The Grand Duchess Is Defeated Again Today

The princess wakes up

hunt.

A custom passed down from a very long time ago by the human race to obtain food.

To survive, to spread offspring. Humans have lived by eating animals that are weaker than themselves.

weak meat meal.

The weak are meat, and the strong eat it.

It was the human race that understood this lesson better than any other race.

There was no particular difficulty in the act of hunting like this.

crumble-

“····.”

“Kaegaeng-!”

It was just a matter of aiming at the prey in front of you, and catching it with any weapon, be it a sword or a bow.

“You don’t see any hesitation in killing animals.”

It’s just that it’s not easy for people who aren’t used to dyeing weapons with blood.

“As far as I know, cowardly nobles can’t be killed because they’re afraid to see blood.”

As Mikhail said, there are nobles who do not participate in hunting competitions because they are reluctant to actually kill lives with their own hands.

“These are animals that would have died without me.”

That didn’t mean I was included in those nobles, though.

“Why do you think so?”

Hearing my answer, Mikhail asked me, with bright blue eyes.

I answered the question briefly.

“Isn’t it natural? Even after this tournament in the Imperial Family, there is no way to leave these animals in the forest owned by the Imperial Family.”

It wasn’t that I didn’t feel guilty about the wild animals that died at my hands.

I am not a cold-blooded human without blood or tears. Naturally, I felt uncomfortable about ending a living life with my own hands.

Because if the dead animals had not been hunted for prey and had continued to live in their original habitat, they would have at least lived longer than they do now at my hands.

But, as I just said with my mouth.

All wild animals designated as prey existing in this forest were destined to die after this competition.

Moreover, it is unknown what kind of pain the animals will experience and die in such a series of processes.

Piing-

“Keeek-!”

“So it’s good for animals too.”

I was hunting animals, thinking that it would be better to die painlessly at my hands now.

“······· By the way. Why are you following me? Weren’t you participating in a hunting contest?”

“What would be the benefit if I took part in this competition seriously. After all, all the prizes come from the royal pockets.”

“····.”

It wasn’t funny.

After all, the winning prize is given by the imperial family, so that doesn’t mean that the Crown Prince himself does not sincerely participate in the competition.

“Why do you have to fold?”

Obviously I was the only participant in this competition, but I couldn’t figure out why they were chasing after me.

“I don’t have any friends. The only person I could follow was you.”

“····.”

The word that comes out of the mouth of a prince who is to become an emperor and rule a wide continent in the future is that he has no friends.

It was really a story that a passing dog would laugh at.

Mikhail, seeing my expression rot in real time, hurriedly confessed his true intentions.

“…just kidding. Actually, I had something to ask about work earlier, so I followed.”

“If it happened before…”

“You’re talking about kissing Princess Valencia’s hand in front of a lot of onlookers.”

“····.”

Apparently, Mikhail also saw me and the princess before.

To be honest, it was very shameful to hope that Mikhail would not have witnessed it in a situation where everyone’s attention was focused.

“If I had to sum up the scene in one word, it was very impressive.”

The Crown Prince, who watched my reaction for a moment, continued.

“I felt it at the last banquet, but I don’t think you want to hide from others that your engagement with the princess is not just a political engagement.”

“······Is that so?”

“If you’re a normal noble, you tend to try to keep those feelings out as much as possible so that your weaknesses aren’t exposed.

Mikhail’s insight was correct if correct.

It was normal for a noble with some power not to get caught on something valuable that could turn into a weakness.

Because I didn’t really want to hide it from others, even from Rebecca, whom I never intended to tell anyone that I like Rebecca.

Of course, it wasn’t like this from the beginning.

Rather, when she first met Rebecca and fell in love with her for the first time, she was afraid that she would be taken hostage and be swayed by the princess, didn’t she hide her heart?

Even after we got married, or even when we were still engaged in the first place.

I was worried that I would be run over by Rebecca, who could never say that she had a good personality.

“It’s because I don’t think there is any particular reason to hide it.”

However, the reason why my behavior now is different from the past is because the relationship between me and the princess is different from the past.

Even if you don’t know when or what triggers it.

It is true that the way Rebecca looks at me has changed significantly compared to the past.

Rebecca always blushed and couldn’t raise her head even if she heard a little embarrassing words.

Now, I’ve reached a point where anyone who hears it can take it for granted with only a slight blush on her face that she would be conscious of as clear fluttering.

······· Even though the princess herself still doesn’t seem to have noticed her feelings clearly.

“Isn’t it natural for a fiance to love his fiancée?”

It was also seen as a virtue of a true fiancée to realize that feeling directly.

“······Right.”

Mikhail listened to everything I had to say and nodded with a small smile.

“I’m off to catch the next game.”

“How dare you express it in words. I was going to follow you anyway.”

“····.”

I look pathetic at Mikhail, who seems to have the most work in the world, while moving my body to find my next prey.

She did not let go of the pink handkerchief embroidered with strawberries that her fiancee had made herself.

***

Rebecca was very regretful.

“So then I…”

“Really? I’m so envious!”

“Is that right? I think so too!”

Because it was never her taste to drink tea and chat with other noble girls.

No matter how much I thought about it, I should have rejected Albert’s request at that time.

The score at the time was 20 to 21, so just hitting the arrow on the target was actually her victory.

– So, why don’t you lose for the poor fiancée who has not yet received a sincere gift from her beloved fiancée?

And again, I was possessed by that devil’s sweet voice.

Because I couldn’t refuse the tickling whisper in my ear.

That’s why she’s sitting right now, listening to the babbling of other young girls who are chatting.

“Valencia girl, are you okay? Your complexion doesn’t look good.”

“······it’s okay.”

If it’s fortunate, is it that Isabella Bluebell, who even sent a letter directly, is sitting next to her?

Isabella, who seems very accustomed to this kind of position, helped her adapt, as she had never experienced such a position.

I couldn’t figure out why he was doing him a favor, although he hadn’t seen her a few times.

I am a very grateful person. Rebecca thought so.

“By the way, did the others give you a handkerchief?”

“····.”

I was just a little ignorant.

Isabella, who can also be seen as the focal point of the young girls gathered here, throws up the topic of conversation.

“I told my fiance…”

“My mother told me to give my poor brother one handkerchief…”

“······· Secretly gave it to the person I was longing for.”

It was only natural that the young girls’ attention was drawn to the subject.

“Did Valencia Youngae also give her fiance a handkerchief?”

“····.”

For her, this was a very unwelcome situation.

“Of course! Didn’t you see that before? How did the princess’s fiance kneel down and kiss the back of her hand?”

“Ah! If that’s the case then…”

“Yes! Of course, the princess gave the fiancée a handkerchief!”

Not surprisingly, because her fiance had already had an accident.

At least her head couldn’t understand Albert.

What was Albert thinking?

What kind of thoughts were you usually thinking about, and did you think of kissing the back of your hand in front of so many people?

Of course, it was true that she had ordered her fiance to kneel if she wanted a handkerchief.

It was a plan to make Albert, who had almost as much pride as hers, kneel in front of so many eyes, he didn’t want to be kissed on the back of his hand.

·······Well, you’re not even the main character of a romance novel.

Albert is very conscious of the gaze of other people, especially of her fiancee, so it was clear that he thought it would look cool if he acted like that.

That’s so stupid and disrespectful.

I tried to conclude that somehow it wasn’t cool, I really didn’t feel anything.

pounding-

A foolish heart that didn’t want to listen to a single word from its master was beating like a fool.

The back of her hand, where her fiancée’s lips touched, was still tickling.

It was as if he would never forget that feeling.

and.

It was she who had been engulfed in a feeling of tickling among the noble girls who chattered for a long time, that she came to her senses.

“It’s a big deal!”

It was when a soldier wearing armor with the imperial design on it entered the tent.

“Isn’t the imperial family… a soldier?”

“Yeah, this isn’t a place for gentlemen. Shall I kick you out?”

Naturally, the other noble maidens did not like the sudden intrusion of the soldier.

“Wait a minute, you look urgent. Let’s hear it first.”

Thanks to Isabella, who realized that the soldier’s condition looked bleak, the soldier was able to share the news she had brought with everyone.

“It is said that the Crown Prince and Confucius Xernias are missing…”

“······I beg your pardon?”

The news that her fiance and the prince have disappeared in the forest.