"Since you will have to start the opening dance with your daughter on her birthday event," Claire said. "Those two opposite colors are going to look amazing together on the dance floor. You could also just wear a black suit, but white and black look much better together compared to just matching black and black."

Claire looked him up and down.

"And you have the looks and the physical build to actually pull it off." Claire added. "Not every man can pull off a white suit as easily as they can pull off a standard black coat."

Adrian just raised an eyebrow. "Well. If it works, it works."

He turned his attention back to the tailor. "Just make me a white suit. Make sure it matches my kid’s outfit perfectly."

"Do you have any specific cuts or measurements in mind, my lord?" the old man asked. He held his ink quill completely still above his book.

"Just do your thing." Adrian said simply. "You guys are the artists. I am giving you total creative control over the whole project."

The shopkeeper flashed a massive smile. "Thank you for the trust, Lord Sterling."

Adrian gave a quick nod. He signaled the two girls to follow him out.

But he stopped right at the exit.

"I will bring the raw fabric and all the custom threads you need. Adrian told the shopkeeper. "I will bring it all to the shop tomorrow. For now, just focus entirely on designing those clothes. I want you to show us a few preliminary designs tomorrow when we come back."

"Yes, my lord." the shopkeeper bowed. "I will halt every other project my shop currently has. We will focus exclusively on your order due to your strict time limit."

"Thank you for that." Adrian said. "I will pay a heavy premium for the special service."

"No, there is absolutely no need for a premium fee." the shopkeeper insisted quickly. "Your happiness is our happiness. You are our most premium customer and on top of that, you’re our Lord."

"Thanks." Adrian said.

He shoved the glass doors open and the three of them stepped right out into the crowd.

And Adrian fully expected to just head straight back to his hotel room and crash for the rest of the day but before he could even pick a direction, someone else spoke up.

"Why don’t we go shopping right now?"

Adrian stopped and looked in surprise.

It was Claire.

Adrian was actually caught off guard. Because this was literally the first time Claire ever stepped up just to do something fun for herself. He had only ever watched her give instructions to the recruits or swing a sword repeatedly. She was always pure military business.

So a casual shopping trip sounded completely new when coming from her. Especially since the last time they came to this city and he offered her money to buy whatever she wanted, she completely shut him down. She practically lectured him about spending her own hard earned money.

But now she actually wanted to browse the market. And she conveniently forgot to mention paying for anything herself.

’Well, a change is a change.’ Adrian thought with an internal shrug.

"Okay, fine." Adrian smiled. "Let’s go."

He turned his head toward the inn. "Should I go and grab Aria first?"

"No." Claire immediately shut him down. She fired back so fast it felt like was mind reading. "We have to shop for Aria’s gifts anyway, and we also need to do a lot of secret party planning. So let us just go by ourselves. Just the three of us."

"Okay, fine." Adrian agreed.

They started walking As they navigated through the merchants and the food stalls, Claire turned her head and gave Serena a very specific, knowing look.

"Why do we not grab some lunch before we actually start shopping?" Claire asked smoothly.

Serena just blinked. But she quickly caught the hidden meaning almost immediately.

"Yeah." Serena nodded quickly. "Let’s eat. It’s already afternoon and it might get too late..."

Adrian just stared at the two of them. He had absolutely zero clue about the secret girl code happening right in front of his face. He just took the words at pure face value.

’I guess it makes sense since they skipped breakfast.’ Adrian thought. ’And I could definitely eat something right now.’

So they searched for a decent tavern right near the market square. They picked a wooden corner table and asked for the daily specials.

A waiter dropped heavy plates of roasted meat, boiled vegetables, and flatbread drenched in brown gravy.

Adrian ripped a chunk of bread off. He soaked it in the sauce and took a slow bite. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

’This is kinda average.’ Adrian complained in his head. ’But food is food I guess... as long as it fills my belly.’

He was sitting right in the middle of Oreswell, his brand new captured city. But the local cooks here could not even compare to the meals that his people made back home. After all, Adrian was the one who taught them how to make most of those dishes.

They ate their food fast and once they were done, Adrian just tossed a handful of bronze coins onto the table to cover the cost of the meals.

He glanced sideways at Claire while they walked out the door.

She did not argue about splitting the cost this time. She just let him buy her food.

Adrian definitely noticed the weird shift in her attitude. But he just brushed it off and kept walking.

And then she completely shocked him again.

She reached out and grabbed his hand the moment they left the restaurant and before his brain could even process the physical contact, she pulled him straight into the busy crowd.

"Stop lagging behind." Claire laughed, shooting him a playful smirk over her shoulder. "Hurry up. We have a lot of things to buy!"

Adrian almost tripped before he found his balance. He just blindly followed her lead while she dragged him right through the crowd.