Chapter 51
The next day, Eugenia and the twins left the inn together.
“They say the market isn’t far. Let’s go take a look.”
“Wow! We really get to go out too?”
Selmia, who had been gloomy all morning after hearing that Enrique and Elbery had left without even saying goodbye, lit up with sparkling eyes.
Eugenia nodded enthusiastically.
“It’s fine here.”
“Yay! I’m so happy! Let’s go right away!”
Thanks to Enrique’s earlier help, she had learned that her wanted poster hadn’t made it into the Aesa Empire.
So things should be fine.
‘Still, I shouldn’t let my guard down. I just need to be a little more careful.’
Eugenia dressed the children.
She briefly considered putting them in robes like she had back in the duchy, but decided against it.
There wasn’t anyone here who would recognize them anyway.
So she wanted them to enjoy a bit more freedom and see the outside world.
“Alright, let’s go!”
As if blessed by divine favor, the weather was bright and clear.
Thanks to the reward she received from Enrique, she had some financial leeway as well.
That meant she could buy the kids what they wanted to eat, within reason.
“Unnie! That one! That weird-looking skewer!”
“Selmia, you need to finish the cotton candy you’re holding first before getting greedy.”
Selmia, still clutching her half-eaten cotton candy in her left hand, pointed excitedly at a food stall selling skewers.
When Eugenia spoke in a deliberately strict tone, Selmia’s eyes drooped.
“But I really want to eat that too…”
She looked just like a scolded puppy.
‘So cute.’
As Selmia mumbled with slumped shoulders, Eugenia couldn’t help but chuckle.
“Then should we share it, just you and me? If you eat it all by yourself, your stomach’s going to hurt.”
“Okay! That sounds good to me!”
Apparently, sampling different foods was better than stuffing herself—Selmia nodded eagerly.
Meanwhile, what Joshua had his eye on was weaponry.
He slowed to a crawl whenever they passed a blacksmith’s shop.
It seemed that after spending so much time around Enrique, he had developed quite the interest in horses and weapons.
However, Eugenia didn’t want his first weapon to be something like this.
‘He’s a kid who deserves something far better.’
Besides, he hadn’t even been properly trained with a sword yet. Giving him a weapon in that state would be dangerous.
Eugenia firmly suppressed her softening heart that whispered, ‘Should I just buy him one?’
“Joshua, let’s go.”
“Okay, coming.”
Trying and failing to hide his lingering regret, Joshua trailed after Eugenia and Selmia.
They wandered the market for a while, buying herbs and other necessities.
Then, something caught Eugenia’s eye.
‘There it is!’
Color returned to her face, and her tone rose slightly with excitement.
“Kids, is it okay if we drop by that place for a moment?”
It was the first time she’d ever asked to stop somewhere herself, so the twins—who had been holding her hands—both stopped in surprise.
Joshua and Selmia turned their gazes in the direction Eugenia had pointed.
“Where?”
“Huh? The town information center?”
At Joshua’s question, Eugenia gave a big nod.
“Yeah. It won’t take long.”
She seemed uncharacteristically impatient.
Joshua exchanged a glance with Selmia and then nodded readily.
“Sure. Let’s go.”
“Thanks. It’ll be just a minute.”
Eugenia took the children’s hands and entered the information center.
Since the town they were staying in was located near the border, it saw more outsiders than other territories.
That was why this kind of facility had been set up.
Ding! A clear bell rang as the door opened, and an employee inside reflexively responded.
“Welcome. How can I help you?”
“Well, um…”
Eugenia glanced around the information center, hesitating a little.
But unable to find what she was looking for, she gave up on searching by herself and approached the staff.
“I’m looking for a map of the Aesa Empire. Do you have one?”
“Do you just need a map of the Milviu Territory?”
“No, I’d prefer a map of the entire empire if possible.”
“One moment, please.”
The employee stood up, pretended to search for a bit, and then returned with a thickly folded piece of paper.
“Here you go.”
“Thank you. How much is it?”
“One silver.”
After paying, Eugenia clutched the map of the Aesa Empire tightly to her chest.
“What are you going to use that for?” Joshua asked casually.
Eugenia answered with a gentle smile.
“To figure out how to get to the Ducal Territory.”
“Oh!”
Joshua blinked as if he’d completely forgotten, then scratched the back of his head.
“That’s right…”
He had grown so used to their current life with Eugenia that he’d completely forgotten their original goal.
Feeling embarrassed, the boy cleared his throat repeatedly.
Just then, Selmia’s excited voice rang out a few steps ahead of them.
“Unnie! I want to try that!”
Eugenia and Joshua turned their heads.
Selmia was running toward a game booth where you popped balloons with darts to win prizes.
“Selmia! Don’t run!”
“Sherry, I told you not to go off on your own! What if you get lost?”
Selmia stopped abruptly and scowled at the two of them.
“Ugh! You guys are such nags!”
Even that was adorable.
Eugenia and Joshua looked at each other in disbelief.
The moment their eyes met, laughter burst out before they could stop it.
Eugenia felt a ticklish warmth in her chest.
“Hurry up!”
As Selmia cheerfully urged them on, she and Joshua began walking again.
That evening, the three of them ate out and returned to the inn.
Having played all day and eaten their fill, both Selmia and Joshua fell asleep the moment they finished bathing.
Eugenia went around the children’s beds, gently pulled the blankets up to their chins, then brought the candle over to her bedside.
The area where the children slept naturally darkened, while her own space became softly lit.
She lay down on the bed and took out the map she had bought earlier.
“Let’s see…”
The map of the Aesa Empire had been designed for tourists.
At the bottom of the map, there were cute illustrations explaining the various transportation methods available in the empire.
The most common was the shared carriage.
Then there were private carriages, and in territories with railways, steam trains were available.
“So they have trains here too.”
Eugenia read that part carefully with interest.
“Honestly, trains are probably the most convenient way to travel.”
She returned her gaze to the map and scanned it quickly.
“Does the Heraith Ducal Territory have a station?”
Heraith, Heraith…
Leaning in as if she might get pulled into the map, Eugenia began scanning the place names from the bottom with her fingertip.
“Ah! Here it is.”
She exclaimed without realizing and quickly turned to look at the children, worried she might have woken them.
But they were still sleeping soundly.
Relieved, she turned her gaze back to the map.
Her eyes were dry and itchy from peering at it in the dim light.
She blinked several times before lowering her gaze again.
The Heraith Ducal Territory remained clearly marked beneath her fingertip.
She traced a circle around it gently and tapped it a few times.
“Wow, the territory is huge.”
She couldn’t be sure, but it seemed big enough to be one of the largest in the empire.
‘Well, it is a ducal house—makes sense.’
That meant they were probably filthy rich.
Surely, raising two young relatives wouldn’t be a financial burden at all.
‘If they don’t take them in, they’re just stingy. Seriously, I’ll spread it all over town if that happens.’
Still lying on her stomach, Eugenia propped herself up and rested her chin on her hands.
Her blue-green eyes remained fixed on the name “Heraith” written on the map.
“Ooh, good. There’s a train station.”
It seemed taking a train there would be the best option.
Eugenia continued scanning various places within the Heraith Territory.
“I wonder what kind of place it is.”
About three finger joints north of the station, a spot was labeled “Lord’s Manor.”
“That must be it.”
Most likely, that was the main residence of the Heraith ducal family.
‘Once I drop the children off there, my job is really done.’
As that thought crossed her mind, Eugenia suddenly froze like a broken machine.
Her finger, which had been tapping the map, curled into a loose fist without her realizing it.
‘That means… I’ll have to say goodbye to the kids soon.’
She had thought she would feel relieved when the time came—but she didn’t. Not at all.
Her heart stirred with a deep, unshakable emotion.
