Alaric leaves early the next morning. He wakes up with a cup of tea and some sliced fruit before he hides himself in layers of clothing and boards his carriage, Lenore sleeping soundly in bed the entire time. This wasn't originally his plan, but he wants to push up their return to the duchy. However, he doesn't want to stay in the capital any longer. Not when Lenore has a new symbol marking her arm and any number of people could try to use her because of it.
He wanted to give Lenore all the time she needed to recover and the chance to explore more of the capital if she wanted to, but that desire to introduce her to the world that's been hidden from her by Claude has been replaced by urgency and the need to protect her while he figures out what to do next.
