Chapter 75,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
When the missing Crown Prince and the Marchioness’s daughter were not found even by nightfall, chaos broke out outside.
A large search party was assembled, and at dawn they would scour every corner of the Virche Forest.
Melissa, who had volunteered to remain on-site as the only royal responsible, frowned.
“Where exactly did my plan… go wrong?”
In truth, Melissa had prepared a small trap aimed at her cousin during this banquet.
She had hired assassins to shoot an arrow at Claire, making it look as though Theodore had been responsible for the injury.
For this, she deliberately held the hunting tournament, issued bows labeled with each participant’s name, and even encouraged the ladies to take part.
The objective was only one:
To sow discord between the two of them.
If everything had gone as planned, Claire should have already collapsed from being struck by an arrow marked with Theodore’s name, causing an uproar.
But—an unexpected monster attack had thrown everything into disarray.
Melissa recalled the conversation she’d had with her maid, Meryl.
“I think the guild I commissioned made a mistake.”
“What do you mean?”
“It seems they accidentally triggered a boundary stone while sneaking into the forest. That must have let the monsters in.”
“Ha! That idiot couldn’t even manage to shoot one arrow properly, let alone kill someone…”
She had barely restrained her anger and hurriedly cleaned up anything related to the assassins.
Fortunately, the culprit had been torn to shreds by the monsters. Otherwise, it would have been a headache to deal with.
Still, one thing was unexpected.
“Well, that damn cousin of mine will crawl back alive anyway, thanks to that blessing of his.”
Melissa had assumed Theodore would return unharmed.
But instead, he had gone missing together with Claire.
“There’s no way Theodore was injured by a monster. Could the trouble be with the Labelle girl?”
If so, then he should have returned quickly. Why, then, was their whereabouts still unknown?
“If both of them really did meet misfortune, that would be… a welcome outcome.”
Melissa’s lips curved upward.
Either way, she still didn’t know how things would unfold.
It seemed she would need to make sure she was the one to find the two of them first.
Dawn broke.
Claire, who had barely managed to sleep on the uncomfortable cave floor, immediately checked Theodore’s wound as soon as she woke.
It hadn’t healed completely, but it was nearly closed.
Theodore, too, looked much better than the day before.
“This should be enough to return.”
“Are you sure you’re all right?”
“Yes. Let’s go.”
Unlike yesterday, Theodore stood on his own two feet. Still, Claire gently took his arm, just in case.
The warmth of her small hand startled Theodore.
“If it gets too hard, just lean on me.”
“On you? Someone so small and delicate?”
“Don’t you know I carried Your Highness all the way here when you fainted? I’m stronger than I look.”
Claire teased deliberately, flashing a bright smile. Theodore, too, chuckled faintly and began walking.
It wasn’t long after they had left the cave and begun descending that—
“Claire!”
A familiar voice rang through the forest.
It was unmistakably Franz’s. Claire looked around quickly.
“Father must be here.”
“Sounds like it’s coming from over there.”
Theodore pointed, and soon Franz emerged from between the trees.
“Claire! Where are you?!”
“Father!”
Claire raised her hand in relief.
Franz, spotting them at once, rushed toward them, breathless.
“Claire! Are you all right?! Where have you been until now? Do you know how worried I was…!”
Grabbing her shoulders, Franz scanned her up and down, his brows trembling as though he might cry.
Claire, sensing his hands were shaking, patted the back of his hand as if to calm him.
“I’m sorry. Something happened that I couldn’t avoid.”
“And just what could possibly justify this?! I thought you were gone for sure! There was human blood near the monster—everyone said His Highness would be fine with the dragon’s blessing, but you… you wouldn’t have been…!”
“I’m truly all right. His Highness saved me, so I wasn’t hurt at all. Perfectly fine.”
She gently pressed his shoulders, steadying his excitement with a calm tone—the same method she had used since childhood.
Franz had always been frail, and too much agitation was bad for him.
“Haa…”
Taking a deep breath, Franz finally steadied himself. He adjusted his glasses and looked properly at them both.
And then he saw what he had missed until now—
The blood-soaked, torn fabric of Theodore’s clothes.
“Your Highness… blood… Don’t tell me, you were injured?”
“Ah.”
Theodore frowned slightly, clutching his shoulder.
So it was noticeable after all.
His lack of denial only threw Franz into further confusion.
“But Your Highness has the dragon’s blessing—”
“Father, please take off your coat.”
Claire cut him off, hand extended.
“Wh–what?”
“Hurry, take it off.”
“Uh, oh… right.”
Startled, Franz hurriedly removed his jacket. Claire took it and handed it to Theodore.
“Please put this on.”
Her eyes flicked to his shoulder. Theodore caught her meaning and accepted the jacket.
Though their heights weren’t much different, Franz’s body was slimmer and without muscle.
So the jacket fit tightly on Theodore, but—
“At least it covers your shoulder.”
“Marquis, may I borrow this for a while?”
“If necessary, take it. But what on earth happened here?”
“There are… circumstances I can’t explain. Please, don’t ask for details, Father. I beg you.”
It was too dangerous for Franz to know Theodore’s secret directly.
At Claire’s earnest plea, Franz finally relented. Theodore gave a polite bow.
“Thank you.”
“No, Your Highness.”
“But Father, did you come here alone to find us?”
Franz shook his head.
“The Imperial Palace dispatched search parties. I only set out first. Others will arrive soon enough.”
“…I see.”
Claire fell into thought.
Though Theodore’s wound was covered, anyone who looked closely would notice something odd.
And since blood had been found near the monsters, many would expect that one of them had been injured.
“I need something to distract their attention. Something to keep them from realizing that blood belongs to His Highness…”
Then, with a resolute look, she asked:
“Father, do you have a sword or any sharp tool?”
“Hm? Oh—yes. I brought a dagger, just in case.”
“Please give it to me.”
Puzzled, Franz handed her the dagger from his pocket.
“Why? What are you going to—”
Without answering, Claire raised the blade—
—and slashed her own arm.
Shhhk.
Her white blouse was quickly drenched in red.
“Claire!”
“What are you doing?!”
Both men rushed toward her in shock.
Franz pressed his handkerchief to her wound to stop the bleeding, while Theodore snatched the dagger away, horrified.
Blood trickled down the blade.
The sharp sting made Claire wince, but she remained composed.
“It’s fine. I didn’t cut deep.”
It hurt from lack of technique, but the wound was not as severe as it looked.
Theodore frowned deeply, staring down at her in disbelief.
“Have you lost your mind? Why would you do such a thing—”
“If one of us must appear injured, it should be me. Not Your Highness.”
If she showed up bleeding, everyone’s attention would be on her, not him.
“…Even so, this isn’t right.”
Theodore paused, pressing his temple.
“To harm yourself like this, for me…”
“I wanted to show you.”
“Show me… what?”
“My answer to Your Highness’s trust.”
Claire looked up at him with clear, unwavering eyes—eyes filled with trust, with connection, with sincerity.
Staring blankly at her, Theodore whispered, as if realizing something for the first time.
“So… you finally believe in me.”
Claire nodded softly, smiling faintly.
“Just as Your Highness risked yourself for me, I’ve done the same for you.”
“…For me.”
Theodore pressed his lips, his chest tightening with a strange feeling, unable to speak for a moment.
But Franz, who had been listening in dismay, suddenly burst out.
“I object! Hurting yourself for a man—urk!”
Claire jabbed his side quickly to silence him.
Clutching his ribs, Franz stammered out a clumsy cover-up.
“I–I mean for anyone! Anyone! Hurting yourself is wrong, haha!”
“I agree,” Theodore said softly. “You should treasure yourself more.”
And he gently wrapped his arm around Claire’s shoulders.
Franz seemed ready to argue again, but Claire stopped him with a look—and simply smiled.
