The Male Leads Were Stolen By The Extra [EN]: Chapter 96

The Mirnar Forest was more of a sprawling woodland dotted with low, rugged mountains. Moreover, since the forest’s terrain was magically altered before each Hunting Festival, prior experience didn’t necessarily grant anyone an advantage.

“Hey, you’ve been neglecting Grace a bit lately, haven’t you?”

MacRyan, with his usual swagger, his sword casually slung over his shoulder, addressed Ian’s back as he walked ahead.

Ian’s attitude toward Grace had indeed been lukewarm recently.

“Reyev too. You guys are acting strange lately.”

Reyev was behaving similarly. He hadn’t attended the Hunting Festival, which, while understandable for a holy knight who might avoid unnecessary killing, it was odd that he hadn’t visited Grace or had been avoiding her for the past few days, feigning illness as an excuse.

Consequently, MacRyan had been spending most of his time with Grace.

“Seriously, you humans. Just because your lives are short doesn’t mean your affections have to fade so quickly.”

MacRyan sarcastically chided Ian, who remained silent.

It was already absurd enough when their feelings for Celonia had shifted, but this again?

At least MacRyan maintained his feelings for Grace.

He considered himself fundamentally different from those fickle humans. He believed himself to be more noble and steadfast. That’s why he held onto and cherished his feelings, even if his heart was a moving sea rather than a mountain.

Finally, Ian stopped abruptly, spurred by MacRyan’s taunts. He turned and strode toward MacRyan, who was leaning casually.

“If you’re not interested in the Hunting Festival, don’t be a hindrance. I’m planning to win today.”

“And who are you planning to dedicate your glory to if you win?”

MacRyan looked directly into Ian’s eyes, his tone sharp.

Ian, who had won the previous year, had formally dedicated his victory to his fiancée, Celonia.

But it was just a formality; everyone knew that neither of them harbored genuine feelings for each other.

“Of course…”

“Of course what?”

“…”

Ian couldn’t answer MacRyan’s question.

Because he was planning to dedicate his glory to Celonia, of course.

It wasn’t that he didn’t love Grace. He simply wanted to present Celonia with the glory directly and witness the Grand Duke’s, the loser’s, reaction.

He needed to repay the humiliation he had suffered from Celonia and Tan at the celebration.

To think that she had rejected his offer to make her the Cherbil family’s mistress, to place Grace as a secondary wife and give her the position of the primary wife, and instead chose that bastard.

He intended to use this opportunity to show that dark-hearted bastard exactly who he was, ensuring he wouldn’t dare crawl before him again.

Because seeing Tan, defeated by him this time, writhing in inferiority was the only way to soothe his seething heart, even if just a little, more than seeing Grace’s bright smile.

“You’re not planning to dedicate your glory to Grace.”

MacRyan grabbed Ian’s collar, his eyes cold. He had seen through Ian’s true intentions.

“And you call yourself Grace’s fiancé?”

“Mind your own business and let go of me while I’m asking nicely.”

“I can’t stand to see the likes of you win.”

MacRyan glared at Ian as if he were about to strike him.

Ian scoffed, finding it ridiculous, and roughly pushed away MacRyan’s hand.

“Are you any different? You can’t take your eyes off Celonia when she’s with another guy.”

This time, Ian sneered at MacRyan.

He knew that MacRyan was as interested in Celonia and Tan as he was concerned about them. It was ridiculous how he pretended to only look at Grace.

“That’s…”

MacRyan started to retort but stopped himself. There was no need to explain himself to this arrogant fool.

“I’m going to win anyway. Don’t waste your energy and just go take a nap in a tree like before.”

“…”

“I’ll crush both of those lovebirds with my own hands.”

Ian warned, fixing his gaze on MacRyan, and swung his sword.

It happened in an instant. A snake that had leaped from the left, mouth agape to strike, lay on the ground, severed in two.

He had sensed its presence and struck it down without even looking.

“You…”

MacRyan, alternating between looking at the dead snake and Ian, trailed off in surprise.

The dark energy emanating from him was unusual. The previously blue aura of spirit had become turbid, as if veiled by a dark curtain.

What was it? He sensed something more sinister than the energy of a demon.

“Then.”

Ian, narrowing his snake-like, sly eyes, stared intently at MacRyan before moving on.

MacRyan stared blankly at Ian’s retreating figure as he disappeared into the bushes.

* * *

“Is this okay?”

“Huh! How dare you question His Imperial Majesty’s orders?”

“Ah, no! But shouldn’t the Hunting Festival be fair and just…?”

The junior knight stammered, dejected, at his superior’s harsh rebuke.

Deep within Mirnar Forest.

That place, with its dense, wild undergrowth due to the low mountains, was a secluded and secret zone that no one could easily find.

There, the Emperor’s Imperial Guard knights were waiting.

“Krrr…!”

The beast among them scratched its throat menacingly, causing the knights guarding the chains to flinch.

“A-are you sure it’s really safe?”

“Yeah, you idiot. If it weren’t, it would have broken free of its shackles already.”

The superior knight replied nonchalantly and plopped down on a makeshift chair.

What they were guarding was a Griffin [a mythical creature with the body of a lion and the head and wings of an eagle].

A magical beast with the body of a lion, the wings and face of an eagle, and a back covered in hard steel.

The Griffin was nearly 3 meters tall and as large as about 10 adult men combined.

Its size alone was threatening, so its four feet were shackled with chains to prevent it from moving, and just in case, its sharp beak was covered with a thick steel muzzle.

Its torso was also wrapped in chains to prevent it from flapping its wings.

This was a magical beast that His Imperial Majesty had specially ordered to be captured for today’s Hunting Festival.

And the only person who would have the honor of slaying this magical beast was one person.

Crown Prince Helius Flanagan.

The forest keeper, who knew the changed terrain very well, was guiding the Crown Prince this way, so the Griffin’s neck would soon be neatly severed.

“To think I’d see a magical beast with my own eyes.”

The junior knight muttered with a blissful expression as he watched the Griffin shake its head vigorously, trying to remove the muzzle.

“It shouldn’t be dangerous because of the shackles, but still, don’t get too close.”

“But did we really have to capture a magical beast? Wouldn’t it be enough to catch an animal?”

“You idiot. Between Duke Cherbil, the savior, and Grand Duke Hushbrook, who became famous for slaying a magical beast in one strike, an ordinary animal wouldn’t cut it.”

The superior knight had already figured everything out. Why the Emperor had ordered them to prepare a magical beast.

Since the Duke and Grand Duke had both faced magical beasts, they had to catch at least the same level of magical beast to save the winner’s face.

“Still… isn’t tying it up like this and then cutting it down like taking candy from a baby? You can’t call that real skill…!”

“Hey! Watch your mouth. Don’t say useless things and just guard the magical beast well.”

The superior knight silenced the junior knight, who kept objecting, and leaned back in his makeshift chair, supporting his head with his hands until the chair almost tipped over.

Why didn’t he understand that everything in a tournament hosted by the Imperial Family was controlled by the Imperial Family’s influence?

He clicked his tongue inwardly at the junior, wondering when His Highness the Crown Prince would arrive.

That’s when it happened.

“Krrr…!”

The Griffin, who had been shaking its head to remove the muzzle, suddenly stopped all actions.

Then, as if it had sensed something, it suddenly raised its head and began to look around. The terrifying eagle’s eyes gleamed and narrowed.

“S-Sir Thor…!”

The junior knight, who had noticed something was wrong, called out urgently to his superior behind him with a pale face.

“What is it?”

“The magical beast is acting strange…!”

“Strange how? It’s gotten quieter.”

Thor glanced indifferently at the Griffin’s behavior, which had become calmer than before, and replied casually.

He was getting tired of the junior who was making a fuss over nothing.

“That’s not it! Its behavior has suddenly changed from before!”

The junior, who had been watching the Griffin closely, was getting goosebumps.

The Griffin, which had been thrashing around to remove the muzzle and shackles just a moment ago, was suddenly holding its breath, like a beast crouching low to hunt its prey.

“It must be tired. Leave it alone.”

“I-I’m telling you it’s really strange…!”

“You little punk! Are my words not good enough for you?”

Thor, who had finally exploded because of the junior’s constant objections, jumped up from his seat.

“Huh? Uh, uh?”

“T-this guy, what’s wrong with him!”

The knights who had been watching the Griffin from all around shouted in panic.

Only then did Thor’s gaze turn to the Griffin.

“Wh-what?”

Thor was flustered.

The chains wrapped around the Griffin’s torso began to tremble.

Even the large Griffin’s wings, which had been completely restrained, were gradually lifting upwards.

“Reinforce the chains! Tighten them further!”

Thor shouted, realizing the situation, but it was already too late.

Thang!

The chains wrapped around the Griffin’s torso snapped from the force exerted on its wings.

Soon, the huge wings began to flap, accompanied by a strong gust of wind.

“Aaaaaaah!”

“Damn it! What is this!”

The knights began to panic as the dust kicked up by the flapping wings made it impossible to see.

Even as the Griffin, already airborne, rose higher, the chains attached to the shackles binding its feet stretched taut.

“Shackles! Check the chains connected to the shackles! They must not be broken!”

Thor shouted to the knights, but the chains could not withstand the pulling force and began to break one by one.

“Damn it! Everyone, grab your swords!”

Thor, drawing his sword, charged at the Griffin. It was better to deal with it here than to let it escape and cause widespread damage.

However, the Griffin, having already broken all the chains holding its four legs, immediately shattered the muzzle with the claws of its sharply curved front paws.

And it soared high into the sky, letting out a huge eagle’s cry that sounded like thunder falling from the sky.

“We can’t let it get away! We have to catch it!”

The knights thrashed on the ground, but it was no use. The Griffin was already in the sky.

The Griffin, with its narrowly narrowed eyes, looked down from the sky at the forest densely covered with trees and quickly flew towards one place.

* * *

Meanwhile, Celonia and Tan were heading into the forest.

The forest was so vast that they hadn’t even seen a single rabbit yet.

“I can’t help it. Hold on tight.”

Eventually, Tan wrapped his arms around Celonia’s waist in order to teleport above the trees to survey the area.

Of course, it was out of selfish desire to quickly finish the annoying Hunting Festival and be alone with Celonia in a cozy place.

That’s when it happened.

Tan, who was about to jump, stopped at the huge cry that echoed through the forest.

“Could this be…?”

Celonia and Tan, sensing something, looked up at the sky.

Soon, a huge shadow fell over their heads.