The Portrait That Matched
He had yet to reveal his identity to his lover and earn her forgiveness.
No, even after being forgiven, he had no desire to drag Lina into the heart of political warfare.
With all attention focused on him, there was a limit to how careful he could be no matter how hard he tried.
It was better to eliminate the chance of any incident occurring at its root.
Lina was now Edwin’s highest priority.
And he had absolutely no intention of placing what mattered most to him on the gambling table for the sake of momentary greed.
Kylus realized Edwin was taking the matter with genuine seriousness and straightened rigidly.
“We will treat Everett Rohas as deployed on a confidential mission for the time being.”
Edwin spoke as if letting out a sigh.
He had resolved himself with iron determination, yet they were lovers whose passion was burning at its peak.
The prospect of being unable to meet for an indefinite period until the source of the inflating rumors was dealt with felt utterly bleak.
Edwin wrote the letter with more care than ever before and sent it to Lina through a messenger.
After that, he immersed himself in work to hasten even slightly the day he could see her again.
All without knowing what thoughts were running through Lina’s mind as she read the letter.
“The knight asked me to give this to you.”
The errand boy handed me Everett’s letter.
“Thank you.”
I handed the child a snack out of habit, then carefully unfolded the letter.
It was much thicker than usual and filled with detailed explanations that he had to carry out a mission for the time being and therefore could not meet.
He must be busy again.
Feeling a pang of disappointment, I folded the letter neatly and put it away.
When I noticed the thick stack of exchanged letters piled in the bottom drawer of my desk, the original reason I had joined the Blue Hawk suddenly flashed through my mind.
Reality had drifted so far from the original story that I had completely forgotten about it.
I need to get a grip. How could I forget something like that?
Since the timing matched what I had estimated, my anxiety only grew stronger.
I should have given Everett a proper warning beforehand about what might happen.
What I had said last time clearly hadn’t been enough.
Bringing the Saintess had been a fairly significant achievement, but I couldn’t be certain it would serve as a shield capable of blocking the enraged emperor’s blade.
I had no idea when it would occur or who the target would be.
Without information, I should have paid far more attention.
If he hasn’t left yet…
The errand boy had only just come and gone, so Everett might still be inside the Guard building.
If I hurry, I should be able to catch him.
I needed to confirm whether Everett’s secret mission was that matter.
I practically ran toward the Guard building.
They would not allow an outsider to roam freely inside the Guard headquarters, so it would be better to wait for Everett to come out.
Assuming, of course, that he had not yet departed.
Fortunately, I spotted a Guard knight who appeared to be just stepping outside.
“Excuse me, Sir Knight.”
“Are you addressing me?”
The knight whipped his head around, confirmed no one else was nearby, and responded.
“I have a favor to ask.”
I smiled innocently so I wouldn’t look suspicious, then got straight to the point.
“I came looking for Sir Everett Rohas, but I’m not sure how to go about meeting him.”
“Sir Rohas?”
Luckily, the knight seemed to know Everett.
After a brief hesitation, he tilted his head and said,
“Sir Rohas has been away on a long-term mission for several months now.”
“Several months?”
We had met just the other day.
Right here inside the imperial palace.
Wondering if I had misheard, I asked again. The knight explained in more detail.
“Yes. We’re not in the same unit, so I don’t know the specifics, but I heard he went quite far away.”
I was confused.
What is going on?
Thinking rationally, it wasn’t impossible.
Just as not everyone in the Inspectorate was part of the Blue Hawk, the same likely applied to the Guard.
While I had been away on business in Diegis, I had been recorded as present for duty, so the reverse could also be true.
Yet the unease refused to fade when I tried to think simply.
“Ah, thank you. No wonder I couldn’t reach him.”
I offered some vague reply, thanked the knight, and turned away.
Then I ran even more urgently than before.
My destination was the Treasury building.
“Connie!”
“Lina?”
“Can you spare me a moment? It’s urgent.”
Connie looked slightly startled by my sudden appearance, but she followed me without protest.
Normally she would have added some playful remark, but my serious expression must have silenced her.
I practically dragged her to a secluded spot before finally speaking.
“You know that person you asked about Everett Rohas last time? Would it be possible for me to meet them?”
At the abrupt request, Connie looked as if she wanted to ask what was going on.
But my face must have appeared truly grim, because she simply nodded without a word.
“You can probably meet her if we go now. I’ll come with you.”
Connie gave my tightly hunched shoulders a light pat and took the lead.
“Thank you. I know you’re busy too.”
Only then did I realize how unreasonable my request was and offered my gratitude. Connie glanced back with a small chuckle.
“If you’re grateful, buy me more of that limited-edition dessert you gave me last time. It was delicious.”
“Will do!”
The informant turned out to be Cynthia, a military administrator for the Guard.
At Connie’s request, Cynthia gladly made time for me.
We settled in a corner of the break room used by the Guard administrators.
“What did you want to know?”
Cynthia’s attitude was friendly.
I thanked her several times before asking cautiously.
“You know Sir Everett Rohas, correct?”
After hearing the Guard knight’s words, a question had suddenly occurred to me.
If Everett Rohas was using an official trip as cover for a secret mission, how had he been meeting me inside the palace every day?
If it’s a mission that must be kept secret even from his colleagues, he shouldn’t be showing his face in the palace at all.
The seed of doubt grew by feeding on speculation.
Or perhaps it’s fine if his colleagues see him moving around.
For example, if the Everett Rohas I knew was not actually Everett Rohas.
It was a ridiculous thought.
While we mostly met alone, we had occasionally encountered each other in places where Kylus or others were present.
Recently, he had even accompanied Ivetta on her official schedule.
Impersonating a Guard knight’s identity would never be tolerated.
Yet once the suspicion had taken root, it refused to settle.
That was why I had come to a third party who knew Everett Rohas—to resolve my doubts.
I’m not suspecting Ed. I’m just trying to confirm.
I maintained a calm expression, but inside I was extremely anxious.
My heart was pounding.
It was as if my intuition was telling me I was right.
Before I knew it, I was simply waiting for Cynthia’s lips to part.
“We don’t have any personal connection, but since we’re colleagues, I do know him.”
Fortunately my bluff seemed to have worked. Cynthia answered as if it were no big deal.
“Does the Everett Rohas you know have hair as black as the night sky and golden eyes that look as if molten pure gold was poured into them? And is he incredibly handsome?”
I asked again, hoping it would sound casual.
“Well, I’m not sure about the night sky or molten gold, but he does have black hair and eyes that are close to gold. He is quite handsome, though…”
Cynthia gave vaguely affirmative answers to all my successive questions.
It still wasn’t enough to dispel my doubts.
Verbal descriptions are too subjective.
It would be best if I could bring her to see his face in person.
But if that were possible, I wouldn’t be doing this now.
Fortunately, a second-best option came to mind.
“Cynthia, could I borrow some paper and a pen?”
I picked up the pen, hoping my drawing skills had not deteriorated too badly.
Then, on the back of a discarded sheet, I roughly sketched Everett’s face.
Since the artist lacked much talent for art, I couldn’t fully capture his beauty, but anyone who knew Everett would still be able to recognize him.
“So, does he look something like this?”
When I showed her the finished drawing, Cynthia let out a gasp of admiration.
“Wow, Lina, you draw really well. Yes! That’s the person.”
Only then did I feel relieved.