I wanted nothing to do with this creepy, obsessive man who even stole the heroine’s name.

“Oh, yes. Miela. Nice meeting you. Well then, goodbye.”

I bid him farewell in a thin, feeble, and altered voice.

Since I couldn’t even buy the items I wanted, and now the Crown Prince had appeared, leaving quickly seemed like the best option.

“Hey, is it fair for me to reveal my name while you don’t reveal yours?”

But as I tried to leave, the Crown Prince firmly grabbed my wrist.

“You’re obviously not a commoner… So, why are you on the run? Did you commit a crime?”

“Yes, I’m a criminal, so I can’t tell you my name. Goodbye.”

I said goodbye a second time.

But my second attempt to escape failed as well. His grip was so strong that I couldn’t break free. My wrist hurt like hell.

“You’re hurting me.”

“You didn’t even get to buy the items you came for. So why are you in such a hurry to leave?”

“I’m stepping aside so you can buy what you need, Miela. Now let go of me.”

“You’re not going anywhere until you tell me your name.”

This lunatic. Can’t he see that I couldn’t even buy what I came for because I didn’t have a name? I’ll just make something up and get out of here.

“Well, um… Ka… Kai… Kairia!”

The name I blurted out was a combination of Kyron and Lia’s names. It sounded ridiculous once I said it.

I can’t believe I just combined Lia’s name with my husband’s. Sorry, Lia.

“Kairia? Oh, what a lovely name.”

“Now that I’ve told you my name, let me go—”

“Hey, add the name ‘Kairia’ to the membership list.”

Suddenly, the Crown Prince gave an order to the shopkeeper. And, of course, the shopkeeper obediently followed it.

“Yes, I’ll do that.”

“Now you can buy the items you wanted.”

The Crown Prince gestured toward the shopkeeper, who was already bringing back the items he had put away earlier.

…What the hell is this guy?

I glared at the Crown Prince. Beneath his hood, I could see a smiling mouth.

“Since I helped you, may I ask you one question?”

“No, you may not.”

“Who told you the password?”

“.…”

“As far as I know, there are only two people who use that password to enter this shop. Me, and my friend.”

What? The password… differs by person?

My mind went blank for a moment.

“My friend has been losing interest in what he’s been doing lately, which has been annoying me. Are you one of his people? Or did you fail to recognize me as one of your own?”

Out of all the challenges I had faced tonight, this was the worst.

If Kyron found out about this outing, it would be bad. But if the Crown Prince caught on, it would be the absolute worst-case scenario.

“If you are one of my friend’s people… Tell him to get his act together.”

He abruptly let go of my wrist, his grip so forceful that I nearly lost my balance.

“And let him know that my patience isn’t very long.”

The Crown Prince turned his back to me.

“Next time you visit, please make sure to remember your membership name.”

The man left the shop after saying those words.
I grabbed my aching wrist with my other hand. Under the light, it would surely be red.

The “friend” that the Crown Prince mentioned—could it be Kyron? From what I know, the Crown Prince has such a nasty personality that he doesn’t really have any friends.
The “friend” he spoke of seemed more like a business partner or collaborator than a real friend… If that’s the case, there’s only one candidate. My husband.

Lost interest in the work they used to do together…? If I applied this to Kyron, it made perfect sense.
Right now, Kyron was taking a break and sticking by my side every time I was unwell.

It was hard to tell whether the Crown Prince was an enemy or an ally.
I didn’t like how he had hurt my wrist with his rough grip, but wasn’t he someone who would help Kyron bring down the temple quickly?
His obsession with the Saintess was also considerable, so he definitely had the motivation and drive to push things forward.
Moreover, he had told Kyron to get his act together, which was satisfying to hear.

…In that case, he’s an ally.

***

Thanks to “Kairia” being added to the membership list, I was able to safely purchase the disguise tool and the teleportation magic artifact.
When I left the shop, Lia was waiting for me by the door, looking like she was about to burst into tears.

“Madam…! Do you know how worried I was?!”

“Why, why are you like this? I’m fine, Lia. Did something happen while you were waiting?”

I patted her on the back to calm her down.

“Nothing happened to me. But just before you came out, a man left the shop first…”

If it was someone who left before me, it must have been the Crown Prince.

“Did that man give you trouble, by any chance?”

“No, it wasn’t trouble exactly… He just asked me if I was on the same side as the woman inside.”

“And?”

“I asked him why he was asking that. Then he gave me this look, like, ‘How dare you question me?!’ It was so scary, sniff. So I ended up confessing that I was on the same side.”

“It’s okay, Lia. Saying that much won’t cause any problems.”

I comforted her.

“Nothing happened with that man inside, did it? He didn’t threaten you or act violently, right…?”

“No, nothing like that. In fact, he helped me.”

“He helped you?”

“Yeah, so don’t worry too much. Let’s hurry back now. At this rate, we’ll be out all night.”

We quickly retraced our steps.

The Dark Shop district seemed even busier than before.
From the slave traders advertising their wares to the noisy drunks spilling out of taverns, the place was even more chaotic than earlier.

We walked briskly through the market streets. Perhaps because of our hurried pace, it took less time to return to the Duke’s estate than it had taken to leave.

Fortunately, the estate was as quiet as a mouse, and I managed to reach my room without issue.
The magic tools I purchased today were safely stored in my room’s safe.

As soon as I lay down, I fell asleep, only waking up late in the morning.

That said, I hadn’t gotten much sleep.
Since I returned at dawn, I’d only slept for three or four hours at most.

“Ekette.”

I barely opened my eyes when I heard a voice outside the door.

“Ekette, are you awake?”

It was Kyron. He must have come to check on me because I hadn’t gotten up yet.

Did he think I’d died or something?
What should I say? Maybe I should claim I overslept because I wasn’t feeling well?

Just then, the door clicked open. Since I hadn’t responded, he must have decided to come in himself.

Thankfully, I had changed into pajamas as soon as I got back last night. I had even sprayed on some perfume to mask the dirty smell of the Dark Shop district.

Even the aide from last night hadn’t recognized me, so there was no way Kyron would find out about my outing. Probably.

While I was reassuring myself, Kyron had already approached me.

“You’re awake?”