“Excuse me.”

Neville glanced around briefly and knocked on a tightly closed door.

“Do come in.”

A deep voice came from beyond the door. Neville looked around once more before carefully opening the door and entering.

“Welcome, Sir Neville.”

Upon entering, a man dressed as a butler greeted Neville with a pipe in his mouth.

“I hear the Miss is going out today.”

“Is it finally that day?”

The man’s face, which had been sunken with boredom, immediately changed to a bright smile when Neville finished speaking.

How long I’ve waited for this day.

The man muttered to himself as he inhaled the smoke.

“I would have told you that smoking is forbidden in the Ceres residence because the Miss hates it.”

When the smoke spread everywhere with the sound of exhaling, Neville glared at the man with sharp eyes.

“Ah, I apologize. The wait has been so long that I became bored.”

The man scratched his head awkwardly and put down the pipe he had been holding on the table. Then he got up and slightly opened the tightly closed window.

“You’ll keep your promise, right?”

Neville clicked his tongue lightly and asked in a still sharp voice.

“Of course. I am a man who keeps his promises. Don’t worry too much.”

The giggling laughter escaped through the window along with the smoke, carried by the incoming wind.

* * *

“Neville! Why are you so late?”

“I’m sorry, Miss. I was looking for something……”

When Eileen huffed with her hands on her hips, Neville muttered while rolling his eyes.

“Wait a moment, Neville.”

“Wh-why? What’s wrong?”

The sound of gulping echoed loudly.

Have I been found out already? Then mother will……

Neville bit the inside of his cheek while waiting for Eileen’s next words.

“What’s this smell?”

A unique earthy scent mixed with a slightly sweet fragrance.

When an unusual scent that she had never smelled from Neville before wafted from him, Eileen sniffed for quite some time, forgetting her manners.

“You, don’t tell me—!”

When she vaguely guessed the identity of the smell, Eileen bit her lip tightly and glared at him.

“I-I’m sorry. Something big happened at home recently, and I started because I was mentally stressed. From now on, I’ll make sure to remove the smell before coming……”

Damn bastard.

Neville inwardly cursed the man before doing his best to make excuses.

“Really…… If you’re having a hard time, you should tell me. Why do something that’s not even good for your health?”

“Next time, I’ll definitely tell you.”

When Eileen nodded without adding anything else, Neville let out a sigh of relief.

“What are you doing, Neville? Get in quickly.”

When Neville stood still without getting into the carriage, Eileen tilted her head and urged him.

“The smell still seems strong, so I’ll sit next to the coachman. Miss, you hate the smell of tobacco, don’t you?”

“Huh?”

“I’m sorry, Miss. I’m really sorry.”

Neville’s eyes, repeatedly saying he was sorry, somehow looked sad. But before Eileen could ask what was wrong, Neville closed the carriage door and headed toward the coachman.

“Mary.”

After staring blankly out the carriage window for a while, Eileen slowly turned her head to look at Mary.

“Yes, Miss.”

“Doesn’t Neville seem strange?”

“Sir Neville?”

The way he was easily fooled by pranks and cried easily was exactly the same as usual.

If she had to pick something strange, it would be the smoking, but even that wasn’t too unusual. After organizing her thoughts, Mary lightly shook her head.

“Why do you ask suddenly?”

“Something feels off. It’s not like him……”

Eileen frowned and groaned.

“Ah! Now that I think about it!”

There was this rumor!

Mary clapped her hands lightly and let out a sigh.

“There’s been talk among the servants that Sir Neville might soon leave the Ceres Knights.”

“Neville said he’s quitting?”

Eileen asked with round eyes.

“Not exactly. Recently, Jessie went to visit a sick friend and happened to see Sir Neville at the hospital, holding the hand of someone who looked like his mother and crying profusely. And he was also cursing into the air……”

“So something happened at home……”

Thinking about Neville’s situation made her mouth bitter. Eileen swept up her bangs and let out a long sigh.

“Miss, we have arrived at the jewelry shop.”

Before the bitterness could fade, the coachman’s voice announcing their arrival was heard.

Let’s not show it for now.

Eileen reminded herself before getting out of the carriage following Mary. When they entered the jewelry shop, the owner welcomed her warmly.

“I’d like you to recommend a gift for a friend.”

“Yes, Miss.”

The owner immediately brought various types of jewelry from the back of the store.

From earrings with bright red rubies to necklaces with amethysts, the jewelry she showed was incredibly beautiful.

But perhaps because of her thoughts about Neville, none of them caught her eye.

That’s when it happened.

“Um…… Miss.”

“Hm? What is it, Neville?”

Hearing a voice from above her head, Eileen took her gaze off the jewels and looked up.

“I have something to tell you……”

His slightly trembling voice seemed to contain much sadness.

‘The fact that he even used training as an excuse to spend time with me today……’

Eileen suppressed the emotion welling up inside her and nodded slightly.

“It’s a bit difficult to talk about here…… I’m sorry, but could we talk just the two of us, without Mary?”

“Sure, whatever you want, Neville.”

“Thank you, Miss.”

A small but distinct smile spread across his lips. Eileen did her best to lift the corners of her mouth to avoid crying. However, she couldn’t quite manage her usual smile.

“Mary, could you wait here for a moment?”

“Yes, Miss.”

Even if Sir Neville really is quitting, please don’t cry too much.

Mary quietly whispered in Eileen’s ear.

“Then Miss, shall we step outside for a moment?”

Neville led Eileen to a deserted alley near the jewelry shop. It wasn’t a very long distance, but because he kept his mouth tightly shut without saying anything, it felt incredibly far.

“Neville, what did you want to say……?”

When Neville stopped walking, Eileen asked in a careful voice.

“Miss, I’m truly sorry. I had no choice……”

Tears fell from his eyes, which had maintained silence for a long time. Then he just kept repeating that he was sorry.

Suddenly, a unique earthy scent mixed with a slightly sweet fragrance wafted to Eileen’s nose.

“Th-this smell is……”

Upon smelling the familiar scent, the colorful world gradually began to turn pure white.

Eileen tried to put strength in her legs to stand, but her strength continued to drain away. Eventually, her limbs, having lost their strength, went limp.

“Good job, Sir Neville.”

“……”

“You handled the job better than expected, so I’ll give you some compensation. Of course, I’ll keep my promise.”

Fortunately, this assignment was well handled again.

The man muttered to himself before taking out a white envelope from his pocket and handing it to Neville.

“You won’t take it?”

When Neville just stared at the money envelope without accepting it, the man tilted his head slightly and asked.

“……I won’t take such a thing. More importantly, what do you plan to do with Miss Eileen after kidnapping her?”

“I have no obligation to tell you that, Sir.”

“What?”

“Besides, isn’t it a luxury to want to know about Lady Eileen’s fate when you’ve contributed to her kidnapping?”

A disgustingly giggly laughter echoed through the empty alley. The man quickly composed himself, placing his hand on his scabbard and drawing his sword with an expressionless face.

“Ugh……”

A cool sensation brushed against Neville’s arm, and soon hot liquid began to flow from it. Unlike him, whose face was contorted with pain, the man’s face remained infinitely calm.

“I trust you remember how far our contract extends.”

“……”

“To create confusion in the investigation by saying she was kidnapped by pirates. You know that, right?”

The man slowly approached Neville and whispered in a languid voice into his ear.

“You need to do well until the end for your mother to continue breathing. Or you can say goodbye to her right now.”

It was an order he had to follow unconditionally. Filled with overwhelming futility, Neville hung his head low.

“Oh, and if you reveal the secret, your mother will say goodbye to this world forever. Please never forget that.”

“……You’ll keep your promise, right?”

“Of course.”

Well then, I’ll be going.

The man nodded slightly before disappearing into the crowd with the carriage.

“……Damn it.”

Neville stared at the ground becoming stained with his blood and continued to curse.

“I’m truly sorry…… Miss Eileen.”

Neville uttered meaningless words of apology before heading to the jewelry shop where Mary was waiting.

Meanwhile, Mary had gone outside to look for Eileen and Neville after waiting for a long time without them returning.

“Miss, Sir Neville. Why are you so la……”

But what Mary encountered was Neville, stained with blood.

“Si-Sir Neville, are you alright?”

“I’m…… ugh…… fine, but…… the Miss……”

“What about the Miss……”

Upon hearing Neville’s trembling voice, Mary’s insides began to churn.

“We were attacked by pirates who came ashore…… Due to my, my negligence, the Miss was captured. By now, they’ve probably…… gone to the port.”

She tried to reassure herself that ‘It can’t be true,’ but the reality unfolding before her eyes shattered Mary’s wishes to pieces.

“No……”

Reality slowly began to choke her. Neville was covered in blood and Eileen was kidnapped.

Mary struggled to breathe as her breath became increasingly constricted, but it was a meaningless effort.

“……!”

That’s when a familiar sign began to enter Mary’s field of vision.

Patisserie de Monston.

Its owner, Aaron de Monston.

Yes, Duke Aaron would surely be able to save our Miss.

Her stifled breath was already changing to comfortable breathing like normal.

“Sir Neville. I’m sorry, but you’ll have to go to the hospital alone.”

“What?”

“And on your way, please send the coachman to the Ceres residence to report that the Miss has been kidnapped. If we go directly, we’ll be much too late.”

Mary put strength in her hands and got up from her seat, then vigorously dusted off the dirt on her dress.

“I’m going to rescue the Miss now, so please take care of things.”

“M-Mary?”

“Then, I’ll return with the Miss.”

Please wait just a little, Miss.

Mary took a deep breath and ran to Patisserie de Monston.