The Marionette's Shadow
Annie swallowed dryly. When an urgent report came in, it was usually Jeremy—Raphaelo’s right-hand man—who came to this room. But today, Raphaelo himself had said he would come?
Soon the door opened, and beyond the translucent curtain appeared a neat, well-dressed silhouette. She immediately bowed with perfect etiquette.
“I greet the young master.”
“Sit.”
The man took a seat and gestured toward her.
Information coming out of the princess’s palace had always been mostly useless. Planting a spy there had simply been a precaution; he had never expected high-quality intelligence.
Yet at some point, urgent reports from the princess’s palace had begun arriving frequently. The planted spy had even proven so capable that she was now treated almost like one of Cayena’s closest attendants. Thanks to that, Raphaelo was able to obtain faster and more accurate information than anyone else in the capital.
Raphaelo opened his mouth.
“What happened?”
Annie relayed everything that had occurred in the palace that day without omission. How Olivia Grace had entered the palace a full day earlier than the announced date. The central palace kitchen, Mrs. Hillyer, the emperor’s reaction—every detail was delivered with care.
The spy planted among the knights had already sent a similar report to the duchy first. It stated that, by imperial order from the princess, a search and seizure of the Hillyer family was underway.
Even the story of an old traitor family’s crest—one so ancient that few in the capital still remembered it—had come up. It was the kind of obscure knowledge that a young lady like Cayena should have found nearly impossible to know.
The princess possessed an unusual amount of strange information. Of course, these were things one could learn with a little attention and investigation. But Raphaelo knew very well that Cayena’s environment offered no such support.
‘Just how did she find out?’
Today, just as Cayena had once told him, information had arrived that Rita Brukin was suffering from mania. There was even speculation that it might be a hereditary disease. On top of that, Olivia Grace had entered the princess’s palace today.
In one fell swoop, Raphaelo had become completely disconnected from the three families’ daughters without so much as lifting a finger. Had his perfectionist mother’s plans ever gone this perfectly awry? As far as he knew, never once.
“Any other unusual movements?”
At his question, Annie carefully recalled Cayena’s recent behavior.
“Other than reading travelogues from various regions, there hasn’t been anything particularly strange.”
“Travelogues?”
Come to think of it, they had run into each other at the imperial library.
‘Why would she be reading travelogues?’
Annie relayed the conversation she had overheard.
“She said she was reading them to also inspect potential summer resorts.”
Cayena had once spent about a month each summer vacationing at the southern seaside. However, after falling out with one of the few imperial family members she had gotten along with, she had stopped going for over two years now.
“You mentioned the nanny before, didn’t you? Baroness Elivan?”
“Yes. There has been no reply yet, but I will inform you again as soon as contact arrives.”
Raphaelo nodded. Given the situation, if Baroness Elivan returned to the palace, it seemed highly likely she would be appointed chief maid.
‘I’ll need to attach someone to watch her movements as well.’
Annie brought up one more important piece of news.
“Also, last night the prince visited Her Highness the Princess’s bedchamber.”
“While he’s under house arrest?”
“Yes. It appears there is a secret passage in the bedroom.”
It was only natural for every bedroom in the palace to have a secret passage.
“There was quite a loud commotion inside.”
At those words, Raphaelo frowned. It didn’t sound like anything pleasant had occurred. No—Rezef had surely gone to see Cayena while harboring a grudge.
‘Yet there wasn’t a single unusual rumor. The prince’s palace has been strangely quiet instead.’
He guessed that Cayena had managed to persuade Rezef. What exactly had been said between them, he could not know for now. He could only assume it was related to political interests.
‘There are even more things I need to look into now.’
Whenever Cayena made a move, the entire palace stirred as if a wind had blown through a reed field. Her influence had now grown to a level that could no longer be ignored. At least, that was how it looked to Raphaelo.
He asked a question he had never once asked before.
“In your view, what do you think of Her Highness the Princess these days?”
The rather broad question left Annie momentarily flustered. But she was quick-witted and clever; she soon found an appropriate answer.
“She is fair and wise.”
A fair and wise princess. The words didn’t make sense. And yet, strangely, Raphaelo found himself convinced.
“Ah, and…”
“…?”
Raphaelo looked up at her with a puzzled tilt of his head. Annie hesitated for a moment before continuing.
“I heard you say that you sincerely hope things go well with Lady Grace.”
He frowned slightly.
‘Olivia Grace again.’
Lately, she kept bringing up Olivia Grace. Had that woman done something to her?
Raphaelo nodded as if he understood and handed a pouch of money to Jeremy. Jeremy crossed behind the curtain and passed it to Annie. She accepted the payment with gratitude and left the room, following the servant once more.
Even when he gathered every piece of the puzzle that was Cayena, he still couldn’t tell what picture it was supposed to form. No—it felt as if countless pieces from entirely different puzzles had been mixed together in chaos.
‘It doesn’t seem like she’s simply supporting Prince Rezef, yet it’s also strange to conclude she’s trying to seize power for herself.’
And the strangest thing of all was himself. He kept paying attention to Cayena’s every move and growing curious.
She lingered in his mind like a small thorn lodged in his finger. It was even frustrating that she wasn’t someone he could freely arrange to meet whenever he wished.
In any case, he was merely a successor who had not inherited a title. He had deliberately chosen not to succeed the ducal title and had isolated himself to a certain degree.
‘It would be good if I had the right to meet her privately more often…’
Raphaelo left the annex and entered the splendidly decorated main mansion. He walked while lost in thought, then finally asked Jeremy, who was beside him.
“Is there no natural way for me to encounter Her Highness the Princess?”
To find the answer, one must first encounter the problem.
The next day, as soon as dawn broke, Cayena stopped the inspection as if nothing had happened. However, the palace residents were now secretly terrified that they might end up like the central palace kitchen staff or Mrs. Hillyer.
They were all cowering and, at the same time, busier than they had been in years. They had to divide up the work of everyone now locked in the dungeon and cover for them.
Because personnel shifts had been so active since morning, the maids who arrived at the princess’s palace today received relatively little attention.
Julia Evans and Susan Lepol watched the servant hurrying off to announce their arrival. Julia Evans, who had expected at least some level of welcome, felt deflated.
“It seems a bit chaotic around here…”
Julia Evans had come to the capital with an excited heart. The capital! The thrill it inspired was beyond words. By the standards of the lively young lady, the men of the east had been boring. And ugly. And lacking in refinement. That had been the most painful thing of all for Julia Evans.
When she had been chosen as a maid for the princess’s palace, she had screamed with joy. Her heart had fluttered at the thought of finally leaving the stuffy countryside and heading to the capital.
‘Tea parties! Balls! Dresses!’
She had stepped across the imperial palace threshold while imagining scenes filled with elegant, fashionable people. Yet the atmosphere of the palace was strangely off from what she had expected. She, the cherished daughter of the Marquis Evans household and a renowned beauty, had suddenly become an unwanted guest. She glanced at Susan Lepol, who stood beside her with an indifferent expression.
‘Her face is so fierce.’
With her deep brown hair and dark violet eyes, her haughty features made her look like a sleek jaguar. Even when Julia Evans smiled brightly and spoke to her, she only answered in short, clipped replies.
‘Well, she is quite beautiful, though.’
Julia Evans ran her fingers through her curly golden hair, hiding her smug satisfaction. After all, her own beauty far surpassed the other girl’s. She had often been called the greatest beauty in the east.
‘I’ve never seen anyone prettier than me in the capital either.’
Just how beautiful was Cayena Hill, the woman said to be the empire’s greatest beauty? At that moment, the servant returned with a senior maid.
The villainess is a marionette.