After dropping Alice off in the capital, the coachman departed immediately.

Alice thought about the money pouch in her bag. Since she needed to be on the run according to the Countess, she decided to stay at inns.

‘After about a year, Lord Khalid will forget about me.’

By then, Khalid might have taken a wife. Running away was indeed the right answer. She hadn’t been having her period, and the food the villa’s maid served was hardly edible for humans. Leaving was better than starving to death.

She entered the largest inn and booked a room. This place was suitable for hiding without going outside, as meals were provided with payment. She pulled the bell rope, and an employee knocked on the door.

“Would you like your meal brought to your room?”

“Yes.”

“Tonight’s dinner is beef stew, baked potatoes, and tomato salad. Would you like that?”

“Yes! Please do that.”

“Understood.”

She was extremely hungry and determined to keep food down even if she felt nauseous. She also planned to call a physician to confirm whether she was indeed pregnant. She pulled the bell rope again. A very polite employee knocked on the door.

“Did you call?”

“Could you possibly call a visiting physician for me?”

“Of course. How about tomorrow evening?”

“That sounds good.”

“Very well.”

It was truly an inn worth the money. The staff was friendly, and most matters could be handled inside without going out.

‘But I can’t stay here for long.’

Although she had come to the capital, it was an expensive place, and staying here would use up all the money the Countess had given her. So she planned to live in one of the rural villages on the outskirts.

“Your meal is here.”

Alice opened the door at the employee’s words and was somewhat surprised to see their face. The employee was also surprised to see her.

“Noel?”

“Mariam!”

After placing the food on the table, Mariam hugged Alice. Seeing Alice with soft br*asts that weren’t there before and wearing a skirt, Mariam was bewildered.

“You…!”

“Ah…. Um. Well.”

Alice scratched her head. Having stayed at the villa all this time, she hadn’t run into Mariam or Tom. She had assumed Mariam would still be working at the Count’s mansion.

Mariam briefly excused herself to other staff and stood across from Alice.

“Are you cross-dressing? But wait, your br*asts are quite large? How did you…? Eek! K-kiss marks on your neck too…!”

Alice quickly covered Mariam’s mouth with her hand. Even though it didn’t matter if anyone heard, she felt conscious of her surroundings. After closing the door, Alice said with an embarrassed face:

“I’m a woman. I’m not cross-dressing.”

“…Really?”

“Yes.”

“Oh…. I, I see.”

Mariam wasn’t as surprised as expected.

Alice was curious why Mariam was working at an inn in the capital.

“I thought you were still working at the Walsh Count’s household. Did you change your workplace?”

“…Uh …well.”

“?”

Mariam sighed deeply, seemingly finding it difficult to speak.

“Actually, I was blackmailed after my relationship with the Count was discovered.”

“What…? By whom?”

“By Leah.”

“What? Leah, the Count’s concubine?”

“She said she’d tell the Countess if I didn’t quit on my own. I knew about several maids who disappeared after sleeping with the Count. So I just took the severance pay and quit cleanly!”

“…I see.”

“My parents and siblings also moved here. It’s on the outskirts of the capital, but the house is nice and clean. The capital is good because there are plenty of jobs.”

“…”

“How have you been? Have you heard anything about Tom?”

Alice hadn’t heard about Tom either. He was someone she had been quite friendly with, but she hadn’t met him looking like this.

“No.”

“Really? Then you probably haven’t heard that Tom left the Walsh Count’s household.”

“What…?”

This was news to Alice. Mariam shrugged her shoulders.

“I heard he became a servant for another noble? I was curious how he was doing, but it seems you don’t know either.”

“…Yeah.”

‘A servant for another noble? Could it be that widow?’

Mariam tilted her head, looking at Alice.

“…But where did you get the money? This place is so expensive.”

“…Just, somehow?”

Mariam stared intently at Alice. Looking at br*asts larger than her own, Mariam chuckled. Alice blinked.

“What?”

“Nothing…. I just feel silly for not recognizing you were obviously a woman.”

“Hehe. Right?”

“Yeah. …But being a slave must have made things complicated for you. Oh, anyway, don’t stay here too long. It’s expensive. …Hmm. How about renting a house with the money you’d spend on the inn?”

“…Should I?”

Not knowing the real estate market in the capital, Alice welcomed Mariam’s suggestion. Mariam gave a thumbs up.

“Leave it to me. With the money you’d spend here, you can rent a nice house. I know someone who can find you a suitable place. Oh, first eat your meal. I’ll get back to work.”

“Okay.”

“I’m off tomorrow, so let’s go look at houses in the morning!”

“Sure.”

It was fortunate to have met Mariam. After she left, Alice picked up her spoon and tasted the stew. Despite being a simple meal, it tasted delicious, perhaps because she had been so hungry. After eating hastily, her stomach felt queasy, so she emptied a little of it in the bathroom.

“Haah….”

Bathrooms like those found only in noble houses were throughout the room. Since she could also shower easily, Alice washed her body for the first time in a while. She wanted to soak her body, but bathtubs were only available in noble mansions.

‘I wish there was a bathtub.’

Although it would only be rented, finding a house to live in alone was quite an exciting prospect.

When morning came, Mariam visited Alice’s room. Dressed in outdoor clothes, Mariam took Alice’s hand.

“Let’s go!”

“…Okay.”

Having always dressed as a man in front of Mariam, this was the first time they were going out together with Alice in women’s clothing. Alice paid the inn fee to the staff. One silver coin for one night was not a small amount.

‘Mariam is right, renting a house would be better.’

The capital really did have high prices, she thought. Still, she felt good having bathed, eaten, and received friendly service.

“Oh. About the visiting physician.”

“Yes?”

“…Could I cancel the appointment and get directions instead?”

The employee replied kindly.

“Of course.”

The employee personally drew a map, and Alice was able to put the small piece of paper in her pocket.

Mariam asked Alice how much money she had to spare.

“How much does it usually cost to rent a house?”

In the countryside, rather than renting houses, people typically repaired old houses or built new ones. However, in the capital where land was limited, renting houses was common.

“With five silver coins, you can rent a house for about a year.”

“What about one with a bathtub?”

“Ah…. For that, you’d need to bring gold coins. And most such houses are rented by nobles.”

“Then forget it.”

“A place with a simple shower instead of a bathtub should be fine.”

“Okay.”

Though it was the capital, the price seemed reasonable… but in the countryside, that price would have bought a house. Of course, it would have been an old, deteriorated house.

Zachary, a man in his 30s who was a real estate agent and Mariam’s friend, introduced houses for Alice to stay in.

“Will you be living alone?”

“Yes.”

“Then you can save more money.”

They followed Zachary to find a place to live. One place had just one room and a living room. There was a separate kitchen but no shower facility. However, it was very close to the downtown area, making it convenient for going to the market.

“How about this? The bathroom and shower are communal facilities outside. The price is two silver coins.”

“…”

Alice shook her head.

Zachary showed them another house far from downtown, taking a carriage. It was quite a secluded place with inconvenient transportation. The building was old but quiet and spacious. There were other houses scattered around.

“This place is quite spacious. It’s three silver coins, and although transportation is inconvenient, it’s hard to find a house this large.”

Mariam opened her mouth wide.

“Wow! Noel, choose this one! It has three rooms, three! The living room is also spacious…! The bathroom and shower are inside too. Doesn’t this seem nice?”

Mariam stamped her feet, seemingly wanting to buy it herself.

Alice recalled that it took an hour by carriage to get here. This place was no longer the capital.

She had originally thought about buying a house in the countryside, but that was for when she settled in one place. She would be moving houses every year, and this place was too inconvenient. Alice shook her head again.

The third house shown was a ten-minute walk from the downtown center. Climbing stone stairs, the house appeared to be a sophisticated building that wasn’t built long ago, with both a bathroom and shower inside. However, the problem was that the rooms were extremely small. Mariam grumbled.

“What is this? There’s not even a living room? Only the kitchen and bathroom are separate?”

Zachary scratched his face.

“For five silver coins, this is a very good house, come on. I showed it to you because you said you’d be living alone. There are no communal areas here, so your privacy is guaranteed. The advantage is that you don’t have to queue outside the bathroom even if your stomach hurts in the morning! And the market is close, so you can buy food right away.”

“Is this the last one?”