Chapter : 79
The arrow that had bounced off her hand barely missed its target.
Casielope exhaled a sigh of relief as she looked at the arrow lodged in the ground.
“Why are you here?”
She had almost shot her.
Calming the running horse, Casielope finally brought it to a stop, narrowing her eyes as she looked at the young lady who had collapsed onto the ground.
“…Lady Hetsen.”
Her riding outfit prioritized flash over function.
The waist was studded with so many jewels that it almost blinded the eyes.
Bianca, who flaunted the Hetsen family’s wealth with every inch of her body, stared blankly at the arrow stuck in the dirt.
“Where is your hunting horn?”
In the hunting festival, situations often arose where participants mistook others for prey, so every participant was given a hunting horn.
It was a signal to show that they were not animals, especially when they had to suddenly appear from dense foliage.
In Bianca Hetsen’s case, she should have blown the horn just now.
If Casielope had noticed just a little later and the arrow had flown in its original direction, it could have caused serious injury.
“Uh, that….”
At Casielope’s question, Bianca frantically searched for the horn.
When Casielope saw where she had placed it, she couldn’t help but feel exasperated.
A silk pouch attached to the horse’s saddle.
It wasn’t the fact that she brought expensive items that was the problem—placing it there meant she hadn’t even thought about blowing the horn.
“You should always wear the horn around your neck. Since it can tighten around your throat, you should keep it in the front pocket in that state.”
“…I forgot.”
Casielope was momentarily speechless at such a ridiculous answer.
There are things one might forget, and then there are basic rules like this. How could someone forget something so fundamental?
Yet Bianca showed not the slightest hint of admitting her fault, and Casielope’s face involuntarily twisted in disgust.
“If you want to die, go find someone else.”
“I-It’s not like that…”
“If you haven’t even learned the basic rules, you should have withdrawn immediately after the start.”
“….”
“Why did you even participate in the hunting festival in the first place? Doesn’t your younger brother excel at riding and hunting?”
It was a question already answered.
With Lady Florence and Lady Yurtina gone, it was obvious that she wanted to flaunt her family’s wealth and take their place.
Bianca Hetsen.
A young lady overflowing with pride in her family’s wealth, wrapped up entirely in her own arrogance.
Though vain, she had probably come to the hunting festival because she hadn’t received proper attention at the banquet.
A reason anyone would laugh at.
“Showing off is part of being a noble. But you should choose the right time and place.”
Casielope was restraining herself from raising her voice.
It was an issue she wouldn’t need to care about if no one got hurt.
Yet her ignorance could have led to injuries—or even death—just now.
“Return to the stables immediately.”
“…Y-Your Majesty.”
“This is the Empress’s order. Don’t let your ignorance make others the victims.”
Bianca’s face flushed crimson at the direct rebuke.
Though Casielope said it firmly as an order, it seemed she couldn’t even ride properly.
Casielope let out a quiet sigh and fired the signal flare she carried for emergencies.
Soon, the royal knights waiting nearby arrived.
“Your Majesty!”
“…Send Lady Hetsen back to the stables.”
Not for protection due to injury, but to send her back?
The knights, initially full of questions, relaxed the moment they saw Bianca’s state.
“Where did she go?”
Regis had been watching her move and had followed immediately.
Though slightly behind, the distance shouldn’t have been this great.
He brushed his face with his hand and scanned the surroundings.
Her usually conspicuous red hair wasn’t visible anywhere.
“…Who’s there?”
A movement that could have been missed without focus.
Those trained to fight would move like that.
Regis, expressionless, drew his sword and silently focused on one spot.
Two figures in black masks descended from a tree.
The smaller one silently lowered a cloth that covered their face.
“Yulia Eckart.”
One of them was recognizable without revealing their identity.
It must be Cassian Hessen.
Though not revealed in this life, in the previous lives Cassian had always been her aide.
Publicly considered dead, he had no need to show his face.
Regis didn’t pry about Cassian’s identity.
“Weren’t you staying in the palace?”
“….”
“No need to be on guard.”
He lowered his sword, as if saying he wouldn’t be wary either.
The sound of metal scraping against metal echoed.
“I know you are Casielope’s aide.”
“…Did my lord say so?”
“Something like that.”
It was either correct or not. “Something like that” made no sense.
Yulia’s eyes narrowed in confusion.
“How much do you know?”
“…That you’ve reached the level of a Sword Master, and that the one behind you is the supposedly dead Cassian Hessen.”
“…!”
Though she didn’t show it outwardly, Yulia was clearly surprised.
Cassian, quietly observing from behind, lowered his mask and gave an awkward smile.
“Ha ha, it’s been a while, Your Grace the Duke. Or should I say, Your Majesty the Emperor?”
“Enough chatter. Answer my question. Why are you here?”
It must have been Casielope’s order.
That was the only reason they would move.
Regis answered his own question internally and then corrected his inquiry.
“A fair question. Who were you following?”
“Do I have to answer the Duke’s question?”
A rude tone.
But Regis didn’t reprimand her attitude.
From their perspective, he would be a usurper who betrayed their lord to ascend the throne. Being cautious was natural.
‘I suppose I should thank them for staying vigilant for Casielope.’
In every repeated life, Yulia Eckart and Cassian Hessen had always stayed by Casielope’s side.
Never leaving her, willing to give their lives without hesitation if needed—grateful people.
Thus, Regis didn’t doubt them at all.
If it were anyone else, maybe.
“You don’t have to.”
“….”
He had a rough idea.
Seeing them on guard, they must have been part of those who supported him when he ascended the throne.
And the probability was high that it was Duke Eckart.
“I’ll help.”
“…No need.”
“You will need it.”
“What confidence do you…”
Regis’s thrown dagger swiftly grazed past Yulia’s face.
It barely missed, but could have been fatal.
Still, Yulia wasn’t angry.
Because the dagger he threw landed perfectly in the neck of a man who had fallen, struck by a shuriken he had thrown backward.
“Your reflexes are impressive.”
“…I didn’t train to get compliments from the Duke. Don’t flatter me.”
“Then I’ll personally report it to Casielope.”
Yulia’s face contorted at his audacious words.
She showed no intention of hiding her hatred.
Though she had told Casielope she didn’t hate Regis, it wasn’t true.
She hated and loathed him.
She vividly remembered the day her lord stepped down from the throne because of him.
Yulia clenched her fists tighter.
“Don’t you dare speak my lord’s name.”
