That evening, while playing with Ru, Diana casually brought up the topic to Angela.

“When are you two planning to get married?”

Angela thought it would be soon, but she couldn’t easily answer.

“I don’t know.”

“What do you mean you don’t know? Didn’t he propose to you before?”

“After I refused once, he hasn’t mentioned it again.”

“So did you two break up?”

“Not exactly. We agreed to just date for now since he begged me. But these days, I’m not even sure what I want to do.”

“What do you want to do, Angela? Just keep dating? No plans for marriage?”

“…It’s still unclear what will happen with you, young lady.”

Diana’s well-being was still Angela’s concern.

“Why are you bringing me up here? I told you before not to worry about me.”

“But no matter how I think about it, I can’t let you go alone. How will you adapt all by yourself in that faraway foreign land? You need someone to rely on.”

Diana felt bad for Vincent.

Considering the disappointment he must have felt as a lover due to Angela prioritizing Diana, she deserved to be stoned to death.

“Angela… Do you know what the end goal of nurturing is?”

“Well… What is it?”

“It’s independence. I understand your worries, but you’ve already done your part. You can put yourself before me now.”

No, she had to do that.

Diana held Angela’s hand and said,

“I contacted the Duchy of Homern this afternoon. They’ll probably introduce you to a high-ranking priest.”

“What? Why did you do that? It’s shameless to ask a favor from someone we’ve never even met.”

“Lady Dilaia of Homern remembers Vincent. He was the commander who led the soldiers in the rescue operation. Of course she’ll help.”

“It’s really okay… You’re going out of your way to do this for me… I’m truly grateful.”

“Of course I have to look out for you. We’re family, aren’t we?”

“That’s right, family! We eat together, sleep together, and even sword fight together! Right?”

“Yes. No matter what land we’re standing on, we’re all family. A family connected by heart.”

Diana pulled both of them into a hug and smiled brightly.

“I love you, Ru. I love you, Angela.”

“Why are you suddenly acting like this? As if we’re parting forever…”

“I just haven’t said these things often.”

“…Even if you don’t say it, I can feel it.”

“But I still want to say it.”

“Me tooooo!”

“Then… Me too, of course. I love you, my most cherished young lady.”

“Right. But if we keep this up, Vincent will feel left out. So Angela, you propose to him first. Give him assurance.”

“Give it to him! Give it!”

Ru clung to Angela’s neck and dragged out her words cutely.

It was so adorable that laughter burst out without resistance.

Angela wiped the dew gathered in the corners of her eyes with her fingers and replied,

“Are you sure you’ll be okay? Even if you’re fluent in the language and look similar, it’s a foreign land. You’re a person of the Western Continent.”

“It’s fine. Humans are adaptable creatures, aren’t they?”

Angela muttered, unable to feel at ease.

“Since there are merchant ships… You’ll be able to come back often, right? And I can visit you too.”

“Of course. Don’t worry.”

Her heart stung. She had been preparing to send Angela away for a while, but it was harder than she imagined.

‘When the situation improves, I’ll write to Angela. I’ll let at least Angela know that I’m not dead.’

Diana smiled nonchalantly, trying hard to hide her sadness.

“And one more thing.”

“What else is there?”

“I want you to retire too when I leave.”

Angela’s eyes widened, as if she hadn’t expected the suggestion.

“…Me? I have to stay here. It’s your hometown and where you grew up.”

“I know. But I don’t want you to live reminiscing about memories. I want you to live a new life.”

Angela Dinever. Her hometown was a small territory attached to the north.

Now fallen, it was once the land of a marquis, and she heard it was a small, peaceful village that Angela tended to with her mother.

“You probably won’t be able to meet the high priest right away. They’re always busy. After I leave, go to the Holy Kingdom and stay by Vincent’s side. Lady Dilaia of the Duchy of Homern will help you.”

Then later, when the war is over and there’s no more reason to hide, go wherever and live happily.

Angela suits being a resident of a big city or an innkeeper, but I want her to live as a noble again. Reclaim the land lost to gambling debts and live proudly with Vincent. Happily.”

Angela pursed her lips and nodded reluctantly.

“I’ll ask him first. It’s not something I can decide alone…”

“Yes. Think about it positively.”

It was not long after that afternoon when the castle was turned upside down by Angela’s proposal.

Vincent, lying in his sickbed, couldn’t contain his joy and circled the training grounds three times while hugging Angela.

The two completed their marriage vows at the temple that fall and officially became husband and wife. It was the happiest event that occurred in the last year before Diana left for the Eastern Continent.

It was the season when the forest turned red and the horses grew fat.

But this fall, there was no vitality in the forests or the villages.

Years of consistent poor harvests had finally led to a tremendous famine.

Every day was a cycle of uprisings and suppressions.

Diana closed the newspaper and turned her head towards Sebastian.

“What did Lady Dilaia say?”

“Since there’s less than a month left until departure, she said we should frequently switch our roles.”

“And?”

“She said to prepare for disguising as a man. Binding your chest with compression bandages will make it hard to breathe, so practice breathing beforehand. She also suggested preparing emergency medicine and portable food in advance? She said it’s difficult to obtain food these days due to the bad harvest, so purchase it quickly.”

Sebastian let out a long yawn and flopped his belly up on the round table. His yellowish, round belly faced the sky.

Diana was writing a shopping list when she circled her pen.

‘Come to think of it, what should I do about my hair?’

It was a concern. Even with a delicate frame, if her hair was long, she would undoubtedly look like a woman no matter what.

“Will you cut it?”

“I’m not sure yet. There are long-haired gentlemen too, so I’m thinking of just tying it up.”

“You don’t want to cut it?”

“I guess so…”

It was a style she had cherished and stuck to even when others cursed it as gloomy. It was natural to feel bitter about cutting hair she had grown for a long time.

‘And most of all, Raoul likes it.’

When kissing, he always slid his hand through her hair.

He would twist her hair to the point of slightly tugging at her scalp, breathing a bit more excitedly than usual.

Sometimes he would kiss the ends of her hair and inhale the scent, seeming to like it because the shampoo fragrance lingered there the longest.

‘If I cut it off, will he stop doing that?’

That was what she would miss the most.

But she might have to cut it to avoid getting caught.

Diana tightly tied her hair up and loosely let it down, pretending it was short.

With her features distinctly highlighted, it seemed to suit her more than she thought.

Diana went out shopping for the first time in a while.

It was nice to have plenty of time by leaving the child with Angela.

Biche following behind was a bit concerning, but he wasn’t the type to pay close attention to the details of Diana’s shopping. His indifference was rather convenient.

It was when Diana was browsing ordinary men’s clothing at a clothing store. Biche’s gaze turned to the baby clothes on display.

Diana couldn’t help but ask, finding his pitiful gaze bothersome.

“Why the baby clothes?”

“Ah… I just looked because they’re cute. I was thinking babies are this small.”

Biche stepped back towards the store wall with an embarrassed laugh. Seeing him avoid eye contact and scratch his cheek, it seemed he was hiding something.

Someone must be pregnant.

Diana immediately thought of Helen.

‘It seems a baby has finally come.’

Diana stared blankly at the cute baby clothes Biche couldn’t take his eyes off of.

Since it was a dressmaker’s shop frequented by nobles, the prices were higher than regular baby clothes.

Hmm… After hesitating for a moment, Diana smiled brightly at Biche.

“There’s a dress I want to try on, so could you wait outside first? I’m shy about showing it.”

“Ah, yes. I will do that. Please take your time looking around.”

Jingle. As the door closed, Diana exchanged glances with the dressmaker.

The middle-aged tailor, who had smelled money since earlier, took out the baby clothes from the display before Diana even spoke.

“These would make a perfect gift.”

“You’re quick-witted. Give me the hand and foot warmers too. And the baby bonnet.”

“There are various types of baby bonnets. Would you like to see them?”

“Sure.”

When Diana came out of the store, Biche took the bags from her.

“I could have done it, so why did you carry them out?”

“Just because. One of them is a gift for you. I can’t make you carry your own gift, can I?”

Diana pointed to the cafe across the street with a bright smile.

“I have something I want to talk about for a bit, so would you like to have a cup of tea at the cafe?”

“You mean, just the two of us?”

“Yes. You’re one of my close aides. We’ve never had a conversation with just the two of us, so I wanted to do it today. Once I leave for the Eastern Continent, there won’t be chances like this, right?”

When Diana mentioned the day she would leave, Biche lowered his eyebrows and showed a regretful expression.

“So you’re really going…”

“Probably. Shall we go in and talk for now?”

“Yes, I’m not the talkative type, but I’ll try my best…”

There’s no need to be so diligent at a time like this. Diana laughed and took the first steps into the cafe.