How much time had passed? The loud bursting sounds of fireworks were no longer heard.

Benjamin rose from where he had been sitting for a long time and began walking somewhere again.

Before long, his steps stopped in front of Duncan’s study.

“Master Duncan is not present.”

Duncan’s assistant, whose name he still couldn’t recall, had a faint trace of irritation in his voice.

Like a newborn puppy not knowing to fear a tiger, how dare he show irritation to whom?

Benjamin wanted to crush the assistant’s small head.

If he could shatter someone to pieces right now, it might slightly improve his irritation-filled mood.

“So?”

But since he couldn’t kill an innocent person, his voice came out merely gruff.

“I’m saying you cannot meet him now. I will inform him of your visit.”

“Don’t want to leave.”

“Pardon?”

“I’m saying I’ll wait in the study.”

Duncan’s loyal puppy let out a small sigh.

“…Very well. Please wait inside. However, I cannot guarantee when he will return.”

“Yeah.”

Just as the assistant was about to open the study door, Duncan’s voice rang out from behind.

“Isn’t this Benjamin, who’s been busy investigating me lately?”

Duncan spoke sarcastically as he stood before Benjamin, looking at him.

Benjamin watched Duncan without responding.

Duncan had a faint smell of cooked potatoes and gunpowder that might have been used in fireworks.

‘While I’m here burning up inside, unable to find the ugly doll, he’s been out watching fireworks?’

A chilly voice flowed between Benjamin’s lips.

“What a disgusting smell…”

“Disgusting? Did you just say that adorable me has a disgusting smell?”

“….”

Duncan’s questioning response was a bit strange. Benjamin mulled over the ‘adorable me’ that had precisely struck his ears.

‘With that build, and saying he’s adorable with his own mouth?’

The word adorable should only suit someone like Diana or the ugly doll.

Benjamin thought Duncan had finally gone mad. That he’d lost his mind from the stress of recent harassment.

Otherwise, there was no way that man would discuss his own cuteness.

“You must have misheard, Master Duncan.”

“…Hmm. Come in for now.”

Eventually, the two entered the study.

***

Benjamin had no particular reason for visiting Duncan.

He had no intention of telling him that he’d found the log cabin and discovered unburned paper scraps there.

Why would he confess the truth for anyone’s benefit? Though his intrusion would be discovered due to the broken doorknob, he still didn’t want to admit it.

Benjamin simply wanted to pick a fight with Duncan who had thoroughly hidden Yerena.

Even if it was petty, he couldn’t help it. He was just acting as his heart dictated.

“Are you aware you’ll be summoned to the Imperial Palace soon?”

Despite Benjamin’s sarcasm, Duncan kept smiling broadly.

‘…Has he really gone mad?’

He quite seriously assessed the other’s condition.

“Even if I’m summoned, I’ll be cleared of all charges. Despite your zealous investigation of me, no evidence has emerged.”

“….”

“Even if you present fabricated evidence trying to pin Guide Yerena’s murder on me, the result will be the same. The Imperial Palace won’t charge me with any crime.”

Of course, he had no intention of fabricating evidence to charge him with crimes.

Benjamin just needed a ‘justification’ to legally investigate everything related to Duncan. Thanks to that, he’d achieved the triumph of finding the log cabin.

But someone stupid like Rosie might clumsily present fake evidence.

Benjamin had no intention of getting involved in whatever Rosie did on her own.

Whatever she did, whether her crimes were discovered from doing strange things, whether she got banished from the capital or not, he had no interest.

No, rather, her banishment might be better.

Because then a noisy person would disappear.

Anyway, Benjamin was satisfied with finding clues about Yerena’s survival through this investigation.

“You must have wished for me to suffer severely, Benjamin… How disappointing.”

But what was peculiar was how confident Duncan seemed.

“Do you have connections in the Imperial Palace?”

“Of course not.”

“But your origins are quite mysterious, Master Duncan.”

Even though he, a legitimate heir to a duchy, personally investigated, he couldn’t discover Duncan’s origins.

How could someone exist with such a completely blank past?

This is truly strange, Benjamin thought.

“You investigated even my background? You’ve dug quite deep.”

“….”

“Remember this. I prefer women.”

“Hah.”

Benjamin sighed and ran his hand through his hair.

Duncan was someone impossible to have a proper conversation with. Moreover, he often deliberately gave glib answers that obscured the essence of the questions.

So, Benjamin decided to strike at the core.

“Stop playing with words and answer honestly. Yerena – where have you hidden her?”

“She’s dead.”

It was an extremely clear answer, without any unnecessary additions.

It wasn’t particularly surprising since it was an expected answer. Rather, it would have been stranger if he had revealed the truth immediately.

Therefore, Benjamin had prepared questions that could shake Duncan, who gave off that disgusting smell.

“You couldn’t have watched something like fireworks with Yerena, could you?”

“…Ah.”

Duncan, who had been answering smoothly until now, couldn’t continue.

His pupils, which had been steadily meeting Benjamin’s gaze, wavered for a moment.

He moved his lips after a beat’s delay.

“Please be reasonable. How could I do such things with a dead person?”

A gleam appeared in Benjamin’s eyes as he watched Duncan.

‘Got him. My question must have definitely been connected to her.’

The meaning behind that moment of hesitation was clear.

Though he should have been happy to have discovered what he wanted by exploiting Duncan’s weakness, his mood sank instead.

He even felt angry at the thought that while he was going through trouble and burning up inside looking for Yerena, Duncan and Yerena were having fun enjoying themselves.

What if he had been the one to watch the fireworks with Yerena?

…When such nonsensical thoughts occurred, Benjamin clenched his hand.

Such thoughts weren’t right.

Not like him at all.

“With a corpse…”

Benjamin cut off Duncan’s attempt at an excuse.

“I’ll be taking my leave now.”

“….”

If he talked with Duncan any longer, he felt his mind would be stained with thoughts unlike himself.

Benjamin turned around coldly.

It seemed better to return to the ducal residence and try to sleep today.

He had been staying at the Center because of Olivia lately, but today, he didn’t want to.

His head seemed to be going strange from not getting proper rest.

Just when he desperately needed rest, that sparrow-like person clung to him again.

“Hey, are you planning to return to the ducal residence today? Aren’t you going to see Olivia?”

It was Baron, who had been following Olivia around.

There was a faint handprint on Baron’s white cheek.

He wondered why Baron approached him, but it seemed he had been slapped by Olivia. Tsk.

“It’s bothersome. I’m tired.”

Benjamin frowned as even his head started throbbing.

The cause of his headache seemed to be the terrible image that wouldn’t leave his mind.

The scene of the ugly but brightly smiling Yerena together with the detestable Duncan.

He didn’t want to imagine such things, and it was extremely unpleasant.

The tactless Baron welcomed his fatigue.

“Haha! So you’re planning to give up on Olivia!”

“Think what you want. If you have nothing more to say, I’ll be going.”

But Baron continued to block his path.

“Baron. Leave while I’m asking nicely.”

“I have a proposal.”

“What is it? If you’re blocking my way for something useless…”

An eerie energy rose from Benjamin as his words trailed off.

Baron flinched, fully sensing that energy. Yet without backing down, he murmured what he wanted to Benjamin.

“Hey, let’s share information about Yerena. You must have found out something from investigating Duncan recently, right? I’ll tell you what I learned while investigating Yerena, too.”

“Baron. Why should I trust you with my information?”

“Hey… You seem to have forgotten, but we’ve been in the same knight’s order for quite a while. How long have we been in the same group, and you don’t even have that much faith?”

“You absolutely hated that I was the Knight Commander.”

“Well, that… Anyway, are you in or not? I have some pretty good information.”

Baron smiled triumphantly as he said this.