Agron would not pass up Sophie's invitation, and the next morning he got up early, shook himself up, and followed the princess's attendants to the fountain.

"Good morning agron! Princess Sophie, who was ready to go, greeted him with a big smile. "Ready?"

She was dressed in hunting clothes instead of her usual long dress. Tight clothes and breeches accentuated her figure, and her long gray hair was swept back, giving her a dashing look.

"I'm ready." "Replied Agron.

"Well, let's go before it's too hot!" Her Royal Highness waved her hand excitedly.

It was a beautiful, sunny day today, perfect for an outing, but it was early summer, and the temperature would be too high for strenuous exercise by noon, so it was best to hunt in the morning.

So the two men said nothing, and walked together into the middle of the garden, where the attendants brought the horses, and they rode west through the zoo and botanical Gardens of Schonbrunn Palace, and into the vast forests on the outskirts of Vienna.

The two rode side by side, with her Royal highness's retinas behind them, and agron was happy to breathe the fresh, cool air in the shade of the trees, where the bright sunlight was becoming more and more dull.

"Agron." In the silence, Princess Sophie whispered. "You last night... Is he speaking from the heart before us?"

Agron's heart tightened.

He wondered if Sophie was speaking for herself or for someone else.

"I was looking into your eyes the whole time you were talking." Before he could answer, Sophie went on. "Honestly, your words are so full of emotion that I should have believed them -- but when I looked into your eyes, I felt a fire burning inside you... Agron, you don't mean what you say, do you? We have known each other for some time, and though you hide your feelings deliberately, I do not know why, but I feel that you do not mean what you say, and that those words are lies, Agron, have I wronged you?"

Agron remained silent and did not answer.

"Don't worry, it was just between us and I would never say anything to another person, not even Carl." Sophie turned her head and smiled at the boy. "I just wanted to make sure I was wrong about you, not interrogating you. You don't have to answer if you don't like."

There was no point in his continuing to explain, since this point had already been reached, and it would only cloud the trust between the two. As for silence, there is no point, it would appear that they are afraid.

"Yes, I was lying." So he made a clean admission. "I have no intention of becoming a writer or a traveler. It's all just talk."

"Well, it seems you've been honest with me after all, and my kindness has paid off." Princess Sophie smiled and asked. "In that case, why reject his Royal Highness's offer? I'm sure it's bad, but it helps you objectively."

"I knew that if I obeyed my fate..." Such statements are, of course, impossible to answer.

Agron looked down at his horse's quivering mane. "I'm not really against joining the army after a while, but I... I can't bear to accompany you now, if I go now, I will certainly lose a lot of chances to see you later, so I would rather wait for some time."

"Young enough to learn the coaxing language of a Bohemian!"

Princess Sophie glared at him.

Then he raised his hand and took the whip as if he were going to give it to him.

Agron did not duck, but looked calmly at Sophie.

Sophie's whip didn't really go down, either. Her hand dropped again and she looked ahead.

"You are so short of friends that perhaps you value our friendship too much."

"Not many people want to be my friends." Agron whispered back. 'I don't know who to value but you, because I have none.'

Sophie was visibly depressed by this answer.

"What a trick of God! Why should you have to suffer like this?" Finally she let out a deep sigh. "Agron, don't lose heart. Everything will be all right. As long as I am here, no one can insult you."

"You see, it's hard to be so careless with your kindness to people like me, and yet not to let me cherish this precious time..." Agron looked at him with hurt eyes. "If you want me to change my mind, you'd better stop treating me like a sister, just like everyone else."

"Ha ha......" Sophie couldn't help laughing. "I didn't realize you were so eloquent. Well, let's stop talking about unpleasant things and concentrate on the hunt!"

Then she picked up her shotgun and pointed it at the quail flying in the woods.

"Bang!"

With a loud noise, smoke filled the air between them, but unfortunately the princess was not a good shot, missed.

The sound of gunfire woke the woods, and all kinds of birds in the woods jumped up.

Aigron raised his rifle, too, and aimed at the startled birds in the distance.

The line of sight was not good because of the dense wood and the dim light, and he did the best he could.

'I've got it! Sophie let out a cheer, as if she had hit the mark herself.

As she spoke, she steered her horse in the direction of the fallen prey, with Aiglon, of course, following her and reloading her shotgun.

"You're a good shot, Agron." Looking at the dead quail under the horse's hoofs, Sophie looked at the boy approvingly.

"It's just luck now and then." Agron pretended to be modest.

"Look at you! Sophie was defiant again. She picked up the shotgun and reloaded it. "Look at me!"

She raised the gun again on horseback, aimed it at prey, slowed her breath, and pulled the trigger, all at once.

"Bang!"

With a loud bang, this time an unfortunate turtledove fluttered to the ground.

'I've got it! Sophie gave herself a cheer this time and rode off to admire her success, while Aigron raised his gun and fired a shot in front, but the trees prevented him from bringing down his prey.

"I beat you this time." Sophie exulted.

So the two rode through the woods, shooting guns now and then, competing to see who could catch the most game, and the hours passed in the leisurely and warm atmosphere.

"Agron, it seems you are better than me after all." After a while, Sophie counted the two of them and said regretfully.

"It's just my luck." Agron humbly replied.

The two men were walking down a ramp as they talked. Since the horse was not his usual mount, he was not very steady on the downhill, and the ride was a bit bumpy, so he steered it carefully while talking to Sophie.

"Agron, will you promise me one thing?" Sophie said suddenly.

"Go ahead." Agron replied quickly.

"No matter how much success you achieve later, you need to be rational and not spread your hatred on everyone. The Austrians are on their guard against you, but they have their own reasons, and most of them don't think ill of you..."

"Nobody knows what the future holds, but I certainly won't let hatred blind me." "If you ask me to do so, I promise you, I will."

Sophie looked him in the eye the whole time he answered, and when he finished, she nodded happily.

"Great, I believe you... Agron, that's what I want to see in you..."

She did not expect, just when she was happy, the sudden accident and disaster came here.

The hoof of her horse slammed against a stake hidden in the grass, and the sprained horse gave a groan, then dropped on its upper body and lifted its lower body abruptly.

"Ah!" Sophie screamed as she was swept upward.

Oh my god!

Agron felt his blood freeze.

Neither he nor the original soul inside him could imagine what would happen next.

He reached out his hand, seized Sophie's body hard, and yanked.

It's a knee-jerk reaction. He's making a decision for himself in this moment.

Luckily, he caught Sophie and pulled her off her mount, avoiding being thrown off her, but as he did so, his violent movements threw his own horse out of his control.

He fell off the horse's right side, landing right shoulder first and lying on his side, his forehead touching the ground.

Sophie was in his arms, falling to the ground with him.

"Agron!

Sophie, already stunned, let out a sudden shriek and knelt defiantly on the soft earth, holding his head. "Are you all right?

Looking at the boy's forehead and face with scratches, and a small amount of blood, mouth twitching slightly, her tears flooded her eyes, and then overflowing.

"Agron, are you all right? !" "She cried.

"I'm all right, Sir." Agron smiled as he looked at Sophie, but the foam from the corners of his mouth made the answer unconvincing.

"I'm sorry... I'm sorry..."

Sofie cried and apologized. Then she looked up and looked behind her with shame and anger that could have set the forest on fire.

"Help!