Back at the palace, the servants whispered among themselves about how the prince had finally returned late at night, but in an absolutely terrible mood. They murmured that he seemed to have changed entirely after getting involved with some country woman, then quickly hushed each other for fear of punishment. In the dark room, Cecil sat lost in thought, his expression cold, seemingly weighing something extremely complicated.
His assistant watched anxiously as Cecil pored over documents with an irritable air since early morning, thinking to himself that the prince had not slept a wink since returning yesterday, so it was best to tread carefully and avoid provoking him.
Cecil suddenly asked, off-handedly, what one should do if their wife was upset with them, then quickly stammered a correction, claiming that it was actually about a friend struggling to make amends. The sharp-eyed assistant instantly realised that this friend was Cecil himself, and teasingly asked whether it had anything to do with the woman from the perfume tasting event. He suggested that noble ladies in the capital these days loved jewellery, so a gift might be a good idea.
Cecil dismissed the idea at once, insisting that this woman was nothing like other noblewomen. She could not care less about gold or jewels. With a serious yet slightly bashful expression, Cecil revealed one more important detail — that she already had a child — leaving his assistant so shocked his jaw dropped, never expecting the prince to have such unusual taste.
Once he recovered, the assistant quickly suggested visiting a toy shop instead, since a gift that delighted the child was sure to make the mother happy too. Cecil immediately ordered his assistant to go to the finest toy shop in the city and buy everything a little girl could possibly want. Not only that, he also demanded a selection of precious pearls and rare treasures from last year's tribute, stored in the treasury.
Cecil instructed that everything be sent to Ina's clinic, leaving the assistant utterly stunned once again upon learning that the woman who had caught the prince's attention was actually a doctor. Ignoring his subordinate's astonishment, Cecil urged him to carry out the order immediately, leaving the assistant scrambling to comply.
Elsewhere in the estate, a servant reported that young master Theodore had been unusually gloomy ever since returning from the lake, spending most of his free time cooped up in his room instead of studying.
Cecil entered his son's room. Theodore jumped in alarm at the sight of his father and stammered out a greeting. The boy stood stiffly, frightened, his heart pounding at Cecil's overwhelming, authoritative presence. Looking at his son, Cecil's expression softened, and he gently told him that since there was no one else around, Theodore could simply call him papa.
Watching his child, Cecil thought to himself that for Theodore's safety he could not let the boy's true identity be known, and so had disguised him as a distant nephew instead. It was precisely this isolation, years of never being allowed outside, that had made Theodore so shy and withdrawn. Cecil pondered, telling himself that perhaps the child truly did need the care and warmth of a mother.
Theodore grew anxious, worried that his father had checked his schoolwork and discovered that he had been secretly sending letters to Odell at the inn. The boy held his head in confusion, wondering whether his plan with Odell had failed, or whether his father had already grown fond of someone else entirely. Cecil had noticed Theodore's flustered, reddened face, but chose to say nothing, simply observing in silence.
Cecil told himself that he should not use the child as an excuse to bring the woman of his dreams back to the palace just yet. He decided that he would tell her about Theodore later, once her feelings had changed. Meanwhile Theodore, his expression full of resolve, hurriedly thought that he needed to write to Odell right away.
At the clinic, little pink-haired Odell squealed with delight at the mountain of gifts, asking whether her mother had bought them, while her mother looked at the pile and had a vague guess as to who had really sent them.
Ina called out after her friend, while the little girl remained absorbed, happily hugging her enormous new teddy bear. Gina assured her that she would send the gifts back later, letting the child play with them a bit first, then confirmed her decision to stay. She had noticed that Cecil's demeanour was completely different from five years ago, but she reminded herself that she would definitely leave in three months. Her only purpose in staying was to find her lost child.
Ina handed her a letter that had arrived just the day before. Both of them anxiously opened it together, hoping it held some clue about the child that the man named Aaron was holding. The letter was from Aaron Odyssey, a name that made the other woman gasp in surprise.
Aaron was known as the city's notorious information broker, rumoured to take on any job, from trading secrets to assassination, robbery and poisoning. He was a powerful figure with deep ties to the criminal underworld, and rumours of his family's connections to high society remained an enduring mystery. What worried her most was that, aside from herself, almost no one knew Gina was searching for her child. The fact that Aaron had sent this letter proved that he already knew the secret. So she warned everyone to be extremely careful around this dangerous man. Still, Ina reassured Gina and the others that everything would be fine, promising not to get too deeply entangled in this affair.
The letter stated that Aaron would find her child on one condition: that she cure a young lady at a duke's estate who was suffering from a magical backlash.
Gina clasped her hands together in prayer, understanding that even though Aaron was highly capable, she alone, as a mere apothecary, could not protect everyone. She resolved to grow stronger, ready to reveal her true abilities to protect her family at any cost.