"Merlin, how did you convince the head guard?" Charlotte asked curiously.

Earlier, she had struggled to persuade him. Yet somehow, Merlin had managed it with ease, and it made no sense to her at all.

Merlin merely smiled as he tightened his grip around her palm.

"Don't worry about it. Now, let's go and enjoy a stroll around the capital."

Charlotte quickly set her curiosity aside and nodded enthusiastically.

"Um! Let's go!"

From a distance, the head guard watched the two of them walk away and let out a deep sigh.

"Leader, are you really going to let Princess Charlotte and Young Master Merlin go just like that? What if there are assassins targeting them?" One of the guards asked as he stepped closer.

The head guard rolled his eyes. "Who said we're letting them go just like that?"

"Huh?" The guard looked confused. "Then why did you let them leave while we're still here?"

"Because Young Master Merlin requested that we watch over them from the shadows," the head guard replied indifferently. "Go to the nearest clothing stores and buy twenty sets of casual clothes. We'll keep an eye on them while in disguise."

"Disguise?"

This time, not only the guard but the others were stunned as well. They exchanged confused glances.

They had never carried out guard duty in disguise before.

"Is that really okay?" one of them asked hesitantly.

"Stop asking questions and do as I say," the head guard said coldly.

The guards swallowed hard and hurried to carry out his orders.

Once he was alone, the head guard shook his head and massaged his temples.

"Merlin Clay, huh? What a strange child…"

That earlier gaze and smile had been unsettling enough to give even him—a sixth-stage spirit core expert—goosebumps.

In fact, Merlin was only at the eighth stage. Yet it made no sense that his aura could suppress him so completely.

"No wonder he's the child of the prophecy—he really is different from the others," he murmured quietly.

***

"Woah! Is this cotton candy? The shape is so unique!"

Standing in front of a food stall, Charlotte's eyes lit up as she stared at the cotton candy in her hand.

The candy was shaped like a cloud, its pink color looking especially appetizing.

Merlin smiled and took a bite of his own cotton candy.

"It tastes pretty good and isn't too sweet," he said with satisfaction.

Watching Merlin eat, Charlotte took a bite as well. Her eyes widened instantly.

"It's really delicious!"

She kept eating, and in less than a minute, she had finished it all.

"Ah! My candy is gone!" Charlotte exclaimed, then sighed sadly.

Suddenly, her gaze fell on the cotton candy in Merlin's hand. She wanted to eat it too but quickly restrained herself.

Merlin couldn't help but laugh and handed it to her.

"Take it," he said casually.

Gulp!

Charlotte swallowed and hesitated for a moment before taking it anyway.

Only then did Merlin remember that his cotton candy still had traces of his saliva on it.

"Wait—"

Before he could finish, Charlotte had already devoured the cotton candy in a single bite.

Merlin swallowed the words stuck in his throat and shook his head slightly.

"[Ding! Heroine Charlotte Solayne's affection increased by 10 points! Current affection: 100 points!]"

"[Ding! Since affection has reached its maximum limit, excess points will be converted into system points!]"

Merlin glanced briefly at the panel, then looked away.

Affection that had reached its maximum could not increase any further.

He already knew that, so he wasn't surprised.

"Let's go."

Charlotte threw the used cotton candy stick into a trash bin, then enthusiastically grabbed Merlin's warm palm.

"Um! Let's go!"

The two of them continued their walk. This was Merlin's first time truly strolling through the capital of the kingdom.

Although he had glimpsed it from a horse-drawn carriage when he first arrived, seeing it in person felt completely different.

The capital was vast and neatly organized.

On both sides of the road were pedestrian sidewalks, wide enough for three people to walk side by side.

The main road itself was also broad—two horse-drawn carriages could pass each other safely, with about two arms' length of space between them.

It made travel comfortable and secure.

It seemed simple, yet many other cities failed in this regard.

During his journey from Dralmor to the capital, Merlin had stopped in several cities, and most of them had poorly planned roads and pedestrian paths.

It was not uncommon for horse-drawn carriages traveling in opposite directions to collide due to the lack of proper urban planning.

Regulations in those cities were also loose, making order difficult to maintain.

However, unlike those places, everything here was neatly organized. It amazed Merlin and even reminded him of his home country.

"Merlin, I want to try that stall over there!"

Charlotte's voice pulled Merlin out of his reverie.

He followed the direction she pointed and saw a cake stall.

Surprisingly, it was so crowded that a long line had already formed.

"Let's check it out," Merlin said, gently pulling Charlotte toward the stall.

They joined the queue, but because it was so long, neither of them could see what the cakes looked like.

"The line is really long. Do you want to wait?" Merlin asked.

Frankly, he didn't mind waiting. However, Charlotte was a princess, and he wasn't sure she would be comfortable standing in line like this.

"M-mm!" Charlotte shook her head reassuringly. "It's okay. I can wait."

Since Charlotte had made up her mind, Merlin said nothing more.

They waited for about ten minutes, and soon only three people were left in front of them.

'The seller are pretty quick at filling orders,' Merlin murmured in admiration.

At first, he thought they would have to wait much longer, but it turned out otherwise.

No wonder the line was long yet orderly—the seller was quick and nimble, which was why customers were willing to wait.

Now that they were close to the stall, they could finally see what was being sold.

"A cake? And it's shaped like… a fish?" Merlin was surprised.

For some reason, it felt familiar, yet he couldn't explain why.

Suddenly, Charlotte's excited voice rang out beside him.

"Oh! I remember! It's that famous cake everyone's been talking about lately! It's called taiyaki!"

Merlin's eyes widened, his body stiffening.

"Taiyaki, you say?"

Taiyaki was one of the traditional sweets from his homeland, Japan. No wonder it had felt familiar at first glance.

"Wait a minute… How did taiyaki appear in the capital?"

He remembered that The Lost Hero was a novel with a Western fantasy setting, with only a touch of Eastern influence.

Michiku-sensei himself had said he was inspired by Western novels when creating the story.

Merlin had once suggested adding elements from their own country, such as food or culture.

However, Michiku-sensei rejected the idea, arguing that it would ruin the uniqueness of The Lost Hero.

After all, there were already many novels on the market that incorporated elements from their country, and Michiku-sensei didn't want to follow in their footsteps.

Now, taiyaki from his homeland had suddenly appeared here, leaving Merlin utterly puzzled.

Before he realized it, it was their turn to order.

"What would you like to have, sir and sweet lady?" The seller asked kindly.

Charlotte turned to Merlin, clearly leaving the choice to him.

Catching her gaze, Merlin pushed aside his surprise and ordered ten taiyaki in various flavors—red bean, chocolate, and strawberry.

Charlotte was startled and about to speak, but the seller interrupted.

"I'm sorry, but there's a limit of two cakes per customer."

Merlin immediately understood and changed his order to four—two for himself and two for Charlotte.

He chose red bean and chocolate, while Charlotte picked strawberry and red bean.

Merlin watched the baking process, and to his astonishment, it was exactly the same as in Japan.

'What the hell? How is this possible? System, what's going on? Why is there taiyaki in the capital?' Merlin called out internally.

"[Hmm… I don't know either, Master. Maybe the author added food elements from your home world?]"

Merlin fell silent. As the editor of The Lost Hero, he was absolutely certain there were no Japanese foods or cultural elements in the novel.

After all, he had personally edited Michiku-sensei's draft.

Since even the system had no answer, there was no point in thinking about it further.

Two minutes later, their order was ready. The seller handed the four cakes to Merlin.

Charlotte paid for the cakes, then immediately left the line with Merlin.

The two of them searched for a comfortable spot and found an empty bench near the fountain at the center of the city.

They sat down, and Charlotte immediately bit into the red bean taiyaki.

"Mmm! It tastes delicious, as usual!" She praised with a bright smile.

Merlin unwrapped his own red bean taiyaki and took a bite.

As the soft dough and sweet red bean paste melted in his mouth, his eyes curved into crescents.

"It really tastes… good," he murmured.

Although he didn't know how taiyaki had appeared in the capital, it tasted no different from the ones in Japan—no, it was even better.

That was because the food in this world contained a small amount of natural magical energy.

As he enjoyed the taiyaki with Charlotte, a mission panel suddenly appeared before him.

"[Ding! Hidden mission triggered! Save the heroine Charlotte Solayne from the assassins! Reward: 20,000 system points and 1x Eye of Destruction (Mythical)]"

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