Chapter 71: Southern Hunting Tournament (10)

 

“Hmm, where should we move to next? Sir Gwen.”

 

“It seems there is no haesuneun monster left here. The only traces left are old ones.”

 

“In that case, let’s just go a little further inside. If we go too deep, the rangers might impose sanctions.”

 

Damian spoke and started walking towards the forest, picking up the prey scattered on the ground. Sir Gwen, who was standing beside him, grabbed one of the severed heads of the haesuneun monster and tied it to the cart to sweep the ground.

 

Dragging it around like that might greatly devalue it as a by-product, but it was not their concern. The cart was already piled up with alternatives; losing one among the many wasn’t a problem.

 

“Sigh...”

 

Robin, an apprentice knight who was assigned the task of pulling the cart, sighed as he watched the increasing pile of dead monsters.

 

He had volunteered for the same position in last year’s tournament, but somehow, the situation was unfolding differently from what he had thought.

 

“He’s usually so relaxed, why is he so passionate this year...”

 

It wasn’t incomprehensible. Everyone here had some guess about what was driving Damian, who normally wouldn’t make mistakes like being late, to act differently this time.

 

“Is this love...”

 

“Pardon?”

 

“Aah! You startled me! Lord Damian! Please make some noise when you move!”

 

“Oh, my apologies.”

 

Damian, appearing suddenly in front of him, was carrying a wolf he had just caught on his shoulder. An arrow piercing accurately between its eyes was visible. Clearly, he had caught another one while Robin was momentarily distracted.

 

As Damian put down the wolf and left again, Robin pulled out the arrow stuck in the wolf and sorted it out, then stabbed the wolf’s neck again with a short knife.

 

The dripping blood filled his vision from above the cart. Repeating this task made Robin feel he was going to have psychological problems. Trying to soothe his troubled mind by looking at the surrounding scenery also didn’t help; all he saw were fields of slaughter stained with the blood of monsters.

 

Usually, roles like this were suited for people with high endurance. Robin did have a good amount of endurance, but the constant physical and mental exertion made him feel tired quicker than usual. But those in front of Robin now seemed to not know fatigue and continued hunting relentlessly.

 

They could easily secure victory if they just slowed down a bit. Why were they rushing like this? If this continued, there wouldn’t be anything left for others to hunt, and they would secure the win.

 

Damian arrived at the forest relatively later than the others, but it didn’t take him long to join them. But whether he was bothered by his late arrival, since the start of the tournament, they haven’t taken any breaks, just relentlessly moving forward.

 

For the fully matured Damian and Gwen, this was not difficult, but Robin was still an apprentice knight. Being an apprentice meant he had his limitations.

 

Robin, who excelled among the apprentices and had earned his place in the Black Dragon Knights, was still struggling to keep up with their pace. Usually, Damian would check on his subordinates and allow rest, but today seemed to be an exception.

 

Robin hadn’t complained yet as he still had some energy left.

 

He wondered if this was punishment for trying to enjoy the scenery quietly, like last year. Shaking off the fatigue, he managed the mountain of monsters and pulled the cart again.

 

Soon, he sensed something nearby.

 

An unrefined, primal gaze scratched his skin. As soon as he noticed it, he hurriedly called Damian.

 

“Lord, over there…!”

 

Before he could even finish, an arrow pierced the forest and disappeared into the darkness.

 

There was not a single rebuttal.

 

A bursting sound echoed in the forest, then the feeling of being watched disappeared. Robin got off the cart to collect the body, but seeing Damian not yet withdrawing his bow, he handed him an arrow.

 

“Thank you, Sir Robin.”

 

Dragging around the bodies seemed to attract a lot of attention. At this, Robin let out a deep sigh and sheathed his sword. The sword hung on his waist was becoming more of a hindrance as he carried around the bodies of monsters.

 

Was it a coincidence that many groups arrived here at the same time, and distinct cries could be heard.

 

It meant a lot of monsters were targeting this cart, but there was no worry on their faces. Damian and Gwen silently smirked, and Robin frowned at the cart, now so full there seemed to be no space left.

 

“How am I supposed to make space in this…”

 

Already reaching its limit, it had been forcibly crammed until now. There was doubt whether all these numerous guests could fit in.

 

***

 

“...Will brother be alright?”

 

Alphonse, who was overlooking the venue where the tournament was being held from the balcony, suddenly said this. Going next to Alphonse and looking around, the reason for such words became evident to me.

 

One by one, the contestants running atop the trees reveal themselves as they come out of the forest.

 

Those rangers responsible for surveillance in this tournament had injured people, presumably victims of haesuneun monster, carried on their backs. Rangers were stationed throughout the forest to prevent accidents during the tournament, but given the vast scale and location of the event, it was impossible to prevent all mishaps completely.

 

The fortunate thing, perhaps, was that there had been no deaths so far.

 

If it were monster subjugation, it would be understandable, but the hunting tournament belongs to the category where, compared to its scale, casualties rarely occur.

 

The Luneproud Mountain Range might be considered one of the forbidden areas, but that was because countless monsters inhabited the deep parts of the forest. The entrance of the forest, where monsters do not appear, was safe from worries about monsters as long as it was not winter.

 

However, this tournament had more injured participants than I had anticipated. Perhaps it was because the age range of the participants was young. Well, there were those whose purpose was not hunting but to meet with royalty among the participants, so the number of injured was somewhat understandable.

 

Alphonse might be exceptionally brave, but seeing people get hurt in front of him seemed to make his head spin. The boy, who did not flinch in his brother’s lively duel with the knights, began to worry about him, something he had never done.

 

What one hears in stories and what one sees directly in front of them feel quite different. It was a moment when what did not resonate before felt real. Until now, trust in his brother blocked such feelings from surfacing, but it made him realize that his brother could get hurt like the others.

 

Once worry started, it was hard to put an end to it. I, too, couldn’t sleep for similar reasons.

 

Now, there was no need to worry about such things, but that didn’t mean I could tell Alphonse the reason.

 

“Lord Damian will be fine.”

 

The first to speak and comfort Alphonse was Louis.

 

While her expression remained unchanging, the eyes with which she looked at Alphonse were as warm as the gentle sunlight. However, she, being a person of few words, ended her sentences too shortly, so I added a little more to what Louis had said, speaking of the duel between him and Sir Gwen.

 

“Sir Louis is right. Alphonse knows better than anyone what kind of person Damian is, doesn’t he? You have seen him sparring with Sir Gwen, right?”

 

Moreover, they are together now, after all.

 

Unless a dragon suddenly fell from the sky, there was no being that could handle those two.

 

Alphonse, somewhat soothed by those words, looked at me with a slight smile. His worry seemed not entirely erased, but the light was returning to his face, brighter than before.

 

“...Right? Indeed, can the monster even be a match for my brother?! He must have hunted more them than anyone else!!”

 

Alphonse, once again lighting up his eyes, turned his gaze back to the forest. I watched him with a bitter smile. Alphonse seemed to wish for his brother to win as it was his first time witnessing his brother participating in a tournament, but given his cautious nature, the likelihood of him not winning, despite being able to, was high.

 

Even before the regression, I had seen him avoid places where he could stand out due to his dislike for drawing attention, so I had no particular expectations for him winning this competition. He had always been content to maintain the honor of the family to a certain extent.

 

Later, when I asked him, he said that the higher the reputation, the more one gets entangled in bothersome matters. It was a funny story for someone bearing the name of Kraus.

 

Anyway, he had kept his distance from me in the first place for such reasons, so why would he aim for victory?

 

If he does aim, I think it would not be for the sake of elevating the family’s honor after he ascends to the position of the family head.

 

However, there was something here I did not expect. It was Louis’s remark.

 

“Absolutely. When I met him yesterday, Lord Damian was unusually enthusiastic, unlike his usual self. You can have high hopes this time.”

 

Louis, looking at me and Alphonse alternately while speaking.

 

Somehow, her eyes seemed to shine as brightly as Alphonse’s had just a moment ago.

 

What surprised me was not the fact that she spoke so long, but that contrary to what I had thought, Louis had agreed with Alphonse’s words. Of course, there was a possibility that it was lip service, but I knew well that she was not the type to do such a thing. Given her straightforward nature, it was surprising that she responded in such a way, as she would have told the truth that he had no intention of winning, no matter if it was in front of Alphonse.

 

If Sir Louis spoke to such an extent, then he really must be serious about this competition... Was it because of Noel and Orcus?

 

So much had changed from before that it was difficult to think about what had made him so enthusiastic about the tournament.

 

Talking about winning this tournament was almost the same as saying he would now reveal his skills without hiding them. It was not a bad thing. In this world where nothing could threaten him, it wouldn’t be bad if his reputation rose.

 

But why did a corner of my heart ache at the words that he had become enthusiastic?

 

I didn’t know what changed him, but it felt really disconcerting that one of the reasons he kept a distance from me had disappeared so trivially.

 

I didn’t know why, but it seemed that since a while ago, Sir Louis’s gaze hadn’t left me.

--- END OF CHAPTER ---

 

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