All I Wanted Was the Alimony - Chapter 31

There was a crocodile that looked like it could easily swallow a person whole.

The crocodile lunged at the hunting dog but changed its direction after being struck by Joad’s slingshot, and was taken down by Paello.

Paello’s weapon was a wooden stick, but that was no problem in dealing with the crocodile. The moment the Swordmaster’s unique aura enveloped the stick, the crocodile’s neck was sliced like tofu.

“Your Grace, that was truly impressive.”

Joad stuck a marking tag on the oversized crocodile, now separated into head and torso, and clicked his tongue.

“Just this alone should guarantee victory.”

Joad laughed as he fired a red flare into the sky. But just a few seconds later, green and blue flares rose from elsewhere.

Seeing that, Joad shrugged his shoulders. “Hmm, we’ll have to see.”

As the two continued moving with their hunting dog leading the way, they encountered a large-antlered deer.

The deer, aggressive by nature, charged the moment it saw the dog, was hit by Joad’s slingshot, changed direction, and—predictably—had its neck severed by Paello.

A second marker was placed, and another flare was fired.

They captured a vicious bison in the same way, then a gigantic scorpion. Even a giant venomous boa was taken down. By the time they fired the fifth flare, victory wasn’t certain, but the hunting results were good. The process had been smooth.

Until Paello’s hunting dog entered a cave.

“Your Grace. This is a bear den.”

Examining the footprints on the ground, Joad picked up a tuft of gray bear fur.

“There are signs of a cub, so the mother must be nearby.”

Then he grimaced.

“This fur looks like it’s from a feline predator… There’s more of it here.”

Paello examined the fur and nodded. “It’s a jaguar.”

“Yes, I thought so too. Looks like it entered the bear den… huh?”

Joad picked up something in surprise—a switch.

“Isn’t this the weapon the Grand Duchess was carrying?”

There was no room for doubt. Lucienne was the only one who had received a switch as a weapon during today’s roulette draw.

“There are human footprints, too.”

Measuring the footprint length, Joad’s expression turned grim.

“They’re the same size as Her Grace’s. Looks like she went hunting… Will she be alright?”

“……”

Lucienne was strong. She’d broken Enpadu’s club barehanded, and he was a Swordmaster.

So even if she went hunting, she’d likely be safe.

But looking at her weapon, abandoned and far from its owner, Paello and Joad felt uneasy.

‘Is my wife really unharmed?’

To that question, Paello couldn’t answer with certainty. Even if one were a demon or a Swordmaster, they weren’t invincible.

Besides, there were dangerous beasts in this area.

Even the predator they had just killed would typically need to be hunted in groups or avoided. Only Paello had been able to subdue it.

Which meant Lucienne could be somewhere, injured, waiting for Paello to rescue her.

The thought made Paello’s heart plummet. Cold sweat dripped down his back.

At the same time, he realized something.

Even if there was no love between them and they remained distant, they were still husband and wife, still family.

It was the duty of the head of the household to protect his family. Paello gripped both the stick and the switch in one hand.

“Let’s hurry. My wife may be in danger.”

“Yes!”

Paello held the switch to the hunting dog’s nose.

“Track her.”

“Woof!”

As if responding to the command, the hunting dog pressed its nose to the ground and began to move, then broke into a run. Paello and Joad followed.

“Aaaah! Somebody help!”

On their way, they saw three noblemen being chased by a bison with arrows stuck in its back. It was a fair distance away, but clearly dangerous.

Paello swung his wooden stick and sent out a blade of energy.

The bison was split cleanly in two. Watching it, Joad called out while running.

“Your Grace! Should I leave a marker? The prize for winning is the Hero’s Divine Sword, right?”

“Forget it. That’s not important right now. Confirming my wife’s safety is the top priority.”

“Yes!”

It could have secured their win, but…

Joad felt regret, but he had no choice and followed Paello.

The hunting dog ran for a long while.

As it did, Paello gradually began to relax.

The direction the dog was heading grew closer to the tournament grounds. Perhaps Lucienne had just dropped the switch by accident and returned safely.

But that relief didn’t last long.

“Kyaaah!”

“Run!”

Women’s screams echoed. Something had definitely happened at the tournament grounds.

Paello and Joad widened their eyes.

People were fleeing in panic, and knights were rushing in with weapons drawn.

Under a fairly large canopy stood a massive gray bear on its hind legs.

Nearby, three women were either paralyzed with fear or had fainted.

Standing just five meters away, facing off against the bear, was Lucienne.

But what truly stunned Paello was the sight around her—three bear cubs and a jaguar with a rabbit slung over its back were prowling close by.

The moment he saw Lucienne surrounded by beasts, Paello panicked.

“Madam!”

***

Returning to headquarters, the scene was utter chaos.

A massive gray bear, just as in the original story, had appeared and trampled the canopy. The noblewomen screamed and started fleeing.

One of them collapsed when her legs gave out, and two fainted.

The gray bear could have easily bitten or trampled them.

Fortunately, the bear was more interested in a chocolate cake and a pie filled with honey.

Lucienne strode up to the gray bear. The closer she got, the more shrill screams rang out from various places.

No wonder—a jaguar was following behind her.

Lucienne lowered the bear cubs she had tucked under both arms.

“Stay still.”

She also lowered the cub that had been riding on the jaguar’s back and said to the gray bear, “Are these your kids?”

As Lucienne spoke, the gray bear, who had been devouring pie, turned its head. Spotting the cubs, the bear scrunched its nose.

“Grrwoar.”

The bear stood up on two legs like a human. Its size looked four to five times that of Lucienne.

People around them shrieked, but Lucienne wasn’t scared.

Just like the other beasts she’d encountered had quieted down, she expected the gray bear to do the same.

Their eyes met. As expected, the bear flinched.

Then—

“Madam!”

A familiar voice rang out from behind.

Paello was running over. The wooden stick in his hand was radiating an ominous energy.

The jaguar, seeing Paello, bristled its fur and tail straightened. It seemed startled by Paello’s energy.

‘Anything hit by that is getting split in half.’

Realizing that, Lucienne’s spine tingled. She quickly spread her arms and stood in front of the jaguar.

“W-wait! Calm down! Your Grace!”

“I will take care of it.”

“It’s fine! I brought this leopard and the bear cubs myself!”

At Lucienne’s urgent tone, Paello halted.

“…What?”

Lucienne quickly patted the jaguar’s head. “I caught them while out hunting. They’re all tame.”

“……”

Paello slowly glanced over the jaguar and the cubs. They didn’t look tame, but what Lucienne said seemed to be true.

The beasts crouched low every time Lucienne looked at them, showing no signs of danger.

Paello asked, “Then what about that gray bear over there?”

“It attacked this place.”

Lucienne answered and turned to look at the bear. Perhaps it really was the mother, as the cubs were now clinging to her, wailing loudly.

“I think she’s the mother of the cubs I brought.”

Then—

“It’s dangerous!”

Someone came running, sword drawn—it was Emilion.

Sensing hostility, the gray bear swiftly pushed its cubs aside. Then it stood tall and let out a mighty roar, ready to fight Emilion.

“Stand back!”

Emilion leaped at the bear. The Hero’s Divine Sword in his hand radiated a powerful aura.

At this rate, the bear would die just like in the original story. The cubs would lose their mother.

Lucienne realized this instinctively and suddenly stepped between the bear and Emilion.

Emilion had to stop his attack.

“No! Don’t hurt my bear!”

“Waaah!”

Emilion was genuinely shocked by Lucienne’s interference. But he had already leapt forward to strike down the bear, so stopping mid-motion wasn’t easy.

‘Damn it!’

Emilion felt a wave of dismay.

He had heard the story too, that the Grand Duchess had once lifted a table with one hand and intimidated the owner of Colt’s Boutique.

Even if she was a half-demon, she was still stronger than the average human. But this was recklessly dangerous.

The sword in his hand wasn’t just any sword. It was the Hero’s Divine Sword, imbued with an aura said to cut even the Demon King.

To minimize damage, the sword’s energy had to go skyward.

But in just a fleeting moment, it was already too late for Emilion to redirect his swing or let go of the sword.

The blade’s trajectory was heading straight for the Grand Duchess.