Nia spoke with a serious expression.

“…Lady Bannet, I will definitely repay today’s favor.”

“Sure. I’m a person who likes favors, so I won’t refuse. I really dislike mean jokes or teasing, though.”

Asha spoke like that and then straightened her waist again, turning her gaze to the noble ladies.

Upon receiving her gaze, each of them conspicuously avoided it, seemingly flustered.

Asha, with a smile, addressed them, “Ladies, I’ve been thinking carefully while fighting, and it seems like maids might not be necessary. I have to take care of Her Majesty, so it would be tiring for me if the number of maids I have to look after increases.”

With that, Asha finished speaking and confidently walked away, carrying her bow on her back.

The noble ladies, who had been watching her back with blank expressions, were finally overwhelmed with unease, coughing awkwardly and avoiding eye contact with each other.

Unlike Asha, they had been pushing each other away to live alone whenever danger approached.

However, it was at that moment.

“…Lady Bannet!”

Along with someone’s shouting from afar, a strong scent of roses wafted through the air.

Asha widened her eyes and looked at the man who approached her with a drawn sword, running towards her like a madman.

He was the one who had hastily led the Cactus Knights here upon hearing the news of an unidentified monster appearing at the Tifati Manor.

Behind him, the sight of intimidating knights clad in armor was so impressive that Asha was left speechless.

Reaching Asha, Karaf was about to embrace her suddenly, but thinking that she might feel uncomfortable with skinship, he quickly adjusted his movements, holding her shoulders with both hands.

However, due to excessive excitement, he ended up blurting out the question, “Are you okay? Any injuries?”

“…I’m fine, Your Majesty.”

When Asha, with a slightly surprised face, calmly responded, Karaf immediately took her hand and examined it closely, checking for any swelling or blisters, perhaps worried about burns.

Asha swallowed, feeling a bit sticky as his persistent gaze swept through her hand.

In fact, Karaf would have been satisfied with just holding Asha’s hand, but Asha was unaware of his feelings.

After confirming that there were no injuries at all, Karaf sighed with relief and let go of her hand.

“It’s fortunate that you’re unharmed.”

“Your Majesty, I feel the need to clarify something that seems to be misunderstood.”

As Karaf raised his head, Asha smiled and said, “The monsters couldn’t harm me at all.”

“I know.”

“You know?”

“Yeah. We all know very well that monsters posing no threat to you with Lady Bannet’s archery skills.”

“But why…?”

“Do you think monsters would only have the appearance of insects?”

His red eyes flickered slightly.

Asha closed her mouth, realizing the hidden meaning behind his words.
He seemed to be worried that he might have hurt the feelings of the noble ladies rather than the monsters. Karaf, too, was well aware of the past events, so after Asha left the palace, he couldn’t focus on his duties, worrying that the noble ladies might harass her or secretly plot against her.

As if to reassure him, Asha gently took his arm and said, “It’s okay, Your Majesty. Thanks to Nia presenting me with a splendid bow, I was able to defeat the monsters.”

“Indeed. Seeing that you completely dominated them, it’s undoubtedly an excellent bow.”

As Karaf, looking somewhat surprised, commented while glancing at the scattered corpses of monsters around, Asha answered with a suppressed laugh, “Yes, it seems so.”

“But a gift. It’s a bit unexpected…”

Karaf said with a somewhat puzzled expression.

If it were Nia Delphinium, wasn’t she the lady who coveted Lady Bannet’s position? However, seeing her giving Asha a bow as a gift to build friendship, it was unclear what her intentions were.

At that moment, when he shifted his gaze to look for her, he made eye contact with Nia, who was standing far away.

She politely nodded without saying a word and gracefully left the scene.

Karaf, who thought she might seduce him, finally wondered if she had given up on her ambitions, reluctantly watching her retreating figure.

However, Asha’s expression stiffened when she saw the bow she was holding, which had a pale gray color.

He realized the hidden meaning of the gift.

Before he could get angry, Asha quickly led him away, saying, “Your Majesty, shall we return to the palace now? Since there has been such a commotion, we can postpone the selection of maidservants.”

“Yes, let’s go back quickly.”

Karaf naturally escorted her, distancing themselves.

The noble ladies, witnessing the affectionate and close appearance of the two, all wore expressions as if they were enchanted.

They had thought that the relationship between the two would worsen during the kidnapping incident at the Enlightenment Festival.

But seeing this scene, they were sure they had misunderstood.

Asha walked with Karaf, wearing a somewhat relieved expression.

The Empress, who had always been alone in the palace, and the lonely Emperor.