I Have No Intention Of Training The Male Leads - Chapter 13 Part 2

13. The Hunting Event in May (2)

Translated by: ???????

Eve’s appearance at first glance, while wearing a crisp white shirt, white trousers that narrowed at the bottom, long black boots that reached below her knees, and a hunter-green coat over a beige vest, seemed like a fine gentleman participating in a hunting party.

It was a result of her insistence on not doing the uncomfortable task of riding a horse in a skirt.

Alberic, who was not dressed too dissimilarly to her, except for the fact that his long blue-silver hair was gathered into a tight braid and draped over his left shoulder, sighed and thought about calling her out about it but he quickly gave up after seeing the sight of her looking good in a gentleman’s suit.

A top hat sat atop Eve’s head, which was cinched with a belt above her waist.

Alberic, with his hat pressed down in place, met eye contact with her glistening hazel eyes and blinked lazily.

“I’ll be on my way.”

He then turned around and walked out of Eve’s bedroom before she could answer.

Eve hastily grabbed her longsword and sheathed it on her belt, and followed after him.

The carriage carrying them raced for the Royal Park, which was a hunting ground near the palace that had been purchased by the Imperial family.

The hills and forests of the Royal Park, which were artificially created only for amusement, have been cultivated by the imperial family for a long time, and there was once talk that hunting grounds that promote luxury should be eliminated because it costs a lot of money to maintain them.

However, the shrewd political savvy and powerful imperial control of the council had kept them alive.

During the carriage ride, Eve listened to Alberic’s brief description of the Royal Park, and even though she was tempted to argue that it was so great that it should be eliminate, she was forced to reconsider as the carriage passed the gates of the hunting grounds.

‘Luxury and indulgence.’

The rising hills were dressed in greens, as befits the time of year when the green shoots of spring are rising, and she thought she even caught a glimpse of the antlers of a stag among the dense trees beyond the hills.

It seemed like an eternity since they’d crossed the gate, but the feast of hills and old trees showed no signs of ending.

The roads were well-maintained to make passage easy, the bushes were trimmed just enough to be pleasing to the eye, and the trees, neatly shaped and branched strongly suggested that this vast expanse had been tended by human hands.

As Eve glanced out the window and stuck out her tongue, she felt the carriage slowly slow down.

Eve was greeted by a large lake with a sunlit sheen covering the surface after stepping out of the carriage. Ducks were floating lazily on the water, and bright pink azaleas were planted near the shore.

A short walk down the road from the carriage waiting area revealed an unnamed flowering tree along the lakeshore with pale pink blossoms and awnings shading them from the sun.

Usually it was the ladies who had to kill time in the waiting area, and while the hunting grounds were decorated to suit their tastes, Eve hadn’t expected such a brazen display of flowers.

It was a far cry from the hunting parties she’d been attending with Alberic.

Eve shivered as she took in the sight of the fairly full-scale tea tables set up under delicately patterned awnings that seemed to serve more than just to block out the sun’s rays, and the uniformed servants bustling among them.

“There are a lot of people… Here.”

“That’s to be expected, as this is a hunting party hosted by His Highness the Crown Prince himself.”

“Ugh. What is all this? Gross.”

“You’d better keep your… Mouth shut, there are a lot of ears around.”

After the traumatic events at the dinner, Eve received furtive glances for a while whenever she went where nobles gathered.

No one would recognize her when she was silent, but the moment she spoke up and identified herself as a woman, eyes would slyly scan her up and down with a ‘That’s her’ look.

Surprisingly, Eve’s unconventional behavior was not taken as a maverick move, but rather as a ‘taste’ of the two imperial men.

Rumors had begun to circulate among the noble families that androgynous women with hunting prowess, who wore waistcoats and frock coats like any other gentleman, were the preferred style of the still-unmarried Crown Prince and Archduke, and brave young ladies in trouser suits had become a common sight during this year’s hunting season.

Of course, most of the young ladies were wearing two-piece dresses that were made for riding and were less plunging than the dresses for outing but as if they were secretly paying attention to the rumors, riding dresses were also starting to trend toward cleaner lines with minimal lace or ruffles.

And then, of course, there were the women of noble status who didn’t care about such fashions in the slightest, who were still adorned from head to toe in splendor. It was only for a moment that Eve caught sight of one of them.

“No, why is she here?”

“I don’t know, His Highness thought that she would definitely refuse…”

Eve lowered her voice and turned to Alberic, while out of the corner of her eyes she saw the third daughter of Princess Elizabeth and the Emperor’s favorite, mingling with the rest of the group.

It was an invitation that they had ceremoniously circulated in anticipation of a refusal. As everyone expected, Elizabeth and her son declined to attend.

But Alberic whispered in a low voice, “I didn’t expect Princess Amelia to accept the invitation.”

Alberic urged her not to cause trouble and to be especially careful with her conduct.

He even gave her a quick reminder that she would be surrounded by a group of ladies who had come with their guards and knights from several families who supported the second prince, and with a look on his face that said he was uneasy about leaving Eve behind, he made his way to the makeshift tent where the gentlemen were gathering.

Eve was already a million light-years away from the main storyline of the game from the start of the event, and she walked along thinking, ‘I don’t know what’s going on, and how things would develop.’

The ladies who had been watching her every step of the way since before she stepped inside the awning slowly unfurled their fans to hide their overt curiosity from the moment the awning was drawn.

Eve, with a waistline that fell firmly into a corset that hadn’t been cinched, broad shoulders that had been honed by years of training, and a height that stood a head taller than the average woman, stood out from the crowd of women dressed in a harmony of lace, ruffles, and silk.

Nevertheless, her face showed no glimmer of the anxiety or nervousness unique to someone who stood out from the crowd.

Eve glanced around and smiled coyly as she made eye contact with the only woman she recognized.

The bright blonde and green-haired young woman who locked eyes with Eve was Lady Claudia, daughter of the Marquis of Alester, one of the ladies of the ‘same line’ that Eve had come to recognize as she followed the eagerly socializing Alberic to and from the other hunting parties.

A small group of ladies, each wearing a gently curving bowler hat, riding dresses, and lightly laced balmoral boots, occupied a chair and sat fanning themselves around her.

Some of them were vaguely recognizable, but others were new to her.

Claudia, the higher ranking of the family, spoke first, while bowing in front of Eve.

“How have you been, Lady Evelyn.”

“I’ve been well, Lady Claudia.”

“Come, my dear, and sit down. There are many people waiting to greet you.”

When the daughter of a marquis invited her, it would be greatly impolite of her to refuse.

So Eve plastered a hospitable smile on her face and made her way over to the empty chair the servant had arranged for her.

Once she was seated, the maid serving tea soon placed a cup of milk tea with plenty of milk and sugar in front of her.

Eve felt a few stares behind her back, but she shrugged them off with a graceful demeanor, knowing that in a gathering of nobles, she was bound to be the center of attention.

Eve smiled meekly as she was introduced to the ladies, their names and families volatilized from her brain by this time.

Some smiled favorably, others looked at her curiously, and still others looked her up and down with meaningful glances.

It was all a familiar sight to her.

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