Chapter 14
The day after the opening ceremonyâ
At last, the first day of the hunting tournament had begun.
Allow me to explain the rules of the tournament.
There are many ways to conduct a hunt, but this time, the chosen method is a two-person drive hunt.
One person rides on horseback to drive the magical beast toward the other, who lies in wait to take it down.
Points are awarded equally to both based on the size and type of beast defeated.
The pairs change daily.
The person with the highest overall score wins, but there are also other awardsâsuch as for the most outstanding pair, or for slaying a rare beast.
The prize is a trophyâmeaning honor only.
The magic-impairing stones harvested from the defeated beasts are distributed equally among all participants.
As for the beast hunting itselfâthereâs no need for me to go all out. If someone wants to do it, let them.
Of course, not taking down a single beast would be a bit embarrassingâŠ
The most important part of this tournament is the âpairingâ system.
In other words, you can talk freely without worrying about prying eyes.
You might think, âWhy not just have a secret meeting in a closed room?ââbut doing that would scream, âThose two are plotting something.â
The greatest social advantage of the hunting tournament is that it allows discreet conversations in plain sight.
On the other hand, the downside is the risk of âaccidents.â
At the very least, I wouldn't want to be paired with someone I dislike.
Thatâs why, for nobles, who youâre paired with is a serious matter.
The royal family conducts a preliminary survey, asking, âWho would you like to be with?â, âAnyone you dislike?â, âAny requests or concerns?â
In a way, itâs like exposing your personal connections to the royal familyâbut I suppose itâs a fair trade for their efforts in organizing the event.
And no noble would be foolish enough to blatantly write, âI hate that person.â
As for me, I responded:
âIâd like to get to know some noblewomen better.â
âI donât dislike anyone.â
âIâm not very skilled at hunting, so Iâd prefer not to be paired with someone aiming for victory.â
As a result, from Day 1 to Day 4, I was paired exclusively with influential noblewomen.
My intent to learn from the leadership skills of future female lordsâwomen who already manage their territoriesâseems to have come across clearly.
On the fifth day, Iâll be paired with Prince Bartona.
The âPlease take care of me on Day Xâ message at the opening ceremony referred to this hunting pair arrangement.
Itâs safe to interpret this as the royal family signaling: âWe are seriously considering marriage with Prince Bartona, not Prince Karvenil.â
It also serves to show others that the marriage negotiations between the royal family and the House of Budoudarl are making progress.
Diplomatically, things are going well.
All thatâs left is to survive the next five days and return home safely.
âMy! Splendid work, Princess Roselia. âŠI had heard you werenât fond of hunting, but youâre rather good at it, arenât you?â
âNo⊠itâs all thanks to your guidance, Countess.â
And so, I spent my time gleefully engaged in magical beast hunting with a woman who holds the rank of countâmy elder sistâno, my lady companion.
The countess was the driver, and I was the one taking down the beasts. We had just brought down a rabbit-type magical beast with an arrow.
The bows used by nobles are so powerful that commoners, who canât enhance their bodies with magic, couldnât even draw them.
If one of these arrows hit a magicless commoner, it would tear their body apart.
For the record, the rabbit beast we hunted was an enormous oneâfive meters from head to tail.
Itâs strange how something that normally looks cute stops being cute when it becomes gigantic.
Iâm reminded again that a small animalâs charm is inseparable from its size.
âShall I take the driving role next?â
Thereâs no explicit rule, but thereâs a general sense that the one who makes the kill is the superior, and the driver is the subordinate.
Now, if you ask whoâs higher-ranked between me and the countess⊠answers may vary, but by most standards, it would be the countess.
Not because I lack a titleâfar from it.
I inherited the lands of the County of Osen from my mother, and my father has granted me several other counties and baronies.
In rank, we are equals. In terms of territory, economic strength, and court influence, I surpass her by far.
Then, is it because sheâs older? No, thatâs not it.
Age-based seniority⊠doesnât not exist in this world, but it isnât taken seriously.
Between an old knight whoâs lived 70 years and a noble baby born a second ago, the baby wins in statusâoverwhelmingly.
What matters most is lineage.
Even by that standard, I am of a higher house than the countess.
So why is she considered higher?
It comes down to the difference between a âsubordinate nobleâ and an âindependent noble.â
Subordinate nobles pledge fealty to a higher-ranking noble through a formal vassal contract.
Independent nobles, on the other hand, pledge loyalty to no one and are under no oneâs rule.
I am still under my fatherâs patria potestasâso Iâm a subordinate noble.
The countess belongs to the kingdom but has not sworn allegiance to the royal family or any other noble, making her an independent noble.
No matter how capable a subordinate noble is, people tend to say, âYouâre just riding your patronâs coattails,â and theyâre seen as lesser compared to independents.
Itâs like comparing a rich jobless heir who lives on parental allowance to a poor person who works hardâthe latter seems more respectable.
So thatâs why the countess is considered higher in rank⊠at least nominally.
In reality, as I mentioned earlier, I surpass her in every aspect, so Iâm the one treated with greater respect.
From the shopâs perspective, rich people are rich, and poor people are poor.
Besides, the countess isnât completely independent eitherâshe has sworn âoaths of loyaltyâ to several great nobles.
In other words, sheâs doing a bit of a political bat move, going back and forth between factions, which hardly looks impressive.
That said, she is still an independent noble, so one must treat her with due respect.
Since I was always the one being entertained, I decided to invite her for once...
âOh, thank you. âŠBut Iâm a bit tired. Shall we take a short break?â
She gently suggested we stop since we had already taken down one beast.
Like me, the countess probably isnât fond of hunting.
âThat sounds good. Letâs do that.â
We moved to a sunny spot.
Once settled, the knights serving us set up a folding table and chairs.
On the table were tea and baked sweets.
It was completely tea party mode.
âWho do you think will win the joint trophy this time? Probably the princesâ pair? They seemed very close, being brothersâŠâ
The joint trophy is awarded to the pair who hunts the most magical beasts.
Prince Karvenil and Prince Bartona formed a pair on the fourth day.
This conversation was a thinly veiled attempt to fish for information, disguised as idle gossip.
âDo you really think those two are that close? Maybe you know something, since youâre one of the fiancĂ©e candidates...â
âWell, who knows? Luck plays a part tooâŠâ
I dodged the question, but personally, I do think those two get along well.
Theyâre paired up, after all.
If I were in Prince Karvenilâs position, I wouldnât want to hunt alongside someone who benefits from my death.
I wouldnât want to be subtly pushed toward an assassinâs trap.
That theyâre hunting together suggests a certain level of trust between them.
âOh my, Princess Roselia, your archery was truly splendid. If you join forces with Prince Bartona, you might win the joint trophy.â
Now she was probing about the engagement.
Despite previously saying, âIâm not fond of bloody matters, oh ho ho,â this lady seems quite enthusiastic.
âHehe, yes. If I can win the trophy⊠it would be a wonderful gift for my father. The king would surely bless usâŠâ
Prince Bartona is indeed the strongest candidate for the marriage alliance. Your interpretation is perfectly fine.
When I said that, the countess laughed, âI pray for your victory. Oh ho ho ho.â
âHow enviable. If only I were a better archer, I could enjoy this more⊠I suppose you practice regularly?â
âYes, of course. Similar tournaments are often held in my domainâŠâ
âOh, is that so? So, you get along with your family?â
Ah, thatâs the real point.
She wanted to ask if itâs true that I have a bad relationship with my stepmother and half-sister.
The previous talk about the princes was just a lead-in.
My relationship with Blanche closely resembles the relationship between those two princes.
This lady really knows how to hit where it hurts.
If I hesitate here, sheâll realize my relationship with my stepmother isnât good.
"Yes, of course. We get along well... Though, perhaps my father feels a bit out of place being the only man in a house full of women..."
We girls all get along just fine.
âor so I lie.
But since things would get messy if she dug too deep, I make sure to set some boundaries too.
"Speaking of family... I donât see your husband, Countess. Does he dislike hunting as well? Or perhaps, like my own father, is he off somewhere glaring daggers into the distance?"
I heard you gouged out your rebellious husbandâs eyes and locked him away.
Is that true?
When I asked, the Countessâs magical aura wavered ever so slightly.
Ah, sheâs shaken. So it is true.
"...Yes. Heâs staying back to watch over the estate."
"My, is that so... Is he still staring out at the sea, perhaps? One never knows when bandits may arrive, after all."
Thereâs an old saying in this worldââWatching the Western Sea.â
The closest equivalent from my previous life would be something like, âall pain and no gain.â
The saying originates from a tale of a long-past emperor who exiled his political rivals to the western coast.
That coast faced a vast sea with not a single island in sight. The odds of any foreign invader arriving were practically zero.
Itâs said that one general, demoted to that barren edge of the empire, stared so long at the shimmering sea and endured the salty winds so relentlessly that he eventually went blind.
And so the phrase came to mean âworrying over pointless things and getting nothing but grief in return.â
As sarcasm directed at the Countess, nothing could be more fitting.
"..."
The Countess didnât respond to my jab. Likely couldnât come up with a clever retort.
Instead, her cheek twitched slightly.
She was seething inside.
But hey, sheâs the one who pried into my personal matters firstâshe has no right to complain now.
This is karma.
Iâd love to say, Now this is what it means to âwatch the Western Seaâ, but it would be pointless if exposing her secrets ended up harming diplomatic relations.
Diplomacy isnât about winning arguments.
So, letâs sweeten things a little.
"By the way... Have you heard of something called soap?"
"Iâve heard itâs a popular cosmetic in the Duchy of Budoudarl..."
When I suddenly shifted topics, the Countess visibly raised her guard.
To that wary expression, I responded with a gentle smile.
"Itâs a wonderful product. Actually, I use it myself. So do my younger sisters. Though my stepmother doesnât seem too fond of it."
That earlier talkâyes, I do get along with my sisters.
But not with my stepmother.
I made sure the Countess got the message.
Her eyes widened in surprise.
She must not have expected me to reveal it so freely.
But truth be told, she couldâve found out just by planting a spy or two.
Compared to gouging out a husbandâs eyes and locking him away, a strained stepmother-stepdaughter relationship barely qualifies as scandalous.
It was harmless enough information to share.
And in doing so, I gained both leverage and goodwill.
A solid outcome.
"If youâd like, would you care to try it as well, Countess? I brought a few bars with meâI'd be happy to wrap some up as a gift."
"Oh my, how delightful. Iâve actually been wanting to try it."
"Is that so? Then if you find it to your liking, please let me know. Iâll introduce you to a merchant. Just between us, of courseâthis is a special favor."
I placed my index finger to my lips as I said it.
A little gesture that said, I wonât tell anyoneâso keep it just between us.
"Of course."
"Ufufufufu."
"Ohohohoho."
And so, we enjoyed a pleasant tea party together.
Sigh⊠I'm exhausted.
Before I knew it, four days had passed.
Four intense, draining days.
That's because most of the noblewomen paired with me were all... eccentric in one way or another.
They were all trying to gauge my personality, my governance policies once I inherit the throne, and my interpersonal relationships.
There was a constant sense of tension, as if letting my guard down would get my head chopped off.
The noblewomen I usually meet at balls are more easygoingâor in some cases, like my stepmother, if you poke them a bit, their flaws start falling out all over the place.
But these women werenât like that.
As expected, women who manage their own fiefs are made of stronger stuff.
You probably have to be, just to survive.
Of course, the same goes for me.
I have a reputation to uphold, so if someone takes a shot at me, I have to fire back.
Thatâs why our conversations turned into verbal skirmishes, both sides probing for weaknesses.
âŠItâs kind of silly, but when I think of these verbal skirmishes with noble ladies as "searching for each otherâs weak points," it almost feels like weâre engaged in some kind of intensely passionate lesbian deep kiss. Kind of sexy, honestly.
Totally pointless thought, thoughâŠ
Still, thanks to those deep-kiss-like exchanges, I was able to build quite a bit of rapport with some influential noblewomen.
Connections like theseâones unbound by factionsâare valuable, and I want to cherish them.
And then, the fifth day arrived.
âWell then, I look forward to working with you, Princess Roselia.â
âYes⊠Please guide me well, Prince Bartona.â
Today, I was paired with Prince Bartona for the hunting event.
I'm not aiming for victory or anything. I doubt Prince Bartona genuinely cares either, but getting zero results would be awkward.
I'd like to at least take down one creatureâŠ
âThere really are fewer of them by the fifth day, huh?â
I said this to Prince Bartona while using magical sensing.
Magical sensing is a form of magical control technique.
As the name suggests, it allows one to sense the direction, distance, and strength of magic within a magical entity.
Its accuracy, however, leaves much to be desired.
For example, itâs hard to distinguish between a magical beast and a magic-wielding human.
You might also get fooled by illusions of depthâlike visual perspectiveâso you can't easily tell if the magic source is truly strong or just nearby.
Besides, what youâre sensing is only the amount of magic being naturally released.
Someone skilled in magical control can suppress their presence. Though unless youâre an assassin, thereâs not much reason to go that farâŠ
A lot of hunting accidents happen because of how unreliable magical sensing is.
You think itâs a beast and attack, but it turns out to be a person. Or you think itâs a person and approach, only to get mauled by a beast. That kind of thing happens sometimes.
There are clumsy people in every world, and bad timing is just something that happens.
Thatâs why you stay alert, always checking your surroundings.
âŠWhich also makes it easy to find the right moment for a private conversation.
Not that I have any such plans, mind you.
âIndeed. My brother and I may have hunted them all down yesterday.â
Prince Bartona said this in a joking tone.
He and Prince Karvenil had gone hunting together yesterday, on the fourth day.
He's probably trying to emphasize how close they are.
From Prince Bartonaâs position, that makes perfect sense.
As it stands, there are no clear faults in Prince Karvenil.
Thereâs no justification for Bartona to become king by upending the traditional order of primogeniture and inheritance.
If he were to express even the slightest interest in the throne under these circumstances, people would suspect him of being greedy and power-hungry.
That would only hurt him⊠Even if, deep down, he did want the crown.
âOh my, you achieved that much? By the way⊠Between the Shared Cup and the Victory Cup, which honor would you prefer to attain, Prince Bartona?â
âWhy, the Shared Cup, of course. To me, nothing is more honorable than proving the strength of the bond between brothers.â
Just to be sure, I tried checking for any signs of ambition, but Prince Bartona denied it without the slightest hesitation.
His expression was composed, even cheerful. Not a flicker of magical turbulence in sight.
âŠIs it just my bias, or does that make him seem suspicious in its own right?
Prince Bartona has a bit of a shady voice and faceâlike the kind of guy who might suddenly declare, âI shall stand above the heavens!â or something. Honestly, I wouldnât be surprised if he betrayed us halfway through the story.
âMy, my! You two really do get along so well.â
That said, no matter what Prince Bartona may be thinking deep down, the chances of him achieving it are next to none. He canât claim the throne without my support, and I have absolutely no interest in the throne.
What Iâor rather, what the House of Budoudarl is seekingâis an alliance with the royal family. That means with King Oreanis and Prince Karvenil. Neither my father nor I would allow anything that would damage our relationship with them.
âŠUnless Prince Karvenil were to die suddenly. That would change things.
But of course, Bartona must already be fully aware of that. The very fact that heâs applying to be my husband suggests he has no real ambition for the crown.
âHow enviable.â
âOh? But Iâve heard that you and your sister get along wonderfully as well, Princess Roselia.â
Prince Bartona lowered his voice just slightly. The faint fluctuations in magic indicated he had activated his magical sensing. He must be anticipating a private, delicate conversation and is scanning the surroundings just in case.
âŠHe really is a good man.
âYes, of course. Sheâs a precious and adorable sister to me. She always calls me her big sis with such affection⊠But, sometimes I do wish I had someone I could look up to and admire as a big brother.â
Honestly, if I actually had a brother, my position wouldâve been much easier⊠but I suppose itâs no use pining for what I donât have.
âThatâs why I found myself thinkingâI wish I had a wonderful older brother too. I was a bit jealous of you, Prince Bartona.â
âAhh, I see.â
The punchline wasnât that she had a bad relationship with her sister or anything like that. Rather, it was that she wanted to call Prince Karvenil âbig brotherâ = wants to marry him = seeks a marriage alliance with the royal family.
âIn that case, youâre more than welcome to call either my elder brother⊠or me, your brother. Iâm sure my brother would be delighted to gain such an adorable little sister.â
Prince Bartona said it in a light, teasing tone.
I could already see where this joke was going, but I chose to play along.
âThatâs a very generous offer, but⊠wouldnât that cause trouble for King Oreanis? Adding yet another daughter with no blood relation to the family?â
âAhaha, whatever do you mean?â
Prince Bartona laughed as he delivered the final punchline.
âWhy, arenât we both children of the Bold King?â
King Yugape the Bold.
Yugape El Parteria was the founding monarch of this countryâthe Western Kingdom, under the Parteria Dynasty.
Starting with him, successive kings actively pursued political marriages, marrying off their daughters to influential lords across the realm. As a result, the great noble families of the kingdom are all distant cousins, sharing the blood of King Yugape.
The House of Buddudal is no exceptionâin fact, Prince Bartona and I are second cousins.
Of course, thatâs not something we usually go out of our way to emphasize. Among nobles, everyone is practically related, so blood ties are nothing unusual. Being related to the royal family isnât something to brag about anyway.
The House of Buddudal holds more history and prestige than the royal line to begin with.
âOh, thatâs right, isnât it? UfufuâŠâ
King Yugape originally held the title of Count of Parteria, with his domain limited to Parteria Cityânow the royal capitalâand its immediate surroundings.
While the current royal family possesses more land than back then, they still fall slightly short of qualifying as true great nobles.
Even so, one theory behind the kingdomâs continued stability is that the royal family has an abundance of children. By producing offspring left and right, they never run out of ammunition for political marriages.
Admittedly, this leads to disputes over inheritance, but putting that aside, having many children is still considered a virtue.
âOf course, even without a direct blood connection, there are ways to become parent and child⊠or siblings⊠butâoops.â
âA bit too forward, wasnât it?
Prince Bartona made a show of covering his mouth with his hand. He was probably alluding to how, if I married him, both he and my father would become part of the same family.
Come to think of it, this guyâs only twenty, yet he already has three illegitimate children with his mistresses.
Am I going to end up constantly getting pregnant too�
Ugh. I really donât want that.
My stomachâs starting to hurt.
Iâll prepare substitute women for you. So could you get them pregnant insteadâanyone whoâs not the bare minimum you need?
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