Chapter 260

“Autumn festival?”

Seeing a flicker of curiosity cross her face, Tiuran cautiously continued her explanation.

“Yes, Your Highness. Because the season of rest comes to the East earlier than it does to the central regions, we usually hold a harvest festival around the end of summer. If you go out into the streets now, there should be quite a variety of things for you to enjoy.”

“As if there could be anything worth enjoying at a commoners’ festival.”

Talia gave a small scoff.

Tiuran parted her lips as though she intended to persuade her a little more, but the next moment, she turned away with a gloomy expression.

“If you don’t feel like going, I won’t urge you any further.”

Then she walked over to the shelf and began arranging the medicine bottles displayed there.

Talia glanced sideways at her, quietly rose from her seat, and approached her.

“Did I upset you?”

At the sight of Talia peeking at her face to gauge her mood, a faint smile appeared at the corners of Tiuran’s lips. The healer gave a small cough as though suppressing it, then deliberately put on a dejected expression.

“No. I’m simply disappointed that I won’t be able to show Your Highness Kalmor’s harvest festival.”

“......You seem to be getting more cunning by the day.”

Talia furrowed her brow at such an obvious trick, but eventually let out a resigned sigh.

“Fine. Let’s go.”

“You’ve made a good choice. Once you look around and see a few things, I’m sure you’ll feel much better.”

With a satisfied smile on her lips, Tiuran immediately summoned the servants.

While the maids, visibly troubled by the sudden news that the Grand Duchess intended to go out, hesitantly helped Talia get ready, the captain of the guard arrived belatedly at her room and asked in a stiff tone,

“I heard that you intend to leave the castle. Is that true?”

Talia, who was sitting before the mirror having her hair arranged, raised one eyebrow and glared at him.

“Is there a problem?”

“If you wish to go out, you must first receive His Grace’s permission.”

The man’s overbearing attitude made her face twist viciously.

“I’m only going to see the festival. Are you saying I have to ask permission for every little thing, even stepping out into the streets for a while?”

“Your Highness already has a history of secretly slipping out of the castle once before. There is no guarantee that you will not do the same thing again this time.”

Talia’s face flushed scarlet with humiliation and anger.

She shot to her feet and walked up to the man. Then, without hesitation, she struck the captain of the guard across the face.

“How dare you act insolent in front of me? I am an Imperial Princess and the Grand Duchess of the East. Do you think someone like you has any right to object to what I do?”

The man’s eyes turned fierce after being slapped.

The instant he reflexively leaned toward her, Khan slipped between them, the fur along the back of his neck standing completely on end as he began to growl.

Faced with the wolf’s bloodthirsty appearance, chilling enough to send a shiver down one’s spine, the man flinched and took a step backward. Over the past few months, Khan had grown to the size of a medium-sized dog, and his threats could no longer be dismissed lightly.

The man glanced at the dire wolf’s sharp teeth, and his hand slowly moved toward the hilt of his sword. Seeing that, Talia shrieked in a piercing voice.

“Get away! If you lay so much as a fingertip on Khan, I won’t let you get away with it!”

“My duty is to protect Your Highness. If you promise to remain quietly within the castle......”

“What is all this commotion?”

The captain of the guard abruptly stopped speaking at the unexpected voice.

Talia turned her head with a start and spotted Lucas rapidly crossing the corridor toward them, making her face crumple at once.

As if this outrageously insolent guard were not enough, now she had to deal with that troublemaker too?

She glared at him irritably, but Lucas crossed the threshold in an instant, looked back and forth between them, and raised one eyebrow.

“Were you two having a lovers’ quarrel or something?”

“What kind of ridiculous thing are you saying......!”

The captain of the guard raised his voice in horror. Lucas slung one arm over the man’s shoulder and mischievously tapped his cheek with his fingertips.

“Then how exactly did your face end up like this?”

“I merely tried to dissuade Her Highness after hearing that she intended to leave the castle. His Grace repeatedly instructed me to make certain that no harm whatsoever came to Her Highness.”

“Good grief. All this fuss just because she wants to go out?”

Lucas clicked his tongue in disbelief.

“What great disaster could possibly happen just from walking around outside the castle? Raina runs around out there practically every day, and nothing ever happens to her.”

“But His Grace instructed me......”

“Be flexible, my friend. Brother isn’t here right now anyway. As long as everyone keeps their mouths shut, there won’t be any problem, will there?”

Cutting the man off, Lucas grinned.

“If you’re really that worried, I’ll accompany Sister-in-law myself. If anything goes wrong, you can just blame everything on me.”

Talia scowled fiercely. She had no desire to force herself to go out if it meant dragging that troublemaker around with her. But backing down now would wound her pride just as badly.

In the end, she decided to accept Lucas’s assistance and spoke calmly.

“I have no intention of causing trouble. I’m going to see the festival with Tiuran, and I intend to return to the castle around sunset.”

The man studied her for a long while with a searching gaze before finally speaking with a heavy sigh.

“Understood. I will have a carriage prepared.”

He gave a brief bow, then turned and left the room.

Talia turned back toward the mirror. Lucas approached her and gave her a shamelessly playful smile.

“Don’t you have anything to say to me?”

Talia, who was pinning a pearl ornament into her hair, shot him an irritated look.

“No. So get that smarmy face away from me.”

“Isn’t that a little harsh? I took your side, Sister-in-law.”

“So? Am I supposed to bow to you in gratitude?”

Lucas furrowed his brow as though her barbed response had offended him somewhat, then shook his head and sighed.

“I should know better than to expect anything.”

He turned toward the doorway and spoke in an indifferent tone.

“I’ll wait outside, so take your time getting ready. Since I’ve already stuck my nose into this, I might as well take responsibility all the way to the end.”

Talia gave a small scoff and picked up her summer coat.

As the maids helped drape it over her shoulders, she suddenly noticed Tiuran fidgeting anxiously.

“What’s wrong?”

“I’m sorry. Because I made an unnecessary suggestion, Your Highness had to endure something unpleasant......”

“Stop talking nonsense and get ready to go.”

Talia curtly cut her off.

“The captain of the guard overstepped his place and made a bigger issue out of it than necessary. You have nothing to apologize for.”

Only then did the healer’s expression soften.

Pretending not to notice, Talia calmly finished getting ready and rose from her seat. Khan, who had been pressed close beside her, immediately clung to the hem of her skirt. He looked worried that she might leave him behind.

As though reassuring the wolf, Talia gently scratched behind his ears and whispered with a bright smile.

“I’m taking you too, so don’t worry. Let’s go out and have as much fun as we want, for everyone to see.”

As though he understood her words, the wolf’s tail began wagging rapidly from side to side. Talia looked down at him with satisfaction, then left the room.

* * *

Talia watched the cityscape gradually drawing closer through the rattling carriage window.

Colorful tents stood in rows on both sides of the broad, evenly maintained road, while the sounds of flutes, drums, and the rough melody of a hurdy-gurdy rang out from all along the streets. The boisterous sight seemed to lift her gloomy mood somewhat.

“I heard that a traveling troupe will be performing a play in the square. They’re also holding competitions in the southern district. Since you’ve come all this way, I think it would be nice if you took your time and saw everything one by one.”

Tiuran explained in her usual gentle tone. Talia nodded halfheartedly, her eyes constantly darting over the scenery outside the window.

The deeper the carriage traveled into the city center, the more palpable the festive atmosphere became. Merchants had piled their stalls high with ripe summer apples, grapes, dried meat, cheese, and other goods, loudly calling out to customers, while blacksmiths hammered red-hot iron and sent sparks flying without pause. From somewhere nearby came the rich scent of baking bread and spiced liquor. Talia’s eyes rapidly swept over the somewhat chaotic street when the carriage stopped at one side of the square and, without warning, the door was flung open.

“Well, we’ve arrived.”

Lucas, dressed quite convincingly in traditional eastern clothing, bowed with an exaggerated flourish.

“Please, step out.”