Hermione arrived home a little later than usual. She almost forgot to buy her mother's medicine because she was rushing to buy things and getting busy in the Countess's house.

Hermione will buy medicine for her mother on a daily basis. Leona's medicine was so expensive that it would cost Hermione's meager salary every four days to obtain it.

Hermione is particularly concerned. She has goals she wants to achieve, but her mother's well-being is still the most important to her.

Hermione slowly opened the wooden door to her mother's room after cooking simple but healthy meals for her mother. "Mother..." Hermione noticed her mother, who was sleeping in a small bed that could only fit one person. "I apologize for arriving a little late, but mother, please eat first before you rest so you have energy when you wake up."

"...Hermione?" Hermione heard her sickly mother's weak voice.

"Yes, mother, I am here," she says, her worried face fixed on her mother's pale face. Leona had only moved a little when Hermione left in the morning, but she was already in this state. Hermione's mother was frail.

Even though Leona was in pain all over her body and every time she moved, she smiled and said, "You must be tired, my daughter. Sorry for making you work. I'm the one who supposedly supports you, not the other way."

Hermione gently stroked her mother's cheek. "No, mother... it's enough to see your face. You don't need to think like that. It's enough that you let me grow up as a responsible person. I am very thankful that you are my mother," she said with a smile.

"You remind me a lot of your father..." Leona said, recalling her own memories of Hermione's father. "He was such a softy guy. He was not the man I wanted to be with, but look, we made you. We made a daughter with love," Leona smiled as she told Hermione about the memories she had buried deep within her heart.

Leona would occasionally speak aloud about Hermione's father. Hermione, on the other hand, would simply listen to her mother. Leona had been telling Hermione a lot of stories about her father since then.

"Mother, father probably thinks the same way you do; he must be happy where he is now," Hermione thinks as she looks out the small window in the room at the sky. She believes that even though her father is no longer alive, he is still guiding them.

Leona's smile faded gradually.

The young night had passed, and the morning had arrived. Hermione was at work at the time. She doesn't want to because she's worried about what might happen to her mother, but her mother insists that she can move around just fine.

Hermione let out a sigh. She's probably going to get another job or work three jobs so she can buy her mother's medicine every day. Hermione, on the other hand, has no idea where to look for work because commoners do not have the same privileges as nobles.

Oh, it was Jack, a customer who also happened to be Hermione's best friend. They became friends because Jack was always buying armor and visiting the armory.

"It's been a while, right?" Jack simply stood in front of Hermione. His morning sunshine smile always brightens Hermione's day.

"Of course, I'm fine! It's been three months since I last saw you! Are you okay, buddy?" Hermione smiles as she observes Jack's appearance. He appears to have been living a good life since he became more muscular and healthy than the last time Hermione saw him.

"You know, I passed as a knight in the Capital, and then I recently passed as an Imperial Knight," Jack cheerfully explained.

He was so excited to tell Hermione about the Capital because he knew that ever since they met and got closed, Hermione had never dreamed of visiting the Capital, but she had always wondered how different the countryside was from the Capital.

Jack wanted to tell Hermione how wonderful it was to live in the Capital. Hermione had always listened to his words and stories with sparkling eyes, but she had never imagined going there.

Hermione clapped her hands together. "Yes! I remember your crying face when you got the letter saying you'd passed!" Hermione smiled.

"You never fail to tease me about that, you know? You always used that to make fun of me," Jack pouted, but eventually laughed.

Hermione and Jack laughed together, and the armory was filled with their laughter. Fortunately, no customers were present at the time.

"Hmm... not really. I'm here to guard someone; we're going to the border to inspect the knights there, but we stopped here to rest for the night," Jack replied, omitting the important details such as who they were guarding.

And Hermione didn't press the issue any further. If Jack did not reveal who the important person they were guarding was, it is considered confidential. In Hermione's case, there's no reason to enquire any longer.

"Oh, yeah!" Jack exclaimed, recalling that he had been ordered to check the perimeter but had instead stopped to see how Hermione was doing. "I was ordered to check something... I'm going now, Hermione!" Jack dashed away as if someone was chasing him, not hearing Hermione's response.

Hermione waved her hand, her gaze fixed on Jack's back. "It's good to know you're doing well, my friend," she murmured as she returned to entertaining the customers as the doorbell rang.

"WHAT took you so long? I just ordered you to check the perimeter," said the crown prince, who was also the emperor's only child.

The prince sat in a simple wooden chair inside the inn's small room.

"Your royal highness, I apologize because I saw a friend and had some talk," Jack kneeled and bowed.

Jack knew he was wrong, and the prince never spoke in this manner if he did his job correctly, so he didn't feel angry, but he did feel regret for not doing his jobs effectively.

The prince sighed and returned to normalcy. He smiled, as if nothing significant had occurred.

"The perimeter was safe for his highness, and we can safely stay here for tonight," Jack said, "and the people didn't also know that you were staying here, and I sent the other knights to inspect the border in secret before we proceeded in going there."

The Marquis Bleguuardic, who rose to the position of Marquis of the prestigious House of the Bleguaardic at a young age, was infamous for his achievements. He also successfully led the armory where Hermions was employed.

He never stays in one place and is constantly on the move. But he does stay in one place from time to time. That's the armory store he ran in this country aside. The crown prince was perplexed as to why. The Marquis's business was rapidly expanding, so why would he confine himself to the countryside? When, in fact, he can live a luxurious life in the Capital.

And Jack is the one who is looking into it. This is undoubtedly Jack's hometown, but he has been a secret Imperial Knight for more than a year. Jack was secretly investigating the Marquis and kept showing up as a customer in the armory shop just to get a glimpse of the said Marquis. That's how Hermione made him friends. And it was a more advantageous situation for Jack. He can freely stay at the armory shop now that he has someone to talk to, and he won't be suspicious every time he visits.

But he truly treated Hermione as if she were his own sister and friend. She was a cheerful and amusing young lady. He had a good time with her in the short time they had met.

The prince cupped his hand under his chin. "I'm still curious as to what the Marquis saw here that he didn't see in the Capital."

Little did they know...

Someone was silently observing everything in the darker area where the inn is located. He smiled as he listened to the two men talk about him.

He jumped off the tree without making a sound. The silence in the room matched his emotion.

He took one last look back at the idiots he'd met before continuing on his way.

He eventually arrived at the location where he was supposed to be.

"Boss!" exclaimed a pleasant voice. In his ears, that woman's voice was like a sweet melody. It soothes his evil side while also making his heart race.

He can hear his heartbeat becoming more loud.

"Boss, I was waiting for you!" The woman smiles, her face beaming with joy, and her eyes twinkle with delight every time she looks at him. When he sees this kind of smiling face, his heart can't help but race.

"Have you been waiting all day?" he asked, placing his dark robe on the side available chair within his gaze. "It's getting late; you should have gone home earlier because the night is dangerous."

"Hays," he sighed jokingly, as if his appearance was a major issue. "You're right, some men almost kidnapped me to sell me, and even my good looks are now a problem."

He took a quick glance at Hermione and observed her expressions. She has a worried expression on her face. That made the man very happy. "Are you concerned about me?"

The man's face lowered significantly after hearing Hermione's response. He was almost captured in by it.

"Let's stop talking now, and I'll send you home because some jerks on the way might scare you, and don't call me boss, call me by my name."

The man put on the robe again, and Hermione brought her very old bag, in which she kept the important things she needed, such as her mother's medicine.

"Boss, I don't get scared on the bastards you're talking about because you taught me how to kick their dick," Hermions laughed.

Hearing how vulgar Hermione spoke, the man slapped his forehead. He wanted to laugh. He appears to have just taught the young girl some vulgar words.

Hermione paused for a moment and shrugged her shoulders. "It was refreshing and nice talking with you. I hear a lot of things, even if they're vulgar words. I'm enjoying the time we've spent together, so thank you boss!" Hermione smiled warmly. Even if there is a dark night, Hermione's eyes and smile shine like the moon that provided light in his dark night.

"And I probably should have stopped in the store to get my mother's medicine," Hermione muffles.

The man smiles, and seeing Hermione's cute side is also enjoyable.

"How's your mother's health? You needed to buy the expensive medicine for your mother, right?" He inquired about Hermione's mother. She might be her mother in the future as well.

His pupils dilated. Isn't her salary from him insufficient? "How much does the medication cost?"

"One gold?" exclaimed the man. He didn't know Hermione's salary because he wasn't in charge of his business or the people who worked for him. "That's so insignificant..."

"...But it was on the contract," Hermions object.