Chapter 37
That strong, scorched smell and the sticky stuff—I had seen it once before. Black liquid baked onto the window frame, tangled with black feathers.
At the time, I thought it was rust and ordered it to be cleaned off. But maybe it had been something else. I couldn’t say exactly what, but I realized belatedly it had been a mistake. Then Suh began to gag and choke. Charlotte hurriedly tried to pry open her mouth.
“Su, open your mouth. Quickly.”
It seemed like Su had chewed on something violently. But what it was, she couldn’t tell. Black liquid clung all over her body, impossible to wipe away. Then Su gave a sharp gagging sound and spat a black lump onto the floor.
Charlotte gathered the trembling Su into her arms and stared at the clump. What on earth is that? The strange stench made her dizzy.
Just then, Anna came rushing in.
“My lady, my lady!”
“!”
“Aria is acting strange. You’d better come quickly!”
Charlotte’s face drained of color. She hurried toward Aria’s room. From between the half-open doors, the stench spilling out was far more pungent than Su’s, thick and overpowering.
Aria was sitting on the floor crying. Her expression was full of sorrow, yet she looked like she was trying her best not to sob aloud. Charlotte handed Su over to Anna and went to Aria.
“Aria.”
“Mom…”
“Aria, what’s wrong? Hm? Why are you crying?”
The same smell came from Aria, but Charlotte hugged her anyway. Her body was icy cold. The soft, plump flesh now felt oddly stiff—like touching a corpse.
A chill ran down Charlotte’s spine, but she shook her head, pushing away the ominous thought. No. She’s my daughter.
She hadn’t known her long, and Aria was an adopted child who would soon be sent away. But for this moment, she was Charlotte’s daughter.
“Aria, did something happen?”
“…I don’t know.”
“You don’t know?”
Aria’s expression suggested she had a lot to say, but her tearful eyes only blinked. No words came.
“That’s fine. It’s okay. Mommy’s here to hold you.”
Charlotte wasn’t even sure what she meant by “it’s okay.” Right now, what mattered was calming the crying child.
She rocked the small, trembling Aria in her arms, repeating again and again that it would be fine, all the while scanning the room. What could have happened while she was away fetching snacks that left both Su and Aria terrified and crying?
Could someone have broken in? No—it was unlikely. Aria’s room was on the second floor. Downstairs, the maids and servants had gathered to barricade the windows.
If a stranger had entered the castle, they would have been stopped at the stairs long before reaching this room.
“Aria, why don’t we take a bath? You need to change clothes, and the room should be cleaned, too…”
She had intended to get Aria out of the room. Like Su, Aria’s dress was smeared everywhere with sticky, gooey stuff.
While Aria bathed, Charlotte planned to have the servants clean the hall and even replace the bedsheets, just in case. And seeing how the filth didn’t seem like mere dust or rust, she thought to mention it to Ash—perhaps it could cause illness.
But suddenly, Aria burst into loud sobs and struggled in her arms.
“No!”
“!”
“Aria is staying here!”
Aria had never refused her before, and Charlotte was caught off guard. Wriggling out of her embrace, Aria bolted to a corner and curled up.
Charlotte’s heart dropped. Not just from the shock of her reaction, but for another reason.
“I don’t want to leave! I’m not going anywhere!”
Aria cowered as if expecting someone to hit her, covering her head with her arms. Her small body trembled visibly.
At that moment, Charlotte remembered again that Aria had been abandoned. The thought that she might have been abused before flashed through her mind, and she swallowed hard.
“Alright. Then we’ll do what Aria wants. Mommy will stay with you.”
She would not drag her out by force. Charlotte approached and gathered the trembling child once again into her arms. Aria’s sobs grew louder.
Her little hand clutched Charlotte’s clothes tightly, refusing to let go. Seeing it pained her. Charlotte gently patted her shuddering shoulders. Anna, who had been watching silently, finally came close and whispered:
“My lady.”
“?”
“Shall I inform Duke Valiant?”
Anna had noticed that among the black lumps there were shredded remains of Baroness Bervel’s letter and what seemed to be a rat’s carcass. But she chose not to say it aloud. Charlotte’s expression was already grim with worry for Aria. She didn’t want to add to her distress.
Instead, she suggested speaking to Ash, lord of Nostri. But Charlotte shook her head.
“No. That won’t be necessary.”
It had only been a few days since she met Ash at the winter lake. His curse probably hadn’t subsided yet. Stroking Aria’s round head, Charlotte lowered her gaze.
“Just have the corridor cleaned. I’ll stay with Aria until she calms down.”
Originally, the plan had been to head straight to Nostri after glimpsing Theodore at the return banquet. She had even packed her luggage, planning to stay about a week. As soon as the emperor’s congratulatory address ended, she left the grand hall.
She was in a good mood, anticipating seeing her granddaughter—until Theodore followed her out.
[Marquis, forgive me for delaying you, but I have something to tell you.]
[?]
[Some of my men just arrived at the banquet. On their way, they saw Duke Linda and the Clagens rushing to the High Priest’s chamber. I can’t help but think something’s happened.]
[Duke Linda went to the High Priest’s chamber?]
Marquis Blanche frowned deeply. Though retired, he knew well their strained relationship. For Linda to visit the High Priest first—it had to be serious, just as Theodore said.
He didn’t know the details, but he couldn’t bring himself to leave. To Theodore, he’d said, “Silbert will take care of it.” But truly, he didn’t feel right departing immediately. He decided to wait a few days.
“In my younger years, problems were always resolved within three or four days. Let’s wait and see.”
And so, four days passed.
To his relief, nothing seemed to have happened. He felt at ease and was preparing to leave. But just as he was stepping out of the marquisate, priests from the temple arrived in a rush.
“Bring him secretly. Don’t alert the Clagens.” That was Silbert’s order. And so, instead of seeing his beloved granddaughter, Blanche Marquis went to meet his old friend in secret.
The words Theodore had spoken weighed on him. If the High Priest wanted a covert meeting, the matter had to be grave.
But then—what?
“A theft?”
“You jest in the High Priest’s presence without restraint.”
“And you ask help of a man already retired. We’re no different.”
Still, he reasoned, it couldn’t just be a simple theft. Surely, there was more. And indeed, Silbert placed a thick, leather-bound ledger before him.
“If it were just theft, I would not have called on an old friend. Look at this first.”
“Have you lost your senses, handling ledgers so carelessly…”
The marquis sighed but flipped through silently. His hand halted abruptly where Silbert had detected the embezzlement. His brow furrowed, and with a sigh he spoke.
“…You didn’t need retirement funds, surely.”
“I wasn’t the one who diverted them.”
“Of course not. Who was responsible for the records and for the recent temple auction? The one accountable for the theft?”
“Record-keeper was Jamil. The auction was handled by Rettran and Fon, the latter selected last year as top student in the Rebelline system.”
Now he understood why Silbert had summoned him in secret. Blanche pressed a hand to his forehead.
If it were theft alone, it could be managed. After all, it was the temple’s property that had been stolen. And the timing overlapped with the blessing ceremony and the return banquet—plenty of excuses.
They could say: “While priests busily prepared to welcome the war hero, opportunists stole donations.” Add a plea not to shame the goddess Rebelline, and public criticism would be minimal.
But with embezzlement added, it was far harder to contain.
A quick glance showed multiple instances—far from isolated. That meant not only the High Priest, but the Clagens would be drawn in. And if Duke Linda led them, many unrelated people would also be harmed.
The record-keeper and those responsible would face punishment. The two auction managers wouldn’t be punished as harshly—but Fon was another matter.
As a noble supremacist and opponent of the Rebelline system, Duke Linda could seize on this to attack it, blaming Fon as a representative.
He would argue that children from slums, despite training, were inherently inferior to those raised with proper education…
Which meant Fon and all others selected through the Rebelline system would be subjected to scorn.
So that’s why I was called. Even retired, I’m the only one who can restrain Duke Linda…
They had to stop him. For Linda would exploit the scandal not to fix the problem, but to abolish the system itself.
“What would you have me do?”
“…”
“I don’t like that man either. Give me the right excuse, and I’ll help. Besides, I owe Charlotte a debt.”
Looks like seeing Charlotte will have to wait. Blanche thought grimly.
“So, do you want me to find the culprit?”
“No. We already know who it is.”
“What?”
Silbert stroked his lips, then looked at the ledger Blanche still held.
“Jamil Kenis. He’s the culprit.”
“The record-keeper? Kenis? You mean from that Kenis family I know?”
Blanche had thought Silbert called him to help identify and catch the culprit to keep Duke Linda from interfering. But if he already knew… why summon him?
A theft occurred—Kenis couple’s donated gold bars were stolen.
So the stolen items were the Kenises’ donation.
Suddenly, all the pieces clicked together in Blanche’s mind. His gaze sharpened, and he barked out:
“Is anyone outside?!”
“Y-yes, sir!”
Fon, who had been anxiously hovering near the High Priest’s chamber, startled and rushed inside.
“Arrest Jamil at once.”
“What?!”
“And summon Sir Arbelche. If asked why, give my name. Right now!”
