The Horse and the Maid (1)
Before he injured his leg, His Majesty the Emperor had greatly enjoyed riding out to hunt on horseback.
Now it was a struggle for him to even mount a horse without the help of others, yet he still loved visiting the hunting grounds.
Today marked the first hunt His Majesty was leading together with me, Illid, and Hellion.
For the first time in a long while, I headed to the imperial hunting grounds dressed in pants and boots rather than a cumbersome dress, a wide-brimmed hunting hat perched on my head.
As the hunting grounds drew closer, I spotted Illid and Hellion waiting in the distance.
“Oh my, look over there! It’s Archduke Illid!”
“How can even the way he cleans his gun look so elegant?”
The whispers of the maids following behind reached my ears. Then another group of maids began murmuring.
“Don’t you think Archduke Hellion is even more handsome?”
“Yes, look at that tall frame and those sharp eyes. Northern men really are the best!”
Unlike my family, who weighed everything by politics and achievements, the maids’ standards were simple.
The more handsome the archduke, the better the archduke.
With this concise and clear criterion, the palace maids had split into two factions—one for the southern Illid, the other for the northern Hellion.
The maids who admired Illid were utterly captivated by his gentle nature and kindness.
Raised in the warm south, Illid faced every matter with an easy grace and a generous heart. He never treated the palace servants harshly and would even approach them first to strike up light conversation.
His neatly combed black hair, sea-blue eyes, and strikingly handsome features also played a powerful role in stealing the maids’ hearts.
In contrast, the maids who adored Hellion could not escape their fascination with his cold personality.
Unlike Illid, Hellion was a demanding master to his servants. He spoke little, which made his presence awkward, and he often resolved orders with mere glances, leaving the staff flustered on countless occasions.
It was the perfect embodiment of the saying that northerners were taciturn and gruff.
Even so, the reason he enjoyed popularity equal to Illid’s was purely his appearance.
Hellion was exceptionally tall, with deep, piercing eyes. His pale blue irises created an enigmatic contrast against his vivid red hair.
A feeling both cold and burning hot. The maids declared that this was precisely Hellion’s charm.
“You’ve arrived, Duchess Ishtel!”
Illid spotted me and broke into a bright smile. Hellion, however, merely cast me a single fleeting glance.
“Archduke Illid, are the hunting preparations going well?”
“Yes. But this is my first hunt at the imperial palace, so I’m a little nervous. I never particularly enjoyed hunting even when I lived in the south, so I worry His Majesty might be disappointed.”
Illid seemed genuinely anxious; he kept polishing a gun that was already spotless.
“Don’t worry too much. While His Majesty does love hunting, the reason he summoned us today is so we can walk together and talk.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes, so please don’t feel burdened.”
“Still, there’s no harm in doing well.”
I had only just managed to soothe Illid when that annoying troublemaker cut in. With practiced skill, Hellion loaded bullets into his gun and added,
“Since you’ve already picked up the gun, if you can’t even catch a single rabbit, His Majesty will be disappointed in you, brother.”
“I suppose you’re right?”
The dejected Illid slumped his shoulders in a way that was unlike him.
I narrowed my eyes at Hellion. He glanced at me briefly, then pretended not to notice.
“It looks like everyone’s already gathered.”
At the familiar voice, I turned. His Majesty was approaching, leading his favorite horse.
“We greet Your Majesty the Emperor.”
The three of us—me, Illid, and Hellion—bowed toward him.
“Yes, rise, all of you. It’s been so long since our last hunt; I’m truly delighted.”
Having been buried in state affairs for the past several months, His Majesty looked exhilarated by this rare outing. The two archdukes and I slung our guns over our shoulders and walked alongside him.
“Don’t worry too much, Archduke Illid,” I whispered softly to him.
“I’ll secretly catch one for you. I’m actually quite skilled at hunting. Rabbit, duck, deer—whatever appears, I’ll bring one down and you can pretend you caught it.”
“Thank you, Duchess. But the truth is…”
Illid lowered his voice as well, hesitating a moment before murmuring even more quietly.
“I’m afraid of blood.”
“Pfft.”
Hellion’s scoff reached us at exactly that moment. He must have overheard the entire conversation.
“Brother, you’re afraid of blood? Since when? Five years ago when you came north, we used to go hunting together. You didn’t seem like that back then.”
“……”
At Hellion’s words, Illid’s expression darkened noticeably. Whether the topic was painful or not, he remained stubbornly silent despite Hellion’s continued questions.
I shouldn’t have said anything.
I called out to both of them, hoping to change the subject.
But it was right then that it happened.
“Neigh—!”
His Majesty’s horse let out a tremendous cry and began thrashing wildly.
“Whoa!”
The startled Emperor tried to calm the animal, but it was no use. The horse suddenly reared, lifting its front legs high into the air, and even the groom lost his grip on the reins.
It all happened in an instant. The shocked Emperor clutched the reins tightly, yet the horse only grew more violent.
“Your Majesty!”
As I cried out in alarm, someone swiftly ran toward the frenzied horse.
It was Hellion.
He leaped, dodging the flailing front hooves, and yanked the reins downward with powerful force. The bit was forced toward the ground, pulling the horse’s head down. In that moment, the groom and servants rushed forward to support His Majesty.
“Your Majesty!”
With a face pale with shock, I ran to him as well. The sudden incident had left His Majesty struggling to breathe. His health had never been good to begin with. His whole body convulsed as he suffered terribly.
“Call the imperial physician at once! Now!”
Illid shouted at the servants. Only then did they snap out of their daze, blowing emergency horns as they raced back toward the palace.
The Emperor’s horse continued to rampage madly.
Several servants had been kicked and lay sprawled on the ground, while the others were too terrified to approach. No matter how the groom tried to soothe it, the horse refused to calm.
“Everyone, step back!”
Hellion shouted at the servants surrounding the horse. A gun was in his hand, its muzzle aimed directly at the Emperor’s mount.
The situation was on a knife’s edge.
“No!”
A sharp voice suddenly rang out from the forest bordering the hunting grounds.
Everyone turned toward the sound—everyone except Hellion. He kept his gun trained on the horse.
Standing before him was Karina.
“Your Grace, I beg you. Please don’t kill Lu! Let me try to calm him!”
“Move aside.”
Hellion’s voice was ice-cold.
“Before I kill you first.”
“Don’t!”
Recognizing Karina, I shouted desperately.
“Don’t shoot, Hellion!”
But he remained unmoved. Still aiming past Karina at the horse, he stood ready to pull the trigger at any second.
I gestured urgently for her to get back. Her eyes wavered. She looked between me and Hellion, then shook her head firmly.
“Lu, good boy? Calm down, Lu.”
Karina turned and slowly approached the Emperor’s horse.
The animal, which had been spinning in place and kicking wildly, froze for an instant at the sound of her voice.
Seizing the moment, Karina stepped closer. She reached into the basket slung over her shoulder, pulled out a handful of green herbs, and held them out.
“Come here. These are your favorite herbs, aren’t they? Good boy?”
As she gently shook the herbs in her hand, their scent rode the breeze and spread through the air.
The horse, which had been emitting harsh cries, gradually began to settle. Drawn by the fragrance, it walked toward Karina and lowered its muzzle to her palm, beginning to eat.
“Hellion…”
I approached him slowly. With a trembling hand I reached out and grasped the arm that held the gun. His body burned like a live coal.
“It’s all right now. You can lower it.”
I gently guided his hand down until the muzzle pointed at the ground. He looked at me with those pale eyes. The gaze felt bitterly cold, as though he were silently demanding why I had interfered.
“Is the imperial physician still not here?!”
Illid, standing beside His Majesty, shouted in frustration. The Emperor’s breathing remained ragged, his body wracked by violent convulsions.
“Your Grace.”
After handing Lu over to the groom, Karina approached Illid.
“If you’ll permit it, may I examine His Majesty?”
“What…?”
Illid stared at her, utterly dumbfounded. His eyes clearly asked, Who do you think you are? Though he was normally kind to those beneath him, the current situation left no room for gentleness.
“Stop speaking nonsense and stand back.”
“But Your Grace, if we use this herb, His Majesty’s pain—”
“Be silent, Karina! How dare you!”
Finally losing her patience, Chief Maid Abigail snapped at her sharply.
“What could a mere stable hand who isn’t even a physician possibly know to act so presumptuously!”
“I was only worried for His Majesty—”
“This is the end of your insolence!”
With a fierce glare, Abigail strode forward and shoved Karina’s shoulder hard. Thrown to the ground, Karina trembled in terror, too frightened to make a sound.
“Wait.”
Just as Abigail moved to drag her away, I spoke.
“Try it.”
“Pardon?”
“Ease His Majesty’s pain until the imperial physician arrives.”