ITDHC 08

Chapter 8

“What is the meaning of this…?!”

Elissa, who was sitting right beside Ansel, was startled and looked around.

But she was the only one who seemed surprised.

The servant who had poured the juice bowed repeatedly to Ansel with tears in his eyes.

“I’m sorry! I’m so sorry!”

Seeing the situation, Christian strode over and slapped the servant across the face.

“I clearly told you to be careful when bringing it over, didn’t I? What a useless fool.”

Christian pushed the servant aside and bent down to check on Ansel. At first glance, he looked genuinely concerned.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry. That fool’s hands were shaking. Oh, what should I do? I feel terrible.”

But the moment he finished pretending to worry about Ansel, an uncontrollable laugh escaped Christian’s mouth.

“Pfft… But you know, purple hair actually suits you better. Why don’t you wash your hair with grape juice from now on?”

“Ahahaha!”

Princess Michaela burst out laughing at Christian’s words.

The other children soon began laughing along awkwardly. Many of them forced themselves to laugh even though they clearly did not find it funny.

The only ones who did not laugh were Elissa, Richard, and Ansel.

‘Is this guy seriously insane?’

Watching the ridiculous scene in disbelief, Elissa took a handkerchief from her pocket and handed it to Ansel.

“Use this to wipe yourself.”

Ansel flinched and looked at Elissa.

He was not the only one surprised by her kindness. Christian also stared at Elissa with a dumbfounded expression.

When Ansel could not bring himself to take the handkerchief, Elissa simply wiped his face herself.

Christian’s expression twisted slightly.

But he soon burst into laughter again.

“The Young Duchess certainly has a kind heart.”

Christian had the servant bring another glass and a bottle of grape juice.

“I should give the Young Duchess a glass too.”

Then, just as Christian moved toward Elissa and was about to pour the grape juice over her head—

“Ahhh!”

A sudden gust of wind blew in and flipped the canopy over.

The wind was strong enough to make even the people nearby stumble.

Christian lost his balance and accidentally poured the grape juice he was holding all over himself.

He hurriedly tried to brush it off, but by then his clothes were already stained purple.

“Damn it!”

Cursing furiously, Christian picked up the glass and the bottle of grape juice and threw them carelessly.

Then he grabbed Richard by the collar and yanked him to his feet.

Richard had been holding onto Elissa’s feathered hat to keep it from flying away.

“You did this, didn’t you?”

Richard merely looked at Christian with his usual indifferent expression and said nothing.

If this continued, it looked as though Christian might actually hit Richard.

Christian had a short temper and often slapped or struck servants and maids whenever they did something that displeased him.

Knowing his personality, one of the servants hurried over and grabbed Christian to restrain him.

“Y-Your Highness, perhaps you should change your clothes first.”

“Let go of me!”

Unable to control his anger, Christian slapped the servant instead.

But the servant did not back down and desperately tried to stop him.

No matter how powerful Christian was as the Crown Prince, there was nothing to gain from laying a hand on Richard, the legitimate son of the Duke of Rubellin.

In the end, Christian was practically dragged away by the servant.

Michaela, who had been standing there blankly, followed after him a moment later.

“B-Brother!”

Once the source of the commotion disappeared, the dining area fell silent.

The bewildered children turned their eyes toward Ansel, Elissa, and Richard, who had been at the center of the incident.

Richard paid no attention to their stares. He simply turned around and walked away.

Elissa was about to follow him when Ansel’s voice stopped her.

“Th-Thank you.”

“No. You don’t have to thank me.”

Elissa accepted his gratitude awkwardly and was about to go after Richard when she noticed two delicious-looking sandwiches on the table.

She picked them up and followed after him.

“Richard.”

Elissa called out to Richard, but he did not stop walking.

Still, she quickly caught up with him.

“Thank you. For helping me.”

“…You’re a member of Rubellin. I only helped you because of that.”

“I know. But you still helped me.”

Elissa smiled and held out one of the sandwiches she had brought.

“Thank you, husband.”

Richard’s steps suddenly stopped.

Elissa looked up at him in confusion.

Richard stood frozen for a moment before snatching the sandwich from her hand and turning away.

‘Why is he acting like that?’

Elissa tilted her head, unaware that the tips of Richard’s ears had turned red.

After the meal, the nobles, Emperor, and Crown Prince entered the forest to begin the hunt.

Among them were Richard, Christian, and several other boys who were old enough to participate.

Elissa was supposed to spend the afternoon enjoying tea with the other noblewomen and young ladies, but she used the grape juice stains on her dress as an excuse to leave.

When Elissa and Anne tried to enter the forest, a knight guarding the entrance accompanied them.

After following them for a short while, the knight stopped.

Since Elissa might need to take off her dress to wash it, the knight decided not to accompany them any farther.

Although Elissa was still young, it would still be improper for a knight to see a lady wearing nothing but her petticoat.

“The valley is just a little farther after you turn left. There are yellow ribbons tied around the trees, so you should have no trouble finding the way.”

“Yes.”

“We are guarding the Imperial Hunting Grounds, so it is safe. But if anything happens, call for us. We will be nearby.”

“Thank you.”

Elissa and Anne continued deeper into the forest without the knight.

Just as he had said, they soon found the valley.

Elissa quickly took off her dress.

Since it was a child’s dress, it was not too difficult to remove.

“Hmm. It’s not coming out very well.”

Anne carefully rubbed the part of the dress that had been soaked in water, but the grape juice stain was stubborn.

Elissa tried washing it herself, but the result was the same.

“It was pretty, but I suppose it can’t be helped.”

Reluctantly, Elissa put the still-stained dress back on.

Just then, they heard voices coming from somewhere nearby.

“…Be careful.”

‘Where is that voice coming from?’

Elissa and Anne exchanged glances before moving toward the sound.

The voices were coming from a small cliff below the valley, about twice the height of an adult.

Three men dressed in black were gathered there.

There were no imperial crests or family insignias on their clothes.

‘What is this? How did people like that get into the Imperial Hunting Grounds…?’

Elissa had a bad feeling about this.

She immediately dropped flat onto the ground.

Anne followed her example and lay down beside her.

Fortunately, the men did not seem to notice them, their presence hidden by the sound of a small waterfall flowing over the cliff.

One of the men, who had a scar across one eyebrow, stepped forward and spoke.

“Remember this. The target is the Young Duke of Rubellin.”

“……!”

Elissa and Anne covered their mouths to keep the gasp from escaping.

The men quickly disappeared deeper into the forest.

Elissa remained still, holding her breath.

Only after they were gone did she suddenly jump to her feet.

‘Richard is in danger!’

She did not know the details, but something was clearly happening that could put Richard in danger.

There was no way she could handle this alone.

She needed to tell someone as quickly as possible.

Elissa hurried back toward the entrance of the valley with Anne, where the knight was waiting.

“Sir! There are people in the hunting grounds—!”

“Is something wrong?”

Elissa was about to tell the knight about the suspicious men, still breathing heavily, when she suddenly stopped.

‘What if… those suspicious men were sent by the Emperor?’

If that was the case, she could not tell an imperial knight.

“Ah, it’s nothing. Let’s go back.”

Elissa shook her head and smiled as if nothing had happened.

Then she hurried out of the forest with the knight.

‘I need to find the Duke.’

Even if Albert did not genuinely care about Richard, he was still the only person here who would put Richard’s safety above everything else.

But when Elissa left the forest, the nobles who had gone hunting had not yet returned.

Neither Albert nor Richard was there.

“My lady, what should we do?”

Anne asked anxiously, shifting from foot to foot.

Elissa thought for a moment before suddenly remembering something.

She headed toward the place where the Rubellin ducal carriage was waiting.

Several Rubellin knights who had accompanied Albert were there.

Some were familiar faces whom Elissa had gotten to know while passing by them, while others were strangers.

The knights had been joking and chatting among themselves, but when Elissa approached them with a serious expression, they immediately asked her,

“What is the matter, Young Madam?”

“The Young Duke is in danger. I need your help.”

“What?”

“Hurry into the forest, find the Young Duke, and protect him.”

The knights stared at Elissa in disbelief.

Then they burst out laughing.

“In the Imperial Hunting Grounds, guarded by the finest knights in the Empire? Surely you aren’t dreaming?”

“I-I’m not dreaming. I saw them myself.”

As the knights snickered and mocked Elissa, Anne quietly supported her words from beside her.

But the knights had no intention of following Elissa’s order.

“Stop talking in your sleep and go back to enjoy your tea…”

Elissa ignored the knight trying to send her away and stepped forward.

There was determination in her eyes.

“Of course, you may be right. Perhaps what I saw really was only a dream. If so, that would be wonderful.”

The knights fell silent.

“But what if what I told you is true? What if something happens to the Young Duke because of it?”

“……”

“Do you really think His Grace the Duke will simply let you off if that happens?”

Elissa’s voice was cold.

Her expression was equally icy.

The knights flinched under her pressure.

“You did not swear your loyalty to me, so you have no reason to obey my orders. But…”

“……”

“You swore a blood oath to Rubellin, pledging your lives to this family. Honor that oath.”