“I wouldn’t expect anything less,” Crow shrugged, casting Penelope a lopsided smile. Walking beside her to the city where she had grown up, he let a comfortable silence fall between them as his gaze wandered back to the buildings across the river. He hadn’t realized just how much he had missed being able to spend time with her like this, but now that they were alone, he was happier than he had been in weeks. The elation reminded him of the future they were going to share that was growing so close. With any luck, it wouldn’t be much longer before they would be able to spend every day together. He couldn’t wait for that.

When they eventually arrived at a bridge, Crow felt Penelope slip her small hand out of his. The gesture was slightly disappointing to him, but he didn’t complain since he knew they were going to have to be more careful now that they were approaching a busy town. It was better for them to put a little distance between each other now than risk being caught and making the gossip in the inner kingdom worse than it already was. Besides, the knight was familiar with this city. He was sure it wouldn’t be difficult for her to find a secluded place for them to get close again later on if she wanted to.

Fortunately, none of the other people they passed on their way across the bridge seemed to pay much attention to them, and he ducked his head slightly whenever anyone got too close, just to make sure they wouldn’t recognize him. They managed to make it to Bellmare without any trouble, and he lifted his gaze to look over the bustling city as the knight welcomed him to it.

His first impression was that her hometown was energetic. Like the citadel, there were dozens of people in the streets, peasant and noble alike, who were out performing various errands. He couldn’t help but marvel at the intention in their movements. Everyone in the inner kingdom always seemed to be doing something for some particular reason. No one was ever just out for the sake of enjoying the weather—though, there wasn’t much to enjoy anymore now that the cold season was coming upon them—or to simply relax. It was quite a different atmosphere compared with the villages where he had grown up.

“All of that sounds great to me,” Crow turned back to Penelope with a grin when she finished explaining her plan for the rest of the day. All things considered, he was genuinely excited to see her home. He wanted to be able to share in that part of her life, just as he had taken her to Myrefall to be part of his.

“Lead the way, captain,” he said, nudging her playfully with his shoulder.