Episode 64
Translator : Missme Editor : Aru

I’m thinking about it now, but I think I have a talent for horseback riding skills. When I was young, I didn’t know that I was a promising horseback rider.

I stared at Irene thinking like that.

I could see Irene, whose course was suddenly blocked, hesitated in her place. Me in the front, Sir Davery in the back. She’s already surrounded.

I opened my mouth calmly.

“What the hell are you doing here, Irene?”

I was going to call her Lady Isaac, but I changed my mind and called her by her name in a friendly manner. Irene, who was looking at me with her little body fixed up, was already like a powerless little animal. I didn’t want to make her cringe more by giving her a feeling of anger or blame.

‘Scolding? Irene’s parents will do that later.’

I just needed to get Irene out of here safely.

Khm khm, I smother my voice.

“You know it’d be dangerous if you did that here and kept walking around, right? What if you met the boar first, not me?”

“I think she’ll lose even if she fights the roe deer, let alone the boar.”

“I’m not going to say anything for a long time here. Come out with me first.”

“…….”

“Irene.”

I’m like a high school or middle school teacher who soothes a runaway student. It was then.

“…… Princess? What are you doing there?”

I put a hat on Irene’s head that I had prepared to the voice of a man who was not far away and looked back.

A young man on horseback, believed to be a participant in a hunting competition, was approaching.

I opened my mouth, looking at a strange face approaching with a curious air.

“I’m sorry but, who are you?”

“I’m Zigman from Baron Raom.”

“Ah, Sir Raom.”

“You’re Princess Lydia Widgreen, aren’t you? Why are you at the hunting ground?”

Zigman’s gaze passed past me and turned to Irene, but came back to me in no time. Wearing a hat and covering her face, Irene looked like a boy, perhaps because of her attire.

He seemed to think that Irene was either a public servant or the hunting competition servant.

“Well, that’s…”

The problem is me. Trying not to expose the agitation and looking for an excuse, then Sir Davery stepped up.

“I’m Davery Sack of the Widgreen family.”

“Sir Sack, I think I’ve heard of your name before.”

“It’s an honour for you to recognize that name. Do you know where his excellency is in this forest?”

“His Excellency, do you the Duke of Widgreen? Why?”

“The reason our lady visited the hunting ground was that she had something to say to his excellency… .”

Good job, Sir Davery.

I felt it before, but a lie that doesn’t even blink to make was very classy. I was quick to respond.

“That’s right.”

“No, I mean what do you need to say that you’re going to risk your own in such a dangerous place……”

“That’s hard to say.”

Then Sir Davery looked really troubled.

“I’m sorry, but it’s a very personal, private, but important story.”

“…….”

“As soon as my lady knew the news, she wiped away her tears that she had to deliver right away.”

‘What? Again?’

“Oh, no. You don’t need to apologize to me for such a thing, instead, I should be the one who apologized.”

Zigman then continued, scratching his back head.

“His Excellency is probably at the innermost part of the forest. He’ll be targeting the most ferocious beast in the hunting ground with His Highness The Crown Prince.”

“I see.”

“But it would be dangerous to get there, too……..”

I tried to answer that it was okay since I was with Sir Davery anyway, and more than that, I won’t go that far.

At that moment, Zigman suddenly changed his expression as if he had a good idea.

“Oh, that’s right. Princess, please wait here for a moment.”

“….…?”

“I’ll just go inside and call His Excellency.”

“What?”

What? Wait a minute.

“No, you don’t have to….”

“Don’t worry, just trust me. Giddy up!”

“Sir Raom!”

Zigman Raom, who has a blurry impression that seems to come out only now, was more quick-tempered than he seemed. He didn’t even listen to my answer – how come he ran alone and disappeared like that in an instant. The voice calling him belatedly could not keep up with the speed of his running horse.

“……”

I looked back at Sir Davery after a moment of silence in an unexpected situation.

“What are you going to do, sir?”

“Is it my fault, my lady?”

“Um…”

“If you give me your horse, I’ll try to follow him.”

“That’s okay, no need for that. Who knows which direction was he going to go, and who’s going to protect us without you?”

As I mentioned earlier, even a wild boar, both I and Irene will suffer after 1-2 strokes. Sir Davery knows that, so I’m sure he just said it.

I shrugged my shoulders with a feathery sigh half-mixed with resignation.

“I can’t help it. Let’s get out of here before that kind and behavioural Sir Raom really brings out Ash to here.”

What should I say to Ash later? I wonder if I can get over him.

I decided to think about what I couldn’t do right away and looked at Irene again.

“Would you like to ride a horse? I’m going out of the forest right now.”

“…….”

“If you want to walk, it doesn’t matter, and, of course, you can’t stay here. I’m telling you, staying here is not an option.”

Irene raised her head for a long time. Until the brown eyes that had been covered by the hat were revealed. Round eyes with light double eyelids stared at me.

“I….”

“……?”

“Are you trying to hide me?”

Irene raised her hand and touched the hat I had put on her. The hat, which was hurriedly obtained by the user, was dark brown, close to black. Thanks to it, the hat had a strange contrast with Irene’s white hands, which made her feel blue at first glance.

I glanced at the ensemble of tiny hands and hats for a moment, then nodded.

“If I knew your intention to enter the hunting ground, I wouldn’t have come to catch you till here myself.”

“…….”

“Tard on horse, that would be better, too.”

It would be a pain if Zigman showed up with Ash. We’ll have to rush out before that happens.

“And just in case, don’t take off your hat until we’re completely out of here.”

“…… you don’t ask?”

I made eye contact with Irene.

Irene seemed to take it silently without avoiding my gaze for a moment but soon lowered her head.

“What?”

“…you saw me coming in here, and you knew it was me, and you followed me in? Because you saw the wig in the market at that time.”

“Yes.”

“You don’t ask me why? Why did I go into the hunting ground so recklessly, wearing a wig and clothes like this?

‘So you were aware of your actions now.’

Well, she saw me and ran away in surprise like a guilty criminal.

“Are you going to tell me if I asked?”

“…..”

“Okay, then I’ll ask. Why did you do that? Now that I see it, it doesn’t seem like you weren’t aware that you act like this is dangerous.”

Irene hesitated. But the fact that I brought up this topic first is that she was willing to talk about it. Her hesitation wasn’t very long.

“To attract attention…..”

“Attention?”

“I wanted to draw His Excellency attention.”

“What?”

It was obvious without further hearing who ‘His Excellency’ she mentioned here was.

My voice rose unknowingly in embarrassment.

“Oh, Princess wouldn’t understand. My heart and my feelings.”

Irene clasped her trousers with both hands. The cloth, which seemed to be new, wrinkled badly.

“Well, that’s right. I tried to hide in the hunting ground on purpose. The wig was also sneaked out of the market that day for this purpose, and I got this man’s clothes with money.”

“… why did you think it would be a way to get Ash’s attention to hide in the hunting ground dressed like a man’s disguise?”

This was not a question, but pure curiosity.

Irene’s hands were tightened. Her head fell further down.

“……. at first it was a joke at the meeting.”

‘Meeting?’

“You know, usually in romance novels, isn’t there always a story about a female protagonist hiding in a hunting ground and a male lead rescuing her?”

“Wait a minute.”

I needed time to interpret what I just heard. I put my conclusion to my mouth after a brief accident.

“So right now you copied those romance novels?”

It was as if I could hear the sound of Irene’s face burning red, hidden under her hat. Her exposed ears are red-cooked.

I didn’t say anything, but Irene stammered on her own.

“Well, I know. That I’m stupid. I know it’s just a novel, and I know I shouldn’t expect it in reality, and my actions were futile and stupid.”

‘Then why.’

“But I couldn’t help it.”

It’s managed to go on and on.

The voice trembled like a soft leaf in the wind.

A slender voice that continued uninterruptedly trembled like a soft leaf in the wind.