The hunting competition had begun.
When the trumpet sound that signaled the start of the event was heard, Goyo was alone, as Rajin had left, saying she had urgent business.
Several people had approached, offering help, but seeing the blatant greed behind their smiling eyes, Goyo turned down all offers.
She had calculated that she didn’t really need anyone’s help for what was just a matter of catching a rabbit. But when she actually tried to catch one, she found herself regretting the help she had refused.
The rabbit was fast, but not as swift as she had imagined, so she was okay. However, each time she tried to use her familiar whale to suffocate the wild animal, her hands kept stopping, and Goyo had already had to let go of her fourth rabbit.
Swallowing a sigh, Goyo ventured deeper into the forest and discovered a turquoise lake.
She recalled Rajin’s fleeting mention of a legendary lake where mermaids were said to live.
Goyo approached the lakeside. The lake, so clear that just looking at it was refreshing to the eyes, perfectly reflected the forest scenery and the clouds floating above.
And it also reflected the face of a woman with a gloomy expression.
‘Should I just watch and leave?’
There were many people who had signed up for the competition just to enjoy the forest scenery, so Goyo thought it would be fine to just stroll around and go back. As Rajin had said, the forest and lake were quite beautiful.
Besides, since Wartin had grown up quite a bit while doing various things, not achieving the original goal wasn’t a loss.
As Goyo was making excuses and trying to settle her half-hearted feelings, she heard rustling. She sensed someone approaching quietly. Perhaps another rabbit.
When Goyo casually looked up, a white deer came into view.
The deer, which was only slightly bigger than Wartin and seemed not yet fully grown, was licking the water at the lakeside, occasionally glancing at Goyo.
It was quite different from the rabbits that had darted away as soon as they sensed her presence. It seemed to intuitively understand that Goyo Bethelgius was not harmful.
The white deer, with its antlers also white, drank from the water and even approached Goyo.
Goyo was startled and took a step back, but seeing the deer sniffing around, she vaguely guessed its intentions.
“This?”
The deer’s gaze was fixed on the snack bag she had received at the start of the competition. Although she had heard it was odorless, the way it stared at the bag suggested it had eaten from it before.
Hearing the rustling of the bag, the white deer came closer and finally ate the contents.
Fascinated by the proximity of the animal, Goyo silently opened the bag for it.
Just as the deer was pressing its body close, a gunshot was heard from far away in the forest.
“Ah!”
The deer, startled by the sudden noise, jumped and started running. The problem was that the deer’s antlers got caught on the handkerchief tied to Goyo’s head.
Her hair unraveled, and in her panic, Goyo began to chase the running deer, which was now adorned with the blue cloth.
“Wait, just a moment!”
Whether the handkerchief had made her forget her noble upbringing or not, Goyo ran after the fluttering blue cloth.
But with only slightly improved stamina, she struggled to keep up with the deer.
As the deer’s figure grew more distant, Goyo, growing anxious, tried to trip the deer with Wartin, but the water droplets she threw merely startled the deer and did not succeed in tripping its swift legs.
As she ran until she was out of breath, the deer slipped on the water that had splashed on the ground and crashed into a tree root.
Only when the deer had fainted could Goyo finally reach the handkerchief. Clutching her pounding heart, she removed the handkerchief from the antlers, but it had been torn and lost its original form.
Goyo clenched the ruined handkerchief in her hand.
What is this?
What was she even doing here?
With her hair in disarray and the situation in ruins, frustration surged through Goyo. She couldn’t understand what she was doing at all. If she wanted to raise Wartin to be big, it didn’t necessarily have to be through the hunting competition. Besides, was there any meaning in raising a whale when it was destined to die anyway?
What difference did it make if her whale grew as large as a dolphin? Was it worth getting all worked up and entering a competition she had never even considered before?
No matter how she made excuses or justified it, it didn’t make sense. She shouldn’t have done it. Her initial enthusiasm had resulted in the worst possible outcome.
“Let’s stop.”
Gripping the torn handkerchief tightly, Goyo sighed irritably.
Turning to head back to the starting point of the hunting competition, Goyo was met with a gust of wind.
A strange scent brushed against her nose, and as she took a few steps forward, she heard rustling from the bushes.
Another deer? Or a rabbit? It didn’t really matter.
Goyo thought to herself with a touch of self-deprecation and didn’t bother looking back, but seeing the large shadow cast in front of her, she couldn’t help but turn around.
A large, gray wolf was staring at her with a low growl.
* * *
Even though she was riding in a carriage, Emily’s heart raced so much that she struggled to breathe. She pressed her chest down.
It was the sort of minor corruption that any noble would commit, and it was wrong to try to bring down a family over it. She had barely survived, but at what cost?
The tiger that had helped her before did not lend its might this time. Seeing it disappear as if it had never carried her on its back, Emily ground her teeth.
After years of being its servant, it had completely forgotten that debt and abandoned her!
The Viscount Frittil had promised to help her when she became the Marquis, apologizing for it, but Emily did not believe that pretense.
It seemed there was no servant who would flatter her as much as she had. Did she think she would be fooled again?
It wasn’t her fault. Wasn’t the one who simply endured due to lack of strength the real fool? Even with a chance for revenge, she was not a timid person who would do nothing.
She didn’t know exactly what would happen, but since the hunting competition had started, something would happen soon.
Emily had caused a scene in front of many people as she had heard, and such open behavior with so many eyes watching would make it hard for anyone to doubt that she had plotted something.
Even as she thought so, her anxiety persisted, and her trembling hands were unavoidable.
Emily tried to raise her voice to urge the coachman, but strangely, no sound came out.
“Gah, ugh.”
Her anxious heart began to tighten painfully. With an unknown pain, Emily twisted her body and clutched her chest.
Trying to cry out for help, she twisted her mouth open, but only the faintest sound escaped within the carriage.
“Help… h-help…!”
Soon, her small body collapsed as if leaning, leaving only the sound of the carriage wheels rolling.
* * *
A blade emerged from the forehead of the wolf facing her.
As Goyo stared vacantly at the fallen body, a familiar face emerged from behind the carcass.
“Are you alright, Madam Bethelgius!”
With her disheveled hair and attire, the urgency was palpable—it was Rajin Eliom.
“I’m sorry. I tried to find you faster, but I’m quite late.”
“Sir Eliom…?”
“To make excuses, I was unsure, so I tried to question Emily Renier first. I didn’t expect to miss her, though.
I also thought it would be okay since you would have had secret protection, but I later realized that the Marquis might have decided to accompany you, and I began to panic…”
“Calm down. For now, nothing has happened.”
At her words, Rajin, who had been babbling, finally caught her breath, but her face remained flushed with self-reproach. Thankfully…
“There are various excuses, but… the biggest problem is my foolishness in thinking that it would be okay if I just thought it through.”
“I don’t understand what you’re talking about. You were talking about Lady Renier; is there some connection between that monster and the lady?”
For a moment, Annecy’s words flashed through Goyo’s mind like an intuition.
‘There shouldn’t be any major issue with human perfume. Even if I’m sprayed a special scent that attracts monsters, I would be safe.’
“It’s a scent that attracts monsters.”
“…Yes, it probably got on you when you bumped into her earlier. The scent is similar to the one I gave, so I was also unsure.”
Emily Renier wasn’t someone so confident when alone, so it was odd that she had just caused trouble and disappeared. It seemed she had another purpose, Goyo nodded slowly.
Although it was perplexing, seeing the wolf that had surprised Goyo fall made her more composed. Goyo immediately realized what she needed to do.
“First, we need to remove the scent. There’s a lake nearby.”
“I’ll take you to the starting point. The lake is too deep and dangerous.”
“There are many people who came to cheer as well. It would be dangerous to proceed as it is, not knowing how effective the scent might be.”
“In that case, you should call Wartin. The water spirit’s water also has a purifying function. I’ll lend you my jacket, as it would be troublesome if your clothes get wet.”
“I had forgotten again.”
“Then I’ll excuse myself.” Goyo bowed her head in advance to thank Rajin and then called Wartin.
Due to her intense focus on chasing the deer, Goyo’s body felt heavy just from summoning the whale again, but there was no other choice.
As Goyo reached out to Wartin to remove the scent from her body, another person’s hand touched her shoulder.
Startled by the unexpected presence, Rajin tried to draw her sword, but she couldn’t move a finger.
Unlike the flustered knight, Goyo, familiar with the sensation, turned her head to see her husband’s face.
“It’s still too cold to wash outside, my dear.”
It was Annecy Bethelgius, now with a familiar, relaxed face.
“…Isn’t the advanced course quite far from here?”
“Due to my foolish subordinates, I ended up in the advanced course, but it’s not that far.”
“Only one step away by teleportation?”
“You know well.”
With a narrow smile, Annecy pressed the hand he had placed on Goyo’s shoulder gently.
The refreshing energy that began from Annecy’s hand circled around Goyo’s body. Seeing Goyo blink at the strangely light feeling, Annecy let out a small laugh.
“It should be okay now. I’m not untalented in purification magic, after all.”
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