EIYTMA Chapter 8

Étienne shouted.  

 

“Where did all the knights go?”  

 

But shouting would not suddenly make the missing knights appear. Instead of answering, Ezekiel wiped the rainwater streaming down his face.  

 

It was a storm.  

 

It had started inconspicuously. Light rain began to fall, and Felicia’s carriage lagged behind.  

 

Étienne, delighted, deliberately urged his horse forward, putting distance between himself and the Duke of Arbois’ daughter’s carriage, just to see her flustered reaction.  

 

Of course, he also had in mind that as the soon-to-be Crown Prince, the Duke’s daughter would not dare to raise her voice at him.  

 

The knights, flustered, split into two groups—one escorting the Duke’s daughter’s carriage and the other following the two princes.  

 

The problem began when the rain grew heavier.  

 

“Yahoo!”  

 

Under normal circumstances, they would have stopped to rest. But Étienne was overly excited. The plains of the Duke of Arbois’ territory were vast, and it felt like he could keep riding forever.  

 

He even outran the knights, galloping far ahead. The horse he was riding was one of the finest steeds in the imperial stables, bred for battle, and naturally, it quickly outpaced the knights.  

 

“Your Highness!”  

 

Ezekiel couldn’t just stand by and watch as the knights looked on the verge of fainting.  

 

He sighed and spurred his horse forward. The horse he was riding was a sibling of Étienne’s steed, so catching up was not impossible—though it certainly wasn’t easy.  

 

After quite some time of riding at full speed, Ezekiel finally caught up to Étienne, who had halted in the middle of an isolated forest. Étienne looked around nervously but brightened upon seeing Ezekiel.  

 

“Ez!”  

 

“Brother!”  

 

“Where are we?”  

 

And at that moment, the two of them realized they were lost. Étienne let his arms drop limply.  

 

“My apologies…”  

 

“It’s all right. If you had fun after so long, then that’s all that matters.”  

 

Considering how Étienne was always buried in work at the imperial palace, it was perhaps inevitable that he had gotten carried away. Ezekiel’s horse snorted and foamed at the mouth. Despite the rain, both horses had run so fiercely that their bodies were steaming.  

 

Ezekiel thought it best to let them rest first.  

 

“The knights will find us soon. Let’s try to locate a road nearby.”  

 

As he had been chasing after Étienne, Ezekiel had been dropping markers along the way—his headband, some accessories—things that might help the knights track them. Though the storm might wash them away, at least a few should remain.  

 

Ezekiel then asked Étienne for the map. However, as Étienne searched his coat for it, his face turned pale.  

 

“It’s gone.”  

 

He must have dropped it somewhere while riding so recklessly. Ezekiel barely suppressed a sigh.  

 

“Then let’s follow the nearest river. If I recall correctly, there are villages along the major rivers in this area.”  

 

Though the storm obscured the sky, Ezekiel had glimpsed the map beside Étienne earlier and committed it to memory. If his recollection was correct, there was a small territory to the northwest.  

 

“Querluxia, or something like that.”  

 

“Huh, that sounds familiar. Ah.”  

 

Étienne finally remembered where he had heard that name. It was a domain that didn’t actually require an inspection, so it had initially been left out of their itinerary.  

 

“But I deliberately added it to the list.”  

 

“Why is that?”  

 

Étienne grinned mischievously.  

 

“While handling paperwork at the palace, I found an utterly outrageous letter.”  

 

“What was in it?”  

 

“The Baron of Querluxia wrote that he was sick, and due to a flood, he couldn’t collect rent. So he was asking if we could exempt him from taxes this year.”  

 

It was not unusual for lords to plead for tax reductions. But to ask for a complete exemption? Étienne chuckled as if finding it all very amusing, momentarily forgetting that they were lost.  

 

“And then I looked into it, since the name seemed familiar. Turns out, it’s a title under the imperial family’s jurisdiction.”  

 

That was rather unusual.  

 

“Do you know how they received the title?”  

 

“What was it?”  

 

Étienne leaned in, lowering his voice conspiratorially. There was no one else around to hear anyway.  

 

“Apparently, back when Father was secretly dating Mother, he accidentally fell off a terrace, and the man caught him.”  

 

Ezekiel bit his lip, unable to suppress his laughter at those words.

 

The Emperor and Empress were famously known for their deep affection, largely because their marriage was a love match—though not quite.

 

Originally, they had been betrothed since childhood but had no idea who the other was. Then, they met at a banquet and fell in love at first sight. The story of how the Emperor unknowingly kissed his own fiancée before realizing her identity was a secret known only to the imperial family’s children.

 

In any case, after discovering who she was, the young Emperor had been impatient to marry her as soon as possible.

 

However, back then, even for betrothed couples, being alone together was a serious impropriety. So, at a banquet hosted by the imperial palace, the eager Emperor, desperate for a private moment with his betrothed, ended up slipping and falling from a terrace.

 

And the one who caught him was none other than Baron Querluxia, then a knight of the imperial capital.

 

Unfortunately, Baron Querluxia broke his leg in the process. Though he eventually recovered, he could no longer serve as a knight, so the Emperor granted him a noble title tied to the imperial family.

 

Though a single-generation title, it came with considerable privileges, including a domain.

 

“But in that case, isn’t it not so outrageous? If that’s the nature of the title….”

 

“Yeah.”

 

Étienne nodded. Both of them were well aware of the rights that came with the title.

 

“So, I was planning to tell them about it during our visit. I didn’t expect to come this way like this.”

 

Apparently, the letter had been written by the baron’s daughter. The idea of meeting Baron Querluxia’s daughter—someone he had never even heard of—was somewhat amusing.

 

“How do you think she’ll react when she finds out that her family’s title comes with no tax obligations?”

 

“I checked, and they’ve been paying taxes for sixteen years. I’m planning to return the amount.”

 

As they spoke, the rain gradually let up. With a newfound sense of ease, the two continued walking out of the forest. However, their soaked clothes felt heavy, and the chill was creeping in.

 

“I just hope the Duke of Arbois’ daughter isn’t suffering too much in this rain.”

 

“Ez, are you seriously worrying about that woman while we’re going through all this?”

 

Étienne grumbled. Ezekiel merely shrugged.

 

“Well, if Felicia is having a hard time, I can only imagine who she’ll take it out on.”

 

Étienne’s eyes widened momentarily before he burst into laughter.

 

“Hahaha! Ezekiel! This is the first time I’ve heard you complain about someone!”

 

Ezekiel laughed along. The Felicia Arbois he had recently reunited with was an even more demanding young lady than before, and that demanding nature wasn’t exactly appealing to him.

 

Whenever she and Étienne clashed, she would inevitably vent her frustration on those around her. And her temper was so notorious that the maids were constantly in tears.

 

“Who knows? There might be a knight out there secretly shedding tears in this rain.”

 

“Ahahaha!”

 

Étienne raised a thumbs-up, but his excitement quickly faded. He realized that being lost was entirely his fault.

 

“When we get back, I should at least give each of the knights a pouch of gold coins.”

 

“That’s a good idea.”

 

“Sometimes, Ezekiel, I think about this.”

 

Étienne let his horse walk slowly as he wrung out his soaked cloak. Water streamed down the horse’s side.

 

“I envy our father.”

 

“…….”

 

“Felicia might have a terrifying personality, but as a crown princess, she’s flawless.”

 

It was true. She was from the Arbois ducal house—the most powerful noble family in Muirenas. She was wealthy, bold, intelligent, and confident. The fact that she was interested in Étienne—though Étienne didn’t seem to appreciate it—only made her an even more suitable candidate for the role.

 

But Étienne, watching his own parents, seemed to have different thoughts.

 

“Still, I can’t help but wonder if I also have a fated partner out there.”

 

As the third son of the imperial family, Ezekiel felt it was his duty to bring his foolish older brother back to reality.

 

“That’s quite an audacious thought for someone who’s going to be Crown Prince.”

 

“Hey!”

 

Étienne laughed, playfully raising his fist.

 

“One day, you might find yourself suddenly falling in love too, you know?”

 

“Oh my, what a terrifying thought. It gives me chills.”

 

“Hey!”

 

But their banter was short-lived. 

 

As the two approached the entrance to Querluxia’s domain, they were met with an unexpected sight.

 

A collapsed bridge.