Soon, she arrived.
Ilya’s office was still the same as ever.
When she pushed the door open, the faint scent of ink and old paper greeted her. A gap was left in the window, allowing the outside wind to blow in and lightly lift the corners of the papers on the desk.
Ilya was sitting behind her desk, writing something.
Hearing the footsteps, she looked up.
“You’re here.”
Ilya’s voice was very calm.
Flora took a few steps closer and stopped in front of the desk. She stood naturally, neither forcing herself to be upright nor appearing constrained.
She barely noticed that she had reached this state.
“Tomorrow is the Unification Festival,” Flora said, getting straight to the point. “Mother, during the festival… do I need to do anything? Are there any arrangements?”
Flora was quite used to using that form of address now.
Ilya set down her pen and looked at her seriously.
That gaze did not last long, but it made Flora think instinctively.
‘Wait, Ilya is being so serious; there must be something special.’
“There are no special arrangements,” Ilya said. “If I had to say…”
She paused for a moment.
“You can go out for a walk.”
Flora was stunned.
“Go out?” she asked reflexively.
“To the towns,” Ilya nodded. “Observe the festival, and see the lives of our people.”
When those words landed, Flora’s mind went blank for an instant.
She had originally thought she would hear about some important reception or a grand event. She never expected to be told she could go out.
“Ah… is it okay?” she asked softly.
“Of course,” Ilya’s tone was natural. “Festivals are meant for people to experience.”
Flora fell silent for a moment.
‘It seems like since I arrived here — since that escape attempt — I haven’t truly left the castle to go anywhere else.’
‘Ilya hasn’t ever let me out either, yet now she’s proactively suggesting it.’
‘And on such an important holiday, too.’
‘But it really has been a long time. Staying in the castle is quite boring, so going out might not be a bad thing.’
‘I can see how the demon race people spend the holiday.’
Flora was also somewhat curious about what the lives of the demon race commoners were like and even more curious about how they celebrated.
Then she would go.
Flora did not doubt Ilya’s sudden suggestion to let her out; she actually trusted her quite a bit now, a far cry from how things were at the very beginning.
However, Flora thought for a bit and asked Ilya a question.
“Can I… not use my identity as a princess? I want to go as an ordinary person. Otherwise, being surrounded by a crowd of people really won’t feel comfortable at all,” she asked.
Ilya looked at her, her eyes flickering slightly.
“Of course you can,” she answered simply. “You can go out as whatever identity you wish.”
Only then did Flora breathe a soft sigh of relief.
“Remember to take Lena with you,” Ilya added, as if she had already thought it through.
“She is more familiar with the towns and festival routines than most people in the castle; she can help you a lot. With her there, I will be more at ease.”
After Ilya finished, she added one more thing.
“There is one more matter.”
Flora looked up.
“On the blood clan’s side, Xueli has also been arranged to observe how the demon race celebrates the festival. Lias sent her as a task before she reaches adulthood,” Ilya said casually.
“She will go to various places in the demon race territory alone. Of course, she will also pretend to be an ordinary traveler.”
Flora was stunned for a moment, then could not help but let out a small laugh.
“That’s… quite a coincidence.”
“It is,” Ilya also showed a faint smile. “Perhaps you will even run into each other.”
“Alright, then I’ll be going. I need to think about this.”
When Flora turned to leave, her pace was unconsciously a little faster.
Just as she reached the door and was about to close it…
“Have fun.”
Flora’s steps paused.
“Um… thanks.”
Flora closed the door.
The light in the corridor was brighter than inside the room, and the sky outside the window had completely brightened. Flora stood in place for a moment, not immediately walking forward.
‘You can go out for a walk.’
That sentence still lingered in her mind.
She looked up, exhaled, and then started walking.
The sound of her footsteps was very clear in the empty corridor.
As she rounded a corner, she saw Lena leaning against the wall, as if she had been waiting for a while. The other girl had her eyes closed, unsure of what she was thinking, while the tips of her toes tapped rhythmically.
Hearing the footsteps, Lena looked up immediately.
“How was it?” her tone was light. “What did Her Majesty say?”
Flora stopped in front of her.
She did not answer right away. Instead, she looked at Lena first and then looked away, as if organizing the words she had just heard.
“…She said that during the festival, I don’t need to stay in the castle.”
She paused for a moment and then added, “I can go out.”
Lena was stunned for half a second.
In the next instant, her eyes visibly lit up.
“Go out?!”
She instinctively lowered her voice, but her tone still rose irrepressibly. “Really?”
Flora nodded.
The movement was small and cautious, yet very certain.
“She also told me to take you along,” Flora said, lifting her head slightly as if recalling the exact words.
Lena blinked and then smiled.
“I knew it!” she blurted out. “I knew Her Majesty would relent sooner or later.”
Hearing this, Flora glanced at her from the side.
“You aren’t surprised at all?”
“Of course I’m a little surprised,” Lena admitted frankly. “But not that surprised.”
She folded the paper in her hand twice, tucked it into her sleeve, and stood up a little straighter.
“It is the Unification Festival, after all. It’s meant for everyone to enjoy. It would be strange if you stayed in the castle the whole time. I figure Her Majesty thought so, too.”
“I originally thought… at least there would be some special arrangements.”
“Arrangements?” Lena thought for a moment. “Like a ceremony?”
“Or a reception,” Flora said.
“That kind of thing happens every year; missing one of you won’t throw things into chaos,” Lena shrugged. “Besides, the situation is different this year.”
She did not continue, and Flora understood what she meant.
Flora gave a soft “mm” in response.
The two of them walked back slowly along the corridor.
On the way, they could see many people busy at work — some carrying decorative wooden frames, others dragging rolls of cloth through the side doors. Flora’s gaze unconsciously lingered on these people.
“So…” Lena looked at her from the side. “Where do you want to go?”
The question came naturally.
Flora, however, was clearly a beat slow.
She had only nodded in agreement with Ilya’s words; it was only when she was actually asked “where” that she realized she hadn’t thought it through.
She pondered for a moment.
“The towns,” she said.
“Which one?” Lena pressed. “Near the royal capital? Or further away?”
“…I haven’t decided yet,” Flora answered honestly. She stopped walking and looked toward the distance outside the window.
Beyond the castle was a stretch of woods extending layer by layer, with the silhouette of the royal city hidden behind the distant mist.
Lena stopped as well, resting her finger on her chin as she began to think seriously. A few seconds later, her eyes lit up.
“Your Highness, how about White Stone City? That’s my hometown.” Her tone carried a trace of undetectable anticipation and nostalgia.
“It’s not particularly large, but the festival is very lively. Most of the houses are built from white stones quarried nearby, and there’s a river running through the city called the Silver Chain River.”
“The market on the riverbank is the liveliest place during the festival; the grilled fish rolls from the old shops are especially…”
She paused, her voice softening slightly. “There’s also an old silk tree by the city gate. During the festival, many people go there to tie prayer ribbons to the branches.”
Flora listened quietly. White Stone City. A simple name that sounded clean and solid.
“Your hometown sounds quite nice,” she nodded.
A bright smile immediately spread across Lena’s face.
“Then shall we go there? It takes a little over half a day by carriage. It’s not too far or too close — just right.”
“Alright,” Flora responded. This decision was made faster and more naturally than she had expected.
“However,” Lena’s tone suddenly shifted, becoming a bit mischievous, “Your Highness doesn’t plan on using your identity as a princess, right?”
“Of course not,” she answered almost immediately.
After answering, she quickly added, “Because that would be inconvenient, and it wouldn’t have a simple atmosphere.”
Lena glanced at her and did not ask further, simply nodding in understanding.
“Then we’ll be ordinary,” she said naturally. “We’ll change into common clothes and accessories, and then slightly hide your hair color and aura. You’ll walk the streets just like an ordinary demon girl.”
Flora looked down at the fine quality of the dress she was wearing.
“Something like this wouldn’t work,” she said.
“Yeah,” Lena replied without hesitation. “Too conspicuous.”
After speaking, Lena stunned herself for a moment and then could not help but laugh.
Seeing her laugh, the corners of Flora’s mouth also curved up unconsciously.
“Then, when do you think…” she looked up at Lena, “it’s best for us to set off?”
Lena suppressed her laughter and thought seriously.
“Early tomorrow morning. If we leave at dawn, we’ll arrive before noon, just in time for the liveliest part.”
Flora nodded.
“Tomorrow it is, then.”
Lena looked at her and suddenly said, “You seemed really surprised just now.”
Flora was slightly startled. “Hmm?”
“That Her Majesty let you go out,” Lena repeated. “You really didn’t expect it, did you?”
Flora remained silent for a few seconds.
“…Yes, I thought she would be more cautious.”
Lena laughed.
“But I think Her Majesty has always been cautious. This was likely a cautious choice as well.”
Flora did not respond.
She simply continued walking forward, her steps steady.
The window at the end of the corridor faced west, the direction of White Stone City. The sunlight fell diagonally on the floor, casting long, clear shadows.
The Unification Festival.
For the first time, she was truly going to step into a demon race town, into a place called White Stone City.
When this thought settled, it did not bring tension. Instead, like the bright sunlight outside the window, it brought a clear, slightly warm sense of reality.