The Vengeful Princess

Chapter 16: The Annual Royal Hunt Part 1

When I was younger, I had heard many stories about the Annual Royal Hunt conducted in Veremund. It operated on a point system, with the bigger and faster prey being worth more points than the smaller ones. It was an enormous competition, thinly veiled as a celebration, notorious for the title of The Royal Hunter bestowed upon the one who managed to earn the most points. My father had often been invited to and even attended some of these hunts over the years, back when he and King Francis was still on good terms and maintained a friendly relationship. 

Attending the Annual Royal Hunt in person was nothing like how I imagined it from my father's stories. Nobles and royalty alike had made the trip to New Cynesigian court to attend the event, completely filling up the palace over the past few days. The timing was honestly ingenious on King Francis' half - all these hunters in the woods, bringing back game under the guise of a competition just as New Cynesige was on the verge of famine. 

I wasn't preparing to partake in the hunt originally but due to Irelia's instructions, I had hastily commissioned a set of arrows marked with my name, R. Hartforde. They arrived on the morning of the hunt, just in time for me to qualify as a hunter. I desperately needed to practice my archery skills; it had been a while since I had put them to use. Luckily, I had a few hours before the sun rose, enabling me to slip out to the archery range while it was still dark. 

A few others must have had the same idea as there were already three other figures practicing when I got there. Notably, Alex stood at the far end, with his two guards hovering a respectful distance behind him. I took up position at the other end of the range, deliberately putting some distance between us. After receiving Irelia's order for his assassination, I had made an effort to avoid him while I considered my options. Did he deserve to be executed?

My attempts were poorly aimed, majority of the arrows landing just along the edge of the target face. No matter how hard I tried to concentrate on the target face, I couldn't stop thinking about what would take place later today. Just the thought of it made my palms sweat. There were so many things that could go wrong. Deep down, I wasn't sure I could even follow through with it. 

Imagining King Francis' face on the target helped me to correct my aim slightly. I tensed my grip on the bow as my peripheral vision caught a flicker of movement. Alex was on the move. I followed him out of the corner of my eyes as he approached where I stood. 

"You're joining the hunt?"

I nodded, noting the two guards that waited patiently behind him. How would I kill him if those two officers were constantly following him everywhere?

"Already bored of Privileged activities?" He smirked before gesturing to my bow. "I could teach you, if you want."

"No need. Watch and learn." I nocked an arrow confidently before letting it fly... right past the target. It had embedded itself into a nearby tree. Huh. Perhaps I had been a bit too overconfident in my archery abilities. Lowering the bow, I felt warmth creeping up my neck and knew that my cheeks would be soon flushed from embarrassment.  

Alex attempted to hide his laugh with an amused cough. "Alright, since I value the human life and I don't wish for anyone to sustain any arrow related injuries-"

I grabbed another arrow and readied it, steadying my hand. Remember what Ashe taught you. Nock, mark, draw, loose. I drew back the bow to my ear as I took a deep breath in, focusing on my mark. As I exhaled, I let it loose, a satisfying crack sounding as my second arrow split cleanly through my first. Perhaps I didn't need the extra practice after all.

"-perhaps you should..." Alex trailed off, slightly gaping in surprise. He looked back at the tree and then at me again as if he could not believe his eyes.