Chapter 30
The voice came from right behind me.
Sweat began to bead on my back.
I’d been caught.
What happens if you get caught spying on the Ritual Chamber?
I slowly turned around.
“Just as I thought. It’s you, Racy.”
A familiar head of golden hair. I let out a sigh of relief.
“Oh, long time no see, Daniel. How have you been?”
Why is Daniel from the stables here? The stables are on the complete opposite side of the grounds.
“What do you think?”
“W-well…”
Answering a question with a question. Did Daniel always talk like this?
The unusual atmosphere was suffocating.
Still, I stepped away from the building and walked toward Daniel. The farther his attention was from the Ritual Chamber, the safer I was.
“So, you don’t need the crutches anymore?”
“Yeah. I’m much better now.”
“…Even so, you haven’t come to the stables?”
Huh?
Why does he look so gloomy?
“Well, you know. I’m in the Head Steward’s bad books. I can’t visit until I’m forgiven.”
Leaving aside the ban, with Victor gone, there’s not much reason to hang around the stables right now anyway.
“The Head Steward forgave you a long time ago. He even said he was sorry, that he might have overreacted.”
“Oh… he did?”
I didn’t know that. I haven’t had a chance to see the Head Steward since then.
“You didn’t hear from the Head Housekeeper?”
Why is he suddenly bringing up the Head Housekeeper?
Meaning, he left a message through her.
Did Louis forget? Ever since she took the position, she’s been so busy she might not have had time.
I nodded.
“I see.”
Daniel’s stiff expression gradually softened.
As if some long-standing misunderstanding had been cleared up.
“You were gone for over a month without a word, so I was worried you were really hurt.”
Over a month?
Then could it be…
“As a man, I can’t enter the maids’ quarters, so I thought the apothecary, or somewhere you might be assigned…”
“Daniel. Who exactly are you talking about when you say ‘Head Housekeeper’?”
“Ah, I heard the Head Housekeeper changed recently.”
Daniel scratched his cheek awkwardly.
“Sorry for the confusion. I was talking about the former Head Housekeeper.”
I knew it!
What grudge does the former Head Housekeeper hold to keep twisting things like this?
I was furious that I couldn’t grab her by the collar and demand an explanation.
“The biggest reason I haven’t been to the stables is because I’m ashamed. I said I’d help, but I ended up causing an accident.”
And then the poisoning incident happened.
“Racy, that was my fault for putting off my work. So you don’t need to blame yourself.”
“Daniel…”
Louis also said it wasn’t my fault.
But the cause of the incident still hasn’t been made public.
I even looked for related documents while cleaning the office. All I found was the incident report.
I tried subtly asking Grandma Vianu and the other apothecaries about the poisoning process, but their lips were sealed.
“So it’s okay for you to come to the stables.”
If I contributed even a thread to that incident, then I share some fault and responsibility.
“But Dani… wh-whoa?”
Suddenly, Daniel bent down, and my eye level abruptly rose.
Why is he pulling an Ash Canis move all of a sudden?
But I soon understood the reason for his sudden action.
“Ouch…!”
A tingling pain shot up from my ankle.
Only after my foot left the ground did I realize.
I must have unintentionally pitched forward and ended up being held tightly by Daniel.
Did I overdo it?
Well, I’ve been searching for Rosier so much that it’d be quicker to list the places in the castle I haven’t been to.
And I was hobbling around on my tiptoes too.
I tried to straighten up and regain my posture, but the stinging pain kept making my fingers curl.
For now, not clawing Daniel’s shoulder with my nails was the best I could do.
Seeing through my silent struggle, Daniel patted my back consolingly with his free hand.
It reminded me of my father’s touch, making my chest ache for no reason.
Perhaps from caring for animals that don’t understand words, Daniel has an incredible power of observation.
Enough to realize I’d twisted my ankle from just a glance.
Then, a very small whisper crept into my ear.
“Actually, it’s because I wanted to see you.”
Huh? The flow of the conversation…
I pushed Daniel’s shoulder to create some distance.
From his sad, shimmering emerald eyes, I could sense an indescribable emotion.
“Even if Victor were here, would you have coldly cut off contact like this?”
It was jealousy, right? Toward a horse.
Sigh, what can I say?
Knowing the reason, unnecessary tension drained from my body.
“See. You can’t answer right away.”
“Ummm…”
Well, it’s so accurate I can’t even argue.
“I’ll come visit as soon as I finish my busy tasks.”
“Really? Promise?”
“Yeah, yeah. I promise.”
Only after I confirmed it several times did a smile return to Daniel’s face.
Now he seems like the Daniel I know.
He was acting like a completely different person earlier, it was unsettling.
What is Daniel like when he’s truly angry?
I can’t imagine…
Maybe this is why Sonia feels uncomfortable around Daniel.
But then my body began to sway. Daniel had started walking toward the building.
“Racy, what were you looking at earlier? Over there is the Ritual…”
“Daniel, I want to go to the stables right now!”
“Such an obvious change of subject is suspicious.”
But it was already too late. With Daniel’s tall strides, a few steps were enough to reach the outer wall of the Ritual Chamber.
Daniel’s face instantly grew serious.
“Hmm…”
I’m doomed.
Am I really going to be branded a spy this time?
“Racy, were you admiring your own face?”
“…Huh?”
“It’s just weird, no matter how I think about it. Why would they put a mirror where glass should be?”
“A… mirror?”
I twisted to look at the window.
The smooth, transparent glass was shiny, as if just cleaned.
Held by Daniel, with my elevated view, I could see inside the Ritual Chamber very clearly.
Even the door leading to the underground passage was wide open.
But does this look like a mirror to Daniel’s eyes?
“I know you’re pretty, but you should be careful outside. You might get mistaken for a weird person.”
“……”
I seem to have been met with a completely different misunderstanding than expected.
I’m not sure if I should consider this fortunate or not.
“Okay. I’ll be careful.”
“Good girl.”
First this, then that, and now I’m even being treated like a child…
Just then, I saw Rosier coming up to the surface.
Is his business in the secret space finished?
“Shall we go to the stables, as you just said?”
…If we’re going anyway, could you at least put me down?
Daniel always used to accommodate me.
But today, for some reason, he seems oddly intent on taking the lead.
Maybe it’s okay to let him have his way for a day.
With this ankle, I can’t follow Rosier anyway.
“…Sigh, fine.”
As soon as I uttered my consent, Daniel beamed at me.
It was the moment he turned toward the stables.
Huh.
“Racy?”
“Yeah?”
“Is there something on the window?”
I thought I made eye contact with Rosier.
I looked back, but Rosier had already lowered his gaze.
Is there something on the floor?
“…Must have been my imagination. Let’s go, Daniel.”
“Right.”
* * *
My ankle gave me trouble until the next day.
I need to be in top condition by the time Ash Canis returns.
So, I decided to change my strategy.
Instead of doggedly following Rosier around, I’d go to where he was headed first and wait.
“Hello, Mr. Rosier.”
“……”
As expected, Rosier appeared.
I was certain he would visit the apothecary, if nowhere else. It’s where Grandma Vianu works, after all.
Today, I finally have to thank him.
“Do you remember me? I worked at the country estate…”
“Hah.”
Rosier sighed without even hearing me out and walked right past me.
As if dismissing a person.
I quickly stepped in front of him, blocking his way.
“What is it.”
“I have something to say. So if you could just spare a moment…”
I was bewildered.
Why is he looking at me with such a disgusted expression?
I’ve faced subtle criticism for being a bastard child.
It was the same when I was falsely accused of being a traitor or a criminal.
Whether I was responsible or not, there was always a reason.
But Rosier seems to despise me, even though I’m someone he saved.
Why?
Rosier brushed past me again.
“I don’t have time to chit-chat with the likes of you.”
Those words, like a warning, pierced my chest.
