Hunting was a leisure life that any nobleman enjoyed regardless of age.

  Thanks to this, the value of the land, which included a good hunting ground, doubled.

  It was the fox hunting season, which has just entered early fall.

  Throughout the Empire, there were several famous hunting sites for fox hunting, one of them was Baraport family lands in the Midwest.

  And in the Baraport estate, hunting contests have been going on for three days.

  In front of the Baraport family’s mansion, bonfires rose throughout the large and wide fields, and hundreds of tables and chairs were carved from rough wood.

  It was a kind of banquet decoration that mimicked the night rest of hunters hunting for a living, not aristocrats hunting for leisure and hobby.

  As a result, instead of delicate glasses, a rugged wooden glass was filled with high-prescription alcohol and served a large roasted dish that could be eaten with bare hands and a fork.

  The sun had just set and the third night of the after-party was heating up.

  Then a loud noise broke out from the big table in the middle.

  "Win! Win!"

  "Your Highness, cheer up a little more!"

  The First Prince Astana and the second son of the Baraport family were arm wrestling.

  The second son of the Baraport family, who likes to use his body rather than his head, and Astana, who is short and small, were not a good match.

  But despite the difference, the second son of the Baraport family was using some effort that turned his face red.

  "Iiiiiiiiiiiiik, waah!"

  No, he was pretending to use some effort.

  "Wow, Your Highness, win!"

  "Win, win!"

  Anyway, it was a fact that everyone who cheered so hard knew it.

  Perez, who was watching the funny play from afar, sneered with the corner of his mouth.

  "You’re working hard."

  "Isn’t that how they survive?"

  Lignite also said with a click of the tongue.

  In the first place, it was a hunting competition hosted by the Baraport family, Angenas’s vassal family, so it was full of nobles who supported the First Prince.

  "But the First Prince seems sincere."

  "Maybe he doesn’t know."

  It was their academy classmates Steely and Tedro, who had recently joined Lignite and Perez.

  "Who knows, that idiot."

  Lignite said bitterly, but not the other two.

  Steely, who was seriously looking at Astana, first spoke in a low voice.

  "1 Silver for ’He doesn’t know’."

  Then Tedro shook his head, lifted his finger as if he didn’t know anything.

  "Me, ’He pretended not to know because of his pride’ for 2 Silver."4

  "Oh, it makes sense. Then I’ll change it to that, too."

  "What? Then the bet won’t work."

  The arm-wrestling was coming to an end while the two quarreled.

  "Oh!"

  "Prince, a little more!"

  The cheering sounds around him also intensified.

  And in the end.

  Flop!

  Baraport’s second son’s hand collapsed helplessly to the side, touched the back of his hand to the table.

  "Wow!"

  "As expected of the Prince!"

  Among the second son of the Baraport family and his cheering young aristocrats, who beat the table with resentment, Astana clenched his fist.

  He looked completely intoxicated with victory.

  "……You’re paying the price."

  Perez approached Astana one step at a time, soothing his disgust with such words.

  "Hahaha, this is how powerful I am! Haha, did you see that?……"

  Astana, who was laughing loudly, stopped talking when he saw Perez walking.

  And he frowned a lot.

  He didn’t have enough thoughts to hide his innermost thoughts.

  "What are you?"

  Astana first looked up and down at Perez and asked.

  "……Arm wrestling looks fun."

  Perez replied, looking back at the nobles around him.

  "I’m thinking of joining in."

  At the same time, the young nobles became quiet.

  There was an awkward atmosphere when everyone exchanged glances without saying a word and looked around.

  "You, you……"

  Astana stuttered.

  "You have to beat him first, so you deserve to challenge me! You don’t even know that!"

  Astana said, pointing fingers at the Baraport’s second son in a hurry.

  Perez’s red eyes slowly turned over there.

  Flinch!

  Baraport’s second son, who had acted skillfully to please Astana a little while ago, could not even make eye contact with Perez.

  There were so many rumors that they heard about the Second Prince, and fear was rose on Baraport’s second son, which had lined up for the First Prince.

  For a moment Perez shook his head lightly without saying anything.

  "No, I already beat you in a hunting contest, so don’t I deserve to try arm wrestling immediately?"

  Perez’s voice somewhere rang low in the field.+

  Now all the nobles were looking only at Astana.

  Perez was right.

  In a hunting competition a few days ago, Perez beat Astana.

  With a very wide difference.

  Astana shook under his eyes a few times and cried out.

  "Huh! I don’t know if it’s your skill or your lieutenants!"

  Perez’s lieutenants were referring to Lignite, Tedro, and Steely, who also participated in the hunting competition as assistants.

  “Then you took five lieutenants to the party. But the only thing that you can catch is the fox, are you a mess, or are your lieutenants a mess?"

  "Hey, lowly thing! Be polite to the First Prince, you lowly thing!"

  In the end, Astana, who was shaking only spoke of ’lowly thing’.

  Perez was annoyed.

  He can’t believe that’s his opponent.1

  His mother, the Empress, had a little bit of a fighting spirit, but not Astana.

  He was a poor competitor who extinguished even the remaining flame of competition.

  Step.

  Perez is one step closer.

  And he said, looking down.

  "You should be grateful that I shared half the blood with you. Astana."2

  "……"

  Astana was overwhelmed by Perez’s energy and couldn’t even speak properly.

  Perez, who smirked at Astana in such a pathetic way, said.

  "Are you angry?"

  "I, I am of the Lambrew Empire……, me, the eldest……"

  "Shh."

  Perez lifted his index finger and put it on his lips.

  If Astana talks more bullshit, he might really want to kill him.8

  Fortunately, Astana listened to Perez well.

  Perez, with a gloating smile, spoke in a more relaxed voice.

  "If you were really good at it. If you want to beat me. Take part in a hunting competition next month in the Lombardy estate."

  Astana’s blue eyes shook.

  Perez’s red eyes with his dark hair turning fiercely.

  The annual mid-autumn hunting competition in Lombardy’s estate was one of the largest in the Empire.

  So many people participated and the honor of winning was great.

  And most importantly, it unfolded in an unprecedentedly vast hunting ground.

  In other words, it was easy to manipulate.

  They say that it is perfect for those who help Astana to participate in a hunting competition in their own name and replace their prey with Astana’s.

  Astana’s eyes, well aware of it, had a fishy glow of hope.

  Looking down at the figure carefully, Perez deliberately added as if he knew nothing.

  “If it’s a competition where we have to participate alone, you and I will be able to compete properly.”


  "Right! Well yeah! As soon as I get back to the Imperial Palace, I’ll submit a contest form, so don’t run away!"

  Astana immediately exclaimed.

  As soon as there was a hole for a cowardly scheme, Perez felt dirty.

  Sometimes he thought he could understand what Tia said, ’That idiot’.1

  As Perez was shaking his head, Astana continued to shout, behind Perez’s back.

  "I’ll flatten that nose in the hunting contest! Haha!"

  "Haha!"

  "Wahaha!"

  Like a song, other nobles burst into laughter.

  Steely, who was walking behind Perez on his way back to the mansion, approached the side and whispered quietly.

  "Humm, Your Highness."

  "What the hell, Steely."

  "Is that person really Your Highness’s half-brother?”


  Perez frowned silently.

  Steely looked back at Astana and said.

  "I don’t think anyone would think it strange if he gets stabbed while riding a horse and disguise it as a fall accident?"2

  "Right, everyone would say that an idiot died while doing something stupid. Complete natural history, how is it?"

  "Or I think it’d be nice to place a poison needle on his foot and die."

  "Wow, man, that’s great!"1

  Steely and Tedro giggled out a plausible accidental scenario.

  Until Lignite, who had read the discomfort of Perez, slapped them on the back.

  No conversation came and went until Perez finally returned to his room.

  And when there were finally only four people left in the room, Perez opened his mouth.

  "It is not difficult to get rid of Astana right now. But the problem will remain the same."

  The problem was, the Empress.

  The real target of revenge was always the Empress.

  "We have to weave them together and drag them down."

  Perez said as he untied the cloak’s ties with a rough hand.

  "And I can’t let it go so easily."

  Flop.

  The cloak, which was thrown off roughly, landed heavily on the colorful chair.

  "Are you ready for the job?"

  Perez asked Lignite.

  "Yes, Ramona is coming back from Sussew to the Imperial City, so I’m thinking of starting as soon as she gets there."1

  "Proceed carefully without any disruptions."

  "Okay, don’t worry about it, just act faithfully as Lady Lombardy’s fiance."

  Stretch.

  Perez, who was twisting his long legs like a painting, stopped moving.

  Red eyes glared at Lignite, but Lignite, who had already been immune to that much, only smiled round and round.

  "Oh, if it’s Lady Lombardy……"

  "We’d love to see her. You didn’t show her to us once. Your Highness, you’re so……"

  "Shut up."

  Perez said, picking up a book on the desk in an irritating tone.

  Then an envelope on the book fell off.

  Perez, who picked it up, asked Tedro.

  "This letter, when did it arrive?"

  "This morning…… It arrived while Your Highness was practicing swordsmanship."

  "But why didn’t you tell me?"

  Perez was angry with Tedro.

  "Oh, no, I……"

  Lignite struck Tedro on the shoulder, regretting that His Highness had been so careful with the letter.

  "See the color of that letter? Keep that in mind. That’s something special."

  Whatever his colleagues talked to him about, Perez hurriedly opened the letter.

  The eyes reading the contents moved busily.

  And.

  "Oops!"

  Steely and Tedro shut their mouths in fright.

  "Your, Your Highness is now……"

  "Is he smiling?"

  There was a small smile on Perez’s face as he read the letter line by line.

  It was as warm and tender a smile as the light pink of the stationery.

  "Look at it. Am I right?"

  The two people, who had not believed what they had said, finally came to know a different side of Perez, and Lignite feel better again.

  He will no longer be accused of being a liar.

  "That’s ridiculous……"

  Steely even grabbed his head in shock.

  Then Perez jumped up from where he was sitting.

  And put on the cape again.

  "Where are you going?"

  Lignite asked.

  "Capital."

  "Now?"

  "Yes."

  Perez, who tied up his cloak, even packed a sword.

  "Now, hold on, Your Highness!"

  "Give us time to get ready, too."

  Only then did the three who came to their senses begin to scramble to follow Perez.

  Then Lignite cried out and said to Perez.

  "No, you mean to leave now, you’re going to drive the horse all night!”


  "Huh……"

  Hmm.

  "Suddenly, why! Let’s go at dawn tomorrow! Let’s go at dawn!"

  But Perez shook his head firmly.

  "No."

  In a short answer, Perez first began to step into the stable where the horse was.

  Frustrated Lignite shouted behind Perez’s back.

  "Why! Why no!"

  Then Perez replied, jumping halfway down the stairs.

  "Because Tia is calling."