One week into travel, we crossed our first hurdle without any incidents.

As the entourage crossed the golden gates, we were no longer in foreign territory. Angelica was now in Orion, which meant that the last of the restrictions that separated us were gone.

Still, the entourage will proceed as planned till Parthellam. As there were more factors in play, it would be wiser to move farther into the territory.

If I were to make myself known at the border, only for Angelica to run away with ease. Finding her again would be harder, as this time she would know I would be searching for her.

"So you finally found her huh?" Chief Tozier asked, following my line of sight to the place Angelica was standing.

As always, Angelica was surrounded by the beastmen of her group while waiting for the upcoming verification process. They seemed to be engaged in a deep conversation.

Behind her at a safe distance stood two Dark Wolf Knights disguised as Orion merchants. They were standing guard and listening to their conversation while three more circled around the group disguised as guards.

"I did" I answered, without turning back to look at my old sword master.

"If you keep staring, you're going to bore a hole into her head" Tozier patted my shoulder and beckoned me to follow him to the guard tower.

"Now then. How was your journey, Your Grace?"

"It was quite fascinating"

Throughout our travel Angelica and I traveled side by side, spending most of our waking hours together. Other than the times she engaged in playful interactions with the rabbit beastman Eugene, we found ourselves having pleasant conversations about various topics or pass time in comfortable silence.

While it may have begun as a way I could keep her within my sights till we reached our destination. It also gave us an opportunity to learn about each other from a fresh perspective without any prejudices. It was undoubtfully a feat that could not have been possible if I had not been under a mask.

It made me wonder about a different reality. Maybe if we had met under different circumstances, would we have found each other's company as enjoyable as we do now?

Although the mission was to safely bring Angelica back into Orion, we were still in transit of an ancient relic which was also a part of the disguise. Thus a border check was mandated.

The relic was given by the Velven royal family as a part of the peace treaty between the two empires, which would then be delivered to Master Gilbert, who was an expert in the field.

The royal wedding between the two empires will be announced to the public on the upcoming foundation day. And the relic needed to be transported before the announcement on account of security.

As the peace treaty was signed right around the time I discovered Angelica's whereabouts, it became the perfect alibi to explain my absence in the capital.

Aside from a select few, even the royal family was unaware of the true nature of the mission. As far as the capital was concerned, Edward Frost was in Velven as a part of the Orion envoy to address the conflict between the empires due to illegal smuggling. No one would think I would be searching after a ghost in the remote corners of another country.

Chief Milton Tozier who had also been my sword teacher during my younger years was one among the selected few and was well aware of the scheme surrounding the entourage. He was the Royal Guard posted at the border between Velven and Orion, having been stationed at the borders dating back to the Calvan War.

While most people capital might not be familiar with his name, he was a commoner that raised through the ranks to the Royal Guard for his contributions to the empire.

Hence when our arrival was made known he paved the way for the carriages to go through the gates without any delay.

Tozier had also fought alongside Countess Maria Ashford during the Calvan war, who during that time served as the Commander of the Eagle Knights.

When I first explained the situation surrounding the entrapment, he had nodded in arrangement and said,

"I wouldn't expect anything less from Commander Maria's descendent"

It was no wonder he recognized Angelica at first glance since the two shared striking features that would make it impossible for anyone who knew the late Countess to miss the resemblance.

While I waited in the Chief's office for his return, I thought about the passage of time. With the days going by in the blink of an eye, it will be soon the day of the full moons. It would also be the day Angelica turns twenty-one.

If we travel as per schedule, by the time the day reaches, we would be in the middle of Eldom forest.

Right then, Tozier walked in through the door, with a stack of documents in his hand.

Having just returned from conducting the interview on Angelica, Tozier sat down with a smile on his face. For all the years I spent learning under him as a student, I had never seen him with such a delighted countenance.

"When I heard that young lady speak..." Tozier started to speak but paused for a bit, looking away into the distance.

"I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me. Thought the years were finally catching up to me"

It was odd of him to behave in such a manner. Given that he was constantly under the watchful eyes of those scrutinizing him, Tozier had to be stern and direct to maintain order among the people.

Seeing him look so delighted brought the question.

"Were you that amused, Chief?"

"Amused? No. I wouldn't put it that way" He shook his head and smiled.

"When she said, she was the most honest person I have ever met in my life. I almost lost my composure" He added with pride in his eyes as if those words reminded him of someone.

"I thought I was looking at the same person who changed my life all those years ago with those exact same words"

After going through the rest of the procedure, Tozier and I discussed the changing dynamics at the capital with the arrival of the new Saintess. Although the Saintess Oralia was yet to be found, the arrival of a potential new Saintess had masked her disappearance perfectly that even the Vatican had stopped sending appeals to the royal court to have the Saintess return from seclusion.

Just as I was about to bid farewell, Tozier passed the documents he had brought with him across the table. At the bottom of the document was the tower's official seal pressed in red ink.

"Thank you, Your Grace"

Tozier placed a hand on his chest and clenched the silver medallion with the eagle crest pinned to his uniform.

"I was honored"









After leaving the guard tower, there was one more place I needed to visit before leaving Lorem. With the town surrounded by Dark Wolfs in every corner, I can move about with ease without having the need to be within the eye's reach of Angelica.

I was on my way to the predetermined destination through the local market when a certain sign caught my interest. It was a jewelry store.

And before I knew it, I walked in through the doors with Eza following my lead. The store had a wide collection of jewelry for women. However, there was a small section with ornaments dedicated to men at the back of the store.

"Welcome!"

Noticing our presence the clerk, an older woman, greeted us at the entrance.

"Are you purchasing for a lover or perhaps a wife?"

"The latter, we hope so" Ezra answered before wandering into the back of the store.

Even though we were long past the trail of return, I knew that Ezra still had doubts about Angelica's identity owing to the lack of physical evidence.

Rather it was because of the testimony of the Frost Knights that made him hard to believe for her to have survived a fall from the cliff of Mount Zion.

Duchess Angelica he knew through the words of the Knights and the servants was in stark contrast to the mercenary Ann he sees.

It was absurd. Still, no one knew of the Angelica that I know. There was no need to prove him wrong as time will prove him otherwise in due time.

I browsed through the display, unsure of what to select. Since I had never chosen jewelry of any kind, I struggled to choose a piece she would like.

Gold, diamond, ruby... the jewelry on the show appeared to be made of various materials. Yet none caught my interest.

"If you don't know what to buy. How about you think of something she might need?"

After hearing the clerk's suggestion, I reached inside my coat and pulled out the small piece of thread I had found. It was Angelica's hair tie, which I had picked up the previous day after following her to the stream.

As if the hair tie in my hand had given her inspiration, the clerk retreated to the back of the store and returned moments later with a tray of new jewelry.

"These hair ornaments were made by the finest craftsmen in all of Orion. I'm sure your wife would love it"

The jewelry looked of finer quality compared to those placed on the show. Almost immediately I picked out the emerald hair ornament from the assortment of jewelry. It had a simple yet elegant design.

The emerald placed at the center reminded me of Angelica's sharp cunning and calculating eyes.

From the past week I spent riding beside her, I knew that she had the tendency to lose hair ties in a frequent manner. She used to frequently argue with the twin beastmen about losing and buying new hair ties, only to lose them again.

Although I was unsure if I would be able to give it to her on the day of the full moons, I purchased the item either way.

I thought of Angelica's choice of jewelry. Aside from the necklace and nose pin she did not appear to be fond of any kind of accessories.

'Maybe I could say I picked it from the street?'

As if she appeared out of my thoughts, I ran into Angelica right after leaving the store.

When our gazes met, I unconsciously walked towards her without much of a thought.

"Mr. Kalan" Angelica called my name, as her eyes drifted to the jewelry in my hand.

"Shopping?"

"Yes"

I placed the jewelry box in my coat with care. As much as I wanted to see the emerald ornament adorned on her lustrous locks, Angelica would certainly find it strange to receive jewelry from a stranger she barely knew.

"Everyone settled for the day?"

I turned her attention to a different topic.

"Yeah. They left for the inn but we just decided to explore the area"

Angelica and her two fox beastmen companions Oliver and Noah were spending their leisure time at the town festival. It pleased me to see that the wolf beastman with the hidden intentions was not with them.

From the crumbs on her shirt, the trio had just finished a round through the food stalls when they spotted us.

'Looks like you are having a good time... Hmm'

At that moment, a thought crossed my mind. I was not present at the time Anglica was questioned at the guard's tower. So,

"First time in Orion?"

I couldn't help but ask out of amusement.

"It's the first time for all three of us"

I stifled a laugh on hearing Angelica's confident response. Now I know the reason behind Tozier's expression after he returned from interviewing her.

The way Angelica spoke as if she believed her own lies would have convinced even the experienced Imperial investigators to believe her deception. Ezra could not be entirely blamed for not believing her to be the Duchess.

"Then, we'll be on our way"

Minutes later, Angelica went on her way with her companions. As our arrival coincided with the day of the festival, there will be more than one attraction that would keep Angelica occupied until all my affairs had been handled.

I waited and watched till she disappeared into the crowd before walking away in the opposite direction. Since the plan was to stay the night in Lorem, the next time we see each other would be by nightfall.

The chances of Angelica getting herself in trouble was less in that short duration, especially with the Frost Knights guarding the town.

Or so, I had thought.

"We have a visitor" Jack announced and activated the rune engraved on his desk.

The wall in front of us started to fade until it became transparent to reveal the room on the other side. Right on cue, Angelica walked into the waiting room.

"It's your wife"

Out of all the places in Lorem, the Third Eye Guild was the last place I expected to see Angelica.

'How did you even find this place?'

Despite the fact that we started out in different directions, our paths had crossed yet again.