“That person from earlier was a knight of Duke Franz’s family, right?”

I asked Alex when we were outside the building and Lucas was no longer in sight.

Alex nodded in affirmation.

But he didn’t say anything more.

Remembering how disappointed he looked while watching Lucas, I carefully examined Alex’s face.

Then he met my eyes and smiled awkwardly.

“I made you worry. I’m sorry.”

“You don’t need to apologize. It’s okay.”

Even though I answered while shrugging my shoulders, Alex didn’t let go of his apologetic expression.

“By the way, did you know that person?”

“No. I met him for the first time on the day I went to retrieve you, Claire.”

Alex glanced back for a moment.

“He’s too talented to be under Duke Franz.”

“But that knight acted against Duke Franz’s wishes, didn’t he? I think Duke Franz would be angry… Is it really okay?”

“Of course, Duke Franz isn’t the type to tolerate this. But my thoughts are different. If he’s only going to handle ordered tasks, it’s better to have a minion. How many people would know to kneel for the one they serve?”

Hearing Alex’s words, I realized there was some truth to what he said.

“If possible, I’d like to bring him under me, but with that personality, I think he’d refuse even if I made an offer.”

“That’s probably true.”

He was a knight with such loyalty that he would kneel for Duke Franz.

Such a person wouldn’t easily change his mind even if Alex tried to persuade him with good conditions.

Anyway, seeing this conversation between Lucas and Alex made me feel a bit relieved.

It seemed that Sir Lucas came to Alex like this because he thought Duke Franz wouldn’t be able to avoid the evidence and witnesses Alex had prepared, even after looking into it from various angles.

Until just now, I was worried that Duke Franz might avoid punishment because he showed such a confident attitude.

However, as Alex said, it seemed he had made thorough preparations.

Now, all that was left was to wait for Miss Veronica and Duke Anstis to come out.

It would have been fine to keep waiting like this, but I was getting restless.

Above all…

“Alex.”

“What is it?”

I called out to Alex after we arrived in front of the carriage. He looked at me with gentle eyes and asked.

“Can we go for a short walk?”

“A walk?”

“Yes. I’m bored just waiting here.”

“It might still be dangerous.”

Alex shook his head and answered negatively.

His words made sense. The matter regarding Duke Franz hadn’t been resolved yet.

In a situation like this, going outside might be risky.

But I thought differently.

There would never be a safer time than now when Duke Franz was detained and awaiting trial.

If any additional incidents occurred here, it would be disadvantageous for Duke Franz.

And his knights would know this well too.

Thinking of Lucas, it seemed that the knights of the Duke of Franz wouldn’t act rashly either. They would know what would be wise to do for Duke Franz.

Alex probably knew this too, but he was worried because my kidnapping had been such a big incident.

“Then you can protect me, can’t you, Alex?”

I squeezed Alex’s hand that I was holding as I finished speaking.

Alex’s gaze moved to our joined hands and then back to me.

“You’re strong, so it’s fine, right?”

When I asked him for confirmation, Alex laughed as if he couldn’t help it.

“Let’s do that then.”

I smiled brightly at Alex’s agreement.

It was a good thing since I had been getting bored of waiting.

Before leaving, Alex gestured to the servant waiting in front of the carriage.

“Did you call, my lord?”

The servant politely asked Alex.

“Inform Lady Maynard and Duke Anstis that we’ll be away, so they shouldn’t worry.”

“Yes, I’ll do that.”

Only after finishing his words did Alex turn to look at me.

“Do you want to go by carriage?”

“No. I want to walk on my own feet.”

When I said this to Alex, he readily agreed.

He pulled my hand towards him and smiled gently.

“Then let’s go.”

“Okay.”

I slowly followed Alex out to the street.

The area in front of the security office was connected to the square, so there were many people coming and going.

Alex didn’t let his guard down, keeping an eye on the surroundings to prepare for any possible situations.

Even though four members of the Rose Knight Order were following behind us, he didn’t seem to be able to relax.

Glancing at his profile, I felt sorry for him.

“Let’s go this way.”

I quickened my pace, taking wider steps for no reason. I was pulling Alex’s hand, and he followed along as if he couldn’t resist.

There was a large fountain with sculptures of baby angels carved into it in the capital’s square.

In the square, there were painters who had brought out paints and canvases to draw, and musicians playing music.

We started to slowly stroll through the streets, watching these people.

“I didn’t know before because I always came out in a carriage with Alex, but the capital square seems more lively than I thought. People’s faces don’t seem to have any worries either.”

When I exclaimed in admiration, Alex smiled faintly.

“It’s like that. This street is especially close to the security office, so there’s no need to worry about safety. Of course, that doesn’t mean there are no petty thieves or criminals.”

“That’s true. It’s a place where people live after all.”

I nodded in agreement and looked around again.

People seemed peaceful as if an attack had occurred not far from here just a few days ago didn’t happen.

I felt a bit bitter, but I didn’t show it outwardly.

Because I knew Alex would worry if he saw me like that.

Instead, I took a deep breath.

The cold late winter air filled my lungs to the point of stuffiness and then escaped.

After that, I felt a bit lighter.

“It looks like there’s a market over there, can we go?”

“Let’s do that.”

I walked a little faster than Alex, taking the lead. He matched his pace to follow my steps.

When we arrived at the market, I could see more people coming and going than in the square.

“Wow.”

Restaurants and shops lined the streets.

Some stores had set up stalls and placed goods on them to do business, and peddlers were also laying out their goods and soliciting customers.

I looked around the market, constantly turning my head.

Usually, when I was at Count Maynard’s house, people would often come up and talk to me when I walked around like this, but this time there was none of that.

Moreover, people seemed to be trying not to look at me with slightly cautious expressions.

While wondering why, I suddenly remembered that my attire was not the same as before.

Certainly, looking at me and Alex now, it would be difficult for ordinary people to approach us.

It was fortunate that there were no uncomfortable solicitations, but somehow I couldn’t get used to the feeling that things were different from before.

That’s when it happened.

“Hm? That’s…”

A sound came from Alex, who had been quiet all along.

“What is it?”

When I turned to him, he was staring intently at something.

Turning my head to where his gaze was fixed, I saw a food stall.

“Oh, that’s the…”

I thought Alex was looking at something, but it was a stall selling meat pies.

It looked similar to the meat pies we ate in Viper Village before coming to the capital.

“Do you think it’s the same as that one?”

“I’m not sure. It looks the same from the outside.”

“Then shall we buy one and eat it?”

Alex hesitated and looked at me at my suggestion.

“You don’t want to?”

“No, it doesn’t sound bad.”

Alex, who I thought would refuse, unexpectedly gave a positive answer.

I opened my eyes wide because I didn’t expect Alex to answer so easily.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. I just… thought Alex would refuse.”

“You told me before that this kind of thing is fun too.”

He whispered to me in a kind voice, seeming to remember when we stopped by Viper Village.

I didn’t know he would remember such a small detail, so I felt a twinge in my heart.

“Okay. Then let’s go buy and eat it.”

“Directly?”

“Yes, directly.”

But Alex seemed flustered, as if he didn’t expect my next words.

I found his flustered appearance cute.

“It’s okay to buy it directly this time, right? The line isn’t even long.”

“If that’s what you want, Claire…”

Alex hesitated for a moment but then nodded.

I pulled Alex’s hand and stood behind the people.

“You should go first…”

“No. We’ll wait and eat, so don’t worry about it.”

When Alex and I lined up at the back, the people standing in line in front of us were flustered and tried to make way for us.

But it felt like cutting in line, so I shook my head and declined.

Of course, someone like Alex wouldn’t need to stand in line, but as I told him earlier, the line wasn’t long, and above all, I just wanted to blend in with the crowd of people, so I waved off the people trying to make way.

Still, the line shortened quickly.

“Can I have six pies, please?”

“Here you are.”

I handed the money to the merchant and received the pies.

“Alex, can you hold this for me?”

“S-Sure.”

When I asked Alex for help because my hands were full, he quickly took the pies.

I distributed the pies I was holding to the knights following us one by one and took one of the pies Alex was holding.

I carefully bit into the pie.

“Mm, this is good too.”

It tasted different from the meat pie we ate in Viper Village before, but it was still delicious enough.

When I turned to Alex with an exclamation, he also took a bite of the pie.

Then he nodded slightly.

“It’s not bad.”

“Right?”

I smiled with wrinkled eyes, confirming that Alex’s reaction wasn’t bad.

Alex also smiled gently, his eyes curving as he looked at me.