* * *
However, the peaceful time did not last long.
The Crown Prince, who had been sleeping soundly beside Joel, suddenly sensed an unusual atmosphere outside and opened his eyes wide.
Ahem, ahem-ahem.
Someone cleared their throat a few times from outside the tent. It was the danger signal sent by the Knight Commander, Abe.
The Crown Prince quickly sat up.
As Joel, who had woken up right after, rubbed his eyes and was about to ask what was happening, the Crown Prince immediately covered Joel’s mouth.
Was a band of thieves targeting their tent?
Dealing with a disorganized gang of thieves would be no difficult matter with the armed knights providing escort, but it could become troublesome if the opposing party was an assassination squad sent by a noble or a foreign royal family.
The Crown Prince quietly got up and first grabbed his sword.
“Don’t go…”
Joel, belatedly realizing that the situation outside was taking an unusual turn, grabbed hold of the Crown Prince’s sleeve and hung onto it.
Joel had seen the Crown Prince’s demonstrations a few times during their swordsmanship lessons and knew that the Crown Prince was skilled in swordsmanship and combat, but he could not guarantee that a real battle would be the same as practice.
He could not let the Crown Prince, who was not even wearing armor, go out into the unknown dangers that lurked outside.
“Do not come out until I call you, and if anything happens to me, go to Baron Bennet’s estate and ask for help. The estate will appear after half a day’s walk to the southwest. The compass is in that bag, so pack it now.”
“Y-Your Highness.”
“It will be fine.”
The Crown Prince kissed the back of Joel’s hand, then quickly moved and disappeared outside the tent. This time, Joel did not have a chance to stop him.
Joel, trembling with fear, was startled when something sharp flew and pierced the deerskin tent.
He managed to identify it as an arrowhead by the moonlight.
“Who goes there!”
The outcry of Knight Commander Abe marked the beginning of the full-fledged commotion.
Shadows darted anxiously outside the tent, and unidentified assailants cried out in an enraged voice, “That man! That man is the Crown Prince!”
The sound of clashing swords and loud and small screams erupted from all directions.
He wanted to rush out immediately and check if the Crown Prince was safe, but since the Crown Prince had strictly told him not to go outside, he could only wait for the commotion to end.
And besides, he, who did not know how to wield a sword, would only be useless if he went out.
On the soft sheepskin bedding, Joel shuddered, repeating to himself over and over that he would die if the Crown Prince died.
He was deeply regretting not stopping the Crown Prince when he had stepped forward to resolve his father’s case directly.
And then.
At the end of a wait that felt like an eternity, someone roughly pulled open the entrance of the tent from the outside.
“Joel!”
Fortunately, the person who burst into the tent was the Crown Prince. Joel wanted to run to the Crown Prince right away, but his legs were weakened by relief, and he could not even stand up.
He was finally able to rise with the urgent support of the approaching Crown Prince.
“Your Highness…”
“It’s okay now. It’s over.”
The Crown Prince held Joel’s body, which was about to collapse powerlessly, in a firm embrace.
A strong smell of blood wafted from his arms.
Only then did Joel realize that the Crown Prince’s body was soaked with blood, and he frantically examined the Crown Prince’s condition.
“Your Highness, what is all this blood? Are you hurt somewhere?”
“No. I just got drenched in the blood of the attackers during the fight. Don’t worry.”
As the Crown Prince was comforting the frightened Joel, Knight Commander Abe pushed the tent flap aside and entered.
“Lord Joel, I apologize, but could you come here for a moment?”
“What is the matter?”
It was the Crown Prince who answered Abe’s question.
Towards the Crown Prince, who looked annoyed at being interrupted, Abe bowed his head and said, “Ah, yes. That is…”
“Since Lord Joel’s biological father, Baron Bennet’s estate, is nearby, I would like to ask Lord Joel to confirm the identity of the attackers once.”
“What relation does Joel have to those scoundrels for you to request such a thing?”
“Pardon? W-Well…”
Abe trailed off in confusion.
Since Baron Bennet’s estate was the nearest civilian settlement in this vast forest, it was only natural for him to request identity confirmation from Joel.
Besides, didn’t the Crown Prince himself agree just moments ago when they confirmed the attackers’ corpses and concluded that they seemed closer to peasants than to a trained group of assassins or a band of thieves?
“I forbid it. I cannot let Joel see the corpses. How can a child like Joel be expected to look at such horrible things? If he receives a severe shock because of it, will you take responsibility?”
“Um, Your Highness, I’m okay…”
As the Crown Prince reacted with unnecessary intensity, Joel, who had been watching their exchange, quietly interjected.
“Even if you are okay, I am not. Listen, Abe. Stop talking nonsense and hurry up and prepare to leave.”
“But, Your Highness.”
Confirming whether the attackers were related to Baron Bennet’s estate was a very important matter.
If they truly were Baron Bennet’s tenants, it could mean that a revolt had broken out in his estate.
It was a situation where they might need to turn the carriage towards Count Grey’s castle and request additional troop support, and Abe was simply dumbfounded by the Crown Prince, who was adamantly refusing to let Joel see the bodies.
“Your Highness, I truly am fine. I will be back quickly.”
Joel, who roughly understood the seriousness of the situation, also tried to follow Abe out, but the Crown Prince firmly stopped him.
He pulled Joel into an embrace and commanded Abe to withdraw in a fierce tone.
However, they could not leave without identifying the attackers.
Fortunately, Robert, who had been watching the situation outside the tent, stepped forward, saying, “Um, Sir Abe. I am also from the same area as Lord Joel. I have spent a longer time at Baron Bennet’s estate than Lord Joel, so I think I might be more helpful with the identity confirmation.”
Abe finally looked relieved and was able to leave the tent.
“I really, really am fine though…”
Joel muttered once more, feeling awkward.
To be honest, he was starting to get a little curious about the outside situation, but the Crown Prince’s sudden over-protectiveness was making him feel embarrassed and bewildered.
And in truth, Joel was not that afraid of seeing corpses.
It was a natural consequence, given that he had already seen the coachman’s corpse in his past life, and he had even experienced dying himself.
“Joel, I know you are not fine. There is no need to force yourself. By the way, I think I need to go out and check the situation myself for a moment… I will call Benjamin, so wait here safely with him.”
Even though Joel strongly declined, the Crown Prince insisted on having Benjamin called.
He only left after Benjamin, accompanied by a guard knight, arrived at the tent where Joel was staying.
His attitude was as if Joel were a timid five-year-old child.
To Joel, who was only scratching his cheek in embarrassment, Benjamin asked with a worried expression.
“Joel! Are you hurt anywhere?”
“No, I’ve been here the whole time… What about you? Are you okay?”
“I’m okay, but Felix got burned by the fire set by the attackers.”
At Benjamin’s words, Joel quickly examined Felix.
Felix had received minor burns on his back and elbows while rescuing Benjamin from the tent that had caught fire.
Even though Joel harbored some unpleasant feelings toward Felix, who usually only spoke nasty words, Joel couldn’t help but feel a deep sense of guilt over Felix being injured.
If his biological father had not been completely fooled by some cult, they would not have been caught up in this attack.
“I’m sorry you got hurt. Be sure to show Robert your wounds later.”
“Even though that guy is a bit of an idiot, his medical skills are excellent,” the notoriously slow-witted Joel added seriously.
Hearing Joel’s recommendation, Benjamin suddenly doubted Robert’s medical skill and exchanged uneasy glances with Felix.
However, when Joel challenged him with, “Why? Don’t you believe me?” Benjamin flinched and immediately replied with spirit, “W-What are you talking about, Joel! I will definitely do that!”
“Ben, what is the situation like outside, by the way?”
“Don’t even talk about it. Everything is an inferno and a bloodbath. They say there were nearly twenty attackers.”
“That many? What in the world were they all? Why were we suddenly attacked? Is this related to my father?”
Joel questioned him frantically, but Benjamin was just as clueless.
Joel turned away from Benjamin, who was just shrugging with a troubled expression, and moved closer to the tent.
* * *
Oh yay