Chapter 19: The Motherless Pup
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 19: The Motherless Pup
"Is it that difficult? This is supposed to be so simple."
His cold gaze and mocking voice clawed at Blair. As she looked back at him, her eyes trembled with unease.
He doesn't believe me.
His true feelings hit her more clearly than ever.
She had been mistaken.
His defense of her regarding Lina hadn't been for her sake; he simply couldn't tolerate the insolence of his servants. An insult to her, his wife, was an insult to him.
She felt foolish for having harbored any expectations.
Blair lowered her eyes, avoiding his gaze. Her eyelashes trembled as she slowly blinked. Pushing against his chest, she escaped his embrace.
"...I'm sorry. I was dreaming."
The voice she barely managed to squeeze out trembled uncontrollably. Blair turned and walked out of the room.
Watching her retreating figure through the closing door, Herdin downed the rest of his whiskey.
Poured into an empty stomach, the alcohol burned like a swallowed fireball.
* * *
The sound of horse hooves echoed through the quiet winter forest.
Startled, mountain birds took flight. The slight disturbance was enough to send the heavy blankets of pure white snow cascading down from the branches.
This year's winter hunt was proceeding smoothly, as always.
The first event of the New Year's Festival was a sacred hunt, where each family was required to capture a live offering from the Imperial Hunting Ground to present to the gods.
Unlike other hunting festivals, the winter hunt was not a collaborative effort; instead, each family hunted independently. Since it was believed that the gods would be more pleased by a rarer offering, the participating nobles subtly competed to secure the finest prey. It was an event where the pride of each house was on the line.
As it was a competition between houses, even noble ladies and young misses rode on horseback to accompany their husbands and families. Blair was among them.
As Herdin scanned the snow-covered ground for prey, his gaze drifted to Blair, who followed behind him. Seeing her face flushed from the biting cold, yesterday's memory suddenly flashed through his mind.
'A magical beast will appear in the hunting ground tomorrow.'
If her words were true, it meant a magical beast would appear here today. It was strange that she, knowing this, had willingly followed him to such a dangerous place.
What on earth is she thinking?
Herdin let out a low sigh and called for the Commander of the Delmark Knights riding behind him.
"Kyle."
At his call, the knight spurred his horse forward to ride alongside him.
"Take the utmost care in guarding the Duchess."
"Understood, Your Grace."
The Knight Commander gestured toward Blair, conveying Herdin's order to his subordinates. Understanding the silent command, the knights closed their ranks around her.
Behind Herdin, a soft cough sounded. At the noise, his brow furrowed, and his search for prey across the snowy expanse grew more urgent.
It was then that the distant shriek of a beast echoed through the trees.
Squeeeal!
It sounded like a wild boar.
Amidst the fluttering of startled birds, he heard Blair gasp.
But the boar's cries didn't stop; they continued in rapid succession. Whoever was hunting had failed to kill it in one shot and was repeatedly loosing arrows. The noise was grating.
Foolish bastard. How many arrows is he wasting on a single beast?
Just as Herdin was scoffing at the incompetent archer, one of his knights called out urgently.
"Your Grace, there is a white sable over there!"
Following the knight's gaze, Herdin spotted a sable wandering across the white snow.
Sable fur was highly valuable, and white sable fur was the most precious of all. It would make an excellent offering to the gods.
Herdin immediately drew his bow and released an arrow. It pierced the sable cleanly, spraying crimson blood across the pristine snow.
Once he confirmed the sable was dead, Herdin was about to turn his horse back when a hollow, ancient tree caught his eye.
He dismounted and approached. Inside the hollow trunk lay a tiny baby sable, its eyes not yet open.
...It had a pup.
Herdin drew a dagger from his coat. At that moment, Blair's voice sounded from behind him.
"Herdin. What... what are you doing?"
"Without a mother to care for it, it will soon become prey for predators. It would be a mercy to send it after its mother now."
"No, don't!"
Blair hurriedly scrambled down from her horse and grabbed his hand, halting the dagger. Herdin's brow furrowed.
"What do you think you're doing?"
"It might survive."
"A newborn that hasn't even opened its eyes? In the dead of winter, when finding food is nearly impossible?"
"Even if it's destined to die, as you say, killing it isn't mercy. It's better to live, even for a single day more."
Herdin let out a cold laugh. Was this mindless optimism or sheer hypocrisy? Whichever it was, it was precisely the sort of sentiment he despised.
"Do you think it would feel the same way while being eaten alive by wolves?"
Herdin deliberately chose raw, graphic words to provoke her, determined to shatter either her optimism or her hypocrisy. But...
"I will raise it myself."
The woman who had always yielded to his will stood her ground, refusing to back down. Her eyes were sharper than he had ever seen them.
She looked like a mother desperate to protect her young. The sight displeased him. What was this mere beast to her?
"I highly doubt the creature would want to be taken in by the woman who simply stood by and watched its mother's death."
Herdin sneered, deliberately reminding Blair of her own position.
If a mere beast possessed thoughts and feelings, it would surely prefer death over being raised by its enemy. Just as he loathed the Imperial Family and his fake wife, who was one of them.
Blair flinched as she caught his meaning, but she refused to yield.
Staring at the mother sable's carcass being retrieved by the knights, Blair spoke, her eyes hollow.
"...Even so, its mother would have wanted it to survive, no matter what."
Just then, one of the knights, who had been watching the tense standoff between his lord and lady with an awkward expression, tentatively intervened.
"Um... Your Grace. Perhaps raising it as the Duchess suggests wouldn't be so bad. Since it's a white sable, we could raise it and eventually harvest its pelt..."
The knight, who had thought he was being helpful, quickly shut his mouth when Blair shot him a look of pure disgust.
Herdin let out a quiet sigh, pulled his hand from Blair's grasp, and turned away.
Understanding his silent concession, Blair carefully scooped the pup out of the hollow. She could feel a distinct warmth radiating from the tiny creature, which was smaller than her palm.
The blind pup whimpered pitifully, crying out for its mother. The sound brought a lump to her throat.
What happened to Asiel after I died?
Only then did she think of Asiel, who must have been left all alone after her death.
The intruder might have killed the child. Even if he had been fortunate enough to survive, he would have been a thorn in the side of Herdin, who loved Miella.
Whichever the case, it was clear the child had not met a happy end.
A sudden, sharp wave of resentment toward Herdin washed over her.
Blair stared at Herdin's retreating back before the pup's whimpering snapped her back to reality. She slipped off one of her gloves and gently tucked the pup inside.
Watching her, the knight offered a hand.
"My Lady, I can carry the creature for you. Please, mount your horse first."
"No, thank you. I will carry it."
"But it will be difficult to ride like that. It's dangerous..."
"I will walk."
Despite the knight's concern, Blair remained stubborn.
As the knight stood frozen in hesitation, Herdin, who had been listening to their exchange, guided his horse back toward them.
He strode forward, effortlessly lifting Blair and setting her on his own saddle.
"Herdin...?"
Blair blinked, startled by his sudden action.
Herdin mounted the horse behind her and ordered the knight, "Tend to the Duchess's horse."
Since Blair's hands were occupied, he wrapped one arm around her waist to steady her. With his free hand, he took the reins and urged the horse forward at a slow pace.
His gaze remained fixed forward, cold and distant, but the arm around her waist was firm, holding her securely in place.
Blair looked up at his profile, but when he didn't look back, she lowered her head.
She knew she should be grateful to him for going to such trouble, but the sorrowful whimpering of the pup in her glove left her speechless.
Yet even in her resentment, this cold man's embrace was warm, and she felt pathetic for instinctively finding comfort in it.
A gust of wind swept through the silent winter forest. When Blair coughed from the chill, Herdin reached forward and pulled the fur-lined hood of her cloak over her head.
"Why did you come along if you knew a magical beast would appear? You could have easily stayed behind."
Rather than mocking her, he seemed genuinely displeased that she had put herself in harm's way.
Come to think of it...
No magical beast had appeared yet. Though she could hear the occasional flutter of birds from other parts of the forest, there were no screams of panic.
My presence at the hunt today is already a departure from the past. Has the future changed because of it?
If so, it was best to play it off as a dream to avoid further suspicion.
Having made up her mind, Blair was about to answer when she spotted something through the dense pine trees.
Her eyes widened in sheer terror.
Peering through the branches was a massive, monstrous eye.
In that split second, the massive pupil swiveled, locking its gaze directly onto Blair. A cold dread washed over her.