“Well done, your highness,” Galen said quietly, moving up beside him. “That was an excellent throw.”
Relam shrugged, pulling the throwing spear free with a wet squelch. “It was all right,” he said modestly. “He made it easier by moving forward at the last moment like that.”
Wil snorted. “Don’t let our praise go to your head, sir,” he said, grinning.
Relam smiled in reply, then looked up at the sky. There were three hours left in the hunt, plenty of time to get back to Etares with the buck.
“Either of you keep track of which direction the road is?” he asked, looking around the silent forest.
“We’re slightly to the north of it,” Galen replied immediately, pointing off to the left. “If we go that way, we should reach it in just a few minutes.”
“Good,” Relam muttered, tying the deer’s legs together. “And how do we get this home?”
Galen frowned. “That could be difficult,” he admitted.
“How about a sledge?” Wil suggested. “We can hook it up to the horses and they can drag it back for us.”
“What do we use for a sledge?”
“Oh, I don’t know,” Wil said, rummaging in his saddlebags. “Maybe this square of canvas and this bundle of ropes I brought along for just that purpose?”
Relam rolled his eyes at him and took the offered canvas and rope. “It’s a shame to drag such a noble beast,” he remarked. “But it’s the only way we’ll get it back in time.”
“Unless you fancy carrying it,” Wil agreed, dismounting to help.
“Which I don’t,” Relam muttered.
“Can’t blame you,” Wil agreed as he stooped to help shift the carcass onto the canvas square. “This one weighs a ton. You busy, Galen, or can you help a fellow out?”
Galen shook his head, scanning the surrounding forest attentively. “I’m on guard duty,” he replied, frowning. “Someone needs to keep an eye out. No sense bagging a deer and then getting bagged ourselves while we’re admiring it.”
Wil shifted the carcass a few more centimeters with a colossal heave. “Haven’t seen anyone all day,” he observed, grunting. “Nor any sign of anyone.”
“That doesn’t mean anything,” Galen murmured, still scanning the trees.
“Leave him be, Wil,” Relam added, threading the ropes through eye holes around the edge of the canvas. “He’s just trying to keep us safe.”
Wil shrugged. “If you say so, sir.” He shifted the deer another few centimeters, centering it on the improvised sledge, and nodded, satisfied. “That should do it. If you pass me a few ropes, I can start hitching the horses up.”
Relam obligingly tossed Wil the free ends of three ropes, then busied himself continuing to hitch up the canvas. Wil went to the horses and looped the ropes securely around the pommels of the saddles, chewing his lip as he thought about the best way to handle the problem.
“We’ll have to hold the ropes out a bit to keep them from dragging over the horses’ flanks,” he muttered.
“No problem,” Relam assured him. “The horses will be doing most of the pulling after all.” The prince stood back to admire his handiwork, tugging on a few of the lines to check them. “Not bad,” he muttered. Then, he turned decisively and climbed back into the saddle, holding the rope out to one side as Wil had recommended. “Let’s get back to Etares and see what my father found to bring back.”
“Probably a boar,” Wil mused. “If he could find one.”
“Going after boar with a throwing spear?” Galen asked, raising an eyebrow.
“He’s the king, he has to be impressive,” Wil countered, shrugging.
“That’s more than impressive, that’s risky and dangerous,” Relam muttered, hoping that his father had not gone after a boar. Not only would it mean that Relam would lose, but it would also place his father in grave danger of being gored severely.
The small band of hunters set out for the road, dragging the deer behind them. The canvas sledge scraped the frozen forest floor, a dead, dragging weight behind the horses. The valiant steeds lowered their heads and drove their legs against the ground, turning the snow, their breath steaming in the air, their riders urging them on with words of encouragement. They made slow progress, but it had only been fifteen minutes when they emerged from the trees and onto the road.
Relam let the rope go slack for a moment and dismounted, checking the deer. It had survived so far, despite the rough treatment, and the ropes appeared to be holding up fairly well. Relam glanced up at the sky, noting that there were two hours remaining before they were due back. The ride back to Etares would be only an hour or so under normal conditions, but Relam wasn’t sure how the weight of the deer would affect that.
“We need to keep moving,” he announced.
“It shouldn’t matter if we’re a couple minutes late,” Wil assured him.
Relam nodded. “It shouldn’t, but I don’t want to be disqualified on a technicality.”
Wil shrugged. “You’re the boss,” he said agreeably. “Lead on, and we’ll follow.”
As Relam made to mount up again, he heard hoof beats approaching from the north. He frowned, listening, trying to guess at how many riders there were.
“Upwards of twenty,” Galen murmured. “Eckle’s patrol maybe?”
“Most likely,” Relam agreed.
Then, the first riders rounded the bend and their suspicions were confirmed. Relam let out a sigh of relief and stepped forward to meet them.
The cavalry ground to a halt, horses milling and stamping, men calling to one another. Eckle surged to the fore and looked down at Relam, frowning.
“I take it this is your kill, your highness?”
“It is,” Relam agreed.
“Need a hand getting it back to Etares?”
Relam shrugged. “If you have something better than a sledge, then by all means, lend a hand.”
Eckle signaled and a small wagon
