Purple Heart (4)

Because of the accident at this time, the Duchess of Pfalz was injured.

Due to her injury, the duchess entrusted part of Princess Dorothea’s upbringing to a concubine she was close with, which became a cause of conflict between the princess’s birth mother, the Baroness of Goggins, and the princess’s maternal family, the House of Marquis Manners.

One year after this accident, Marchioness of Mote, one of the Emperor’s concubines, left the palace citing the need for recuperation.

At the time, there were only rumors that the Marchioness of Mote had become disabled.

Given that many claimed to have seen her walk in a way unbefitting a concubine, it was likely true that she had been injured.

The issue was that the accident’s instigator was believed to be the Marchioness of Mote.

However, she was not the only one suspected.

The three senior concubines, referred to collectively as the Three Marchionesses—Marchioness of Mote, Marchioness of Lorder, and Marchioness of Tier—were all suspected.

Rumors spread that, with the previously powerless Duchess of Pfalz rising rapidly in influence within the harem, the three Marchionesses might have plotted together.

Others speculated the culprit could have been someone else among the concubines, not the three.

Ultimately, this accident left the Emperor’s high-ranking concubines injured.

Originally, when the accident occurred, the Empress herself had also been at the hunting grounds.

It was said she avoided injury because she had been resting in her private tent and happened to be out for a walk.

Later, rumors began circulating that the accident had been more than just a brief commotion, fueled by the tale that the Empress’s private tent had collapsed.

People unanimously said that if the Empress had been injured then, it would have been disastrous for the child in her womb.

“Countess, do you like hunting?”

“This isn’t the place to say it, but no. I find places like this difficult.”

On the walking path, Pauline spoke cautiously as she alternated her gaze between the tents and the forest.

Alicia had been the same way in the past.

“I didn’t like it either, originally.”

Alicia’s initial plan was this:

She would pay her respects to the Emperor’s concubines, then invite them to take a walk. If someone agreed to accompany her, that would be fortunate for them; if not, there was nothing she could do.

Since she didn’t have precise information, Alicia herself didn’t know which areas were safe.

She thought the walking path might be safer since it offered clear visibility to detect oncoming danger.

In Alicia’s estimation, the reason so many different people were suspected as being behind this accident was that it likely wasn’t aimed at a specific individual.

Judging by the outcome, an unspecified number of people were injured.

Given that this was a hunting ground, she suspected some driven game or an uncontrolled beast must have charged through the tents.

“Lady Alicia, do you enjoy hunting?”

“Rather than hunting itself, I enjoy horseback riding. And I thought it would be good to at least learn some basic self-defense.”

“There are some noble ladies and madams who are skilled enough to duel.”

Pauline gently agreed with others’ sentiments.

“They say His Highness is excellent with a sword, so you should ask him to teach you a few moves.”

At Alicia’s suggestion, Pauline shook her head.

“How could I ever learn swordsmanship? I’d probably end up stabbing my own foot.”

Pauline quipped self-deprecatingly.

Although she was shy and reserved, it seemed she wasn’t the type to be completely mute or unable to speak.

“Surely not.”

Alicia laughed with her and thought to herself.

Originally, the Istevna couple’s child should never have been born.

Was it all right to let that child be born?

Was this the moment of choice?

Then suddenly, Alicia froze at her own chilling thought.

She had considered not actively evacuating the concubines as something that was simply meant to happen.

She feared altering too much and setting off an uncontrollable chain of events.

“Lady Alicia?”

Pauline called out to Alicia, who stood frozen in a daze.

“Yes? Ah, sorry. Just a moment.”

Alicia snapped out of her thoughts and glanced around.

Her searching gaze met Juan’s, who was watching her.

“Lady, is something wrong?”

“I asked His Grace to leave me some knights for protection, just in case. They should be on standby, but I forgot to give them instructions.”

“Knights?”

Pauline looked at her with round, surprised eyes.

“Yes, it’s nothing important, so you don’t need to worry too much.”

While the two women talked, Juan approached in response to Alicia’s signal.

“Countess Istevna, it has been a while. Lady Alicia, do you have orders?”

“Divide the knights His Grace left behind into groups of three. One group should patrol on horseback and scout the surroundings. Juan, you and Sven also mount up and keep watch around us. The group remaining on the ground should check on the situation within the tents.”

“Right away, my lady.”

Juan bowed lightly and withdrew.

A moment of choice, huh.

Alicia secretly clicked her tongue at the arrogant thought she had earlier.

She felt embarrassed at the fleeting moment when she acted like she was something special just because she knew a little more than others.

‘Who do I think I am, anyway?’

Alicia completely changed her plan.

With guards patrolling the area, they would signal if something happened.

If her prediction was right, it meant there would be an unexpected kind of hunt happening here.

Having the knights mounted was to secure an advantage if they had to engage.

In her heart, she wanted all of the knights mounted and standing guard, but that would have been an overly unnatural order.

Her mind felt lighter after adjusting her thinking.

As she watched Juan delivering the orders, Alicia suddenly stopped at the gaze fixed on her.

Pauline, hesitating as if wondering whether to speak, smiled.

“You are amazing.”

“If the Countess gave orders to your knights, they would obey you as well.”

At Alicia’s words, Pauline looked flustered, as if overwhelmed.

It reminded Alicia so much of her own past self.

“They don’t treat me badly or disrespectfully.”

“But just being near them is hard, isn’t it? Even if they’re not threatening you, you turn away when you see knights on the street, right? Even when you have several maids at your side.”

“Yes, exactly!”

Pauline immediately agreed, as if Alicia had read her mind.

“There are dangerous knights too, after all.”

“Right?”

Pauline agreed with everything Alicia said, feeling grateful to have someone who seemed to understand her so well.

“In any case, shouldn’t we go pay our respects to the ladies in the harem?”

“…We should.”

At Alicia’s question, Pauline’s face quickly clouded.

Even after becoming the Duchess of Istevna, she was quietly looked down upon in high society.

It was because Pauline’s father had only been a baron.

In noble society, everything was decided by status.

So some nobles’ disdain for Pauline was almost to be expected.

But in hindsight, it was laughable.

After all, by marrying the Count of Istevna, Pauline had become a countess.

If those insulting her wanted to bring up lineage, the matter became even simpler.

The imperial family approved the marriage even though Pauline’s father was only a baron because he was the great scholar Lisman.

A former dean of the academy, Lisman had even royals as his students who revered him.

The only fault they could find was that she was “just” a baron’s daughter.

Pauline’s shy personality combined with the venomous customs of high society had plunged her into misery.

Seeing her face already downcast made Alicia feel bad, but it wasn’t something they could avoid forever.

Beeeep!

Just as Alicia and Pauline were about to leave the walking path, a sharp whistle echoed from afar.

Urgent shouts followed briefly.

It was hard to make out what was being said from such a distance.

Juan and Sven, who had been on standby, quickly rushed toward the walking path.

Amidst the commotion, a minor uproar began.

People only murmured; no one reacted properly.

“Sven, my horse!”

“Yes!”

Alicia focused all her attention on her ears as she spoke.

“Countess, do you know how to ride?”

“N-no…”

“Then ride here!”

Pauline was about to ask what that meant.

Before she could question, Alicia half-hugged her and helped her onto Juan’s horse.

“Kyaa! I can’t ride a horse!”

“Lady! You’ll get me killed!”

Juan and Pauline shouted simultaneously like startled creatures.

“Countess, since you can’t ride, you have to sit in front of Juan! Listen to me! Forget ladylike riding—put your weight toward the back and grip the horse’s body with your knees. Got it?”

“B-but… Lady Alicia, wait!”

Alicia outright grabbed Pauline’s waist and heaved her awkward body up.

Juan had no choice but to catch the Countess as she was pushed onto the saddle.

“The Countess is pregnant. Ride gently.”

“What?!”

“She’s a royal! Emergency situation! You don’t understand ride gently?”

“I’ll die…!”

Juan cried out with a near-tearful face.

He made a futile effort to avoid touching Pauline’s body on the narrow saddle.

“If anything happens to a royal, you’ll die too!”

Alicia spoke a harsh truth as she ran toward her own horse that Sven was bringing.

Reaching the horse, Alicia vaulted onto it in one fluid motion.

“My goodness…”

Pauline was awestruck by the sky-blue dress flying like it was soaring.

Behind her, Juan floundered in panic.

“Evacuate everyone inside the tents! Countess, grip the reins tight!”

Mounted on her horse, Alicia shouted as she passed Juan and Pauline.

Pauline answered in a daze.

“Y-yes!”

Juan’s reply could not be heard.

When he turned his horse toward the tents, a shout erupted from the forest in an unexpected direction.

“Move out of the way!”

From the wooded area where the private tents for royals and nobles were lined up, a stampede of agitated horses burst forth.

There seemed to be about seven or eight horses.

They trampled over the pitched tents in a chaotic gallop.

The hunting participants had gone out, and the concubines and noble ladies were chatting in open tents.

There were almost no people left in the private tents.

“Uwaaah!”

“W-what’s happening?!”

A brief commotion broke out among the courtiers stationed in the private tents who had been waiting for Juan’s summons.

The courtiers, gathering their outdoor equipment, clutched their leather bags and ran toward where the knights were stationed.

Knights guarding the tents confirmed there were no riders on the rampaging horses and shot arrows at the animals’ legs.

Thunk!

The heavy bodies of the horses hit the ground with a dull thud.

“Sven!”

At Alicia’s shout, Sven threw a rope toward the neck of another horse galloping from another direction.

The rope ended in a round hook.

Confirming it had caught the neck, Sven threw another hooked rope at the neck of a nearby horse.

Catching two at once, Sven spurred his mount to match the rampaging horses’ speed.

As Sven directed the ropes, the intruding horses reared up in defiance but ultimately followed where the nooses pulled them.

From the tents where the concubines and noble ladies were gathered, constant screams erupted.