The Villainous Older Sister Who Loves Her Younger Sister Aims for the Guillotine 75

75: Memories of the “Black Forest”

Leticia, happily enjoying a dinner rich with local ingredients, her face beaming, was a heartwarming sight.

Her infectious cheerfulness even spread a pleasant atmosphere among the servants waiting on us.

The appetizer, a cheese platter, and the main dish, a combination of lamb and pork, were exactly what I had requested after hearing about the local specialties during our carriage ride.

After dinner, I listened to Judith’s report.

Currently, our Vandergant territory was stable.

If we could get through this winter—this [Event]—I would be able to hand over the territory to Leticia in excellent condition.

As the head of the family, I had a duty to protect, enrich, and develop this territory.

I couldn’t allow it to decline under my watch.

Much of it had been inherited from previous generations, including Judith. However, there were also a few policies that I had proposed and implemented.

Later, after bathing alone—resisting Leticia’s adorable attempts to join me—

“Oh, Elder Sister. Welcome back.”

I was greeted by my sister, already in her nightclothes, waiting for me on the bed.

I removed the robe I had worn over my nightclothes on the way from the bath to my room—the lord’s chambers—and hung it on the clothes rack by the bed. There was another robe, the same design but a different size, for Leticia.

As I slipped off my slippers and climbed into bed, my sister knelt beside me.

…What was with this tension?

Was I being too self-conscious?

But then I remembered the time I entered the forest with Ciel.

…A sense of danger…

A wariness, like sizing up a wild animal.

It had been a year since my last inspection. I was also anxious about whether the [Official Events] would proceed as planned.

So, perhaps it was natural to be a little tense, but this wasn’t a forest, and the person with me was my sister.

The training Ciel had subjected me to in the forest was hunting.

Not the leisurely kind of hunt enjoyed by nobles, riding on horseback, chasing game flushed out by hounds, and shooting them with a bow.

And certainly not the mild kind of hunt my sister had mentioned, using beaters.

The ‘easy’ version involved entering the forest, going to a smokehouse set up in the hunting grounds, and smoking the game you caught.

I thought it was quite harsh training for a noble lady.

What was so ‘easy’ about it?

However, compared to the other option, it had a roof over your head… a latrine, a nearby spring with clean water, and emergency rations. While I preferred not to, since it reduced my earnings, I also had the option of eating the smoked meat I prepared, so I never felt truly unsafe.

At least, I never felt like I would starve or die.

When I asked about the purpose of this training, Ciel replied, “My lady, you must understand the hardships of earning a living in the forest. Nobles are the ones who tax even that.”

I understood and felt ashamed that I hadn’t considered such a thing.

While it was harsh and difficult for me, it was still ‘training.’

There were people for whom this was everyday life.

The ‘hard’ version… involved traversing the vast forest in northern Eustasia, known as the “Black Forest.”

Entering the forest with minimal equipment, rationing food and water.

Avoiding all human contact before even entering the forest.

With no resupply.

It had taken two weeks.

The untouched forest, with no settlements nearby, was… terrifying.

Two weeks… in there.

I had barely maintained my sanity because Ciel was with me. Alone, I might have gone mad.

However, that vague, formless fear was only the beginning.

Ciel warned me to be constantly on guard, because we weren’t in Vandergant territory.

And when she told me we were in Hargau territory, one of the three ducal families, my blood ran cold.

It wasn’t the Hargau family’s reputation as the “Bold and Unmatched” that frightened me.

I hadn’t passed through any checkpoints, and I wasn’t sure if they would believe me, even in my hunter’s disguise, but I was the daughter of the “Coldhearted Vanderwaals.”

The Hargau family, like the Eustasia Knights, controlled the “Hargau Warrior Band,” a family that specialized in martial prowess.

So, they would probably be lenient if it was for training. They were a family that appreciated training, discipline, pushing your limits, and such.

Our families were neither on good nor bad terms.

While both were old families, dating back to the founding of the kingdom, our roles were too different.

The martial Hargau. The iron Hargau. The stone Hargau.

They owned numerous mines, mainly iron, and quarries, and members of their warrior band were selected from among the strong men who worked there.

While both our families now had their main residences in the capital, we were, technically, neighbors.

Our territories bordered each other at the “Black Forest,” the boundary an ambiguous line on a map, with no walls or even markers.

It was effectively shared land, a neutral zone.

However, there was a reason why that area wasn’t used for hunting, logging, grazing, or foraging, left untouched as a neutral zone.

It was a breeding ground for gray bears, said to have a higher population of bears than humans.

In the Hargau territory, whose crest was a bear holding a pickaxe, they joked, with a certain rough pride, that “you can’t tell the Hargau warriors from the bears,” so perhaps they were used to them. Our family crest, however, was a gecko.

When Ciel told me we were alone in such a dangerous area, I had a fleeting, terrifying thought that perhaps this was a plan to eliminate me, disguised as an accident.

I reconsidered, thinking how absurd it would sound if the news reported, “A noble daughter of the Vanderwaals family went missing in the ‘Black Forest’ during a hunting training exercise with a single attendant. Presumed eaten by a bear.” Especially since my companion was Ciel.

But the fact remained that we were two women alone in an area teeming with bears.

Of course, we were prepared.

The Vanderwaals’ renowned poisons weren’t just for humans.

“Gecko Brand” arrow poison was a favorite among Eustasian hunters.

It was originally intended for use against humans, but a treaty now prohibited its use in war.

…Of course, they were probably prepared to break the treaty if necessary. All types of arrow poison were prohibited from being exported, and the royal family was involved in its management.

While hunting poisons were usually paralytic agents that wouldn’t be fatal even if ingested, the bear poison was different.

All arrow poisons were regulated; only licensed hunters who paid a registration fee to the kingdom could purchase them. However, the bear poison required a background check by the Vanderwaals family.

Because it was a lethal poison that could kill a person with a single scratch.

Even with that, it took five to twenty seconds to kill a gray bear.

If you miscalculated your position, if the arrow was deflected by their thick skulls or fur and didn’t penetrate properly—you would be killed before the poison took effect.

Honestly, I was terrified.

When I asked about the purpose of this training, Ciel replied, “My lady, you must understand the fear of death. The Vanderwaals family is the one who inflicts it.”

I… understood… sort of… and the fear of death was etched into my bones.

Looking up at the night sky, the trees obscured the moonlight, creating a canvas of black branches and leaves against a silver-dusted starscape.

As she added wood to the fire, Ciel talked about various things.

Survival skills in the wilderness. Noble etiquette. Predictions about the plot of a popular romance novel that even some nobles enjoyed—she was talking about my story. …The topics were truly varied, and she spoke in a low, gentle voice, rambling, almost whispering.

The only human presence was Ciel and myself.

――It felt like we were the only two people in the world.

…I remember thinking such a poetic thought, unusual for me.

In reality, it would have been nice if it were just the two of us.

But I occasionally sensed the presence of bears in the darkness beyond the firelight, so it was probably just wishful thinking.

When I nervously said, “As long as we keep the fire going, we’ll be fine, right?” Ciel replied with a smile, “Bears aren’t afraid of fire.”

I couldn’t tell anyone, but in that situation, her smile was more terrifying than the bears.

Her usual thick black hair, worn in a large bun with her maid uniform, was now tied in a ponytail with a thin blue ribbon, making her look even more dignified and dependable.

At the beginning of the journey, unaware of our destination or purpose, I had been excited about the outdoor training, happy about the matching hooded capes and hunter-style outfits.

I wished it had been a less life-threatening experience.

Ciel had hugged me from behind, as I trembled, pale with fear, my hair shorter then.

That alone had been enough to calm me down.

――I remembered her whispered words.

And my own reply.

“My lady… do you… dislike the idea of dying with me?”

“I don’t mind dying with you, Ciel. But I don’t want to die here.”

Ciel chuckled at my response and nuzzled her cheek against mine.

It was the fifth day of our journey into the forest. Neither of us had bathed, and I imagined we smelled bad enough to warrant a call to the Knights if we were in the city, but since we both smelled the same, it didn’t bother me.

――I sometimes wondered what would have happened to the scenario of [Moonlight Liberium] if Ciel and I had died in the “Black Forest.”