“You’ve grown so much taller since I st saw you, Your Ladyship,” Balian said, leading the pair into the inn. “I’m sure the te Duchess will be happy to see how beautiful you’ve become.”

  Estel awkwardly nodded her head, unsure of what to say for a moment.

  “You seem to know Mother very well, Balian.”

  “Why, of course,” the old man replied. “She was my very first female pupil, and certainly an exceptional one at that.”

  “Pupil?” She paused. “You mean, you were my mother’s tutor?”

  “Oh my, did Adrianne not tell you?” He feigned surprise and ughed. “A long time ago, I served as a knight under your grandfather. Then one day, the daughter of His Grace—that is, your mother—came up to me and begged me to teach her swordpy.”

  “Mother did?” She blinked in astonishment.

  Father shared many stories about Mother while she was alive, but as far as Estel could recall, he definitely did not mention anything about Mother learning swordsmanship.

  “Everyone was taken aback by her request, but well, how can I refuse the request of my master’s kin? So I gave her a wooden sword, taught her the basics and paired her up with a squire I had been training,” Balian continued, his grey eyes alight with a glow that did not match his age. “And against my expectations, the young dy won my squire in a fair duel through and through. From then on, I took her under my tutege informally, and she grew to be a fine swordswoman.”

  “Oh, and if you are wondering why the current Duke made no such mention to you,” he added upon seeing her perplexed reaction, “that’s because your father challenged your mother to a duel three times—and lost all three matches. Really wounded his pride as an illustrious lieutenant, I’d wager.”

  Estel choked back tears of ughter. “Woah, I didn’t know all this before…”

  “Please don’t tell His Grace that I was the one who exposed his dark history. This old man can’t hold a sword steady any longer,” Balian whispered with a wink as he stopped before a door on the second floor. “By the way, Your Ladyship, I must apologise…Adrianne sent word that you are coming, but she made no mention of your escort in her letter.”

  “Hmm?”

  Estel exchanged a bemused look with Alice.

  “Which means, well, your escort has to share the same room with you,” Balian said in an apologetic voice. “But please, fret not—”

  “Finally, the only-one-bed-left trope has arrived!” Alice excimed, cpping her hands together in excitement. “Este, aren’t you gd? We get to share a bed together! And here I was just wondering when the GL and smut tags will finally be relevant…”

  Estel tilted her head in confusion. “Yes?”

  “Um, I was going to say that this room is originally meant to accommodate two people,” Balian expined hastily, “so there are separate bedchambers with separate beds.”

  Alice froze.

  “You mean, there’s two beds inside the room?”

  “Yes.”

  “There’s no need to share a bed?”

  “No, there’s no need to.”

  “Really?”

  “Yes…”

  Alice looked like her soul had just withered away at that very moment. “Dear readers, I promise I’ll make it up to you next time…”

  Balian gave Estel a bewildered look. “Pardon me, Your Ladyship, am I perchance misreading the room here?”

  “I…I don’t know, sorry,” she mumbled, feeling second-hand embarrassment all of a sudden.

  -

  After Estel and Alice had unpacked and freshened up, Balian offered a hand-drawn map of Nordertor, which neatly id out the four quarters of the city and their respective highlights.

  “Right now, we are in the quarter known as Altstadt,” he expined, marking out the location of the inn with a circle. “This is the quarter nearest to the South Gate, which makes it the most populous quarter. There’s nowhere better than the market in Altstadt to replenish your supplies and find a tasty meal.”

  He tapped his finger at a spot near the city wall.

  “I suggest you head to this restaurant, Qashimi—the owner is a good friend of mine. Just mention my name and he’ll give you his best hospitality.”

  Estel nodded her head. “We’ll keep a look out for the restaurant. On that note, do you happen to know any dressmakers in this city that can fashion a ball gown in one night?”

  “A dressmaker, you say…” Balian rubbed his chin before pointing to the city quarter westwards to Altstadt. “I know that there are seamstresses in the Vogelsang quarter who do excellent handwork, although I’m not too sure if they are willing to work overnight for one customer’s request. But you can ask around the area before heading down to the market.”

  “Sure, then we shall head there first,” she agreed. “Is the carriage ready?”

  “Right this way, Your Ladyship.”

  Balian swiftly led them to the carriage waiting by the stableyard, and after exchanging a few quick words with the coachman, the carriage began to set off for the western quarter. The rhythmic clopping of hooves against cobblestones filled the evening air as they navigated the narrow streets, winding between timber-framed houses and iron mps that gave off a flickering glow.

  Eventually, the road began to widen again as the carriage began a steady descent into the heart of Vogelsang. Although the streets here were less busy and crowded, life still bustled around them; families lingered outside their doorsteps, pilgrims offered their intercessions, and children pyfully chased one another across the alleyways. A squad of soldiers marched past, acknowledging them with a brief greeting before resuming their patrol.

  “Your Ladyship, we have reached the main street,” the coachman asked. “Where would you like me to stop?”

  “Hmm…” Estel gazed out of the window, trying to make out the different signs hanging outside the storefronts. “Oh, outside that shop, please.”

  Once the carriage stopped, Estel alighted—carefully—followed by Alice, who was busy admiring the street view.

  “Este, look! You can see the sunset from…”

  “I’m in a hurry,” Estel decred the moment she walked into the shop, surprising the seamstress who was just tidying up bolts of fabric on the wall shelf behind the counter. “I need a ball gown designed and sewn by tomorrow’s light. Name your price.”

  The seamstress stared at Estel agape. “P-pardon me, dear customer, you want a custom-made ball gown…by tomorrow morning?”

  “Not for me,” she said, pointing to Alice. “For her.”

  “Erm, that’s not the point,” the seamstress said weakly. “It is already dusk, we are going to close soon.”

  “It’s urgent. Very urgent,” Estel pressed. “She needs it to attend the festival at the Margrave’s estate. Please do your best to finish it by tomorrow.”

  Alice tugged at her arm. “W-wait, Este, you are sounding like a total karen right now…”

  The seamstress let out a resigned sigh. “I understand your urgency, but still, your request is near-impossible to—”

  “So, you’re saying that it is not impossible.”

  “W…well, I can ask other seamstresses for assistance and work overnight on the dress, but that will cost you…”

  The seamstress trailed off when she saw the bag of gold coins on the counter.

  Alice gave Estel an incredulous look. “Este, you can’t do this and expect the poor girl to—”

  “I’ll have to take your measurements first, dear customer,” the seamstress interjected, grabbing her tape measure and chalk. “Please follow me to the back!”