The warped carriage arrived in Eurorien immediately. Carriages lined up in rows at the warp location.

“There are so many people.”

Warp prices are expensive. But there are many wealthy people in the empire. That means many people took the warp to enjoy the festival.

I looked at the carriages through the window and cheered.

“Sorean’s carriage is over there.”

Luden looked out the window and grumbled.

“He could have come slowly.”

“He probably couldn’t. He’s completely smitten with Her Highness Kanarosa.”

Luden silently held my hand.

“Is it that important for that man and the princess to get together?”

“Don’t you like it, Luden?”

“I’m bored because Annelia doesn’t pay attention to me.”

He quickly approached me. I wasn’t mentally prepared for his sudden approach. He grabbed my cheek and kissed me. Then the hot energy pushed between my lips again. I closed my eyes and frantically wrapped both arms around his neck.

This feels good. Since when did I become so forward?

I sighed. Then he whispered in my ear.

“If you leave me lonely, I’ll do things like this.”

“Not in a place with so many people!”

“Then don’t leave me alone.”

He seemed to be acting spoiled.

You should do that with the lover you’re in love with!

“I have many complaints because my wife keeps paying attention to other things.”

At his words, I quickly turned my head. My face heated up a bit.

“I’ll make sure you have no complaints.”

Curiosity arose in Luden’s eyes.

“How?”

At his question, I quickly grabbed his cheek.

This time it was my turn to kiss.

We touched each other little by little while waiting for the carriage to move.

* * *

The carriage only stopped after arriving at the villa. When Luden and I got out, Sorean was also getting out while holding Kanarosa’s hand.

The villa was on top of a mountain with a park in front, and a cliff a bit further down. Luden explained that from the cliff, you could see the entire landscape of Eurorien at a glance.

“I greet Her Highness Princess Kanarosa.”

Luden quickly greeted her. I also greeted them and guided them to the cliff.

“Oh my!”

Kanarosa and Sorean exclaimed in admiration.

Of course, I was also gaping.

The city formed an overall hexagonal star shape with houses clustered tightly according to that pattern.

And the surrounding mountains exuded a mysterious charm.

I looked around with curious eyes.

“It’s even more beautiful at night.”

At Luden’s words, Sorean looked at Kanarosa.

“We should see it at night too.”

At his words, Kanarosa nodded.

“I want to see it too.”

Then Sorean, thinking it was an opportunity, quickly spoke.

“May I guide you?”

I could guide them, but I’m deliberately not saying anything. Of course, to give Sorean an opportunity.

“That sounds good.”

“Since it’s the lantern festival now, how about buying lanterns and releasing them?”

This was the event I planned. The most popular event at the lantern festival was releasing lanterns while making wishes. Releasing lanterns happened at night during the festival period, and they would release lanterns today too.

Wouldn’t watching the scenery here while releasing them create more romantic feelings?

I smiled inwardly and suggested to them.

“Lady Annelia’s ideas are always special.”

Kanarosa was very pleased with my words. I looked at Luden and Luden also smiled.

“That sounds good.”

“I agree too.”

Sorean also agreed with this.

“Then let’s go enjoy the festival.”

“We should bring escort knights.”

Luden quickly spoke and returned to the villa. I know I need to bring Andre too! 

I grumbled and followed Luden.

Sorean and Kanarosa looked back at the scenery regretfully, then followed us.

* * *

The city center was bustling with people. People gathered without room to step and were heading somewhere. Curious, I tried to follow them, but Luden grabbed my clothes.

“Where are you going?”

“Where those people are going.”

“They’re going to buy lanterns.”

He answered. Since lanterns are very popular, he told us we shouldn’t buy them in advance and tried to take us somewhere else.

Don’t we need to buy them now too?

But there seemed to be a reason Luden was taking us there. We silently followed Luden.

After passing through the middle of the complex city center and entering the outskirts a bit, there were no people. In the quiet area, we saw shops and people who weren’t tourists.

“Places tourists frequently go have expensive prices and they overcharge a lot.”

Andre quickly explained from the side. I understood why Luden came here.

Since the villa was here, he knew Eurorien very well. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have come to a place like this.

Luden entered a shop selling lanterns. The owner was sitting comfortably in a chair, then saw Luden enter and greeted him warmly.

“Isn’t this Marquis Charlot? It’s been a while.”

“Has it been three years?”

“That’s right. But who are those people behind you?”

He’ll introduce me as his fiancée, right?

“My wife and my wife’s friends.”

At Luden’s introduction, my face heated up. He called me his wife when we hadn’t even had the wedding yet!

Somehow, I felt like I had become someone special to Luden.

“Did you come to buy lanterns?”

He quickly took us to a corner of the shop. Lanterns were beautifully displayed.

Kanarosa and I chose reddish lanterns. Luden chose a black lantern, and Sorean chose a brown lantern.

After leaving the shop, I looked at the lantern with curious eyes. The lanterns enchanted with magic that would flutter up when blown by wind would disappear after a certain time.

That’s why everyone would write wishes or secret stories on the lanterns and release them.

Really intimate wishes you want to come true—these were good for that.

“Now that we’ve bought lanterns…”

Luden looked at the sky. The evening glow was already setting.

“Will you go release lanterns right away?”

The escort knights asked. Luden shook his head.

“We’ll leave the lanterns in the carriage and go to the night market.”

“That’s right, we’ll go to the night market and look around!”

I chimed in with Luden’s words. They said Eurorien’s night market is active and good to visit even when it’s not festival season.

“I’m very excited too.”

Sorean’s eyes sparkled. Kanarosa nodded silently. She also seemed to want to go.

Luden and I walked to the night market together. Perhaps because people went to buy lanterns, the line at the entrance to the night market wasn’t as long as the lantern line we saw earlier.

While browsing the night market shops, I discovered something familiar. It was meat skewered and grilled over fire for sale.

I didn’t expect to see skewers here.

Actually, when I was in the capital, I rode in carriages and always went to expensive places, so I didn’t have many opportunities to encounter commoner food.

“Do they only sell that here?”

At my question, Luden shook his head.

“No, they sell a lot on the streets of the capital too.”

“I want to try that.”

I walked toward the skewer shop. Then Luden followed behind me and asked.

“Are you eating it because it’s meat?”

“It’s not that, it just looks really delicious.”

“If Lady Annelia eats it, I want to try it too. My heart is pounding because it’s food I’ve never seen before.”

Kanarosa followed me. I paid with small change and bought two skewers. Sorean and Luden said they wouldn’t eat, so only Kanarosa and I ate.

When I pulled some meat off the skewer and ate it, Kanarosa followed and ate too.

As expected, the juices from freshly grilled meat are sweet.

I quickly finished one skewer. Kanarosa also seemed to have eaten deliciously, looking at the skewers with sparkling eyes.

“It’s really delicious, right?”

Kanarosa agreed.

“I’ve rarely eaten meat this delicious.”

If Kanarosa says this, she really enjoyed it.

With a proud heart, I tried to eat one more. Then Luden approached and chose a skewer himself.

“I got curious because Annelia ate two. It’s food I’ve only ever looked at.”

Sorean also quickly chose a skewer.

They said they wouldn’t eat, but the two men held skewers and dipped them in sauce to eat.

Now, what expressions will they make?

I waited for their expressions.

Luden tasted it, rolled his eyes around, then looked at the skewer with admiration.

“It’s really delicious for the price.”

“To think it tastes like this.”

Sorean and Luden chose more skewers with admiration. They ate different types of skewers and experienced their flavors. I also ate various skewers. Since the amount per piece wasn’t much, we could eat without burden.

“The sauce is so sweet it’s like eating sugar.”

Kanarosa said, “I thought the same thing.”

“You two are in sync.”

Kanarosa’s face heated up. Then Sorean, who was beside her, seemed itchy to speak and quickly joined our conversation.

“But it’s not as good as eating between lovers.”

At Sorean’s words, I frowned for a moment.

You should lead the conversation by saying you ate deliciously, but what do you do suddenly saying something like this!

It showed he hasn’t dated much.

“That’s right.”

Fortunately, Kanarosa passed over this conversation appropriately.

Luden is also skilled at conversation. What can’t he do?

I stared at him intently.

“The skewers are delicious, right? Let’s occasionally buy and eat them in the capital too.”

Luden pondered for a moment.

“If it’s safe.”

I think I know what he means. Considering Anan was poisoned, Luden wasn’t saying this for no reason.

“In the capital, let’s make them at home.”

I corrected my words. Then Luden chuckled.

“The cook will make them well too.”

“They will.”

And they’ll use better meat than here.

I linked arms with Luden and walked to another place. Sorean slowly followed behind with Kanarosa.

The night market had many different things. I wasn’t particularly interested in clothes or accessories, but Kanarosa was interested.

Kanarosa held a hairpin and put it in her hair. I slowly looked at her.

Certainly it’s better to have something like this than nothing in the hair.

Since we both didn’t wear hair decorations because we came to play today, my hair felt a bit empty.

“It’s cute.”

The pin was made by crafting a rabbit shape in gold. I thought of Kanarosa while looking at the rabbit.

“I think I’ll buy one too.”

I chose a hair accessory that could be slipped between strands of hair. Then Luden silently picked it up and used my hair to secure the pin.

“Beautiful.”

At Luden’s words, I slightly turned my head.

His eyes were so heated they seemed ready to devour me.

“Does it suit me?”

Luden smiled.

“Of course.”

My heart is pounding over such a trivial thing. I felt Luden’s presence vividly.

Ah, I want to kiss him.

I wanted to feel his lips.

“When we enter the mansion, we’ll be alone.”

Luden said quietly. He whispered in my ear so the two others couldn’t hear.

* * *

After touring the night market and eating food, we returned and also ate dishes the cooks made.

After eating our fill, we took the lanterns and walked to the cliff from before.

The wind was blowing gently. It seemed like the wind was beckoning us to quickly release the lanterns.

We had already written the content to write on the paper to release with the lanterns in our rooms beforehand. Since we decided to keep the content secret from each other, we wrote in our respective rooms and didn’t know who wrote what.

I wrote asking to be with Luden for a long, long time.

The lantern containing my heart was emitting a faint light. When I blew breath on the lantern, the magic fire lit. Seeing the light shine from inside the lantern, I released the lantern in the direction the wind was blowing.

“Wow!”

We cheered. Not just us—various lanterns released by people were rising into the sky.

Watching these, I became immersed in sentiment.

The sky was painted black. And lanterns were dotted like points in between.

My flying lantern disappeared in midair after going a certain distance.

I watched the lanterns fly for a while, then returned to the villa holding hands with Luden.

“Gather in the room for a bit. Let’s play card games.”

Sorean asked, “Is there alcohol too?”

“Of course!”