Information Gathering (5)
“Hmm? What is the book about?”
His eyes, which she met were filled with a spark of curiosity, were now softer than before.
Gathering up her courage, she continued speaking.
“The secret story of the duke… and a stableman? The title was something along the lines of that. Actually, I had picked up the book on accident, yet the people that I have encountered by chance had very interesting reactions about it.”
Now that she was speaking about it aloud, she realised how the subject seemed a little shameful.
Come to think of it, what could have happened between the said Duke and the stableman to have had a story written about it?
Did the Duke possibly mediate a duel between the stableman and his servant for some unknown reason?
“…Bring the book to me.”
“Yes, my Lord.”
Rowan’s voice which sounded when issuing orders to the servants brought her back to reality when she had lost her focus.
“Ah. The book is in a paper bag atop my desk.”
Altair added, giving a quick explanation followed by a rare smile to the servants before she continued to eat. Happy that she had finally found a good topic to chat about.
Meanwhile, Rowan had his eyes fixated on the door with which the servant had left, with one arm propped up on the armrest.
Soon after he received the book handed to him politely by the said servant, he put on his glasses and started flipping through the pages, skimming through the capturing the gist of its contents.
“Um…”
With a strange sound, he continued to turn page after page.
His purple eyes slowly grew wider as he quickly read more of its contents.
Thud.
He closed the book loudly and without saying a single word, he clasped one hand over his mouth as if in disbelief. His face now red and burning.
Altair, who had rarely seen her father this flustered and embarrassed was puzzled upon noticing his reaction. Carefully, she asked.
“Problems… are you having any?”
After taking a deep breath, his eyes seemed to regain strength as he replied.
“Who was the one who suggested this book to you? Did the librarian lend it to you without any issues or questions?”
“Mmm… That’s…”
She had not thought to check the contents of the book as she had been busy thinking of contacting the informant whilst on the way here.
Did the book contain anything bad or dangerous? For example, stuff or stories meant to tarnish the reputation of a duke?
Altair, now wearing an uncharacteristically dejected face, bowed her head.
“Some young ladies were having a heated discussion about this book… So I was wondering if it was really worth the read…”
“Ah-ah…”
He groaned again, this time placing both his hands together as if praying
Then, without even raising his head, he spoke.
“Return that borrowed book back to the Imperial Library right now. And if possible remove and clear Altair’s rental record.
“Yes, my Lord.”
The servant retrieved the book from the table and politely bowed before leaving the room with it clutched tightly against their chest.
As soon as the door closed, Rowan finally addressed Altair in a tired tone.
“You are my only child, how could I be angry at you?”
“I-I’m sorry…”
Almost unable to form coherent sentences in English, Altair apologised.
Clatter. Clatter.
Despite all her efforts to ease the tension between them, the meal proceeded on in an awkward state.
This time, it was Rowan who remained silent.
“Altair, since you’re old enough to greet your own parents, this weekend I shall be bringing you to Marquis Lesen’s estate.”
“Yes…?”
Unexpectedly, he was the one who broke the silence first. Altair looked at him in surprise.
While Altair was looking at him confusedly, Rowan too looked somewhat surprised.
“Well, isn’t that you have been looking forward to? I heard you ran to the dressing room as soon as you left the palace.”
Ouch.
Only then did Altair understand what the situation is and what she had gotten herself into. Nodding her head quickly, she replied.
“Yes, understood. I was looking forward to it indeed.”
“…Lesen’s eldest son, Edwin, is a polite child. Do try to get along with him this time around.”
Her father nodded, satisfactorily, and said.
‘Edwin?’
Altair tried recalling what had happened between the both of them in the past.
Edwin Lesen.
He, later on, succeeded his father and became the Marquis of Lessee. Her impression of his was pretty blurred as he had followed the emperor down to the southern front.
The only memories that she remembered they shared together were fragmented as well.
‘…He was a very talkative kid as far as I remember… I used to think he was a nuisance when I was younger…’
However, she was now past the age of complaining about such minuscule things. Answering sincerely, she took on the heart of accepting and accomplishing the mission.
“No, of course. I’ll try my best to hang out and get along with him.”
“…Yes, you should.”
Only then, for the first time that day, did a smile appear on her father’s face.
She too followed up with a genuine laugh.
Making up her mind that the next time she makes a deviation, to not be caught by her father.
Apricot Tarts (1)
The next day, it was the scheduled visit to the swordsmanship class held every two days.
Similarly, Altair was also very excited to secretly meet with Ahin after class.
He was not the only thing she was looking forward to though.
Altair proudly wore the magic sword ‘Animus’, which was the gift she had received from Rowan as she stepped into Estarrot’s drill hall.
This time around, she did not see any enthusiastic knights that were present on that day.
Taking advantage of the large space available, she pulled out her sword so that only the area adjacent to the satchel could be seen.
Swoosh-
The magic engraved in the black body of the sword shines blue as it gave off a pleasant resonance.
In her previous life, she had owned numerous swords, yet none of them was as beautiful as the longsword.
While enjoying the scene and space as if she were possessed, she suddenly remembered the verbal violence that Arsene had put her through before she had received ‘Animus’.
[ …I guess he has yet to give you a good sword since then. ]
[ …A sword is more important than the life of a swordsman. Didn’t he know that he had to tell you something like that? ]
She was tempted to go back in time and rebut coolly how her father was actually secretly waiting at their mansion with a very “good sword” since he did not want to ruin the surprise.
Deep in thought, the butler who had followed her from the entrance of the mansion said.
“Follow me, my lady. The Crown Prince and the Lord have yet to arrive. It seems the Emperor will be holding them longer than expected.”
“What…?”
Altair, who had been looking forward to a cool war of words, showed signs of disappointment.
Noticing this, the butler broke into a cold sweat and his face quickly turned troubled.
“No need to worry, the Lord has not forgotten his promise to the Princess, he will be back here in less than an hour.”
‘Huh.’
…Then why didn’t he just send a telegram in advance?
Altair had wanted to craft up a witty reply but she withheld herself.
‘Wait, the reason I have to wait is because of Arsene’s situation. So, even if I were to wait for a little bit for him to return from the palace, it’s not wrong for me to ask him about it. Then, I’ll be able to go to Ahin in advance this time around.’
After some mental calculation, she replied, this time wearing a softer expression.
“Then, let’s wait for them in the lounge.”
Relieved, he immediately led her to the guest room.
When she entered the room, Lenore, the maid who was on duty, appeared and politely asked.
“Would you like some refreshments and tea? Or…”
Altair, whilst waiting, had ended up rubbing her own shoulder.
“…I’d like a massage. I’m a little sore here and there. If we were to have a fight when I’m in such a condition, something is bound to happen.”
Lenore felt sorry for her upon hearing those words.
It takes some time for the body to heal after such an ordeal. How cruel does the Duke of Chernobog discipline her to let her continue coming her despite not having completely healed!
“Yes, Princess. I’ll prepare the essential oils right away.”
At that moment, Lenore took a step into the bathroom to grab the necessary tools and equipment.
Altair, who had silently followed her, struck her back with just enough force to not hurt her.
Whack.
Carefully, she laid her body down on the floor of the marble as she collapsed helplessly. Altair gnawed at her lips.
‘What should I do to make it seem natural?’
She looked at Lenore’s unconscious body from many angles, sometimes moving her arms and legs by a little.
Soon after, Altair nodded her head satisfactorily as she left to go to the terrace, leaving the poor maid behind.
This time, ordering nameless to monitor the whereabouts of Arsene. As she passed through the narrow passageway alone, she recalled the sight of Ahin that she had seen a few days ago.
‘What is he doing now?’
They would meet once again after just two days but Altair was as excited as she was when she had first met him.
She imagined him coming out into the garden, his figure basking in the wind, without realizing that his lips have dried up from the wind.
After passing the long passage and crossing through the narrow window, she started to see the shape of the garden in the annexe from a distance away.
Humming softly, she slowly made her way there while thinking up ways to surprise him.
She stepped across the garden where the fresh grass seemed to grow.
This time, however, Ahin was not outside.
‘He must be in the building.’
In front of Altair stood a large white building. Opening the huge annexe door, she pushed her head in.
The front hall was deafeningly silent. As she continued on past the passage while hiding her trace, she noticed that a door was slightly open.
Through it, she could sense signs of someone’s presence. Though the ominous danger that she could sense with it made her quicken her steps.
The room that she saw past the door was not the kind in which she thought the Count’s successor would be living.
As if the freshly brought up meal had just been spilt, the floor was still thick and soggy with warm soup. Fragments of broken tableware were scattered dangerously around the room.
By the doorway, the silhouette of a young maid can be seen as she shivered and begged for her life with a pale face.
Altair could vaguely understand what the situation was but she dare not directly intervene.
Instead, she inched closer and opened the door a little more to create a small gap.
The maid, who had thought someone had finally come to her rescue, crouched down and crawled out of the room on her knees.
When she finally disappeared from sight, Altair took a step inside and spoke.
“What’s going on, Ahin?”
“…Get out.”
Compared to the last time she saw him, the Ahin this time around was a lot scarier. From where she stood, only his glistening red eyes could be seen.
Altair, who strode towards him without a care for her well-being, clasped his wrist and asked with a dark expression.
“When was the last time you’ve had a proper meal?”
His struggle to pull his wrist away from her grip was stopped cold in his tracks upon hearing her cold tone of voice.
He jerked his chin towards the floor that seemed to be emitting an unpleasant odour.
“If you’re that curious, try it yourself.”
“…”
The older stains have already long dried up in the morning, now all that is left was a sticky silky liquid left in the carpet.
Considering how there was a bucket of water placed near the wall, the situation of the maids who had attempted to clean the mess was not much different from the one she had just seen.
Once glancing around the room, Altair then turned towards him once again and asked.
“…What did you do to the maids?”
“I didn’t do anything. I didn’t do anything, they were the ones who went in and out by themselves. Damn! I must be some kind of monster!”
Altair spoke softly yet in a serious tone, gently pressing onto his shoulder that was trembling with anger.
“Ahin, calm down. It’s alright. You may be a demon, but you are not a monster.”
“…Hey. Either you comfort me or curse me, choose one of the two, not both.”