Chapter 40: [Chapter 040] Breakthrough
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"It's the first time I've ever seen the Duke so angry."
"Well, it's been since the time he was with that mistress of his during the Duchess's memorial."
"Mistress? If she were really a mistress, how come there wasn't even a rumor about the master going on dates with a woman?"
'The next time you see me, instead of greeting me with two healthy legs, you should kneel and show proper respect?'
I suddenly remembered the words she said as she left the ducal mansion.
"Marie!"
Annie frowned, annoyed by the thought, and called Marie over.
"Y-yes!"
"Come here and clean this yourself. Weren't you in charge of this spot yesterday? How did you manage to leave so many fingerprints? Did you do it on purpose, knowing that I'd be cleaning it up today?"
"No, no! It's a misunderstanding!"
"Then clean it properly, you clumsy idiot."
Annie kicked the bucket of water. With a bang, the bucket overturned, and the dirty water that had been used to wash many rags seeped into the wooden floor, emitting a foul odor.
"If water seeps into this floor...!"
"Clean it up. It'll take days to dry in the sun and re-oil it."
Annie left the room with her group of maids.
"But I heard the master was angry because of that woman."
"What?"
"I heard the butler say that her spending was excessive. Maybe she was flaunting her wealth using the master."
"I don't think the Duke would be that angry just because she spent a little."
"Maybe he left earlier than planned to visit her estate..."
"If she was really a mistress, maybe they had a big fight and he went to break up with her!"
'That must be it...'
Feeling a sense of relief, Annie smiled.
"Of course. A woman like that doesn't deserve to be with the Duke."
She thought about how she would enter the Duke's chamber when he returned and finished the funeral. Feeling much lighter, she started walking towards the front entrance, planning to go shopping in town while the head maid was busy. But her humming stopped abruptly. Bang! The grand mansion door swung open violently, and a group of strangers poured into the ducal mansion. It was the Countess of Acacia, who had ransacked the ducal mansion and disappeared not long ago.
"Long time no see, Annie."
"...!"
The countess, who had arrived with dozens of knights and a group of maids from her own estate, approached Annie without hesitation and whispered sweetly.
"What are you doing?"
Among the bustling servants, the woman's voice was clear.
"Don't you remember? I told you what to do when you see me next."
Annie, who had stiffened, looked up. The woman's eyes were bloodshot and seemed half-mad.
***
"Have you finished the investigation? I didn't know the Duke would leave without handling things properly."
"...."
The butler, Gaspar, repeatedly scanned the official document in his hand. The format and the Empress's seal matched the official documents that occasionally came to the mansion. The Countess of Acacia, who was sitting on the sofa in the lobby with a relaxed smile but a sharp edge to her demeanor, was imposing. Behind her, the maids of the countess's estate, standing stiffly, were looking around the mansion as if they had moved into a new home. Gaspar felt a sense of crisis at the imposing presence of these intruders.
"I'm supposed to guard the corpse when visitors come to pay their respects."
Blie Acacia, sitting with her legs crossed and stroking the arm of the sofa, looked strangely sensual, and Gaspar swallowed hard.
"His Grace, the Duke, didn't want the body to be on display, so he didn't allow it to be moved outside. Naturally, no one visiting the mansion would be shown the body."
"And so?"
"Naturally, His Grace ordered that you should also not be shown the body and should simply leave quietly."
"Not show me the body and leave quietly?"
Adrienne narrowed her eyes and stared at Butler Gaspar. Seeing him standing stiffly with the imperial document clutched in his hand, she felt a sense of power that Doris had briefly allowed her to taste.
"That was an order from His Grace to you, not to me. The order I received from Her Majesty the Empress is different."
"I appreciate the imperial family sending someone, but as the master of this mansion and the owner of the body, His Grace naturally has the final say. So, I will ensure that you are comfortable during your stay."
Who said the body belonged to Noebian? Adrienne smiled wryly and stared at Gaspar. He seemed to think he had spoken convincingly and was regaining his composure.
"So, what you're saying is that the order of Her Majesty the Empress, the moon of the Empire, is inferior to the Duke's order?"
"No, no! You know that's not what I meant."
"You said it yourself."
Adrienne knew exactly what he meant. It meant, 'I appreciate the imperial family's consideration, but I will handle this myself.' But Adrienne had not come here for meaningless arguments.
"Well, then, since I'm not allowed to see the body as a representative of the imperial family, I have no choice."
"Even though you've come here with such authority, you cannot outrank me as the head butler within this ducal mansion."
"You're right."
Gaspar finally smiled triumphantly.
"Then I'll have to search every servant to find the body."
Until Blie Acacia, who had been acting strangely like a noblewoman lately, said that.
"Call all the servants except you."
"But...!"
"You do as you're told. No one will blame you. You do your job. I need to follow Her Majesty the Empress's orders, so I'll need the help of others."
The smile that had briefly appeared on the countess's face vanished, replaced by a cold, hard expression.
"First of all... you insolent ones."
The countess turned her head, and there was Annie's group, standing stiffly at the entrance, watching everything.
***
She had a few ideas about where the body might be hidden. But she couldn't just search everywhere, as people would follow her wherever she went.
"Is there anyone who wants to help me carry out Her Majesty the Empress's order?"
"Even if you ask us, we don't know anything."
"You mean to tell me you don't know anything in this mansion?"
It didn't seem possible that Annie and her group, who were spreading gossip throughout the mansion, knew nothing. It would take too long to interrogate them slowly, and I couldn't just resort to violence; there were too many eyes watching. And I didn't know where Doris's eyes and ears were, so I couldn't act rashly.
"Really?"
Seeing Annie and the other maids standing stiffly, refusing to kneel, a sense of triumph welled up in me. I didn't know where Doris's people were or who else Noebian might have planted to watch me, but...
"Then I'll have to help you follow Her Majesty the Empress's orders."
"Yes...?"
Sophie, the elderly head maid who had finally appeared, looked at me with worried eyes. I raised the corners of my lips, as if to reassure her that nothing serious would happen.
"Lock them in the closet."
"!"
"I'll help you feel like talking."
There was a noble way to deal with nobles. Physical violence wasn't a good option.
"Marie?"
"Yes, yes...?"
Marie, who had been trying her best to avoid my gaze, approached me trembling.
"Don't give them a drop of water or a piece of moldy bread."
"...!"
"And..."
I gently grabbed her arm and whispered.
"Kick the closet they're in hard every two hours."
"But, but..."
"They won't expect you, the person who kicked the closet night and day, to be the one inside."
Promise me. As I made the final request, Marie's expression turned subtle.
"Lady... Why would you lock them up and..."
"Head maid, you're old and need rest. Leave the rest to me, who is carrying out Her Majesty the Empress's orders. I don't want to turn this entire mansion upside down. Locking them in a closet and disciplining them is a light punishment for servants in a noble household."
"...!"
The head maid, who had closed her mouth at the mention of the Empress's orders, watched as Marie and the others were dragged away by several knights.
"I'll deal with you insolent ones next."
"Sophie! Sophie! Help us! This is unfair! Our master is the late Duchess!"
Hearing them sell me out as they were dragged away, I felt a slight sense of relief. I smiled quietly at Marie, who was hesitating between following them and staying by my side. Sensing the meaning of my smile, she hesitated for a moment before following after them.
***
I immediately examined the documents the butler had given me, weeping crocodile tears. They were all useless, providing no information at all. The names of the nobles who had come to pay their respects to the mansion, and the occasional notes about those who had brought condolence gifts to curry favor with Noebian, were written down in meticulous detail. It was clearly a collection of trivial information that Noebian must have entrusted to the butler. As I racked my brain trying to figure out how to access more important information using my own authority, a thought suddenly struck me.
"...Why is the butler's handwriting so similar to Noebian's?"
I knew both Noebian's and the butler's handwriting. The royal family, including Noebian, learned a specific royal style of writing from a young age, so although there were slight differences between individuals, they generally followed the same format. For a moment, I felt as if all the blood had drained from my body.
"Yona."
"Yes, ma'am."
"Did you get a reply to the letter I sent to the Second Prince?"
"No, ma'am, instead, I have this..."
I had sent a letter to Roardness early that morning, asking to meet him urgently. Yona handed me a thick envelope that contained, instead of a reply, detailed corrections to my Elacon language homework that he had previously received. He had not responded to my request for a meeting.
'Is he angry? Perhaps I was too forward.'
The image of Roardness pushing me away as if I were someone he would never see again filled me with sorrow. But I had spent the previous night awake, tossing and turning, and by the time I came to this mansion, I was determined to meet him and confirm my suspicions about Cowan and the small forest. As I quickly scanned Roardness's corrections, I suddenly jumped up and stiffened.
"Ma'am, is something wrong?"
Yona's worried voice echoed in the guest room. I sat back down heavily and placed the documents Gaspar had given me and Roardness's corrections on the table.
"The handwriting... it's the same."
Roardness's carefully written corrections, the butler Gaspar's handwriting in the documents, and Noebian's handwriting that I remembered—all three were identical.
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