Confused, Emperor Clint hurriedly summoned him again.
"duke!"
“….”
He did not respond even when the Emperor called out to him. In this case, he had to go himself to get Saiki.
What didn't satisfy him? He did his best, and wondered why he wasn't satisfied.
"duke!"
The Emperor called out to him again. Since the guards were all watching him, he couldn't ignore the Emperor twice. The Duke turned slowly in response to the call.
“I mentioned I would go and check.”
“Okay… I understand. I will arrange your situation regarding this matter later.”
Once again, Clint remained silent.
“Then be fine.”
The Duke made a formal gesture and turned away completely.
To find Saeki, his wife.
❖ ❖ ❖
“Ah…!”
Saiki felt the need to quicken her steps even though no one was chasing her. She felt like someone was following her for no reason. Maybe because of the shock I experienced that day...
While she was thinking about it vaguely, she continued walking at a leisurely pace.
Fortunately, there was no one to stop her as she left the palace.
Whether it was pure luck or Crown Prince Legton had already arranged it, she couldn't know.
Even if the prince had changed his mind and was helping her now, she decided not to dwell on these thoughts, knowing that the situation would not change much.
She looked around warily.
At the entrance to the palace that the Crown Prince had pointed out, there were actually no individuals guarding the door.
“Now, at this point...”
Although the Crown Prince had kept his promise, it was even more bitter for Saiki.
The day she lost her baby.
Because if he had kept his promise that day, maybe she could have saved the baby.
So, his mind was not grateful at all, on the contrary, the resentment grew stronger.
To prevent herself from indulging in depressive thoughts, she raised her head forcefully.
“Let's leave the palace quickly now...”
She muttered to herself, and left the castle gate alone.
❖ ❖ ❖
“Hmm.”
First, she thought she should change her clothes into something less obvious. She felt this matter becoming more obvious as she left in a hurry without any preparations.
“Okay then.”
Although she planned and prepared in advance, nothing happened as she expected.
Moreover, she couldn't find anything she had prepared for the future when she left the Duke's residence.
“At least...”
Saiki glanced at the clothes she was wearing. It looked so luxurious. The robe the Crown Prince had given her was not readily available.
“I have to sell this.”
It was not appropriate for one to walk around wearing noble clothes while fleeing. Rather, it seemed wise for him to dress as inconspicuously as possible.
It would also save travel expenses, making it a win-win situation.
“Where do you sell clothes?”
Saiki rolled her eyes as she entered the crowded streets. It seemed that the area near the palace still did not attract much attention, perhaps because it was a place where nobles wandered around often.
As she scanned the surrounding area, she noticed a shabby clothing store at the end of the street. It seemed best to avoid beauty salons or designer stores frequented by many nobles.
She covered her face as much as possible, and walked every now and then, heading towards the clothing store.
"Welcome!"
Even though it was daytime, the store owner was alone inside the store.
Even though there were no customers, the man greeted Saiki warmly.
“You are the first customer today!”
He stood up full of enthusiasm.
"what are you looking for?"
Saiki was trying to keep her situation as secret as possible, and was careful with her words, hoping to leave the store as soon as possible.
“According to our store, we have everything you could possibly need!”
“Ah…”
Saiki nodded slightly and then looked into the store. There were modest clothes hanging on one of the walls, not as flashy as those reserved for nobles.
Seems like a good place to blend in with the crowd.
Saiki deliberately avoided eye contact with the man and pointed to a dress in the corner.
“This… can I have it?”
She wanted to speak informally, so she quickly added to her words.
“…hmm?”
“Haha. Why do you feel uncomfortable? You look like a noble. Just speak at ease.”
“Noble”...that word left a bitter taste in Saiki’s mouth.
What will remain of me if the title “Duchess” is taken away from me?
Saiki suddenly felt embarrassed.
Her growing sense of despair was caused by her arm bearing the mark of the missing child.
“Sure… I must have looked really angry.”
Psyche thought about this, and looked at her plump stomach. Even if she went back to him, she wouldn't, and even if she did, he would never forgive her, she thought.
Then suddenly I got angry.
The person who should feel most sad when losing a child is himself!
“…”
But she decided to postpone her anger and sadness for now, as she believed that in the future she would definitely have the opportunity to reveal her identity to him.
Although her tears would have flowed at any moment from the intensity of the pain she felt over losing her child, Saiki, who had never been in such a situation, bit her lips to suppress her emotions. Then she quickly averted her gaze, trying to hide her feelings.
“Is this what you mean?”
The dress hanging in the corner was very shabby, an indigo dress that covered her from head to toe, very different from what nobles wore.
“Yes...ah, give me this.”
She had never raised her voice in front of a stranger before, which made her speech seem awkward. However, now she has to break free from her situation.
The shop owner seems indifferent to Saeki.
“Oh, you'll wear it...you're going.”
“Ah~ Can I?”
Saeki entered the separate dilapidated room, quickly put on the dress and went out. She looked pitiful when she was reflected in the mirror.
She wrapped her signature silver hair tightly around the robe.
“Back to the way it was before.”
She calmly organized her feelings and left.
“And sell this too.”
Should I?
The man happily accepted the dress Saeki was wearing. He quickly realized that it was a high-quality silk dress, and there was no reason to refuse it.
The pawn shop owner asked Saiki various questions, but she remained silent.
Her behavior naturally aroused curiosity. This was not a place frequented by nobles, and selling valuable clothes to buy shabby clothes was not common.
But she quickly took the money and left.
She didn't like the curious looks that were following her. She wanted to go somewhere where no one knew her, and now she began to miss her hometown.
Fortunately, the pawn shop offered a fair price for the clothes, so she could cover her travel expenses.
“Now...”
She looked around and headed towards the place where she could catch the carriage.
She deliberately chose to take the path back.
She didn't want to be caught by the Duke. She was planning to take a carriage ride to Randall, which was in the opposite direction from Alastair's lands where she was born and raised. She intended to change carriages without saying a word, even if someone followed her.
If she was caught, she wanted the information leaked that she was headed to Randall. Psyche deliberately made sure everyone heard that she was heading to Randall before she quietly got into the carriage.
❖ ❖ ❖
It was late at night.
Unable to sleep, she sat on a plank at the front of the carriage, which had no seats, and looked through the gap.
When should I go downstairs and change my clothes?
It had been about half a day since they started running.
The carriage, which had left in the afternoon, was now driving through the forest at night.
The weather, approaching autumn, was very cold.
They couldn't sleep, and the number of passengers in the carriage was about twenty-eight people, so they looked around as if they were looking normally and their eyes turned to Saeki who was sitting in the front.
There were eight people on board this small carriage, including Psyche. Among them are five people in total. An elderly couple, Saiki, a young woman with a covered face, and a well-armed man who appears to be a mercenary due to his tough appearance.
Contrary to his profession, he had a surprisingly handsome face.
As they traveled in silence, Saiki found herself inadvertently observing the people she was now accompanying. This was not intentional; They were the only ones she focused on.
The kind-looking old couple seemed to feel pity for Psyche, as they had been taking care of her since leaving the carriage.
“Madam, what business has brought you to such a remote place as Randall?”
“Oh…”
Since Randall was not her real destination, Psyche smiled mysteriously.
She didn't particularly want to engage in conversation with anyone.
However, in a day or two, you will disembark from the carriage and head towards the lands of Alastair.