Surprisingly, Heneya accepted immediately, as if she had been waiting for it. She had already been collecting opinions on how it felt to use it directly. She could verify many things, including the sound.

So there was no reason to refuse.

“As long as you’re fine with it.”

“Then follow me.”

Following Heneya, Evenel found a well-equipped shooting range not far away. She skillfully loaded the bullets into the gun Heneya had handed her and took her position in front of the target.

And she confidently pulled the trigger.

Heneya, too, observed her intently from a little distance, her eyes suddenly serious.

Evenel’s skill far exceeded her expectations.

She knew she was a shooter, but she had no idea she was this excellent. Heneya had seen many people while making guns, but it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say she was the best she had seen.

As proof, she was only piercing the center of the target.

An excited Evenel approached Heneya after finishing her shooting.

“It’s much better than what I was using before! The accuracy is high, and the recoil is low.”

“Did you find anything uncomfortable?”

“No, I don’t think there are any special issues.”

Handing back the gun to her, they left the training ground together. The two conversed more naturally than before, the awkwardness gone.

“Did you make this gun, Heneya?”

“Yes, I was actively involved from the development phase.”

“That’s impressive. It must have been hard. Were you interested in making guns since you were young?”

“I naturally became interested as I learned over my father’s shoulder since I was young.”

“You really do love making guns, Heneya.”

At this, Heneya looked at Evenel with a somewhat surprised face. Evenel worried whether she had said something inappropriate.

“Did I say something rude?”

“No, it’s just… people usually think I do it just because it’s a family tradition.”

“That could be, but your face looked genuinely happy when handling the gun. If it were just about tradition, you wouldn’t have looked like that.”
Perhaps it was because Evenel had similar tastes that she stood out to Henaea. She might seem aloof, but how much affection she held behind it was another story.

Henaea hesitated, then asked the question she had failed to ask earlier.

“How did you know?”

“What exactly?”

“That I’m the Countess Eunis’s lover. No one would think I’m a noblewoman’s lover in this attire.”

Henaea was amazed that Evenel had recognized her right away, despite the fact that she was wearing her usual work clothes, stained with gunpowder. She typically just looked like one of the people working for the family.

‘No, they were probably busy mocking me.’

While the family’s reputation was acknowledged, public perception wasn’t too favorable towards her, a noblewoman’s lover, doing this kind of work. Though no one said anything to her face, she was well aware of the murmurs behind her back.

Of course, Henaea didn’t really care. Ignoring them was enough.

So it was all the more remarkable that Evenel had recognized her without any bias. Moreover, they were still talking naturally.

Evenel, seeing Henaea waiting for an answer, spoke as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, explaining why she had recognized her instantly.

“In fact, that’s exactly how I could tell.”

“Hm?”

“Your handling of the gun was too sophisticated and delicate. Also, you resemble the Count in some ways. Besides, there’s no law saying a noblewoman’s lover can’t do this work.”

“Ah…”

Henaea couldn’t find any words for a moment, surprised by what she had never heard from anyone before. Evenel seemed to sense the hardships she had faced.

“The most surprising part after seeing you, Countess, is something else.”

“What?”

“Even after knowing who I am, you didn’t change. People usually change their attitude when they find out I’m from Aodin.”

However, Henaea didn’t give off such a vibe at all. Even after learning who Evenel was, her gaze remained unchanged.

Henaea understood what Evenel was saying. When word had gotten out about her, there had been some commotion for a while. Having the capability, but being a person from Aodin, she couldn’t be accepted.

While she couldn’t say she had no such sentiment as a person of the Cariess Empire, the Evenel she had met and spoken to was completely different from her expectations.

“Seeing how you handle the gun with care, I thought you couldn’t be a bad person.”
From the perspective of someone who made guns, the way she cherished and liked them instilled more trust than any rampant rumors.

Moreover, Henea had received numerous misunderstood gazes just based on her appearance, so she knew how foolish it was to judge someone solely on that.

“Thank you for saying that.”

Evenel was more than grateful just for being seen for who she was.

“It seems like we have a lot in common. Ah, if you were offended,”

“No, actually, I felt the same way.”

Henea had just thought the same. Despite it being their first encounter, conversing was not uncomfortable at all. At some point, she had become closer to guns than to people.

‘Perhaps a much better person.’

As they conversed, they reached the front of the mansion where they had initially disembarked from the carriage. Shuher and Geryen were there.

Shuher also noticed Evenel in the company of Henea.

“Have you finished your conversation?”

“Yes, I was with Lady Henea.”

“We happened to meet while touring the workshop.”

“Your Imperial Majesty, I apologize for greeting you in this attire.”

He seemed entirely unconcerned about Henea’s outfit.

“I should go now.”

Before boarding the carriage, Evenel exchanged a regretful farewell with Henea.

“I’m really glad to have met you today. It definitely lifted my spirits.”

“Me too. If you ever… need my help, feel free to visit.”

Upon hearing Henea’s hesitantly spoken words, she readily nodded.

As the carriage carrying the two moved away, Geryen, unable to take his eyes off the departing vehicle, asked her.

“You look happy.”

“Do I?”

Recalling her conversation with Evenel today, Henea spoke.

“Father, Lady Evenel is… she seems like a good person.”

“Unexpected. You saying that about someone, especially someone you just met today.”

“Even though she’s from Aodin, at some point, I completely forgot that fact.”

Geryen did not show it, but inside, he was quite surprised. Henea didn’t easily open up to strangers, but a person she met today elicited such words.

“What do you think, Father?”

“Well, perhaps she’s similar to you.”

Even though they had only exchanged a few words, Geryen felt he understood a bit why his daughter would say such a thing.