Chapter 34
“You look exhausted.”
The words came from behind as Diana leaned quietly against the window.
She slowly lifted her head, nodding sluggishly.
“…I never knew one could spend so much time just getting dressed.”
The morning had been a blur of commotion.
From the moment she awoke, she had been whisked away by a flock of attendants—straight into a nightmare of preparations.
It was as if they had all made an unspoken pact to dedicate themselves to the cause, their solemn expressions only adding to her suffering.
After enduring such an arduous process, even sitting still had become exhausting.
Ersivan smiled knowingly as he watched her sigh in exasperation.
“I completely agree.”
“Seeing how easily you admit it, I take it you’ve also had a lovely morning?”
“I’ll spare you the details. But given that this isn’t a frequent occurrence, it’s bearable.”
“…So, when you say not frequent, am I to understand that it will happen again at some point?”
At her pointed question, Ersivan simply smiled.
A wordless answer—yet somehow, all the more ominous for it.
“At least we’ll be arriving soon. Some fresh air should help.”
Diana nodded.
Now that she thought about it, she wasn’t feeling as queasy as usual.
The motion sickness remedy Hyde had secretly supplied her must have been more effective than expected.
Not long after, just as Ersivan had predicted, the carriage came to a stop.
Once they stepped out, they moved toward the plaza where people had already gathered.
As soon as they appeared, whispers rippled through the crowd.
The weight of their gazes prickled against Diana’s skin, making her stiffen.
Come to think of it, this was the first time she had appeared in public since entering the Valencia estate.
Ersivan, however, remained utterly unbothered.
Unfazed by the murmurs, he simply carried out his duties as if the spectators did not exist.
“We’re departing immediately due to the delay.”
“Be careful.”
“I’ll miss you, Lily.”
A soft kiss landed on her trembling hand.
Frozen like a broken automaton, Diana barely registered Daisy whispering beside her.
“…My lady. The handkerchief.”
“Ah, right. I made this for you.”
She hurriedly pulled out the handkerchief she had prepared.
Ersivan accepted it, his gaze immediately drawn to the embroidery at its center.
“It’s camellia. The color reminded me of your eyes. And… it was beautiful, so I wanted to sew it.”
He ran his fingers lightly over the design, silent.
Then, without a word, he folded the handkerchief and tucked it into his coat before securing his helmet in place.
No reaction.
She couldn’t decide if that was a relief or… disappointing.
“Now I’ll think of my eyes whenever I see flowers.”
Just as she was struggling with whether or not to ask, his voice drifted from beneath the helmet—gentle enough to ease her uncertainty.
His face was obscured, but the slight tilt of his head indicated that he was watching her.
“Conversely, whenever I see my own eyes, I’ll be reminded of flowers. And when that happens, I’ll recall the person who called them beautiful.”
“……”
“Thank you… for saying they’re beautiful.”
Diana’s face turned red in an instant.
At this rate, she was the one who needed a handkerchief.
Even though she knew she had only spoken out of consideration, embarrassment still crept up her spine.
“You two seem quite close.”
A foreign voice sliced through their world.
The words lacked any form of courtesy.
Diana turned, eyes narrowing as she sought the speaker—only to stiffen.
Bathed in sunlight, his golden hair shone brilliantly, his blue irises barely visible through his half-lidded gaze.
A man who shared no resemblance to her fiancé.
Prince Kain Daemonhart.
The empire’s sole heir.
And Ersivan’s half-brother.
“Your Highness, Crown Prince.”
“Your Highness.”
Both she and Ersivan greeted him in turn, but Prince Kain merely tilted his chin in a lazy acknowledgment.
Even Ersivan, as arrogant as he could be, maintained basic formalities.
Yet Prince Kain embodied the very essence of royal arrogance.
“With such an enthusiastic lover cheering you on, perhaps you’ll avoid last place this year.”
His smirk curled, sharp as a blade.
It was no mystery what he was referring to.
Every year, Ersivan ranked last in the subjugation hunt.
Diana’s brow twitched.
Her gaze flicked toward Prince Kain, a touch more defiant than before.
“I suppose we’ll just have to do our best, then. But thank you for your concern, dear brother.”
“My dear brother always has such grand words—I find it hard to trust them these days.”
Laughing as though it were all in jest, Prince Kain then shifted his attention toward Diana.
“And what of you, my lady? Won’t you cheer for your future husband?”
So, that was what this was.
Prince Kain was prompting her to publicly offer support—To declare before the crowd that she stood by his half-brother.
“At the very least, try not to place last this time.”
What was even more surprising was that other nobles, who had been discreetly watching, seemed to be aligning themselves with Prince Kain.
How tiresome.
Diana was exhausted by it all.
The half-brother so desperate to push Ersivan further down, the nobles who idly watched and did nothing—it was all so predictable.
“…I was taught that the process is more important than the result. Rather than the final ranking of the subjugation hunt, I believe the conviction that drives one to participate holds far greater value.”
She spoke calmly, recalling her time in the slums.
Many lives had been lost to monster attacks.
Unlike the nobility, commoners had no private guards or knightly orders to protect them.
And in the slums, where the population was already thin, there were even fewer who could fight back.
The imperial family had done nothing to change that. The esteemed noble houses had turned a blind eye.
Instead, it was Ersivan and the Valencia knights who had made a difference.
His order traveled across regions, eliminating monsters wherever they appeared.
That was why the Valencia duchy was respected among commoners.
The imperial family, on the other hand, only intervened after disaster had already struck—too little, too late.
Yet here they were, boasting about a meaningless ceremonial event.
“As someone who has contributed greatly to the empire, Your Highness must already know that an event held twice a year is hardly enough to curb the monster population. Rather than seeking fleeting glory in a grand display, I find those who dedicate themselves to improvement year-round far more admirable.”
It was a veiled criticism of the imperial family.
To outsiders, she was merely speaking as a virtuous lady of noble standing.
But for those who knew better, her words carried a biting truth.
Just in case, she feigned innocence, pretending she hadn’t even known the hunt had a ranking system.
“…It seems you think rather highly of the house you will soon be part of.”
Prince Kain finally spoke, his expression unreadable. The brief silence suggested he had taken a moment to assess her.
“Of course. It is an honor to take on the name of the distinguished Valencia family.”
He had mocked her, yet she smiled back at him even more brilliantly.
The best way to irritate people like him was to act oblivious.
And just as expected, Prince Kain’s expression soured.
Apparently, he no longer wished to speak with her.
Before long, the fanfare signaling the start of the subjugation hunt echoed through the plaza.
“Well then, I look forward to meeting you again in a more formal setting. Until then, be well.”
“I shall await our next encounter with great anticipation. I hope Your Highness remains in good health.”
Prince Kain did not offer much of a response. Instead, he turned and departed with his escort knights.
It seemed she had earned his disdain.
Ersivan, who had been watching his brother closely, stepped toward her.
“It appears you’ve made an enemy of my brother.”
He had clearly been thinking the same thing as she had.
“Have I? That would be quite unfortunate.”
“For someone who claims to be concerned, you seemed rather confident just now. You even went so far as to call out the empire’s ruling power.”
His tone remained polite, but Diana could hear the reprimand beneath it.
She felt a small sting of irritation.
“But His Highness, Prince Kain Daemonhart, was the one who instigated it first.”
She pouted, shifting the blame back onto the prince.
“It doesn’t matter who started it. Sometimes, it’s best to let things go.”
He was telling her to simply endure it.
To ignore injustice and let things slide.
How familiar.
“…You speak as if that is the natural order of things.”
For some reason, she couldn’t bring herself to look at him.
Instead, she turned her gaze downward, staring at the ground.
She didn’t even understand why she was upset.
In the end, it was he who had been insulted, not her.
“Are you angry?”
“……No.”
“I simply have no confidence in facing such injustice. Neither of us benefits from drawing attention from the imperial family.”
It was the first time he had seemed powerless.
Perhaps that was what unsettled her the most.
She had never wanted to see Ersivan like this.
For someone so noble, so untouchable, to look so small in this moment—
To stand tall in every other aspect yet falter before his own family.
But then, she remembered.
She knew how much one’s own family could break them.
And so, she swallowed her words.
Because changing oneself after years of being beaten down by family— Was nearly as impossible as dying.
“I’m not angry. I understand what you mean, Ersivan.”
The sound of trumpets died down.
The knights participating in the hunt began to gather.
It was time for him to join them.
As he took a step forward, Ersivan suddenly turned back to her.
“I do not believe in a world where things happen as they should.”
“……”
“Which means I also refuse to believe my placement in this hunt is something I must simply accept.”
She didn’t understand the meaning behind those words— Not until the final day of the hunt.
When the rankings were announced.
