'That's much better,' Alex thought as he followed behind the girls.

When they approached the settlement enough to be seen by the people there and he noticed Maya looking in their direction, Alex stiffened for a moment.

'Wait, the mask, I don't have a mask on,' with the matter with Grace, he had completely forgotten about trying to keep his identity secret.

If it was just about his subordinates, he wouldn't care; they can't betray him anyway. So, even if they saw what he looked like, it wouldn't matter. In fact, it might even be a positive thing. They had only seen him as the head of Arcane, and at that time, he looked quite imposing and a little bit dreadful in his smoke attire, so seeing him as a regular person might reduce the fear some of them might be feeling towards him.

The problem was Maya; she wasn't supposed to see what he looked like, neither him nor his wives!

Alex swiftly exhaled the multicolored smoke and was about to expand it when Maya raised her arms towards him, a big and mischevious smile splattered on her face.

"There is no need for the costume; I already know who you are!" she shouted to Alex.

Her shout startled Anita, who was sitting next to her, prompting her to turn and look in the direction Maya was waving, only to see Alex's group approaching.

A slight frown appeared on Alex's face when he heard Maya's words, but upon further reflection, he concluded that Grace must have surely taken precautions against Maya revealing their identities. She may be carefree, but even she would know better than to let a stranger know about their true identity.

'Though, Grace isn't known to be the most cautious person,' he thought as he side-glanced Grace.

Feeling his gaze, she met his eyes and clicked her tongue. "I've got it covered," she declared before soaring off towards Maya and Anita, who were seated a bit further away from Alex's subordinates, engaged in a conversation while seated atop tree trunks.

Alex dismissed the multicolored smoke, lingered for a moment, watching Grace's flying figure, then shrugged and resumed his walk, catching up with the girls who hadn't stopped walking from the beginning.

As they approached, their footsteps drew the attention of the people there, and one by one, his new subordinates turned and stared at their approaching group, their gazes lingering more specifically on him.

"Good evening, everyone," Alex waved to the hundreds of people staring at him. "I suppose I should introduce myself."

Alex stood tall, his posture rigid and commanding before his new subordinates. Witnessing this, they involuntarily gulped in fear, but when he finally spoke, Alex's voice was surprisingly gentle, almost friendly. "Much like you may have guessed, I'm your new lord, Alexandre Eswald. Pleased to meet," he flashed them a smile.

Truth be told, he wasn't very good at introducing himself or giving speeches. Even on Earth, he always delegated this task to someone else. So he was currently relying on his smile to portray himself as a dignified leader.

He actually didn't get the response he wanted, no one said anything; instead, they all stared at him, appearing to be dazed. The women, in particular, were gazing at him as if he were the most captivating presence in the room, a furious blush appearing on their faces.

He didn't obtain the answer he wanted, because it was doubtful if his words even registered in their brains seeing their expression, but having hundreds of people practically drooling as they stared at him actually felt great. Well, having the women in the bunch drool at him felt great. As for the men...

'I would rather they not look at me like that; it's creepy,' Alex thought to himself.

He clapped his hands to rouse them from their reverie and asked with a playful tone, "Nothing? Not even a good evening or a nice to meet you?"

Hearing him, the subordinates scrambled to their feets and all of them without exception bowed to Alex.

"PLEASED TO MEET YOU, LORD ALEXANDRE!"

"That's much better, though refrain from shouting; we wouldn't want you drawing night creatures to us," Alex joked.

The subordinates coughed in embarrassment and nodded their heads.

"Well, sit back and eat to your heart's content; that's actually what I promised you guys. We will talk later," Alex said to his subordinates, "Also, be sure to rest tonight because at the first light of dawn, you will traveling once again."

He had in mind to talk with them, or at least with some of them individually, to get to know them better and establish a connection. He understood the importance of building rapport, knowing that soldiers were more likely to give their best and fight for a leader they felt connected to, rather than for some lord they had only met once.

However, he was currently exhausted, and so were they. It wasn't the moment to engage in such an endeavor.

'Considering my schedule, it might take months before I can actually speak with them, but I'm too exhausted to deal with them right now,' he thought.

Heeding his own words, the subordinates sat back in groups and began eating among themselves, whispering and casting what they thought were discreet glances toward their master.

Meanwhile, Alex and the girls approached the trio of women who were sitting apart from the settlement.

The tree trunks they were sitting on were arranged in a circle, with a fire at the center and a pot resting atop it. Not far from the women, the unconscious body of Cedrix could be spotted.

"Ladies, good evening," Alex greeted the trio with a smile when they grouped up with them.

'H-Handsome,' Maya thought internally when she saw Alex up close.

When Alex smiled and waved at her, a blush appeared on her face and she became a bit dazed, momentarily forgetting to reply to him.

Meanwhile, Alex ignored Maya's reaction, plopped down, and leaned against the trunk of the tree opposite the women.

Following him, Lilia also sat down, but instead of sitting on the ground, she settled onto Alex's lap.

Alex didn't mind his wife sitting on his laps and even coiled his arms around her waist to hold her in a tight embrace.

After that, Amelia and Anna sat down, with Amelia settling on his right side and Anna on his left.

They barely sat down before Anita abruptly stood up and bowed in the direction of Alex and Lilia.

"Lady Lilia, from the bottom of my heart, thank you for coming to rescue me," Anita expressed sincerely."

Anita had decided that she would individually thank every member of Alex's group, and by now, she had already expressed her gratitude to everyone except Lilia. Now, she felt it was the perfect moment to do so.

Lilia lingered for a long moment, not saying anything and staring at the bowing figure of Anita, then she replied, her tone filled with disbelief, "You don't seem sincere."

"I-I what?" Anita stammered, not knowing what to say. She didn't expect that kind of answer, so it threw her off, making her eyes shine with multiple shades of blue.

Not just her, even Maya, who was at her side, gazing at Alex with a blush on her face, was abruptly pulled out of her reverie, surprised by Lilia's sharp remark.

'Poor girl,' Amelia and Anna thought, aware that Lilia was just having fun by teasing Anita.

Anita quickly composed herself and bowed deeper. "I don't know what makes you think so, but I'm really grateful for you coming here to rescue me," she said, honesty dripping from her words.

"If that is the case, then why are you trying to steal my husband?" Lilia questioned in a cold tone.

Anita immediately stiffened.

Though it was Alex who had "proposed" to her, in the end, it was she who had accepted even though her father had told her that he already had a wife. It's just that when it happened, she was in a dazed state due to Alex's good looks. She was also extremely nervous and embarrassed, so she accepted without thinking much about it.

"I came here to rescue you and nearly lost my life in the process, yet, when I awaken, I learn that the one I came to rescue is trying to become my husband's new wife. Considering that, do you seriously think that your gratefulness sounds honest?" Lilia inquired with an icy expression.

Anita's lips sealed shut. If one thought about it, Lilia's words were indeed correct. No one would believe that someone trying to steal their companion is genuinely thanking them for something. But the thing is: she wasn't trying to steal her husband!

With Anita being so close to the fire, she was supposed to feel warmth, but under Lilia's icy expression, it was as if the temperature in the surroundings had severely dropped, and Anita felt a shiver run down her spine.

Being near Anita, Maya also felt a sense of dread creeping over her. The heavy atmosphere was too much for her to bear, so she discreetly attempted to distance herself from Anita.

She didn't know what was going to happen next, but she knew she didn't want to be near Anita when it did!

However, being as clumsy as always, she tripped over a few twigs and landed on her bum!

Thud

"Ouch," Maya exclaimed in pain, but immediately regretted her outburst.

All eyes suddenly turned to her, causing an embarrassed blush to appear on the young heiress' face.

At that instant, she wanted nothing more than to dig up a hole and bury herself inside of it, she was so embarrassed.

Contrary to her expectations, her actions caused everyone to burst into laughter.

Well, everyone besides Anita, who remained in her bowing position, sweating profusely.

"Relax, Anita. I was just messing with you," Lilia said, witnessing the distress in her eyes. "If anything, I should be the one to thank you. Coming here to rescue you actually allowed me to have a breakthrough that might have taken me weeks or even months, so thank you."