“Yes, I don’t see that name anywhere in our records. We do have a Brian Thornton. He’s a 19-year-old young man who enlisted last year. Perhaps you’re looking for him? He’s with the 17th Division.”

Eloise shook her head weakly at the name the clerk mentioned.

The name was somewhat similar, but the age and division made it impossible to be Ryan.

Eloise briefly considered the possibility that she might have misunderstood something.

‘That’s impossible.’

How many conversations had she shared with Ryan throughout last summer? Whenever she mentioned the story of Ryan Wilgrave whom she admired, their conversation naturally flowed to the legendary achievements of the 57th Infantry Battalion.

Each time, as if confirming that he had participated in those battles, Ryan would describe the detailed situations to Eloise with vivid imagery.

Could a 19-year-old who enlisted near the end of the war possibly fabricate those stories of crawling through mud ruined by rain amid enemy artillery fire, and escaping blood-soaked puddles?

Besides, her first letter had definitely been delivered to the 57th Infantry Battalion.

“Now that we’re done checking, next person…”

“Wait a moment!”

As the clerk was about to call the next person, Eloise hurriedly collected herself and grabbed the clerk’s attention again.

“Then what about Philip Osborne! Is Sir Osborne there? He’s also from the 57th Infantry Battalion.”

The clerk made no effort to hide his annoyance at Eloise detaining him again. He sighed heavily as he turned the pages once more.

‘Surely Sir Osborne can’t be missing too?’

While Eloise was nervously biting her lip, the clerk’s hand stopped as he flipped through the list.

“Ah, Philip Osborne. Here he is.”

Eloise’s expression brightened at those words.

That’s more like it. They couldn’t all be missing. At least Philip was definitely there, so she could find him and ask about Ryan.

She had such hope, but then—

“He was discharged two weeks ago.”

“What? Discharged?”

Discharged? What was this about now?

‘There was nothing about this in the letter he sent to Abigail.’

But thinking about it, Philip’s letter hadn’t contained any precise information either. Still, she never imagined he would have been discharged.

“Then could I possibly get Philip Osborn’s address?”

“Let me see… Oh, it’s blank.”

The clerk said this while fluttering the paper with nothing written in the address field.

“Isn’t it written somewhere else?”

“If this field is empty, it means he didn’t want to provide his address. He might have reported it personally to military superiors, but I don’t have access to that information, so I can’t tell you. That would have been his wish as well. Now, if that’s all…”

“Wait! Just one more! Just one more person!”

“Sigh… This is the last one. I can’t keep attending to just you when there are other people waiting. Can’t you see them behind you?”

The clerk pointed behind Eloise. Various people were sitting there waiting for their turn.

Eloise had heard their purposes while sitting and waiting herself.

Someone looking for a soldier who had taken money promising introductions to high-ranking military officials, someone searching for a soldier who had promised marriage, someone looking for a person who had taken agricultural products from the supply corps during the war claiming the military would pay for them later, and so on.

Of course, not everyone was there for such unfortunate reasons.

Someone looking for a soldier who had saved their life when captured by enemy forces. Someone coming to deliver personal effects they had found on a battlefield. Everyone was there with their own unique stories, desperately searching for someone.

She couldn’t take too much time in front of these people just because she was in a difficult situation.

“What about Richard, Richard Cameron?”

When Eloise mentioned that name, the clerk spoke without even looking at the list, as if there was no need to check.

“He’s on extended leave. And I’ll tell you in advance, his whereabouts are also unknown.”

“How do you know without even looking?”

“I don’t need to look. He’s quite famous for being sought after by women. Now, that’s all. Goodbye. Next person!”

The clerk immediately called the next person, making it clear he would take no more questions from Eloise.

A middle-aged man from behind approached hurriedly, looking at Eloise as if urging her to move aside quickly. Because of this, Eloise had no choice but to get up and go outside.

Perhaps because she had been inside, the winter wind cut through her collar. Eloise slumped down on a nearby bench.

Even in the cool air, her dazed mind wouldn’t clear.

“What’s going on here?”

The words she had muttered most frequently since the day he suddenly left came out again.

“How can all three of them be unreachable?”

This was truly unexpected.

Honestly, she had thought she would be able to find Ryan immediately upon coming here. She had believed that once she learned his new assignment and asked for his address, she could find him and meet him even today…

But not only was Ryan unreachable, there was no way to contact the other two either.

Eloise tried to think of someone who might be in touch with Ryan. Of course, Baron Stanford was the first person who came to mind.

‘But… I know Baron Stanford goes down to his country house in winter!’

If it were during the war, he would have stayed in the capital, but now that the war was over, he would have returned to manage his estate that had been neglected for so long.

The problem was that Baron Stanford’s estate was a two-week carriage ride from the capital.

‘And it seems inappropriate to just show up asking about Ryan!’

Eloise sighed deeply and got up from her seat.

Beatrice would be waiting outside, so she couldn’t stay here any longer.

Sure enough, when Eloise returned to the carriage, Beatrice glared at her with narrowed eyes.

“What on earth were you doing in there that took so long?”

“Just…”

Eloise gave a vague answer and turned her head away. She didn’t have the energy to appease Beatrice’s mood right now.

Beatrice, also having more urgent matters, urged the coachman to depart quickly.

“Hurry! I heard Lady Sinclair doesn’t like people who are late!”

The carriage arrived at Lady Sinclair’s mansion amid uncomfortable silence.

“Come on! Hurry up!”

With those words, Beatrice went inside first.

She seemed too excited about finally attending to even wait for Eloise.

Although Eloise hurried to follow Beatrice, she had already disappeared among the crowd of people.

Eloise considered calling out to her but soon gave up.

‘I can meet her again after it’s over anyway.’

Or perhaps they might run into each other while slowly walking around the mansion.

But at gatherings like this, one needed to be properly introduced to converse with others. Approaching strangers first would be considered rude.

‘I won’t be able to greet anyone else until I find Beatrice.’

That might actually be fortunate. In her current state of mind, she wasn’t in the mood to smile and chat with anyone.

Eloise looked around and headed toward the mansion’s garden.

As she had expected, chairs were placed throughout for those seeking a moment of rest.

Eloise sat on the chair in the most secluded corner and raised her head. She could see people greeting each other with smiles all over the mansion’s terraces.

‘Was this mansion bestowed by the royal family?’

Beatrice had told her that the royal family had recognized Lady Sinclair’s achievements and rewarded her with this mansion in the capital. Since then, this mansion had become the center of the capital’s social scene.

Looking at the grand mansion, Eloise sighed deeply again.

‘They say she’s a woman my age.’

Yet Lady Sinclair had achieved meritorious deeds and was admired by everyone, while she herself had left her hometown and was wandering around the capital in search of someone whose existence she couldn’t even be certain of.

Just as another sigh was about to escape—

“Hello there?”

Suddenly, a bright voice came from beside her.

Eloise turned in surprise to see a woman with short, curly hair smiling at her.

She extended her hand to Eloise.

“You’re the first person I’ve seen sighing like that in my house, so I was curious and came to greet you without a proper introduction. I’m Maria Sinclair.”