The morning of the Hunting Festival dawned.
This year, like last year, it was brought forward a day to July 9th. In the vast blue sky, without a single cloud, a bird, perhaps a kite or an eagle, circled lazily.
A well-dressed, unfamiliar man stood on the platform, giving a congratulatory speech and announcing the rules. His voice, gentle and soothing as if addressing young children, clearly indicated the nature of the event, hardly befitting the handling of adults.
Was it said that it was embarrassing for someone over thirty to come to such an event? Indeed, it was.
For at least an hour, instructions were given, such as not aiming arrows at people and pulling the Type 2 emergency signal transmitter if anything dangerous happened. Following the guidance of the escort Knights, I chose a bow.
I listened quietly to the voices of the children chattering about catching deer or wolves as they examined bows with familiar-colored ribbons attached.
As I picked out a suitable bow, Marianne poked me in the side.
“Aren’t you using Your Highness too much like a servant, Michael?”
“What… Ah.”
I smiled, seeing Rubel leading his black horse from afar. It was funny that he hadn’t even chosen his bow yet and had gone to the stables first. Rubel, after exchanging brief nods with my friends, stood beside me with a bright smile.
“Good morning, Mika.”
“Yes. You seem to have hurried this morning. I could have accompanied you to fetch the horse.”
“No, I’ve taken care of this one for a long time… He’s a bit shy. Even though he’s seen Mika a few times, riding on his back is another matter… I wanted to bring him so I could introduce him before we left.”
“I see. Does this fellow have a name?”
“Uh-huh. I call him Black.”
“…Black?”
A very straightforward name.
Rubel handed me a carrot and went to choose his bow. I obediently gave the carrot to his horse. Black carefully sniffed my shoulders and hands. I had become accustomed to interacting with animals since coming to this land, so it didn’t feel awkward.
While other children immediately slung their chosen bows over their shoulders, Rubel and I had to ride the horse together, so we couldn’t do that. Two bows were hung side by side on Black’s flank. A bow with a blue ribbon and a bow with a red ribbon were tied together, unstrung.
Rubel’s face was so bright as he looked at them that it was amusing. My friends chattered, wished us luck, and headed to the stables to find their own horses.
I watched their retreating figures for a moment before climbing onto the horse.
Rubel, slightly larger than me, sat behind me. It felt strange to lean against his broad chest, so I kept straightening my back. As Rubel held the reins with one hand and wrapped his other arm around my waist, the boy’s breath touched my neck.
Ah.
Unable to endure it any longer, I grabbed his wrist.
“Mika…?”
“Would you mind if I sat in the back?”
“Huh?”
“Or I can walk.”
“No, no. I… I’ll ride in front. Should I get off for a moment?”
“No.”
Leaving the flustered boy behind, I jumped off the horse as if running away, switched places, and got back on.
The child was nestled snugly in my arms. I had embraced those broad shoulders several times before. Yet, for some reason, I felt embarrassed to be seen by others and quickly pulled the reins to start. Even with two men on its back, the nimble horse quickly found its way and galloped off.
Children who didn’t want to participate in the hunt gathered in a circle to see off those who were leaving. The cheers, whistles, and jeers of the children made me feel like they were teasing me, which was embarrassing.
I thought that if I sat behind the child, I could lean back when it was difficult, and I could hold only the reins without touching his body.
But that was not the case.
As the child in my arms relaxed and leaned back, his white neck was close to my face. Even though I didn’t deliberately wrap my arms around his waist, the fragrant, slender body touching the inside of my arms filled my whole body with tension.
It was because Rubel had tied his hair up high for the hunt. No, it wasn’t. It was my fault. It was all my fault for constantly harboring impure thoughts while looking at him, neatly dressed in a way that didn’t violate Sierren’s customs. I struggled to avoid letting my gaze wander.
I should have refused when he suggested riding together.
I wanted to chant Buddhist scriptures to calm my mind, but I hadn’t memorized any since I had never needed to before. The Shaolin monk had always teased me, calling me a stone Buddha, even more unfeeling than wood, so I had always thought that was the case. But it seemed I had never had the opportunity. It was an outrageous thing.
My heart was pounding so hard that I couldn’t say a word properly.
Perhaps sensing something, the child in my arms was quiet and still. Even though I urged the horse on, it still took at least twenty minutes to cross the wide plain. As soon as we reached the entrance to the forest that I had scouted out in advance, I jumped off the horse immediately.
I was breathless, like someone who had been holding their breath for a long time.
The child, still on the horse, looked down at me with a flushed face.
“I’ll clear the path.”
“…Okay.”
I was too embarrassed and ashamed to look up.
I roughly wiped my face once and drew my sword. I walked, clearing away vines and other obstacles that would hinder the horse’s progress. After silently swinging my sword for a while, my mind finally calmed down.
Was it because I had only recently awakened to love? I was belatedly embarrassed by the fuss I had made.
I had needlessly startled the child again.
I knew he was watching me from behind, but I couldn’t look back. It was so difficult to pretend to be nonchalant that I kept clenching my hands.
Trees taller than several stories, with impossibly long and thick trunks, cast a dark shadow overhead. The vines that intertwined between the trees were so dense that Rubel, who had been crouching and hugging the horse, finally dismounted and stood on his own two feet.
“The First Prince and Wesley actually came into a place like this?”
“Well… I guess there are more common prey in the plains. And more eyes watching.”
“…Still, it’s charming.”
Perhaps because it was early summer before the rainy season, the scent of decaying, soft fallen leaves was fragrant, even in the shade where the sun didn’t reach. It felt less humid and damp, and more like being nestled in the warm, moist embrace of plants.
Startled by our quiet footsteps, a bug fluttered and landed on a nearby tree. The inside of its wings sparkled, as if they were made of beautifully crafted mother-of-pearl.
A troop of monkey, each the size of a fist, chattered and fled through the leaves high above, wary of the strangers.
Rubel walked behind me.
Then, a little later, he came up beside me.
I stopped for a moment, captivated by the new vegetation. It was nice to hear Rubel adding explanations in a low voice, saying what this was and what that was. Were we out hunting, or out for a walk? Neither of us seemed to be afraid, and we were both relaxed.
Then, I happily recited when I happened to discover something I knew.
“Ah, I know this one too. Paladin mushrooms.”
“I know. They look so cute all gathered together like this.”
It was enjoyable for something cute to see something cute and call it cute, and I burst out laughing. I had to find an animal, but I kept looking at the child. I cleared my throat deliberately and looked into the distance.
We had left early in the morning, but after walking and talking, it was already close to lunchtime. Hearing the sound of water, I moved in that direction, hoping to find a decent animal.
Suddenly, the shade above us disappeared and light poured in.
It was a narrow valley, only wide enough to jump over in two large steps. Sunlight shattered and flowed along with the trickling water. A young deer that had come to drink water on the opposite side peered out, assessing the situation. I didn’t bother to take out my bow and turned to look at Rubel.
“A spot has opened up, shall we have a meal and go?”
“Yes, let’s do that.”
As we turned our gaze away, the deer quickly put its mouth to the lower reaches of the valley. Its neck was long, and its large, gentle eyes somehow resembled Rubel. Thinking that, I turned back, and the child’s beaming smile was very lovely. I smiled back.
I took out a lunch box from the bundle hanging on the horse and spread it out on the spot. We ate colorful sandwiches and muffins, chatting quietly.
It was a peaceful time, as if we were the only two people left in the world.
❖ ❖ ❖
After crossing the valley, the path became rougher, and we could no longer take the horse with us.
Black was a smart horse with good blood, so we decided to leave him in a suitable place and come back to find him later. We also loosened the reins and saddle and carefully placed them aside, so that he could easily run away if anything dangerous happened.
Only then did Rubel and I string our bows and sling them over our backs.
I took Rubel’s hand and led him along, as he complained unnecessarily about never having walked on a steep path before. After walking for a long time, we found a footprint that was more than a hand span long. The footprint was larger than Rubel’s fully grown hand span, and it was so deep that it crushed the damp ground.
Rubel and I, who had been bickering about whether we would even find an animal if we continued like this, closed our mouths at the same time. We spread our Qi sense wide. Small, clumsy things touched our nerves for a long time.
“…Northeast.”
“That way?”
“Yes.”
I felt a large presence and whispered in a lowered voice, and Rubel, who immediately understood, took out the bow he had been carrying on his back and held it in his hand. I did the same.
We walked silently.
Rubel, who followed my footsteps exactly, often lost his footing and slipped, but he didn’t make a loud noise.
Through the dense trees, through the lush vines.
A huge head was sticking out.
A bear.
Of course, it wasn’t pink. The huge bear, with a grizzled coat and an expression that seemed wise with age, had grayish-brown fur. It was easily over 1 zhang in size.
It was difficult to tell whether this land was so large that the animals were also large, or whether it was because we were close to a mountain rich in magical power.
I hid behind a tree and nocked an arrow. Rubel, who was less skilled at hiding his presence than I was, was watching silently from a distance behind me.
I stopped breathing and aimed slightly above.
Whoosh!
The creature noticed and quickly raised its front paw, but it was an arrow that had been fired to curve. The arrow struck the animal’s left eye accurately and trembled. Perhaps because the length of the bow was not long enough, or because the animal’s life force was great, it did not fall immediately.
The bear, roaring in pain, looked straight at us.