CH 13

The man read what was written on the paper and began to panic.

“Ahh! It’s all a conspiracy! It’s a conspiracy!”

At the glance of the Duke, the knight struck the wizard on the back of the neck and the wizard passed out, and this time he began to wake up the maid. It wasn’t long before the woman came to her senses, and the knight, holding her by the hair, lifted her head. The lady-in-waiting also began to tremble as if she had grasped the situation. From the looks of it, it would have looked very pitiful if you looked at it, but she didn’t even feel the slightest bit of sympathy.

“Please, Duke. I really committed a mortal sin. So please forgive me just this once.”

The Duke stared at the maid with her cool eyes.

…Anyway, was it still far from over? She wanted to go and get some rest. As she massaged her numb wrist, she heard her terrifying sound.

“…I just did what Elia Lawton told me to do. Please trust me, Duke!”

What was that woman saying now?

“…So, Elia Lawton made you do it?”

“Yes. That woman threatened me so stop… So please forgive me just this once.”

Why was she being threatening?

“It’s all planned by that woman!”

Oh, she couldn’t hear you any more. After blocking the Duke’s way, she approached Anne.

Puck!

Then she took out the stone statue she had kept in her bosom earlier, and quickly struck it down with Anne’s head.

Dump.

She confirmed the condition of the handmaiden who fell in front of her. Um, neatly stunned. It was good. She said to the Duke with the kindest smile I could.

“I don’t think I’ll ever hear any more of this crazy bullshit. Why don’t we just put her in jail?”

Unexpectedly, the Duke stared at her with a very puzzled face before speaking to the knight next to him.

“…Clean up.”

“All right.”

Soon the knights dragged away the fallen wizard, maid, and the gray-haired man who was still unconscious. Seeing the situation sorted out made her feel relieved. She said goodbye to that damn wizard.

She wasn’t completely sure, but thinking about the conversation between the wizard and the Duke earlier, she couldn’t help but think so. She wondered who was behind the kidnapping of Deliam, but it seemed that Marquis Dior was the culprit. Of course, it was the expected person, but it was also true that she felt like she was going to have a good time.

She couldn’t understand why people with so many possessions were so greedy. As far as she knew, Marquis Dior’s wife, ‘Mirena Dior’, was the second cousin of the imperial family. It was a situation where the imperial family was taking care of the back of the Dior family. It was safe to say that there was nothing that would become an obstacle to the Dior family, who had perfect wings.

Except for the Nathan family.

It wasn’t long before the imperial power of the Rothancia Empire entered a period of stability. Due to the nature of the location of the empire, wars were very frequent, and it was the Nathan family who made great achievements each time. The achievements of the Nathan family, which always led to victory in any crisis, were truly enormous. In addition, it was the Nathan family who provided most of the funds whenever the imperial family ran out of supplies during the war. It was for this reason that the Emperor was wary of the Duke but could not easily dismiss him.

It was only natural that Duke Kayden Nathan was a thorn in the eye of the Marquis Dior. It was the Duke, Nathan Kayden, who actually ascended to the throne, the apex of the aristocracy. Despite such checks from the Marquis, the Duke did not lose any of his position and property until the end.

Okay. So, as long as it followed the original content, there would be no problem. Th… It bothered her quite a bit that from the point she possessed that body, the original content was changing little by little… Well, if it’s a craft, even if there’s a problem, it’s good enough because it’s capable of solving it. His personality was also a bit different, so he wouldn’t be easily hit and would be strong.

Suddenly, the Duke turned towards me and narrowed his eyes.

“Your eyes are disrespectful.”

“I was just staring at you because the Duke is handsome.”

“Fuck.” he snorted.

“But if everything is sorted out now, can I go now?”

“Do whatever you feel like.”

“…Really?”

“Then stay here.”

“So you’ll interrogate me later. You can’t call me while you’re doing something. Of course, going to prison is also a no-no.”

“Well…”

“Please answer clearly.”

It must have been because the Duke carried her like a piece of luggage and brought her there because he was suspicious. The Duke, who was looking down at her with strange eyes, twisted his body.

“Deliam will be waiting for you, so stop going.”

The Duke left with his knights, leaving an ambiguous answer. Anyway, did he think it’s okay to get over the situation somehow? She moved to go to the child who was waiting for her in the room.

Arriving at the children’s room in an instant, she opened the door. The child who ran as if he had been waiting for her clung to her leg.

“I’ve been waiting for you, Elia.”

“I was going to come quickly, but it took longer than expected. Sorry.”

“No. It’s because Elia is safe.”

“Were you surprised that I couldn’t explain everything because I didn’t have it and told you to hide?”

“You did it to save me. I don’t know why Elia keeps feeling sorry for me.”

He looked up at her with childlike serious eyes.

“It’s the bad guys who need to apologize.”

“Yeah, that’s right. You’re right.”

“And my father… I hope he will apologize properly to Eia someday.”

The child held onto her collar.

“…That day will come, right?”

She stroked the head of the child who asked back in an unsure tone.

“Then.”

She knew that even if the misunderstanding was cleared up, the Duke was not the kind of person to apologize, but she didn’t bother to say it out to the child. Because sometimes, what one didn’t know was medicine.

“But, I’m sleepy…”

“Then let’s sleep.”

“I want to sleep with Elia.”

“Okay.”

She took the child with his drowsy face and headed for her bed. When she first settled down and lay down, the child naturally lay down next to her and clung to her. She didn’t move as the child buried his face in her shoulder. The moment she thought he was completely asleep…

“…Um. Thank you, Elia…”

At the muttering of the child, she smiled softly and closed her eyes.

* * *

Three days have passed since the wizard and all of his remnants were captured.

“…Elia. My father is really sick here.”

The child tapped his head.

She hurriedly looked around, wondering if someone saw him. Fortunately, there was no one around except her and the child. The knights were following from a distance and would not have heard. So  she sighed in relief and asked.

“Why is the duke’s head?”

“You know what?”

“Yes. Tell me.”

“Before…”

She thought he was going to say something interesting, so she was listening to it when she heard a commotion in the distance. What was that? It was a noise that could not be heard in this mansion, which was so quiet.

She wondered if it was evidence of what had happened. But she didn’t even want to go and have a look. It was the moment to continue the conversation with the child.

“…lia!”

She stopped at the voice she heard. Was it the illusion that she just heard her name?

“Elia, what’s wrong?”

“Ugh, nothing.”

Let’s not mind. She must have just heard wrong.

“…Elia!”

This time the sound was clearly audible. The child and she looked at each other at the same time.

“Someone just called you, Ellie, right?”

“Yeah. I think so.”

“Who is it?”

“…well.”

She couldn’t quite guess who it was. It sounds like a middle-aged man’s voice… She guessed she would have to check it out.

“Would you like to wait here for a while? I’ll come and see who it is.”

“Can’t I go too?”

“Then, let’s just check the face.”

“Yes.”

She took the child and headed to the source of the sound. The more she walked, the closer she got to the front door, so it seemed like there was a commotion outside. When she finally got there, she involuntarily frowned. It was because the scene that unfolded in front of her eyes was not very good.

A beggar-looking man was screaming with excitement. As if he had to enter the mansion, he eagerly stretched out his hand while the knights were blocking such a man.

“I heard Elia is here! Get out of the way, get out of the way!”

She hid behind a wall pillar with Deliam and watched the man.

“This is the Duke’s house. It’s no place for a guy like you to come, so get out of here.”

“If you continue to cause a commotion, you could end up in jail.”

“I-I am Viscount Ed Lawton! I heard my daughter is here! Let me meet her now, now!”

…That shabby-looking man was her father, Viscount Ed Lawton?

“If you act like that, you say you’re a nobleman? Who believes that?”

“That, that’s because of the circumstances… Well, if it weren’t for those damn bastards, I wouldn’t have been in this situation, uhhh!”

The man stopped getting angry and suddenly started to cry. Her eyes darkened at the spectacle. How the hell did that person know to come here? How did he know she was in a ducal family? Her head was confused, but she came to a conclusion quickly. Now, she quietly went back as if not knowing that person.

Even if that man was Elia Lawton’s father, she had no intention of getting involved. To be honest, it’s disgusting. She didn’t know if the family’s ruin was simply because they ran out of money, but it was because of a huge amount of debt due to gambling. It was all because of that person that she went through a situation where she was chased by a creditor as soon as she possessed that body and was even threatened with her life. In addition, she committed a job and ran away alone without being able to deal with it.

He ran away without her. He was a person who could not have good feelings anyway. So it’s right that she didn’t face him at all. As she was about to return, the wind suddenly blew strong. Because of that, it tilted slightly, exposing the body outside the pillar. She quickly hid again, but it was too late.

“Eh, Elia! Elia right? It’s me, your father!”

Even in the middle of a scuffle with the knights, the man she recognized shouted out loud as if he was happy to see her.

“Is that really Elia’s father?”

“…Well, for now?”

“But he doesn’t look like Elia at all.”

“I look like my mother.”

“Elia, please help this father! Those guild guys are trying to sell me out!”

Even while talking with the child for a while, the man screamed nonstop. Although the man had already looked at her face, it did not change that she did not want to be involved.

“Let’s go back.”

“…Are you really okay?”

“Huh.”

A voice came from the man’s throat, but she ignored it. She didn’t worry too much because the knights wouldn’t let him in anyway. She hoped that Viscount Lawton would give up quickly and go back, and went for a walk with the child again.