Chapter 1518: Horse Racing and Handkerchiefs

The morning races proceeded quite smoothly, with the only interruption occurring just before the riders were set to depart, when Mr. Enhor Serich, the second son of Duke Serich—who looked younger than the foreigners—sought out Xia De alone:

"Reged's Hamilton, I will use this race to prove that I am more suitable for Princess Lei Lei Qianya than you!"

After the young man finished speaking, he buckled his helmet and left.

"Who is he?"

Xia De asked the blonde Miss beside him in surprise; naturally, at this moment, that soul was Princess Lei Lei Qianya, who wished to give Xia De her blessing before his departure:

"A self-indulgent suitor; I also have many suitors in the city."

Princess Lei Lei Qianya said, then rose on her tiptoes to kiss the side of Xia De's face:

"But those are all foolish boys; in my heart, no one compares to you."

Xia De nodded in agreement, then turned his head to look at the young Mr. Serich's back. He was not so petty that he would wish to kill someone over this; he was simply thinking that he must win at all costs.

The horn sounded, and the knights spurred their horses to depart from the Edward III Arena. Bards holding telescopes, using massive steam-powered amplification equipment, continuously reported information on the leading riders to the enthusiastic crowd.

Although the spectators could not see the competitors galloping along the country paths, the atmosphere on-site was even more lively than yesterday's archery competition.

As for Xia De, he had fully mastered the riding skills that foreigners in his original world could never have imagined during the winter. Compared to the creek-side forests of the Randell Valley, which had no roads at all, riding in the Tobesk countryside was simply too easy. From the start, he maintained a position at the front, and the horse chosen for him by Miss Jia Lin Na indeed performed exceptionally well.

Finally, when Xia De appeared first on the track outside the Edward III Arena and surged into the arena with a lead of at least ten horse lengths over the second-place rider, crossing the finish line, the cheers throughout the entire arena spread in all directions like a steam bomb exploding.

He was not only skilled in horsemanship, but the unique scent of the mother dragon that had not yet fully faded from his body made his mount extremely obedient and caused the mounts of other competitors to instinctively slow down once he approached. Of course, Xia De would not mention this point.

The cheers and applause seemed to never cease; after Xia De, the bards continued to loudly announce the names and origins of the riders arriving at the finish line. As the first-place winner of this horse race, Xia De had the honor of ascending to the spectator stands after everyone returned to the arena, where he was received by Queen Wang Hou, who had come to watch the race. Princess Lei Lei Qianya was still in the city today, but Ajelina, who had accompanied her mother, was quite excited.

By half past eleven in the morning, Xia De could finally leave the arena. Amidst the loud praises of the people, he met up with a smiling Dorothy, and the little princess had even sent someone to deliver her own handkerchief.

"Her personal handkerchief."

Dorothy naturally recognized what that handkerchief was at a glance, but she did not put it away; instead, she personally placed it into Xia De's pocket.

Xia De had thought this was the end, but unexpectedly, during the following lunch, servants who came frequently delivered more than a dozen handkerchiefs to him, some even bearing red kiss marks and addresses.

Miss Miss Difa and Dorothy did not feel it was strange; instead, they felt Xia De's reaction was quite peculiar:

"It is like this every year; this only marks the entry into the climax stage of the City-Wide Equestrian Tournament; yesterday could only be considered a warm-up."

The blonde Miss, who was accustomed to this, said.

"I don't quite understand; why didn't this happen yesterday?"

Xia De frowned, unsure how to handle the handkerchiefs, while Miss Miss Difa explained beside him:

"Compared to the shooting sports, which require more skill, people view equestrianism as the most direct representation of chivalry and knightly conduct. I think it is not just now receiving handkerchiefs; in the coming week, many people will surely send love letters, handkerchiefs, and various other letters to No. 6 Saint Dlan Square."

After all, Xia De had directly published his information in the newspaper advertisements.

"After the knightly duels tomorrow and the day after, what you receive will not be just handkerchiefs; all sorts of strange things are possible... I mean garters."

The blonde Miss said with a smile, using a notebook to record today's events as material for her writing. Although the competition was temporarily calm, she was planning to use this tournament as a template to conceive a clever murder case. Of course, Dorothy did not forget to give her own handkerchief to Xia De after lunch as a reward for his victory:

"Keep winning, Knight; you will receive even more."

After a three-hour rest, the afternoon events officially began. The afternoon competition was a horse race within the arena, requiring riders to complete a sufficient number of laps within a set time and, during this period, to grab silk scarves placed along a fixed route. After the time elapsed, points were calculated based on the distance covered and the number of silk scarves obtained.

Because the area within the arena was limited, the 36 participants were divided into four groups, and this time Xia De was assigned to the last group.

By the time he finished his race, it was around five in the evening. Xia De, who had achieved quite good results, once again encountered crowds gathering and cheering at the arena entrance; upon returning to the tent, a reporter from the Steam Bird Daily, who had come through Dorothy's connections, conducted a verbal interview with Xia De.

This was even more mentally taxing than the horse race.

That night, Xia De still had no extra activities scheduled; like yesterday, he returned to Jia Lin Na Manor for dinner, and then returned to the city with Dorothy.

However, Dorothy did not stay overnight at No. 6 Saint Dlan Square tonight; she had an elective class at the academy tomorrow morning, so she had to return tonight to prepare in advance and would not be able to meet up with Xia De at the arena until the afternoon tomorrow.

But Xia De was not resting alone that night either. Around nine o'clock, while Xia De was flipping through the Malbas Demon Book in the study, he suddenly felt the badge on his chest emit astonishing heat. Subsequently, the door downstairs was unlocked with a key, and the witch stormed up the stairs. Looking left and right in the living room, she found the house eerily quiet; only Xia De stood at the study door holding his book in surprise, and the bedroom door was open with only Xiao Leaving Xiao Leaving Xiao Miya peeking out, so she understood that there were no other "guests" here tonight.

"Good evening, Jia Lin Na; how did you come?"

Xia De greeted her, and the witch waved her hand to signal the maids behind her to rest on the first floor:

"You are unwilling to stay overnight at my place, but does that mean you do not allow me to spend the night here? Lu Yi Sha and Annette can do it, so can I."

It seemed she still remembered the "surprise" she had seen when she arrived this morning.

As she spoke, the witch raised her hand to remove the hairpin binding that beautiful long red hair and casually tossed it onto the coffee table. Her red hair fanned out behind her, and the witch stepped toward Xia De:

"Knight, you surely won't tell me that you are too tired today and want to rest alone, will you?"

Her golden eyes fixed on Xia De, causing Xia De to pause in surprise:

"Tired? Today was just riding; compared to those adventures and explorations I undertook in other cities, today was practically like resting all day."

"Very well, I will see if you have exaggerated yourself. I don't believe that after this, you will still be able to fall ill."

She very rudely grabbed Xia De's collar and then kissed Xia De.

(Yi Lu Na is praying...)

"So, do you also know that Xia De is participating in a full day of competitions today?"

Early Wednesday morning, by the dining table at No. 6 Saint Dlan Square, Xia De felt he heard a very familiar sentence; someone had said this sentence yesterday morning as well.

Only now, the one saying this sentence was Princess Lei Lei Qianya, who had managed to find time to see Xia De, and the one being questioned was Miss Jia Lin Na, who had uttered a similar sentence yesterday morning.

"Lei Lei Qianya, don't worry; I have personally verified it. Competitions like the City-Wide Equestrian Tournament are not even a warm-up for Xia De; he still has plenty of stamina... really plenty."

While speaking, the witch also used a silver table knife to spread jam onto a slice of bread, which made Princess Lei Lei Qianya look even more irritated.

Fortunately, Princess Lei Lei Qianya knew how to suppress her anger; she looked at Xia De again, and the fury in her eyes made Xia De jump:

"I..."

"No, I should not be angry with you."

Princess Lei Lei Qianya closed her eyes to adjust her emotions; if her dissatisfaction with her great-aunt was like someone randomly knocking on a door to harass, then her dissatisfaction with Xia De was like Xia De being woken up early in the morning by Xiao Leaving Xiao Leaving Xiao Miya.

"According to the current competition point rankings, you are in first place. I hope you will be careful today; although today's duel involves armor and wooden swords, no one can guarantee whether someone will resort to tricks. Every few years, fools always appear using supernatural powers right under the Church's nose."

"Rest assured, I will secure victory for you."

Princess Lei Lei Qianya revealed a gentle smile:

"You always say what is in my heart. Also, have you heard? Count Lewis of Carsonlick has encountered trouble."

"Wasn't he the one who, on Monday, outside the Edward III Arena, was accidentally shot by an arrow from inside the arena, and then struck in a vital spot by an assassin?"

Xia De said, holding a slice of bread. Miss Jia Lin Na was spreading grape jam, while Xia De had chosen apple jam. Come to think of it, being able to eat fresh jam in this early-spring season was quite a luxury.

"Yes, the assassin..."

Princess Lei Lei Qianya glanced at Xia De with a smile, then shook her head:

"But that's not what I'm talking about. After the Earl was injured at the arena, his deputy took over and busied himself in the city handling the negotiations. The Earl didn't wake up until last night. And then, while he was resting in the middle of the night, the bed he was sleeping on actually collapsed. I heard this morning that his left leg was broken in the fall."