Chapter 31
“Your Highness.”
“I heard. It’s quite a big one.”
“Yes. Much larger than the others.”
“Good. Let’s move!”
Smith wasted no time mounting his horse, and his group began to move as well.
The horses’ heavy breathing filled the air as they galloped forward. After some time…
“Whoa, whoa. Easy now.”
At the lead hunter’s command, everyone came to a halt in unison.
Crouching low, the hunter parted the bushes and crept towards a specific spot. Smith’s gaze followed him.
Soon, Smith could see their quarry filling his field of vision. It was far more impressive than the small game they had caught earlier.
Of course, it wasn’t enough to save face in front of Einar, but they still had time. They needed to catch this one first.
The Third Prince and his group moved carefully, one step at a time, as they tried to corner their prey. The slightest noise could cause it to flee instantly or potentially charge at them if cornered.
“Phew.”
As someone’s tense breath escaped through parted lips, the prey’s movements suddenly stopped.
Just as the Third Prince hurriedly reached for his bow…
-THWACK!
With a piercing sound, the prey the Third Prince had been aiming for dropped dead on the spot.
“Huh?”
“What…?”
No one had clearly seen what had just happened, nor could they understand it. It had occurred far too quickly.
But within seconds, faces filled with admiration began to exclaim in wonder.
“Good… heavens.”
“Incredible!”
There was only one arrow. That single arrow had precisely pierced the prey’s aorta, killing it instantly.
Everyone who starts hunting hears the same advice: ‘Aim to take down your prey in one shot, but realistically, try to inflict an immobilizing wound.’
The larger the prey, the harder it is to deliver a fatal blow or even wound it significantly.
“This isn’t some rabbit we’re dealing with.”
Everyone nodded at someone’s awe-filled comment.
“It’s not even a herbivore, is it?”
As the others looked down at the prey that had collapsed without even realizing its life was over, Smith gripped his bow so tightly it nearly broke.
The others hadn’t noticed yet, but the arrow’s fletching clearly belonged to…
-Rustle.
“It was around here.”
The figure emerging from the bushes was none other than the Second Prince, Einar.
The unexpectedly encountering groups of the Third and Second Princes stared at each other blankly before bowing their heads slightly. Only then did the members of the Third Prince’s group nod in understanding.
Given the Second Prince’s hunting skills, what had just happened wasn’t particularly surprising.
Watching all of this unfold, Smith felt his insides twisting, his hands trembling with frustration.
“Excuse us.”
“Ah, of course.”
Unlike the groups busy sizing each other up, the hunters under the princes were perfectly at ease. For the princes, the hunting competition was merely a form of entertainment, after all.
There would naturally be some tension between the princes, but it wouldn’t necessarily translate into who could catch more or better prey.
Moreover…
“As expected of His Highness the Second Prince.”
“Haha, we were surprised too.”
“Look at this. With a single shot.”
They all knew how foolish it would be to try catching prey in front of Einar.
As they were processing the catch, Einar, who had been quite far behind, was nonchalantly adjusting his bow, seemingly unaffected by the praise.
Taking advantage of the moment, Smith approached Einar and whispered:
“There was no need for you to come this way.”
The forest was circular, and prey was everywhere, so as Smith said, there was no reason for their paths to have crossed.
Smith had initially headed in a completely different direction from Einar, not wanting to encounter him.
Einar replied in an equally low whisper, without raising his voice:
“I hadn’t planned on coming this way.”
Einar patted Smith’s shoulder with a grin.
“But you headed in this direction.”
In other words, he had deliberately followed Smith to this area to snatch the prey right from under his nose.
“You…!”
As Smith was about to shout, Einar’s smile deepened.
“Oh my, are you going to announce to everyone that you were afraid of running into me and tried to sneak off in another direction? I don’t mind, but…”
The statement was so accurate that Smith had no rebuttal. He could only clench his jaw in frustration, unable to speak.
Even if Smith didn’t bring it up, who wouldn’t remember that fact with just a single question about why he was here?
Knowing you’re no match for someone is one thing, but accepting it is entirely another matter.
As if the situation wasn’t difficult enough after what Riina and Einar had done publicly.
As these thoughts raced through his mind, Smith unwittingly blurted out:
“What are you thinking?”
“Hm?”
Smith lowered his voice even further, almost spitting out the words.
“Don’t tell me you’ve suddenly developed an appetite for the Crown Prince position?”
Einar simply smiled in response, offering no answer.
Whatever he said, Smith would believe what he wanted to believe, so why bother explaining?
Even if Einar were to lay out the whole truth right now, Smith probably wouldn’t believe it.
Smith opened his mouth to speak but couldn’t find the words.
He couldn’t confront Einar loudly and cause a scene here.
“I’ll be paying you a visit soon.”
Einar replied to Smith’s gritted-teeth declaration:
“I’m not sure I’ll be able to spare the time. Especially if you’re going to say it like a villain swearing, ‘I’ll be back!'”
“Einar!”
Unable to contain himself any longer, Smith let out a roar. Simultaneously, the bushes and trees shook as birds took flight en masse.
-Whoosh!
Naturally, all the nearby prey scattered at the sound of flapping wings.
The hunting party instinctively ducked their heads and hunched their shoulders at Smith’s outburst.
Einar, showing no sign of surprise, simply patted Smith’s shoulder and gestured with his chin.
“Since it’s come to this.”
“What?”
“If you’re looking for impressive prey, you’d be better off heading that way.”
“Einar.”
“If you want to place something worthy at Riina’s feet, you’ll need something more substantial.”
-Crunch.
Smith’s teeth ground together at Einar’s amused words, the sound of enamel cracking audible.
Of course, Einar showed no fear or flinching, continuing on unfazed.
“Strangely, there doesn’t seem to be much game in that direction, so you probably don’t need to go that way.”
The direction Einar pointed was where the First Prince had disappeared earlier.
Smith reflexively looked in the direction Einar indicated, frowning deeply.
He had no intention of going that way, as meeting that talkative fellow again would be annoying.
But he was even less inclined to follow Einar’s suggestion.
-Slap!
Smith loudly smacked away Einar’s hand resting on his shoulder and turned his horse towards the direction the First Prince had gone.
“There shouldn’t be any prey that way, you know?”
Einar pointed in the same direction again, but Smith didn’t even glance that way.
He simply gripped his reins tightly and left.
Watching Smith’s retreating back, Einar shrugged.
“Well, it’s not like I was lying.”
* * *
While Smith was glaring at Einar with trembling cheeks…
The First Prince, who had unexpectedly been pushed out of the safe zone when his horse was startled, was now lost quite deep in the forest.
“Where on earth…”
Having been separated from his followers, the First Prince found himself completely alone and extremely anxious.
What if, instead of rabbits or deer, something more dangerous appeared?
-Gulp.
He swallowed hard, touching the hilt of his sword, which was little more than decoration.
“Haha, that won’t happen.”
He nodded, trying hard to maintain his composure.
His efforts seemed to pay off, as not long after, he was strolling through the forest much more relaxedly than before.
In fact…
“Not even an ant in sight.”
There was barely even the sound of birds chirping along his path.
He wasn’t particularly worried about getting lost either.
Eventually, he’d reach the edge of the competition forest and meet the guards stationed there.
The First Prince was leisurely moving along, basking in the sunlight, when he suddenly came to a stop.
“Hm? What’s wrong?”
He patted his horse’s neck, trying to urge it forward, but the animal refused to budge, as if rooted to the spot.
“What’s the matter?”
The horse had tucked its tail and wouldn’t move forward or backward, its ears twitching nervously.
No matter how much he pulled on the reins, the horse wouldn’t move. The First Prince hesitated as he was about to kick the horse’s belly.
He suddenly remembered the words of the stable hand who had given him this horse.