Chapter 73 72: Hunting Event (3)

Kat PoV

I watched as Leone offered Jahi the tassel she made, and I held back a smile when I saw Jahi quickly tie it onto her bow, raising a brow as she looked towards me.

Leone had asked me what would suit Jah the best; her initial idea was to blend various blues together for the tassel, as a way to compliment Jahi's skin tone.

However, I quickly pointed to the red and amber ribbons, before whispering "Twine those around a blue ribbon~"

Leone had blushed, but she just nodded, her hands going to work as she quickly braided the ribbons together.

What came out of her work was a unique tassel, one that had an obvious enough meaning; Leone was red, I was amber, and Jahi was blue. When the red and amber were wrapped so tightly around the singular blue strand?

Seeing Jahi grin at both of us, I held back a laugh as I followed behind Leone, her face crimson as she sped towards her seat.

Staring behind her, I watched as Jahi made her way towards the forests edge, Jillian and Ulysses beside her.

Shrugging, I looked back at Leone, who was taking a sip of her tea, while Draka just chuckled.

"Hey, Kat, right? Do you know anything of that maid behind Gia?"

I looked towards Lady Vesca, nodding when I saw Fresca standing behind her, her eyes flickering from Gia to Draka.

"Her name is Fresca, and she seemed quite nice at the party in the North."

Nodding, Draka continued looking at Fresca, her lips pursed before she turned back to Leone.

"So, I guess we have three hours to idle about, yes? Any ideas on how to pass the time?"

Leone took another sip of her tea, before suggesting "Why not discuss the ruins found..."

I tuned them out, looking back towards Jahi, shivering slightly when I saw her staring straight at me, her eyes golden as she smirked.

Winking, she looked towards the old man, before slipping into the forest when the old man gave the signal.

I returned my attention to Leone and Draka, who were currently debating about what the ruins found on the southern border might contain.

~~~

Jahi PoV

Standing on the forests edge, I turned my gaze back to Kat, wishing for nothing more than to hold her in my arms.

These last few days had been stressful, mainly because mother insisted on getting various clothes prepared for this long string of events, and because this was the third event I had attended in the last five days.

Sadly, each one had resulted in me being swarmed by pests, so I had no chance to take Kat somewhere private and enjoy ourselves.

I still remember how much more she reacted when I had tasted her in that hall at Duchess Klaki's palace compared to normal.

Biting my lips, I winked at Kat when she looked towards me, and I enjoyed the way she shivered from just that.

"Get ready... Go!"

The old man gave the signal, and with a sigh I bolted into the forest, bow in hand as I gracefully made my way over the various roots and leaves littering the ground.

This forest was thinner than Fovos, and wasn't as seeped in mana as Fovos either, making this feel more like a normal excursion than a hunt.

Sighing again, I scaled a tree and leaned against the trunk, looking around for any tracks or traces of life.

Nothing.

Dropping back down, I stalked quietly through the forest, my ears perked as I listened for any noise.

Gently nocking an arrow, I turned towards the low call of a deer, and carefully moved towards it.

Leaning past a tree, I nodded in appreciation at the large antlers on the buck, as well as its rather large build.

It was standing in the center of a small clearing, cautiously nibbling on some berries as its head swayed side to side.

Moving around the clearing, I positioned myself to look directly at its large chest.

Pulling the arrow back, I took aim towards its heart before letting it fly, watching as the arrow sliced through the air before plunging deep into the bucks chest.

Letting out a whine, it staggered, before trying to run away.

However, I had rushed into the forest, forgoing any stealth as I drew my small dagger, quickly sinking the blade into the bucks throat.

Falling to the ground with a thud, it shuddered a few times before going still.

Nodding to myself, I flicked the blood off my blade and gently removed the arrow, taking care to not snap it.

The arrowhead was blunted, making me frown.

Shrugging, I traced a few runes around the buck, setting up a neat little circle I had created on my own.

It had two variations, lethal and non lethal.

Since this was an event, I went for the less fun option of non lethal, rigging the area around the corpse to flare with a bright light for a minute if anyone tried to set foot inside the circle.

I could easily make it back to the clearing before anyone snatched the buck, so I had no issue leaving the corpse nestled under some roots, slightly hidden and well protected.

Getting up, I took in a deep breath of the forest air before setting back out on my hunt, wanting to get a few more animals to sufficiently stomp Jillian and Ulysses attempts at wooing Leone.

~~~

Kat PoV

Roughly two hours had passed, and I now sat beside Leone and Draka, answering any questions they sent my way.

I could feel the various gazes the nobles and servants sent my way, mainly being disgust or surprise that Leone and Draka were 'lowering' themselves to talk with a maid.

However, I could care less.

I don't mind playing the role of a maid, both in public or in private, and would rather have something to 'play' as rather than being myself.

It's easier to hide and avoid others when you are acting in a role, after all. Especially if it is a servant of some kind.

People tend to avoid talking to or inspecting servants at all, since you could potentially offend their master by doing something untoward to their servant.

So, it was quite an enjoyable thing to be; no one would focus intently on me, instead focusing their gazes onto the person I serve.

Living in this world for almost two years now had proven myself correct; being a 'main character' would be a nuisance. Many houses get offended at very little, and I could already imagine the various idiotic situations I could find myself in by simply being that proud transmigrator/reincarnator that many novels were written about.

I mean, couldn't you just hold your tongue that one time? Or just not act like you are god because you have the POTENTIAL to become strong?

If they weren't novels being written to entertain people, but instead real life, that grandmaster that you just insulted would slap you through your next twenty lives, leaving you to reincarnate into a damn worm if you were lucky.

So, I had no qualms being just 'Jahi's Servant'.

It gave me a shield to hide behind, and fit my personality as well.

I always enjoyed supporting other people, helping them reach a goal of theirs. Besides that, I was a quiet person by nature, and while I enjoyed interacting with people, I would much rather read a book or drown myself in some other activity.

So I just ignored the various gazes sent my way, instead acting as a servant who was just following orders.

"Hey, I've been meaning to ask, but..."

Leaning closer, Draka gently nodded her head towards Lady Vesca and her maid, Fresca.

"Gia's maid, Fresca was it? Is it just me or has she been sending glances my way?"

Leone looked towards Lady Vesca from the corner of her eyes, before nodding.

"She just sent another glance your way. Why?"

Draka leaned back, grinning as she said "I mighta found number one for my harem~"

I held back a chuckle, raising a brow slightly as Draka got up and approached Lady Vesca.

"What?"

Hearing Leone's confusion, I explained that Draka wanted a large group of women that she could try and create an even larger family with, making Leone blush.

Leone turned her orange eyes towards me, swallowing before saying "Kat... do... do you want a large family?"

A smile tugged at my lips as I gazed at Leone's scarlet face, her eyes glistening with hope.

"I am not against one... I just don't think I want children for quite a bit..."

Leone nodded, smiling at me as she said "Well, I... may need to confirm it with the Empress, but... would... would you be okay with me joining your family?"