Who Could Have Loved the Monster Princess? - Chapter 34
‘It’s so familiar, this atmosphere.’
Sean was my playmate—my mom introduced us to each other. Before meeting me, Sean didn’t know how to address friends because he didn’t really have any. And so, he picked up the name my dad used for my mom and called me ‘darling.’ That was when I was seven years old, and Sean still calls me that even now.
It was always my turn to feel embarrassed and ashamed because Sean never cared what anyone thought.
I scampered over to Sean, who called out, “Darling, darling!”
“Sean, are you participating too?”
“Yes, darling. I am.”
Sean smiled gently and adjusted the staff in his hands.
I hadn’t seen him much since I moved to the capital, so it was nice to meet him like this.
“I thought priests couldn’t participate.”
“While it’s impossible to request something from nobles after finding the flag, priests can still assist others in finding flags.”
“I see.”
After greeting Sean, I checked with the manager of the 3-star team.The one wearing the star armband with the number 3 on it was Sit Bolt, the leader of the knights under the Crown Prince. It seemed like he was the manager of the 3-star team.
‘The head of the knights himself?’
Curious, I looked at the other managers, but among the knights from various orders, there was no knight commander.
‘Oh, wait. There’s Sir Plum…’
Then, I spotted the marquis talking with him. It seemed that in teams with aristocrats of the rank of viscount or higher, a knight commander or lieutenant had directly taken on the role of manager.
‘No wonder participants are more well-behaved than usual.’
If the leader of the knights from the royal palace was in charge, the nobles, in particular, needed to be more careful. If they attracted unnecessary attention and were caught in some scandal, it could make their lives very difficult.
When Sir Bolt’s eyes met mine, he greeted me first.
“Hello, little duchess.”
“Good afternoon, Sir Bolt. It seems I am in your care today.”
Sir Bolt returned my greeting with a light bow. The others greeted me as well. The knights who had slain demons together with my father were especially pleased to see me.
“How are you, Miss Belienne? You seem even more dignified since we last met.”
“Lady Belienne, it’s an honor to be on your team. I’m sorry I didn’t get to say hello last year.”
“Nice to see you. Let’s make sure to greet each other next year if we meet. It’s hard to encounter people with connections unless it’s an event like this, so it’s good to arrive early at such occasions.”
“Indeed, Miss Belienne!”
After exchanging greetings with them, Sir Bolt ordered a squire to unfold a map of the Bittern territory.
It seemed like I was the last to arrive.
“This is the route we’ll be traveling today. I’ll hand out maps, and you’re free to go ahead, but the rules are that if you stray too far, you’ll be eliminated. When your medal turns red, you must be back to where I am within 30 minutes.”
I expected to hear more of what I had already heard from the tournament director, who was still speaking like a dean of the academy, but Sir Bolt stopped there and didn’t elaborate any further.
The faces of my team members lit up. As soon as the clock tower struck noon, a low heavy bell rang out. It was time to start.
Some of the contestants were already running, while others had taken a wrong turn and had lost their way.
Sir Bolt and other imperial managers began walking at a leisurely pace along their designated routes.
We would walk for 30 minutes, then have an hour of rest. The cycle would continue: 30 minutes of walking and searching for flags. It was customary not to hide flags where the search areas overlapped.
‘There probably won’t be any around here.’
To find anything, it was best to start from the first rest stop. I wasn’t really in a hurry, so I watched people setting off.
Sean was still standing where he was, trying to take it slow.
Sean was the former High Priest who had found the prophesized ‘warrior’ among the many humans, and he was the one who had located the Demon King’s castle.
Sean’s ability to borrow a god’s eye and find what he wanted was unrivaled in this tournament. If there was a flag he wanted, he already knew where it was.
“Sean, what are you looking for? Haven’t you already found it?”
“I have found it.”
“Isn’t that cheating? Who’s the great hero Sean Onra assisting exactly? A girlfriend perhaps?”
“A woman, yes, and a friend, yes, but not a girlfriend. The only girlfriend I have is Darling.”
Sean said, looking serious. It was a lighthearted joke, but I guess it was rude to the High Priest.
“I’m sorry, my joke was inappropriate.”
“It hurts me when you make jokes like that, Darling.”
“Yeah. Sorry. I won’t do it.”
Sean finally smiled and nodded.
“You’re my only darling, so I forgive you.”
“Thank you.”
Even as I said that, I felt a little weird.
‘I asked if it was for his girlfriend and he said I was his girlfriend. It’s a similar joke, isn’t it?’
Still, he could have been offended. I get it. I found Carnelian’s jokes off-putting, so it’s understandable if my jokes were off-putting to Sean.
