Night arrived.
The Royal Guards and kingdom knights patrol was tightened compared to this afternoon.
Earlier, a maid arrived in my room and invited me for dinner with the Queen and the Princes. I accepted it and was now guided by the same maid to the dining room.
After walking down a few hallways and passing a few intersections, I finally arrived at the dining room.
The maid bowed at me deeply and said, "We've arrived, Your Holiness. Her Majesty and His Highnesses are already inside."
"Thank you…" I was about to call her name, but I realized she had never introduced herself.
Raising her head, the maid with dark hair smiled and opened the door for me before stepping aside, allowing me to enter.
Stepping into the dining hall, I was fascinated by how luxurious and grand it was. Many portraits of previous Kings were hung on the wall, giving the air a sense of history. I wondered why the portraits were hung in the dining room, but that wasn't important.
The room was adorned with intricately carved pillars. A long table stretched out before me. The marble top was polished; its surface reflected the soft glow of the chandelier above.
At the head of the table, Queen Eve sat in a modest white dress that covered part of her shoulders. Her presence was calm and serene, unlike the authority she exuded earlier in our meeting. She smiled softly as I entered, giving a motherly aura.
To her right, First Prince Thomas and Second Prince Edison took their seats. Their attires looked neat and ones that showed their authority as a Prince of the Virtue Kingdom.
As I approached the table, Queen Eve stood up, followed by the Princes.
"Your Holiness, thank you for accepting my invitation to have dinner together. Please, have a seat and make yourself comfortable."
"Thank you very much, Queen Eve," I answered and sat at the end of the table, where some silver cutlery and plates were prepared. I guessed this was my seat.
As soon as I took a seat, they also sat back, and the Queen took the small bell in front of them, shaking it. A noise rang from it thrice, and she put it back.
Loud footsteps rang from the room beside the dining hall, added with the sound of a tray's tires rolling around, making a rattling sound. The door burst open a few seconds later, and the army of maids and butlers entered, preparing the meals brought by trays in front of us skillfully.
I watched them silently, as I had never seen something like this besides in the movie. Milea was skillful, and Garcia could prepare the dining hall alone. But this… This was not a mere preparation. This was a performance!
It didn't take long before they finished, and the head butler, with a cool appearance, bowed before closing the door with both hands.
"That was amazing." I honestly praised their skill and smiled at the Queen.
"Fufufu, they were picked from the best. Most of the servants in the Royal Castle were originally the third or fourth children of a Baron or Viscount. So they have been taught about manners since they were a child, and their skill was honed by the advanced training for two years before they serve."
"I see." I nodded in understanding.
That kind of skill indeed couldn't be achieved without rigorous training. However…
"If that's the case, why is the assassin hidden among them?"
I dropped a bomb, and Queen Eve widened her eyes. The Princes who were excited for the meal stopped and looked at me.
"Your Holiness, what do you mean?" She asked with a tone slightly mixed with curiosity and suspicion. Not against me, but suspicion that was directed to the servants.
'She trusts me more than her servants.' I thought as I looked straight at her.
But that wasn't enough. So I decided to give her information that could make her trust me.
"I have this skill called <Presence Detection>. The skill is simple; it detects everyone's presence in a certain radius with me as the center."
I began explaining with a casual tone, pushing the meal that was probably given poison away from me before continuing.
"This skill made a little map in my mind, separating the presences I felt into three different ones: an ally, neutral, and an enemy. I have decided that the servants are neutral while you are my ally. Then, in my mind, I made those who have hostility against me or you as an enemy.
"Earlier, when the servants prepared the meal, I detected an enemy entering this room. That's probably the assassin." I concluded my explanation by standing up.
Then I raised my hand, activating a <Holy Barrier> to protect this room. The Princes looked impressed, while the Queen only watched in wonder. She bit her lower lips in worry.
"Please stay inside the barrier, Queen Eve. You will be safe here with Prince Thomas and Prince Edison."
"Yes. Thank you very much, Your Holiness. I am sorry for troubling you." She apologized with a sad smile.
I brushed it off with a slight nod as I walked out of the dining room. This assassin was truly brazen. But I found him already when I watched the performance earlier. He looked a bit surprised, unlike other servants, when he saw me.
'As expected, the assassin the Noble hired didn't know about me staying here.'
The only red dot in the castle was running out, probably noticing his bad position and wanting to make another assassination plan. He didn't underestimate me and had already reached the gate with his speed.
Still… I was prepared. The earring on my left ear blinked as I spoke.
"Beatrice."
(I saw him.)
"Great. Take him down without any guards noticing. I will be there in seconds."
(Alright!)
Receiving her response, I found the nearest window and jumped out. I wore the [Shadow Cape] I took out from my inventory and entered the shadow of the castle, making my way to Beatrice's location. She had already secured the assassin, considering the pink and red dots were close to each other in the empty corner.
Catching that guy must be easy for a Level 100 primordial Succubus. I saw her sitting on a bench in the empty garden with an unconscious man dressed fully in the butler's clothes in front of her.
That must be the assassin. I appeared beside Beatrice, who was dressed thinly, and surprised her.
"Huh? Master?" She yelped cutely, looking at my figure covered in a black cape. "You're really here in seconds." She exclaimed.
"Of course. I never lied." I answered as I looked down, using <Appraisal> on the assassin.
The result showed that his name was H, a simple letter, his title was [Murderer], and he had [Poison Concoction] skill. It seemed like he wasn't the one who cursed Ertha.
But… Extracting information was a must.
"Bring him to a secluded place in the city and give him this."
I handed two potions, [Truth Potion] and [Believe Pill], to Beatrice and some Golds to rent a secluded place.
"I need to calm Queen Eve down first before I interrogate him. Oh, also, you can steal his status so he won't run." I said, "And find out about the noble who hired him from Duke Applewell and Count Norrant."
"I understand, Master." Beatrice nodded in understanding and smiled wickedly. "Your wish is my command~"
R𝑒ad latest chapt𝒆rs at freew𝒆(b)novel.c(o)m Only