“Ah……”

If it was about what happened on the rainy day, it must be Dietrich, that man.

Why bring that up now, after all this time? Despite such thoughts, Lysith nodded readily. She would do anything to complete the quest.

About five minutes after she left with the servant, the remaining ladies who had been discussing other matters suddenly burst into conversation.

“Wasn’t that just a baseless rumor?”

“I thought so too, but my brother said it was true. Honestly, I only half believed it, but it seems it really was true.”

The reason they were having this conversation was because Verheigen, who had been staring intently at Lysith from a distance, disappeared like the wind as soon as he saw her leave.

In the place where Verheigen had vanished, only Serul remained, looking dazed, like he’s searching for his departed mother.

“His Majesty was rather lackadaisical even when he was the crown prince, wasn’t he?”

“I think so. Back then, there were so many young ladies who wanted to receive even a small rabbit from His Majesty……”

“Oh my, you pretend you weren’t one of them. I saw you wiping the sweat from your hands with a handkerchief, nervous that his game might come to you.”

“Lady Dekaum!”

Lady Dekaum, who turned her gaze away as if she hadn’t said anything and took a sip of tea, changed the subject.

“I hear His Majesty is also quite skilled.”

“Well, His Majesty has excelled at everything since childhood.”

“I wonder how things will turn out this time.”

There’s a certain intuition that naturally develops after experiencing these events multiple times.

They all simultaneously sensed, as if they had planned it, that this hunting festival would certainly be more interesting than last year’s.

* * *

Meanwhile, Lysith, responding to Dietrich’s secret summons, met him in a shadowy corner.

His hunting attire was all black, as if black was his best friend. Well, it was certainly a color that wouldn’t show dirt easily.

“What did you want to tell me?”

“To be precise, it’s not exactly about that day, but I thought it would be better to say it this way to call you without others noticing……”

“Fine, so what is it you wanted to say?”

Lysith stirred her hand up and down with a sullen expression.

On the surface, she appeared unaffected, but in reality……

[Passive: The Melancholy Of A Divorced Woman (ON)]

[Passive: The Melancholy Of A Divorced Woman (OFF)]

[Passive: The Melancholy Of A Divorced Woman (ON)]

[Passive: The Melancholy Of A Divorced Woman (OFF)]

[Passive: The Melancholy Of A Divorced Woman (ON)]

She was struggling due to the passive skill.

……Feeling a strong sense of déjà vu, Lysith pretended nothing was happening while inwardly grinding her teeth.

“I want to give all the game I catch today to you. Last year, I… I was in a situation where I deserved your anger.”

“……”

“And I also have something I want to tell you.”

[Repeated Passive OFF confirmed.]

[Would you like to turn off the automatic Passive activation mode?]

‘Whew, finally it’s off.’

She should have turned off this useless crazy passive before coming. It was clearly her mistake.

Anyway, it would be a happy occasion if Dietrich worked hard and gave her his game, so Lysith was about to open her mouth with a gentle smile to express her gratitude when—

“Is this an awkward situation?”

In an instant, a sturdy man’s solid shoulder was grabbed and turned around.

“……Your Majesty.”

Caught in an unexpected situation, Lysith froze in place as the eyes of two men with opposite eye colors clashed sharply. The relaxed face that Dietrich had been showing Lysith until just now had vanished, replaced by a hardened expression, while Verheigen smiled fiercely as if irritated.

Verheigen had first grabbed Dietrich’s shoulder, but the man’s grip in return was in a position that was precariously close to grabbing him by the collar.

Seeing that ambiguous position, Lysith inwardly screamed.

Even if this was a place without people, this was too much! Looking around, she could see a few nobles in the distance. And she felt their gazes converging as soon as the emperor arrived.

They might have been curious even when she and Dietrich were talking alone, but with the emperor involved, their curiosity would surely overflow.

Having finally grasped the situation, Lysith moved to grab Verheigen’s sleeve as he stood in front of her. How he had gotten here could be figured out later; first, she needed to get her bearings and resolve this situation.

“Y-Your Majesty.”

As soon as Lysith called him, his hostile expression melted instantly like a snowman in sunshine.

“What did this bas— jerk say?”

He had just been about to say “this bastard.”

She had clearly heard that ambiguous break. To think such harsh words would come from someone with such a relaxed expression.

“He didn’t say anything special.”

“Then why does your expression look like that?”

“……I was perfectly fine?”

After answering, she bit her tongue slightly. She wondered why he was acting this way, but it seemed this commotion had erupted because of her vaguely troubled expression that had involuntarily appeared as the passive skill kept turning on and off.

‘Damn it. Why create such a useless function.’

Because of this function, she had once summoned the system window and punched the air, wanting to hit the system.

Anyway, noticing the growing attention from people toward this shadowy corner, Lysith forced a smile and pulled down Verheigen’s arm.

“Really. You don’t need to do this.”

“……”

“You’ve said everything you wanted to, right?”

When Dietrich nodded slightly in response to Lysith’s question, she breathed an inaudible sigh of relief. Even after this brief situation that seemed to have been resolved, she felt like her mental and physical energy had been completely drained.

Whether or not he knew Lysith had sighed in relief, only after the two men’s eyes met once more did Verheigen turn to leave.

“Let’s go.”

“Ah, w-wait……”

I didn’t plan to go with you!

As soon as she released her grip on Verheigen’s arm, which she had been holding earlier, he swiftly caught her hand and took her along.

As they moved away from where she had been talking with Dietrich, Lysith stopped walking and tried to gently pull her hand away, but Verheigen turned his head.

“What?”

“No, holding hands is a bit……”

“After sharing bodies?”

“No! That’s not what I meant! It’s not just Your Majesty and me here!”

Finally releasing her hand, Verheigen tilted his head sideways with a sullen expression, unlike before, and folded his arms.

“That’s why I deliberately came to a place without people.”

“Still. Is there any need to advertise it like this to the whole neighborhood……”

She was aware of the rumors. If rumors had spread that far, even someone like her with no friends would know about it from the news her maids brought her.

“Besides, if you two openly fight like that, what about the nobles’ perception? Regardless of the reason, if it appears there’s division, there are people who will surely take advantage……”

Even if that situation had occurred with just the three of them present, it would have been quite exhausting, but this was actually what made her most uncomfortable. Yet despite Lysith explaining this, Verheigen simply stared at her face without saying anything.

“Isn’t fighting over a woman the easiest subject for causing discord? This would spread through social circles in an instant……”

“……”

“Are you listening?”

Frustrated by the lack of response, Lysith spoke up again, and only then did she receive a reply.

Though it was somewhat absurd.

“To think you were worried about that…… So you really don’t want to become empress?”

“……”

“I’m serious.”

“Is this a proposal?”

“……Of course not. What I just said was actually a joke.”

Since it was clear that no man in the world would propose marriage in such a manner, Verheigen quickly changed his words as fast as possible.

Just as the situation seemed to have been resolved and Lysith was about to leave, Serul came running from a distance and abruptly grabbed Verheigen.

“Huff, huff……”

“Let go of me.”

Serul’s usually neat bangs were in disarray, suggesting he had run quite a distance. But seemingly unconcerned with his aide and friend’s disheveled appearance, Verheigen shook off the arm that had grabbed him.

“I was afraid you might disappear like the wind again!”

“I see. You should go too. I’ll see you shortly.”

“Ah, Lady Lysith, you were here. I apologize.”

“It’s fine.”

Though the hunting festival hadn’t even begun yet, she already felt like going back to the mansion and collapsing. After parting with the two men, Lysith trudged back to her seat and stared blankly at the edge of the forest.

‘The quest… I should be able to succeed, right?’

She should have tried teasing Verheigen a little. Though it was difficult to choose her words with Serul nearby, it wouldn’t have been impossible.

As she sighed deeply for what felt like the hundredth time today, she noticed knights and servants bustling about, suggesting the hunting festival was about to begin.

It’s starting soon, she thought, crossing her legs and wiggling her toes, when suddenly a welcome system sound rang in her ears.

[Sub quest preparation complete.]

The long-awaited level 9 quest was finally ready.

Since she had completed level 8 at the imperial palace, it meant that level 9’s preparation had taken about two months. In the past, she would have stared intently at the loading screen whenever she was bored, but she had never once seen the percentage increase.

So she left it alone for quite some time, thinking: just load whenever you feel like it.

Anyway, being level 9, it was obvious that it wouldn’t be easy, but Lysith, with her shameless desire to get something for nothing, fervently prayed for an easy quest.

Unfortunately, it seemed God was not on her side.

[Sub Quest Prepared For You]

‘LV.9 – Let’s discover the thrill of outdoor enjoyment!’

TIP! When it comes to beasts, shouldn’t you just focus on the man in front of you?

……What?