“Where is the butler?”

After sending Haren and Travis away, I noticed the butler was nowhere to be seen.

“The butler? Do you have something for him to do? He went to talk to a guest earlier. He’s probably by the western staircase. He usually talks near the stairs leading to the basement. Should I call him for you?”

“No, I’ll go myself.”

Dragging my injured leg from earlier at the information guild, I headed toward the western staircase with difficulty. From below, I could hear voices.

“So, how’s life in the theater troupe these days? Last I heard, you were auditioning for a lead role.”

“I couldn’t even attend the audition….”

“Why? It’s been your dream since you were young. Did something happen?”

“Well… a debt collector came after me.”

“A debt collector? What do you mean? What debt?”

“My father….”

A single tear fell from the woman’s eye as she spoke with the butler. That single tear, though small, seemed to speak volumes about the hardships she had endured.

Blinking to hold back more tears, the woman continued in a calm voice.

“My father took out illegal loans. At an absurdly high interest rate, too. Our house was repossessed a long time ago.”

Her voice trembled as a sob threatened to escape her throat.

The butler patted her shoulder as she covered her mouth, tears streaming down her face.

“You must have gone through so much.”

The woman’s sobs grew louder, so sorrowful that it reminded me of my own past, crying after being scammed.

Knowing how overwhelming that despair can feel, my heart ached.

“Yes… because of the thugs coming to collect the debt, I got kicked out of the troupe. Now I’m working at a nearby restaurant. So, Uncle….”

The woman bit her lip, hesitant to continue, seemingly too embarrassed to ask. Finally, summoning her courage, she spoke in a cautious voice.

“Could you lend me some money?”

The butler nodded.

“Of course. How much debt remains?”

“Five thousand litas.”

The butler’s eyes widened at the unexpectedly large amount.

“I don’t have that much money on hand. I recently spent a lot setting up a house in the countryside. I only have about 500 litas in cash right now, but I’ll lend you that. I’m sorry I can’t help more.”

“No, it’s fine. I’m the one who should apologize.”

“Wait here for a moment. The money is in my personal locker in the basement. I’ll be right back.”

“Yes. Thank you, Uncle.”

“No need to thank me. I’m sorry I can’t do more.”

The butler patted her shoulder and headed downstairs.

And in that moment, the woman, who had been bowing her head, suddenly lifted it and wiped her tears away.

“Ha, damn. Where am I supposed to find the rest? I thought Uncle would have more money.”

Her expression was completely indifferent, giving no sign that she had ever shed a single tear. My jaw dropped as I watched her.

‘Wow, I almost didn’t recognize her.’

She looked entirely different from when she had been crying earlier. No, it wasn’t just her expression—it was as if she were an entirely different person.

“Ha….”

The long sigh she let out carried a sense of hopelessness, making it seem like her situation wasn’t entirely fake. It just looked like she had cried so many times for money that she had become mechanical about it.

“Here, I’ve brought the money. Let’s head upstairs now. The young lady might arrive soon.”

Hearing the sound of their footsteps coming up, I quickly hid myself.

The wound on my foot, pressed by my shoe, screamed in pain, begging for mercy.

***

“I’ll guide you to your seat.”

After falling asleep right after my conversation with the butler yesterday, I was woken up by the maid’s voice. Thanks to the maids bustling around, I managed to arrive at the temple just in time.

A kind priest guided me to my prepared seat. Upon entering the prayer room, I saw that many nobles were already seated.

‘The seating here is based on donation rankings, right?’

The temple, for all its talk of serving the gods, was thoroughly capitalist. They discriminated based on donations, and even the seating for prayer meetings was arranged according to who donated the most.

“Here is your seat.”

The priest guided me to the second row from the front. There were fewer than ten chairs in front of mine, and directly in front of me sat Flaria and Haren, sitting amicably together.

“Flaria, Haren.”

“Espin!”

Flaria greeted me so loudly that her voice echoed throughout the quiet prayer room. Her bright smile, devoid of any malice, made me smile in return.

‘She really doesn’t seem like a villain.’

The more I looked at her, the more Flaria seemed far from a villain. She had a temper and could be foul-mouthed, but she didn’t seem like someone who would kill out of malice.

‘Well, you never truly know people.’

Who knows how she’d change if she found out she had a half-sister?

“Espin, you’re here? But why isn’t the commander here yet? It’s almost time to start.”

Haren looked around, searching for Travis, whose large frame was hard to miss.

“What does it matter?”

“It does matter. The commander is never late for appointments. Oh, Flaria, you remember, don’t you?”

“Remember what?”

“That time Espin said the commander was handsome. That he was her ideal type. But yesterday, she wouldn’t admit it.”

“She definitely said it.”

“Please, be quiet.”

The only ones talking in the quiet prayer room were Flaria and Haren.

“See? My memory is perfect. Espin, you should meet someone like the commander.”

“Hey, honestly, Grand Duke Holt and Espin don’t match at all. They’re too different.”

“What do you mean? They match perfectly. And Espin’s ideal type is a prince, right? In this empire, the person who suits the title of ‘prince’ the most is the commander.”

Haren kept insisting that the prince Espin had mentioned in the past was Travis.

‘To be honest, isn’t the crown prince the real prince?’

A prince is the king’s son, so in the empire, the crown prince was the true prince. That was a fact. But the two didn’t seem to care about that as they continued arguing.

“Where would you find a prince who looks so intimidating?”

“He doesn’t look intimidating. He looks manly and handsome.”

“I find him too scary. Honestly, he’s way too big. Espin is so small.”

“That’s what makes him amazing. He’s manly.”

You two do realize everyone else can hear you arguing about whether my ideal type is a prince, right?

I desperately tapped their shoulders, but it seemed my efforts were lost on these siblings, for whom fighting was second nature.

“You have no eye for men. That’s why you always end up with weird people.”

“What did you just say? Weird people? What about the ones you’ve dated?”

“Why are we talking about that? We’re supposed to be discussing how handsome the commander is.”

“Just shut up and face forward.”

“Why are you hitting my shoulder so much? Espin, the commander is handsome, right?”

“Y-Yeah, your commander is really handsome. So, please, just shut up and face forward.”

“See? Told you!”

Haren’s gaze, which had been on me, shifted above my head. Feeling a cold presence behind me, I slowly turned my head.

“Commander! You’re here.”

Behind me stood Travis, his face stiff as a statue.

“Please, have a seat. It looks like your spot is over there.”

“Ahem. Right.”

Travis cleared his throat awkwardly and moved forward.

From that awkward cough, I could tell.

‘He heard it. The part about him being handsome.’

I wondered if there were any mice in the temple. I desperately needed a hole to crawl into. But in such a pristine temple, there was no way a mouse hole could exist.

At least I was wearing a dress with large, flowing sleeves.

I buried my face in the sleeve of my dress, unable to lift my head.

But Haren, oblivious to my embarrassment, kept talking.

“Commander, should I get glasses for my sister? She says you’re not handsome. Thankfully, Espin, who has proper eyesight, says you are, so I feel less wronged. Flaria argued so much about it.”

At that moment, both Flaria and I lowered our heads in shame, our faces burning with embarrassment.