Chapter 100
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 99
Chapter Title: The Naive Maid and the Phantom Hunt
‘Isn’t that a palace maid? Is she spying on Hermian?’
Hermian couldn’t even meet his half-brother freely due to worries about his mother’s gaze.
With surveillance this blatant, it was hardly surprising.
“Oh my, isn’t that a palace maid?”
“D-Dame Peristera!”
Noble ladies wearing pants were rare, so the maid recognized Rachel right away.
The maid seemed displeased by Rachel’s appearance and let out a startled yelp. But Rachel greeted her with an innocent smile.
“To think you know me—such an honor!”
“Why are you here?”
“Oh, didn’t you know? This is a place that arranges secret rendezvous between men and women.”
At Rachel’s whisper, the young maid’s face flushed bright red. Palace maids were selected from noble daughters, and this one seemed to have been raised quite sheltered.
‘So innocent. Blushing over something like this.’
“B-But then, Her Highness the Princess with a man!”
“Oh? Has Her Highness come here?”
The maid’s face went pale as Rachel feigned complete ignorance with a prim expression.
‘The Second Queen really should use a more seasoned maid instead of sending an innocent young one. What did she expect?’
Demian wasn’t the type to concern himself with such things, so it must have been the Second Queen who sent this maid. Rachel’s lips curved upward.
“Her Highness the Princess might come to a place like this. She’s divorced from her husband and must be feeling lonely—why not meet a man?”
“B-But still!”
“His Highness the Third Prince meets with courtesans. Compared to that, this is far more wholesome.”
“Is it?”
“Yes. If you’re imagining something indecent, let me assure you—this place isn’t like that at all. Shall we go in together?”
Rachel coaxed the innocent maid. The maid, tasked with surveilling Hermian, saw this as an opportunity and nodded. Above all, since Rachel—younger than her—frequented the place, she must have judged it wasn’t too dangerous.
“Come on in! Oh, Miss, you’re actually coming?”
The harpy at the counter greeted her out of habit, then noticed Rachel and asked. Rachel pointed to the maid beside her.
“There was a guest at the door, so I brought her along.”
Rachel signaled with hand signs that the maid next to her was a spy. The harpy flashed a bright, harmless smile.
Relieved by the unexpectedly wholesome interior, the maid relaxed her shoulders.
“I see. A new face—this is a place that helps lovers come together sweetly. Shall I explain upstairs?”
The harpy stepped out from behind the counter and stood beside the maid.
Her cheerful tone and demeanor made her seem utterly harmless.
‘Though she’s the type to gut you with a knife if need be, wearing that innocent face.’
That’s what made her so frightening. The palace maid wouldn’t die, but she’d likely be tied up by the harpy until Hermian finished his conversation, spilling information without realizing it.
***
Late into the night, Rachel was at the palace rather than the mansion.
“Oh, my fate. Working overtime on the weekend—my life is legendary.”
Carion didn’t jest. His request to hunt ghosts together was entirely serious.
A week after Rachel returned to work, he’d left word to meet on weekend nights.
“Enoch’s working hard too.”
Unlike Rachel, Enoch searched the night palace whenever he had time. Yet no ghost had been found.
“It’s fine. I’m used to it.”
“Connected to the black sorcerer, it can’t stay still forever. Still, I wonder if the ghost really exists.”
Rachel fiddled with the amber on her necklace and muttered. The palace was perfect for spreading rumors.
With its long history came many expansions. There were secret passages unknown to ordinary nobles, and dilapidated areas where trifles could be exaggerated.
“Honestly, if it weren’t for Viscount Seperd’s word, I wouldn’t believe it.”
“Same here.”
That young stickler for rules trusted only what he’d seen and experienced. For him to claim he’d seen Herion’s ghost meant Rachel and Enoch couldn’t ignore the rumors.
“You’re early.”
Carion approached down the corridor with Louis and a few escort knights. An ancient artifact in hand made the area around him glow like daylight.
“You’ve arrived.”
“Of course. Though isn’t this overkill? No matter what I say, Louis insists on bringing all this.”
Carion, thinking the light too much, rambled without being asked.
Louis Seperd assured Carion it wasn’t excessive, then turned to Enoch.
“Then I’ll trust Sir Enoch and withdraw. Please protect His Highness well.”
The escorts and Louis departed swiftly. Only Carion, Rachel, and Enoch remained in the corridor.
“My heart’s pounding. Will I finally see my brother tonight?”
Carion treated this like a test of courage.
Rachel, who’d arrived in a serious mood, felt her tension melt away.
“New necklace? From Enoch?”
Carion was sharp-eyed, spotting the necklace around Rachel’s neck and voicing his curiosity.
“No.”
“There’s a bug inside?”
“Right. Amber with a bee trapped in it.”
“Unique taste.”
“It’s not about taste. This stone detects ghosts nearby.”
“Oh? Neat. I didn’t know such a thing existed.”
The ghost of Baron Hannie’s daughter had said as much, so it must be true.
With that, Rachel roamed the palace interiors with Carion and Enoch.
Thanks to them, she could inspect forbidden areas.
They focused on ghost sighting spots, but the amber showed no reaction.
“Nothing.”
“Yeah. I thought reducing numbers would make it appear right away.”
Carion muttered disappointedly.
“It doesn’t seem like it’ll show tonight.”
“Seeing my brother’s face is harder than I thought.”
“You two were close?”
“Not especially good or bad. He excelled at everything, so I unilaterally admired him.”
His expression grew complex as he spoke of his brother.
“Really? That’s unexpected.”
“What’s unexpected?”
“Your Highness always seems so confident—I figured you lived off your own smugness.”
“You might see me that way, but I wanted Mother’s approval.”
Yet his mother never acknowledged Carion. To her, only her firstborn son mattered.
His plunge into books was a form of escape.
Young Carion had talent with the sword and decent physique.
Having ancient hero blood wasn’t unusual. But he never took up the blade.
Unlike Carion, Herion lacked swordsmanship talent, and his mother hated her second son outshining the first.
Scholarship was all Carion could build quietly, leading him to books.
With Carion holed up in the library, meekly studying, his mother was relieved.
“After Mother passed, I wanted my brother’s approval. To be his greatest ally.”
Carion gazed down the corridor with distant eyes, a bitter smile on his lips.
“But he died before I could earn it. Still, if he’s a ghost, I want to ask who killed him and avenge him—but that’s proving difficult.”
“I see. You’re impressive, Carion.”
“Huh?”
“If I were in your shoes, I’d have envied my brother. I’d have fought for Mother’s attention somehow.”
Rachel knew she couldn’t yield her parents’ love. She’d have vied for every scrap of attention.
‘But I never had the chance.’
“You yielded because you didn’t want to fight your brother, right? Normally, shouldn’t the older one yield? I’d have battled for one more glance.”
Carion suddenly bowed his head, shoulders shaking. Rachel worried he was crying—until she heard stifled chuckles.
“Now I get why they call you a witch.”
“Hey, why’s that the conclusion!”
Rachel felt wronged, but Carion ignored her and pressed on.
“You’d have made a great mother for me.”
“Absolutely not!”
Rachel rubbed her shoulders in vigorous protest. Wishing his mother was a younger woman—what did that even mean?
Carion clutched his stomach laughing at Rachel’s outrage. He laughed so hard tears beaded at his eyes.
In the end, they didn’t encounter the ghost. They searched until late dawn before parting.
***
Time passed, the cold winds faded, and flower buds formed on the trees. Spring had arrived.
Deyner’s academy admission was confirmed on Viscount Beston’s recommendation, and with Rachel’s birthday approaching, days were hectic.
“Happy birthday!”
“Congratulations.”
“You can skip mine, right? It’s not my first time anyway…”
Abyss trailed off as Harpy elbowed his side. Rachel burst into laughter at the sight.
Her first lavish birthday. Work kept the party small, but gifts poured in from many, and close friends gathered to celebrate her sixteenth.
‘Back then, cakes were a dream with food shortages.’
In past loops, fluffy cream cakes were a luxury.
There wasn’t even enough for people to eat. Milk for cream and butter was scarce, as were eggs. Only the wealthy enjoyed them—Rachel’s first cake at sixteen.
“Sweet.”
Rachel murmured after a bite. The cake was sweet. The velvety melt on her tongue was pure bliss.
“Tasty, right?”
Lkaye’s eyes sparkled at Rachel’s expression. Rachel nodded happily.
“The palace patissier baked it himself. I worked hard to arrange it.”
“Thank you. It’s so good, I feel like I’m floating on clouds.”
“Seeing you eat well makes me happy!”
“A modest gift from me.”
Enoch carefully offered a gift box.
“Can I open it now?”
“Yes.”
Inside was a silver hand mirror. Rachel held it to her face—nothing reflected.
“Enoch, this isn’t a mirror?”
Enoch smiled softly at her question.
“It is a mirror. But it doesn’t reflect anything.”
Rachel wondered if it even qualified as one.
“That mirror reflects malevolent forces instead of light. I thought you’d need it, Rachel.”
It couldn’t block physical force but shielded against curses and intangible powers. Perfect for Rachel.
“Thanks—I’ll use it well!”
“I hope this keeps you safer.”
“Hmph, such pretense. Here’s mine.”
Abyss grabbed Rachel’s wrist, opened her palm, and placed his hand over it. A small ring rested there.
“A ring?”
“Wear it to boost memory. Essential for someone as dim as you.”
‘Even gifts come with insults.’
Rachel wordlessly slipped the ring onto her middle finger, then flashed only that finger at Abyss.
“How’s it look? Matches well, right?”