Chapter 73……………..
If there was anything weighing on me, it was only that I wished Kyle wouldn’t get further involved in dangerous matters.
But these past few days, I’d been so preoccupied with Xeros that I hadn’t been able to do anything.
I knew I needed to summon Lismas, but the fear that something might happen to Xeros left me too anxious and restless to call him forth.
“I don’t have any professional expertise myself. If Your Highness is seeking my words because you trust me, then I fear I have nothing worthy to say.”
In truth, I wanted to step forward in this matter—but without Lismas, I knew very little about plants.
Perhaps because I kept addressing him so formally, Rekanon seemed dissatisfied, and once again slipped into a childish, teasing tone.
“You’re still too young to have read any, but lately I’ve been reading mystery novels.”
Ha. A man who only knows swordsmanship, reading novels? Say something believable if you want me to take you seriously.
“I’d rather not waste my precious free time on Your Highness’s little games. Perhaps another day—”
“No! Wait, just hear me out! I happened to overhear something in the palace… they say this incident is suspicious.”
“Suspicious?”
“Yes. It doesn’t seem like what happened in the Hellin household was an accident. We need to find out what schemes are behind it.”
So you’ve made up your mind, fine. But why drag me into it?
When I stayed silent, Rekanon looked awkward, his nostrils flaring and shoulders twitching.
“If we solve this case, it’ll be a huge help to my brother.”
“I still don’t see any reason why I should be involved, Your Highness.”
I turned quickly to leave, but then came his desperate cry:
“It’s… it’s a date request!”
I was dumbfounded. Did he actually think that line would work? He’d have been better off saying he wanted help as a friend.
“In that case, I think I’ll just be leaving immediately, Your Highness.”
“Please, just help me! Don’t you pity the surviving young master?”
His earnest plea left me reconsidering. Perhaps it was better to cooperate with the investigation, even reluctantly.
If I were merely a companion, I’d have no right to participate at all. But at the request of a prince? That changed things.
Besides, I already felt a certain responsibility for this case….
“Very well. After all, I was once Your Highness’s companion. I’ll listen to what you have to say. Now then, what about that mystery novel you mentioned earlier?”
I answered with a show of reluctance, as though granting him a favor, rather than agreeing too readily. Rekanon, seeming eager to match my mood, played along exaggeratedly.
“Yes! My intuition is certain. While reading a mystery novel, I suddenly realized—the fire at the Hellin estate felt just like something out of one.”
Honestly, it was a ridiculous claim, and hardly piqued my interest. But still—perhaps there was something here I could do. That possibility alone felt like a small liberation from the endless guilt and gloom I’d been drowning in.
“Still, is it really wise to investigate like this, without any authority?”
I gently warned him of the danger in what he was proposing.
Of course, danger alone wouldn’t sway my decision either way.
“You seem to forget—I’m the empire’s second prince! There’s nowhere in the palace I cannot go.”
Clearly, he didn’t have investigative authority, judging from his flustered eyes, but he blustered loudly to cover it.
An empty cart makes the most noise, and a frightened dog barks the loudest.
“My apologies, I should have realized.”
I answered playfully, and Rekanon relaxed, smiling in relief.
In that moment, I actually thought he looked rather cute.
“So, you’re finally willing to help me?”
“With such earnest pleading from Your Highness, what choice do I have? Once your companion, I must step forward.”
I replied with an air of resignation, as though forced to agree.
In truth, I judged it better to seize this unexpected opportunity. Rekanon, delighted by my answer, broke into a broad grin.
“It would’ve been better if you’d said so from the start, but stubbornness is part of what makes Ellufe Inferna who she is.”
“…”
When I didn’t respond, Rekanon hastily lifted the teapot I had once handed to Kyle.
“Ahem. Look here. This teapot and these cups were brought back by the survivor as evidence.”
“I see.”
I already knew the teapot, so it didn’t stir much interest. Yet seeing it again gave me a faintly fresh feeling.
“They say even the cups contained traces of poison. And still, I can’t bring myself to believe it.”
As he spoke, Rekanon watched me closely as I examined the evidence.
“Is there something on my face?”
“What? No! I wasn’t just staring at you—I was looking at the evidence.”
Deciding not to waste time with bickering, I ignored him and studied the teacup. Then, noticing the accessory he wore, I tilted my head.
“That brooch on your clothes—it’s made of silver, isn’t it?”
“Huh? Oh, yeah. The knight commander gave it to me. Not very expensive.”
Perhaps embarrassed that it wasn’t gold, Rekanon rambled on.
It hardly mattered to me whether a prince wore gold or silver, but he seemed self-conscious once I asked.
“May I borrow it for a moment?”
I asked lightly. Flustered, he quickly handed it over. I dipped the silver ornament into the liquid left in the cup.
“What are you doing?! That’s precious to me!”
Startled, Rekanon snatched it back—then his eyes went wide.
“The color changed.”
“Which confirms there was poison in the tea.”
He wiped the brooch vigorously with a handkerchief, his expression darkening with gravity.
So… he hadn’t shown me this to prove poison existed? Then what was his aim?
“In that case, the duke’s death must be ruled a suicide.”
Hearing him mutter as if possessed made my brows knit.
“A suicide, Your Highness?”
Grabbing his arm, I pressed him. He faltered, clearly reluctant to speak.
But I stared at him intently, wordlessly demanding he share everything.
At last, unable to withstand the pressure, he looked away and answered.
“There were no traces of poison in the teapot itself. That means only the tea the duke drank was poisoned. So the higher-ups will conclude it was self-inflicted, and close the case.”
At his words, my heart plummeted as if off a rooftop.
“The Duke of Hellin was a family man, and politically, he always remained neutral. He had no reason to suddenly make such a drastic choice.”
Rekanon’s right brow twitched slightly, as if doubting that the daughter of the Inferna count—head of the noble faction—could truly say such a thing.
“If you suspect our family, I can assure you—it wasn’t us.”
“And why not?”
He sounded more curious than accusatory, but I knew well enough: Count Inferna would never escalate matters in such a reckless way.
“Hard as it may be to believe, my father has little interest in the neutral faction.”
Rekanon chuckled wryly, nodding. His eyes said he hadn’t truly suspected Inferna in the first place.
Realizing he had tricked me into saying it, I felt a bit wronged—but the more mature part of me let it go.
“I don’t think the duke killed himself either. If he had wanted to kill his family and then himself, there would need to be a reason: failing finances, corruption, a scandal. But the Duke of Hellin was flawless in every respect.”
Watching Rekanon speak so seriously about the case gave me a new impression of him.
With his playful tone and expressions, he seemed incapable of focus. But now…
Perhaps I shouldn’t judge people by appearances after all.
Abruptly, he handed me a stack of documents.
“This is everything my brother received in his reports. Go over them.”
“Wouldn’t touching the crown prince’s documents mean at least the death penalty?”
For a moment, I was almost glad to receive such a lead. But I forced myself to hold back.
Don’t get careless, Ellufe. Remember—you passed the evidence to Kyle precisely so Rekanon would act in your stead. Don’t crumble now.
With a stern face, I tried to return the papers. Rekanon only laughed, patting my back lightly before suddenly fixing me with a cold gaze.
“As long as we don’t get caught.”
What a reckless plan.
