# 42
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* * *
Preparations for the exit were made with astonishing speed.
The servants prepared the carriage to go out in a jiffy.
It was less luxurious than the one the Grand Duchess had brought, but it looked very luxurious in Elinor's eyes.
When Tidian heard that Elinor was going out, he came running.
“I'll take good care of the baby until you come back, Elinor... I mean, Miss Elinor.”
Tidian's blue eyes were filled with the desire to monopolize the child for a few hours.
But can Tidian, who is still young, take good care of the baby for a long time on his own?
Elinor looked anxiously at the child in Tidian's arms.
Then, a maid from the Master's Palace standing next to him said.
“Don't worry, ma'am. The maids will be there too.”
“Ah… thanks.”
“When you go to the city, definitely visit Bergen Bakery! The fruit cream cake there is so delicious. And the lemon madeleines too!”
Tidian smiled broadly and waved his hand.
The carriage carrying the two started moving smoothly.
Elinor looked at Matthias, sitting across from her, and thought.
'Suddenly proposing to go out really surprised me.'
Even though she had been promised that he would not detain her anymore, she thought that getting out of the palace would be difficult.
'In the original story, Charlotte wasn't allowed to step out.'
Is it because she is not the heroine that she is treated differently?
Is it because Matthias, as a secondary character, doesn't need to obsess over her?
Whatever Matthias's true intentions, Elinor felt refreshed by leaving the palace.
She put her hand on the window frame.
The cool breezes were refreshing.
A small smile appeared on her face without her realizing it.
The cart moved smoothly on the road.
Hilliard's fiefdom was divided into an inner and outer castle.
The inner castle was reserved for the Duke's family, where Elinor resided all the time.
Inside the outer castle, the inhabitants of the feudal lord lived.
She expected the fiefdom to be large since it was the fiefdom of a duke.
"wow."
But the size was much larger than she imagined, and Elinor could not close her mouth.
The buildings were crowded, and the people even more crowded.
There were street vendors constantly ling their wares.
The city was vibrant and full of energy.
Matthias laughed when he saw Elinor's reaction.
“You react like a villager visiting a capital for the first time.”
"Yes, this is correct."
Elinor nodded easily.
“I've never been to such a crowded place before.”
"What? Didn't you live in the capital?"
“Yes, but...”
After moving into this world, Elinor didn't go out much.
After deciding to attend the academy, she immediately left home and did not visit the capital until she graduated.
The capital, where the main characters of the original story were active, was a place she should avoid.
Especially since her sister, the heroine of the story, was busy with various activities.
“I mean, a long time ago.”
Unable to explain, Elinor answered vaguely.
As the facades of the buildings visible from the window became more luxurious, the carriage entered a street full of luxury shops.
The carriage stopped in front of a building that looked most elegant.
The sign said .
“Get down.”
Matthias got out of the carriage first and extended his hand to Elinor.
Elinor hesitated for a moment, but took it as a polite gesture and placed her hand in his palm.
Matthias's hand was very large, perhaps one and a half times larger than hers.
'If I hold it like this, my hand will never be seen.'
Elinor took her body out of the carriage.
At that moment, the door of the store suddenly opened, and a woman with curly hair walked out.
“Sir Duke, have you come?”
She was wearing glasses in the shape of an inverted crescent moon, and she was Isabel, the owner of this store.
She heard the sound of the carriage arriving, so she looked out the window and saw the Duke, so she ran outside.
She was surprised when she saw a strange and beautiful woman holding Matthias's hand.
Elinor was equally surprised.
She quickly released her hand from Matthias's, but lost her balance and stumbled.
"Yes."
The image of Isabelle, looking at her in amazement, tilted sideways.
Elinor instinctively closed her eyes.
At that moment, a big hand firmly supported Elinor's waist.
"Are you well?"
His face was close as he asked her, holding her in his arms.
His body was closer, and she could clearly feel his heat.
Elinor pushed him in confusion and quickly got up.
"I'm fine."
“Be careful. You almost got hurt.”
“I will be.”
Her heart was beating fast in surprise.
Her cheeks were even hotter.
Elinor continued to cool her cheeks with the back of her hand.
Until she entered the store behind him when he asked her to quickly enter.
* * *
About three hours later.
They visited a café that was highly recommended by Tidian.
“Huh.”
Elinor sat on a bench on the terrace and let out a tired sigh.
The shopping lasted for three hours.
Dressing and undressing, dressing and taking off, over and over again.
She wanted to buy something suitable and finish the shopping, but Matthias did not agree.
'Is this design available in cream?'
'This looks too much for the clothes.'
'I don't like the fabric. Is there anything else?'
He was as picky as his mother-in-law.
Well, Matthias was like that too when they were in the village raising the baby…
“Isn't that too much?”
Elinor looked at the shopping bags around her and said.
“I needed one dress for the tea party, so why carry five dresses?”
Rather, the store Elinor visited was a luxury store that offered custom-made clothing.
Which means the clothes you got were meant for someone else.
And you get five of them!
This is an abuse of power and a nuisance.
Elinor felt remorse.
But Matthias, who had caused it, was calm.
“Women usually need a lot of clothes.”
“I only needed one dress. To be honest, I didn't even need it...and on top of that, I added additional design requests.”
“You will stay in the Duke’s Palace until you meet your sister.”
Matthias smiled.
“It won't take long, but you need clothes to wear until then.”
“Huh.”
“Keep it. There will be moments when you need it.”
Matthias sipped his coffee naturally, shifting the burden to Elinor.
But he wasn't entirely honest.
'I only intended to dress one dress.'
He felt sorry for Elinor, who had been invited to a tea party with clear intentions.
She could have refused, using it as an excuse, but her interest in attending the party made him anxious.
So, he wanted to boost her morale by buying her a good dress.
Especially since it would be clothes made for someone else, bought for extra money.
'Oh my God, oh my God. The light purple fabric suits her very well. Would you like to try this hat too?'
But when she put the clothes on, they all looked great on her.
This highlights her skin brightly, and this highlights her hair beautifully.
They were all good, it was a shame to choose just one.
But he couldn't buy all the clothes in the store.
So, Mathias chose carefully.
He ended up with only five dresses.