The Next Morning

The next morning, after breakfast, Ethan and I stepped out of the palace for our morning outing. Agnes, who had made it clear she didn’t want to interfere with our date, was nowhere to be seen. She must have left early to prepare for the journey on her own. While I was a bit worried about leaving her alone, I knew she could handle herself. After all, she was a walking time bomb—anyone foolish enough to try and pickpocket her would be lucky to escape with just a few burns.

Lately, Agnes seemed to have mellowed out, …