Chapter 160
“This way, please. I’ve prepared a separate place on the second floor.”
Theobalt approached me directly, as if shielding me with his body. Then he naturally guided me. As promised, I didn’t even glance at Walter and changed direction.
As I followed him up to the second floor and into the designated room, he stopped Luwen.
“Guards should normally wait in the garden, but seeing as the young master cherishes you, I’ve allowed you this far.”
It was natural for Luwen to look at me. It wouldn’t matter if I requested it.
“If Lord Theobalt doesn’t mind, I’d like him to come in with us.”
Since I had no intention of pushing Luwen away from the beginning, I made the suggestion according to his wishes.
“You seem to cherish him even more than rumors suggest. However…”
Theobalt paused briefly, rubbing his chin with his index finger.
“I wish to have a private conversation with the young master.”
I delayed my response due to the subtle nuance in his answer. His emphasis on “private conversation” seemed to suggest he wanted to give me an update on Luwen’s test.
“Luwen. I’m sorry, but I’ll go in alone.”
Luwen grabbed my arm, but it seemed reflexive as he immediately withdrew his hand and hid it behind his back.
“…Yes.”
It wouldn’t be good for Luwen to learn I’d made a deal regarding his senior knight examination. If he thought I was going through trouble for his sake, he might try to dissuade me, saying he’d take the test next year. Also, pretending to like Theobalt might not work.
‘I do feel a bit uncomfortable.’
Not having the courage to look at Luwen, I just entered the room. Theobalt, who had been waiting at the entrance, closed the door.
The interior was similar to a reception room. I pulled out a chair at the square table in the center and sat down. I was concerned about Luwen left alone outside. Already, I wasn’t sure if I could follow through with my plan.
‘I’ll have to make it up to him later.’
Since I’ve upset him, I’m willing to do whatever he wants. Of course, the 100 kisses owed for upsetting me are separate, so I’ll collect those too.
“I’ve arranged for the meal to be brought here. My father plans to stay at the imperial palace tonight, so there’s no need to go to the dining hall.”
“That’s fine. More importantly, please arrange a meal for Luwen.”
I thought it would be better to send him to eat rather than having him wait in the corridor. Theobalt readily agreed.
“To update you on the situation, I’ve first approached those who are my acquaintances or easily persuaded. The results are positive.”
He looked at me with slightly expectant eyes, like a child seeking praise. Rather than needlessly holding back, it would be better to provide adequate encouragement to make him work harder.
“Already? I thought it would take longer.”
“I’ve merely solved the easiest puzzles quickly. I haven’t even attempted the difficult challenges yet.”
“I see. Still, I’m not worried. It seems everything is going according to plan.”
The ultimate goal of gradually expanding his allies would be to tackle the stubborn Deputy Minister of Sword Affairs, but he was deliberately acting weak. So I gave him the words he wanted to hear—that I believed in his abilities.
“Seeing how quickly you saw through me, I must have shown obvious discontent.”
This time, I just smiled instead of answering. I was already tired, despite having met only a short while ago. I wanted to quickly leave with Luwen.
“Oh, I have something for you.”
He took out a folded paper from his chest and handed it to me. It was a list with dates and times. It seemed he had specified dates he wanted me to visit, and they were quite sporadic.
‘I thought he would ask me to come more frequently, but this is unexpected.’
Moreover, at a glance, there didn’t seem to be any pattern.
“These are the dates and times when both Walter and I will be at the mansion. You don’t need to come on all these days, but when you do, I hope you’ll match these times.”
“Ah, I understand.”
He seems to have judged that seeing me directly, as today, would have more impact than just hearing about my visits. I carefully refolded the paper and put it in my inner pocket.
“And there’s a day when I’d like you to come with your guard.”
When I wondered about his specific mention of Luwen, Theobalt mentioned a hunting banquet to be held a week later.
“It’s a hunting banquet hosted by my father for socializing and networking. Deputy Minister of Sword Affairs, Marquis Hooper, will also be attending.”
I know that the hunting banquet hosted by Margrave Lorentz is held annually. My father used to attend with my sister. After his passing, my sister attended alone. I was concerned about my sister going alone and felt sorry for her, so I had asked if I should go with her.
‘I’ll just accept your concern. Fei shouldn’t be out in the cold for nothing.’
She didn’t take me, saying winter hunting was quite harsh.
As a result, I’ve never participated. Since I wasn’t interested in hunting banquets to begin with, I don’t know much about the participating families either.
‘Is he trying to show Luwen to the Deputy Minister of Sword Affairs?’
But it didn’t seem to be just that reason. There’s no guarantee the Deputy Minister would automatically like Luwen just by seeing him.
“This year’s hunting banquet is likely to be more dynamic than usual. There might be an opportunity to showcase skills to Marquis Hooper.”
Theobalt looked quite confident. I wasn’t sure what his plan was, but he seemed to intend to create an opportunity for Luwen to demonstrate his abilities to the Deputy Minister.
‘The answer must lie in why he described it as “dynamic”.’
Aside from whether Luwen would want to leave my side, if there’s an opportunity for him to show his skills, that’s not bad. Marquis Hooper was an excellent knight, so if he saw Luwen fight, he would surely recognize his talent. He wouldn’t give special treatment, but at least he could leave a good impression.
‘It seems the plan is to first get his attention and then gradually approach him.’
If there had been more time, he wouldn’t have invited me to an outdoor event held in winter, but with less than two months until the senior knight examination at the imperial palace, he couldn’t afford to be leisurely.
“May I ask why you expect it to be dynamic?”
“Recently, traces of monster groups have been discovered near the hunting grounds.”
Theobalt said he had separately suggested to Margrave Lorentz to send people to exterminate them, but due to the rapid decrease in animal numbers near the hunting grounds because of the monsters, they decided to change the target to monster extermination.
‘Indeed. That would certainly make it dynamic.’
It’s a banquet attended by the head of the Imperial Guard from our family and the Deputy Minister of Sword Affairs. The Hooper family has also traditionally held the position of Captain of the First Imperial Knight Order. Other participating families are probably similar.
With such people gathered, they wouldn’t worry about a group of monsters. If a large-scale extermination force was needed, they would have canceled the hunting banquet, so it must be a relatively manageable group, but…
“What kind of monsters are they?”
I asked just in case. Even if it’s a shortcut, if it looks dangerous, I won’t take Luwen.
“Ogres.”
Bipedal creatures like humans but larger and moving in groups. They have good regenerative abilities and are strong, making them tricky opponents. However, they lack intelligence, making their actions stupid and simple.
‘They would be disastrous for those with mediocre skills, but easy opponents for imperial knights.’
It was reasonable to declare them as entertainment.
“I understand. We’ll attend with the Margrave.”
“Yes. I’ll make sure preparations are made for you to stay as warm as possible.”
“Thank you.”
My sister would probably attend this year too. Though she knows my purpose, I doubted she would readily agree, so I was wondering how to persuade her when something crossed my mind.
‘Come to think of it, in the original story, assassins were sent to eliminate my sister and the Second Prince during a hunting competition.’
Of course, that was the hunting competition organized by the imperial family, so it’s clearly different. Moreover, the timing was much later, and even the season was different.
‘That was in summer… I’m not sure exactly which year it happens.’
In the original story, the two are pursued by assassins and isolated, but in the end, they manage to escape on their own as expected of protagonists. In the process, the Second Prince is injured protecting my sister, but that becomes the crucial moment that connects their hearts.
‘Should I warn them? Or should I let things follow the original story?’
If I warn them, only the Second Prince gets hurt, so maybe it’s fine. But it feels uncomfortable, like I’m interfering with my sister’s romance.
‘But I’m anxious about doing nothing. If I assume things will go well like in the original story and they don’t…’
With this incident, the First Prince’s power will be somewhat reduced, so the assassination attempt itself might not happen. Or it might happen sooner.
‘Luwen wasn’t injured, the timing of my father being poisoned was different, I’m alive, the slave auction issue has surfaced, and Adrian will also survive.’
There were plenty of possibilities for the original story to deviate.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
