Chapter 119
Chapter 119
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 119
Chapter Title: Hammock Respite and Secret Plans
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How did Florian know something even I, a direct descendant of the Northern Duke Family, didn't?
"How do you know that?"
"I just finished clearing out all the monsters that had been appearing around here."
Ah, the task Grandpa assigned me.
He must have swept the hunting grounds clean in advance for the hunt.
This place was a different hunting ground from the abandoned one we'd used during the friendly matches before. It was newly organized back in the era of my great-grandmother, the previous Duchess.
Originally just an ordinary forest, it became infested with monsters, so they decided to turn it into the hunting grounds instead.
"Anyone from the Northern Duke Family must hunt monsters, not weak animals!"
That bold decree had been issued quite some time ago, and most of the monsters had been dealt with since then, but I'd still heard occasional stories of them popping up.
Thanks to Florian's familiarity with the terrain, we quickly reached the cabin nearby.
"Hold on a sec."
Florian went inside the cabin and came back out holding what looked like a net.
"What are you planning to do with that?"
"I'll set up a hammock by the lake."
"A hammock? I'm not really tired."
"You like floating in the air, though."
I pondered what he meant, then suddenly remembered my childhood days riding on his back, snot and tears flowing freely, and felt my ears burn hot.
No way—he still remembered that?
Florian grinned cheerfully at my mortified expression.
Even back then, as a kid, I'd wiped my nose on his shoulder and thought I'd regret it someday.
"It's all karma..."
To cool my face, I pretended to check the surroundings by circling around with my horse toward the nearby bushes.
By the time I returned, Florian had already strung up the hammock between the trees.
"The grass is thick here, so it won't be visible from outside. Even if the others come, they won't see it and will just turn back. Relax without worrying."
"What about you?"
"I'll just sit around here."
"Still, it feels weird for me to be the only one lounging comfortably..."
"You're always on high alert inside the ducal residence. You need to rest sometimes like this."
Florian's fingers lightly brushed my hair back behind my ear.
His eyes were filled with concern.
Hm.
I hesitated, searching for the right words, but couldn't find any.
He's always so perceptive.
Unlike at Count Rommel's estate, with my uncle around the duke's house, I couldn't fully let my guard down.
I thought I'd been pretty good at staying upbeat without showing it to others.
But I guess I couldn't fool Florian's sharp eyes.
He's just that quick on the uptake.
In the end, I obediently climbed into the hammock as he suggested.
"Thanks, Florian."
Florian, leaning back against a massive tree trunk, just smiled softly.
How much time had passed?
I hadn't felt tired at all, but lying comfortably in the hammock, watching the clouds drift by overhead, I must have dozed off without realizing it.
If not for that thudding sound of something falling...
"Ow..."
The groan that followed sounded familiar.
Monica's voice?
Did she fall off her horse?
I bolted up from the hammock and was about to push through the bushes when I saw someone had already reached the lakeside before me.
Peeking through the foliage, I saw Armin helping Monica down from her horse.
"Are you okay?"
"Y-yes. How did you...?"
"Ah, I don't really like hunting much anyway. Thought I'd just let my horse rest."
"M-me too... I don't really like h-hunting."
Armin's demeanor remained aloof.
As their two horses dipped their muzzles into the lake to drink, an awkward silence hung between them.
Both Monica and Armin kept stealing glances at their mana deer, which they'd casually left saddled.
Neither has caught anything yet.
At this rate, it didn't look like they'd win as my uncle wanted.
Monica was the first to break the strained silence with effort.
"Th-thank you for preparing so m-many gifts."
It seemed the westerners had brought piles of betrothal gifts with them.
Judging by that, she didn't seem dissatisfied with the engagement.
Was it just Armin who disliked Monica?
"It's nothing. I didn't pick them anyway."
That jerk!
Unlike Monica, who was desperately trying to make the betrothal work, Armin showed no interest in conversing.
When she thanked him for the gifts, the polite response would be to say he was glad she liked them or something.
Trying to brush it off with 'it's nothing'? How dare he!
I must have ground my teeth without realizing, because Florian's fingertip lightly brushed my cheek.
I reflexively relaxed my jaw.
"You must like the emeralds. Western emeralds are famous, after all."
"Th-thank you for those too, but... I liked Angela Froys's sketchbook the b-best."
"Really?"
What?
Suddenly, energy sparked in Armin's previously listless voice.
He even leaned his upper body toward Monica, who was sitting quietly by the lakeside.
Monica's eyes widened at the unexpectedly enthusiastic reaction.
"Yes. I r-really like Angela's l-lake series."
"The lake series is the best of Angela's works. And the very best one is..."
"Swans!"
They said it in unison.
Swans?
From eavesdropping on the flow, it seemed they were talking about paintings, but I had no interest in that.
Most northerners didn't.
Art wasn't our specialty, and the empire's most refined and elegant culture flourished in the west.
That's why Count de Viar collected so many western artworks.
Even embezzling their military medicine.
He was an extreme western art maniac, but other nobles bought up western art too if they had the money.
"Actually, Angela's sketchbook is the only gift I picked myself."
"Y-you have great taste. I hear the west is so developed in art, with m-many good paintings?"
"Exactly. In our west, painting, music, and literature are especially advanced. Besides painting, what else do you like?"
"I l-like reading novels too."
"Do you know Tobias? He's the most famous author in the west right now—writes incredible mysteries."
Having found common ground, the two chatted animatedly, a far cry from before.
Armin's eyes were sparkling in particular.
He seemed deeply impressed that Monica liked western painters.
Or maybe he was admiring her discernment in pinpointing the one gift he'd chosen from the pile.
"I h-haven't read that author's novels yet..."
"I brought a few of Tobias's novels on the way here. Want to borrow some?"
Watching their warm interaction, I turned my head slightly.
I wanted to ask Florian how the two seemed to him, but he was staring fixedly at me instead.
Even in the ensuing silence, his gaze stayed on my face.
"Your cousin's betrothal looks like it'll go smoothly."
He answered a question I hadn't asked.
Perceptive as always.
Florian's whisper was soft enough not to reach the pair by the lake, and his voice, entering puberty, sounded much deeper than before.
"You think so too? They seem to like each other."
"What about you? Are you okay with your uncle's daughter marrying into the solid western ducal family?"
"I don't like my uncle, but I like Monica. I want her to be happy."
"Then we can help them out a bit."
How?
They already seemed to be getting along.
As I widened my eyes at him, Florian chuckled softly and nodded toward a mana deer passing nearby.
"Doesn't one of those two need to win today's hunt?"
"Leave them chatting and bag a few more to pad their totals?"
"Exactly."
"You're a genius, Florian."
I grabbed his outstretched hand and swiftly mounted up.