“I apologize.”

“And where is that woman Illia?”

“The marquis ordered her locked in her room, so we did that… but what should we do after this? I was going to ask you about it…”

He trailed off, still watching my expression carefully.

“What do you mean, what to do. For now, I’m not feeling well and I don’t want to think about it. Leave her as she is.”

“Yes…? In her room?”

“Do I have to say it twice?”

“No. That’s not it, but… what should I tell the Nolrn barony?”

“Is there anything to tell? If they ask, tell them exactly what happened. That Illia caused the death of the marquisate’s bloodline. That she is awaiting punishment for it.”

The butler let out a deep sigh at the words I delivered without hesitation.

“I will do so.”

“I’m tired, so you may go now.”

He had shown no intention of leaving, his expression still full of things he wanted to say, but he turned to go with one last word.

“I… offer my apologies once more for failing to follow the young madam’s orders and making the wrong choice. What you want… I will make sure of it tomorrow.”

Now he listens. I had to say so much just to pry that one mine out of him, and the exhaustion was already setting in. The butler, unaware of any of that, left with a thoroughly resentful expression.

That day, night had fallen before I knew it.

Dertosse, who would normally have come home and stopped by my room by now, sent no word.

Like a child sulking over what had happened earlier.

So I sat blankly on the bed and called out to Karla, who was adding firewood to the fireplace.

“Karla. What is the mood like in the house?”

“The mood… when I went out earlier… it wasn’t very good.”

“Everyone will be on edge. Then, Karla, could you go and check? Whether Dertosse has come in. If he hasn’t, leave word that I’m looking for him the moment he arrives.”

“Understood.”

A chill swept over me.

Tumbling down the stairs might not seem like a serious matter, but it had certainly taken a toll on Evian’s body, which was frail to begin with. My leg felt slightly sprained, and it seemed like bruises had formed here and there.

On top of that, all the screaming and raging and fretting had left my head throbbing.

“Your color doesn’t look good. Perhaps you should rest a little now.”

Mary had drawn close without my noticing and watched me with a deeply uneasy expression.

She held a warm cup of tea in her hands.

“I’m fine. I had anticipated all of this, after all. What I didn’t expect was that you would step in the way you did.”

I took the tea and looked at her. Her face remained as expressionless as ever, but her eyes trembled slightly.

“I, for one, never imagined she would cause such a scene.”

“I was a little surprised myself. I knew she had no manners and did as she pleased, but I didn’t think she would be that violent… Still, it’s fine. Compared to before.”

“What kind of treatment have you been put through all this time? What could it have been like… Are you all right now?”

The things I had endured in a past no one could ever know about.

I couldn’t tell Mary either.

“All sorts of things I never expected kept happening to me. But more importantly, are you all right, Mary?”

“I imagine I’ll be fine. I went against the lady of the house, but she is not my mistress. If anything, the princess will likely be pleased to hear of the young madam’s miscarriage. Because of that, I don’t think she’ll say anything particular to me.”

I watched her speak with such composure and nodded along.

“She’ll be quite delighted. If anything, Princess Rechel might be enjoying this situation. Since things have come to this, Mary, would you gather information for me? Anything, even the smallest connection between Dertosse and Princess Rechel, bring it all to me. He isn’t thorough, so he’s surely left traces of evidence scattered everywhere.”

“Understood.”

“And there’s someone helping you collect information, isn’t there?”

She gave a silent nod at my words.

“I thought as much.”

“I had no intention of hiding it.”

“I didn’t particularly intend to ask, either. But I brought it up because I think I’ll need that person now too. Look into Dertosse’s office at the imperial palace as well. Time it for when he comes home.”

“I will do as you say.”

She too went outside.

The room hadn’t been noisy with the two of them in it, but once Mary left as well, the room felt unusually quiet that day.

“It’s especially… lonely.”

A cold night breeze drifted in through the window I had left open out of restlessness.

I sipped the tea Mary had left me, but even so, my body would not warm. I set the half-finished teacup down on the nightstand and pulled the blanket toward me.

‘On a night like tonight, when I’m especially lonely, just like before… you’ll be with Rechel. And you’ll have a wonderful time.’

After hearing the news of my miscarriage today, Rechel would express her sympathy and comfort him. When I’m the one who should be comforted. The two of them would comfort each other, and their bond would surely grow all the more tender for it.

The bad things that happened to me had a way of becoming the very things that deepened the affection between them. From the past until now. That kept making me want to laugh. I hated that, so I buried my face in the blanket.

In the meantime, Karla came back inside.

“The master has not yet returned, and I’ve left word for him to come to your room as soon as he arrives.”

“Good. Well done.”

“…But just in case he forgets! I’ll… wait outside and bring him to you myself. So please, madam, why don’t you rest? I’m… so worried.”

Karla’s voice trembled as she spoke, afraid she might be overstepping.

“Karla. You don’t need to worry. I’m fine.”

“I’m… worried for my own sake, too. So please…”

“……”

“I know I shouldn’t say something like this, but… please, just rest.”

What more could I say when she went that far. I had thought no one cared about me or worried over me. I had kept my distance from Karla because she was someone who would leave, and Mary hadn’t been my person.

But that had been my arrogance, my mistake.

Both Mary and Karla worried about me with all sincerity.

“…Really. I have no choice. All right. But Karla, the moment he arrives, bring him straight to me. Even if it’s late at night, that’s fine.”

“Yes!”

“If you lie to me or anything like that…”

“Don’t worry! I won’t be the sort to stay quiet about the master coming home just because you’re asleep! So please trust me.”

“All right. Then could you put out the lights and head out?”

“Yes!”

Only then did Karla smile brightly and began closing the open windows one by one.

“Is it too warm?”

“No, it’s warm and nice.”

“Then I’ll keep the fireplace at this level!”

With that, Karla put out all the lights and went outside. I lay still in bed and closed my eyes. Predictably, sleep did not come. Every sound that existed in the world crowded noisily at my ears.

The sound of wind slipping through the gaps in the window. The sound of firewood crackling as it burned. Everything grated on my nerves. I was clearly exhausted, yet the longer time passed, the sharper my mind grew.

‘He won’t come back tonight, either.’

He would be too occupied spending the night with Rechel. So I lay there without expectation and passed the night. In the end, having not slept a wink, I finally got to see his face when early morning arrived.

Knock knock.

“Young madam, it’s Karla.”

“Yes. Come in.”

“The master has come as well.”

At those words, my eyes, heavy and tired from a sleepless night, snapped wide open.

So he came after all. Not long after Karla knocked, the door opened. The one who walked through it was Dertosse, his clothes thoroughly disheveled. Whether he had been drinking through the night, the moment the door opened and he stepped inside, the sharp smell of alcohol hit the room all at once.

“Ha. What exactly are you trying to pull, Evie. Making someone drag me here first thing in the morning when I barely just got in?”

True to form, the moment he stepped into the room, Dertosse looked me over with open irritation. Still unable to get out of bed, I looked at him and let out a long sigh.

“Did you drink?”

“Drink? It was just a few glasses of wine.”

“For just a few glasses, Dertosse… the smell of alcohol hit the room the moment you walked in.”

“…Well, that can happen. A man does some work outside and has a drink or two! Annoying.”

“Annoying?”

Karla, who had been reading the room, didn’t know what to do as the atmosphere turned hostile the moment he came in, and she lingered near the door without leaving. Dertosse, of course, didn’t notice her as he walked toward me, and I couldn’t tell her to leave either, left to face Dertosse as he approached.

“Keep it reasonable.”

“Ha… isn’t this too much? I lost a child. And not only did you leave me, who’s been through that, you’re only coming in now?”

“Something came up.”

“What came up?”

I needed to go back to how things used to be. That way, Dertosse would grow tired of me and cling to Rechel all the more. The longer a tail drags, the more likely it gets stepped on, and that tail would become invaluable information for me.

Now was the time to hound him the way I used to, to make him sick of me.

The show was only just beginning.