I Found the Culprit (2)
I Found the Culprit (2)
Could this really be Duchess Maria?
Her beautiful face was exactly the same, and her smile was no different from before.
Yet her smile no longer felt as warm as it used to. She looked almost like... a doll wearing a forced, artificial smile.
"What is it?"
As she looked at me, her expression gradually stiffened.
"Why are you looking at me like that?"
There was no longer any smile on her face.
I was sure my own expression hadn't changed.
The power still writhing inside my head and body. Her appearance, so different from before. And her inherited ability, which no one else knew about.
I felt like I finally understood what was going on. I was certain enough about who was trying to kill me to ask her directly.
I spoke in a calm voice.
"Why are you trying to kill me?"
Her expression cracked slightly.
"What are you talking about?"
"You've been trying to kill me ever since I was born. And you're still doing it now."
The Duchess's expression kept shifting.
Anxiety and suspicion, contemplation and realization.
Maria opened her mouth, her face stiff.
"Don't tell me... you blocked my ability?"
Just as I expected. The reason I liked her, and the reason everyone else liked her, was her inherited ability.
"So it really was an inherited ability? Since Sister Elena's ability is related to curing status ailments, the Ibiza Viscountcy's must be a mental-type ability. In that case, does the Duchess have an ability to increase favorability?"
Maria stared at me, pale and appalled. She no longer looked at me as if I were just a child.
"I knew you were smart... but to think you were this smart..."
Muttering softly, she immediately shook her head.
"But being smart shouldn't allow you to block my ability. How did you block it?"
She asked me, but didn't seem to actually expect an answer.
"Could your awakened inherited ability be related to that? No. They clearly said it was physical enhancement."
As she continued to ponder aloud, she seemed to finally reach her own conclusion.
"Are you Andres's son after all?"
The Duke's son. So the Duke really was immune to her ability after all.
"No. Even Brivia's sons didn't notice it, so how could a half-breed like you..."
A bitter smile came unbidden to my lips at her words. Hearing the true, unfiltered thoughts of someone you once liked was bad for your mental health.
I didn't want to listen to her mutter to herself anymore. While she paused, I spoke up.
"So the Duke was immune to that ability. The fact that you two got along so well at first was because of that ability, too..."
Cutting me off, she shrieked furiously.
"No! It wasn't because of the ability! He truly loved me! Amanda! It's all because of that whore of a mother of yours! That bitch tore us apart!"
As she screamed, her eyes filled with pure rage directed at my mother.
But listening to her, all I heard was absurd nonsense.
She knew the truth all along, yet spewed her misplaced anger at someone else.
Because she was directing that anger at someone else, her words sounded like nothing but bullshit to me—the target of her wrath.
"So everything was a lie. Your kindness to my mother and me, and the way you treated everyone else."
"Well, treating people who like me kindly has always been a habit. It's fun being liked, and it was quite amusing to watch you and your mother act cute in front of me without knowing a single thing."
After saying all this with a mocking expression, she suddenly dropped it.
"Sigh... I got too worked up. To lose my composure in front of a mere child..."
She let out a deep sigh, then forced a smile onto her lips.
The air shimmered once more as her smile tried to envelop me in warmth. But before it could have any effect, her expression reverted to a stiff, rigid smile.
"Forget what just happened. I was just temporarily upset and said things I didn't mean."
Perhaps because she realized her ability no longer worked on me, she immediately followed her warm words with a threat.
"In any case, no one will believe the words of an illegitimate son like you. If you cause unnecessary trouble, it will only harm your mother."
She seemed intent on sweeping the matter under the rug.
But I had no intention of letting that happen. I hadn't set all this up just for that.
Even now, the message indicating I had escaped danger had not appeared.
The Duchess was still completely intent on killing me.
If I remained in the dark about when an assassin might strike, things would be no different from before.
I couldn't let that happen. This time, I planned to dictate the timing myself.
Now, shall I stoke her anger a bit?
"Just as you said, Your Grace, perhaps no one will care."
I nodded and continued.
"But I've almost died several times. Ever since I was born. I'm sure quite a few people would be interested in that."
At my words, she replied with a mocking expression.
"Hmph, who would even remember that?"
I pointed a finger at my head.
"I remember."
"Nonsense. You remember that?"
Her mocking expression shifted instantly at my next words.
"Not only do I remember, but I also cried my heart out and spat out food just to survive."
Maria stared at me with wide eyes. It seemed she saw me as some kind of monster.
"You did that knowingly? An unweaned baby?"
The hardships of that time flashed through my mind. I really never wanted to play the baby role again.
I leaned toward her. Covering my mouth with one hand, I whispered as if sharing a secret.
"Didn't you know? People call me a 'genius'."
My mockery seemed to have hit its mark. Watching her expression, I continued.
"I did well on the test, too. Starting tomorrow, I'll be training 'alone' at the training ground behind the mansion."
At my words, the Duchess's fists clenched tightly.
She knew very well what kind of training ground it was.
A training ground that only the ducal family could use.
Using that training ground all by myself, bypassing my siblings, meant I had been recognized by the Duke.
'Oh, come to think of it, that's quite a massive privilege, isn't it?'
As I paused to watch the Duchess, the thought briefly crossed my mind.
In any case, her clenched fists had turned pale, and her face was frozen in a terrifyingly rigid expression.
It looked like my words had landed perfectly.
It was about time to deliver the final blow.
"The Duke said he would 'personally' observe starting tomorrow. We'll find out tomorrow whether the Duke will listen to what I have to say."
The Duke, of course, had never said any such thing.
Still, since the Duke had visited me in my life before last, there was a high probability he would come even sooner now that I had shown greater skill in the test.
In any case, saying that I would meet the Duke was no lie.
Grind.
The sound of teeth grinding echoed. The woman sitting in front of me stared at me with an expression I had never seen before.
A face smeared with rage and disgust.
Gradually, fear began to creep onto that face.
Now, it was time to leave.
"Well then, I enjoyed today's refreshments."
I stood up from my seat and bowed deeply to her.
It was a greeting my mother and the maids always adored, calling it cute, but the woman in front of me did not respond to my bow.
I had no intention of waiting for an answer, either.
Leaving her behind, I stepped out of the drawing room.
I fell into thought as I walked down the corridor.
Now that I've gouged open the wound, I need to clean up the mess.
What should I do now?
Should I go to Miguel? The Knight Commander? Or the Chief Butler?
No, there was no reason to turn back.
In the drawing room after the child had departed, Duchess Maria remained alone.
The drawing room, usually so gentle in atmosphere, and Maria herself seemed frozen in time.
Time passed like that.
A knock sounded at the door.
At the sound, her frozen expression came back to life.
A smile bloomed like a flower, and a spring fragrance seemed to waft through the desolate drawing room.
A soft voice came from her lips.
"Come in."
Creak.
The door opened, and a man stepped inside.
"I heard you called for me."
At his words, Maria smiled again.
It was a smile slightly different from the one she showed the child or the servants. It was a smile that made the man's face flush red.
"Yes. I need you to do the task we put off last time."
"Ah, the matter of the bastard. Understood. It seems a bit early, but I'll set a date and handle it."
"No. It's too late to set a date. Please handle it tonight without fail."
The man was startled by her words. She wasn't one to handle matters in such haste.
"Pardon? Isn't that too rushed?"
When he said that, Maria shook her head. She clasped her hands together and looked at him earnestly.
"No. I don't care how much money it costs or what demands they make. Please! I beg of you, tonight without fail."
"...Understood."
Though he thought she was acting too hastily, he had no choice but to obey her words, just as he always did.
He immediately left the drawing room, and the room once again became like a frozen painting.
The afternoon passed, and darkness crept in outside the window.
It was long past the time Flora should have retired to her quarters, but she was still in my room with me.
She looked at me with an anxious expression.
"Um, may I ask why you told me to stay...?"
I checked the time and got to my feet.
"A child can't wander around the mansion alone at night. That's why I told you to stay."
When I said that, her face grew even more uneasy.
"The sun has already set, so where on earth are you planning to go?"
Stepping out into the corridor, I answered Flora's question.
"The Duke's office."
"...Pardon?"
Flora, still dazed, let out a gasp that was almost a scream.
Though her expression clearly showed she didn't want to go, Flora guided me to the office.
The mansion, now cleared of servants, was incredibly quiet.
Although a guard on patrol glanced at the two of us along the way, he did not speak to us.
For me, who wanted to meet the Duke as covertly as possible, the situation was absolutely perfect.
After descending the stairs and passing through a long corridor, we arrived in front of the Duke's office.
In front of the office, the Chief Butler stood guard at the door. The fact that the loyal butler was here meant the Duke was still inside his office.
He looked at me with a puzzled expression.
"I have come to see the Duke."
Despite his puzzled expression, he asked politely, as always.
"Did you schedule an appointment?"
"No."
"He has not finished his work yet. Please schedule an appointment and return next time."
A polite rejection, but I had no intention of backing down, either.
"I will wait."
The Chief Butler's white eyebrows twitched slightly.
Just then, the Duke's voice echoed from behind the door.
"Let him in."
As expected of the Duke, he could easily hear what was happening in the corridor.
"Understood."
Unable to take his frustration out on me, the Chief Butler gave poor Flora a stern glare before opening the door.
An elegant office filled with books and documents.
At the center of the office, which I was visiting for the first time in my life, sat my father, Duke Andres de Gracia.
He did not seem pleased by the sudden visit from his illegitimate son.
But I wasn't looking for fatherly affection, either.
Now was the time for business.
I stepped inside the bleak office.
Thud.
The door closed, leaving only the Duke and me in the room.