Chapter 12.
“There seem to be people in this house who don’t belong to the House of Sailkar. This medicine is important, so please don’t entrust it to anyone else—investigate it yourself.”
“…I will do that.”
Albrecht responded obediently and seemed to tuck the wasp brooch and medicine I handed him into his inner pocket. Good. I wasn’t entirely confident he would do everything I asked… but with this, at least Hebe should be freed. I nodded at Albrecht.
“Then you’ll release Hebe now, right?”
“Of course not.”
…What?
I couldn’t hide the shock on my face. Albrecht narrowed his brow as he continued.
“Even if the court physician is a suspect, your nanny is still one of the prime suspects. There may not be just one perpetrator. Regardless of your fondness for her, this investigation and interrogation will be thorough, and no matter the results, she can no longer stay by your side.”
I held my breath at his voice. Though Albrecht didn’t raise it, every word felt deeply engraved in my body. It was calm and soft, yet it pulled me in completely… In other words, he was earnestly trying to make me feel the weight of his presence.
And he wasn’t wrong. Carrying the court physician through this massive mansion, I realized just how vast the Sailkar estate was and how many people worked here. Like he said, the court physician likely wasn’t the only one who infiltrated this house to kidnap me.
However—
Hebe wasn’t one of them. I was sure. Honestly, I had only spoken to her once after returning to this life—when she told me who I was. But I hadn’t sensed any of the same unease from her that I felt from the kidnappers or the physicians who used incense on me.
When you’re unsure who poses a threat, the first thing you must do is secure the people around you who are unquestionably safe. And to me, Hebe was a trustworthy woman.
“This is your last warning. Step aside, Verdet. This isn’t your place to intervene.”
When I fell silent, Albrecht looked directly at me and issued his command coldly. His stern eyes didn’t waver for even a moment. Behind him, I could see Saldir watching me with a mixture of guilt and discomfort. He clearly couldn’t go against Albrecht either.
I stared straight at Albrecht’s face. Then, keeping my expression firm, I opened my mouth slowly.
“Why not?”
“…?”
“This is a matter of choosing my nanny. Why do you say it’s not my place to speak?”
“…What did you say?”
“She’s innocent. Because…”
‘Because I didn’t feel any unease around her’—saying that might sound too vague. I needed a solid reason. I paused, buying time to think, and then continued.
“…Because she protected me.”
“She protected you?”
Albrecht’s eyebrows shot up. His expression quickly turned dissatisfied as he rebuked me.
“How did she protect you? Do you really think her actions can be considered protection? If she had protected you, would you have had to use your own powers to fight those men in that alley? You would have been taken somewhere safe. She was incompetent. Powerless. And maybe even complicit. Step aside. She’s the one who put you in danger.”
His tone became much more authoritative than before. This was likely my limit. Albrecht might be finding me incredibly bothersome. I needed to approach this more logically, with a solid reason. Keeping my face neutral, I replied firmly.
“She did protect me. She told me about the emergency location-tracking artifact.”
I looked him straight in the eye and shook my head firmly.
Albrecht’s brows furrowed slightly.
“What?”
“If she were one of the kidnappers, she would never have told me about that brooch. And even if I had somehow found out about it, she would have desperately tried to hide it. Or claimed it was broken. I’m just a seven-year-old child. I would’ve been easy to deceive. But she told me everything…”
“That could’ve been just to trick you!”
It happened just then. A sharp female voice suddenly cut me off. Startled, I turned toward the source.
“The young lady is clearly not in a state to make sound decisions right now! And I’m no criminal! I didn’t try to kidnap her!”
It was Periot. She shouted loudly as she sprang to her feet. She regained consciousness quickly… I’d expected her to stay unconscious for a while longer. Maybe because she’s in a child’s body, my blow wasn’t as strong as I thought.
But… her appearance was a mess. Without thinking, my eyes dropped to her shins. Her stockings were torn here and there. Why were they like that? …Wait, was that my fault? Maybe her legs dragged a bit while I was carrying her—she is taller than me, after all.
As I stared at her knees, Periot scowled and yanked her skirt down roughly to block my view. She bared her teeth and snapped at me with a twisted face.
“What are you looking at? Have you no shame? A noble girl, ogling someone’s legs?!”
“…What did the court physician just say?”
Saldir responded, dumbfounded. At that moment, Periot’s expression changed to panic as she quickly turned her head to Albrecht and Saldir. Her face visibly paled.
Ah. She forgot she was supposed to be acting and lashed out at me without thinking. To forget to act at such a crucial moment—what a mess.
“Ah, no. I was just embarrassed about my shins… I apologize. But still!”
She fumbled for an excuse, then suddenly lifted her chin, her eyes glowing fiercely, and shouted with even more venom than before.
“The young lady is clearly not in her right mind! She treated me violently and even dragged me to the young masters! I’m truly being wronged! And the real culprit is Hebe!”
“What did you say, court physician?!”
This time, Hebe, who was still imprisoned, shouted. But Periot wasn’t intimidated and screamed even louder.
“I saw it! After she arrived at the ducal estate, Hebe met with a black carriage late at night behind the back gate! That carriage looked exactly like the one the kidnappers used!”
“No! That carriage belongs to my husband! He’s affiliated with the duchy’s manpower agency and works as a coachman!”
Hebe shouted from her cell. But Periot glared at her fiercely and shrieked:
“Liar! Everyone knows the carriage from the kidnapping matches your husband’s!”
…Wait. Something’s off. I frowned and stared at Periot.
“Hold on. I never saw the carriage when I was confronting them.”
“W-what?”
“Saldir oppa, did you see the carriage?”
As soon as I added “oppa” (older brother), Saldir’s eyes sparkled. At that moment, Albrecht turned to look at Saldir. His gaze clearly held a warning, but Saldir, unbothered, opened his mouth to answer.
