Because yesterday's papers had dubbed them "The Newlyweds Blessed by the Princess," Rhodes and Mira found themselves the center of attention everywhere they went.
Hisui's reputation carried so much weight that the spotlight they received through her far outshone any fame they had earned on their own.
Along the way, groups of young girls ran up to Mira, excitedly greeting her and begging her to pass along their regards to the Princess. Some even asked if she could invite Hisui to attend their future weddings.
Mira could only smile wryly and explain that she and the Princess weren't actually close.
But no one believed her. After all, why would the Princess go out of her way to attend the ceremony, present such a lavish gift, and even pose with her unless they were close friends?
Her gift had been a gold-inlaid emerald necklace, its craftsmanship and luster proof of its immense value. It also revealed just how fond Hisui was of emeralds.
A sharp-eyed reporter had even snapped a photo of Mira wearing it briefly on the wedding day, spreading its image far and wide.
In truth, Mira had only tried it on once in front of Hisui. The necklace was too extravagant for everyday wear, so she had tucked it safely away.
Today, she still wore the same simple necklace Rhodes had given her for her birthday six years ago.
'Shocking! After seven years together, Rhodes has only ever given one birthday gift!' she thought, half-amused and half-exasperated.
After finally fending off the wave of fangirls, Mira sighed in distress. "Maybe I should change my hairstyle?"
Rhodes chuckled. "It won't help. My wife is simply too dazzling."
Mira pouted. "Don't think sweet talk will get you out of this. I'm not agreeing to any weird requests."
"It's not just that," Rhodes teased, brushing a finger across the little bun tied on her forehead. "But changing your look might help. At least people won't recognize you so quickly."
With a decisive tug, Mira undid her hair tie, letting her bangs fall naturally. "So, what style then?"
Rhodes thought for a moment. "Twin-tails, like Wendy's. No one would expect a married woman to style herself like a little girl."
Mira shot him a suspicious look, guessing at his ulterior motive. Still, to cut down on the trouble, she pulled a spare ribbon from her bag and tied her hair into pigtails right there on the street.
Rhodes studied her, tilting his head left and right. In the end, she didn't look like Wendy at all, more like a grown-up, platinum-haired version of her.
He gave a silent thumbs-up. At least she looked different, and that was enough.
And sure enough, the stares and interruptions lessened. With their disguise working, they spent the day freely enjoying the Royal Capital.
By evening, however, they were weighed down with large and small shopping bags.
"Are you really planning to lug all of this around the whole trip?" Rhodes asked, exasperated.
"I… might have gone a little overboard," Mira admitted sheepishly.
Since it was rare for her to visit the capital, she had shopped not only for herself and Rhodes but also for Elfman, Lisanna, and other guildmates.
"We'll send it all back tomorrow," Rhodes suggested. "The express delivery service has gotten pretty advanced lately."
Mira's eyes lit up. "Good idea! I hadn't even thought of that."
As she looked out at the streets glowing under the magical lamplight, she sighed softly. "The Royal Capital has changed so much over the years."
Unlike Magnolia, where some stubborn households had resisted reconstruction, the Capital's rebuilding had gone smoothly. The result was a completely transformed cityscape.
"Of course," Rhodes said. "This is the Royal Capital."
The night view stretched before them, not lit with neon or electricity, but shimmering with enchantments of every kind.
The streets of Crocus glittered with magic unlike anything in Magnolia.
Barbecue restaurants lit their signs with fiery runes formed from Fire Crystals, glowing characters that burned in the night air. Ice Cream parlors decorated their storefronts with Snow Crystals, making customers feel a chill of refreshment even before stepping inside, summer or winter.
And if small shops could impress like this, the castle cafés and the restaurants built over rivers or beneath glass domes under the water were on another level entirely.
As they walked, Rhodes suggested, "Tomorrow, how about we stay at the Ferris Wheel Hotel?"
Mira countered, "Wouldn't the Flywheel Hotel be better?"
Both hotels were marvels of the capital, floating structures with spherical rooms connected by long, glowing spokes. One revolved vertically like a true ferris wheel, while the other turned horizontally like a giant disc.
A flyer Rhodes had picked up boasted: 'Experts confirm: sleeping in rooms that move ever so slightly improves the quality of rest.'
Whether those "experts" were reliable or not, it was certainly novel.
"Then let's try both," Rhodes decided. "We'll be staying in the capital for several days anyway."
Mira quickly calculated their savings. Thankfully, the nest egg she and Rhodes had built up before marriage was still healthy. "Alright," she agreed with a smile.
As they strolled, Rhodes frowned. "You know, I haven't seen a single guild hall all day. Even when I came here before, I didn't notice one."
Mira nodded. "That's normal. There's never been a guild based in the Royal Capital, not in recent history, at least. I haven't heard of anyone succeeding at opening one here either."
"Why not?" Rhodes asked. "It's not like the Kingdom forbids it, does it?"
"No," Mira began, "but guilds."
"Because guilds can't really survive here," another voice interrupted.
The two turned, surprised to see a familiar figure: a green-haired young woman.
"Princess?"
"Shhh!" Hisui pressed a finger to her lips, glancing around nervously.
Tonight she wore her hair in a high ponytail, glasses framing her face, and a plain winter coat without jewelry. Dressed like this, she looked more like a friendly neighbor than Fiore's princess.
Rhodes and Mira exchanged a look. Clearly, this was an incognito outing, or at least something like one.
Unsure how to address her, Mira tried carefully, "Miss Hisui… isn't it dangerous to be out alone so late?"
Rhodes quietly extended his magic sense and noticed a handful of familiar presences scattered through the crowd, her personal guards, disguised in plain clothes. So she hadn't slipped out without protection.
Hisui smiled knowingly. "It's fine. I'm not alone, and Crocus is one of the safest places in Fiore. That's actually one of the reasons guilds can't survive here."
Rhodes raised a brow. "Oh? And the others?"
"It's simple," Hisui explained. "The Royal Capital's government and public services are so complete that residents rarely encounter problems requiring a guild's help. And since the spread of magic technology, that's become even truer."
Her voice carried unmistakable pride. To her, this efficiency reflected Fiore's progress and stability.
"Of course," she added, "there are still needs that only guilds can meet, like escort missions across the continent. That's why we've started experimenting with something new: an Off-site Commission Acceptance Office."
Mira tilted her head. "An… off-site what?"
"An Off-site Commission Acceptance Office," Hisui repeated patiently. "Think of it as a miniature guild branch, just big enough to process requests and send them out."
"Which guild is running it?" Mira asked curiously.
Hisui answered, "It's a new guild that was founded only last year. They call themselves Dragon's Treasure."