Chapter 34

After the banquet, it was time for hunting.

Mary changed into a riding outfit with trousers, like a man's, and put on a small, flat-topped hat with feathers. Then she packed her guns and ammunition, intending to hunt a few foxes to make a cloak.

She was an excellent marksman and also very skilled at horseback riding. In France, she often went hunting in the countryside and could ride a horse all day without feeling tired, unlike the physically weak François.

After changing into this outfit, Mary straddled the horse like a man, spreading her legs, and walked to the center of the hunting party.

The Spanish Crown Prince frowned upon seeing the outfit.

“Your Majesty…” Carlos began, his expression not very pleasant, “…I shouldn’t be criticizing your attire, but out of a friend’s sense of justice, I must say that your outfit is extremely rude. You’re wearing trousers like a man and riding a horse with your legs spread apart.”

Throughout Europe, aristocratic women were expected to gracefully bring their legs together and place them on one side of the horse when riding, making themselves appear elegant and charming. If they wore men's clothing and imitated men riding horses in this manner, it would be considered extremely indecent.

While this posture is elegant, it is extremely dangerous. If one were to gallop wildly through the dense forest, there is always a risk of falling off the horse and breaking one's leg.

"Why change? Don't let outdated rules restrict our behavior. Your Majesty, your attire combines feminine charm with masculine vigor, it's like sunshine illuminating the forest," Alfonso II immediately retorted.

Mary said to the Spanish Crown Prince, "Thank you for your kindness, but I once fell off my horse while hunting in France, and I can no longer accept riding sideways like before."

A large group of men, accompanied by hunting dogs and carrying muskets, rushed into the deserted forest, chasing after foxes, wild boars, and rabbits. Guards stayed close to the most distinguished figures in the center to ensure they would not be harmed by any suddenly appearing beasts.

At first, Mary and a few others rode together, but they soon dispersed as the prey escaped and the Spanish crown prince became exhausted.

Mary successfully spotted a red fox and began chasing after it, trying to hit it.

This fox was incredibly cunning and agile, darting about among the bushes and nearly shaking off the group several times before reappearing the next second, as if it were toying with them.

Unfortunately, each time a musket in that era was fired, it required the troublesome process of relighting the match and reloading the ammunition, which took several minutes. The accuracy was also far from sufficient. No matter how accurately Mary aimed, once the prey was more than ten meters away, it was all down to luck.

Just as Mary finally hit the red fox, the horse that [name omitted] was riding suddenly stepped into a trap. The horse neighed in pain and began to struggle desperately, running around wildly, trying to shake off the iron trap it had accidentally stepped on!

"Quiet! Ida! Be quiet!"

Mary gripped the reins tightly, but it was no use. Several times she tried to be thrown off, so she tried to hug the horse's neck and call its name. Unexpectedly, this only aroused the horse more, causing it to suddenly shake and throw the human off its back!

In an instant, the world spun around her. Mary helplessly closed her eyes, waiting for the excruciating pain of being thrown to the ground, hoping that she would be lucky and not be trampled by the horse. All she got was a muffled groan of pain and the splash of cold stream water on her body.

It's Albert.

He rushed over at the last second, grabbed the queen, and rolled away from the raging horse, causing both of them to fall into the creek.

Being trampled by a horse and breaking a bone is considered lucky; if it were to cause internal bleeding, it would be the end of her. Mary was stunned for a moment because she didn't expect Albert to rush up at her recklessly.

The stream wasn't deep; if you stood up, it would only submerge the insteps of two people. However, the pebbles at the bottom of the stream were wet, slippery, and covered with moss. Mary climbed off Albert and struggled to stand up several times before pulling the blond youth up with her.

Listening to Albert's breathing, sometimes light and sometimes heavy, as he groaned from the pain, Mary said sincerely, "Thank you, Albert. When we get back, whatever you want, I'll give it to you."

“Compared to money or titles, your heartfelt thanks just now are enough for me,” Albert said gently.

“It is precisely because you are sincere that I cannot simply send you away with a thank you; that would not be in line with my principles,” Mary said with a smile.

After she finished speaking, Mary tried to walk back to the shore, but Albert suddenly grabbed her hand.

"Your Majesty, are you really going to marry one of these three suitors?" Albert asked hesitantly.

“If Elizabeth were a man, or if Queen Mother Catherine hadn’t objected to my marriage to Charles IX, I wouldn’t have considered any of the three of them. But since neither of those things happened, it’s one of the three of them…” Mary’s eyes turned cold at this point, but she still said jokingly, “...Or are you like David Richie, choosing which suitor you want to support?”

These days, David Leejo has been praising Lord Darnley openly and secretly in her ear for the sake of his secret pope master.

Because Lord Darnley was a Catholic, Mary would not have to leave the country after marrying him and could continue to stay in the British Isles to fight against Elizabeth's Protestantism.

Standing in the stream, Albert's eyebrows were straight and his gaze sharp, like a snow-capped mountain peak. He said emotionlessly, "I will not support either of them. Don Carlos is arrogant and tyrannical, Lord Darnley is just an immature child, and as for Duke Ferrara... he has countless mistresses in private. Because of his indulgence since he was twelve or thirteen, he has been impotent in a certain area for a long time."

“Carlos has Spain behind him, Lord Darnley has blood and a stable right of succession, and even the Duke of Ferrara has a duchy and a great deal of wealth. That’s enough for me,” Mary said.

“This is someone who swears to live his whole life before God, Your Majesty. Don’t you consider love?” Albert asked.

“For the Queen, love is a luxury…” Mary’s expression faltered for a moment, she shook her head, and quickly regained her composure, saying, “…love would ruin me.”

When she said this, the Queen of Scots spoke with the certainty of a truth.

Albert hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but then stopped.

“...No, that’s not it. Love is the nail that nailed Christ to the cross. I would bleed and weep a million times for this wound, and I would be in heaven for this redemption,” Albert said.

...

The icy stream water soaked most of their clothes, forcing them to abandon their hunt halfway through. Even though it was still summer, Mary was unwilling to risk catching a cold and continue riding through the woods.

Several servants handed Mary towels and handkerchiefs, helping her to wipe the water droplets off her body. Then she returned to the camp, changed into a light gray-purple riding outfit and a double-stranded pearl necklace, and had a servant skin and process the only prey to make a coat with a fur collar.

Just then, the other people returned.

Alfonso II and his entourage had a bountiful harvest, even managing to kill an entire young wild boar, which was then laboriously pushed back on a cart. It is said that the Duke of Ferrara dealt with this behemoth with just one shot.

As for the Spanish Crown Prince, he was in poor health and only fired a few shots before stopping hunting. Instead, he instructed his servants to search for more game. In just one afternoon, several carts were filled with various game such as foxes, grouse, and wild deer, but none of them had the huge haul of wild boar.

Carlos had someone help him down from his horse, and walked over smugly, gesturing to Mary as he said, "This afternoon we caught more than a dozen wild rabbits, each with fur as white as snow. Have the tailor make a cloak and a matching hat, and then add amber buttons. You'll look very handsome wearing it in winter."

Mary smiled and nodded, accepting the Spanish Crown Prince's kindness, and then said, "It seems that you, like me, value the beauty of the fur of your prey more than the quality of the meat. We must have a lot to talk about in this regard."

“Of course, I often went hunting in the countryside when I was in Madrid. Few people can match my marksmanship. By the way, Your Majesty, what did you catch this afternoon?” Carlos asked, reaching out to take Mary’s arm.

“I had bad luck today. I only managed to shoot one fox before I accidentally fell into the stream and had to return to camp early,” Mary said with a smile, without resisting Crown Prince Carlos’s arm.

The Queen of Scots and the Crown Prince of Spain chatted back and forth as they walked side by side into the camp. By the campfire, while waiting for the cook to slice the game they had hunted, spread sauce on it, and grill it, they talked about Spanish customs and strange tales of Europe, practically making the Duke of Ferrara and Lord Darnley seem like mere background figures.

Seeing the two distinguished figures so harmonious and intimate, even before the hunt was over, people began to spread the word that the Queen of Scots favored the Spanish Crown Prince and that her future husband would undoubtedly be Don Carlos.

The events of the next few days further confirmed people's thoughts.

Before the arrival of the Spanish Crown Prince, Lord Darnley, who had been a close associate of the Queen, quickly fell out of favor and could no longer be near Mary Queen of Scots. No matter how hard he tried to win over various figures in Scotland as before, he could not regain his position at Holyrood Palace.

This rising social star, who had been shining brightly in Scottish aristocratic circles just two months prior, suddenly lost his luster and became just another ordinary face among the crowd.

Moreover, to welcome the arrival of the Spanish Crown Prince, after the banquet and hunting, the Queen of Scots also ordered a masquerade ball and water games, inviting all the Scottish nobles to participate and taking on the role of introducers.

According to Queen Mary, she hoped that her new friend, the Crown Prince of Spain, would learn more about Scottish customs and get to know more people.

Those who were paying attention had already guessed what the Queen of Scots wanted to do.

Her Majesty Mary probably hoped that the future king would get to know his subjects and that the Spanish crown prince would develop a stronger connection with Scotland.