Chapter 28
They couldn’t burn the ledgers either.
The records of Rohiltern family’s exact assets and how the money had been earned and spent each year were worth a fortune.
“Is there a place to store the documents secretly?”
“Well… there is the basement.”
Since Ahfwyn had escaped, the butler mentioned the basement.
There was only one entrance, and the walls were made entirely of stone, making it impossible to enter from outside. It was the perfect place for a small group to guard.
“Good. Put everything there!”
“Yes, my lord.”
“Guard it well while I’m away. If the Duke’s inspector asks, say it’s a vault for family heirlooms and absolutely cannot be opened.”
As expected, he was planning to run away.
Most nobles, like Rohiltern, hid their double books in their mansions because they had no other way to dispose of them. The inspectors also knew this and would thoroughly search the estates.
If the head of the family directly blocked the inspectors, it would be considered defiance against the Duke. But if he wasn’t there, he could later claim it was a loyal servant’s independent decision.
The servants would take all the blame, but the head of the family would be safe. This was a commonly used tactic.
The Count packed several sets of clothes and light food, not knowing how long he would need to stay away.
I deliberately disturbed the busy Count.
“Count?”
“What brings you here…?”
It wasn’t mealtime, and he hadn’t called me.
But the Count, who had been frowning, suddenly smiled and gestured for me to come closer.
“No, this is perfect timing.”
“Huh?”
“Would you like to sit here?”
He pointed at the chair in the center of his room.
“Bella, have you ever played the game called ‘stamping’?”
“St-stamping? N-no…”
“Oh, how sad. You’ve never tried such a fun thing?”
The Count exaggerated his voice and called the butler.
“I’ll teach you. Butler! Bring the documents on the far left of my office.”
“Yes, sir.”
The butler faithfully brought the documents and placed them in front of me.
The Count took out his seal and dipped it in ink.
“It’s simple. Dip it in ink like this and stamp it on the blank spot.”
Thump.
A red seal mark appeared where the ink touched.
“That’s it. Want to try?”
“B-but…”
The Count handed me the seal, but I hesitated, acting as if I was scared.
The family head’s seal was not something to be handled lightly.
“It’s fine. You are a Rohiltern as well.”
The Count laughed loudly and reassured me. I pretended to be convinced and picked up the seal.
“Yes, dip it in ink… Good! You’re doing great. Keep going.”
Thump. Thump. Thump.
I stamped the documents repeatedly like a child enjoying a new game, then looked up.
“Are you going out?”
“A sudden matter came up. I’ll be back soon, so could you stamp the rest of the documents for me? They’re already checked, just stamp them.”
The Count’s words sounded ordinary.
I nodded, and he smiled in satisfaction.
“Oh, and. We’re expecting guests soon.”
“G-guests?”
I jumped up in surprise, but the Count calmed me and sat me back down.
“Don’t worry, they’re not that important. Treat them politely, and they’ll leave on their own. The butler will handle the important matters, understand?”
“Yes, Count.”
“Then I’m off.”
Until the very moment he left, I smiled innocently like a naive child.
But I knew.
The moment our eyes turned away from each other, we were both making the same twisted expression.
‘Idiot.’
The Count’s intention was obvious.
He wanted the inspectors to see me stamping the family’s important documents while he was away.
Later, he would return as if nothing had happened and claim he knew nothing about tax evasion or the double ledgers, blaming me for everything that had occurred while he was gone.
But I wasn’t going to fall for such an obvious trick.
“Excuse me,”
I called the butler.
“What is it, my lady?”
“These documents… can you move them to the office?”
“The office?”
“Yes. This isn’t a place for work anyway… And this chair is a little uncomfortable.”
The butler stared at me.
As someone who had served the Count for years, he saw through his master’s plan.
In that short moment, he decided it was actually better for the inspectors to find me sitting in the office, as the Count intended.
“Understood. I’ll do as you say.”
“Then I’ll go change my clothes. I want to wear something nice in the office.”
“Of course.”
The butler let me go without suspicion.
He didn’t even assign a maid to watch me, clearly thinking I was a fool.
But his carelessness was good news for me.
I changed clothes and went down to the office.
The documents were already back on the desk, and the seal was lying on top of them.
I sat on the Count’s chair.
It was the first time since my father’s death that I’d sat in this seat. The chair was softer and more unpleasant than I remembered, reeking of the Count’s favorite tobacco.
I swung my feet like a careless child and stamped the documents a few times.
After messing up three or four documents, I raised my head and looked at the butler as if I’d just realized something.
“Do you… have something to say to me?”
“Huh?”
“If not, could you leave? I want to stamp these neatly, and you’re… distracting me.”
The butler shook his head.
My act of being a clueless child worked perfectly.
“Understood. I’ll wait outside. Call me if you need me.”
He left me alone in the room.
“Mm.”
I responded slowly, but the moment the butler closed the door, I jumped up.
‘It worked!’
This office was where the secret passage was located.
I scanned the large bookshelf covering the back wall. I pulled the second-to-bottom book on the far right. A hidden button appeared.
When I pressed it—
Clatter—
Just like when I was a child, the bookshelf swung open, revealing a dark passage.
I looked back at the door. There was no sound of footsteps from the butler or anyone else. No one had the slightest idea what was happening inside.
I stripped off my dress, revealing the jewels hidden in my sleeves and the clothes I had worn underneath.
The butler never imagined I had finished my preparations for escape while changing earlier.
I wrapped the jewels carefully in my spare clothes and stepped into the passage.
Now, it begins.
“Inspectorate.”
“Is the Count at home?”
That evening, as expected, the guests arrived at the Count’s mansion.
Two inspectors and twenty knights wearing the Duke’s crest.
It was rare to send knights with inspectors because it could be seen as trying to intimidate another noble family by force.
The Duke sending knights anyway meant he saw great value in this inspection.
“Please wait a moment.”
The butler let them into the mansion.
He was at ease, thinking that no matter what happened, Bella would take all the blame.
While the butler went upstairs, the two inspectors looked around and whispered.
“They’re being more cooperative than I thought.”
The other inspector agreed.
“And quiet, too.”
The servants standing stiffly at attention were strange as well.
Usually, they would catch people scrambling to hide documents as soon as the inspectors stormed in.
“Maybe this will end more easily than we thought?”
“Perhaps.”
The inspectors gave Rohiltern high marks.
They thought the family might be acting confidently because they had nothing to hide.
But as the wait dragged on, those marks dropped to zero.
“They’re taking too long.”
“This is suspicious. Do you think he ran away?”
The butler wasn’t just any servant. Since he knew all about the family’s internal affairs, he was often involved when the master committed tax evasion.
“That’s likely. No one’s come down this whole time either.”
In such a large mansion, at least one member of the Rohiltern bloodline should have come down to greet their guests.
Roderick, the senior of the two inspectors, signaled to his junior with his chin.
“Let’s go up and see.”
