Cathy could only avert Esme's gaze in shame, for a woman to speak on matters meant to only be spoken by men was shameful, it was a sign of disrespect not only towards her own husband but men in general.
"I know it's shameful but as new residents you must know of it"
"Any other man in the neighborhood could have done this why–"
Esme's frown had deepened and her tone became harsher, similar to how a mother would scold a child.
However Arthur readily interjected, he did not know what was happening but he felt the need not to get on Cathy's bad side, mostly because he had a piece of the cake and he would rather not burn bridges before they are even built.
"Es- My wife, please let her speak. I'm sure this is a very important matter if Mrs Cathy felt the need to inform us about it"
He suggested he had nearly forgotten what it meant to refer to his wife by name in front of others or publicly.
Thanks to Arthur's words, Esme heaved a sigh and gave Cathy the floor to speak her piece.
With a pensive look, Cathy let out a sigh and began to speak.
"You see considering our proximity to the slums, the crime in this area is rather rampant"
"Yes, I can see that. Last night a thief managed to get away with my wife's necklace but not before I broke a rib or two"
Arthur commented, Cathy's words made sense but he also figured the same thing when he bought the house, it was incredibly cheap despite its size and relatively good condition.
As an explorer he didn't really believe anyone close to him would be in any danger so he figured as long as he got guards everything should be fine
"But what about guards? Isn't there a guard house nearby, aren't there regular patrols from the knight guard?"
Esme asked with a hint of confusion in her voice, Unless there's a war, the knights of the kingdom should be working to keep the citizens safe from crime and thieves.
"hehe! From that comment alone, I can tell you're from the inner parts of the capital, I'm afraid the guard house in this area is under the control of Boss Bulat, they're deep in his pockets"
"What?! But that's…"
Esme suddenly became puzzled, she was certain the Knights were paid very well, how could they be bribed so easily?
"I see so you're saying the guards are corrupt and under this Bulat individual's control."
Arthur decided to speak over Esme, he could tell she was having difficulty comprehending what was being said.
He figured that despite not being raised like a princess, she still grew up amongst nobility as such her perception of things was not aligned with the way things actually were. In a sense, she had the naivety of a typical princess.
At Arthur's words, Cathy nodded her head before she spoke again.
"Yes and because of that in order not to have our homes broken into or be harassed by thieves we have to pay a fee for protection"
She explained and Arthur hummed in understanding, He figured all the thieves in the area were under Bulat's thumb meaning they were being told to harass and steal from houses that didn't pay the protection fee. It's a tactic that he has heard about plenty of times in his old world.
"I see, how much is the fee?"
His face took a more serious expression. The situation itself was easy to understand.
"It's typically 100lh(lionheads) but if you're well off than most it could be 200 or even 300"
At her words, Arthur pressed his lips together in silent thought, 100lh was enough to stay at the inn for three days, excluding meals. It was affordable for anyone who has an honest job, so despite it being extortion it seems Bulat was fair and didn't demand too much.
"Thank you for this information Cathy, truly appreciate it. I'll be visiting your bakery before the week is over"
"I'll hold you to that, also not to be rude, since you're an explorer but I sort of expected to see some facial scars."
She said as the cheerful smile returned to her face, She stood up from the couch, already preparing to leave as she had delivered her warning, although she figured since Arthur was an explorer he probably did not need it.
Inwardly Cathy couldn't help but selfishly wish for Arthur to just kill Bullat and drive his ilk away from the neighborhood, but she knew that was just wishful thinking. Arthur probably isn't even powerful enough to be a threat to Bulat.
"Sorry to betray your expectations but my scars are a little hidden"
Both Esme and Arthur rose from the couch and escorted their guest towards the door.
"Oh so they're those pesky invisible scars, I can understand that"
She said with a smile on her face and nodding her head as if she understood some great truth.
"Ehe he! No they're visible just not on my face, they're mostly hidden under my clothes"
"Oh! I suppose I misunderstood"
Cathy couldn't help but laugh as she said, feeling a little embarrassed as she had assumed that Arthur was someone she could relate to.
Both Arthur and Esme simply chuckled before Esme broke her silence and addressed Cathy.
"Thank you for the cake Cathy and for the warning, as my husband has already said expect two new customers before the week is over"
"Thank you for having me, next time I'll be staying for tea."
"Oh by the way, we're looking for some maids, you wouldn't happen to know any women for the job?"
"I'm afraid not, but I'll ask around, I'm sure there's someone out there"
"Thank you very much, your help is appreciated"
"No need for thanks, you're guaranteed customers, so it's only right that I am able to help"
After that small exchange two women bid each other farewell and before long Arthur and Esme were alone in their home again.
"I didn't know you liked cake?"
Esme began, looking at him curiously. He hadn't struck her as the type to like sweet things however she was happy to know that about him.
"You would have known eventually"
He said with a shrug of his shoulders, they recently got married, and as such they still have a lot to learn about each other.
"A better question, would be why she did not recognize you, you're a princess"
It was odd, while he was sure that no one was aware of her marriage, at least not anyone who wasn't at the Palace and didn't watch him pull out the behemoth from his [holding sack], although there should be rumours and people should be talking about the princess being married.
"Well that's because most commoners probably don't remember my face, they probably have only seen it once and they probably never hear my name mentioned when people are talking about the royal family"
It wasn't that she was being hidden as a princess but rather the royal family and most nobles thought of her as irrelevant and unimportant so much so that her name wasn't something worth talking about, even if people knew her name, they'd probably forgotten what she looked like.
"What about that festival last year, what's it called…"
"The sun's revival festival, yes I was at the festival but that was my first time being allowed to participate"
She said but Arthur hummed unconvinced, it did not make sense if she first appeared at the sun's revival festival then the masses would have been taken by rumours about her and her relationship to the royal family, a maid or a knight from the castle would have blabbed to someone about her identity and no one would forget the news about a secret princess.
So the more likely situation was that the king and the royal family were somehow suppressing as much information about Esme as they could, meaning that only a few people know what she looks like and what her name is and the rest of the masses don't know who she is but know she exists.