Corovots was a major city in the southern part of the Ilandra Dominion Empire. Its proximity to the capital Kyndrill, combined with its excellent climate, had made its economy surprisingly good.
Rumor had it that the continent's largest commodity trading market was located right here. Every day, merchant caravans from all over the world came, creating an incredibly bustling scene.
But when we arrived in the city, it was already late at night. We couldn't feel any of the market's bustling and could only find a random inn to stay in.
"Flying from Corovots to Kyndrill will take less than half a day," Cyrae said. "But recent news shows that rebel armies from various regions have almost surrounded the capital. The fighting has been going on for days with barely any progress. Just to be safe, I think we should gather some information about the situation tomorrow and take some time to check our equipment!"
After everyone finished checking in, Cyrae proposed this plan for our next move. Naturally, no one objected. What surprised me was that even Nicola agreed.
I knew Nicola as someone who'd been having an easy ride since crossing over, always charging ahead, fighting first and asking questions later. Now she was being so cautious. Was this just because she'd been embarrassed by Adrian in another world?
"Could it be that Nicola is actually from another parallel world, accidentally sent by Galadra, without even knowing it herself?" I wondered, though I had no evidence to support such a wild guess. Fortunately, I couldn't find any other major issues with her.
"Feliciana, the central square in Corovots is one of the top international trading markets on the continent. All kinds of goods should be available. Want to go take a look tomorrow morning?"
Just after I returned to my room, Cyrae walked in with a local guidemap. She had barely spoken when she noticed Adrian sitting beside me on the bed. Cyrae quickly gave a knowing look, and swiftly closed the door and left.
"Um... we weren't really doing anything, right?" Adrian looked back at me with a slightly awkward expression.
We'd actually been discussing Reider, our primary target. To extract information about the system, we'd need to keep him alive, so we needed to be careful in our approach.
But discussions aside, some physical closeness between us was inevitable.
"It's getting late. I should probably return to my room..." Adrian kissed my cheek and stood up. After hesitating for a moment, he suddenly made a bold suggestion:
"How about I stay here tonight?"
I understood exactly what he meant at this late hour. Although I'd accepted my current identity and established a romantic relationship with Adrian - we'd even kissed - I still felt somewhat uncertain about taking that final step. Nervously, I made an excuse:
"That doesn't seem right. We might have an intense battle tomorrow. Besides, we've already paid for this expensive inn. It'd be such a waste to leave it empty."
"...You're right," Adrian said, disappointment flickering in his eyes. He seemed to immediately regret his suggestion, nodding as he walked towards the door. But just as he was about to open it, he turned back with determination:
"After we resolve the Reider issue, when we return to Norvale, I plan to explain our relationship to Lady Elara and propose! Although I'm no longer a Parristol royal, from what you've described, Lady Elara doesn't seem to mind. Maybe we'll succeed!"
I was stunned, touched, and slightly guilty. Honestly, I hadn't even thought about marriage. To me, being together was what mattered most, regardless of Elara's approval or other angels' opinions.
But for Adrian and some others in this world, formal procedures seemed necessary. His attitude suggested he might think I was worried about our status, which is why he brought it up.
We'd planned to tell Elara anyway, so I wouldn't obstruct his intentions. But would things really go so smoothly? Watching him gently close the door, I fell into deep thought.
Although there were a few precedents, angel-human unions remained extremely rare over thousands of years. The obstacles would surely be significant. With no experience in such matters, my only strategy was to stay adaptable. Worst case, we could always hide away somewhere on the continent.
The night passed quietly. I woke up early, before dawn, and went to the hallway to wake my companions. Surprisingly, I discovered Nicola's room was wide open and completely empty.
"How strange," I muttered to myself. "I'm up early, but Nicola's already gone?"
After breakfast, Cyrae, Adrian, and I left the inn. Our plan was simply to explore the city. Since Kyndrill was currently surrounded by rebel force, entering through main roads seemed impossible. We'd need to find another way, and maybe gather some intelligence from local residents.
Unfortunately, the city had no impressive sights or historical sites. Adrian and I couldn't find anything interesting, so we followed Cyrae to Corovots Central Square to try our luck.
I had to admit, the trading market was truly impressive - its scale rivaling modern Earth's large trading centers, with several massive buildings dedicated. But the crowd was much smaller than rumors suggested, with shops looking almost deserted. Asking a random passerby, we learned this was due to the ongoing war.
With fierce battles happening nearby, even the bravest merchants were avoiding the region. Consequently, the information we could gather was extremely limited.
"Maybe we should visit the city's defense office," I suggested, licking an ice cream while sitting on a bench. "They must have collected lots of information about the situation near the capital."
"The defense office will be heavily guarded," Adrian responded distractedly. "We're not afraid, but causing unnecessary trouble might complicate our plans..."
I noticed he seemed preoccupied, constantly checking the time on his magical watch.