Alicia, who had traveled with Kasa on horseback for a full day, asked her a question while taking in the sight of a village in the distance.

“You said we’re staying in that village today, right?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Although it doesn’t provide the same sense of security as Killian, Kasa was also a knight who had been trained for a long time, so it wasn’t uncomfortable to ride a horse with her.

It was because Kasa continued to look after Alicia’s convenience.

And with Marie, who was riding close beside the two, also taking care of Alicia, she was traveling very comfortably except for psychological stability.

And there was another advantage that came from riding together with Kasa.

“Why don’t you ride next to me?”

“I wanted to talk with Your Highness.”

“Are you asking to be killed?”

“…Why are you so twisted?”

Alicia could prevent Reilly’s approach without doing anything.

Was it because he had committed a sin against Kasa?

Reilly, who approached each time with different words, would step back as if there was no choice when Kasa’s eyes flashed as if she would kill him.

“The White Knight seems really amazing.”

“I haven’t done anything, but receiving praise from Your Highness makes me not know what to do with myself.”

Kasa, who had just dismissed Reilly, who had approached saying he wanted to ride alongside his friend, with a single word to get lost, blushed.

Marie, who was riding beside her, was looking at her enviously.

The party, having arrived at the village, headed to the horse market first.

They briefly contemplated Marie’s suggestion of getting a carriage.

Because if they were inside an enclosed carriage, they wouldn’t have to mind Killian and Reilly’s gazes.

However, the moment she got on the carriage to test it out, those yellow eyes vividly came to mind, so Alicia ended up giving up on the carriage and chose a sturdy horse for herself to ride.

“Luckily there was a gentle horse.”

“It seems we were really lucky.”

Kasa, who had narrowly beat out a competitor and paid for the horse that Alicia liked, said with a face unable to hide her pride.

Although they had briefly argued over the issue of riding together with Alicia, Marie nodded at Kasa as if to acknowledge what should be acknowledged.

“But the inn is much smaller than I thought.”

“It can’t be helped. The other large accommodations have already taken in too many guests and had no rooms to give us.”

It was a village that had many travelers coming and going as it was not far from the capital and had a fairly large horse market.

It just so happened that the day Alicia’s party arrived was the day of the stud horse auction that was held only three times a year, so it was very lucky to secure even this level of accommodation.

“We’re lucky. With many guests the size of a merchant group, no one will be suspicious of our identities.”

The party, who had hidden their identities among the people who had flocked to participate in the large-scale auction and arrived at the inn, dispersed to their respective rooms.

The first thing Alicia did upon entering the room assigned to her was to lock the window.

It seemed that what had happened in the carriage had become a kind of trauma.

While Alicia was closing the window, Marie, who had checked the bed, said she would prepare to borrow a bath to wash up and left the room.

Although Kasa was guarding the front of the door, it was natural to lock the door.

Even though it was a small inn, it was a place shared by other people besides Alicia’s party, so safety was the top priority.

After washing her body in warm water with Marie’s help, Alicia returned to the room with a refreshed face and rummaged through her bag.

Then, lighting a candle to brighten the room, Alicia sat down at the small desk in the corner of the room and placed what she had taken out of her bag.

It was a notebook the size of her palm and charcoal.

She had packed it in case the journey became boring, thinking she could at least draw inside the carriage.

‘To think it would end in just a day…’

Alicia, who had opened the blank page of the notebook, grasped the charcoal in her hand.

She didn’t want to go outside and run into Reilly or have to watch Killian’s reactions, so she planned to spend time holed up in her room drawing until they left tomorrow.

‘The first thing to draw… of course, that.’

The vast and beautiful lake that had filled her field of vision.

Although she could see it one more time on the way back to the Imperial Palace, she couldn’t guarantee beyond that.

So she had to capture it in a drawing before the memory faded.

She would just do a simple sketch here and later, after returning to the Imperial Palace, transfer the detailed image onto a large canvas.

Alicia, who had been sitting and drawing for a while, came to her senses at the sound of a knock coming from outside the door.

During her concentration, several pages of the notebook had been turned, and what she was drawing now was Killian’s hand.

Was it thanks to seeing it up close while riding together?

Alicia, who had already drawn Killian’s hand from various angles several times, closed the notebook and put down the charcoal before unlocking the door.

“Your Highness, how about dinner…?”

“I’ll eat it here.”

“Before that, you should wash your hands first.”

“Ah…”

The tips of her fingers had turned black while grasping the charcoal and drawing.

Alicia, who had thoroughly washed her hands with Marie’s help, finished a simple dinner and tried to sit back at the desk.

“Your Highness, Viscount Anderson asked if you would like to go see the market together.”

Marie, who was about to take the empty dishes and leave, said.

It seemed that because of Kasa guarding the front of the door, he couldn’t directly approach Alicia and had asked Marie, whom he had run into by chance, to ask on his behalf.

“Tell him I’ll just stay at the inn.”

“Yes, I understand. And Your Highness…”

“Yes?”

Alicia, who had answered Marie and was about to sit in the chair and open the notebook, realized that her question wasn’t finished and turned her head.

Marie, who looked a little troubled unlike when she was conveying Reilly’s words, moved her lips hesitantly and slowly opened her mouth.

“Duke Diaz made the same request.”

“…What?”

“To go see the market together.”

“…”

“He obtained invitations to participate in the auction being held this evening.”

While she could immediately answer Reilly’s question, it was difficult to reject Killian’s invitation outright.

Killian knew that too, so he must have conveyed such a long message to Marie.

“In my opinion, how about going out lightly?”

“…Why do you think that?”

“The auction held in this village is quite a big event. Just looking around the market near the auction house will be enjoyable enough.”

Alicia, who had pondered for a moment at Marie’s words, turned her gaze to the notebook on the desk.

If she wasn’t going to fill this notebook with Killian, it wouldn’t be bad to take in other scenery.

“Then shall we go out?”

“I will tell the Duke.”

“No.”

“…Pardon?”

“Tell the Duke I appreciate the thought.”

“Then, you’re going out…?”

Marie asked, stammering in a rare display of bewilderment.

It was a bit strange as it was the first time seeing her like this since taking her in, but Alicia, who didn’t think much of it, answered with a smile.

“I’ll go with you and the White Knight.”

“…Not with the Duke?”

“Yes.”

A little while later, Alicia, wearing a robe with a deeply pulled hood, was looking around the market near the auction house with Kasa.

Marie had decided to stay at the inn, saying that if she moved together, someone might realize Alicia was a person of high status.

Kasa, who looked like a knight to anyone, and Marie, who served Alicia with a polite attitude anywhere.

Even if they didn’t know she was royalty, someone might approach with impure motives if they noticed she was a high-ranking noble.

‘Marie stayed at the inn, but the royal guards are hiding here and there following behind.’

Alicia, who thought of the knights who would be protecting her from out of sight, planned to look around the market only as much as the knights wouldn’t feel tired.

If Kasa had known this thought of hers, she would have answered, “By the time the knights are tired, Your Highness won’t be able to walk on two feet.”

Perhaps it was because she had never experienced firsthand how much stamina the knights had?

Alicia had set the standard based on herself.

As Marie had said, the market near the auction house brought immense joy just by looking around.

Merchants who had come up from distant regions had put all sorts of things on their stalls and were soliciting customers, determined to make a big deal.

“Come! See! Buy! Only for today at this price!”

“Goodness! Just look with your eyes! Only with your eyes! What are you going to do poking everything with your hands when you’re not even going to buy!”

“Mom! Buy me that!”

“Pickpocket!”

“It’s coral from the southern sea that doesn’t freeze! Just looking at it will bring peace to your heart!”

The market was crowded with people trying to sell goods, people trying to buy, and people just looking around.

Alicia, who had been pushed this way and that by the many people and had walked to a small fountain, burst into laughter upon seeing Kasa’s face looking as tired as herself.

“It seems the knight doesn’t like crowded places either.”

“What I dislike is a lack of order.”

“It was quite chaotic, wasn’t it?”

“Yes.”

She had lost count of how many times she had twisted the wrists and kicked the legs of pickpockets approaching Alicia and herself.

Kasa would handle them appropriately first and push them aside, then the hidden knights would appear and drag them away by the collar.

Because of the crowd, Alicia didn’t seem to have noticed, but…

‘Here comes another one.’

Kasa, who had confirmed another pickpocket approaching Alicia sitting on the edge of the fountain, swallowed a sigh.

It would be easier to just break their necks, but how difficult it is to handle them appropriately without breaking bones!

They could just block the approach altogether, but her colleagues hiding didn’t seem to have thought of that.

“Hey, you. Stop what you’re thinking and go another way, and I’ll pretend I didn’t see.”

Kasa, who had approached the pickpocket with the intention of handling it so Alicia wouldn’t notice this time as well, threatened in a low voice.

However, the answer that came back was one Kasa hadn’t anticipated.

“I’ve come on an errand. Could you please tell Her Highness Alicia that a letter has arrived from Jay?”