Chapter 42
Strangely, I’d been unlucky since morning.
“Where did this go?”
I was about to drop off the newsletter at the printing shop, but I had lost the manuscript I had finished writing. I usually kept it in a drawer, but it wasn’t anywhere in the drawer.
“Could it be… over there?”
A maid nearby pointed to the top of the bookshelf. There was no way I would have deliberately placed it that high, but I figured I must have been careless and let it slide.
“Why is it there? Anyway, glad I found it.”
“Yes, then I’ll take my leave.”
After handing the manuscript to the servant Leon had sent, I had to go to the workshop for some merchandise production. But on the way, water suddenly splashed right in front of me. I almost got drenched in dirty water.
“What the—!”
Looking up, I saw a middle-aged woman holding a bucket with a shocked expression. Only a little water splashed, but I felt a flash of irritation. Yet the woman quickly ran down the stairs and bowed, apologizing.
“Oh my, I’m so sorry, miss! I didn’t see anyone passing by…!”
“Who pours water from that high up? Isn’t it common sense to pour it on the ground? Be more careful next time.”
Since I wasn’t hurt and hadn’t gotten completely soaked, I let it go. If it had ended there, I would have just thought, “What a rough start to the day.”
However, from the workshop to the theater, things started getting quite risky.
While riding a carriage to the theater, for some reason, the horse got startled and the carriage shook violently. Then I was told the wheels had a problem and couldn’t move.
Eventually, I got off to walk, and an old woman grabbed my hand.
“Miss, I can’t see this properly. Could you read it for me instead?”
“Yes, but… please let go of my hand!”
Her grip was so strong that I got annoyed. The old woman kept pushing me toward a corner, almost into a nearby shop. At that moment, something fell behind her.
—Thud!
A flowerpot had fallen from above.
“G-Grandma! You almost got hit!”
“People these days really aren’t careful.”
The old woman said it nonchalantly, but I felt a chill run down my spine.
‘Come to think of it, Leon did tell me to be careful. Could this be it?’
As soon as I sensed it was intentional, my body froze. What if someone bumped into me? Would I get stabbed instantly? I couldn’t move a step.
Then, the old woman in front of me suddenly transformed into a young man with brown hair—it was the servant Leon had sent earlier. That meant…
“My fault.”
“I…”
“Quiet.”
I almost shouted that it was Leon in the middle of the street. His simple, unassuming expression hid a stiff and arrogant demeanor.
“What if the other members are like this too? What if someone gets hurt!”
“I’ve already assigned people to watch your leader. I just thought it’d be enough if I watched you.”
Leon placed his hand on my shoulder protectively and walked quickly.
“Excuse me for a moment.”
In an instant, Leon turned into a side alley and teleported straight to the theater. I was already somewhat used to it, so it wasn’t dizzying this time.
“Thank you.”
“I’ll wait here. I want to make sure there aren’t any others around.”
Inside the theater, the atmosphere felt tense. Did everyone feel threatened? Did they almost get hurt?
“Hello.”
“Miss!”
Anna, who first made eye contact with me, ran over quickly.
“Miss, are you okay?!”
“How would you know I almost got hurt?”
Anna checked my face with a worried expression. Shion stood beside her, arms crossed, pouting.
“This feels a little unfair. Am I not important?”
“Don’t joke!”
Anna gave Shion a playful smack.
“What about Alex?”
“I’m fine for now… thanks to your concern.”
Still, worry and unease were visible on Alex’s face. He exchanged a few glances with Anna. She shook her head at him, and then Alex looked directly at me.
“I should tell you—Anna got fired from the dress shop.”
“I told you not to say anything!”
The Grand Duke managed to neutralize the immediate threat, but Katia’s menace seemed to come from all directions.
“Even though it has nothing to do with the play!”
“It’s infuriating… At this point, it’s just malicious.”
The members all voiced their frustration.
“I want to stage this play, even if I’m angry. I used to think well of Schacht. No other family supports artists as much as them. But I didn’t expect them to act this petty.”
Alex, unusually raising his voice, added: supporting artists in Katia’s salon was considered a great honor.
At that moment, there was a knock on the practice room door.
“Who’s there?”
Without an answer, the door opened. It was Leon.
“How about everyone staying at my mansion?”
“Did you hear what we were talking about?”
Leon nodded.
“There will surely be disturbances on the day of the banquet, so it’s better for everyone to depart together from the mansion.”
I explained a bit more on Leon’s behalf.
“Can extra guards be assigned to those who have other matters? Not everyone can go.”
“Good.”
Leon nodded.
“All of them are under your protection.”
Alex wiped his dry hands.
“It does seem safer to stay together.”
It wouldn’t be easy living in someone else’s house, but Alex agreed to go. Most others volunteered as well.
“The mansion… I guess living there for now wouldn’t be bad.”
Shion seemed surprisingly eager. John wanted to go but couldn’t due to circumstances.
“I can’t, I have a younger sister at home. She’s still very young.”
In the end, six people, including Alex, Anna, Shion, and me, decided to go to the Grand Duke’s mansion. John and two others would have guards assigned by the Duke.
“I’ll send people to your houses tomorrow morning.”
“I’ll have to go home and pack….”
“But, Miss Melias, how will you explain this to Miss Leuke?”
I had been thinking about it anyway. I couldn’t hide it forever. Plus, I needed to actively counter the Schacht theater troupe. As a planner, I wanted to ensure Leuke’s success independently of the troupe…
‘Will Leuke understand this?’
Leon escorted me home. Leuke was out for theater matters and hadn’t returned yet. I waited, thinking about how to explain everything.
‘So we’ve actually been at odds with Katia all this time…? Should I mention the newsletter too? I’ll have to explain if I’m staying at the mansion… or just say I can’t go?’
But that was difficult. I, being the most threatened, couldn’t be separate from everyone else—it made no sense for everyone to gather at the mansion.
‘What do I do….’
While I was pondering, I heard Leuke’s footsteps outside. I jumped up and opened the door.
“Sis!”
“Ah, you startled me!”
“Sorry.”
“Did you want to say something? I thought you were waiting.”
Seeing Leuke’s face, all the words I wanted to say flew out of my head.
“Um… how’s the play? Going well?”
“Some of the audience has been leaving, so it’s a bit… But I feel like my skills are improving, and the newsletters have been kind. The audience seems to like it.”
I already knew that. I had been collecting all news about Leuke. If the audience had been negative, I would have acted by now. But now wasn’t the time to talk about achievements.
“Anything else…?”
“Not really. Why?”
I realized I had no choice but to be honest. Otherwise, I couldn’t explain moving to Leon’s mansion starting tomorrow. But first, as Leuke’s agency head, I needed to assess the situation calmly. I regained focus and continued.
“Katia… how does she seem to you?”
“What do you mean, her as a person?”
“I mean as a troupe leader.”
“She does love the theater. But at this rate, I think she’ll lose the audience’s expectations.”
Leuke stared at me intently.
“I don’t want to leave the troupe anytime soon. There’s more I can gain.”
“My thoughts are similar. But there’s one more thing you need to know…”
Now came the important part. I took a deep breath.
“I’ll need to stay away for a week starting tomorrow. It’s at the Northern Grand Duke’s mansion. You know we’re staging the play, right?”
“Yes, but…?”
“Because of that, my life is in danger…”
“What?”
Leuke widened her eyes, frowning in confusion.
“It’s the royal family, right? You said the Crown Prince was threatening the Duke. Then… what will you do?”
I wanted to explain that the royal threat was actually Katia, and I had been fighting her all along, but I couldn’t bring myself to speak.
“If things go well, there won’t be a problem. Don’t worry. But actually…”
“Yes?”
“Katia is on the Crown Prince’s side.”
“…Ah.”
Leuke seemed to have realized something. My heart pounded—I was scared she might get angry.
“I didn’t want to worry you. I wanted to make sure nothing could harm you…”
“I suspected there was a reason. Not just because I’m pretty.”
Leuke paused, thinking deeply. The worried expression vanished, replaced by a calm, confident smile.
“So, what should I do, Boss?”
