Chapter 11
Blair gripped the reins tightly and galloped his horse with vigor. The conifers planted in the hunting grounds disappeared behind him in an instant. His beloved steed, running at full speed after a long time, showed visible signs of delight. Since Blair had been staying at the Imperial Palace, there were few opportunities for his horse to gallop freely.
The horse began climbing the mountain with much more vigor than usual. Blair stroked its abundant mane. The horse exhaled through its nostrils with a neigh as it ran uphill. Blair’s horse was counted among the finest in the empire. It was also a comrade that had shared life and death with him, traversing battlefields together.
“Yes, both you and I are too constrained in this narrow imperial city. Let’s go down to Gladius territory and ride together every day.”
Blair lowered his body to reduce wind resistance and whispered into the horse’s ear. Having decided to abandon the self-imposed restraints on his heart, he felt a sense of peace. Though separated from the hunting party, he wasn’t afraid. He was a man who had survived alone with just this horse on the battlefield of Ropnur. He wasn’t one to be frightened by mere wild animals.
Especially not after declaring he would catch the white tiger. The imperial hunting grounds were filled with good game. They even deliberately released game in spring. The long-dwelling white tiger would likely be plump and well-fed. Blair made his horse follow the stream flowing down the mountain. All creatures secure water sources for their survival.
As he went upstream, the water flow diminished. When he reached a point where the stream had narrowed to the width of a brook, he spotted large footprints. Blair dismounted and placed his own foot next to the print to compare sizes. It was as large as a human footprint.
The large carnivores living on this mountain were tigers, wolves, and bears. However, bears hadn’t been sighted recently, and wolves this large didn’t exist in the Crassia Empire. Among the game spotted last year, the largest was a stag. Then, the owner of these footprints must be the white tiger he was after.
He had found his prey’s tracks.
Blair grinned and checked his quiver. He had brought fifteen arrows in total. Having used one to catch a bird earlier, fourteen remained. He had five daggers. This would be sufficient. Though he had never hunted a tiger before, if a tiger was to be the finale of the last hunting competition he would participate in, it couldn’t be more perfect. He wanted to end with the best finish possible.
The key was to capture the tiger with minimal damage to its hide. Blair didn’t anticipate failure at all. He was confident of success. Blair began following the footprints. It was the characteristic single-line walking of felines. Although the instinct to conceal tracks remained, it seemed that the tiger, being the king of this mountain, hadn’t made much effort to hide its traces. This was an ideal condition for a tracker.
Blair began tracking the tiger. After climbing almost to the peak, Blair finally encountered the white tiger. With bow strung, Blair calmly shot an arrow that grazed the tiger’s tail. Startled by the deliberately missed arrow, the tiger began running downhill. It was likely the first time the mountain’s top predator had faced a threat.
Blair skillfully rode his horse, driving the tiger downwards. Although Blair’s own mobility was far inferior to the white tiger’s, he was fortunate to have a swift partner. While not particularly fond of hunting, Blair was a warrior hardened on the battlefield. He was experienced in efficiently wounding opponents. The principles of driving and attacking prey were essentially the same.
Skillfully balancing on horseback with bow in hand, Blair shot the tiger’s left hind leg. Though he aimed to minimize damage to the hide, crippling the tiger’s leg was the only option. It was natural given they weren’t facing each other head-on.
“KRRRAAARG!”
The enormous tiger’s roar echoed through the mountains. It was a sound that would terrify most people, but Blair didn’t change his expression as he nocked another arrow. The arrow was deliberately modified with a bent tip to form a hook, making it difficult for the beast to pull out. Even with one injured leg, a tiger remained formidable.
Without hesitation, Blair shot the right leg as well. The arrow accurately lodged in the muscle, making it difficult for the tiger to run as before. Especially with both hind legs injured—legs that serve as supports particularly on downhill terrain—the tiger’s speed decreased significantly.
Blair galloped ahead of the tiger and waited in a flat clearing to confront it. Grrrr. A threatening growl emerged, but Blair didn’t flinch. The best way to avoid damaging the hide was to aim for the eyes or mouth to injure the internal organs. Just as the tiger leaped up from the ground, attempting to strike Blair on horseback with its front paw, Blair calmly shot another arrow into its wide-open mouth.
The rotating arrow passed through the mouth and lodged in the internal organs. The impact to its insides caused the tiger to fall back to the ground rather than completing its leap. As the tiger fell, Blair dismounted and drew the dagger strapped to his right thigh. After climbing onto the back of the writhing tiger, he choked its neck with his left arm while stabbing the nape with his dagger.
KIEEEK! The white tiger thrashed in its death throes, but Blair, firmly mounted on its back, didn’t waver. After strangling it for some time, the tiger’s body went limp. Confirming the tiger’s death, Blair fired a signal flare. Since they were in a clearing not far from the mountain’s base where they had started, the knights would arrive soon.
Blair skillfully began skinning the tiger. Before long, the sound of knights panting as they climbed the mountain could be heard.
“Over here.”
Blair raised his voice to indicate his exact location.
“Yes! We’ll be right there.”
The knights’ eyes widened at the sight of the large tiger skin Blair was holding. They approached and examined the white tiger’s pelt from various angles.
“Did you catch this yourself?”
“Of course I did. Did you think the tiger died on its own?”
Blair grinned, wiping the blood splattered on his face. As the blood smeared across his cheek following his fingers, it added to his wild appearance.
“No, not at all. You’re just incredible. I was simply surprised.”
The knights couldn’t hide their admiration.
“Take good care of it; it will be presented to His Majesty. I’ll go down first.”
“Very well, sir!”
After entrusting the transportation of the skinned tiger to his subordinates, Blair mounted his horse again and began descending the mountain. His horse’s gait was exceptionally light, having enjoyed a good run after a long time. When Blair appeared, all eyes in the clearing turned to him. With everyone scattered to enjoy hunting, only Kyle, Aaron, and a few noble ladies remained.
Everyone’s attention was drawn to the white tiger skin Blair had brought on horseback.
“Blair? What on earth is that?”
“As I said earlier. A white tiger.”
“What? You really caught a white tiger? Wait, was there really a white tiger living here? Is that genuinely a white tiger skin?”
Aaron exclaimed in shock, offering Blair a handkerchief moistened with water to wipe the blood from his face. Taking the handkerchief, Blair casually wiped his face.
“They’ll bring it down soon, so you can see it then.”
Blair confidently smiled as he handed the skin to the soldiers. The skin would be cleaned of blood, tanned, and then presented to Kyle. The skin itself was quite heavy, requiring two strong soldiers to barely lift it.
“Once the tanning is complete, you can drape it over the imperial throne, or have it made into clothing for winter wear. This is my sincere gift, and I would prefer Your Majesty to keep it rather than giving it to others.”
Blair smiled at Kyle as he wiped the blood from his face with the handkerchief. Kyle’s expression remained rigid as he listened to Blair’s words. Indeed, Blair was preparing to leave. With everyone scattered—some retrieving the tiger, some escorting the high nobility, others moving the skin—not many knights and soldiers remained. Only the minimum personnel needed to guard the emperor remained in the clearing. Only Aaron, Blair, Kyle, and a few knights were left.
That’s when it happened.
Feeling inexplicably uneasy, Blair quickly scanned the surroundings. It was the instinct of a warrior who had spent years on the battlefield. As he thoroughly examined the area, his eyes met with someone who had climbed a tree across from them, concealing their presence. It was a person with light brown hair and eyes of a similar color. This person was aiming a bow directly at Kyle.
Though the person’s eyes met Blair’s, the brown-skinned individual’s gaze didn’t waver. The arrow left the man’s hand. It was a situation similar to what Blair had just experienced, but this time the prey was ‘Kyle.’ The decision took time, but the action was instantaneous.
“Look out!”
Blair grabbed Kyle’s sleeve and pulled him aside, shielding him with his own back. The arrow struck Blair’s back. Kuk. Everything happened in the blink of an eye. The arrow rotated fiercely, tearing flesh and breaking bone.
The arrowhead seemed to be coated with a deadly poison. The venom raced through Blair’s entire body in an instant. His vision blurred and his head spun. He knew this was no ordinary matter.
Blair recognized the ethnic minority with brown hair and brown skin. They were the Kalshon minority, to which Sebia, the mother of First Prince Joshua who had competed with Kyle for the throne until the end, belonged. That’s why Sebia used the surname Kalshon, derived from her ethnic group’s name. Blair had thought all succession disputes had ended after Kyle ascended to the throne, but it seemed they had been waiting for everyone’s guard to drop.
Damn it, why now of all times? If it had happened a year later, it would have had nothing to do with me. He had planned to leave the palace immediately after this event, but now he would never return to his territory. As a distinguished warrior, Blair instinctively knew this place would be his end.
Beyond resentment, curses flowed from his lips. I should have cut off Joshua’s lifeline five years ago. Sparing Prince Joshua out of supposed generosity had been a mistake. Why now of all times, damn it?
[To be continued in the next part…]
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
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