As the black hair slowly fell away from his forehead, a pale face with large eyes was revealed. Abel soon met the motionless yellow eyes that looked like glass marbles. The black pupils, sharp like blades, stared back at him without emotion. There was no expectation in them. Abel smiled at those eyes that held no warmth.
“You’re hiding such beautiful eyes. Prince, since there’s no one in the forest, will you show them to me? Hehe, I won’t tell anyone—it’ll be our little secret.”
Despite the request—and even after waiting a long while—the prince didn’t react. He simply looked into Abel’s eyes for a moment, then slowly turned his gaze away. He looked around, then up at the sky, then off in the opposite direction.
A vivid green world spread out before him. The sunlight dazzled, and everything was so sharp and clear. And there, right in front of him, were eyes that still waited—warm green eyes, as radiant as the sunlight.
𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺
They had always looked at him that way. From the very beginning. Different from everyone else. Frightening—and yet comforting. So the prince began to hope, just a little. Maybe those eyes wouldn’t change.
Hope was always a blade that cut deep into his heart, something he should never let out. But once again, it appeared.
And he didn’t know how to get rid of it. He was still too young—and too full of hope—for that. Much later, the prince gave the faintest nod, barely noticeable. Instantly, Abel’s green eyes widened with joy.
“Wow—Prince, did you just give me permission? Hahaha—This is amazing! Abel is so happy, Prince!”
Abel began jumping up and down with the prince in his arms.
“I’m so happy I feel like I could fly! Hahaha—Even if a wild boar shows up, I’m not scared!”
Laughing and spinning, Abel twirled with the prince—but accidentally tripped on a tree root. Though he didn’t fall and quickly regained balance, a startled yell escaped him.
“Oh no! Prince, are you okay?”
After confirming that the prince wasn’t hurt, he burst into laughter again like a fool.
“Hahaha, oh dear, I got too excited—please forgive me.”
Even while asking for forgiveness, he couldn’t stop grinning. He lifted the prince high, eyes gleaming as if he could conquer the world.
“Hahaha, I feel like I could do anything!”
Looking down at Abel’s beaming face—his ears red from laughter, breath uneven from joy—the prince’s heart raced again. But outwardly, he remained expressionless, like a doll. Abel laughed loudly at the sight.
“Hehe, it’s true, Prince. I’m so happy right now—even if a wild boar appeared, I’d greet it with a smile!”
Having encountered wild boars often while mushroom hunting, Abel considered them the most dangerous creatures in the mountains. Especially after that one time when a boar nearly skewered his backside, he’d sworn never to joke about them again. But now, he felt like he could even wave at one.
“Wow, I might even share this joy with a wild boar...”
Thud.
A sudden sound of a branch snapping echoed nearby. Abel, mid-laughter, instinctively turned his head toward it.
“...”
A wild boar appeared.
Rustle.
A massive wild boar—taller than Abel’s waist—turned to face him.
“Grr!”
“...Huh?”
****
Ashler had learned to pass the time while waiting. Abel and the prince would enter the forest and usually return by sunset, but someone still had to stay and watch near the fog curtain. So all Ashler could do was train with his sword—especially with the upcoming knights’ competition.
“Sir Ashler! Our team will fall apart without you!”
He had promised to return when he had time, in response to his subordinates’ complaints. Although undefeated in swordsmanship, he felt his skills dulling due to his long absence from regular training.
Swish—Swish—
He swung his sword through the air, but his eyes never left the forest. From the moment Abel and the prince disappeared into the fog, his focus hadn’t wavered.
His upper body was drenched in sweat, his collar darkened, but he didn’t even breathe heavily. Swinging the heavy black sword—something he had done since childhood—was second nature.
When his meal arrived, brought by his page, it would finally be time to rest. But the sound he heard wasn’t footsteps. In fact, it wasn’t coming from the usual direction at all.
‘...Ugh...’
Ashler paused and looked up. What was that? He listened, but everything seemed quiet. Maybe he imagined it?
He tilted his head and raised his sword again—but the next sound was unmistakable.
‘...Ughhh—’
That was a scream—and a familiar one at that. Ashler’s expression sharpened, and he turned toward the fog, sword clenched tightly.
Could something have happened to the prince?!
Just as he stepped forward, a black figure burst from the mist—faster than Ashler could react. Abel’s voice tore through the air.
“AAAAAAAHHHHH—!!!!”
“Abel?! What’s wrong? Did something happen to the prin—”
Ashler rushed toward him, but before he could finish the question, Abel—still carrying the prince—screamed again like a madman.
“Sir Knight, get out of the way!!!!!!!”
“What? What’s—huh?”
Thududududu—
Ashler felt the ground tremble before he even saw it. And then—he saw.
A wild boar burst out of the fog. No, the real problem was that it was already upon him by the time he noticed.
Kkweeeek—!!!
The {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} story of a wild boar invading the palace was considered just a minor disturbance. It quickly faded from people’s memories. Though bizarre, there had been no casualties, and a brave knight had killed the boar with a single blow.
The fact that the boar had come from Dragon Forest remained a secret. There had never been any animal sightings there, so it was odd—but Truyde and the palace attendants didn’t take it seriously. Truyde even laughed when he heard it.
He opposed banning the prince from entering the forest, arguing that since reports said the prince no longer relied on Abel’s guidance, any progress should not be interrupted. So the only one who got angry was the brave knight who’d slain the boar.
“What if the prince had been hurt? Huh? Abel, if you’d been carrying him and tried to flee, he might’ve gotten injured before you!”
As Ashler’s voice rose, Abel’s shoulders slumped further and further. But Ashler, still irate from the unexpected encounter, didn’t care.
“If you’d seen the boar first, you should’ve quietly retreated! What were you thinking, letting it chase you?! Seriously!”
“I didn’t provoke it.”
Abel’s tiny voice barely reached him, like a mosquito’s buzz. Ashler raised an eyebrow.
“So you’re saying the boar chased you for no reason?”
“Yes!”
“...”
“It’s true....”
“I can’t believe this.”
Ashler flatly denied it, narrowing his eyes.
“Clearly, you must have provoked the boar by laughing or making noise in the forest.”
That was the correct answer. Abel froze in disbelief. Ashler’s eyes narrowed even further.
“I—I’m sorry. I’ll be more careful next time.”
Abel apologized and glanced around nervously. Eventually, Ashler let out a sigh.
“Fine. Since you’re showing some reflection, Abel, let’s let it go this time.”
Forgiven in an unenthusiastic voice, Abel bowed deeply, tears brimming as he thanked him. Then, hesitantly, he followed Ashler’s gaze, as if there was something else on his mind.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Then, excuse me.”
“Speak.”
“Who eats wild boars?”
Clang. Ashler answered by unsheathing his sword.
—
After the boar incident, the following days returned to a quiet routine. Ashler resumed his post near the fog-covered forest, and Abel—though momentarily discouraged—was back the very next day, acting as if nothing had happened, taking the prince into the woods.
Aside from giving Ashler a headache, nothing unusual occurred. Abel’s only real disappointment was not getting to eat the wild boar—which, in turn, spiked Ashler’s blood pressure.
They were days without much visible change, but Abel, accompanying the prince into the forest, began to feel something different.
For the past few days, Abel and the prince had been tracking animals by following their footprints and droppings. Finding footprints wasn’t easy unless it had rained recently or the ground was snowy. But droppings—those were easier to spot.
“Pellet-shaped droppings usually come from grass-eaters. These are probably from a deer.”
Abel squatted beside the prince and examined the droppings, scanning the area.
“Deer tend to favor areas where the forest meets open grassland. There’s a lot of food they like around here. I wonder if there are any fawns nearby.”
He looked around, then pointed with a stick to a spot farther away.
“That pile over there is also droppings—see how it’s gray? That means it likely came from a fawn still drinking milk. But deer are cautious and quick, so it’s hard to get a close look.”
After finishing his explanation, Abel stood up, and the prince rose with him.
“Hmm... but the hardest animal to spot is probably a bear. There aren’t many of them, and they usually live in forested mountains, not in places like this. Oh—did I ever tell you about the time I met a bear? Hahaha—It was terrifying! I got chills the moment I saw it! I’m serious, Your Highness. It was huge—this big, no, even bigger—like the size of a house!”
Abel lifted his arm, stood on tiptoe, and wildly gestured for emphasis.
“If you ever see one that big, Your Highness, you might just faint with your mouth wide open—”
Thud.
A bear appeared.
“...”
Thump.
The bear—indeed as big as a house—took a step toward Abel and opened its mouth.
“Grrrr—!”
“Huh...?”
****
Is it almost time for the swordsmanship competition?
Ashler, lost in thought, recalled the tearful face of a subordinate begging for his return, along with the humiliation he’d suffered. Swinging his sword at empty air, he thought of a rival knight—one who had always mocked him as a “country bumpkin.” Just thinking about that smug face made Ashler grip his sword tighter.
Swish—Swish—
The blade sliced the air cleanly. It should have continued—except the sound stopped. Ashler had frozen, still in the same stance mid-swing, eyes wide.
He thought he heard something a moment ago. A sound not unlike Abel’s scream from a few days ago—when he was chased by the wild boar. But listening carefully now, there was nothing. Silence. Surely Abel wouldn’t be chased again...?
Ashler shook his head and raised his sword again.
“Ah—!!!!!!!!”
Abel, carrying the prince, burst through the fog.
When the scene from a few days ago replayed before his eyes, Ashler couldn’t believe it.
“What is this...”
“Ah!!! Sir Knight! Move aside!!!!!!”
Abel screamed, frantically waving one arm—the other still clutching the prince. Ashler frowned, puzzled.
“What?! Again, you—”
There’s a bear.
“...”
The bear, having only fixated on Abel, suddenly turned its attention toward the stunned Ashler—delighted.
“Kuwoowoak—!!!!”