Episode 35

Rather, I had been worried that Riorem might refuse it.

“Thank goodness. He’s the one looking for luxury goods first.”

The Crown Prince spoke with a calm expression.

“I understand. Later, I will have my attendants send you a list of craftsmen who supply goods to the royal family.”

“Thank you.”

“Do you really feel thankful? Haha. I’m the one who should be grateful. It’s easier for me if the princess doesn’t try to escape from Dinamis Castle. I hope these things help you pass the time.”

After confirming the negotiation was over, the Crown Prince turned his horse back to the hunting grounds with a much lighter expression.

Meanwhile, Riorem’s expression grew more and more serious as he followed behind.

Alpheios was someone the Crown Prince didn’t need to be cautious with, but Cernea was different.

Though the country had fallen, her bloodline remained.

She deserved respect.

So the “mood” the Crown Prince referred to was a polite way of alluding to one of the countless rumors about Cernea: her indulgent personality fond of luxury and pleasure.

In truth, Cernea enjoyed indulgence.

She liked wearing lavish clothes and partying, as well as immersing herself in alcohol and drugs to pursue pleasure.

All of which were impossible now.

Riorem’s jaw tightened firmly.

Until now, he had thought Cernea was content with this life.

Having lived surrounded by people and desire all her life, maybe being confined to a bedroom and served respectfully was acceptable.

“But is she really satisfied with this situation?”

That arrogant woman who had indulged in pleasures with reckless abandon?

Cernea Antonietta Del Péroa, who had everything she wanted and did whatever she pleased?

A deep anxiety began to stir in Riorem’s heart.

Around the time he woke up half-conscious, Riorem returned.

His face was worn and tense as he sat in a chair, closing his eyes and leaning back.

I lay on the bed watching him.

His claim that he only went to check the hunting grounds was true—he returned empty-handed, no bow or sword marks.

“Then why does he look so exhausted?”

I glanced between Riorem and the tent entrance with a puzzled look.

Then he spoke.

“Do you want to go outside from here?”

A strange question.

I asked back, unsure of his meaning.

“What do you mean by that?”

“I mean something like a walk. You’ve come all the way to this new place, yet you stayed inside the tent. You like new things so much.”

“I told you many times, this isn’t my first time accompanying the hunt.”

“Then why do you keep trying to look outside?”

Only then did I understand what Riorem meant.

He had noticed my gaze drifting beyond the tent for some time.

“You weren’t looking outside — you were looking at where you came from, Riorem. I wondered why you looked so tired.”

“…That’s because…”

His lips moved but he didn’t continue. Footsteps approached, shaking the floor.

Soon, unfamiliar voices came from outside the tent.

“I have come by order of His Highness the Crown Prince. His Highness has sent a gift.”

“A gift?”

I repeated the word with curiosity.

Riorem didn’t seem very surprised.

“May we enter, General Riorem Bellic?”

“Wait a moment.”

Riorem unfolded the partition to block the area where I lay in bed.

Only then did he allow the men to enter the tent.

Several men stepped inside quietly; unlike before, there was almost no sound of their footsteps.

They had likely announced their approach with deliberate noise outside to warn anyone nearby.

I heard the soft sound of footsteps brushing over the carpet and thought,

“They must be the Crown Prince’s attendants.”

Because of the partition, I couldn’t see them, but the neat sounds of their clothing made it clear they were skilled attendants.

One of them spoke.

“This mountain tends to be quite humid, and it gets rather chilly at night. For that reason, His Highness has bestowed this upon you. Please make good use of it.”

Without waiting for Riorem’s reply, the attendants immediately left the tent.

Only after their footsteps had completely faded away could I step out from behind the partition.

“A gift?”

I asked, but Riorem didn’t answer.

Instead, he simply pointed with his finger at something taken out of the box.

“Oh my.”

I couldn’t help but exclaim.

Inside the box was a fur blanket.

Not just any fur, but a tiny patchwork blanket made from white ermine pelts.

I slowly stroked the fur.

The stitching was so exquisite that the seams were almost invisible.

The fur was light and soft beyond words.

In an interested voice, I said,

“No matter how good the fur, seeing it this clean makes me think it’s brand new and unused. Something of this quality must have been a special gift.”

It was clearly a gift sent with great effort.

But hearing my words, Riorem’s expression grew darker and darker.

Honestly, it was pitiful.

I couldn’t believe this was the face of someone who had received a grand gift from the Crown Prince.

Looking at that expression, a small common knowledge came to mind.

Since old times, ermine fur was mostly given as a gift to women.

White ermine was something only noblewomen could possess.

“Then this must be…?”

I couldn’t help but chuckle.

“It’s not your gift, but mine.”

Riorem remained silent.

Only then did I understand why Riorem looked so exhausted when he returned from the hunting grounds.

‘The Crown Prince must have said something strange.’

I had a rough idea. Probably he told Riorem to calm me down so that I wouldn’t be upset about the situation.

This fur blanket was probably sent with the meaning of, ‘I will provide you with luxurious goods equivalent to royal items, so stay quietly there.’

For me, there was no reason to refuse.

It wasn’t hard to accept that request.

But the problem was always Riorem.

The fact that such things were prepared even without bringing several wagons meant that even more gifts would surely come in the future.

‘Then those gifts will slowly eat away at Riorem’s nerves.’

Even just this ermine fur blanket was enough to make him anxious.

And if I were in his position, hearing a very rational but utterly nonsense opinion from the Crown Prince, I certainly wouldn’t be happy to live in Riorem’s room.

The situation became somewhat awkward.

Riorem was generally smart, but sometimes he got obsessed with strange things.

Especially when it came to matters concerning me, he often made illogical and irrational choices.

So it wasn’t a groundless worry to think that he might come to some strange conclusion.

‘In that case, I’ll have no choice but to convey my feelings directly to the Crown Prince. First… after calming Riorem down.’

I picked up the fur blanket and went over to the chair where Riorem was sitting.

Then I sat on his lap, covering my lower body with the white fur.

“What did you see in the forest?”

“I didn’t see it directly, but there seem to be more predators than I thought.”

“So close to the palace?”

“Yes. There seem to be many who came to hunt the increased deer population during the winter.”

Riorem naturally wrapped his arms around my waist.

I gave in to him obediently, and continued asking questions I wasn’t even curious about.

“I wonder what kinds of animals were there. Hunting in places with many predators is always noisy, isn’t it?”

“From the tracks, it looks like there are bears. From the marks on the tree trunks, there may be leopards… and there were also packs of canines.”

“Wild dogs? Or wolves?”

“I’m not sure. Sometimes wolves stay in the forest until spring, but usually they say it’s wild dog packs.”

After saying that, Riorem glanced down at the fur blanket covering my lower body.

Soon he spoke.

“Whatever it is, don’t pay attention to that blanket. It’ll soon be replaced with something greater.”

I smiled gently and thought,

‘First, I should send a note to the Crown Prince. Tell him to stop sending gifts.’