Chapter 73
Reina looked at Ron with a terrified expression.
“There is no need to worry. Hunting Irkans is something we’ve done many times. Of course, it’s extremely dangerous—but that man is none other than Calis, the former Commander-in-Chief.”
Ron reassured Reina.
“What His Highness should be bothered about isn’t the Irkans, but them over there.”
As he spoke, Ron jerked his chin toward the crown prince’s entourage, who had been stubbornly tagging along.
“I see…”
Reina replied softly.
In the meantime, Calis had led the group to a safe spot where they could hide.
Calis’s people took cover in a crevice between rocks, while the crown prince’s party hid behind a large tree.
Calis raised one hand, signaling for everyone to wait.
The two Irkans were still absorbed in their meal and failed to notice any movement. Calis was waiting for the moment when the beasts would be slowed down by their full stomachs.
But things didn’t go according to plan.
The reason was none other than the arrogant Darkel, who was obsessed with the idea of killing an Irkan before Calis did.
The incident happened in an instant.
Whoosh!
From behind the tree, Darkel ignored Calis’s signal and loosed an arrow.
It arced through the air and struck one of the Irkans squarely in the back while it was leisurely feeding.
“Kiiiieeek!”
A monstrous shriek unlike anything they had ever heard before pierced their ears.
The sound was so agonizing that everyone instinctively covered their ears.
Then, the other Irkan—still gnawing at flesh—spotted Darkel and charged at him with terrifying speed.
Its acceleration was explosive.
To protect the crown prince, two guards positioned elsewhere immediately fired arrows in succession. One arrow lodged itself in the beast’s flank.
The Irkan instantly turned toward the direction the arrow had come from and lunged at the guards with rabid fury.
As one guard hastily tried to nock another arrow, the beast leapt into the air and clamped its fangs around his throat.
“Arghhh!!”
The guard screamed as the Irkan’s dagger-like teeth sank into his neck.
The second guard drew his sword to stab the beast, but another Irkan suddenly appeared from behind and sank its teeth into the guard’s arm.
“Ughhh!!”
Dangling helplessly from the Irkan’s jaws, the guard was thrashed about like a rag doll before fainting midair in sheer terror.
Darkel, who had fired the first arrow in defiance of Calis’s orders, stood frozen in place, stupefied by the ferocity of the beasts.
“There are three Irkans!!”
Calis shouted as he drew his sword.
Then, spurring his horse forward, he drove his blade straight into the glowing blue eye of the Irkan biting the guard’s arm.
“Kiiiiiiiek!”
The beast’s metallic scream echoed through the forest as crimson blood splattered across its snowy white fur.
Riding the momentum, Gale let fly an arrow that struck the Irkan’s other eye. Blinded and writhing in agony, the beast released the dangling guard, who fell to the ground with a heavy thud.
“Get that guard to safety, quickly!”
At Calis’s command, the other soldiers rushed to drag the unconscious man behind the rocks.
Though chaos reigned, the instigator—Darkel—cowered behind a tree.
Dressed head to toe in pristine white hunting attire for the festival, he stood frozen like a statue, shivering as his dark pupils quaked violently.
Wh-what is that terrifying monster…?!
Darkel had always prided himself on his hunting skills, but there was one thing he had foolishly overlooked.
His so-called hunting grounds had always been the royal preserve, meticulously maintained so that no dangerous predators could ever threaten the nobility.
The same applied during official hunting festivals: if the crown prince attended, the gamekeepers culled beasts in advance so that only minor animals remained within the hunting radius. In fact, the last such festival had been five years ago. Since then, Darkel had hunted only within the palace preserve.
The most dangerous animal he had ever faced was a wolf cub. Never in his life had he imagined he would confront three colossal predators—larger than bears, swifter than wolves.
While he stood petrified, Calis decapitated the second Irkan with a powerful swing.
Blood sprayed across his face, his hunting clothes drenched scarlet.
Even beheaded, the Irkan snarled and bared its fangs. Calis stabbed it again in the throat to finish it off.
Just then, the third Irkan lunged from behind, jaws wide open to tear into his shoulder.
But Calis spun and rammed his sword straight into the gaping maw.
“Kiiiieeeek!”
With an ear-splitting screech, the beast crashed to the ground.
Boom! Boom!
The impact shook the earth, kicking up a cloud of dust.
Panting, the Irkan struggled to rise, but Calis slashed its neck with his dagger.
“Kiiiieeeek!”
Its final cry tore through the forest before it collapsed.
“Haa… haa…”
Calis gasped heavily, his throat convulsing.
When he finally looked up at the crown prince, there was no mistaking the hostility burning in his eyes.
But for the sake of the group, he suppressed his emotions and spoke quietly:
“Please, Your Highness. Deliver the final stroke.”
He stepped aside, implying that since he had slain two, the prince should finish the last one.
Yet Darkel immediately grasped the hidden meaning in his gaze:
I cleaned up your mess—now you take responsibility and end it.
Humiliated, Darkel’s face flushed red.
Worse still, after witnessing firsthand how fearsome the Irkans were, he couldn’t bear the thought of approaching the fallen beast.
He imagined it springing back to life, ripping him apart as easily as it had tossed the guard through the air.
Unaware of the prince’s dread, everyone around respectfully stepped aside to clear the way for him.
The Irkan still lay before them, wheezing harshly.
This is madness! Utter madness!
Darkel’s eyes quivered violently as Calis withdrew his bloodied sword from the beast’s neck and held it out before him.
“Your Highness’s blade must not be stained. Please use this instead.”
Expressionless, Calis extended the weapon.
Darkel swallowed hard, sweat trickling down his back.
I can’t even get near that thing…
Though he treated others’ lives as expendable, the thought of suffering even a scratch himself filled him with terror.
At that moment, Karon—the crown prince’s advisor—stepped forward after reading his master’s expression.
Striding boldly up to the Irkan, he drove his sword into its heart.
“Kiiiieeeek!”
With one final metallic shriek, the third Irkan fell silent.
Karon sheathed his blade and knelt before the prince.
“Your Highness, forgive me. The beast’s ragged breathing offended my ears. I could not restrain myself and committed a grave discourtesy.”
“?!”
“Please pardon me, Your Highness.”
“…Ah! I too found its noise most unpleasant. Well, it’s dead now, so all is well.”
Catching on to Karon’s intention, Darkel hurried to respond.
Calmer now, he turned to Calis.
“Since you slew these beasts, it falls upon you to see to their remains. We will hunt elsewhere in this forest.”
In truth, he simply wanted to leave as quickly as possible. Even the very word Irkan now filled him with dread.
Mounting his horse in haste, Darkel rode off ahead. The flustered guards gathered the wounded and scrambled to follow him.
Watching them go, Ron muttered to the duke:
“Your Grace… he bolted out of sheer terror, didn’t he?”
