The commotion grew so intense that even Yulianna couldn't make sense of anything anymore. Eyes turned to her one by one, whispers spreading like wildfire as people voiced their thoughts as though she weren't standing right there. Shock, disbelief, and confusion colored every face she saw. No one had expected this—least of all Yulianna.
"Why would she do such a thing?"
"I've barely managed to accept that she punched a baron, and now she's signed up for the hunting game?"
"I never imagined Duke Rohane's daughter would involve herself in something like this, considering her noble status and femininity."
"How is she even planning to fight a monster?"
"Does the head of the McGregor household even know about this?"
This is… utterly goddamn nonsense. Whoever put my name on that list had better pray I never find them.
Yulianna's glare swept across the crowd, sharp enough to silence them if looks could kill. From the moment she arrived, she'd known someone was watching her. She hadn't survived being a military officer in her past life for nothing. She'd ignored the instincts screaming that something was off—but she wasn't stupid.
"M-My lady, this is a misunderstanding, I presume?" Mira asked, finally snapping out of her shock. Her voice trembled with nerves. "Please tell me you didn't do this yourself."
"Of course not, Mira. I'm not dumb enough to do something like this," Yulianna replied calmly, though anger simmered beneath her skin.
"Still, it looks like someone's trying to play games with me. I didn't even do anything, yet trouble always seems to find me." She smiled, though it never reached her eyes.
Anxiously, her maid clutched her hands. "W-What do you mean, my lady? What are you planning to do? There must be an error—"
"Save your strength, Mira. The game has already started without warning, but I'll make sure to beat them at their own game."
"Pardon my intrusion, Lady Yulianna." The warden, who had checked the list countless times by now, approached hesitantly. "It appears there has been an error in the participant list. Your name must have been mistakenly added—"
"I assume you've checked the final listing more than once, correct?" Yulianna cut in.
"Y-Yes, my lady. I finalized every name last night, and yours was not there. But just now…"
Of course. They added my name while I was on the way here.
"In that case, I have no choice but to participate in this hunting competition," Yulianna said. "And don't worry, I won't blame you for this. On one condition."
"Anything, my lady. Thank you for your mercy."
"Make sure you prepare the names of those who were in charge of delivering the scrolls. I want the list when the hunt ends."
The warden and Mira stood speechless and stunned as Yulianna walked toward the weapon racks. The whispers hadn't faded, but she paid them no attention and kept moving.
Once she finished changing into the same attire as the other hunters, Yulianna went to pick the weapon she had in mind: a shotgun.
"This might be an old model, but it'll do," she muttered, checking the barrel and lifting it as if she were about to fire."
However, Yulianna didn't expect the barrel to end up pointing at someone she least expected to see.
"My, my. What a surprise. I haven't seen her in a while. Took you long enough to recover after your plan backfired last time." As if on cue, Yulianna's mood lifted. She even waved in her direction, smiling—the kind of smile meant to annoy.
As expected, Lady Vera's expression didn't change. Her face remained strict and rigid as always. She only glanced Yulianna's way, lifting the corner of her lips slightly before turning away.
Yulianna raised a brow. "Let's see what you're planning this time."
The bell rang, echoing throughout the capital, signaling the start of the game. Every participant braced themselves for the adventure ahead. The crowd roared once more with cheers and excitement, though some still struggled to process the fact that Duke Rohane's daughter had joined the hunt.
Despite the chaos, Yulianna earned a few supporters calling her name from afar. Though she wasn't sure if they were cheering for her or just excited to see how a duke's daughter would survive in a mountain full of uncertainty.
When the bell rang again, all hunters, including Yulianna, prepared to move as the gate opened. Before turning away, she glanced at Mira, who seemed close to tears. Yulianna smiled and gave her a wink, but her eyes shifted to the person standing just behind her.
Celeste Valemont wore the same smile Yulianna had grown used to. She mouthed something, but Yulianna couldn't make it out. One thing she knew for sure: Celeste was practically dancing with excitement at seeing her in this situation. After all, this was exactly what she wanted.
Mountain Morath
Yulianna's sweat-soaked reflection wavered on the river's surface as she knelt beside it. She cupped her hands in the crystal-clear water and splashed her face, her shallow breaths slowly evening out.
It had been thirty minutes since she wandered through the forest, yet there was no sign of any creature or monster-like beast. Still, that didn't mean they weren't there. From time to time, a spine-chilling roar echoed in the distance, reminding her of what lurked within the wild.
Yulianna didn't want to believe these things were real. But she was now in a world where emperors ruled and impossibly perfect humans existed. As daunting as it was, survival demanded more than just strength.
"I don't even know what I'm looking for, tsk," she muttered to herself.
She pulled the map from her pocket and began marking the areas she had already explored. She hadn't even reached halfway into the mountain yet, but it felt like her patience would run out before her strength did.
Annoyed, she tied her hair into a ponytail. "Hays, I should've thought this through. I could've ignored this and handled it another way. Why did I even come here?!"
Her frustrated voice echoed through the forest as she sat against a tree, massaging her temples. Now that she was in this mess, she had no choice but to keep going. Might as well move before noon passed; the hunters only had half a day before the hunt ended. That was the only rule.
"That's right, my lady. Why did you bother coming here and getting yourself into trouble? You could've easily backed out, being a duke's daughter and all."
The voice came from behind her, not far from where Yulianna was resting. Her reflexes kicked in automatically, and her hands raised the shotgun toward him. Or rather, them.
"That's none of your business," she said, lowering the gun slightly.
But something about their smiles told her otherwise. Their business was very much hers. They started grinning—laughing, even—as one of them stepped forward.
"But it is our business. In fact, you made our job easier, my lady," said the one holding a sword. There were now two of them. A third appeared, carrying a whip with a spear-like blade at the end.
Trouble, trouble. Why can't you leave me alone? You're so desperate you even followed me into my next life.
Smirking, Yulianna's reflexes sharpened. "Easy? You think so?"
She aimed her shotgun at the man who had closed the few meters between them. "One wrong move and I won't hesitate to pull this trigger."
"That, if you can still pull the trigger, my lady—" he began, then choked off.
The gun cracked through the forest. One hunter dropped. She reloaded and trained the barrel on the remaining two, who stood frozen by her action.
"I told you, don't provoke me," she said, calm but heavy with warning. "You may see a fragile noble daughter, but I've lived a life full of shit. I'd do it all again."
The other one tried to sprint away. Yulianna shot, forcing him to his knees. He curled up like a child, clutching his wounded ankle. His hands were covered in blood as he cried in pain.
Before she could catch her breath, a sharp spear whistled through the air. She twisted aside, dodging just in time to avoid a fatal hit, but the blade still sliced her left arm. The cold, sharp edge carved an inch-deep wound into her flesh.
"You son of a bitch!"
The sound of her shotgun and her furious voice echoed through the forest once more. Blood spattered from her arm, the metallic scent filling her lungs. Gritting her teeth, she wrapped the wound with the handkerchief she had brought. It wasn't perfect, but it slowed the bleeding.
The remaining hunter wasn't as lucky. He was already on the verge of losing his breath.
"You might think you've escaped death, but you haven't," he managed to say weakly, then laughed.
Yulianna forced herself to stand, walked toward him, and grabbed his own spear before pointing it at his neck. "I dare you to say the name of the one behind this."
Useless. He's dead. And I might be just as dead soon.
The spear was poisoned. That explained why her muscles were growing numb and weak. She had no time to investigate who was responsible. Any minute now, she would lose all her senses.
Yulianna wasted no time. She walked quickly but carefully back along the path she had taken earlier. Her breathing turned shallow, but she pushed herself to stay conscious for as long as she could. Still, her body finally gave out just as she began to recognize the way back to the capital's gate.
"Ah. What an annoying way to die," she muttered, collapsing to the ground and leaning against a nearby tree.
She wanted to keep going; she wanted to survive. Yet it seemed like death had followed her once again in this life. Slowly, Yulianna felt the last of her strength slip away. Her eyes closed, her breathing grew faint, but she could still hear footsteps approaching in the distance.
She just wanted to die in peace. Yet her right arm moved on its own, raising the gun toward whoever had arrived. She was too exhausted to open her eyes.
The only thing she heard next was a soft chuckle.
"That's not how you're supposed to ask for help, especially when you're this close to death." His calm yet icy voice somehow pushed Yulianna to open her eyes.
When her blurry vision cleared, she was met with a pair of familiar, deep-blue, icy eyes staring back at her. His face held little expression, but it was the most stunning Yulianna had ever seen. Too good to be true—so much so that even with death close at her heels, she found herself allured and mesmerized.