"Okay, then."
I smiled, opened the door, and half leaned out.
"I'm sorry for interrupting your final goodbye."
Wow-
Marco's disbelieving voice came out faintly from inside the closing door.
"Hey, hey. Wait! Oh, no, right? How could you..."
I should have become a new person a long time ago. If that had been the case, that man wouldn't have taken his life.
Instead of looking back, I walked quickly toward my room.
Now that I had finally taken the first step, the road ahead of me would become even busier and more difficult.
***
The day after sending Aileen home, Alfred stopped by the kitchen after 'rumoring and found the child who had leaked the story of the mercenary who was carrying around my portrait.
"I contacted him, and unexpectedly, he wanted to see the Viscountess and talk to her."
The Viscountess glanced at me and nodded.
Alfred, who was quietly watching the hand being patted, added.
"The boy said he was a mercenary, but it seemed like he wasn't."
"You're saying he's not a mercenary?"
Alfred spoke calmly to the Viscountess, who looked up with a puzzled expression.
"It seemed like a knight to me. He had disciplined movements and a well-trained body."
The employees who had maintained their composure at his words also glanced at me.
The Viscountess seemed to have guessed that much and ordered the mercenary to be called.
Not long after, the face of the person who got off the carriage looked familiar.
He approached me with long strides, knelt down, and formally greeted me as a knight.
"Nice to meet you, Viscountess Mancini. "My name is Hugh Blake."
"Hugh Blake."
"This is a guard serving Lady Isabella, albeit inadequately."
At his words, a look appeared in the Visc's eyes.
Hugh raised his head from his bowed position and opened his mouth to me, using the best acting skills he could muster.
"I heard that you lost your memory in an unexpected accident, Young Lady."
"Who are you? Mr. Knight, do you know me?"
The corner of his mouth twitched as he spoke sadly in a weak voice as if he didn't know what he was seeing.
I could see that his fists had turned white because he had strained his hands to keep from distorting his face.
'Use the dragon, use the dragon.
Well, I asked them to send someone with acting skills, but he insisted that he would do it himself...
Alfred glanced at me.
No matter how much he tried to fix things, it would have been difficult for the Viscountess to find out about this play, so I sank down in front of her, covering my face.
"I am the noble lady you served? I really was a nobleman!"
My voice trembled mercilessly, barely able to dispel the anxiety I had been feeling due to the absence of memories.
'I must not give Hugh any more opportunity to open his mouth.'
To avoid ruining the situation by acting for no reason, I quickly grabbed his arm.
"We have a lot of stories to share! I need to know who I am!"
"Isabella."
The Viscountess gently grabbed my shoulder.
"There is a lot of time. First, I guess we should go into the reception room and appease the knight's hunger. Let's hear the story afterward."
As I tried to wipe away my tears at the patting hand, Hugh, who had his head down, let out a suppressed moan.
In a split second, I gritted my teeth and pinched his side at the sound that came out unconsciously.
'Do it in moderation.'
He finally caught his breath and headed toward the living room with his eyes unfocused.
It was the moment I turned my head when I felt eyes coming from somewhere.
In front of the annex building, I made eye contact with Daniel, who was looking this way with curious eyes.
He smiled at me and waved me goodbye.
"Who is that?"
I paused at the question asked in a whisper, and after a moment of silence, I answered quietly.
"Scrounger."
A person who is uncomfortable but who is also reluctant to be easily touched.
***
The Viscountess looked down at the blue coral brooch and muttered with a pale face.
"So this item was in Marco's hands. He stole Isabella's things."
"I needed to inquire about the young lady's whereabouts as soon as possible, but I was injured by the assassins. I've been thinking about contacting the principality, but this is an empire. I thought that if things escalated, Lady Isabella would become even more dangerous..."
The woman looked down at the brooch without saying a word and sighed.
It was only natural that facts poured out that were too much for her to accept.
The fact that I am Isabella Brium. the story that I was heading to regain my identity by tracing the memories of my father, and even the fact that the only people who know about my 'true' identity are my adoptive brother in the duchy and my biological father, Count Brium.
I sat there blankly, looking as confused and incomprehensible as possible.
Eventually, the woman sitting next to me spoke calmly.
"It's not that I doubt the Lord's words. There are still some things I don't understand, but considering the circumstances, I can understand it to some extent. Thank you for saying that..."
"But Sir, you should not have come here. If you think about Isabella."
Hugh paused at her firm words. A look of confusion was evident in his eyes as he glanced at me.
I pretended not to notice Hugh and waited for the Viscountess's next words.
"I heard that the Lord went around mercenary guilds and merchant houses with Isabella's portrait. If those who were targeting Isabella had known her face, Isabella, who had Iost her memory, would have easily fallen into their hands."
A faint look of relief appeared on Hugh's face as he spoke quietly.
It seemed like he was worried that the Viscountess would push me out, accusing me of 'inducing a vassal' to regain her identity as Isabella.
'If that were the case, why would I have called you here in the first place?'
When she called him into the drawing room to hear the details, the Viscountess had already decided her position.
Alfred added as if summarizing the situation from the side.
"You don't have to worry. It seemed like this person was intentionally talking to the boy who was going in and out of the kitchen. Because he knew that you were heading to Viscountess's home in the first place."
Only then did Hugh notice and add.
"When you attended the banquet. I heard a rumor that one of the ladies who accompanied you had an accident, lost her memory, and was in your care. So, I guessed that she was Isabella, and after lingering around her, I became convinced and wanted to meet her like this."
"Isabella."
The Viscountess called me softly as I sat still with my eyes downcast.
A gentle smile appeared on her face.
"Thank goodness. If we had realized the situation later, you would have been in danger."
“Ma’am..."
"Yes."
She patted my hand and tried to be as considerate as possible to me.
That's because, given the circumstances, the person who attempted to kill me was my 'biological father.'
"I have to write a letter to His Majesty."
There was affection evident in her touch as she patted my cheek.
She said with her characteristic kind smile.
"Thanks to you, I will be able to meet people I have missed for the first time in a long time."
It was the moment when the Viscountess, who had been with me, stretched out for the first time in a long time at the place where her loved ones were buried.
***
Since arriving at the Hugh mansion, Alfred has been quiet.
I added because I couldn't see him like that.
"The Viscountess is a much stronger person than you think."
"The social scene in the imperial capital is on a different level from the civilized wars of nerves here in the outskirts."
Perfect etiquette is taken for granted, a wide range of current affairs knowledge that allows you to respond to any topic, and even the intelligence and insight to clearly observe the situation of each family.
"The Viscountess is a person who is not very different from the front and the back. She is faithful and does not turn her back on people easily."
Not only the Viscountess but also Viscount Mancini's reputation was gained through him.
If the deceased Viscount had not faithfully followed the current Emperor's orders in the name of 'serving the country' in the first place, he would not have suffered the loss of his daughter and died in sorrow.
"That is also an advantage. In fact, the reason the royal family respected and praised the Viscountess was because of such a disposition."
Alfred, who had been silent at my words, nodded.
"That's true, but I never thought you would send a letter on the same day the word came out."
The mansion was busy and cluttered as they packed things to move to the mansion in the imperial capital. It may be because of weeding out those who work.
Alfred, who was following me, suddenly spoke.
"Charlotte is a talented child."
"..."
"She's not the kind of kid who will be moved by Miss Aileen's impulse or a few words she picked up in the kitchen for no reason."
I stopped walking down the hallway and looked back.
Alfred, who was looking at me blankly, asked a question.
"Did you make Charlotte move like that?"
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