Raising the Princess to Overcome Death Chapter 74

74. Engagement - The Demonic Fox

Leo didn't bother to delve into why there were no traces of the Agata Baron's wife in the mansion. He didn't have the luxury to care about such trivial matters.

'This is bad...'

It had already been two months since they arrived at Count Simon's estate, and the hot summer was coming to an end.

Lena didn't want to leave the Count's estate, which was an excellent place to train with so many knights. She kept delaying their departure despite Leo's urgings, saying, "Just one more week."

But then,

“What’s the matter? You're still at the training ground at this hour?”

“...!”

One day, he suddenly realized.

Although he had the excuse that the knights of the Count's estate requested daily duels, he couldn't deny that he was spending more time watching Lena.

Leo sensed a crisis.

Minseo's influence was waning. No, Leo was merging with Minseo, and the 'real Leo' was starting to emerge.

Of course, each scenario's Leo had a different personality.

Leo from the childhood friend scenario was quiet and not assertive.

He was a diligent young man who prioritized what he needed to do without a word.

Leo from the beggar siblings scenario was gentle. He was a considerate man who left a message for Minseo, asking him to take care of his sister, despite Minseo's mistake of exploiting Lena's appearance.

These two Leos did not oppose Minseo. Instead, they showed understanding towards him.

On the other hand, Leo Dexter from the betrothal scenario disliked Minseo.

A self-centered Leo who loved Lena.

In the eighth iteration, he considered Minseo's mind as 'impurities' and was displeased with him.

'We need to go to Lutetia quickly.'

It was already hard enough to keep a distance from Lena, but if Minseo's influence disappeared, 'I' would undo all the actions taken so far.

Feeling urgent, Leo ignored Lena's question.

“We should go to Lutetia now.”

Lena, who had accepted Leo's silence as usual and was about to resume training, glanced at him.

“That again? What's the rush? I still have more duels to finish.”

“You can duel with the knights in the royal order at Lutetia.”

“…That would indeed be more helpful. Fine. But just one more week. This time it's really the last. I’ve even scheduled a duel with the knight captain.”

A week...

Leo nodded.

“Alright. But we must leave next week, no matter what.”

“Got it.”

Lena made a sharp face. Recently, she had become much brighter, having found her peace while mingling with the knights of the Count's estate.

“Just wait a little longer. Soon I’ll…”

She trailed off, glaring at Leo, before turning around and leaving.

Leo hurriedly left the training ground. He ran to the butler and requested a meeting with Count Umberto Simon, anxiously waiting in the reception room...

“Then I trust you will handle it well. I will also search on my end.”

An old voice. It wasn't Count Umberto Simon's voice, but soon, Leo heard the Count's voice that he recognized.

“Do not worry. As soon as that ‘special crop’ is found, we will begin the construction.”

Count Simon was seeing off an old man in shabby clothes. He was politely following the old man and making some firm promises.

Through the open reception room door, Leo saw the two pass by.

A wrinkled old man, despite his apparent old age, with ungrayed hair, walked slowly but confidently with his back straight.

The Count's guest, it seemed... It had nothing to do with Leo, so he waited quietly.

Soon the Count finished seeing off the guest and returned, calling Leo to another reception room.

This reception room, where the guest and the Count had just conversed, had a simple tea and snacks on the table.

But why just plain water...?

The expensive teacup held not tea, but water.

“What is it?”

Seeming a bit tired, Count Simon asked about the matter while sitting on the long couch in the reception room.

Leo took his eyes off the teacup and asked if the Count could write a letter of introduction to the royal knight order, as they were leaving soon.

He planned to use his {Tracking} skill to find the prince in Lutetia, but since he had come to the Simon Count's estate, he thought it wise to prepare a backup plan.

If the information that the prince often went hunting turned out to be mere rumors, he would need another plan.

If necessary, he intended to join the royal guard to enter the palace, but since he didn't know when the Frederick royal family would recruit new guards, he would need a recommendation from a knight of the order.

Therefore, he needed the Count's introduction letter...

“Why should I write a letter of introduction for you?”

Count Umberto Simon showed a negative attitude, crossing his arms.

[Achievement: Noble Slayer - All nobles feel a slight fear towards you.]

He had disliked Leo from the beginning.

An aspiring knight who gave off a sinister vibe.

If not for his sister's letter, he wouldn't have taken him in at all.

Not that he had any particular regard or special bond with his sister, Agnes Agata.

In fact, 'Agnes Agata' was not related to the Count by blood.

Agnes' original name was 'Agnes Agnac,' the daughter of Baron Agnac and a troublemaker in the Simon Count's house.

Count Umberto Simon recalled his memories with his sister, Agnes.

They were good memories.

Although their father was furious, the young Umberto had pitied Agnes 'Simon.'

He would often keep her company as she spent her hopeless days confined in the Count's estate.

But that kind Umberto was long gone. With age, he had become a cold noble, calculating everything by gain and loss.

Count Umberto Simon spoke.

“I believe I have been generous enough to you.”

As much as his memories with Agnes.

“If you want a letter of introduction, you must pay a price.”

“What kind of price...?”

Leo unconsciously touched his pocket. He had money from hunting the Apohan Don.

The Count, noticing this, smiled and waved his hand dismissively.

"Count Simon’s family does not need such small change. By the way, my sister's letter mentioned that you hunted a monster. There's a beast that has been troubling us for a long time. Would you be willing to take care of it?"

The count informed him of a beast called 'Doheukpoma' that roamed the plains owned by the Simon family.

He promised that if the hunt was successful, not only would he write a letter of introduction to the royal knights, but he would also provide a generous reward.

However, he did not offer to help with the hunt. Whether Leo could catch it alone or not was of no concern to him.

Leo accepted the proposal.

He needed the count's letter of introduction, and hunting the beast would be more beneficial to him than the count imagined.

Leo informed Lena that he would be running an errand for the count.

After reminding her that he would leave in a week, he rode south across the plains, searching for the beast the count had mentioned.

After inquiring with the Simon family's tenant farmers, he finally discovered the beast, which turned out to be a 'horse'.

A sleek black horse with a glossy sheen.

Despite being a monster, the Doheukpoma was much larger than ordinary horses, but compared to a gigantic Apohan Don or Noguhwa, it was small enough for a person to ride.

Of course, that would be impossible.

Leo, intending to devise a strategy after confirming what kind of beast the Doheukpoma was, relaxed.

If the monster was a horse, the hunting method was simple. Avoid its charge and be wary of its kicks, and it would be easy to hunt.

Expecting an easy hunt, Leo approached the beast.

- Snort!

The herbivorous Doheukpoma shook its head, signaling its displeasure multiple times.

But Leo did not stop approaching, and as he got closer, the beast scraped the ground with its hooves, showing its temper.

- Neigh!

With a rough neigh, the Doheukpoma charged.

Its hooves, the size of small cartwheels, dug into the ground, and its hot breath formed a straight line like a mirage.

Leo rolled out of the way to avoid the Doheukpoma’s path. Though wary of any unexpected attacks, the beast simply ran far away, unable to control its speed, and made a wide turn.

‘Alright. I can catch this alone.’

Leo's guess was correct. The beast's attack pattern was very simple. Confidently, he drew his sword and waited for the next attack.

- Neigh!

In the blink of an eye, the Doheukpoma ran tens of meters and shook its head in anger.

As the mane fluttered briefly, the beast charged again.

Understanding its speed, Leo dodged the second charge and swung his sword horizontally.

- Neigh!

Although the sword struck its hind leg, the blade did not cut through.

‘Its hide is tougher than I thought.’

But that was fine. He just needed to pierce it. With each charge, inflicting small wounds to hinder its movement would suffice.

As he steadied his grip on the sword, he awaited the third charge.

But then,

- Snort! Snort!

The Doheukpoma did not return.

Stopping to glance back at Leo, it neighed loudly and fled south.

"Hey! Hey!"

The beast disappeared into a dot in the distance. Leo stood alone in the wilderness, dumbfounded.

‘No way… it ran away?’

A monster fleeing after just one strike, and without even being wounded.

As Leo stood there bewildered, he finally realized why Count Simon had asked him to catch that beast.

The count must have known that the Doheukpoma was such a beast.

Extremely fast, quick to flee, and living in vast plains, making it nearly impossible to catch.

He had left the beast alone. As a herbivorous monster, the Doheukpoma would not harm people and would graze on the plains. Catching it was optional, and failing to do so did not matter.

The count likely wanted to avoid writing the letter of introduction by giving an impossible task.

‘That scoundrel of a count…’

Already weary, the thought of being tricked by a noble enraged him.

‘I will catch that thing no matter what.’

Grinding his teeth, Leo got back on his horse and chased after the Doheukpoma. Although tracking skills were useless against monsters, its large hoofprints made tracking easy.

However, the hunt ultimately failed.

Even when he met it again, he planned to stab its leg hard during the first charge, but the beast remembered him and fled as soon as it saw him.

His plan to ambush it while it slept at night also failed.

Under the moonlight, he found the Doheukpoma, but to his surprise, it slept standing up.

Even in its sleep, it seemed alert, for it ran away at the slightest hint of suspicion.

In the end, Leo gave up on the hunt.

That beast could not be caught.

It was a monster that was impossible to catch unless he ended it during the first charge.

Disheartened, Leo turned his horse north.

He had failed to obtain the letter of introduction.

If the information about the prince's hunt was wrong, his backup plan was gone.

‘...No, it’s alright. With my current skills and this body of Leo Dexter, I can enter the knight order or the royal guard easily enough.’

The problem was that he had no one to recommend him, and it would be troublesome if Lena passed the entrance exam and became a knight...

As he pondered and headed back to the count's estate, he spotted a merchant caravan heading towards the city in the distance.

Since they were going in the same direction, he approached, thinking he might get some food from them. To his surprise, the caravan was transporting 'mushrooms'.