The First Prince's Hunting Competition
The First Prince’s hunting competition was arranged on rather short notice. The official reason given was to foster camaraderie. After the horse race, the mood among the young nobles had grown far too frivolous, so it was said that a formal imperial event would restore proper dignity. It wasn’t difficult to guess what that really meant.
The roar of the racetrack. His Highness’s voice. The moment I had dedicated my victory to him. There were those who found all of it deeply unpleasant. The old nobles called the fervor they couldn’t understand vulgar, and the First Prince wanted to drag that same fervor back into a space he could control. And so, a hunting competition it was.
The imperial hunting grounds lay on the outskirts of the capital. It was an event elegant enough for the nobles and familiar enough for the imperial family to lead. A contest of catching beasts and tallying points. The First Prince had even sent me an invitation.
And one to His Highness Noel as well.
“Will Your Highness be attending as well?”
I asked while looking down at the invitation. His Highness Noel was eating a small butter cookie in front of me.
“Yeah. They told me to come watch.”
“Just to watch?”
“Yep. I can’t shoot a bow. If I did, I’d probably hit something weird, right?”
His Highness smiled brightly. Like a child. Like someone who knew nothing at all. But I caught the brief flicker of wariness that passed behind that smile.
“Do you not wish to go?”
“Are you going, Adel?”
“I received a request to participate as well.”
“Then I’ll go.”
His Highness popped another cookie into his mouth.
“I want to watch Adel.”
On the day of the hunting competition, the sky was clear. The imperial hunting grounds were less than half a day’s ride from the capital. Low hills and forests stretched out, with fences and markers placed here and there for safety. The viewing platform for the nobles had been built on a high stand at the edge of the woods. The Empress, several noble young ladies, and those not participating in the hunt sat there.
His Highness Noel was among them, seated in a small chair beside the Empress. With his eyes wide open, looking around curiously, he looked exactly like a child who knew nothing. A few of the young ladies giggled behind their fans.
“It seems the youngest prince is afraid of hunting.”
“Rather than afraid, I suppose he simply cannot handle a bow at all.”
“Oh dear, was my voice too loud?”
Noel smiled.
“I’m scared of bows! They’re pointy!”
The young ladies laughed softly. The Empress smiled as well.
“Our youngest really is honest, isn’t he?”
I felt my grip tighten on the reins. My horse let out a tiny snort. I immediately loosened my hand.
The First Prince stepped onto the platform ahead. Wearing a kindly smile, he looked over the participants.
“Today is a lighthearted gathering for friendship. Please refrain from excessive competition and simply enjoy your time in the imperial hunting grounds.”
The rules were simple. Within a set time, participants were to hunt game inside the imperial hunting grounds and earn points based on the type and number of beasts caught. Dangerous magical beasts had already been cleared out beforehand, and knights had been stationed throughout for the participants’ safety.
The starting signal sounded. The participants surged into the forest all at once. Hooves kicked up dirt, and startled birds took flight.
Hunting was different from racing. Simply running fast would not secure victory. One had to read signs, predict the movement of beasts, and choose the perfect moment to loose an arrow.
I breathed in the air of the forest. In the North, snow-laden branches could snap at any moment, the wind stole body heat, and the beasts were starving. This place was different. A managed danger. A wildness put on display. A forest designed so nobles could mistake themselves for brave.
It was humid and carried a soft scent. The trees were low, the ground less rough. But a forest was still a forest. The direction the leaves swayed. Tiny footprints. Broken twigs. The traces left by beasts were everywhere.
The first game didn’t take long to find. A small deer moved inside a thicket. I guided my horse forward quietly, raised my bow, and steadied my breath. My field of vision narrowed. The bowstring drew taut at my fingertips. The arrow flew.
A short sound. The deer collapsed. A nearby scribe called out the score. I immediately turned my horse toward the next trail.
Cheers rang out from afar. It seemed another participant had caught a wild boar. I chased the next set of tracks without pause. Small deer. Black rabbits. Royal pheasants marked with tags. The tally of game I needed to catch piled up quickly.
At some point, the presence inside the forest began to change slightly. At first it was very faint. The sound of branches shaking. Footsteps that didn’t match the placement of the knights. Movement that wasn’t caused by the wind.
I loosened the reins a little. My black horse pricked its ears. It seemed to have noticed as well.
To the right of the forest. Beneath a low hill. Someone was there. A hunter? A knight? Or perhaps…
I lowered my breathing. At that moment, a tagged deer burst out from the bushes on the left. It was quite a large catch. In terms of points, it was enough to firmly secure a top position.
I raised my bow. And at that instant, an arrow flew. It was aimed at the front leg of my horse. If the horse fell, I would be thrown. I wouldn’t necessarily die from the fall, but could I dodge it?
The arrow was already too close. Then, the arrow’s trajectory twisted. There was mana behind it. A familiar one. Far too familiar. A black aftertaste that smothered breath. The arrow failed to graze the horse’s front leg and struck a stone beside it instead.
Thud. A low sound. The horse twisted in surprise. I lowered my body. I didn’t lose my balance. Only my right foot twisted slightly inside the stirrup. A sharp pain shot through my ankle. It was bearable.
I ignored the pain and grabbed the reins. The black horse regained its footing. I raised my bow, this time aiming toward the right side of the forest. But the presence there had already vanished. The escape was swift. A prepared movement.
Could I formally raise an issue about this? Probably not. If they made the excuse that the arrow had missed while aiming at game, that would be the end of it. There wasn’t much to gain even if I made a fuss. Aside from my slightly sprained ankle, there had been no incident. So I wouldn’t create one either.
Instead, a twisted competitive spirit flared up. I wondered what kind of face they would make if I won after such a dirty trick.
The hunt continued. I no longer dragged things out. During the remaining time, I gathered the necessary points. There was pain in my right foot. Every time I braced it in the stirrup, the inside of my ankle pulled tight. But it wasn’t enough to break me. I was used to hiding pain. In the North, those who revealed their pain right away didn’t last long.
The horn signaling the end sounded. Participants returned one by one. Applause rose from the viewing platform. The result was not difficult to predict. I had won.
The First Prince smiled. He had tried to shift the attention with an imperial event, yet the eyes had turned to me once again. The hunting competition ended just like that.
Back in His Highness Noel’s room after returning.
My ankle began to throb slowly.
“Adel, are you okay?”
His Highness asked. I lowered my head.
“Yes. I am fine.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
His Highness’s eyes looked at me.
“I see.”
He smiled.
“Adel won again!”
“It is thanks to Your Highness’s support.”
“But today, I won’t praise you.”
“Pardon?”
What? Had I done something wrong? I didn’t think I had. Which part had displeased him? My heart sank with a thud. Even when the arrow had flown earlier, it hadn’t been this bad.
His Highness looked up at me with a slightly pouty face.
“I won’t praise you.”
“Did I…”
I paused for a moment.
“What did I do wrong?”
Only after speaking did I realize it. Tension had crept into my voice. To think that not receiving praise from His Highness could make me feel this down. I felt a little pathetic.
His Highness stared intently at my foot, then looked back at my face.
“Adel, your foot hurts, doesn’t it?”
“……”
“You kept going even though it hurt.”
I remained silent for a very brief moment. I had been found out. And far too easily. I composed my expression.
“It is nothing. I am fine.”
“But it isn’t, is it?”
“I was able to endure it sufficiently.”
“If you can endure it, does that mean it doesn’t hurt?”
“That is…”
I couldn’t answer. His Highness crouched down in front of the chair. His small body lowered itself before me. The posture felt strangely unfamiliar.
“Your Highness. Lowering yourself so casually like that…”
“Why? You do this to me all the time, Adel.”
“Because Your Highness and I are very different.”
“How are we so different?”
His Highness’s question was simple. Like a child. As if he truly didn’t know. But I couldn’t answer right away. The sight of His Highness kneeling caught my eye. The way he had lowered himself at my feet. It weighed strangely on my heart. This would not do. Such a posture did not suit him. His Highness was a prince.
“Your Highness possesses a noble body.”
I spoke slowly.
“You must not kneel so carelessly.”
His Highness blinked. Then he said, far too easily,
“It’s fine.”
“It is not fine.”
“I’m not that precious.”
Those words pierced me. Straight through the center of my chest. I stopped breathing. How could you say such a thing so easily? How could you, Your Highness?
I felt strength enter the hands resting on my knees. I had to steady my tone. Calmly, as usual. Like a grand duchess. But my voice came out a little too quickly. It surged with emotion. A hint of moisture slipped out.
“That is not true!”
His Highness looked at me. I did not avoid his gaze.
“Your Highness is more precious than anyone else.”
More than anyone. To me, you were more precious than even the Emperor. Therefore…
“It is not right for Your Highness to speak of yourself that way.”
“……”
His Highness watched me for a moment. The smile on his face faded slightly. For a very brief instant. In that short gap, I thought I saw the expression he had been hiding. But soon he tilted his head again.
“Then you too, Adel.”
“Pardon?”
“You are precious too, Adel.”
I lost my words.
“……”
“Since Adel is precious too.”
His Highness looked at my ankle. Then he added in a very small voice,
“So… couldn’t you treat your own body a little more preciously?”
This time, I could say nothing at all. Completely. His Highness’s words were clumsy. They were not refined noble speech, nor were they a beautiful confession like poetry. Just words strung together like a child’s. Yet they struck me so directly.
Couldn’t you treat your own body a little more preciously?
I had never heard such words before. In the North, the North always came before my body. The walls came before my blood, and the front lines came before my wounds. I was the grand duchess. I was a sword. A shield. The name of Ernhardt. I could be injured, but I could not stop. Even if it hurt, I had to endure. Even if I fell, I had to rise. That was only natural. So I had treated myself the same way. A body that could be used. A body that could endure. A body that could still function even if a little broken.
But His Highness had called that precious. Not Adelaine von Ernhardt the Grand Duchess of the North. Not the grand duchess. Just me. He had called me precious.
“If Your Highness says such things…”
I opened my mouth with difficulty.
“It puts me in a difficult position.”
“Why?”
“Because I have no words to answer with.”
His Highness looked at me for a moment. Then his face turned slightly triumphant.
“Then did I win?”
“That is not the issue here.”
“It feels like I won, though.”
“It is not.”
“Adel has gone quiet.”
“That is…”
I stopped speaking.
“Yes, Your Highness has won.”
His Highness let out a small laugh. Then he lowered his gaze to my ankle once more.
“Then show me your foot.”