I quickly shook my head and spoke.
“That wasn’t meant for you.”
After finishing my words, I glanced out the window.
Erich was mounting his horse alongside Marquis Philippe.
‘If it weren’t for my child, I wouldn’t be stuck in such uncomfortable company.’
As I ground my teeth, I saw him turning his head toward the carriage I was in.
I hurriedly pulled the curtain shut and clenched my fist.
‘It feels awful, but there’s nothing I can do. For now, let’s just focus on arriving safely at the capital.’
Finally, the carriage wheels began to roll.
Suppressing unnecessary thoughts, I cautioned my son.
“Never call that man outside ‘Daddy.’ Understand?”
“Why?”
My child asked with a sulky face, and I answered briefly so he could understand.
“Because he’s a really bad person.”
Somehow, my child looked as if he didn’t understand my words, but he nodded.
“Okay, Mom.”
☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓
The carriage ride was excruciating.
No matter how luxurious the carriage, sitting for a long time was tedious and uncomfortable.
The only relief was…
“Jan, give me candy!”
“Yes, young master! Here it is!”
The fact that my baby was sitting quietly without complaint for just some candy was truly impressive.
‘So admirable.’
I pulled back the curtain and looked out the window.
Beyond the horizon, I could see the sun setting over the mountain ridge.
‘The sun will set soon.’
Before long, it became dark.
Traveling through the night with a child was not feasible.
‘There’s only one place worth going around here.’
So, the place we decided to rest at was Lacne, the most bustling tourist city near the capital.
‘There’s definitely a lot to see.’
Lacne, a tourist city in the capital region, had many attractions and was quite lively.
Among them, the most eye-catching was the brightly lit night market.
‘There are many interesting things to check out.’
At that moment, Baron Lacne approached us.
“Are you sure you won’t be staying at our mansion?”
As the lord of this city, he had quickly run over to greet us upon learning of our arrival at the checkpoint and urged us to come to his mansion.
‘But there’s absolutely no way I’ll stay at the mansion. Because…’
The one who responded to the baron’s offer was currently my captain of the guard, Sardin.
“Yes, the Countess said she would be departing early in the morning.”
The baron looked at me with a regretful expression but soon smiled and nodded.
“Yes, understood. I will escort you to the hotel.”
It seemed that Baron Lacne wanted to establish a good relationship with our flourishing estate.
Seeing how warmly he welcomed my visit.
‘But even so, this is a bit excessive. I should be cautious, just in case.’
The hotel we arrived at, guided by the baron, was impressive even in the eyes of royalty like me.
With its grand building, the city’s character was certainly prominent.
‘Maybe I should consider building one like this on our estate?’
At that moment, the baron handed something to the hotel manager,
“Countess Herde and her party are here, so please take good care of them.”
“Yes.”
Then he turned to us and said,
“I will take my leave now. I hope you have a comfortable stay in our estate.”
I nodded instead of replying.
And Sardin expressed our gratitude on my behalf.
“Thank you for your consideration, Baron.”
Once he left, the manager guided us to the top suite of the hotel.
It had several rooms surrounding a large living area.
“There are six rooms, so please make yourselves comfortable. If you need anything, just pull the bell to call us.”
Sardin nodded in response.
“Understood.”
As soon as the manager left, I sighed and took off my hat.
“Fortunately, it seems Baron Lacne didn’t recognize us.”
Baron Lacne was a wealthy individual among the nobles of the eastern capital region, and he frequently appeared in the capital’s social circles.
‘Moreover, he was quite close to my uncle, Marquis Arzen, so I had many worries.’
And just like me, Marquis Philippe took off the hood attached to his cloak and answered.
“That’s a relief. I was worried since he’s someone we’ve encountered before in the capital. And more than that…”
Marquis Philippe glanced at Erich and chuckled softly.
“I was worried because there’s someone who stands out, but I’m glad we got through without incident.”
At that, Erich’s brow furrowed in displeasure and then sighed.
“I’ll go take a look around…”
At that moment,
“Mom, let’s go outside!”
My child’s absurd request left me stunned.
‘What is he saying?’
We had come to the hotel precisely to avoid being recognized by Baron Lacne.
In such a situation, going outside seemed risky, and even though he was young, I needed to make him understand the situation.
“Demi, I clearly told you, didn’t I? We can’t leave the accommodation.”
I said this quite sternly, but Demian puffed his cheeks and grumbled.
“But there are so many interesting things here.”
Certainly, the dazzling scenery of Lacne at night could easily captivate a child.
“Still, no means no. It’s dangerous…”
At that moment, my child ran over and clung to Erich’s leg.
“You’ll protect me, right?”
Seeing my son’s cunning look, reminiscent of a little fox, left me speechless.
‘He can’t be doing this on purpose, can he?’
For a moment, I entertained such an absurd thought, then shook my head.
‘No, that little one doesn’t understand anything. He’s just…’
Demian’s official identity was the illegitimate child of the late Count Herde.
Originally, Count Herde had no relatives and was a fallen noble who had made his achievements all on his own, which is why I had set him up as my fake husband.
At that time, I had almost erased the existence of a father from my child’s life.
I had to commemorate the anniversary of Count Herde’s death due to the attention of others, but my child followed me in bowing his head, not understanding the situation.
However, when Demian turned three, some oblivious person said this to him:
<Our young master is so kind. I’m sure he misses his father, yet he doesn’t cry…>
At that moment, my child had responded.
“Why should I cry? My dad is the best knight in the empire!”
I looked at Erich.
With his blonde hair, strong build, and upright posture, he looked like a charming knight straight out of a story.
Perhaps the image of a father in my child’s heart really resembled him.
Moreover, I had heard that the late Count Herde was also a handsome blonde man.
‘So that’s why he thought his father had returned.’
Honestly, I felt sorry for my child and wanted to give in to whatever he asked.
However, one can’t solve everything with emotions.
I firmly told my child:
“Demian, I told you, right? Come here.”
“Isn’t it okay? The child wants this.”
It wasn’t Demian who answered my words. It was Erich Lennon Blant.
“What if you run into an assassin or something?”
Despite my sharp question, he looked at me with steady eyes and replied.
“I will take responsibility and protect you, even if it costs me my life.”
I couldn’t help but scoff at his grand words.
‘I feel like I’ve heard something similar before.’
At that moment, my child ran over and hugged me.
“Mom, I’m sorry. I was being unreasonable. Please don’t be mad.”
Normally, I wouldn’t have been able to suppress my anger toward Erich, but seeing the small one looking up at me, I couldn’t help but soften my expression.
“No, Mom isn’t mad.”
I then glared at Erich and spoke.
“Alright, then I’ll go with you. So… let’s see how long your precious life lasts.”
His blue eyes widened at my prickly words, and soon a smile appeared on his handsome face.
“Yes, let’s do that.”
In all honesty, I found that expression to be quite irritating; however, witnessing my child’s happiness did somewhat alleviate my distress.
“How exciting!”
I held onto my bouncing child’s small hand.
‘Is he really that happy?’
At that moment, Erich looked at me and Demian and spoke.
“However, there is something we need to do before we go out.”
☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓
“So, you’re saying that woman is staying at the hotel?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“And how many people are with her?”
“There are three guards, one maid, and the Countess and her son.”
“Surely they’re not going anywhere?”
“I have instructed my men to keep a watch on the Countess and her entourage at the hotel and report back if anything happens.”
Marquis Arzen smiled with satisfaction at Baron Lacne’s words.
‘Just as the Archduke said.’
When he was told to meet the woman he had been trying to capture, he felt chills from the archduke and was also skeptical.
‘I can’t believe I’m actually going to see her here.’
Moreover, it seemed her party was smaller than last time.
“We’re going to the hotel.”
With his intimidating subordinates, Marquis Arzen left the baron’s mansion.
