CH 3.12

Hunting?

Well, based on the princess’ personality, I’m not sure if it would be a typical hunting event. But at the same time, the princess appeared to be someone who would catch the most prey…

But there was one small issue.

“However, Your Highness, I don’t know how to ride a horse.”

“Is that so? That’s unexpected.”

“I’m afraid I’m going to get in your way.”

Because it’s hunting, I’m intrigued and wanted to see the actual scene. But I also didn’t want to see something new in front of my eyes.

Can’t I just keep being curious forever?

“Well. You can ride that guy if you can’t ride a horse, right?”

Well, based on the princess’ personality, I’m not sure if it was a typical hunting event. At the same time, the princess appeared to be the one who would catch the most prey…

But there was one small issue.

“But, Your Highness, I don’t know how to ride a horse.”

“Is that so? That’s unexpected.”

“I’m afraid I’m going to get in your way.”

Because it’s hunting, I’m intrigued and wanted to see the actual scene. But I also didn’t want to see something new in front of my eyes.

Can’t I just keep being curious forever?

“Well. You can ride that guy if you can’t ride a horse, right?”

“Huh?”

For the first time since I met the princess, she embarrassed me.

She appears serious, but I’ve never given Cat a mountable attribute…

On the other side of the office, Cat was patting its paws. I can try, but that doesn’t mean I can ride it simply because I want to. Cat’s permission is required. Cat quickly turned its head away, as expected.

However, it did not provide a clear rejection. I was taken aback, but I decided to talk to Cat later when we got home.

“Will Lacius accompany us?”

“That guy is far too prim and proper. An archduke needs to know how to commit and conceal corruption, but he’s too honest.”

“Ah.”

“No matter how bold I act, I don’t want my cousin to despise me. Do you understand my worry?”

Is this the same person who eagerly used newspapers and magazines against Lacius…?

However, I vaguely noticed that the princess’s words had a hidden meaning. There are no animal rights in this world, so Lacius would not object if we were talking about real hunting.

So the conclusion is that this is not your typical ‘hunting.’

The princess has now invited me to join her exclusive club. It will be decided here whether I want to be her person or not.

‘Well, there’s no better catch in this world than the princess.’

I don’t have a choice. The answer had already been determined.

“In exchange, I have a request for the Princess.”

“A request?”

“I will be the princess’s new puzzle, so please stop tormenting Lacius.”

I didn’t smile as much as I was smiling earlier. Because this is a critical issue that will determine whether I can move one step closer to the success of what I’ve been commissioned. I needed to be serious.

“How come you look so serious, as if I tormented him so much? I’m hurt.”

As if hurt, the princess took a step back. If a royal says they never harassed you, then they never harassed you. But I can’t give up now.

I clasped my hands together in front of the princess and stared at her with determination.

“I’m confident you’ll find me more interesting than Lacius.”

“Oh my. You look like you are begging me.

“I do?”

Asking the princess to give up one of her toys was a big risk.

Perhaps it will even enrage her. Discussing this subject after only meeting her twice, is definitely crossing the line on my part.

But I had a feeling that the princess would say yes.

The rose flower that the princess placed in my ear is still here. Besides, she just changed the flower’s name to my alias! Shouldn’t that be enough to make me confident?

“Really bold and arrogant.”

The princess’s beautiful eyes looked at me quietly, and then she smiled. The cool lapis lazuli-colored eyes were also surprisingly warm, and I think just looking at them alone can captivate anyone.

‘God… She looked like a mythical siren. Falling in love with her will be like a revolving door with no way out.’

Or maybe it’s more like a roller coaster ride with no way out.

The princess reached out and stroked my cheek lightly with her thumb.

“Fine. But instead, I’ll be taking a child exactly like that guy. And by the way, I prefer women.”

It would take a lot of power to summon another child like Cat, but that’s fine. In exchange for capturing the princess?

‘No calculator is required to calculate the benefits here. Of course I accept!’

I bowed to the princess as gracefully as I could.

Then, I thanked her with a beautiful voice like a nightingale.

“Thank you for your generosity, Your Highness. I’ll make certain that you get exactly what you want.”

* * *

Following Shay’s departure. Dioles raised a corner of her mouth after a long period of staring at the place name ‘Evershal’ on the map.

“I don’t believe she is aware of it.”

The ‘Evershal’ mentioned by Shay was no insignificant piece of land.

On the surface, it appears useless because it cannot be farmed and produces no minerals, but this is not the case.

‘However…’

There’s no way she knows one of the imperial family’s top secrets.

The princess initially doubted that Lacius had ordered it. It was, however, information that Lacius was also unaware of. It’s an information that has long been buried.

And even if he was aware of it, Lacius wasn’t the type of person who would use his fiancée to ask for Evershal.

‘Then it’s just pure luck.’

How could anyone be so fortunate? She just chose it randomly and won a prize?

‘No, she didn’t just win a prize; she hit the jackpot.’

Dioles sighed quietly as she swept her hair back with her hand. In any case, Titania Oberon was unlikely to be aware of Evershal’s secret.

“But, in the end, was it the best engagement gift she could give to Lacius?”

Evershal used to be a gold-filled land with lush green vegetation. However, it abruptly became desertified around 300 years ago. The cause is unknown. Some speculated that it was because the country next to it was a desert and sand storms destroyed it. Others claimed it was a sign of the end of the world. At the time, the imperial family dispatched an investigation team, composed of experts, who then discovered one surprising fact.

A temple constructed in ancient times.

Deep underground in that old, forgotten, and abandoned place, a fluctuating power was discovered. The temple was where the God of the Sun was worshiped, but it was not listed in the Schweiden family’s secret archives, which is said to have inherited that glorious power.

What triggered the awakening of the quiet power? Who has the ability to wield such power? Nobody knows.