Chapter 9 (Part 3)

Though he pretended nothing was wrong, his brother’s movements were clearly unnatural.  

‘His right shoulder must be injured.’  

Gabriel didn’t want to care, but he found himself staring at his brother’s shoulder the entire time.  

And before he knew it, he found himself holding a bow.  

‘This isn’t for the family or my brother.’  

The only reason he grabbed the arrow was for his father. The man who had cared for him when everyone else abandoned him, and who had loved his brother as well.  

Whoosh!  

Gabriel deliberately aimed the first two arrows at the bullseye but directed the last one completely off the target.  

Even without knowing all the rules of high society, he understood that the winner of such a contest should be the Emperor.  

The spectators laughed at his final misstep, and the noble who shot after him fared no better.  

As the absurd archery contest came to an end, Gabriel felt Jeremy’s gaze on him.  

It was a look he was familiar with.  

It reminded him of the way their father used to admire his paintings.  

Turning away quickly, Gabriel blocked out the Duke’s gaze. He found his estranged brother’s attention to be nothing but unpleasant.  

***

When the prepared events concluded, the hunting tournament officially began.  

The hunting dogs, already agitated, were made to sniff the scent of a dead fox. They grew wild, as though ready to catch every fox in the forest.  

Toot!  

At the sound of a horn, the servant announced the start of the hunt, and the hunting teams, organized into groups, set off simultaneously.  

“Shall we get going as well?”  

Under Duke Richard’s command, the Richard family’s hunting team, accompanied by dozens of hounds, took their first steps into the hunt.  

Woof! Woof!  

As the dogs began running to locate the fox’s den, the handlers and hunters followed closely behind, kicking up clouds of dust. Watching them, the Duke approached Therese and spoke.  

“Are you alright?”  

“I’m fine.”  

Though she wasn’t feeling great, it wasn’t unbearable. Besides, it wasn’t her but the Duke who was truly unwell.  

‘Just sitting on the horse must be painful for him.’  

Then she noticed Gabriel trailing far behind them. His hostility toward Duke Richard was still evident.  

‘Why does he hate his brother so much?’  

Though it wasn’t her place to intervene in their issues, the current situation was problematic.  

Finding another ally in this forest would be difficult, and if Gabriel sided with the Duke, it would be a great relief.  

‘If not for Gabriel earlier, we might have been in trouble before the Emperor.’  

Additionally, getting closer to Gabriel would make it easier to obtain the information he possessed.  

‘But I have no idea how to befriend him.’  

Therese had never made friends before. The closest people to her were Roshan and Sophia, but Roshan laughed at everything she said, and Sophia was simply happy to be around her.  

At that moment, the sound of horns blared from various directions. It signaled a successful fox hunt.  

The scene of the hounds swarming the foxes was more akin to a massacre than a hunt. The overwhelming scent of blood made Therese feel as if she had a headache.  

“Your Grace, perhaps we should rest for a moment.”  

“…Hmm.”  

The Duke met her gaze deeply at her suggestion.  

“Are you tired? Or are you worried about me?”  

“I’m fine, but you shouldn’t push yourself.”  

“Why shouldn’t I?”  

Therese had no idea what he wanted to hear from her. Duke Richard’s injuries were severe, and she couldn’t stop worrying about them.  

“…Sigh.”  

As Therese sighed, two hunting assistants approached her discreetly.  

Pretending to show her a captured fox, they spoke in hushed tones.  

“Master, as expected, assassins are lying in wait in the forest.”

Disguised as an employee of the Richard family, Roshan’s appearance caused Duke Richard’s eyebrows to twitch.  

“Madame, why is that man here?”  

At the Duke’s question, Roshan replied nonchalantly, 

“Where my Master is, is where I belong.”  

“What on earth does that—”  

Jeremy’s face turned red with frustration at the response. As the two seemed ready to argue again, Therese quickly stepped in to mediate.  

“Your Grace, this is not the time to be discussing such matters. Wouldn’t it be troublesome if we were ambushed right now?”  

This forest belonged to the Emperor, so private soldiers were not allowed to enter. If someone was targeting the Duke, now would be the perfect opportunity.  

And since there were indeed assassins in the forest, her concerns were not unfounded. Pretending to continue inspecting the foxes, Therese cautiously spoke.  

“Roshan, I’ll leave it to you.”  

“Rest assured, Master.”  

“Don’t overdo it, alright?”  

“Please take care of yourself as well, my lady.”  

Bowing his head, Roshan blended back into the group of hunting dogs. Watching his retreating figure, the Duke dismounted and extended his hand to Therese.  

“As you suggested, let us rest for a while.”  

The two stood atop a hill, overlooking the vast plains and river below.  

If not for the barking of the hunting dogs and the sound of horns, the scene would have been utterly peaceful.  

“What a beautiful place.”  

“Indeed, it is.”  

The Duke’s gaze rested on the silver hair peeking out from beneath Therese’s hat. The fine strands swayed gently, brushing against her slender neck. That small movement completely captivated Jeremy.  

So much so that he forgot where they were.  

“…!”  

Therese turned her head absentmindedly and met the Duke’s eyes.  

In his gaze, there was no scenery—only Therese filled his vision.  

Slowly, he reached out and took a strand of her hair, running his fingers gently through it. As he did, the Duke spoke.  

“I want to know more about you.”  

“…What do you mean?”  

“How many sides of you are there that I don’t know?”  

Therese hesitated to respond to his question. She knew he wasn’t asking about her disguise or business affairs.  

‘He must want to know what I’m hiding.’  

Deceiving others wasn’t in her nature, but she had no choice right now.  

‘I returned from death.’  

Even her lingering, foolish feelings for Jeremy Richard were a secret she could never reveal to anyone.  

‘And how could I possibly tell him that I might die again at any moment?’  

The poison she had consumed—a mixture of digitalis and belladonna—was undeniably effective.  

‘That’s why I chose it.’  

The suppressant she was taking was not only extremely potent but also came with severe side effects. While it prevented the poison from spreading to her heart and body, it was also slowly eating away at her life.  

‘I might not survive long enough to find an antidote.’  

Staring down at the silver hair held by the Duke, Therese still couldn’t bring herself to say anything.  

“There’s no need to look so troubled.”  

Jeremy hadn’t spoken to make her feel guilty.  

“I love every single one of your many faces.”  

His cautious confession caused Therese’s shoulders to tremble slightly.  

When she finally lifted her head, her blue eyes flickered with a mix of emotions, but Jeremy couldn’t decipher them.  

‘She doesn’t hate me, but…’  

It didn’t seem like she particularly liked him either. Letting go of his futile hopes, Jeremy smiled at her.  

“Thanks to you, I’m safe now, aren’t I?”  

Though he could have easily dealt with a few assassins himself, he offered his gratitude.  

‘Still, this incident was unexpected.’  

Planting assassins in a hunting tournament—what a bold move.  

Felipe Morciani had often sent assassins or letters to warn him. This was likely another one of those warnings.  

The Emperor wouldn’t kill him just yet. To the Emperor, the Richard family and Jeremy were loyal dogs guarding the Empire’s borders.  

‘…But this time.’  

He hadn’t come alone.  

If Therese had been harmed, Jeremy would have lost all his patience.  

Until now, he had endured everything because the opponent was the Emperor.  

The bloodline of the Imperial Family was supposed to be sacred.  

‘Jeremy, our Richard family must serve as the Emperor’s sword.’  

Recalling his late father’s words, he had nurtured his loyalty.  

Pushing aside his complicated thoughts, Jeremy spoke as gently as he could.  

“Was Gabriel’s intervention your doing as well?”  

Therese replied calmly to his question.  

“I didn’t do much. I only informed him of your condition. The decision was his.”  

Her words made Jeremy struggle to contain his rising emotions.  

He was grateful to Therese and ashamed of his younger brother, who had stepped up for such a pitiful older sibling.  

Turning away, the Duke looked down at Gabriel, who was riding in the distance below the hill, and began to speak.  

“After Father passed away, I suffered from severe aphasia for a long time.”  

Since it was a confession he had never shared with anyone, Jeremy’s voice trembled slightly.  

“During that time, I was so consumed by grief that I completely neglected my only younger brother. Later, I had to leave for the borders where monsters roamed, and I missed my chance to be a proper brother.”  

Though he was praised as the Empire’s hero, Jeremy Richard was full of flaws.  

When he returned from the battlefield, he tried several times to visit Gabriel but was always turned away at the door.  

“I wouldn’t blame him for hating a brother like me. Even so, I feel nothing but shame for my younger brother, who stepped up for my sake.”  

Jeremy rubbed his eyes roughly with one hand, letting out a hollow laugh.