Chapter 111

Growl-!n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Jackalope approached one step at a time, knowing that its opponent was defenseless.

“My son!”

It opened its huge mouth to devour Caelion.

Snap-!

Apollonia poured all the remaining fragrance that Petra had poured onto her body.

“Your Highness!” Bianca, who was next to her, screamed in surprise.

But Apollonia had already taken a few steps forward.

Grooooar-!

Confused, Jackalope looked at Caelion and Apollonia alternately. Behind Caelion, who had fallen over, Eckart and the other participants gaped.

She took one more step closer towards the monster. Now she stood on the border between the podium and the hunting ground.

Auuuuu-!

Jackalope immediately turned its body toward her excitedly.

“Kyaah!”

“No!” Bianca’s scream could be heard nearby, and Eckart was seen running toward her.

There was no one between Apollonia and the huge monster. The mighty black wolf crouched towards her with gleaming eyes, tail shaking menacingly.

It was finally time for the monster to leap forward. Apollonia tensed as she put one foot on the safe zone and the other on the hunting ground.

Clang-!

Roaaaar-!

But the very next moment, the monster screeched. Everyone in the podium widened their eyes in a daze. All they saw was blood spurting from the back of the monster’s neck, but the cause of that remained unknown.

“What the hell…” Caelion, who had fallen to the ground, also murmured with a blank look.

Swish-!

Suddenly something silver flew in the air and drew an arc on Jackalope’s body. Blood gushed out in the places where the light passed.

“Kuaaagh!”

The monster shrieked in pain and staggered back.

Just right behind it, the identity of the shining object was revealed. Shining brilliantly under the sunlight, it was a long sword that looked difficult for ordinary people to swing. No, to be precise, the way he swung his sword and carved it into the monster’s body was far from ordinary.

But it was all overshadowed by the person holding the long sword. Enchanting silver hair, sea-colored eyes with bottomless depths, and lush lips visible from afar.

It was Uriel.

“Wh-who is that?”

“I’ve never heard about this contestant…”

However, before the audience could properly figure out who he was, Uriel once again flew into the air and swung his sword.

Swish-

For the first time, Apollonia was able to fully witness his skills. His blade headed precisely toward vital points.

There was an artfulness to the way he moved so unhesitatingly.

Slash-

“Kaang!”

Uriel finally lodged his sword deep into Jackalope’s neck. The monster raised its head to the sky, screeching, and slowly tumbled to the floor.

Bam-

At the same time, a beep rang to mark the end of the competition.

“It’s over!”

“The competition is over! Then the champion is…”

Every single one of them fixed their eyes on Uriel, including Petra.

The emperor was also looking at him. Unlike others who were amazed, his expression was a mixture of anger and shock. Uriel, who stood under the hill, also met his gaze.

His blue eyes were calm as he shook the long sword he was holding to remove the monster’s blood.

The emperor opened his mouth. “Come closer.”

Apollonia bit her lips. She watched Uriel’s short battle and got preoccupied with the unexpected development. It just occurred to her that she didn’t have any solution to deal with this situation.

‘Don’t look at me.’

Uriel walked to the podium at the Emperor’s order without giving her a glance, as if he heard her. He saluted silently.

“What is your name?”

The dark blue uniform was splattered with blood. This would look unpleasant on other people’s bodies, but the color combination looked so harmonious on Uriel’s body. Not only women, but men also couldn’t take their eyes off him.

“Uriel Biche, Your Majesty,” he replied.

“Which family do you belong to?”

“…”

“Do you not hear me?”

Uriel became silent because he couldn’t think of an answer.

“Uriel Biche is the knight of Grand Duke Evinhart,” someone said from below the hill. “He’s also my escort, so he doesn’t have a title.”

It was Caelion. He walked to the podium and stopped behind Uriel.

Apollonia caught the sight of the Grand Duchess who was busy wiping away her tears.

“Uriel Biche…” the emperor recited quietly. He looked at Uriel with a piercing gaze. “The champion of this hunting competition…” He fell silent for a long moment. “Is Uriel Biche from the Grand Duchy of Evinhart.”

As soon as the official result of the hunting competition fell from his mouth, everyone gathered there burst into exclamations.

“Wow! Congratulations on the birth of the new champion!”

“Wow, what a splendid performance!”

“He doesn’t have a title? Is he a commoner?”

Uriel Biche knelt in front of the emperor with a faint smile on his face. The first champion from a humble background and the most beautiful winner ever.

***