“That doctor seems like a quack. Go see someone else.”

Sighing, Cedric seemed to give up and willingly let me examine his hands.

“According to that quack, a large amount of sleeping pills was detected in the drink you had yesterday.”

“That makes sense. That’s why I collapsed like that.”

“Someone is definitely targeting you, Boss.”

“I’ll be careful.”

Cedric carefully took my hands in his.

“Boss. Would it be alright if I don’t go home for a while and stay by your side?”

His gray eyes met mine. Ah, when you stare at me so directly, my heart starts fluttering again.

He smiled slightly and added,

“Of course, I’ll charge for the overtime. But wouldn’t I be more reliable than the people Marquis Paine sent?”

That’s more like it. I was wondering why he wasn’t mentioning money. Our Cedric’s goal was additional pay.

“Go ahead. I prefer having someone familiar guarding me too.”

I got unnecessarily excited. I almost mistook his concern as genuine worry for me.

‘I was thinking of giving him a bonus this month as thanks for saving me yesterday. Looks like I’m the one getting taken care of.’

Even now, my secretary receives the second-highest salary in our department store after me. I wonder if he’ll leave someday, saying he’s earned enough money. If that happens, the void he leaves will be quite lonely.

“You should pay a bit more for night shifts.”

“Of course.”

This money-obsessed man. How nice would it be if Cedric liked me even a fraction as much as he likes money? Unrequited love truly is my specialty.

Back in the president’s office, I examined the letter envelopes in order of arrival.

The contents were nothing special. Laura wrote about borrowing money from acquaintances because she couldn’t use her personal funds, fighting with Blair Lansard, and feeling sad that her fiancé Michael was indifferent to her. She also mentioned occasionally taking care of Gabrielle and Countess Roland getting angry with her.

There was no mention of orphans or pretending to be my father’s illegitimate child. Mostly, it contained repeated complaints and grievances about people around her.

‘During the time we were estranged, Laura, did you want to tell me you weren’t happy at all?’

And in today’s envelope, instead of a diary, there was a hastily scribbled letter.

— Charlotte. I don’t want to die. But I think I’ll be murdered soon. By someone you know. Will you please find out who killed me?

What are you saying, Laura? In your previous letters, you hinted at your death. You made me think you chose to end your life, and now you’re saying you were murdered by someone?

My mouth fell open. Cedric, who had read everything with me, shared his opinion,

“Could the person who killed Miss Laura be targeting you now?”

“Why do you think that?”

“People often commit even more terrible acts to cover up their crimes.”

What did I do wrong? More importantly, is it certain that Laura was murdered?

The incident back then was concluded as Laura’s unfortunate choice and quietly buried. Someone could have forged the handwriting to confuse me, but as far as I could tell, the hastily written letter was in Laura’s handwriting.

“Should I request a reinvestigation of Laura’s case using these letters as evidence?”

“Would the police listen? It would mean stirring up Marquis Paine’s family again. I doubt there are officers brave enough for that.”

That’s true. Even Jeffrey, who was involved in a violent incident with me, was released after just paying a fine, thanks to his noble status.

No newspaper covered the light sentence Jeffrey received. Instead, a bigger issue occupied the papers that day.

The secret hobby of one of the capital’s high judges was revealed. The commoner-born judge allegedly broke into young women’s rooms whenever he had time and stole their underwear. For someone in a position that demands strict moral standards to commit such an obscene crime and face legal judgment—truly shameful.

I looked down at the letter Laura sent. I wonder how long I’ll keep receiving letters?

“What if the person who killed Laura noticed the existence of these letters? That’s why they tried to kill me this time. Afraid I might figure something out.”

“That’s possible. But if I were the culprit, I would have chosen to destroy the letters entirely.”

“Ah, this is frustrating.”

The more I think about it, the more I return to square one. I wish the dead Laura would appear in my dreams and tell me the truth directly.

“Do the postal company employees really know nothing?”

“Actually, one employee told me he might have seen someone’s back. Said it was a skinny person with blonde hair, but they disappeared so quickly he couldn’t be sure, so I didn’t report it to you.”

Blonde hair is too common in the Ostonia Empire.

As I held my throbbing head, Cedric advised me,

“Are there any blondes among Miss Laura’s friends?”

Blondes among Laura’s friends? There were many. Among them, Laura’s friend I particularly remember is……

“Blair Lansard!”

I remember Blair getting angry because Laura borrowed accessories and didn’t return them. What happened between them afterward? They probably made up and got along well since they had similar tastes. I wanted to think so, but I couldn’t be certain.

“If it’s Blair, she’s a regular at the department store. She recently requested tailoring for a ready-made coat. Please wait a moment, Boss.”

Cedric went out and came back to inform me:

“According to the alterations department staff, Blair is scheduled to come to the department store tomorrow afternoon to pick up her coat. Let’s talk to her then.”

* * *

The next day, I massaged my stiff shoulders while handling backlogged work.

“Are you in pain somewhere?”

Before Cedric could nag me to rest, I preemptively responded,

“I suffered from nightmares all night.”

“Nightmares?”

“Yes. Maybe it’s because I saw that mannequin fall yesterday. In my dream, objects kept falling on my head. It was truly horrific.”

The same dream repeated not just once but multiple times. The scene of my head bursting open with blood flowing out didn’t get any easier to watch. Being the dying protagonist was an absolutely terrifying experience.

“Could this be another prophetic dream?”

“No way.”

In the morning, I played with Gabrielle before sending her to the cutting room. Since I heard Blair would come to pick up her coat in the afternoon, I still had time.

“No letter from Laura yet?”

“No, nothing yet.”

Could yesterday’s letter have been the last? If so, I feel a bit disappointed. I wanted to find out who the letter deliverer was and ask if they knew anything more.

The words on the paper weren’t registering properly. I must have lost concentration after briefly thinking about something other than work. At times like this, I need to go out and walk around the department store.

“Cedric, you stay and work. I’ll go inspect what the candidates for promotion are doing.”

“Can’t you just pick anyone from the five? It would be fine to select two people instead of just one.”

“Come on, this person will be helping you. We can’t choose carelessly. I need to verify if they’re diligent and trustworthy. I’ll select talent as carefully as possible.”

Cedric grumbled that helping him meant picking anyone quickly, but that’s not happening. Who told him to put five people on the list anyway?

The list included Elisha, the rumored protagonist who had confessed to Cedric. From what I observed previously, male customers seemed to flirt with her quite a bit, which made me hesitant to select her as my secretary. Her sales performance was too good. From a department store president’s perspective, promoting her to a department manager seemed more beneficial.

‘Moreover, if the rumor about her being rejected by Cedric is true, it would be uncomfortable for both of them to work together seeing each other’s faces.’

So the candidates for my second secretary now numbered four, excluding Elisha. I first visited the glove department on the third floor. After receiving a sales report from the department manager, I quietly asked,

“Is Anna on leave today?”

Every time I came, the timing never matched, making it difficult to see her face. The department manager looked troubled at my question.

“No. Anna’s younger brother came to visit, so she went to meet him briefly.”

“Her brother? He must visit often.”

“Yes. He comes every day to beg his hardworking sister for money. She can’t cut ties with her gambling brother and gets pushed around like that.”

The manager, who inadvertently revealed Anna’s situation, pretended to be surprised and covered her mouth with her hand.

“I-I’m sorry. Please pretend you didn’t hear that.”

The glove department manager has worked with me for years. She definitely knew I was considering Anna as my second secretary and said those things deliberately. How many cunning snakes are hiding behind that pretense of a mistake?

“No worries. Thanks for the information.”

With that, the candidates dropped to three. If Anna became a secretary, there was a risk she might embezzle department store funds because of her gambling brother.

Next, I visited the lingerie department on the second floor. An argument was taking place there. Upon closer inspection, I saw Becky, whose name was on the list, arguing with a male customer.

“Products purchased more than a week ago cannot be refunded. It’s the department store’s business policy. I’m sorry.”

“I haven’t even opened the packaging. You should take responsibility for forcing useless items on customers!”

“I cannot help you no matter what you say, sir.”

“Y-you. Call the manager here!”

Ah, this is an awkward situation. I thought about retreating quietly and calling security, but all the employees recognized me and were staring. Even some customers who knew I was the manager had their eyes fixed on me.

‘Damn it.’

I should have brought Cedric. This is becoming troublesome.

Eventually, due to the silent but fervent clamor, I stepped forward.

“I am Charlotte Liv, the manager here. Sir, what seems to be the problem?”

When the person who turned around smiled, I recognized him. It was Baron Alec, one of our department store’s early investors.

“Baron, what brings you here?”

This is the lingerie department, of all places. Though our department store sells men’s underwear too, this section primarily features women’s undergarments. Moreover, that pink paper package in the Baron’s hand undoubtedly contained women’s underwear.

Of course, I couldn’t say that out loud. I only grumbled internally. Baron Alec’s face turned bright red after our eyes met.

“Ah, well, you see. My wife bought another useless item here. When I asked for a refund, this employee kept making impertinent remarks, which made me lose my temper.”

“I see. Becky, apologize right away.”