Lyriana continued staring at Hannah.
"So..."
"...You came here looking for His Highness?"
Hannah nodded.
"Yes."
Lyriana's gaze remained fixed on her.
"If I may ask..."
"Why?"
She paused briefly.
"And how did you come to believe that His Highness was here in Dresvalle?"
Illyria frowned.
"What do you mean, why did she come?"
Lyriana glanced toward her.
"Because I see no reason for her to have come here."
Illyria's expression tightened.
"...Is that so?"
Before the conversation could escalate again—
Hannah spoke.
"I came because I wanted to."
Both women turned toward her.
"I had no idea he was here."
She continued calmly.
"It's merely a coincidence."
"I searched elsewhere after learning that he was in the Kingdom of Eirundor."
"...And somehow, I ended up here."
Silence followed.
Lyriana simply stared at her.
*...A coincidence?*
She didn't completely believe it.
But—
after considering everything that had happened...
they genuinely didn't seem to know that His Highness was here.
*...So perhaps it really is a coincidence.*
Hannah then asked,
"Where is he?"
Her expression became slightly more serious.
"I wish to see him."
Illyria glanced toward Lyriana.
"And..."
She gestured toward the ruined city surrounding them.
"Are you the one responsible for what is happening?"
Lyriana's eyes shifted toward her.
"...I'm afraid I can't help you with that."
She paused.
Then—
"...Yes."
Her gaze briefly moved toward the ruined district.
"That is correct."
Illyria's expression changed.
"So you're the one who opened that crack in the middle of the city?"
"Why?"
Lyriana simply stared at her.
For a moment—
she said nothing.
Then—
"I don't understand why you're asking."
Her eyes narrowed.
"Do you think I'm obligated to give you an explanation?"
Illyria stared back at her.
"...Whatever your reason was..."
She looked toward the destroyed streets.
"It doesn't change the fact that you caused this."
"Opening something like that in the middle of a city..."
Her expression hardened.
"I suppose demons really are demons."
Lyriana remained completely silent.
The insult didn't seem to affect her in the slightest.
After a moment—
she turned away.
"If you're finished..."
"...I'll be leaving now."
She stopped.
Her gaze shifted toward Hannah.
"I'll advise you to stop here, Princess."
"Go back."
Hannah's eyes narrowed slightly.
Lyriana continued.
"Do not try to approach His Highness in the current situation."
Her voice became colder.
"You should understand something."
"...An engagement is the last thing he would be thinking about right now."
Hannah remained silent.
Lyriana's figure suddenly blurred.
**WHOOSH!**
In the next instant—
she disappeared from the alley.
Illyria stared at the spot where she had vanished.
Hannah remained completely still.
Her eyes lowered slightly.
Then—
"...The last thing he would be thinking about."
Illyria glanced toward her.
"...Princess."
Hannah looked toward the distant battlefield.
"...I still want to see him."
Illyria sighed.
"I figured you would say that."
Hannah remained silent as she stared at the spot where Lyriana had disappeared.
*...I didn't come here because of the engagement.*
Her fingers tightened slightly.
*I didn't set out to find him because of that.*
She lowered her gaze for a moment.
*I just wanted to see him.*
She couldn't explain exactly why.
She simply knew that she wanted to.
Illyria glanced toward her.
"Come."
Hannah looked at her.
Illyria turned toward the direction Lyriana had disappeared.
"If she was telling the truth..."
"...then she might lead us to him."
Hannah's eyes shifted.
Illyria continued.
"We should follow her."
Hannah gave a small nod.
"...Alright."
The two immediately moved.
They left the rooftop and continued through the city, following the direction Lyriana had taken.
---
Elsewhere—
Lyriana moved swiftly through the outskirts of the city.
Her figure flashed between the buildings before she finally disappeared into the surrounding forest.
Her expression remained calm—
but her thoughts were anything but.
*...To think she would come all the way here looking for His Highness.*
Her eyes narrowed.
*And she even claimed to be his fiancé without the slightest hesitation.*
A brief silence followed.
*...Hmm.*
Lyriana continued moving through the forest.
*I wonder what exactly she's thinking.*
Her gaze hardened slightly.
*To come here in the middle of a situation like this...*
*...and then openly claim such a position.*
She shook her head.
*Strange.*
Without slowing—
Lyriana continued deeper into the forest.
Yet one thought remained in the back of her mind.
*...His Highness's fiancé.*
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
Inside the spatial port—
the massive building was crowded with civilians, merchants, nobles, and travelers.
Soldiers and port security officers moved throughout the halls, attempting to organize the crowd and prevent anyone from causing trouble.
Despite the chaos—
Kaelira, Pythia, and Ryke moved through the crowd together.
Kaelira glanced around.
"...It's not as crowded as I expected."
Ryke looked around as well.
"Yeah."
"With everything happening outside, you'd expect this place to be completely packed."
Pythia's gaze shifted toward the reception area.
Several groups were gathered around the tables while port personnel processed travelers.
"...Most of those who came here have probably already been transported."
Ryke followed her gaze.
"...So these are just the ones waiting?"
Pythia nodded.
"Most likely."
She then looked toward the various portals and spatial circles positioned throughout the enormous hall.
"There are two main methods of transportation here."
Kaelira glanced toward her.
Pythia pointed toward one of the smaller spatial portals.
"The portals are primarily used for short-range travel."
She then shifted her hand toward the larger magical formations further inside.
"The spatial circles are used for long-distance travel."
Ryke nodded slowly.
"...So the circles are what we need."
"Yes."
Pythia looked toward the crowd surrounding the reception tables.
"However..."
"Given the current situation, most people are being encouraged to use the portals."
Ryke frowned.
"Why?"
"Because they're easier to operate."
Pythia continued.
"They require fewer preparations and fewer conditions to activate."
"They're much more convenient when large numbers of people need to be transported quickly."
Kaelira's eyes narrowed slightly.
"...Then everyone is focusing on the portals."
Pythia nodded.
"Exactly."
She glanced toward the larger spatial circles.
"Which means..."
"...they aren't paying nearly as much attention to the circles."
Ryke's expression slowly changed.
"...And that's what we're after."
Pythia gave a small nod.
"Yes."
Kaelira looked toward the distant spatial circles.
"So while everyone is focused on getting through the portals..."
"...we'll use the long-distance circle."
Pythia's gaze remained fixed ahead.
"That is the objective."
Ryke folded his arms.
"...Sounds simple enough."
Kaelira glanced at him.
"Don't get too confident."
Ryke frowned.
"...I wasn't."
Kaelira turned away.
"You were."
"...I wasn't."
Pythia sighed quietly.
"Enough."
She looked toward the deeper section of the port.
"We need to observe the security around the circles first."
"Once we know how they're being guarded..."
"...we can decide how to get through without drawing attention."
The three continued moving through the crowd.
None of the soldiers paid them much attention.
For now—
their plan was working.