Ansi’s pupils turned ashen.

“……Thank you.”

Ansi said, staring at the other side with cold eyes. Yes, there was no reason not to be grateful. Wasn’t he kindly teaching her how to hold a gun for her revenge?

She could endure this terrible discomfort spreading throughout her body. At tomorrow’s hunting event, that bastard Kardian would taste a far more hellish sentiment.

Dinner was shared with some high-ranking nobles in addition to the people of Orphe. In the past, Damion would have judged who they were and engaged in strategic conversations.

But today was different. No, it was different now.

Damion’s eyes were consistently fixed only on his wife. It was to the extent that those present at the seat mentioned it.

“It’s clear you had a love marriage without even saying it.”

In a way, it was a critical remark, but it wasn’t very important to Damion. In fact, he had reached his limit now. It was because he unwillingly had almost no time to spend with Ansi due to following today’s packed schedule.

The dinner that had continued for several hours ended late at night. Finally, it was time to spend alone with her.

“How about we take a walk a bit far before going in?”

Damion suggested to Ansi before entering the room.

He was accompanied by nervousness, wondering if she might refuse. She could just go in saying she was tired.

Had he always been this timid? The one second it took for Ansi’s answer to come out felt so long.

“Alright.”

Fortunately, Ansi nodded.

Damion led Ansi out through the back door of Sobelbio.

The place they arrived at was the stable.

“You said we’d take a walk.”

“I said it would be a bit far, didn’t I?”

Damion smiled and mounted the horse.

Ansi sat in front with his help. Though she was used to riding horses, sitting in front of someone like this was awkward for the first time since she was young.

“We’ll depart.”

In contrast to the solid body behind her, Damion’s voice was gentle. The gap made Ansi’s heart flutter.

Under the unusually bright and large moonlight, the horse carrying the two began to run.

The sound of hooves echoed in the quiet and silent forest. The sensation of the wind brushing against her came to Ansi’s entire body. The night forest was beautiful and cool.

Ansi closed her eyes.

She savored what might be her last walk.

“We’ve arrived.”

The place they arrived at was a field.

Damion, who got off the horse first, reached out both hands to Ansi. As Ansi put her hands on Damion’s shoulders, he lightly lifted her up and carefully set her down on the ground.

While Ansi looked around, Damion quickly moved to light some lamps.

Ansi looked at the field.

Several boards were set up on it.

They were targets.

“If attending the event is burdensome, I thought this might be a good idea.”

Damion approached Ansi, taking out a gun he had hung on the target beforehand.

“We’ve come quite far from the mansion. Knowing it’s a place for hunting practice, even animals don’t pass by.”

It meant she could shoot the gun without worrying about the sound. Ansi took the gun from Damion and grasped it with both hands. It was a different sensation from the gun she had held in Kardian’s armory earlier in the day.

“……”

As she received the gun but just stared at it intently, Damion said playfully.

“Actually, I brought you here to ask for your help.”

“Help?”

“As you said, I might get scared by the gunshots. So I need to test it. If I do get scared, I might need to practice.”

Ansi stared at the gun intently, and finally raised it. She aimed at the target.

The center of the target entered the sight.

Tomorrow, she would aim at the emperor like this with a gun. Now she just had to pull the trigger.

But when she actually thought of the emperor being in front of her, she couldn’t easily pull the trigger.

Ansi’s hand trembled.

She bit her lower lip.

Then Damion covered Ansi’s hands with his. His body stuck to Ansi’s back, and he helped her posture with both hands.

A similar situation to when Kardian held her earlier in the day.

However, the feeling conveyed to Ansi was completely different.

“Don’t doubt. If there’s a target beyond what you see through the sight, you shouldn’t hesitate.”

Damion’s voice was heard right next to her.

Ansi nodded.

Bang! A gunshot rang out. The distant target was pierced.

“You’re doing well. Has your body loosened up a bit now?”

“Yes, thank you. Damion… are you alright?”

“Hmm… I think I need to see more.”

Damion stepped back and nodded toward the target. At his words, Ansi raised the gun again.

The small sight became her entire world. Beyond it existed the target she had to shoot.

Bang!

Don’t doubt. Don’t hesitate either.

Ansi shot at the target several times.

Bang!

This was practice.

Not to help Damion, but for herself.

Practice to shoot the emperor.

Practice to bring down Orphe.

And, practice to betray this man.

For that, Ansi had to shoot.

Bang!

After killing the emperor, what would happen to this man?

Without needing to think, the conclusion was already there.

‘Damion would die too.’

There’s no use thinking about it further. It’s natural since he’s also a member of Orphe. Nevertheless…

Bang!

“Ansi.”

Her heart was beating too fast. It felt like she would collapse on the spot at any moment.

She wasn’t blind to the peaceful path before her eyes. At times, she wanted to forget everything. She wanted to settle in, pretending not to know anything.

But…

Bang!

Ansi recalled her father’s dog tags in her pocket. She imagined the last moments of Dael, whose remains couldn’t even be found.

Strength entered her hands.

This hunting event had to be her final destination.

“Ansi!”

“……”

Suddenly, Ansi realized that the man had been calling her for a while. She lowered the gun and turned her head. Damion reached out with a worried face.

He brushed Ansi’s hair back and asked.

“Are you alright?”

“What do you mean?”

“Aren’t you in pain? You’re even sweating cold.”

It hurt. It felt like a huge hole had been punched in her chest. A hole that seemed like it could never be filled no matter what.

“…I don’t feel very well.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know and brought you all the way here.”

“No. Thank you. I won’t forget this.”

She meant it sincerely. Even when facing death, she wouldn’t forget this painful consideration he had prepared for her.

“This is enough shooting. So you don’t need to worry anymore. Really.”

She said, deliberately pulling up the corners of her mouth. However, for some reason, her voice gave a somewhat desperate, pleading impression.

Confusion came to Damion at the emotion whose cause he couldn’t understand. However, he didn’t show it and nodded, leading Ansi.

The imperial couple arrived at Sobelbio early in the morning. It was a visit after traveling to other nearby regions.

After lunch with the Duke and Duchess of Orphe, the couple separated. Empress Amelia headed to the area prepared at the entrance of the hunting ground for tea time. Meanwhile, Emperor Ludcaos turned his steps to the entrance of the forest where people had gathered.

The silver-haired emperor, mounted on a horse, deliberately put light in his gaze that had been lowered. Hunting, it wasn’t something he particularly enjoyed. But he couldn’t refuse Orphe’s invitation.

“We greet Your Majesty.”

Men already dressed in hunting attire were gathered in the forest. A dozen or so men bowed their heads towards the young emperor. The various hunting outfits were made of thin summer fabric but maintained formality.

Ludcaos’s gaze turned towards Kardian. Though he was bowing his head along with the others, it wasn’t a greeting that felt respectful.

“Be at ease. Today, we are companions hunting together.”

Ludcaos smiled slightly and examined the men. A platinum-haired man caught his eye. Damion de Orphe. He was the second son of Orphe.

He was curious about the reason why this man had returned to the capital after living as a soldier for several years. Whether Kardian had influenced that decision, and whether he would be an ally or enemy to his brother.

“Then shall we depart.”

The sound of panting dogs and galloping horses echoed through the forest.

It was time to start the hunt.

“The wind is stronger than I expected.”

Amelia’s gaze turned to the fluttering edge of the canopy. The weather, which had been calm until yesterday, was a bit cloudy today. A dull gray color was mixed in the clouds spread across the sky.

“It might actually be better for hunting. It’s hard to run when the sun is too hot. Please enjoy conversation with us while the men enjoy the hunt.”

Marianne showed an elegant smile.

The ladies at the gathering lifted their cups of tea and giggled. In truth, they were very concerned about how much game their husbands would bring, but pretended not to care at all.

“Ansi, are you alright? Your complexion doesn’t look good.”

At that moment, Bekishi directed a question at Ansi. The ladies’ gazes turned to Ansi.

Her already pale face looked even paler than usual. With hardly any color in her lips, she really didn’t look well. Ansi furrowed her brow painfully and opened her lips.

“I’m sorry. I haven’t been feeling well since this morning… May I rest for a moment?”

Ansi spoke with difficulty. It was a state that evoked worry and sighs from those watching.