The Kidnapped Prince is Mine Now - Chapter 31

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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 31
The escort knights surrounding us drew their swords in silence.
As I fidgeted with the gun’s grip amid the vague tension, Wolfgang whispered from behind me.
“You can handle something like that, can’t you?”
I turned my head to follow Wolfgang’s pointing hand. And I saw it.
“…These Snowy Mountains don’t joke around from the start.”
A massive bear-like monster with icicle-sharp manes bristling across its entire body.
The creature stared at me while licking its blood-stained paws with crimson streaks.
‘Bears—weren’t they supposed to look cute?’
In that other world, how many characters had been designed as bears.
The brown bears and polar bears I’d often seen on television all looked far more endearing compared to the actual ferocity of the real thing.
But why did this one look like that? It was a bear, yet its appearance was so menacing it looked ready to tear a person into eight pieces on the spot. Its limbs were unnaturally elongated too.
“It’s called a Bingasi Frostfang.”
Wolfgang opened his mouth again, as if anticipating my question.
“You can think of it as a hybrid between a wolf and a bear. Its body is far larger than a normal bear. In snow, it moves almost silently.”
I listened to his leisurely explanation while keeping my eyes fixed on the bloodstains remaining on the monster’s paws.
It had finished hunting not long ago, yet it came seeking new prey. This one had quite the appetite.
Without taking my gaze off the creature, I raised my gun and asked.
“Where’s its weak point?”
“Well, it’s probably not those viciously protruding manes, is it?”
Did he really want to die? I was considering changing my target when the monster moved.
Just as Wolfgang had said, it stepped forward with its massive paw, yet made no sound whatsoever.
That’s why I didn’t notice it approaching. I curled my right index finger around the trigger and closed one eye.
‘Come closer.’
The monster’s mouth fell open as if it were already salivating at the sight of fresh prey. Sharp fangs like a wolf’s canines were clearly visible.
‘More.’
It didn’t matter if I didn’t know its weak point. Vital spots were all the same anyway.
Just as I crouched slightly and aimed for the center of the creature’s head.
“Too late.”
A warning in a low voice came from my left. At the same moment, the monster’s body launched into the air.
“Tsk.”
My brow furrowed at the shadow passing overhead. Even if I raised my arm to shoot now, I couldn’t aim for a vital spot.
‘I have no choice.’
This was different from when I killed the demon. It had been over a decade since I’d faced a fast-moving animal.
Still, to miss the timing for the shot like this. I needed to loosen up my hands more.
‘My pride is really taking a hit.’
My mood soured, but that was all. Wasn’t that why I brought these escorts along?
I watched the knights charging toward the descending monster and stepped backward. I was thinking I wanted to avoid getting drenched in the creature’s blood.
“Stop.”
“Grraaagh!”
As the commander’s order rang out, the monster shrieked. Its massive body lurched backward, crashing pathetically into the snow.
The sword-wielding Holy Knights froze in place, their eyes fixed on the space behind the creature. Rotar Eisenrit stood there, his expression cold and composed, a noose rope held firmly in his grip.
“Guh… urrgh…”
The strangled monster thrashed its limbs, choking out anguished sounds. A tree struck by its legs snapped with a sharp crack and toppled backward.
Rotar remained motionless despite the monster’s violent convulsions—a creature of terrifying strength. Though he was a notably large man, he was dwarfed compared to the dire bear. Yet he alone hauled the living monster’s body toward him by sheer force, dragging it across the snow.
I stared at the scene in a daze until Rotar lifted his head, and our eyes met. A faint smile immediately crossed his face.
“Elise. Try once more.”
“….”
Wait.
An ominous feeling made me raise my arm. I hadn’t even understood his meaning yet.
“Grrrraaahhh!!”
Rotar released the noose rope. As if he’d been waiting for that exact moment, the dire bear flipped its body and lunged at Rotar with an ear-splitting roar.
The blood-stained claws of its front paw were mere inches from cleaving Rotar’s torso in half.
Bang. Bang. Bang.
Heavy gunshots erupted in rapid succession.
I stared at the back of the dire bear’s skull as it froze in place. Its massive body then tilted toward Rotar.
Rather than dodge the corpse, he caught it lightly and lowered it gently to the ground. Then he examined the monster’s head carefully before speaking.
“All three shots penetrated the skull. One would have sufficed, it seems.”
“….”
That’s all?
I quietly holstered my gun. Then I trudged through the snow, which came up to my calves, making soft crunching sounds with each step as I approached my husband.
Rotar’s face was serene—as if nothing had happened. So I grabbed the collar of his shirt. His body, which had subdued the colossal monster, tilted forward with absurd ease.
“Have you lost your mind?”
“What do you mean?”
“Unless you’ve gone insane, why would you deliberately create a dangerous situation?”
“Would it not be a shame to let Elise miss an opportunity to gain experience? In actual combat, noise restrictions would make using a gun far more inconvenient than now.”
“So you released the monster again? Right in front of you?”
“I will not die from a single blow from a dire bear. It is a judgment based on experience.”
“No…!”
The more I spoke, the more heat surged through me. His calm, unbothered expression—as handsome as always—only made it worse.
I tightened my grip on his wrinkled shirt and lowered my voice.
“I hate this.”
“Hate what? Please be specific.”
Seeing his eyes filled with genuine confusion, a surge of emotion overwhelmed me. My voice rose without my control.
“I hate seeing you hurt because of me!”
“….”
“….”
Silence descended around us. Even the Holy Knights’ breathing had ceased.
I quietly released Rotar’s collar. Taking a shaky breath, I replayed what I had just done.
…What in the world did I just say.
I lifted my gaze slightly to check Rotar’s face. He looked somewhat flustered, but that was all. The real problem was the men behind us.
I drew a slow breath and turned around.
“….”
The Holy Knights all stared into empty space, as if they had seen and heard nothing. Their awkward consideration only made my ears burn hotter.
Only Wolfgang, standing behind them, showed a different reaction. He raised both arms high, clapped his hands, and shouted.
“It was worth helping with the abduction marriage, Holy Maiden!”
Then, as if realizing he’d witnessed something he shouldn’t have, he turned his head away and made a sound of distress—but I had nothing to say about it. Every word I’d just spoken came from the heart.
When I looked at Rotar’s face again, a faint smile played across his lips.
Why did I feel like I was being toyed with?
I held back the urge to pinch his cheek painfully and turned away.
And that night, during the hour when we were most honest with each other.
I straddled Rotar as he lay in bed and demanded a promise.
“If you don’t want to be abandoned, try not to get hurt. Don’t make me worry.”
How quickly he healed didn’t matter. The pain of crushed flesh and shattered bones—even as time passed, the scars of that agony remained etched upon the soul.
Rotar rolled his thumb in circles across my kneecap, lost in thought. Then he nodded with a less-than-satisfying answer.
“I’ll do my best. Though I’m not sure how much the Snowy Mountains will help me.”
“….”
He was right. The Snowy Mountains that guarded the border between Graupels and Drakenloch—no one yet knew what dangers that unknown realm might bring upon us.
I gazed out through the bedroom window at the vast darkness beyond and murmured.
“…May Pelmira’s blessing be with us.”
It was a god’s name I had invoked for the first time in ages.
***
“Halt!”
At the cry of the one ahead, we all stopped in our tracks.
I instinctively raised my gaze, then quickly lowered my head against the snow swirling directly in front of us. And I paused to consider who the owner of that voice was.
‘Ah, it’s Rotar.’
A belated realization. Evidence that my cognitive abilities had deteriorated significantly.
‘…Four days.’
We had spent only four days in these Snowy Mountains.
The expedition was falling apart. In a blizzard where we couldn’t see even an inch ahead.

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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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