Now This Family Belongs to My Mother Chapter 140

The wind blowing through the forest tousled his perfectly styled hair. Beneath it, his shining eyes carried a mix of sincerity and mischief, leaving me utterly confused.

 

“…Good things?”

 

“Yes.” Ludwig nodded. “I believe the hatching of the unicorn’s avatar was also thanks to your mother.”

 

“That’s thanks to my mom, not me.”

 

“No, that’s not true.”

 

Another gust of wind blew through. This time, it was stronger, and my hair was wildly swept around. Even though I had tied my hair tightly for the hunt, it seemed to have come loose a bit as I ran frantically to save Ludwig.

 

“I gave your mother the unicorn egg purely because of you.”

 

“What?”

 

Ludwig said as he tucked my wind-blown hair behind my ear. “I didn’t want to see you looking sad, so I gave the egg to your mother just in case.”

 

“…”

 

I stared blankly up at Ludwig. For a moment, my chest throbbed with a sharp pang. Snapping back to my senses, I quickly stepped back. Then, hastily retying my loose hair, I spoke. “T-Thank you for your generosity.”

 

Ludwig walked toward me with steady steps. I tried to retreat again, but he was faster, moving behind me. His hand touched my hair. “Do you think tying it like that will hold?”

 

I froze. Because Ludwig, the crown prince, was retying my hair. His touch was gentle and kind. Even though my hair was tangled from being blown around, he didn’t hurt me, not even by accident.

 

“How is that? Is it alright?” Having finished tying my hair, Ludwig stepped back and asked.

 

I could tell by touch that it was perfectly tied, but just to be sure, I patted my head. As expected, it was flawless. I asked in surprise. “Where did you learn to tie hair like that?”

 

“Do you really need to learn something like that?”

 

“…”

 

“Well, let’s just call it luck.” Ludwig grinned. He still seemed skeptical about the idea that I wasn’t good at shooting a bow.

 

“Neighhh!”

 

It was then that Ludwig’s horse let out a distressed cry. We both looked down toward where the horse was. Out of nowhere, another pack of wolves was attacking the horse. Engraved on their foreheads was the same brand we had seen earlier.

 

“It seems there are still mad wolves remaining,” Ludwig muttered with a frown.

 

The wolves tore apart the poor horse and then leaped toward us.

 

“Run!”

 

Ludwig urgently grabbed my wrist and started running upward. But the wolves were numerous and fast. If we kept running like this, it was clear we’d be caught.

 

I shouted desperately at Ludwig. “The hill! Let’s go over there!”

 

“To the hill?” Ludwig asked back, seemingly confused, but he obediently followed my lead. Practically carrying me, he scrambled up to the hill.

 

I grabbed a stone that was protruding unnaturally halfway up the slope.

 

“Lady, what are you doing right now…?”

 

Instead of answering, I twisted the stone sideways. In that instant, the ground beneath us suddenly gave way. We plummeted down together. Thud!

 

“Grrr! Grr!” The wolves ran right up to the newly opened hole and barked furiously. But as soon as we fell through, the ground snapped shut again.

 

Soon, lights flickered inside the tomb. They were magical lamps. Strangely enough, even though we had hit the ground quite hard, I felt no pain. I remember it hurting quite a lot in my past life… And I quickly realized why.

 

Ludwig had been holding me tightly, shielding me. I hurriedly pulled away from his embrace and checked his condition.

 

“Your Highness, are you alright? Are you hurt anywhere?”

 

“What about you?”

 

“Your Highness protected me,” I said, my tone implying why he would do such a thing.

 

Ludwig chuckled softly. “Seeing you worry about me, it’s quite endearing.” He turned his neck and stood up. It didn’t seem like he was seriously injured.

 

Standing up and following him, I spoke. “Do you regret saying that only good things happen when you’re with me now?”

 

Ludwig looked at me as if he had no idea what I was talking about. “If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have found such a great hiding spot and would have been torn apart by wolves. What are you even saying?” Then he flashed his signature charming smile. “As expected. Whenever I’m with Lady Epirosa, only good things happen.”

 

Leaving me lost for words, Ludwig casually looked around the surroundings.

 

“But where is this place? How do you even know about a place like this?”

 

Finally, the inevitable question came. Though I had no choice given the situation, bringing Ludwig here meant facing this question sooner or later.

 

“Could it be… that you participated in the hunting festival just to come here?”

 

On top of that, Ludwig was quick to catch on.

 

I let out a small sigh. Ludwig stared at me quietly and then spoke. “If it’s something difficult to talk about, you don’t have to tell me.”

 

“…”

 

“I’ll help you regardless.”

 

I stared at him in surprise. Ludwig smiled as if wondering why I was so shocked.

 

“How could someone who can’t even do that much for the person who saved their life really be called the next ruler?” Ludwig said this.

 

This place was within the imperial hunting grounds. An unknown, unidentified location within the imperial territory. The fact that such a place existed was already a problem. But the bigger issue was that I, the young lady of the Blanche family, knew about it.

 

Ludwig spoke as if trying not to burden me, but this was something that could easily become a serious issue if brought up. And yet, not only did he refrain from asking further questions, but he even offered to help me.

 

“Thank you, Your Highness.” I could feel Ludwig’s sincerity.

 

“No need to thank me. I just hate owing anyone, that’s all.”

 

“I came here for my mom.”

 

Because of that, I could also speak to Ludwig with sincerity.

 

“My mom is still suffering because of the curse my uncles cast on her. So, I’m trying to use the treasure hidden here to heal her.”

 

Ludwig couldn’t hide his surprise, as if he hadn’t expected me to be so honest. “Is it really alright… to tell me that so openly?” He then asked, sounding more concerned than anything else. “What if I say you can’t take it because it’s an item belonging within imperial territory?”

 

“Would you do that?” I looked up at Ludwig and asked.

 

For a moment, Ludwig seemed at a loss for words, as if something had caught him off guard. I thought I saw his ears turn red for a split second. The lighting wasn’t bright enough for me to be sure, though.

 

“No, I wouldn’t do that.” Ludwig finally replied after a long silence. “I told you I’d help.” He then turned around hastily. “Then let’s hurry up and find that treasure or whatever it is. Which way should we go?”

 

“There’s only one path, isn’t there?” I asked back, puzzled. For some reason, Ludwig seemed a bit flustered as he spoke.

 

“Ah, right. Then let’s move quickly. Time is of the essence.” With that, Ludwig took the lead. Tilting my head in confusion, I followed him.

 

The passage stretched downward for quite a while. Perhaps because his tension had eased, or maybe out of boredom, Ludwig asked a question. “So, what kind of place is this for a treasure to be hidden here?”

 

“This is the tomb of the archmage.”

 

“Archmage?”

 

“Yes. I don’t know the archmage’s name either. But I know that inside that person’s coffin, there’s a treasure with mysterious power.”

      

“How do you know that?”

 

“…”

 

“You really are a person who makes me more curious the more I get to know you.” Ludwig said this as he turned to look back. “Walk beside me.”

 

“Pardon?”

 

“What if something dangerous suddenly jumps out from behind?”

 

“There’s no such…” I was about to say there wasn’t anything like that, but I just moved to Ludwig’s side instead. If I answered honestly, he would ask how I knew that, and I would be put in a difficult position again.

 

Only when I walked shoulder-to-shoulder beside him did Ludwig smile, looking relieved. We walked side by side for a few more minutes until a rounded space appeared at the end of the passage. In the center of the space stood a low pedestal. And on top of that pedestal…

 

The archmage’s coffin is there.