The Prince’s Nanny, Her Specialty Is Assassination - Chapter 66
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
Chapter 66. How to Become a Hunter (1)
“You’re going to the hunting competition too?”
Edwin looked at me with surprised eyes.
“Do you dislike it?”
Royalty and nobles take attendants with them to hunting competitions.
They need help loading prey onto carts and retrieving game from far distances.
However, since the 3rd Prince’s Palace had no attendants suitable for such tasks, I decided to take on that role myself.
“No, when did I say I disliked it? I was just confirming. Can you ride a horse?”
“Well enough.”
“What about archery?”
“I shoot better than Your Highness.”
“What are you saying.”
Edwin grumbled but couldn’t hide his amusement.
He smiled brightly and even greeted the horse.
“Hello, nice to meet you.”
He was certainly prickly with people, but endlessly kind to animals.
“Ria too, Ria wants a hooorse too! I really want a horse! Waaaah!”
Meanwhile, Emilia, held in Catherine’s arms, was writhing her limbs and crying loudly.
“Princess Emilia is still too young. It’s too dangerous.”
“Ria isn’t young! Ria is all grown up!”
“Oh my, what should I do.”
Catherine coaxed and soothed Emilia while sending me a signal for help.
“Princess Emilia.”
The princess slightly turned her tear-stained head at my voice.
“When Your Highness grows a bit more, I will personally find a horse that suits you. So please stop crying.”
“Sniff, a horse that suits me?”
“Yes, how about a white horse like snow or one that shines golden all over?”
Emilia’s eyes sparkled at my words.
“A white horse! Ria likes white horses!”
“Understood. Then until I bring you a white horse, you must grow up well.”
“Mm-hmm, but when can Ria ride a horse?”
“When Your Highness grows as tall as Prince Edwin is now.”
Emilia’s eyes began to well up with tears again at my words.
“But that will take so long! Ria wants to ride soon!”
“If Your Highness works hard, it won’t take that long.”
I wiped Emilia’s crying face with my sleeve.
It was a shame to see such an adorable face, delightful just to look at, stained with tears and snot.
“Eat your food well, go to bed early, and sleep a lot, and you’ll grow up quickly.”
“Really?”
“Of course. Until then, please be satisfied with this.”
“Kyaaah! A fairy tale!”
I quickly pulled out a storybook I had hidden in my clothes.
Emilia let out a happy scream and stopped crying.
She seemed to have completely forgotten about horses.
“Caretaker, but how did you manage to get two such fine horses?”
Catherine asked while adjusting her hold on Emilia, who was hugging the storybook and swaying.
“The money I gave you shouldn’t have been nearly enough.”
“…No, it was just right.”
“Caretaker? Why is there hesitation in your answer?”
“It’s your imagination.”
I turned my gaze away to avoid Catherine’s suspicious look.
‘Anyway, I was worried Gail might mess things up again.’
The condition of the horses Gail brought was much better than I had expected.
I especially liked the black horse that became mine.
‘They say spirited horses are the finest steeds.’
I smiled as I watched the black horse snorting fiercely.
‘It was worth thoroughly pressuring Gail to the end.’
Originally, both horses were supposed to go to the 2nd Prince’s stable, so their abilities were guaranteed.
“But what’s this riding outfit? I’ve never seen it before.”
Back in his room, Edwin held up the riding outfit given to him and asked.
The riding outfit was much more elaborate than his usual clothes, which seemed to fascinate him.
“Ah, The Empress sent that.”
Honestly, it was unexpected.
The Empress seemed to pay no attention to Edwin at all, yet she personally sent riding clothes.
‘I wondered if she might have hidden poison needles or some strange device in the clothes.’
After checking, The Empress’s riding outfit was just ordinary clothing.
Though it wasn’t exactly ordinary, given the elaborate, high-quality fabric with hand-embroidered details.
“Do you not like it? If you don’t like it, I can prepare something else…”
“No, I like it!”
Edwin shouted his answer and fingered the riding outfit.
“It’s just my first time with clothes like this.”
The new riding outfit seemed quite fascinating to him.
But we didn’t have time to leisurely admire new clothes.
“Shall we start right away then?”
“Huh? Start what?”
“What else.”
The hunting competition could be held at any time.
Before then, I had to make him into ‘the best hunter.’
“Hunting competition practice.”
* * *
Thud-a-thud-a-thud—.
Along with the sound of galloping, my voice echoed across the clearing.
“Straighten your back! Shoulders back too!”
“Keep your legs together!”
“Who told you to grip the reins so tightly!”
“How many times have I told you to maintain balance!”
Perhaps thanks to the constant nagging.
Edwin’s riding skills were improving day by day.
“Ugh…”
Though he did collapse groaning every night.
Of course, he was still consistently participating in knight training during all this.
Even someone as stingy with praise as me had to admit he was remarkable.
‘I’ve noticed before, but he surprisingly has talent for physical activities.’
I don’t know who he takes after, but Edwin had excellent athletic ability.
Did he inherit it from The Emperor, who was said to be as skilled with a sword as Count Crowner?
“You ride quite well now.”
When Edwin could freely move his hands even on a galloping horse after just a week, I decided to move to the next stage.
“I think we can move to the next stage.”
Edwin, who had been playing with the horse’s mane while mounted, blinked.
“Next stage?”
“If you’re going to hunt, you need to know how to shoot a bow.”
I opened the box in front of Edwin to show him.
It was the bow and arrows that The King of Adamant had sent as a gift.
“Have you ever handled a bow before?”
“N-no.”
Edwin answered my question with an uncertain voice.
“I’ve seen them many times, but this is my first time handling one.”
“I see.”
I took the bow from the box and handed it to Edwin.
“I checked it earlier and it’s a fine bow. Try drawing it once.”
“U-uh.”
At my words, Edwin awkwardly took the bow.
He placed his fingers on the bowstring in a clumsy stance.
“Ugh—!”
The moment he tried to draw the bowstring.
Edwin’s pale white face turned red as heated iron.
But despite his desperate effort, the bowstring barely budged and wouldn’t move at all.
“How am I supposed to draw this? This is impossible!”
“You can draw it.”
I took the bow from him and demonstrated by drawing the string.
Seeing the string stretch like unraveling thread, shock appeared on his face.
“If I can draw it, why can’t Your Highness?”
“That’s because you’re strong!”
“A bow is a weapon that anyone can easily handle with just practice.”
I handed the bow back to Edwin.
“From now on, draw this bowstring a thousand times every day.”
“What?”
Edwin jumped with his mouth wide open.
“That’s impossible! I can’t even draw it properly, how can I do that!”
“Whether it draws or not, you must do it a thousand times every day without fail.”
I demanded his commitment with a firm voice.
“Do you understand, Your Highness?”
“But!”
“You said you wanted to become strong like me. If you can’t even do something like this, how can you become strong?”
Edwin glared at me with a grimace before nodding slightly.
I gently ruffled the top of his head.
“When it comes to physical work, sweat and effort never betray you. You know this well, don’t you?”
At first, he couldn’t even keep up with the 3rd Knight Division’s pace, but now he could follow their training without much difficulty.
“Your Highness is doing well.”
I smiled gently at Edwin, who was looking up at my face intently.
“So trust in yourself and try just a little harder.”
* * *
Splash.
Catherine poured hot water over her body.
She melted halfway into a relaxed state.
“Ahh, all my fatigue is gone!”
“Ria’s fatigue is gone too! All the tiredness just disappeared!”
I swept back my wet hair while watching Emilia and Catherine enter the grand bath.
‘I thought there would be nothing good about this place except its size.’
Even the desolate 3rd Prince’s Palace had one attraction that other palaces didn’t have.
It was the grand bath of enormous scale.
‘At first, I didn’t even know it was a grand bath and mistook it for an old pond site.’
This was because the previous housekeeper had neglected the maintenance of the auxiliary facilities in the Prince’s Palace.
But after Catherine became the housekeeper, it was finally able to regain its original appearance.
‘Originally, this would have been a place used only by royalty and distinguished guests.’
Thanks to Emilia, who disliked bathing alone, we often bathed together in this grand bath.
‘Well, thanks to that, I get to enjoy such luxury too, so I suppose it worked out well.’
The grand bath, cleaned and polished to a shine, seemed even better than the one in the Imperial Palace Annex.
Especially the terrace outside the grand bath had a small outdoor bath attached to it, which was an element that would drive anyone in the Empire who loved hot spring baths crazy.
‘Moon-gazing while soaking in hot water in the cool outdoors.’
There was no luxury like this.
I massaged the back of my neck while admiring the moon floating in the sky.
Meanwhile, Emilia swam over to me doing a dog paddle and clung to my shoulder.
“Neitche, Catherine keeps trying to wash Ria’s hair!”
“You need to wash your hair, Your Highness.”
“Ria doesn’t like washing hair.”
Emilia clung to me and whined.
Then she suddenly poked the middle of my back with her small, chubby finger.
“Neitche! Neitche has a worm on her back!”
“A worm?”
I didn’t feel like any bug was attached.
I felt around the area Emilia had poked with one hand.
But there was nothing there to touch.
“This looks like a worm! Right, Catherine?”
Catherine, who had come closer, lifted Emilia with one arm and tilted her head.
“Oh my, The Caretaker has a very unique mark on her back.”
“A mark?”
“Yes, there’s a circular mark like someone drew it.”
Catherine continued while holding the struggling Emilia who didn’t want her hair washed.
“It looks like a worm curled up in a circle. But to my eyes, it looks more like a snake than a worm, like a snake coiled up in a circle…”
“Kyaaah, Ria wants to run away! Neitche, help me!”
While watching the two’s unfunny struggle.
I felt the familiar sensation of the fine hairs on my spine standing up.
‘…Killing intent?’
The refined killing intent was directed not at this place, but somewhere else.
It was toward the main building where The 3rd Prince Edwin was located.
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————