After staring at the leopard flag fluttering in the wind for a while, Letiie asked quietly.
"Do you know that family? That black panther symbol. Which family's symbol is that?"
"It's not a family crest. It's the symbol of the Mercenary King Rodrick."
"Rodrick? Oh, I've heard of him. He's the guy who became famous for his work in subduing monsters."
As Letie said, Rodrick was one of the heroes who played a major role in the war against demons along with Kishian.
He had been nothing more than an unknown mercenary until then, but he later earned the title of King of Mercenaries, so there was no need to explain how great his activities were.
As soon as I nodded, Letie muttered.
"Rodrick used the black panther symbol as his symbol. How did you know it at first sight?"
"Since he's so famous. Rather, let's go inside the tent. It's cold outside, so there's no need to stand around."
I cut off the conversation and walked towards the makeshift tent that had been set up for us.
It was to avoid the misfortune of wandering outside and running into Rodrick.
He was the 'Elona' of the past that is, someone I had met in person.
Since he was quite perceptive and had met me in the past, if he saw me and Letie now, there was a chance he would realize that we had switched places.
'...I have to hide and avoid meeting him as much as possible.'
With that renewed resolve, I led Letie into the makeshift tent that had been prepared in advance.
***
A corner of an empty lot.
Inside a makeshift tent with a gray wolf flag, the symbol of the House of Lennon.
Only the sound of a sword being sharpened on a whetstone filled the quiet place.
After sharpening the blade in silence for about an hour, Kishian finally lifted the sword and examined it.
The blade, which had become dull from not using it for a while, was sharp again as before.
It was at that moment that Kishian was looking with satisfaction at the sword that had regained its original form from when it had taken the lives of hundreds of monsters.
"Your Highness, may I come in?"
It was Walter's voice.
As soon as he allowed him in, Walter appeared inside the tent.
Since he had something to ask him, Kishian opened his mouth right away.
"Her Highness, did she arrive safely?"
"Yes, she just arrived and is resting. We brought her here under thorough escort as you instructed."
"I see. Thanks for your hard work."
As a participant in this competition, he had to arrive at the hunting grounds early to prepare for this and that, so I had no choice but to come separately from the Grand Duchess...
He had many worries because he couldn't bring the Grand Duchess himself, but fortunately, after listening to Walter, It seemed like there weren't any major problems.
So it was a car that he felt safe in.
"But I don't know if that'll be okay."
Walter, who had been hesitating, without going out of the tent, suddenly opened his mouth.
When Kishian looked at Walter with a look that seemed to be asking him to speak, a long sigh escaped from between his teeth.
"I saw them on the way to escort her. Her Highness the Grand Duchess and Her Highness the Princess, they were so..."
"You say they look alike?"
Walter nodded and answered Kishian, who knew exactly what he was going to say, and asked again.
"They were exactly the same. I couldn't tell who was who at all."
Kishian could also fully understand why he was so worried.
If Kishian, who had won the championship trophy, did not recognize the Grand Duchess and presented It to the Princess, it would have been an extremely embarrassing situation.
Not only would the Grand Duchess be embarrassed, but Kishian didn't himself would also be laughed at.
Instead of sympathizing with Walter's concerns, Kishian showed a slight mockery on his lips.
"Do I look like an idiot who can't even recognize my wife's face?"
"No, that's not what I meant..."
"Don't get me wrong. Don't worry about useless things and just focus on protecting the Grand Duchess. I can't worry about my wife today."
Walter asked casually, sitting down on a nearby chair.
"Are you planning to focus on hunting?"
"Of course. There's nothing more humiliating than boasting about bringing home the trophy and then not winning."
He had sworn to the Grand Duchess that he would 'definitely' bring her the trophy, fearing that Kishian would not recognize her.
So no matter what, he had to get the championship trophy.
Renewing his resolve once more, Kissian put the perfectly sharpened sword back into its scabbard.
"I can't do it carelessly. This time, there are some pretty strong competitors participating."
"Oh, I saw him on the way here. Are you talking about the King of Mercenaries?"
"Yeah, I never thought I'd see him here."
Since the preparations for this competition were left entirely to the Grand Duchess, the participants were not properly monitored.
So, when Kishian saw the black panther flag, he couldn't help but be a little surprised.
He never imagined that the mercenary King who had established himself in the southern region would come all the way to this far northern land to participate in the competition.
Walter also nodded in agreement.
"Why is he here? He must be very busy these days, with that mercenary group growing in size in the south."
"I'm curious about that too. What fun could there be in a guy who hates monsters participating in a monster-hunting competition?"
As the fame of the Mercenary King Rodrick grew, the Black Panther mercenary band he led was also enjoying its heyday.
They had grown so large that they could be called the best mercenary group in the empire.
Managing such a large group would require more than ten bodies, and yet such a busy person came all the way across the empire to the North.
Just to participate in something like a monster-hunting competition.
No, in the first place, the question was how he, who was in the South, could hear the news of this competition.
There is nothing in this situation that is not suspicious...
"If you don't want to lose the championship trophy to that guy, hunting suitable monsters won't do the trick."
Of that one thing Kishian could be certain.
He won't be able to defeat the Mercenary King by hunting ordinary monsters.
He needed to bring the strongest prey from this forest.
***
Before the competition began in earnest, Letie and I appeared in front of the participants.
As I stood on the prepared stage, small exclamations of admiration erupted here and there.
What surprised us were mostly the participants who were commoners who had never seen us before.
"They are Her Highness the Grand Duchess and Her Highness the Princess.'
"I've heard stories about twins before, but it's really surprising to see them in person. They're exactly the same."
"You can only tell them apart by the marks embedded in their bodies? If you cover up the marks, I really can't tell who's who."
I wanted them to speak a little more quietly, but they showed no sign of lowering their voice.
The attendant in charge of the competition calmed them down and briefly explained the rules of the competition.
There were no rules. You couldn't intentionally interfere with other people's hunting, and you couldn't let monsters come down to civilian villages while hunting them... these were obvious things.
The participants, who had been listening to the explanation with bored expressions, began to get excited when the Grand Duke's servants brought the winner's trophy.
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