Chapter 43

It was a little frustrating, but I also thought it was fortunate that no one had died. Maybe she was stressed out because it seemed like she was being chased too frantically. Still, I felt restless because my mother could return to the empire anytime.  All my work would be in vain if she was going to leave there.

Then it should have never happened.

“…I still can’t go out?”

Having been confined here for several weeks, I became irritated and spoke sharply.

“They said it’s okay to take a walk only until the front.”

“…What the hell did my mother do? All right, get out.”

“Yes.”

As soon as Ian left, I lay down on the bed. Then my hand reached near my neck and gently rubbed the necklace’s area.

“Why did it break off?”

It was my first time too. He must have waited because I didn’t contact him, so he might have been angry this time.

Valery got angry seem a bit strange, but it was more strange if he didn’t get angry at the person who kept him waiting for hours.

I can’t just send someone to retrieve the necklace.

I felt stuffy again.

* * *

The next evening, my mother and Sir Shubart finally appeared. While I was living in a stuffy, irritable, concussive mood, they both seemed calm.

“Bella, how have you been?”

“I’m all right. Are things settled?”

“We’ll have to wait and see.”

Sir Shubart smiled as he handed his coat to the maid.

I asked impatiently, “What happened that day? I heard Madam Perza had delayed going to recuperation. Then there wouldn’t be any danger—”

“Don’t make a fuss and sit down first. Because it’s a long story, so bring us some water.” My mother said indifferently and sat down on the sofa.

“Yes, Master.”

I sat across from my mother and stared at Sir Shubart.

“There is a spy inside.”

“…spy?”

They’re not referring to me, aren’t they?

When I asked calmly, Sir Shubart clicked his tongue.  When Madam Perza’s accident was about to happen, Sir Shubart and my mother were working on two things. The other was to attack the emperor’s aide and Price Mont, the emperor’s remaining brother. It was something I didn’t know.

“You… didn’t tell me.”

“I’m afraid you would be stressed about it.”

A work that had been painstakingly planned longer than the plan for Madam Perza was turned upside down by someone, and my mother’s existence was almost discovered there.

“But I didn’t know they would attack from both sides. Did I relax too much? They were pretty smart.”

“…”

That was something I did. I didn’t know who did the other, but I guess they no longer exist in this world anymore. I closed my eyes and talked.

“Then, were you okay that day?”

“I was fine, but Lu was almost in danger. Let’s just stay here while we reorganize. Tell me if you need something. I’m going to keep going back and forth. I can’t trust this to anyone.”

“…Yes, I understand. So, is Mother okay now?”

“That’s why I’m here.”

My mother, who drank the water and put it down, had no change in her expression. How can she be so calm when she almost died?

“We will have to start all over again, but will it be faster than before?”

“Start all over… again?”

What do you mean start over? I felt something crumbling inside my body.

Sir Shubart said it was for our freedom, but I couldn’t understand it. Freedom for whom?

* * *

“Lady, it’s Nina!”

“…Come in.”

For a month, I’ve been getting worn out. Still, I could only walk to the front garden, and the language here was different, so I couldn’t stay outside for long.

I stared at Nina as she came in. Nina had adapted well anywhere. If the conversation didn’t work, she used hand gestures to keep the conversation going. Thanks to this, she succeeded in buying the ownership of the bakery in the village as the intermediary communication with Shale. She said she was going to the bakery again today, and her expression was bright.

“Lady, we’re connected.”

“Already?”

“Yes. It won’t take as long as before, but it will still take more than a week.”

“It doesn’t matter. I just need to confirm something.”

“Ah, and this came too. I guess he was able to send it because it was a small package.”

Connected with Shale Iskar. I had to use the post office as if I was sending it to a friend in a distant country. Still, I thought it would be more certain to hear the information about the empire from someone other than Sir Shubart or my mother.

“I don’t think there was a need to send something to me.”

It was quite heavy. When I opened the package, there were dozens of small jewels from the inside.

“Why is this…”

As soon as I wondered, I opened the letter and read it. It was written that he hadn’t heard anything special yet and that if I was having a hard time, I should change those to money. He said small jewelry would be easy to change even in this place.

“What is this… did he think I’m that useless?”

He thought I would be a beggar here just because I was being chased to another country, so there were some gold pieces as big as nails. It was so ridiculous.

“Your master.”

Nina tilted her head when I looked up at her.

“Yes?”

“Is your master out of his mind?”

Then Nina smiled awkwardly.

“Yes. Sometimes… he’s weird, but he’s not the only one who was like that.”

“Ha. I see.”

What’s wrong with him? I picked up the fallen jewels and dumped them into the jewelry box.

In the evening, Sir Shubart came to say hello, and we had dinner together.

“Is there anything uncomfortable?”

“No. Sometimes this place reminds me of being in the North, but there’s nothing really uncomfortable about it.”

“Then, if you need anything, just tell me.”

“How is mother?”

“She’s fine. From next week on, Lu will be here too.”

“That’s a relief.”

Sir Shubart then held out a small pocket.

“What is this?”

I received the pocket and opened it. Five mana stones, less than half the size of the mana stones Delkian had given me before, fell from the pocket. Two were opaque white mana stones, and the rest were dark blue mana stones.

I paused. They won’t know that the first prince gave me mana stones before, right? What if they find out about what I got before?

Sir Shubart only knew that I met Delkian in the weekly exhibition.

“The first prince sent it.”

“Is there anyone else in the previous mansion? I thought you took them all.”

“I just put a few people back in charge. Fortunately, they didn’t notice. That’s a relief.”

“Ah… I played a game at the banquet hall I went to last time.”

“Yes, I know.”

“Ah, I didn’t tell you about it before. We made a bet there. He said he would send me something cool if I won the game, so it must have been this. I didn’t even know what these are for.”

I didn’t pay much attention and put the mana stones back into the pocket.

“Those are mana stones. Cool things, right?”

“What are these used for? Is it used like a jewel?”

“The dark blue ones are teleportation stones, and the opaque white ones are probably invisible or glow stones. Each color has different usefulness.”

I listened to him silently and then smiled.

“Oh… really? Then it’s better than jewelry. Can you give these to my mother? She seems to be in a bad mood these days.”

I then pulled the string attached to the pocket and handed it to Sir Shubart. I couldn’t help it because I had to let them know I didn’t have such a thing.

“These? Well, she will like whatever you give her.”

“Please tell my mother that I miss her. If I say this, she would probably say I’m talking about something useless, right?”

“It’s not like that on the inside.”

Sir Shubart smiled and took the pocket. I knew he wouldn’t refuse it because he liked it when my relationship with my mother grew closer.

My stomach felt hurt, but I couldn’t help it.

After Sir Shubart returned, as he said, my mother came about a week later. It felt like we were living together, just like when we were in the North.

I’ve been in touch with Shale Iskar from time to time. Sometimes, I would ask him about the atmosphere in the empire and whether the real Blake Ariandel appeared. Whether I should feel dumbfounded or relieved, the news of Blake Ariandel, whose time has come to appear, has hardly been heard, raising questions. If I remember correctly, she should appear within a year or so.

As I lived like that, I gradually got used to living here. Even after a long time passed, no news of Valery was heard.