Chapter 6.1
Inside the carriage returning to the mansion after the eve festival, the atmosphere was heavily subdued due to Father’s displeasure.
Father was staring at me with sharp eyes, but I did not avoid his gaze.
“Fine, let’s hear what you have to say.”
I organized my thoughts once more before opening my mouth to speak to my parents.
“On the day I went to the banquet hosted by the Crown Prince, Duke Maxius told me that he wanted to reconcile with me.”
“What?!”
“Belita, what on earth does that mean!”
“That bastard of a Duke!”
At my words, Father could not contain his rage and slammed his hand down on the carriage seat.
“I’ll kill that shameless wretch!”
“Honey, let’s listen to Belita’s story until the end first.”
“Of course, I told him I didn’t want to. As I told you and Father, I have no feelings or lingering regrets left for him.”
“Yes, well done.”
At my answer, Father wore a satisfied expression.
“However, the Duke would not give up even though I said I didn’t want to. I told him several times to give up because I could never accept him, but I couldn’t get through to him at all.”
“My goodness, how absurd! After all this time! What does he think he’s doing now!”
Mother held Father’s arm and gave me a look signaling for me to continue.
“He was so persistent that it made my head spin. On the day I went to see the Crown Prince for the orphanage project, he was waiting for me at the Crown Prince’s palace as if he knew I was coming.”
“Ha!”
“Even on that day, he was acting unreasonably to change my mind, but it just so happened that Young Master Bayon had come to see His Highness. And he helped me escape from the Duke.”
“You mean Young Master Bayon?”
“Yes, so when I went to visit Lady Bayon later, I saw the Young Master again, thanked him, and ended up asking if he could dance with me at the eve festival. I anticipated that Duke Maxius would certainly act unreasonably again and harass me.”
I hadn’t actually seen Eiden when I went for the visit after meeting Kane at the Crown Prince’s palace, but I had no choice
because it had to make sense.
Moreover, if I said I met him separately instead of seeing him during the visit, it was certain that Father would be even more furious.
“Ahem.”
I could guess his mood just by hearing the sound of Father clearing his throat.
This particular throat-clearing did not mean he was incredibly angry or in a bad mood.
It simply meant he was displeased due to something uncomfortable.
“If that’s the case, there must have been other young noblemen; why did it have to be Young Master Bayon?”
“Because he is Eiden Bayon.”
“What does that mean?”
“Currently, there are only three ducal families in the Empire.”
“That is true.”
“Excluding our family, the only family that can rival the Maxius Duchy is the Bayon family. And it just so happens that there is Eiden Bayon, who is still unmarried, in the Bayon family.”
What I said made a lot of sense.
If the person I put forward as a shield to repel Kane had been a noble of a lower rank than him, Kane would have scoffed.
Furthermore, Kane had unilaterally broken off his engagement with Adela.
It meant that he might have a certain amount of psychological debt toward the Bayon family.
Given that man’s personality, especially seeing how he treats me, it didn’t seem likely, but a normal human being certainly should feel that way.
So, I finished my explanation by plausibly making it up that he wouldn’t be able to treat the Bayon family recklessly.
“Our daughter is indeed smart.”
After hearing my answer, Mother nodded and praised me.
On the other hand, Father did not agree so easily.
It was a sharp intuition befitting a person at the very top of power.
‘What kind of finishing blow should I deliver?’
While I was pondering what to say to completely convince Father, Father spoke first.
“If that were the case, the atmosphere between the two of you seemed quite unusual.”
“Pardon?”
“I mean when you two were dancing.”
“We were just having an ordinary conversation.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes, and wouldn’t it be more impolite to act coldly toward the person who helped me?”
“Ahem, I suppose so.”
“Yes, exactly.”
“So, have you properly shaken off Duke Maxius?”
“No, seeing him today, he’s the same. So it’s frustrating and driving me crazy.”
“You should have told us without fail.”
“Including the matter from two years ago, I didn’t want to cause Mother and Father any more worry regarding problems related to him. I wanted to resolve it on my own. That’s why I did it. I am truly sorry.”
I knew better than anyone how much my parents worried about me when the engagement was broken two years ago.
So, I hoped my parents wouldn’t have to go through that kind of worry again.
“I will handle Duke Maxius. So, do not worry any further, and do not stay too close to Young Master Bayon either.”
“You will, Father?”
“Yes, as you said, I am your father. What father would stay still when his daughter says she is having a hard time? And that fellow, anyway, I cannot forgive him.”
“Father…….”
Now that my parents found out anyway, I thought it would be better to receive Father’s help.
And since Father said he would repel Kane, I didn’t know what the method would be, but I felt incredibly reassured.
“Thank you. And I am sorry for causing you worry once again.”
“It’s not like you did anything wrong, so do not hang your head.”
“Yes, Belita. You have done nothing wrong. So you just need to be confident.”
“Yes, Mother, Father.”
After finishing the conversation with my parents that day and returning to my room, I was able to stretch my legs and sleep soundly for the first time in a very long while.
Perhaps due to the expectation that the worries that had been bothering me would soon disappear, my condition when I woke up in the morning was at its peak.
The riding competition began today.
The riding competition is held separately for men and women, and today was the day of the preliminary rounds where the young noble ladies participate.
I changed into my riding habit to participate in the preliminaries and then headed outside the mansion.
Upon going out, a sleek brown horse that would be with me this time was looking at me with moist eyes.
“Hello, Porta.”
Porta was the name I gave to this horse that would be competing in the riding competition with me.
It was taken from the first word of ‘Porta Devia’, the horse I had come to know in Peorat.
‘Porta Devia.’
Strangely, that name stayed in my mind and kept hovering around without being forgotten.
Perhaps it was because the meaning resonated so well with me.
The meaning ‘Today is the happiest day of my life’ somehow made my heart feel very uplifted and fluttery.
I named the horse ‘Porta’ specifically with the intent of winning this riding
competition and enjoying happiness
together.
I shared a connection while stroking Porta near the neck.
“Let’s do our best. Got it?”
At my words, Porta made a cheerful snorting sound.
I stroked Porta a few more times and then boarded the carriage parked nearby.
“Let’s go.”
With my command, we departed for the arena.
A short distance from the Imperial Palace, there was a large circular arena that could accommodate tens of thousands of people.
The riding competition was held there, located about 40 minutes away from the mansion.
As I entered the arena, the spectator seats were almost full even though it was the preliminaries, as if to realize the popularity of the competition.
When I went to the practice field in the corner, not the arena itself, Porta was already there waiting for me.
I stepped up onto the mounting block.
Then, after sliding my right foot into the stirrup, I nimbly climbed onto Porta and grabbed the reins.
The riding feel was good due to the high-quality saddle.
“My Lady, please be careful!”
“Mary, have you ever seen me fall off a horse?”
I had fallen in Hemoa, but that was something only Eiden and I knew.
“Still. You must always be careful and careful again.”
“I know.”
“Then, I will be over there, so please call me if you need anything.”
After nodding slightly, I simultaneously applied pressure with my legs against the horse’s body and my hands holding the reins.
“Go.”
As I gave the signal, Porta gradually picked up speed and ran.
After practicing for a while, it was finally my turn.
I stepped out into the arena with Porta.
“Waaaaah!!”
The thunderous cheers of the people from the spectator seats were so loud they felt as if they would tear my ears.
The match before my turn had just finished.
I took a long look around from atop the horse.
Seeing the people full of excitement made me feel a sense of vitality.
‘I feel good.’
“Are you Lady Belita Hates?”
“That is correct.”
“You can come this way.”
Following the match official, I saw the starting line.
Standing before it, the tension finally began to rush in.
The rules for the riding competition preliminaries were simple.
The person who completed twenty laps around this massive arena and came in first was the winner.
Today was the preliminary round for women, and tomorrow was the preliminary round for men.
Winning the preliminaries meant going straight to the finals, which was the championship round.
In the preliminaries, ten people competed at a time.
And only the person who took first place could advance to the finals.
As I stood at the starting line, I saw nine ladies on either side of me.
They acknowledged me first.
After sharing greetings with a few ladies, the sound of a horn announcing preparation soon rang out.
“Porta, we can do it. You know, right?”
Those were words of encouragement for Porta and also for myself.
The horn sounded twice.
Now, one last long blast would signal the start.
The surroundings grew quiet.
The spectators also fell silent for those standing at the starting line of the arena.
A thumping sound struck my heart.
It had been a long time since such a pleasant tension had dominated my body.
I felt as if the blood throughout my body was circulating rapidly.
Bwaaa—!
And the horn sounded a long blast.
“Waaaaah!!”
“Go!!”
The once quiet space was instantly filled with the cheers of the people.
I gave a forceful nudge to Porta’s torso with my feet in the stirrups.
Porta dashed forward toward the front at full speed.
