Chapter 36

However, contrary to my expectations, the right moment hardly ever came.

It was because just as I barely eased Riorem’s mood and caught his gaze, another message from the Crown Prince arrived.

“Damn it…”

Riorem cursed as he stood up.

I could feel a strange heat coming from him.

It was only natural—he was in the middle of showering me with kisses, having pinned me down on the fur blanket.

Rustle.

Riorem, who had set up a partition, abruptly pulled back the screen.

“What is it?”

“The prince says he wants to have an early lunch together.”

“Can’t he eat by himself?”

Ahem.

The attendant cleared his throat.

Apparently, he didn’t like Riorem’s attitude, which not only refused to socialize with the Crown Prince but even belittled his efforts.

“…He said discussing the afternoon schedule during mealtime would be more efficient than setting aside separate time.”

“Sigh… That’s true. Understood. Tell him I’ll be there soon. And…”

The attendant added quickly, sensing the situation.

“We will prepare a separate meal for the person inside. Where should we set the table?”

“Put it right here. Don’t let anyone come past this partition.”

“Understood.”

With the sound of the tent closing, the attendant left silently.

I slowly opened my mouth.

“The Crown Prince really wants to get along with you, huh.”

Riorem muttered irritably.

“What’s so funny?”

“Funny?”

“You’ve been smiling the whole time. Are you happy about being called to that man?”

“I am. It seems your position is getting stronger.”

I stood up from my chair and approached Riorem with light steps, tidying his clothes.

“The more solid your foundation becomes, the easier it is for me.”

“At least it’ll be harder for anyone to sneak into your mansion and try to take me.”

Riorem looked down at me quietly, with a look that seemed full of things to say.

Soon, he erased his expression.

His lips lowered, and after a brief kiss, he whispered,

“When the meal arrives, please stay behind the partition. Do not show yourself to anyone else.”

“Alright.”

I smiled reassuringly at Riorem.

That much of an order I could follow.

There was no need to show my face when passing messages to the Crown Prince.

After seeing Riorem off, I thoroughly searched the inside of the tent.

I was planning to send a letter with the attendant who would bring the meal.

But among Riorem’s belongings, there were no paper or pen.

‘Should I even dirty my clothes with mud or something to send it?’

There was a reason why I was so worried.

Now was the easiest time.

After returning to the mansion, contacting the Crown Prince would become much more complicated.

He would be inside the royal palace, after all.

In a situation where Riorem controlled my life, breaking through all that censorship and checkpoints would be very difficult.

It was better to deliver my intentions now, even if it looked awkward.

While I was thinking about how to do it, the meal soon arrived.

Even as the attendants were moving the table, I racked my brain intensely.

The letter itself could be sent when the attendants collected the leftovers, but the problem was finding a suitable tool.

But the moment I looked at the dining table the attendants had left, all my worries disappeared.

I quietly looked at the stone bowl holding the dessert and the fork hanging on its edge.

Also, the short phrase written on the surface of the bowl:

“The scent of the candle: floral scent, or herbal scent?”

I picked up the fork, which had a particularly pointed handle, and turned it so the handle faced downward.

I scratched the words with the fork handle.

The pigment on the edge left a long horizontal line over the question.

Instead of writing more messages below, I drew an arrow toward the edge of the bowl.

I moved the sweets to another plate and flipped the stone bowl over.

I scribbled words on the underside:

“No need. Conscious of gift. Bad effect.”

“No worries will happen. If desired, can swear oath.”

The meal and table were taken away before Riorem returned.

I don’t know if the message I wrote reached the Crown Prince well.

I never saw that man’s face, so I couldn’t exchange any glances.

Moreover, the letter was written vaguely enough that it wouldn’t be a problem if anyone found it.

I couldn’t even tell if the Crown Prince fully understood my intention.

After finishing the meal and preparing himself, Riorem left for the forest again without any further contact.

It was actually a relief that no more gifts arrived.

At least Riorem’s nerves weren’t further frayed.

Anyway, the first night of the three-day schedule passed.

The next morning, I barely opened my eyes, still stiff and sore.

Riorem, who had placed me on a makeshift sofa, returned to the bed to clear away the bedding that had become dirty overnight.

I looked at his back, straight and beautifully formed.

Last night, Riorem barely let me sleep.

“Well… he wasn’t excessively rough. Just incredibly persistent.”

What was happening outside?

What kind of conversation had he had with the Crown Prince?

I couldn’t hear it from Riorem’s mouth.

Rather, it seemed Riorem wanted to block those concerns out of his mind.

If not, he wouldn’t be so obsessively biting my skin as if trying to make it vanish quickly.

“Whatever it is, it means he’s in a bad mood.”

Lying sideways with my aching body, I spoke.

“So you’re going out to the forest again this morning, huh.”

Riorem was silent, seeming uncomfortable.

“How about skipping the morning? You don’t want to go out, and the Crown Prince probably wants to please you. He would surely agree.”

“Not yet.”

A low voice cut me off.

“I haven’t caught anything proper yet.”

I couldn’t help but chuckle.

Despite being a first-time hunter, he brought back rabbits, birds, and even deer to make the evening meal rich.

But he hadn’t caught the prey he was satisfied with.

“What did you want to catch?”

“Alright, let me change the question. Why couldn’t you catch it? Did you miss it, or…”

“I could only find traces.”

Riorem answered calmly.

I thought for a moment.

“How did you track it? With your eyes?”

“Is there any other method?”

“I brought hunting dogs.”

His once-beautiful forehead was mercilessly creased.

He had been reluctant to use hunting dogs from the start.

After unintentionally spending the night in the cabin, it seemed he had started avoiding them altogether.

“Nothing beats hunting dogs for tracking. Especially when the prey senses the hunter and hides.”

Sigh.

Riorem sighed.

Though he still wasn’t pleased, it seemed his thoughts were leaning toward following my advice.

“What exactly do you want to catch, going to such lengths?”

I was curious but didn’t show it.

If I showed interest, he might give up altogether or obsess over it recklessly.

As we talked, an attendant came to fetch Riorem.

Wearing his outer coat, Riorem gazed at my face.

“Why? Do you want a kiss?”

Riorem moved his lips.

“I might not return until the afternoon.”

“Really? You’ll have another meal alone today, then.”

“Yes. So…”

“So?”

‘…Don’t let anyone inside. Leave the meal at the entrance.’

Saying this, Riorem left the tent without making eye contact with me.

After that, it was again a long wait.

It was boring.

I usually had little to do in the hunting grounds, but without anyone to talk to, time passed even slower.

All there was to wait for was the meal that would arrive on time and Riorem, suspiciously obsessed with hunting.

As I was killing time, footsteps were heard outside.

“I will prepare the meal.”

A familiar voice sounded, but it was not the attendant’s.

I hid behind the partition.

Soon I heard busy sounds of the table and food being moved.

Then something dropped at my feet.

Ahem.

Paletion Danos, who appeared instead of the attendant, cleared his throat audibly.

I deliberately made a noise and picked up what he had thrown.

It was a smooth stone, like an ornament, with writing on it.

“A large cedar with a white band on the trunk. Two hours later.”

After reading the message, I rubbed the surface of the stone with my finger.

The remaining letters disappeared instantly.

At that moment, Paletion Danos spoke.

“I will come back to collect the leftovers in about two hours.”