Chapter 6 (Part 2)

In the end, thanks to Anthus’s unseen support, Louis took first place in the hunting competition. After Cloud’s short congratulatory speech, Anthus gave a bright smile to the frustrated Rybid.

“Congratulations, Young Lord Louis.”

“Yes, Your Grace… Didn’t you hunt this year?”

“I don’t usually like hunting.”

Louis awkwardly lifted the corners of his mouth and smiled. 

Who didn’t know that Anthus liked hunting?

But in front of Yuliana, Anthus looked at the dead animals with a worried expression, pretending to be scared.

No, as a Sword Master who stood at the forefront of the battlefield, swinging his sword and killing countless enemies, seeing him act like this in front of his sister gave Louis goosebumps.

What drove him even crazier was that Yuliana believed Anthus’s act completely! 

How much had Anthus been hiding his true self in front of Yuliana?

“Congratulations on taking first place, Brother. But you really caught a lot… You usually only catch one or two rabbits…”

Yuliana looked sadly at Louis’s cart.

Louis was flustered by her reaction. 

I hadn’t caught those animals! Someone kept piling them up.

“Lia… the thing is…”

“Lia, it seems Young Lord Louis had a reason to take first place today.”

Louis was about to explain, but Anthus interrupted.

“A reason?”

“The first-place winner can give the prize and the animals they caught to the person they love. Who do you think Young Lord Louis will give it to?”

Anthus whispered low enough for only Yuliana to hear.

Not long ago, Anthus had received a report from his shadows that Louis had purchased a women’s ring. He knew Louis was contemplating proposing to Selenia.

“Today, Young Lord Louis might propose to Lady Selenia in front of everyone. The animals are unfortunate, but that’s what a man in love is like. Please be understanding of Young Lord Louis.”

Yuliana nodded, agreeing with Anthus’s words.

Anthus smiled prettily and looked at Louis. Then Louis realized that it was Anthus who had been piling the animals on his cart.

“Young Lord Louis, go receive your prize.”

“Oh…”

Cloud awarded the fist-sized pearl, the prize for first place, to Louis.

Louis looked down at the large pearl in his hand. With people cheering and congratulating him from behind, he couldn’t say that the animals on the cart weren’t his.

“Who will you give the gift to, Young Lord Loengrin?”

When Cloud asked who he would give the gift to, only Selenia came to Louis’s mind.

“Young Lord Louis, don’t miss this chance to propose.”

Anthus approached Louis and whispered low.

“So, it was you who put the animals on my cart, Your Grace. You should have given me a heads-up. Lia looked at me with disappointed eyes.”

“Focus on Lady Selenia, Young Lord Louis.”

Louis met Selenia’s bright eyes. He had recently bought a ring and was contemplating how to propose. Although he hadn’t caught the animals himself, he thought there wouldn’t be a better time to propose than now, having won first place in the hunting competition.

“I’ll take this chance.”

With a determined look, Louis strode towards Selenia. Kneeling on one knee, he handed the pearl to Selenia.

“Selenia, please accept this.”

Selenia received the large pearl with applause from the crowd, smiling brightly.

“And please accept this too.”

Louis took out a small velvet box from his pocket.

“Selenia.”

He opened the velvet box, revealing a beautiful sapphire ring.

Selenia, seeing the ring, looked at Louis with anticipation. Louis’s face turned bright red.

“I’ve loved you since we were young. I’ll always love only you.”

People held their breath, watching Louis and Selenia.

“Let’s get married, Sellie.”

“Of course, Louis!”

Selenia hugged Louis’s neck joyfully.

“Sorry for proposing so late!”

“No, Louis. Thank you for such a wonderful proposal.”

No one was happier than Yuliana at the sight of the two. Anthus smiled contentedly, pleased that everything went according to plan.

“Since Young Lord Louis proposed, they’ll probably get married soon.”

“The wedding date isn’t set yet… but maybe next year? Preparing for a wedding takes time.”

Anthus’s head throbbed again. Just as one hurdle was overcome, another appeared. 

If Louis and Selenia only get married next year, when would I and Yuliana get to marry?

“Why does your face look so dark, Yan?”

“I want to propose to you too, Lia.”

Anthus began to think carefully about how to execute his plans for marriage.

Then, he sensed something strange. It felt oddly familiar.

“Lia…”

Yuliana also sensed the strange presence.

“Yan…”

As Anthus looked at Lia with a worried face, people began to scream.

“What is that?”

People started to murmur and leave their seats.

“It’s a monster! A monster has appeared.”

The people who had been hunting in the forest not long ago turned pale at the sight of the grotesque creature walking out.

Yuliana and Anthus had seen that monster before. It was the new type of monster they had encountered in the village of Luteons.

Anthus quickly approached Cloud and whispered.

“Your Majesty, it’s the new type of monster we saw in the village of Luteons.”

“But why is it in the back mountain of the palace… and on the day of the hunting competition?”

“Your Majesty, please evacuate immediately.”

Cloud nodded.

“Cloud, take Ian and go first. I’ll stay behind.”

“Moca! What are you talking about? We need to escape together! No way… Moca! I know you’re a skilled assassin, but killing people and killing monsters are different.”

“I just want to protect the men I love. Take Ian and retreat, Lau.”

“Moca, you’re the Empress! Leave it to the knights!”

“Surely you haven’t forgotten the condition I set when we got married?”

Monica looked at Cloud coldly.

“I haven’t forgotten, but…”

“Take Ian and go. What are you all doing? Escort His Majesty and the Crown Prince!”

“Moca! I’m going to fight too!”

“Your Majesty, you must follow Her Majesty the Empress’s words.”

“Let go! Let go of me!”

Cloud was forcibly dragged away by the chamberlain and knights. Ian, who had woken up from the commotion, started crying.

“Her Majesty the Empress is truly incredible. Lia, you should take your father and escape first.”

“I’m going to fight. That will be faster than trying to escape with Father. Ifrit!”

Yuliana summoned the intermediate fire spirit. A fierce ball of fire gathered and then formed into a valiant lion, standing by Yuliana.

[With the current mana you have, Yuli, you can’t kill them all.]

Ifrit, remembering using all of Lia’s mana to kill just one last time, spoke worriedly.

“I know, Ifrit.”

Corpses were slowly crawling out of the ground and walking. There were about twenty of them. They were exactly like the monsters seen in the village of Luteons. Yuliana frowned at the grotesque appearance of the reanimated corpses.

The monsters’ flesh was falling off, revealing bones, and saliva dripping from their mouths emitted smoke as it hit the ground. People fled in terror at the horrific sight, and the hunting ground turned into chaos in an instant.

Yuliana met Anthus’s gaze.

Her determined eyes stirred Anthus’s heart.

He wanted to tell her to run to safety. But knowing she wouldn’t, he silently held her hand tighter.

“Lia!”

Matthias and Louis called out to her desperately.

“Father… Brother, please escape first! I won’t run away.”

Yuliana quickly surveyed the surroundings after separating from Anthus and summoned the earth spirit, Noum.

“Yan! I’ll ask Noum to bind the new type of monster’s legs.”

The approaching monsters made beast-like noises and charged at Monica, who was at the forefront.

Monica easily subdued them by throwing her daggers. However, the monsters’ regeneration speed was faster than her blade movements.

“Duke Rockbellion, how can we eliminate these monsters?”

Monica looked at the monsters again with a cold face.

“Moca!”

Anthus clicked his tongue as he saw Cloud resisting being dragged away while desperately calling out to Monica.

“Sir Lynch! Drag His Majesty the Emperor far away by force if necessary!”

“Yes, understood.”

The knights of the Duke Rockbellion and other knights began to act according to Anthus’s orders, and Yuliana and Anthus prepared for battle.

Additionally, all the male nobles who could fight drew their swords to protect the people and retreated.

“Noum, bind them to the ground so they can’t come any closer.”

At least until the people escape from here, they need to be bound.

[It’s an easy task.]

The ground vibrated, and the approaching monsters’ legs were bound.

Anthus infused mana into his sword and swung it at the monsters, sending out sword energy. The monsters screamed sharply as their flesh fell off. However, the severed parts quickly began to regenerate.

“Duke Rockbellion! Step aside!”

Anthus continued to send out sword energy, but then felt a clear presence behind him and turned around. Rybid was kneeling and praying.

“Your Holiness! You must not use divine power.”

Anthus shouted at Rybid. Few knew that the new type of monster was immune to divine power. If divine power was used here and people realized it didn’t work, the situation would turn into even more chaos than it already was.

“Your Holiness!”

Anthus shouted at Rybid, but Rybid scoffed and began chanting a divine spell.

“I, Rybid, a servant of Agathaine, pray. I earnestly wish for the purification of the negative entities before me with the grace of God.”

Rybid’s golden eyes and black hair gradually turned white.

“Light!”

As Rybid chanted, divine power began to spread across the ground. The golden waves started to envelop the monsters.

“This spell kills monsters and heals our allies.”

People cheered at Rybid’s divine spell. But…