The day after Carlo left for Novahans, someone from the Imperial Palace arrived by carriage and personally delivered a letter from the imperial family to me.

“A letter from the Imperial Palace!”

The envelope was addressed to the Center Director and Grand Duchess.

Odin, who had been idly rolling around on the table, approached.

“Looks like they caught the culprit.”

Since it came from the Imperial Palace, I quickly opened it, thinking it might be notification that the culprit had been caught, as Carlo had mentioned.

“It’s from the Empress. That lily in the seal represents the Empress.”

Odin said as he examined the seal.

The seal featured the imperial symbol of a laurel crown, the Grandis Empire flag, two knights on either side, and a lily at the very bottom.

Odin explained that the lily at the bottom was the Empress’s symbol.

“We should check if there’s anything suspicious about it.”

Perhaps because he had heard about my near-murder at the Conz River, Odin looked suspicious as he sniffed around and tapped the letter with his front paw, searching for any strange traces.

The letter had Genevieve’s signature at the end, indicating she had written it herself.

“Congratulations on the selection of December Center in St. Berte as the venue for this year’s Imperial Palace charity event…? What is this?”

“What?”

Odin, who had been gnawing on the envelope, spat it out with a “ptooey!” and rushed over.

Contrary to my expectation of finding information about the culprit, it was about a charity event I had never even imagined.

“Hmm, how strange! To think December was selected as the charity event venue!”

“Right? I didn’t even know about this, let alone apply…”

“No, what’s surprising is that the Empress chose this place for the event. This venue selection targets territories with welfare facilities like this one, so there’s no need to apply for selection as a charity event venue. If you operate such a facility, you’re automatically considered.”

“Then what’s so strange about it?”

Odin rubbed his face with his front paw.

“Since Genevieve became Empress, St. Berte has never once been selected.”

“…Really?”

“As far as I know. If it had been selected, news would have reached St. Berte Castle.”

“So is being selected a good thing?”

“Of course it’s good! What kind of question is that? Everyone fights to be selected! After the founding of Grandis, the imperial family decided to hold a charity event for all imperial citizens once every two years. Imagine all the empire’s citizens gathering. The venue provider receives a commission, and that amount is nearly equivalent to a small territory’s annual budget.”

“Wow, an entire year’s budget?!”

“That’s why everyone wants to be selected! The Imperial Palace was troubled by unproductive classes like the homeless and orphans. Ideally, they should transform into taxpayers through rehabilitation or education. So they came up with the idea of having each territory operate welfare facilities. Manage them there and reintroduce them to society. But would lords voluntarily step up without any benefit? So they devised a charity event that could provide profits while raising funds. Targeting all imperial citizens. The Imperial Palace hosts it, but the venue is selected from among the territories. Of course, the Imperial Palace provides funding. The noble providing the venue also gets a commission from the proceeds.”

“Oh… that’s quite a good idea?”

“Not just good, it’s genius! It’s magnificent!”

As Odin jumped up and down on the table in anger, a thought crossed my mind.

I rested my chin on the table and grinned at Odin.

“Could this also be… something you created?”

“Oh my…! How did you know? I can’t win against you. I didn’t say a word.”

“Wow, I’m quite perceptive, aren’t I?”

“I wasn’t going to mention it because it would sound like bragging, but since you’ve already figured it out, I have no choice. That event was also my creation. The ministers were lukewarm about it, but I subdued them all at once.”

“…Don’t people usually reach consensus?”

“Why bother with that! Everyone would just make noise with their mouths. You have to cut through decisively with intimidating force. That’s why it’s scary when someone smart is also good with a sword, hehe.”

Odin said proudly, puffing up his fur and snorting.

Carlo’s words suddenly came to mind.

“What about Carlo?”

“I’m a rare talent with both extraordinary intelligence and exceptional swordsmanship.”

Truly, blood cannot lie.

Such similar temperaments.

“Ah, right!”

This is when I should write a letter!

I opened the drawer and took out a blank stationery and an envelope.

“Why a letter?”

“I’m going to write to Carlo.”

“Carlo?”

“I should let him know that December has been selected for such an important event. Wouldn’t he be pleased?”

“Hmm, that makes sense.”

Odin approached with tiny pitter-patter sounds and lay down in front of the letter, resting his chin on his front paws.

I couldn’t help but smile as I began with “Dear Carlo.”

We haven’t been operating long, yet we were selected for this. What if he finds it endearing? But why did the Empress select December? Still, being selected must be good for December, right?

“Why not write that you miss him too?”

“What?!”

I almost misspelled a word while writing the good news.

“What are you talking about?”

“Judging by your expression, that seems to be the case.”

“It’s not!”

“Look, you’re twisting your body again while writing. And you keep smiling as you write.”

“I-I naturally have a smiling face!”

I looked at Odin, who was grinning mischievously, as I folded the hastily finished letter.

Liking him? That’s absurd.

It’s true that I rely on him quite a bit—well, a lot actually—because he’s the only person who can protect me.

But I knew well enough that he was a man I shouldn’t fall for.

I shook my head vigorously to clear my mind and put the letter in the envelope.

After asking Joseph to deliver the letter to Carlo, I approached the people being examined, accompanied by Medlin.

We were checking the health status of the residents in sequence, starting with those with visible serious illnesses or abrasions and moving on to those who appeared relatively healthy.

Thanks to various doctors coming and going over a full two weeks, we were able to examine everyone thoroughly.

“Is it all finished now?”

I looked around at the nurses and doctors organizing their medical tools, then asked Dr. Lori Benton, the director of St. Berte’s Benton Hospital.

Dr. Benton nodded as he checked the final chart and handed his pen to a nurse.

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Thank you for your hard work.”

“Not at all. With all the support you provided, it was actually quite convenient.”

Dr. Benton replied with a gentle smile.

Looking at his face with its soft wrinkles, I asked the question I had been waiting to ask once all the patient examinations were completed.

“I’m curious about something. May I ask?”

“Of course, Your Highness. Please ask anything.”

I fidgeted with my fingertips briefly before speaking.

“…If someone stops taking antidepressants, would the components remain in their body?”

Looking back, I hadn’t given Carlo any medication since my transmigration.

But I wanted to carefully find out if some might still remain in his body.

Dr. Benton, assuming I was curious about the several depression patients among the residents, answered matter-of-factly.

“Most antidepressants remain in the body for about six months even after discontinuation.”

Six whole months.

Since I had only been here for about two months, it occurred to me that it might still be in his body.

“When discontinued… they do return to health, right?”

“On the premise that they’ve improved enough to stop taking antidepressants, it usually takes a year to fully recover both mentally and physically after the components are gone from the body. Of course, recovery can be faster with effort.”

“That’s a relief!”

“However, the types and number of prescribed medications should be gradually reduced. Sudden discontinuation causes some changes in the body. The body needs time to adapt.”

“Does sudden discontinuation cause problems?”

I looked at Dr. Benton with a forced smile, feeling somewhat tense.

“I wouldn’t call them problems, but these symptoms typically appear: dizziness for a while after discontinuation.”

“…Dizziness?”

“Most people experience several instances of sudden collapse. For example, they might be fine one moment, then their vision goes black, or they lose consciousness while unable to distinguish their surroundings.”

My mind went blank at Dr. Benton’s subsequent words.

The memory of my frequent collapses when I first met Carlo flashed eerily through my mind.

When I collapsed in the bathroom trying to follow Carlo…

The moment I fell and broke a teacup while talking with the branch managers’ wives…

“…Thank you.”

After staring blankly at Dr. Benton like someone who had lost her mind, I mumbled a greeting and closed my mouth.

…It was me.

The person who took those drugs… was Lea.

Just as I was about to take a step, a December servant approached.

“Your Highness, we’ve confirmed that the actual number of people examined matches the content of the documents provided by the hospital. We would appreciate your signature.”

“Ah, yes. Let me take a look.”

As I gathered my scattered thoughts and picked up the pen—

“……!”

The letters on the document began to move on their own, forming a message.