Chapter 61
Chapter 61
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Planning the Intrusion
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Ashley could use a truly vast array of magic spells.
Not just the advanced spells that I could wield, but even more varied and complex ones—that was the kind of mage Ashley was.
She slept a lot, but that was offset by such advantages.
It wasn't just her looks; she had clear strengths as a magic tutor, which was why I'd hired her.
"Teacher, the item I'd like you to bring from your room is a single sheet of stationery. The envelope doesn't matter, but the stationery is absolutely necessary."
"...This feels a bit like committing a crime."
"It's fine. You don't need to worry about a thing—just take out the stationery and make sure no one notices."
"...Hmm."
I explained exactly what needed to be done.
The most crucial part was, of course, not getting caught.
It was a situation where she absolutely could not be discovered to have diverted the letter.
This was me secretly reading it without Rozalin's permission, so naturally, it had to stay hidden.
I didn't know the method yet myself, but with Ashley's magic... I had faith she'd pull it off somehow.
Still, I couldn't help feeling a little worried.
For now, I started thinking with Ashley about how to execute the plan without Rozalin noticing and successfully divert the letter.
"Do we really need to avoid getting caught with the letter?"
"What do you mean?"
"If the content on the stationery is something extremely long and requires that much writing, sure. But if it's not a huge amount of text, wouldn't it be enough to just read it quickly...?"
"Your point does make some sense."
Hearing Ashley say that, it was clear we didn't need to sneak it away for long.
Until just now, I'd been thinking of taking the stationery without detection.
But there was no need to keep it the whole time; we could read it quickly and put it back.
"You're right. We don't need to... keep the stationery out for long."
"In that case... I think I have a way."
"Really?"
"Well.... For now...."
Ashley hadn't confirmed it definitively, but her response suggested it would definitely work.
All that remained was avoiding detection during the theft itself.
"How do you plan to retrieve it?"
"Before that, there's something else to do first."
"What is it?"
"...I'll set up a small magic circle in front of Madam's room."
"A magic circle?"
I wondered what kind of magic circle she planned to use.
So many spells came to mind that it was hard to choose.
Before sneaking the letter from Rozalin undetected, what magic did she intend to use?
"Probably a sleep spell...? Other spells could go wrong or be a bit risky. This seems the cleanest option."
"If it's possible, that would definitely be best."
It didn't seem like a bad method at all.
In fact, I thought it was good—it even eliminated variables like Rozalin coming in from outside.
Honestly, given Ashley's versatile magic, I'd half-expected something like invisibility.
I wasn't sure if that spell existed, but it seemed plausible.
Ashley's skill level made it believable...
"Hmm... Teacher, then can we execute it tomorrow night right away?"
"...We have to. It's Camellia's request."
"Really?"
I'd half-expected her to complain about being sleepy and ask to delay.
But she was stepping up more than I'd thought.
"...Yeah."
"Then I'm grateful. Tell me more about that spell. Like how it induces sleep, how long it lasts..."
I kept directing questions at Ashley.
While she lay on the bed in her room.
We needed to hammer out the detailed plan for extracting the letter from Rozalin's room.
I felt a bit guilty, but this was more Rozalin's fault for deliberately not telling me than mine.
And if she was going to hide it on purpose... she shouldn't have let it show.
Yeah, this wasn't my fault.
"By the way... Camellia?"
"Yes, what's up?"
"Do we have to talk so close like this...?"
"Why?"
In the middle of our conversation, Ashley suddenly brought it up.
Now?
It felt like we'd been talking like this for ages since starting, and now she mentions it.
"Am I making you uncomfortable?"
"No, it's not that..."
"Then what's wrong?"
She was just lying comfortably on the bed, and I was simply chatting close by.
It hadn't even occurred to me that this could be an issue.
After all, Ashley often stuck right by my side during lessons.
I'd never thought this positioning was uncomfortable.
Plus, she frequently fell asleep at the end of lessons, resting her head on my shoulder...?
"Do you hate it?"
"...You've been like this since earlier, so I thought maybe you were uncomfortable...?"
"I'm fine. I'm just sitting and talking, right? I pulled the chair right up to the bed."
"...True."
One clear difference was between Ashley freshly awake and Ashley still half-asleep.
If she were still groggy now, she'd probably ignore it, mumbling replies with her eyes half-closed.
Well, for me, fully awake Ashley was far better than the half-asleep version.
"Anyway, I appreciate your help, Teacher."
"I don't know the reason, but I've already agreed. No choice now..."
"Hehe, it's not for any weird reason, so no need to worry. You just need to help me out a little?"
Even though it involved rummaging through my stepmother's room?
*
"Is something the matter, Young Lady?"
"Nothing much?"
After finishing my talk with Ashley, I'd returned to my room to relax comfortably.
I did have things to do originally, but plotting so intensely earlier had tired me out.
"I see...?"
Nothing much.
Yeah.
I hadn't started anything yet—just had a little chat.
Saying nothing was happening so far was no problem at all.
Tomorrow would be different, of course.
"Lize, any families with recent incidents?"
"That's sudden... But as far as I know, none. The newspapers lately focus more on the imperial family than nobles."
"Really? That's less fun than expected. Last summer had scandals between western families and all sorts of entertaining stuff."
I asked Lize, but I already knew there was nothing recent.
I got the information before she did, after all.
Since I was the one receiving reports from the Information Guild, it was inevitable.
But after talking with Ashley, I felt a bit tense about tomorrow's task.
"Hmm..."
"What's wrong?"
"Lize, have you ever stolen anything?"
"...Pardon?"
"Just curious. Good if you haven't."
"...?"
Lize gave me an odd look, but I felt awkward too.
I'd focused a lot on money and business in life so far, but I'd never committed crimes or done bad things.
Yet this time... I was doing something bad, so of course my mood was off.
"Our Lize is so kind. She'd never do something bad."
"Well, to that extent..."
"I think someone like Lize is extremely kind. Don't you?"
"...Yes."
"Hmm... Is that so?"
She seemed kinder than the Leonhardt Family average, at least.
She didn't seem overly greedy for money, and her desires felt minimal overall.
Definitely better than the other maids.
In my view, Lize was truly good-hearted.
Among those in the mansion with Rozalin, she was one I could confidently call a good person.
"Older Sister Karen will head back home soon... I should hang out with her once before she goes."
"There's a new restaurant that opened in the city recently. That could be nice."
"I hadn't heard? I didn't know."
"It happened while we were away from the mansion. That's plausible."
Truthfully, since Karen and I returned to the mansion, we hadn't done much together.
I had my own tasks, and she preferred quietly resting as usual... so it couldn't be helped.
Still, I wanted to spend proper time with her before she returned to Melnik.
After this parting, I probably wouldn't see her until winter.
Of course, starting next year, we'd see each other almost daily, but basically, yes.
"Lize, that restaurant you mentioned. Can you book it for two days from now?"
"Of course."
"Then book it for that day. Tomorrow's too sudden."
"Understood. Anything else to reserve?"
"Hmm... No need for the bookstore. I think that's it."
Given Karen's personality, there was no need to over-schedule.
She'd feel burdened by too many plans, and a relaxed vibe was best.
"Oh, no guests at the mansion tomorrow or in two days, right?"
"None. Guests rarely visit our mansion anyway."
"True. But if someone shows up while Sister and I are out... it'd be awkward?"
Truthfully, it was just to ensure no issues with tomorrow night's plan.
If a guest arrived suddenly and we rushed... things could get messy in various ways.