If I Were Reborn, I Wouldn’t Marry You - Chapter 146

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 146
Lester held his breath as he aimed his bow at the Butcher Bear.
‘This won’t do….’
There was no finer prey in this forest than that bear.
Therefore, if he caught that beast, Lester would win the competition without question.
Which meant the golden laurel wreath that Miela desired would slip away.
Growing anxious, Leonhardt finally steeled his resolve and drew an arrow from his quiver, raising his bow.
It was the very moment Lester released his bowstring.
By the narrowest margin, Leonhardt’s arrow pierced through Lester’s in mid-air.
A sharp whistle, then a crack.
A tumbling sound.
Lester’s arrow, its trajectory disrupted, fell uselessly to the ground in pieces.
Leonhardt’s arrow, having pierced through one shaft, lost none of its force and continued onward until it finally embedded itself in a massive tree.
The arrow trembled violently in the wood.
The two of them had positioned themselves far away, downwind from the bear to avoid its keen sense of smell.
However, the distance between them was not great enough to muffle the sound of arrows flying or striking wood—such a clamorous noise.
Hearing the distant commotion, the Butcher Bear began to look around nervously.
Leonhardt’s shot just now was merely an action to prevent Lester from immediately capturing the bear, not an attempt to draw its attention.
Leonhardt furrowed his brow in distress while Lester’s eyebrows twitched with displeasure.
Since both had focused solely on that bear and caught no other prey, they might return empty-handed if they failed to secure it.
In that fleeting instant, their gazes met in the sky.
The two reached a silent understanding and held their breath simultaneously.
Thanks to this, the bear, which had been prowling about and surveying the area, did not discover them.
Yet sensing something ominous through its bestial instincts, it moved away with sluggish steps.
Once the bear had withdrawn to a safe distance, Lester quickly approached and pressed Leonhardt.
“Your Highness? What on earth were you doing?”
His tone was polite in words alone; his voice and manner were decidedly twisted.
Leonhardt, aware he had erred, offered an apologetic expression first, gauging the situation.
“I’m sorry.”
“I’m not Miela, am I?”
Though his anger had cooled somewhat at the sincere apology, Lester responded with deliberate pettiness.
And no wonder—Leonhardt had lived in House Roderick for over a decade.
Even if he were not to marry Miela, Lester truly regarded Leonhardt as a younger brother.
Though there was a difference in station, having watched him since childhood, he had grown rather fond of him.
However, Leonhardt—who wished to appear as a true man to everyone except Miela, whose ideal was a baby rabbit—felt embarrassed and quickly composed himself.
“Miela said she wanted the golden laurel wreath…. So I have to win the competition….”
Lester shot back with a sharp tone upon hearing such uncharacteristic stammering.
“So you stole my prey?”
Leonhardt, hardly in a position to be confident, muttered timidly.
“It’s not so much stealing as it is taking a moment to compromise before the hunt.”
When the crisis struck, Lester let out a soft chuckle upon witnessing Leonhardt’s sudden eloquence bloom under pressure.
“What sort of compromise did you have in mind?”
At twenty-nine years old this year, Lester was participating in his ninth Hunting Competition.
He had claimed victory five times and received the golden laurel crown five times over.
He had gifted the golden laurel crown twice to his betrothed, whom he would soon marry, and had even presented it to the Duchess, Miela, and his sister-in-law Merlin.
Given this abundance, he harbored no particular regret about forgoing victory—he was entirely willing to yield.
After all, claiming first place in one’s inaugural Hunting Competition was the very dream of knights.
Yet Lester maintained a grave expression, intent on teasing Leonhardt.
Was it because he had seized control of the moment?
His thoughts branched into directions of such meticulous subtlety that the ordinary Lester could never have reached.
‘Wait—wouldn’t Miela have about six golden laurel crowns by now?’
In the ten times the Hunting Competition had been held, someone from House Roderick had claimed victory in eight of them.
Of the remaining two occasions, one was a year when all three had abstained from participation, and the other had been claimed by some fortunate soul who had happened to capture a silver-furred deer.
When the sons were still minors, Duke Roderick had won most of the competitions himself….
Consequently, the golden laurel crown—a lifetime source of pride and cherished memory for most—had become quite commonplace within House Roderick.
‘A gift from one’s beloved is something altogether different, though.’
True to his straightforward nature, Lester had shed his worries with ease, and Leonhardt now made a discreet proposal.
“You’ve always wanted the Dwarf’s Sword, haven’t you? What if we exchanged it for that fire bear?”
In that instant, Lester’s eyes gleamed with desire.
Five victories in the Hunting Competition versus a Dwarf’s Sword—of which only one remained in all the world?
The latter, without question.
He felt childishly inclined to lock pinkies and demand Leonhardt never change his mind.
‘I was prepared to yield even without the Dwarf’s Sword….’
But if Leonhardt would grant him the Dwarf’s Sword, he could yield far more gladly! Far more happily!
Thus Leonhardt concluded a successful negotiation with an utterly delighted Lester.
Eager to obtain the Dwarf’s Sword with haste, Lester aided in the pursuit of the butcher fire bear.
It was a hunt undertaken by two Sword Masters in concert.
Before long, the bear was captured.
Thud.
The colossal beast, standing nearly three meters in height, crashed to the earth in a cloud of dust.
Both Leonhardt, who had claimed the golden laurel crown, and Lester, who had obtained the Dwarf’s Sword, found themselves thoroughly satisfied with the hunt.

* * *
The Hunting Competition ran from sunrise to sunset.
As the day waned, the end of the competition drew near.
Having ventured deep into the Forest pursuing the Butcher Bear, our steps quickened with urgency on the return journey.
The two of us looped rope around the bear’s hind legs and dragged it out—a method that spared the mind when the body was strong enough.
Most participants had already returned to Headquarters.
Leonhardt and Lester encountered no one on their way back to Headquarters.
After walking together while dragging the bear, they arrived at Headquarters just before the whistle sounded to announce the competition’s end.
“Ahhhhh!”
A young nobleman who spotted the bear being dragged toward them let out a startled cry.
The shriek was so piercing that every eye in the murmuring crowd turned in that direction.
“Hah.”
The participants who had been assessing their own results deflated with a hollow sigh.
“Oh my.”
“The winner is as good as decided.”
“But which of the two do you think caught it?”
“Either way, it wouldn’t be surprising.”
Whispers rippled through the spectators.
Lester, sharp of ear and quick-witted, praised Leonhardt loudly for all to hear.
“What an incredible feat to catch something like this in your first Hunting Competition! Your Highness, you are truly remarkable!”
The moment the winner’s identity was revealed, all eyes naturally turned toward me.

* * *
I was startled when close friends called me out to see the bear.
“Is that a bear? Goodness.”
According to what Leonhardt’s group, who had returned earlier, told me, they hadn’t caught a single thing until midday due to interference from the beaters.
I had heard they went deeper to search for prey, but the wasted time had dampened my expectations somewhat.
‘How petty, resorting to such obstruction.’
Yet Leonhardt brought back an overwhelming result.
Leonhardt was impressive for catching that enormous bear to give me the golden laurel wreath, but I was even more delighted seeing Prince’s expression turn sour.
Overwhelmed with emotion, I ran toward Leonhardt with all my strength.
Leonhardt, spotting me from afar, smiled brightly and opened his arms.
I embraced him at full speed, and a playful whistle sounded from behind.
“Living the dream.”
Lester’s teasing voice reached us as well.
I shamelessly ignored it all and gazed only at Leonhardt, then pressed my lips to his in a kiss.
Leonhardt met my eyes and smiled softly.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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