body so easy to possess, it was best to be careful if I could, just as the Duke said…

“Ah… they said there’d be a vigil, too… kind of unfair… but what can you do. I’ll just sleep it off.”

I flopped onto the bed, sinking into it. Then, thinking about what I should prepare for the Duke going out to the hunt, I let my blurry eyes fall shut.

“────”

The next morning, my eyes snapped open to a clamor. I sat up groggily and glanced out the window; a sea of people filled my view. They were all laughing and chatting merrily, as if thoroughly keyed up about the hunt about to begin.

“It hasn’t even started yet, and already this many people have gathered…”

I pressed my eyelids, which kept trying to droop, and muttered to myself.

“Mmm… I’d better get ready to head out too.”

After washing up decently, I grabbed the bundle for the Duke and stepped outside. My destination wasn’t the garden, but the wide clearing behind it — the place where hunt attendees tethered their horses.

I hurried along the bustling garden path, my steps quickening. After a good while, the clearing began to come into view. And from a distance, I spotted the Duke standing tall.

“Your Grace!”

I dashed straight over to him. He was checking the saddle and reins, but paused to look back at me. His gaze immediately landed on the bundle I’d brought.

“What’s all that you’ve packed up like a squirrel?”

“Ah! Well… it’s not acorns or anything. A towel and water… I asked the servants to pack the water with plenty of ice. And an outer coat, in case it gets chilly once the sun goes down. Um… the butler handed me some lubricant he said was for the firearms… and these are Sugar Cubes.”

I opened the bundle to show him as I spoke. All things I thought he’d need for the hunt. Even if a few odd bits were mixed in there.

“Sugar Cubes?”

“Yes. Um… just… I thought the horse might want something to eat.”

“Oh? I hadn’t thought of that. You’re observant. All right, try giving it to him now. Just hold it out on your palm.”

The duke said with a small laugh. I picked up a Sugar Cube and offered it to the horse, which snatched it up in a quick bite.

“Hey, he eats well! That’s cute.”

“Doesn’t he? This one really loves to eat. And, Laura—you won’t need your outer coat. You can leave it behind.”

“Why? Hmm… Is it going to stay hot until late afternoon today?”

“No, it’s just that I’m only planning to bag one decent animal and come back. I think I can wrap it up before noon.”

“What?”

That struck me as strange. After all, the hunting festival was a contest where the more game you caught, the better your chances, wasn’t it? Feeling a flicker of doubt, I stared at the duke, waiting for an answer.

“I’m just putting in a token appearance. I don’t especially enjoy hunting, and besides—nobody says it out loud, but everyone’s steering things so that His Majesty the Emperor takes the win.”

The duke replied in a flat tone. Good heavens, so this is how hard office politics can be. And His Majesty! It seems the Emperor’s surrounded by nothing but sycophants!

Well, either way, it wasn’t bad news for me. In fact, I almost welcomed it. Hadn’t I been worried about the Abanbark heat? If the hunt could end before noon, that was all the better.

“Ah! I see! Why didn’t you say so earlier? I was already worried it’d be too hot during the day. I mean… it’s bound to be hard on both the horses and the people. But I figured winning the hunt might be some kind of honor, so I held my tongue! It’s like, you know, a trophy’s still a trophy.”

I nodded vigorously and practically shouted. Then I rummaged through the luggage to find the canteen.

“Even if you finish early, you’ll still get hot moving around. Make sure to take water.”