Lotte walked alone, making her way back to the manor.
There was still some distance to cover — she felt opportunities to walk through the royal capital alone like this had grown scarce of late.
Of course, she did venture out for work, but she seldom strayed far from the manor.
She was always by Alisha’s side.

“—Lotte!”
“Ah! Lady Alisha…!?”

　A sudden voice made her look up, and she saw Alisha running towards her.
Judging by the sweat on her forehead, she must have been running around quite a bit.

“Wh-what happened…?”
“That’s what I should be asking you. I heard you hadn’t returned to the manor, so I came looking for you.”

Panting, Alisha explained.
　—So, to find Lotte, Alisha had been running all over the capital.
That fact was simply delightful, and at the same time, a mischievous thought began to take root.

“Lady Alisha —y-you cared so much about me?”
“Of course I do.”
“Hmph.”

And so, that budding mischievous thought was easily crushed by Alisha’s straightforward words.

“W-What about your work…? I thought you’d dashed off?”
“Turns out it was just a misunderstanding.”
“…A misunderstanding?”
“Yes. Someone said they’d spotted a monster or something in the shadows, but when I checked, it was just a puppy. Well, I did spend a bit of time looking for the puppy’s owner.”

In short, nothing major had happened.

“If nothing happened, then that’s good news.”
“Indeed—but more importantly, where was Lotte?”
“Truth be told, I was summoned to the Flesis household.”
“…The Flesis household? Why?”

It was only natural she would ask.
—Should I really tell Alisha the truth?
There seemed little need to mention the recruitment offer specifically.
　Should she deliberately say something that would make Alisha anxious?
Still —not telling her felt odd too.
Hiding it now would make it seem as if she had something to feel guilty about.
If she had no intention of accepting the offer, she should be honest about it.

“Well… the Flesis household invited me to work as a maid.”
“!? They approached Lotte!?”

　Alisha’s eyes widened in surprise, her expression visibly shaken.
Lotte, flustered, immediately offered an explanation.

“Of course I declined! I have no intention of serving anyone but Lady Alisha.”

Yes, she had no intention of serving anyone but Alisha.
Because —it was for her that Lotte had become a maid in the first place.
She hadn’t come to the capital to serve someone else.

“I-Is that so…? Really?”

Alisha continued to look unsettled as she sought confirmation from Lotte.
—Naturally, she would be unsettled by such a poaching attempt.

“It goes without saying. I know nothing about Lady Ellenphia.”

Indeed, how had they even learned of Lotte? —While they somehow knew of Lotte, they knew little of Ellenphia.

　Being a noble and a knight like Alisha, she might be someone worthy of respect.
“But… I mean, what I’m asking Lotte to do… it’s not exactly a good thing, is it?”

Lotte had rarely seen Alisha speak so hesitantly.
—And the fact that she was aware what she was asking Lotte to do wasn’t ‘a good thing’ struck Lotte as odd, making her laugh involuntarily.

“Wh-why are you laughing? I’m speaking seriously!”
“I-I’m terribly sorry. But it just seemed odd hearing Lady Alisha say it wasn’t ‘a very good thing’.”
“…That’s precisely why I’m asking you, isn’t it?”

—That’s right. It was precisely because it was Lotte that Alisha asked her.
At the same time, she was being relied upon —Lotte was needed by Alisha.
　Therefore, no matter what request she received, Lotte had no intention of leaving Alisha’s side.

“Are you truly not resigning?”
“I shall not resign.”
“But…”
“…Well, I suppose there’s no helping it.”

Lotte took Alisha’s hand and led her into a deserted back alley.
Facing her there, Lotte declared once more.
“I won’t leave Alice’s side.”
Pulling her hand —she felt she’d grown quite accustomed to calling her Alice now.
Today, Alisha had been recognised as the kingdom’s foremost knight.
The ceremony itself was likely an annual affair, yet she remained unchanged.
Yes —on the surface.

“…If you say so, I’ll believe you.”

Alisha finally seemed to accept Lotte’s words.

“You wouldn’t believe me unless I said it that strongly?”
“W-Well… I suppose I had no choice.”

Alisha looked embarrassed when Lotte pointed this out.
Even that expression was endearing.

“By the way, what happened to your choker?”
“Ah, I took it off when I went out for work earlier… here.”

Lotte took the offered choker and attempted to place it around Alisha’s neck.
Alisha accepted it without refusal —then suddenly stopped, as if noticing something.

“Huh! Alice…? Is something wrong?”
“…No, I just sensed a presence.”
“A presence, you say?”

　Lotte scanned the surroundings.
A deserted back alley —no one seemed to be there.
No footsteps could be heard either, yet Alisha remained alert.

“…Given what happened earlier, I might have overreacted a bit.”
“It was just a puppy in the end, wasn’t it?”
“Yes.”
“…Perhaps doing it outside really is dangerous after all.”
“It’s better outside.”

　—Despite being on guard, Alisha said this, and Lotte couldn’t help but look exasperated.

“…What if we get caught doing it?”
“We’d enjoy the thrill, wouldn’t we?”
“That’s not an answer!”

Lotte admonished Alisha, but she didn’t seem to care.
—Still, it did bother Lotte a little.
　If Alisha was this wary, perhaps someone had been watching even if Lotte hadn’t noticed.

“Well, at least Lotte is safe. Shall we continue once we’re back at the manor?”
“D-don’t proceed on the assumption we’ll continue!”

The earlier tension vanished as if it had never been there —Lotte hurried after Alisha, who was walking ahead.