* * *
“Ugh…”
Holding his throbbing head, Eren slowly sat up.
Cain hovered nearby, concern etched across his face.
It seemed he’d stayed at Eren’s side the whole time.
“Are you alright, Count? You collapsed so suddenly…”
“…Ah. I’m fine.”
Reassuring Cain—who seemed more shaken than he was—Eren looked around.
He was sure he had seen Melody right before losing consciousness.
Scanning his surroundings, he realized they were inside one of the tents set up within the estate grounds.
“How long… was I out?”
It didn’t feel like he’d been unconscious long.
Maybe briefly, but no more.
The sun hadn’t set yet, making it easy to guess.
He was certain it hadn’t been an entire day.
“About… an hour.”
Cain hesitated slightly as he checked the time.
The symptoms were familiar.
The overpowering floral scent hit him in a sudden wave, making his vision blur.
His breathing quickened.
His body flushed with heat.
It was like… his desire igniting.
He had experienced this once before.
That night spent with Ashard.
The following morning when he met Julius for a meal—it was the same then.
But Julius should still be inside the hunting grounds for the tournament.
And the person he’d been with just before collapsing was Cain.
“It was the brooch.”
Before he could connect the dots himself, Melody’s voice interrupted.
She approached, holding the shattered remnants of the brooch out to Eren.
“I could feel the magic in it.”
“Magic power…?”
“It seems likely that the one who stole the Count’s magic is the culprit.”
“But how would Cain…?”
Eren turned to Cain with a questioning look, but the answer came from Melody instead.
“It looks like that knight was given something in advance, knowing he’d come into contact with the Count. The letter mentioned Viscount Yulta’s name, but…”
Melody trailed off without finishing her sentence.
Still, it was easy to guess what she left unsaid — that it couldn’t possibly be Helid.
I didn’t think Helid was the culprit either.
He was arrogant, relying solely on his own strength, but not so foolish as to blatantly reveal his own name.
‘There’s no way Helid would give such a luxury item to Kane, who’s merely a knight…’
Excluding Helid, there were two prime suspects: Carlyle Firentium and Julius Renan. Among them, the one most likely to resort to such underhanded tactics was—
‘Julius Renan.’
The facts were already known, thanks to my knowledge of the original story.
Carlyle wasn’t the type to handle things so cowardly.
If he intended to kill someone, he’d openly swing his sword.
Helid acted impulsively without thinking things through, while Carlyle only moved when he was certain there’d be no repercussions.
In other words, if Carlyle had decided to act, the target would’ve already been dead.
Eren’s expression gradually darkened.
He tried to compose his face, mindful of Cain and Melody standing nearby, but it wasn’t so easy to hide.
Helid was easily ruled out — he wasn’t the type to orchestrate something like this.
Carlyle wouldn’t stoop to this level.
That left Julius as the most plausible suspect, but… something felt off.
Others who didn’t know them well might be fooled, but Eren could see through it instantly.
It felt almost like they wanted him to notice, as if they’d deliberately left clues behind.
“It seems you have someone in mind.”
“…I’m not completely sure, but the odds are high.”
Just what exactly was Julius scheming?
Outwardly, he was dazzling — someone anyone would envy.
But you could never truly know his heart.
And those whose true selves were hidden were always the most dangerous.
Julius fit that description perfectly.
“Could it be… the Marquis Renan?”
A cautious question, uncertain yet hopeful — Cain’s eyes searched Eren’s face, as if begging for a denial.
Eren simply smiled faintly without answering.
Mistaking that for reassurance, Cain smiled back brightly.
“I thought so… I didn’t want to believe it. He’s the one who took me in when I had nowhere else to go, letting me join the Renan family’s knights…”
Relief was evident in his voice.
Seeing Cain like that, Eren suddenly realized — his innocence made him so easy to use.
There’s no way Julius would welcome someone into his knights for no reason.
Of course, being from the same Epentel bloodline couldn’t be ignored, but Julius wasn’t sentimental enough to act purely on that.
Unaware of the truth, Cain continued to shower Julius with praise and gratitude.
Eren forced an awkward smile.
To Eren, Julius was nothing but a threat to avoid.
Yet to Cain, Julius was almost divine — worthy of endless admiration.
The stark contrast between their perceptions left Eren with an indescribable, unsettling feeling.
“…But, Your Highness, why are you here? I thought you were participating in the tournament.”
‘Earlier, I’d seen her following Elyrion somewhere, so I assumed they headed to the hunting grounds together.’
The question came a bit late, but Eren looked at Melody and asked.
“Uncle told me to stay close to the Count, just in case something happened.”
‘…Lord Ashard?’
At her answer, Eren’s mouth opened and closed soundlessly, unable to speak.
Not only had they placed him beside a member of the royal family without his knowledge, but now the Princess herself was shadowing him like a bodyguard.
It was excessive — no, beyond excessive.
Still, after what just happened, Eren couldn’t argue.
If Melody hadn’t been nearby, things might’ve turned out much worse.
‘Did they anticipate this? But… enough to pull her out of the tournament?’
Ashard’s actions always exceeded common sense, and Eren pressed his lips together.
She had definitely heard it earlier — the promise that the winner of the tournament would receive the ancient magic spell.
And she clearly longed for that spell. Ashard couldn’t be unaware of that.
‘Ashard aside… but the Princess agreed to this?’
Questions piled up in his head, furrowing his brow before he even realized it.
Melody’s eyes flickered anxiously as she noticed Eren’s crumpled expression.
“I… I’ll step outside for a bit. I’ll be waiting, so please come out when you feel better, Count.”
Like a guilty party fleeing the scene, Melody awkwardly excused herself and left.
Her suspicious, evasive behavior made Eren narrow his eyes.
Despite her words about recovering, Eren already felt much better and soon followed her out of the tent.
In the center, the spoils from the hunt were being stacked, each marked with the crest of its respective house.
Though the competition had only just begun, two houses were already standing out.
‘The Duke of Fridit’s house… and the Count of Hessen’s house?’
It was no surprise that Ashard was in the lead, but the other house caught him off guard.
He knew the eldest son of House Hessen was an exceptional hunter, but in the original, the main spotlight was always on the sub-male lead, Helid Yulta.
Naturally, the Yulta house should’ve been following close behind — Helid was supposed to win, according to the original storyline.
‘But… how is that possible?’
Turning his gaze toward the Yulta house’s area, Eren shook his head in disbelief.
There wasn’t a single catch piled up — the spot was completely empty.
For a moment, Eren wondered if Helid hadn’t participated at all, but that wasn’t it.
The Yulta family’s area was deserted, the tent wide open as if no one had been there to begin with.
‘What the hell is happening?’
Eren muttered under his breath, puzzled as he made his way toward his seat.
That’s when a knight burst out from the hunting grounds, face drained of color.
The moment Eren spotted him, the knight’s desperate cry rang out, chilling everyone to the bone.
Every noble present turned deathly pale at his words.
“Injuries! We need immediate aid for the Duke of Fridit’s house — hurry!”
Nothing today was going as expected.
But above all else, there was one thing Eren hadn’t wanted to hear — and that was the name screamed in sheer desperation from the knight’s lips.
At that moment, Eren’s body trembled with fear, his face drained of all color.
The overwhelming emotion surging through him was terror.
Because the only person from House Fridit inside those hunting grounds… was Ashard.
* * *
