Perdes' face contorted as he realized that fact.
All kinds of bad emotions, including anger, sadness, and betrayal, were mixed together.
I, too, was shocked to learn that Jack was a guard appointed by the Emperor, but Perdes must have been shocked.
“Mr. Perdes?”
“...Get out.”
"Yes?"
“Get out!”
When Perdes screamed, Jack was startled and took a step back.
Seeing that face that still seemed like he didn't know anything, after learning everything, felt a bit disgusting.
Despite Perdes' orders, Jack didn't leave right away and kept an eye on me. The look in his eyes asked what should he do.
“Go out.”
My goal in the first place was to ‘find’ the culprit, so I sent Jack.
Jack hesitantly said goodbye and went out.
At the same time, Perdes' body collapsed.
The hands, arms, and shoulders covering the bowed face trembled slightly.
"Ha ha ha...”
A sound came out that I couldn't tell if it was crying or laughter.
I knew from experience how painful it was to be betrayed by someone you trusted.
Perdes trusted Jack more than I trusted the maid, so the pain was probably several times greater.
It's probably a degree I can't even fathom.
Rather than just telling him it's okay or telling him not to be too sad.
“...”
I thought it would be more helpful to hug him tightly, so I hugged him in silence and patted his trembling back.
The shoulder where his face touched was wet like a collar getting wet in a light rain.
***
How long has it been since then?
When the arm holding him went numb and went numb, Perdes finally seemed to have calmed down.
Rather than saying that he had calmed down, it would be more accurate to say that he was finally able to control his anxious, shaking mind and suppress his trembling sense of betrayal and anger.
Perdes, who had kept his head down even after leaving me, suddenly raised his head and looked at me.
"Something... There must be a misunderstanding.”
He couldn't let go of his last remaining hope.
“He may have gone to buy something and there was a luminous substance on it.”
“As I said before, that luminous material is mainly used in party places.”
It seemed too cruel to cut that string, but I couldn't let myself ignore reality.
Rather, I said firmly that it would cause more heartache.
“And it’s so expensive, and it’s only made to order, so there’s no chance of the local residents using it. I ordered this a year ago and finally received it.”
I ordered it to use for my father's birthday, but it ended up being useless.
"But... It doesn’t make sense.”
Perdes asked me with a trembling voice.
“Jack went to the estate to buy something before I applied the glow-in-the-dark material.”
“I don’t know if it was before or after that. The name and date are recorded in the entry and exit ledger, but the time is not recorded.”
He could roughly guess the time by asking people who came before and after Jack, but he couldn't know the exact time.
“...”
Perdes' eyes began to fluctuate again. His fists were pumped with so much force that his blood was standing.
“That really means Jack... Are you saying he betrayed me?”
“Actually, it’s a bit ambiguous to say he betrayed you.”
I told him the truth I knew, and in the hope that it would provide some comfort to his shocked heart.
“Jack is the person who knows most of Perdes’ secrets.”
“...”
“If he had betrayed Master Perdes and joined the Emperor’s side, he would have told the Emperor everything he knew.”
For example, Perdes was actually smart, not an idiot.
“But seeing as the Emperor doesn’t know about that fact, it seems like Jack received a favor from Perdes rather than betraying you.”
"Wealth...?"
"Yes. For example, Perdes needs to give birth to a child quickly so that he can settle down in Duke Leopold’s family, so please help him out, or something like that.”
Perdes frowned as if something had occurred to him in my words.
“Come to think of it, Jack once told me to quickly give birth to an heir so that I could solidify my position within the dukedom.”
"Is it so?"
"Yes. Since other employees said the same thing, I thought they were talking about it... It wasn’t.”
"Well. You’ll have to ask Jack directly to find out.”
Perdes asked back with his eyes wide open.
“Ask Jack directly?”
“That’s the surest way. Of course, this is assuming that Jack answers honestly.”
If Jack had received a favor from the Emperor, he would have answered honestly when Perdes asked him.
If he is on the Emperor's side, he will avoid answering. And he will report this to the Emperor. That we are doubting him.
Then, the Emperor, who does not like people like him remaining, will try to get rid of Jack and plant a new watcher.
“I think it would be best not to ask Jack directly.”
If that happened, things would get complicated in many ways, so I immediately changed my stance.
Perdes nodded in agreement, probably thinking the same thing as me.
“Jack... I was simply asked to do so.”
Perdes knitted the last string of hope that I cut and held on to it.
“I hope so.”
That way, it will hurt you a little less.
I felt even more pitiful as I saw a rather unsightly image of myself from the past superimposed on his tired-looking face.
“I sure hope so.”
As he said that, he brushed away the hair that had fallen over his face.
Then Perdes looked at me as if he was a little surprised, but then he looked helplessly and leaned his face into my palm.
He looked so pitiful, like a puppy running around in the rain, that I felt even more pitiful and pitiful for him.
***
That day, Perdes spent the night in a shared bedroom, not his own.
I thought it would be very comforting to have someone by my side during difficult times, so I tried to do that, but he refused.
“We have to spend the night together tomorrow anyway. I want to think quietly today without being disturbed, so please leave me alone.”
"Is it so."
He said that's what he wanted, so I did it, but it really bothered me.
Is it really okay?
What should I do if I find him crying alone?
When I was really tired and sad, I often locked myself in my room and insisted on being alone.
What I thought at that time was that I was glad I didn't show this depressing side to others.
At the same time, it was so hard that I wanted someone to hug me and comfort me that I was okay.
So wouldn’t Perdes want that too?
Even though I have such doubts, the reason I can't act hastily is that I don't know if Perdes feels the same way as me.
I was worried that I might hurt his feelings even more by being rude.
In the meantime, I hate myself for thinking that it's fortunate that there are no traitors among the Duke's employees.
I tossed and turned all night thinking about this and that, and the sun came up before I knew it.
I couldn't sleep yesterday because I had to work, so I guess I couldn't sleep today either.
“Whoa.”
I sighed and checked the time.
The current time is 5:30.
Even if I want to sleep for an hour or so.
I felt like I couldn't sleep even if I forced my eyes to close, so I just woke up.
I opened the window wide and was breathing in the clean, dew-drenched air of the early morning when I heard the sound of the door opening.
“Oh my, Miss.”
The maid was in charge of quietly bringing me the morning newspaper and coffee before I woke up.
“Are you awake already?”
“I can’t sleep.”
“Oh my. Would you like me to bring you some tea to help you sleep better right now?”
"It's okay."
The sun has already risen, so what good is tea that helps you sleep well?
“Give me coffee.”
“Yes, Miss.”
The maid poured warm coffee into a teacup and brought it to me.
I drank coffee while looking out the window.
Even in early summer, the air at this time was chilly, but drinking warm coffee felt like the temperature was just right.
The maid put down the morning newspaper on the table, tidied up the disheveled bedding, and spoke to me.
“It’s a big problem for me because I sleep a lot, but it’s a big problem for you two because you don’t sleep well.”
Two people?
“Are you talking about Perdes?”
"Yes. Perdes doesn’t seem to be able to sleep, so he always wakes up early and goes somewhere.”
Yes. He does basic physical fitness exercises and practices swordsmanship at a secret training center in my garden.
“He woke up early today and went somewhere.”
"Today?"
Could it be that he went to a secret training ground?
I thought you wouldn't come today because of what happened yesterday.
“Take this away.”
I thought I should go check it out, so I downed the rest of my coffee in one go, changed out of my pajamas, and headed to the secret training site.
As soon as I entered the training ground, I saw Perdes running around the training ground, breathing heavily.
I couldn't believe it, but he really came.
I tried to call him, but he seemed too focused, so I just watched.
“...”
Perdes must have been concentrating quite a bit when he realized I was there when I had walked around the training ground.
When he saw me, he stopped as if he was surprised.
We looked at each other in silence for a few seconds as if we were having a snowball fight.
Perdes approached, wiping the sweat from his face with a towel he had hung from a tree branch.
“When did you come?”
“Just now.”
“If you had come, you should have made an announcement.”
“You were so focused that I couldn’t do that for fear of disturbing you.”
“What is the obstruction?”
His expression and tone of voice were the same as usual, but there was pain in his eyes that he could not hide.
I tried to ask him if he was okay, but I swallowed my words.
He was betrayed by someone he trusted, and there was no way he was going to be okay.
Knowing that, asking this was a selfish attempt to put my mind at ease by forcing him to answer that it was okay.
“I thought you wouldn’t come today.”
Instead, I brought up another story, and Perdes laughed bitterly.
"I should come. I promised.”
“You can be lazy for a day.”
"It's okay. In times like this, I have to act the same as usual. Or not...”
Perdes couldn't continue his words and closed his mouth. His sweaty head shook as he turned his head.
He walked towards the bushes where he had hidden the wooden sword and took it out.
“Teach me a vertical cut today.”
“You haven’t mastered the horizontal cut yet.”
“I wanted to learn something new.”
Mastering one posture and then moving on to the next is the preferred order.
“Hold the sword like this.”
In times like this, I thought it would be better to do what he wanted, so without saying anything, I taught him how to make a vertical cut.
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