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nRieta stared at the little boys who drew their bows clumsily, and then suddenly thought of her younger brothers.

nShe wondered how great it would be if those children could grow up with experiences like that.

n. . . I’m a little sorry.

nThose children probably felt sorry for Rieta in turn, as she was kicked out of the Kingdom.

nI miss you . . .

nAs soon as she thought about it, she became a little depressed.

nIt was fortunate that the carriage stopped just in time.

nThe door that had been tightly closed opened, and the wind that smelt of dirt rushed into the carriage, making her feel much better.

n“I’ve been waiting.”

nThe Duke, who had arrived first, welcomed Rieta.

nHe even escorted her himself to make it easier to get off the wagon.

n“Thank you, Duke.”

n“Of course.”

nAfter making sure Noel got off safely, he sent the carriage to the waiting area.

n“Is the road difficult? The carriage must have shaken quite a bit.”

n“It did for a while. It was fun.”

n“That’s a relief.”

n“Duke, shouldn’t I say hello to His Majesty? He even sent me a separate invitation.”

n“Yes, I wish we could, but things are not going well right now.”

n“What do you mean? What’s going on?”

n“The tower suddenly sent someone, and he is still being held in the palace. He’ll probably come right before the hunting competition starts.”

nAfter listening to the Duke’s story, she looked around and found that the person who actually took the lead and was in charge of the event was the Princess.

n“Wow . . . !”

nRieta was somewhat impressed by the appearance of the Princess.

nShe was dressed very lightly, unlike on her birthday.

nHer long hair was tied up coolly, and bows and arrows, as well as small daggers, were tied to her legs.

nI think you’re going to participate in a hunting contest!

nShe was so dignified. Like a real knight.

nOf course, the Princess actually held the title of knighthood as the orthodox heir to the throne, but . . .

nThe way she gave orders to the Imperial servants seemed very mature.

nIt was to the point she adored her.

nIt’s the Princess from the original story.

nBesides, the happiest thing was when she found the shoes worn by the Princess.

nDid she wear the shoes I gave her as a gift?!

nRieta was so happy that she wanted to run to her right away and share the story about the shoes.

nI still don’t know how to buy a heart.

nAnyway, there was something she vaguely realized when she talked to Darrel before.

nA conversation that was about understanding the mind helped to capture the heart.

nBecause Darrel never asked about anything Rieta didn’t want to say.

nShe said that she would keep her heart a secret as she also vaguely realized.

nBut she seemed too busy to ask and talk to the Princess.

nIt wouldn’t be a very good idea to annoy the Princess at a time like this.

nI hope there will be a better chance next time.

nRieta brushed off her disappointment and looked back at the Duke who was beside her.

nShe held out the handkerchief tied on her wrist.

n“Oh, that’s right. Duke!”

n“Yes.”

n“Noel promised to win for me.”

nThe Duke wondered if Rieta was bragging, but he looked at her expression and concluded that it didn’t seem so.

n“Noel, he doesn’t like to lose.”

nRieta patted the handkerchief with a somewhat worried face.

n“I’m afraid he’ll overdo it, so I’m telling you.”

n“That is, for sure . . .”

nConsidering Noel’s personality, his actions might be a bit overkill in a contest where he held a promise.

n“I see. I will watch closely.”

n“Noel said he would catch me a deer the size of a carriage.”

nThe Duke was worried that Rieta would confuse ‘deer’ with a bear.

nAs he traced back his memory, he introduced the word ‘deer’ in the Kingdom language.

n“Of course I knew.”

n“That’s a relief. There are no deer the size of a carriage in the Emperor’s hunting grounds.”

nThe Duke’s concerns were quite serious, so Rieta replied with a lively smile.

n“I know that too!”

nJust then, the royal court attendant approached the Duke and asked him to confirm something.

nHis Majesty was probably not there, so he looked to the Duke for help instead.

n“I’ll be right back, Princess.”

n“It’s fine. I will go back to Darrel.”

n“I will assign a guardian.”

nHe left Rieta in a hurry with a servant he knew well.

nBefore Rieta went back to where Darrell was, she looked towards the side where the Princess was one last time.

nShe could see the Princess having a conversation with the knights.

nHow come she looked so busy?

nIt looked as though she couldn’t even say a greeting.

nI’m a little worried . . .

nNoel, who was following her, stuck his head out in front of Rieta.

n“What are you looking so hard at?”

n“Of course, I’m looking at the Princess.”

n“Why?”

nNoel asked, glanced at the side where the Princess was, and nodded his head with an ‘Ahhh’ sound.

n“Because the Princess likes things like that.”

nThings like that? What was he talking about?

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