* * *
The clouds gently wrapped around the sky, and the breeze brushed past, cool and crisp.
Birds chirped clearly from the forest.
So clearly, in fact, that the desperate cry for help from a knight felt utterly out of place.
None of the nobles gathered at the center could speak.
Though the day was warm, a chilling silence fell over them. Eren suddenly felt like he couldn’t breathe.
For a moment, he wondered if he’d misheard—but the reactions around him confirmed the truth.
“…The Duke of Fridit?”
“That’s impossible…”
Their voices trembled with disbelief, laced with worry and doubt.
Not long after, all eyes turned simultaneously in one direction—to Luan, the Empress and Ashard’s sibling, and to her lover, Eren.
Both of their faces were deathly pale.
“Y-Your Majesty! Are you alright?!”
As the Empress staggered to her feet, the Emperor, who had been watching her with concern, hurriedly caught her in his arms.
“Your Majesty… Please, quickly—Ashard…”
Her breath was ragged, words coming with difficulty from the shock.
At her plea, the Emperor immediately gestured to the knights—an order to dispatch aid to House Fridit.
But before the knights could even move, someone bolted toward the forest.
“Count, wait! It’s too dangerous to go alone!”
Melody shouted urgently upon seeing Eren dash off.
But he didn’t stop. Perhaps he hadn’t heard—or perhaps he simply didn’t care.
Thanks to the artifact Elyrion had made for him, he could walk—but running was difficult.
Even so, he never considered stopping.
‘He’ll be alright. He’ll be alright.’
He whispered the words to himself like a mantra, but the anxiety in his chest didn’t fade.
Ashard, who had spent most of his life on the battlefield—always at the very front lines.
He’d grown used to enduring injuries alone, often untreated.
Such people didn’t call for a doctor over minor wounds.
Even as a high-ranking noble, Ashard saw no reason to rely on others for something so trivial.
It was a habit carved deep into him from experience.
Even at the estate, when he burned his hand protecting Eren, he didn’t think to summon a physician.
An ordinary noble—any ordinary person—would have.
And yet now, if someone had been sent for due to an injury…
‘No. No, it can’t be.’
People often consider their most precious person to be their entire world.
At some point, Ashard had become just that to Eren.
So when such harrowing news came of him, Eren crumbled in an instant.
The sandcastle he thought he’d built so carefully was swept away like nothing.
That bright, glorious sun had never felt so terrifying.
As if mocking him—reminding him happiness is fleeting. If only it had rained.
Then his tears might have blended in, and he wouldn’t have even realized he was crying.
Maybe then, he could’ve held it together.
Suppressing every emotion, Eren climbed onto a spare horse meant for the participants.
His legs trembled, nearly causing him to fall off, but his own safety felt meaningless.
He knew acting so emotionally helped no one.
But he couldn’t stop himself. It all felt like his fault.
Over something as trivial as a prize… because he dared defy the fate of the original story.
The consequences were cruel beyond belief.
He was a coward.
He had no power to change the original, so he ran—thinking Ashard could do it instead.
But if this was the cost, he’d do anything to turn back time.
That bitter truth etched itself into the empty corners of his heart.
“Get a hold of yourself, Count!”
Just as he was about to gallop into the woods, Melody’s voice pierced his ears.
Only then did the blank look in Eren’s eyes begin to clear.
“…Princess.”
His voice trembled as he called out to her, eyes silently begging for even an empty reassurance.
“I’ll go with you. Don’t worry. He’s your uncle, isn’t he? He’ll be fine.”
Because it was Melody saying it, her words brought a certain comfort.
Eren held back his tears and nodded.
Together, they headed into the hunting grounds, leaving behind the Emperor’s voice trying to calm the crowd—moving without hesitation.
Unlike Eren, who was acting on instinct, Melody had already heard Ashard’s location from the knight who reported it.
Thanks to her, they navigated the forest with ease.
Wild animals began to emerge—as one would expect in a hunting ground—but even then, Melody handled things skillfully.
“…Thank you, Princess.”
“Why the sudden gratitude?”
“For everything. For always helping me. And now… for coming with me.”
“There’s no need to thank me.”
“Huh…?”
“Do you know why I asked to study under you from the very beginning?”
Caught off guard by the question, Eren blinked.
He didn’t know the exact reason.
As he shook his head, Melody smiled—as if she’d expected that.
“Have you ever heard a parent scream after losing a child? The word ‘scream’ doesn’t even cover it. It’s more like a soul being ripped apart. I’ve heard that sound every time war breaks out. Delivering the death notices to the families of fallen knights—that was my duty.”
“Ah…”
“That’s why I always envied the Empire of Epentel. Despite fighting dozens of wars, they suffered almost no casualties. And eventually, I realized that was all thanks to you, Count.”
Melody added that it was because of Eren’s arrival in Trovien that the war with Epentel ended peacefully.
Her words left Eren speechless.
The outcome might have been good—but the reason he’d come to Trovien hadn’t been so noble.
“Why you followed your uncle to Trovien doesn’t matter. To me, the fact that your presence spared someone from despair—that’s enough.”
But Melody said the process didn’t matter.
She didn’t even ask.
As if it didn’t concern her at all.
Her words brought tension to Eren’s lips—almost a smile.
“So don’t blame yourself. Your uncle will be fine.”
“What do you mean—”
“You’re blaming yourself, aren’t you? Thinking, ‘I shouldn’t have asked for that stupid prize,’ something like that.”
Her words hit him like a dart to the heart.
Eren flinched.
She was frighteningly accurate.
As if she had read his mind, his face showed a flood of emotions.
“Why waste time on such useless thoughts? If you have time for that— Think about me instead.”
“…What?”
“If my uncle had known, that’s exactly what he would’ve said.”
…Ah. He was imitating Ashard.
Caught off guard by his uncharacteristic words, Eren was momentarily startled—but a smile crept to his lips at what followed.
There hadn’t been a single word of comfort, yet it had been comforting in its own way.
Crude though it was, it had been his version of solace, and Eren found himself chuckling without meaning to.
He didn’t know why even something like that felt similar, but… it reminded him so much of Ashard.
Eren’s face, which had been contorted like he might cry at any moment, eased a little.
His expression twisted again in worry for Ashard, but the mood kept shifting thanks to Melody speaking beside him, tugging his emotions back and forth.
According to Melody, Ashard had already set up camp—probably due to his injuries.
The area near the starting point was too thick with vegetation to easily pitch a tent, meaning Ashard had gone quite far in, even though the competition had only just begun.
“…Huh?”
From atop the running horse, Eren caught a glimpse of something and quickly turned his head—but they were moving too fast to see it clearly.
“What’s the matter?”
“…It’s nothing.”
It had been prey.
A beast, and not an easy one to bring down.
They were still near the entrance of the hunting grounds.
The prey should’ve been driven toward the center by now—so why was it still here?
And more importantly…
‘That marking tied to the prey… it looked like the Friedit family crest.’
It had to be a mistake.
Ashard was stationed far from here, and he’d even sent a request for backup—there’s no way he was in any shape to hunt.
Eren convinced himself he must’ve seen wrong in the midst of riding and passed by the prey without another glance.
* * *
