A Letter's Secret Mission
“Easy story. What if Jiana plans to steal my doll?”
“Stealing is a bad action, Idel.”
“……Alright. Then suppose I secretly borrow one. Then you’re taking the teddy bear I hug every single night, or the one that’s been stuck in the toy box for over a year?”
“Hmm, then the one Idel cares about more? That way Idel will come back to get it tomorrow.”
Jiana’s expression showed zero hesitation as Idel fixed her gaze with determination.
“Not that. If I choose the easier one to take secretly?”
“If it’s easier, then obviously the teddy bear in the toy box, right?”
“Yeah. I’ll be that ‘teddy bear in the toy box’ for the servants. And I’ll get to see who’s playing a prank on me.”
“I see……!”
Jiana’s small exclamation of understanding echoed in the air.
Her head nodding like she got it made Idel’s heart swell with pride.
‘Just like before with Ivan and the count, my brother is truly a genius!’
He handled even difficult tasks so smoothly, just like Dad at work.
‘His eyebrow movements when he focuses too—they’re just like Dad’s.’
Imagining the young Idel scribbling with a pen in the study like the Duke Clementine, Jiana’s lips curved into a lazy smile.
Diane, listening beside Idel, suddenly raised her hand.
“Um, Miss Idel, there’s a question! Are you leaving them to be tormented to figure out the ringleader?”
“Well… it’s kind of similar.”
“Then, wouldn’t it be safer if I just point it out straight? No, before that, if I knew you reconciled with Jiana again, she’d probably stay quiet out of caution…… Uh, is that right?”
Her passionate voice gradually shrank. Idel stared at Diane, who was peeking nervously, and thought inside.
‘That’s right. It’s extremely logical.’
But at the same time, Idel didn’t believe they would really grow quiet just because of caution.
It was because she had heard Melissa say from the stairs, “It’s time to torment Idel.” Slipping into touching the servants too.
‘But I can’t say that out loud.’
Idel swallowed the secret she couldn’t share with the two of them and blinked her eyes narrowly with a sly smile.
“Hmph, if I do that, it’ll only be now. And I need this way to create an opportunity.”
“An opportunity…?”
Idel’s gaze swept over Diane, who was parroting her words like a parrot.
‘Her expression says she doesn’t know anything, but she’s guessing, isn’t she?’
Thinking she must be recalling some vague “opportunity of a lifetime,” Idel nodded calmly.
“Yeah, that’s exactly what you’re thinking.”
“Ah, I see! All at once…!”
As expected.
Idel smiled contentedly, confirming her guess was right.
Of course, it was a completely wrong guess.
Earlier, when Idel confessed to her maids that they were plotting something and that she was worried about her, Diane had subtly caught a glimpse of Idel’s true feelings.
‘If I tell the Duke and Duchess, all the servants would be fired. You said you didn’t want that.’
Diane had boldly imagined Idel waving her off, saying she’d never do such a thing.
She had firmly concluded the wrong thing.
‘She must plan to give us another chance! She intends to figure out the nasty servants and then strike at the decisive moment.’
In truth, she had known that you both hated her and that your low plans were all there. But she had still not told her parents.
‘That’s how she shows her true self! You’ve made a mistake, but I couldn’t bear to tell the Duke right away and have you thrown out of the manor…! I’ll give you another chance!’
With her hand on her waist, Idel stood tall and proud, while Jiana stood firmly behind her to support, and the startled servants looked on.
‘How thrilling.’
And so incredibly touching.
She planned to give the servants a chance, to win their hearts even by accepting torment…
‘Idel must really be……’
Diane secretly sniffled at the thought of her nose growing cold, her eyes resolute as she gazed at Idel.
In her eyes, Idel had already forgiven the servants’ wrongs.
‘Our young lady is exactly like the heroine in the novels!’
Especially lately, she resembled the popular “black villainess pretends not to know” protagonist in the empire.
‘Our young lady is even smarter than that female lead!’
Comparing the written female lead to Idel, she nibbled her lower lip and smiled with satisfaction.
Meanwhile, unaware of what either was thinking, Idel gave a light cough.
“So, both of you understand what you have to do, right?”
“Yeah! Then! Honestly, it’s a bit… embarrassing, but I’ll pretend we’re still fighting with Idel!”
“Me too! I’ll do my best to spread Idel’s bad reputation to the colleagues and carefully ask how you’ll torment her!”
Idel listened to the odd words of the two and nodded calmly.
“Yeah, work hard. Ah, and Diane.”
“Yes, Miss Idel?”
“You have one thing—um, no, two more things you need to do……”
Gesturing to the wide-eyed Diane, Idel pulled a single sheet of paper from her pocket.
* * *
Sigmund was in a foul mood because of some damn customer.
How long had it been since the customer started nibbling at the ring again?
Waiting endlessly in front of the double-crow mark, Sigmund exploded with anger all by himself.
“Why the hell does this ring have no contact function?”
Even his master Viled, who usually got flustered about suddenly sending him away, had grumbled that he should have given a less secret communication artifact if that was the case……
“tsk!”
Sigmund swept his black hair back with one hand and slowly leaned against the wall.
His red eyes, mixed with boredom and irritation, lifted slowly toward the empty space.
Sigmund knew his foul mood wasn’t just from Idel’s frequent calls. It was because of his master.
‘What the hell.’
After the wedding of Ivan Earnest and the Bright Count, his master had started acting as if his mind was elsewhere.
He neglected daily life and magic, but became twice as sensitive to himself and his surroundings.
‘Even thinking about it, something feels off about that mark.’
Sigmund still remembered his master’s expression that day. When he learned of the mark on his mother Melissa, who had cursed Idel, Viled had definitely shown a different look.
His serious gaze, subtly strengthened hands, and tightly closed lips.
‘Even thinking about it, it’s suspicious.’
Raising one eyebrow, he kicked at a pebble on the ground absentmindedly.
A tall shadow, clearly not Idel’s, stood before Sigmund.
“Excuse me……”
“What is it.”
“Sigmund, right?”
Sigmund lifted his head with great caution and narrowed his eyes for a moment.
Even though the hood hid most of his face, he recognized the maid who always accompanied Idel.
“You were supposed to wait here, and you really did.”
Diane smiled sweetly after realizing Sigmund recognized her and took out a letter.
“What’s this?”
“It’s a letter from the young lady to your master. She asked me to deliver it quickly.”
“What’s the content?”
“It’s…… I don’t know either.”
Diane shook her head, saying she didn’t know the letter’s content at all.
Sigmund, who had received the letter with a helpless expression, lightly scanned its front and back with one hand.
“……It’s nothing.”
Diane’s lips curved into a tiny smile at Sigmund’s repeated careful examination of the letter.
He was pouting like a child who hadn’t seen his best friend.
‘Idel too. She made friends with someone so similar to herself.’
How cute, really.
Even when they met, they didn’t hold hands every time.
Diane, gazing at Sigmund with a dreamy expression, checked the time and quickly bid farewell. She had to hurry because she had used Idel’s “malicious errand” as an excuse to leave.
“Then, I delivered it for sure, so I’ll go now! See you again if there’s a chance!”
“……”
Just like her, he forgot to answer while focusing on one thing.
As Diane turned, believing in her own wrong illusion, Sigmund stood there holding the letter, lost in thought.
Should he intercept and read it in the middle?
--- **REMINDER: All system notifications, comments, letters, status windows, and special in-universe content MUST use styled
blocks with inline CSS from the templates. Never output them as plain
text.**