(The Day of the Hunting Competition)
The hunting ground —
The hunting grounds were alive with noise and color. Noblemen and noblewomen gathered in fine riding gear, hunters stood ready with bows and spears, and the air buzzed with excitement as weapons glinted beneath the open sky.
Eva and Aranel stood at the very edge of the crowd, both dressed in their hunting attire. Gloves fitted snugly over their hands, bows resting lightly in their grips.
Eva glanced at the sea of participants before them, her unease clear.
“Aranel… there are so many competitors,” she whispered. “I don’t think we can win.”
Aranel turned to her with a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry, Eva. Remember all the training we went through. We can do this.”
Eva hesitated, lowering her voice. “We trained by shooting targets,” she said softly. “I don’t think I can shoot a living animal. It feels… cruel.”
Aranel’s expression softened. “I know. It is cruel.” She sighed quietly. “But this is how the hunt has always been. It’s the rule of nature here—and the rules of this competition.”
Eva tightened her grip on her bow, uncertainty lingering in her eyes.
The announcement rang out across the hunting grounds:
“His Imperial Majesty, Emperor Eyan Lucien Therald, arrives—accompanied by Prince Velco Morvalis of the Dravareth Empire.”
As Eyan stepped onto the raised platform with Prince Velco, a heavy silence fell over the grounds. Nobles, hunters, and attendants alike lowered their heads in unison, bows deep and respectful.
Eyan’s sharp gaze swept over the assembled crowd. “Raise your heads,” he commanded calmly.
Slowly, everyone obeyed.
Hans raised his voice, addressing the gathered crowd.
“Everyone present here to participate in the competition,” he announced, “before we begin, His Majesty wishes to make an announcement.”
A ripple of murmurs spread through the hunting grounds.
“An announcement?”
“What kind of announcement?”
“Why now?”
Whispers passed from one noble to another as curiosity—and unease—settled over the crowd.
Then Eyan stepped forward then he spoke, his voice neither loud nor gentle, yet it reached every ear with terrifying clarity.
“Before this competition begins,” Eyan said evenly, “the rules have been changed.”
A ripple of confusion passed through the crowd. Several nobles exchanged glances. Others frowned. The excitement that had filled the air moments earlier began to shift into unease.
Eva and Aranel exchanged a startled glance.
“This hunt,” he continued, “will no longer be decided by slaughter.”
A sharp breath was heard. A few laughed—thinking it a jest.
Eyan did not smile.
“You are forbidden to kill any animal within these grounds,” he declared. “Your task is to capture them alive.”
This time, the silence that followed was heavier.
“You may use your weapons,” Eyan went on, his tone unchanging, “but only to wound, restrain, or disable. Any animal brought back will be examined by imperial healers, treated, and returned safely to the forest once the competition ends.”
Eva’s eyes widened in quiet surprise—then a soft smile curved her lips.
“Alive…” she whispered.
Murmurs erupted instantly.
“Alive?”
“This is absurd.”
“What kind of hunt is that?”
Eyan lifted a hand. The forest went silent again.
“Before you trouble yourselves with unnecessary fear,” he added coolly, “be aware that no wild or dangerous beasts have been released into these grounds. There are no man-eaters, no rogue predators, and nothing that requires you to risk your lives.”
A pause.
“This is a test of skill,” he said, “not bravery against death.”
Some relief flickered across faces. Others looked displeased.
A tall noble finally stepped forward, bow resting on his shoulder, irritation clear in his voice.
“Your Majesty,” he said stiffly, “with all due respect—this is a hunting competition. Changing the rules at the last moment is unfair. A hunt without killing is meaningless.”
Several others nodded in agreement.
Eyan’s gaze shifted to the speaker—slowly, deliberately.
“Is it?” he asked.
The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.
The noble opened his mouth to respond.
“You are disqualified,” Eyan said calmly.
The words struck like a blade.
“What—?” the man froze.
“Leave the grounds,” Eyan repeated. “Immediately.”
Guards moved without hesitation, gripping the noble by the arms as shock and fury twisted his features.
“This is outrageous!” someone shouted from the crowd. “You cannot expect us to accept rules like this!”
Eyan’s eyes lifted toward the voice.
“Disqualified,” he said again.
Another noble was seized.
The crowd stiffened, tension coiling tightly.
“Let me make this clear,” Eyan said, his voice colder now. “This competition exists by my will. You will follow its rules—or you will not participate at all.”
He let his gaze sweep across them once more.
“Anyone who protests further,” he continued, “anyone who refuses to comply, or anyone who kills an animal—intentionally or otherwise—will be immediately removed and barred from future imperial competitions.”
No one spoke.
“You are hunting in pairs,” Eyan said. “Victory will be awarded to those who bring back the greatest number of living animals—with minimal injury. Cooperation, restraint, and judgment will be observed.”
Eyan turned, his cloak shifting softly behind him as he stepped away from the platform.
“Let the hunting competition begin,” he declared, his voice calm—and absolute.
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Eva and Aranel rode side by side as the forest closed around them, sunlight slipping through the branches above.
“I’m happy His Majesty changed the rules,” Eva said softly, her hands steady on the reins. “Now we don’t have to kill innocent animals just to win the competition.”
Aranel nodded in agreement. “True. We’re at an advantage now.” After a brief pause, her eyes lit with realization. “Now I understand why Mr. Luca taught us how to make capture traps—almost as if he already knew this would happen.”
Eva smiled, warmth blooming in her chest. “Then let’s make as many traps as we can and capture as many animals as possible.”
They slowed to a halt, the horses snorting quietly as Eva and Aranel dismounted and stepped onto the forest floor.
Aranel turned to her, a determined smile on her face. “Now, let’s begin.”
Eva nodded. And together, they started setting their traps, the quiet forest watching as the competition truly began.
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Eyan sat back in his chair as the competition unfolded, his gaze fixed on the floating magic crystal ball before him. Images shimmered across its surface—pairs scattering through the forest, movements cautious, strategies already forming.
Hans stood beside him, hands folded behind his back.
“Your Majesty,” Hans said carefully, a hint of curiosity in his tone, “did you change the rules because of Her Majesty? To make the competition easier for her?”
Eyan didn’t look away from the crystal.
“I did,” he replied without hesitation.
Hans blinked, surprised.
“But,” Eyan continued coolly, “do not mistake this for mercy. If you think catching an animal alive is easier than killing it, then you understand nothing. Restraint is far more difficult than brutality.”
Hans chuckled softly, watching the scenes shift.
“You said that helping her win outright would be unfair to the others,” Eyan went on. “So I changed the rules instead. Now the field is even—for everyone.”
Hans smiled, genuine admiration in his eyes. “It was a brilliant idea, Your Majesty.”
Eyan’s lips curved faintly. “It wasn’t mine,” he said. “The concept came from Luca, he suggested this....”
Hans raised a brow in mild surprise.
Eyan leaned forward slightly, his eyes sharpening as the crystal revealed Eva and Aranel moving in careful sync.
“Now,” he murmured, “let us see whether luca trained Eva and Lady Aranel well enough… in just seven days.”
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Prince Velco rode through the forest at an unhurried pace, his horse’s hooves sinking softly into the damp earth. Beside him was his assigned partner, Count Roderic Hale, a man with sharp eyes and an even sharper tongue.
“This rule change is absurd,” Roderic muttered, irritation clear in his voice. “A hunt where we’re forbidden to kill—what was the emperor thinking?”
Velco’s eyes remained fixed ahead, sharp and calculating.
“That is precisely what I am wondering,” he replied. “The emperor does not alter tradition without purpose.”
A sudden rustle broke the stillness.
A deer burst from between the trees, eyes wide with panic.
Velco’s expression hardened.
In one smooth motion, he raised his weapon and struck—not to kill, but precise and cruel. The blade sliced into the deer’s hind leg. The animal collapsed with a sharp cry, struggling uselessly against the ground.
Velco dismounted calmly, approaching as the deer trembled.
“There,” he said coolly. “Alive—as commanded.”
The deer’s labored breaths filled the air as Velco looked down at it, a faint, unsettling smile touching his lips—one that suggested he was already enjoying this new kind of hunt far too much.
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(Three hours later)
The forest floor bore quiet evidence of careful planning.
Eva and Lady Aranel moved swiftly between the trees, their steps light, their coordination seamless. One by one, their traps had succeeded—not through force, but patience.
A rope snare tightened gently around a fox’s leg.
A weighted net dropped over a startled mountain goat.
Two rabbits struggled harmlessly inside a woven enclosure.
A young deer lay restrained, breathing fast but unharmed.
And finally, a startled boar caught in a reinforced pit, unable to climb out.
Six animals.
All alive.
Aranel wiped her brow, glancing at the tied creatures resting safely beneath the shade of the trees. “That makes six,” she said, disbelief and pride mingling in her voice. “Mr. Luca truly wasn’t exaggerating.”
Eva smiled softly as she secured the final knot. “He said traps would be kinder than blades.”
Before Aranel could reply, a sudden crash echoed from deeper within the forest—metal clanging sharply, followed by a curse.
Both women froze.
“That wasn’t an animal,” Aranel murmured.
Eva hesitated only a moment. “Stay here. I’ll check.”
She hurried toward the sound, pushing past low branches until she reached another trap—one they had set earlier and nearly forgotten.
And trapped inside it—
Prince Velco.
The reinforced net had snapped upward, tangling around his torso and arms, suspending him awkwardly above the ground. His horse stood nearby, reins loose, clearly startled.
Velco’s expression was dark with fury. “Which idiot laid this trap—” he began sharply.
Then his eyes fell on Eva. The anger vanished. A slow, intrigued smile curved his lips.
“Well,” Velco said smoothly, “this is unexpected.”
Eva’s face drained of color.
“Y-Your Highness!” she exclaimed, bowing hurriedly. “I—I’m so sorry. This trap was meant for animals. I didn’t think—please forgive me.”
She rushed forward without hesitation, fingers working quickly at the ropes.
“Careful,” Velco said lightly, watching her far too closely.
Eva began cutting through the rope, careful not to look directly at him. The blade slid along the tensioned fibers—
—and slipped.
A sharp pain sliced across her palm. She gasped softly, instinctively clenching her hand.
Prince Velco’s expression shifted at once. “Are you alright, my lady?”
Eva nodded quickly. “Y-yes. I’m fine.”
Before he could say more, she resumed cutting, ignoring the sting as she worked through the remaining knots. The net loosened, then finally gave way, and Velco dropped lightly to the ground, free at last.
The moment his boots touched the earth, his gaze returned to Eva’s hand.
“My lady you’re bleeding,” he said, concern replacing irritation. “Remove your glove. Let me see.”
Eva instinctively hid her left hand behind her back. “It’s nothing, Your Highness. Truly.”
Velco’s eyes darkened. “Are you defying my order, lady?”
The sharpness in his voice made Eva flinch. Fear flickered across her face. Slowly, reluctantly, she reached for the glove on her left hand and pulled it off.
The cut was shallow—but that was not what froze Prince Velco.
The green gemstone ring on her finger caught the light, gleaming unmistakably.
Velco went still.
His breath hitched as his eyes locked onto the ring, recognition crashing over his features.
Slowly, dangerously, his gaze lifted to her face.
“…It’s .” he said softly.
