The commoners gathered at the fishmonger questioned Loretta harshly.
“Are you really the maid of Cardinal de Mare’s residence?”
Loretta was terrified and just kept on running. When they couldn't get a satisfactory answer from the maid, they decided to take a more certain approach.
“We'll figure it out!”
“Let’s go, to Cardinal de Mare’s residence!”
Mr. Scampa, Castel Rabico, and the vigilantes of Comunale dragged Loretta toward the de Mare mansion. Loretta could not even protest, and could only be dragged with her eyes tightly shut.
***
Thump, thump!
"Please open the door!"
The guards guarding the entrance to the de Mare mansion were confused.
“What is this? No one can enter the Cardinal’s residence without a prior appointment!”
“A person is dead right now, so what’s the problem with the promise?!”
Amid the chaos, one of the guards recognized Loretta.
“Auntie Loretta? Why are they holding you there? Did you steal something? Did someone die?”
“That’s right, she’s the maid of this house!”
Mr. Scampa shouted with even more arrogance. The vigilantes from the two districts behind him joined in.
“Open the door!! I have to see Cardinal de Mare!!!”
The voices of the angry men grew louder and louder.
"Please open the door!"
The guards guarding the entrance to the de Mare mansion were confused.
“What is this? No one can enter the Cardinal’s residence without a prior appointment!”
“A person is dead right now, so what’s the problem with the promise?!”
Amid the chaos, one of the guards recognized Loretta.
“Auntie Loretta? Why are they holding you there? Did you steal something? Did someone die?”
“That’s right, she’s the maid of this house!”
Mr. Scampa shouted with even more arrogance. The vigilantes from the two districts behind him joined in.
“Open the door!! I have to see Cardinal de Mare!!!”
The voices of the angry men grew louder and louder.
***
The guards at the Cardinal's residence were well-trained veterans. They resolutely stopped the angry vigilantes. However, they could not help but promise to tell the Cardinal.
“I will report to His Eminence the Cardinal that this incident occurred today.”
“How can we trust you!”
“What if you don’t believe me? You can’t meet him right now because he's out anyway. Leave your contact information behind.”
Mr. Scampa and the vigilantes threatened the guards to inform Cardinal de Mare. After struggling with the guards for about three hours, they left, promising to return early the next morning. The house was turned upside down. The Cardinal was not at home, having gone to work at the Basilica of Saint Ercole. Ariadne was the first to hear this story.
“What? People came to the Cardinal’s residence claiming that someone had been killed?”
She was surprised and asked Sancha.
“Who on earth are these people that invaded?”
Sancha cautiously told Ariadne.
“Hey, maybe you know that lady...”
"If...?"
Ariadne had a sudden premonition. She absentmindedly looked down at the tip of her left hand as she waited for Sancha to speak next.
“The person who came to protest was Mr. Scampa, the head of the operations support team at the Rambouillet Relief Center. I heard that Mr. Scampa’s only daughter has died.”
"Also..."
There is no connection between the Cardinal de Mare's residence and Mr. Scampa's only daughter. It must have been Ariadne who had entrusted Maleta to the Rambouillet Relief.
“Have you checked to see if Maleta is okay?”
“As soon as I heard about Mr. Scampa’s commotion, I sent Giuseppe to check on her.”
Sancha frowned and reported what she had found out.
“There is no Maleta anywhere in the Rambouillet Relief Center. And...”
Sancha sighed.
“There are two dead women. One is Paola Scampa, Mr. Scampa’s daughter, and the other is an unidentified red-haired woman...”
Ariadne took a deep breath. After all, it was because she had pushed Maleta into the Rambouillet Relief Center. However, the tip of her left ring finger seemed to ache a little more than usual, but only slightly. It was hard to believe that a human life could be worth this much. Which meant that the Golden Rule did not blame Ariadne too much for these two deaths. Then the guilt of the deaths was the direct actions of another.
“...Lucrezia had an accident.”
“Doesn’t it seem so?”
She quickly weighed the pros and cons.
“Lucrezia’s hands and feet were all cut off, so how on earth did they do this?”
“The people who killed Mr. Scampa's daughter were street urchins. They roamed the streets in groups, slept on the streets, drank alcohol, and all that...”
“...Since there was no one to use them properly, anyone bought them and used them, and that’s how this happened.”
Ariadne, who immediately grasped the situation, clicked her tongue.
“Let’s watch how it goes. Things got bigger than I thought. But a crisis is an opportunity. I started this to find fault with brother Ippolito...”
She looked straight ahead.
“We might be able to catch a bigger target.”
“I will report to His Eminence the Cardinal that this incident occurred today.”
“How can we trust you!”
“What if you don’t believe me? You can’t meet him right now because he's out anyway. Leave your contact information behind.”
Mr. Scampa and the vigilantes threatened the guards to inform Cardinal de Mare. After struggling with the guards for about three hours, they left, promising to return early the next morning. The house was turned upside down. The Cardinal was not at home, having gone to work at the Basilica of Saint Ercole. Ariadne was the first to hear this story.
“What? People came to the Cardinal’s residence claiming that someone had been killed?”
She was surprised and asked Sancha.
“Who on earth are these people that invaded?”
Sancha cautiously told Ariadne.
“Hey, maybe you know that lady...”
"If...?"
Ariadne had a sudden premonition. She absentmindedly looked down at the tip of her left hand as she waited for Sancha to speak next.
“The person who came to protest was Mr. Scampa, the head of the operations support team at the Rambouillet Relief Center. I heard that Mr. Scampa’s only daughter has died.”
"Also..."
There is no connection between the Cardinal de Mare's residence and Mr. Scampa's only daughter. It must have been Ariadne who had entrusted Maleta to the Rambouillet Relief.
“Have you checked to see if Maleta is okay?”
“As soon as I heard about Mr. Scampa’s commotion, I sent Giuseppe to check on her.”
Sancha frowned and reported what she had found out.
“There is no Maleta anywhere in the Rambouillet Relief Center. And...”
Sancha sighed.
“There are two dead women. One is Paola Scampa, Mr. Scampa’s daughter, and the other is an unidentified red-haired woman...”
Ariadne took a deep breath. After all, it was because she had pushed Maleta into the Rambouillet Relief Center. However, the tip of her left ring finger seemed to ache a little more than usual, but only slightly. It was hard to believe that a human life could be worth this much. Which meant that the Golden Rule did not blame Ariadne too much for these two deaths. Then the guilt of the deaths was the direct actions of another.
“...Lucrezia had an accident.”
“Doesn’t it seem so?”
She quickly weighed the pros and cons.
“Lucrezia’s hands and feet were all cut off, so how on earth did they do this?”
“The people who killed Mr. Scampa's daughter were street urchins. They roamed the streets in groups, slept on the streets, drank alcohol, and all that...”
“...Since there was no one to use them properly, anyone bought them and used them, and that’s how this happened.”
Ariadne, who immediately grasped the situation, clicked her tongue.
“Let’s watch how it goes. Things got bigger than I thought. But a crisis is an opportunity. I started this to find fault with brother Ippolito...”
She looked straight ahead.
“We might be able to catch a bigger target.”
***
Cardinal de Mare returned home and looked up at the ceiling with a deep sigh.
“I can’t die because of my name.”
Someone in the household had touched a commoner. That someone must have been Lucrezia, as the maid being held captive by the commoners was Loretta. And that commoner happened to be the daughter of a popular family. As a result, the local community gathered in a group and protested in front of Cardinal de Mare's residence.
“It’s best to bury this quickly.”
Cardinal de Mare asked his butler Nicolo, who had finished his report.
“You said the dead person was the daughter of the manager of the Rambouillet Relief Cente? It was a house with an old mother and a daughter.”
“Yes, that is correct, Your Eminence Cardinal.”
“Announce an apology in my name right now. The girl who died with me was my maid, right?”
“I can’t die because of my name.”
Someone in the household had touched a commoner. That someone must have been Lucrezia, as the maid being held captive by the commoners was Loretta. And that commoner happened to be the daughter of a popular family. As a result, the local community gathered in a group and protested in front of Cardinal de Mare's residence.
“It’s best to bury this quickly.”
Cardinal de Mare asked his butler Nicolo, who had finished his report.
“You said the dead person was the daughter of the manager of the Rambouillet Relief Cente? It was a house with an old mother and a daughter.”
“Yes, that is correct, Your Eminence Cardinal.”
“Announce an apology in my name right now. The girl who died with me was my maid, right?”
"You're right."
“I was trying to discipline the maid who ran away after stealing, but I got a misunderstanding... Oh, oh no. I told you to cut off her hair, didn’t I?”
“...Yes, Your Eminence, Cardinal.”
Cardinal de Mare threw down the quill he was holding without saying a word. Ink splattered everywhere, and black ink stained the pure white cardinal's robe. Cardinal de Mare was a superior who never threw objects or struck hands, no matter how angry he was. In a rare display of anger, the butler Nicolo buried his head between his shoulders like a turtle.
“How on earth does that woman keep causing such outrageous incidents? She couldn’t do it even if someone told her to!”
Cardinal de Mare, unable to control his anger, banged the back of his head on his chair.
“What kind of brain structure is it that allows her to not only kill a maid but also order her head cut off?!”
Nicolo only nodded his head.
“No, don’t she have any idea how that would look to other people? Wouldn’t she look like a crazy serial killer? Don’t she think about it?”
He shook his fist and got angry.
“Who wants to live a good life? Who wants to set an example in San Carlo with faithfulness and kindness? Is it so hard to just stay quiet, unnoticed, and not cause trouble?!”
When Cardinal de Mare became so angry that he was about to attack Lucrezia, his butler Nicolo tried to calm him down.
“Your Eminence. I completely understand your feelings, but the situation needs to be resolved first.”
"Ah-oh!"
“I was trying to discipline the maid who ran away after stealing, but I got a misunderstanding... Oh, oh no. I told you to cut off her hair, didn’t I?”
“...Yes, Your Eminence, Cardinal.”
Cardinal de Mare threw down the quill he was holding without saying a word. Ink splattered everywhere, and black ink stained the pure white cardinal's robe. Cardinal de Mare was a superior who never threw objects or struck hands, no matter how angry he was. In a rare display of anger, the butler Nicolo buried his head between his shoulders like a turtle.
“How on earth does that woman keep causing such outrageous incidents? She couldn’t do it even if someone told her to!”
Cardinal de Mare, unable to control his anger, banged the back of his head on his chair.
“What kind of brain structure is it that allows her to not only kill a maid but also order her head cut off?!”
Nicolo only nodded his head.
“No, don’t she have any idea how that would look to other people? Wouldn’t she look like a crazy serial killer? Don’t she think about it?”
He shook his fist and got angry.
“Who wants to live a good life? Who wants to set an example in San Carlo with faithfulness and kindness? Is it so hard to just stay quiet, unnoticed, and not cause trouble?!”
When Cardinal de Mare became so angry that he was about to attack Lucrezia, his butler Nicolo tried to calm him down.
“Your Eminence. I completely understand your feelings, but the situation needs to be resolved first.”
"Ah-oh!"
He banged his fist on the desk. His thin knuckles hit the mahogany table and hurt badly. He grimaced and held the back of his hand. Cardinal de Mare took a deep breath and gave Nicolo a series of instructions.
“Let’s go like this. The maid ran away after stealing, so we sent someone to bring her back. We told them that we shouldn’t bring a strict woman and that they had to properly capture our maid, so they asked us to confirm her face. However, due to a miscommunication, they ended up killing her and beheading her, which was a disaster.”
He continued, tapping his fingers on the mahogany desk.
“However, this is entirely the fault of Cardinal de Mare’s residence. Cardinal de Mare’s residence offers its most sincere apologies for its poor management of personnel and offers its condolences to the bereaved family.”
He guessed the amount in his head and asked his butler, Nicolo.
“Nicolo. What do you think about paying 200 ducats (about 200 million won)?”
The butler tilted his head.
“I think it will work. It’s a lot of money, so shouldn’t he accept it?”
“No, no. You said there was a local cooperative?”
“Yes, Castel Ravico and Comunale Nuova are supporting the bereaved family.”
“They are not the kind of people who would just walk away empty-handed. Perhaps the bereaved family should make a show of sincerity to the local cooperative. Let’s raise the amount of condolence money to 300 ducats (about 300 million won). When you use kindness, you have to use it in a big way so that there is no more talk later.”
“Then I will convey it as you said, Your Eminence.”
“Yes. ‘To express my deepest condolences to the bereaved family, I hereby donate 100 to the bereaved family and 100 to each of the local cooperatives, for a total of 300 ducats.’ You take care of it yourself. I can’t trust the others.”
Cardinal de Mare leaned back in his chair and stared at the ceiling. He had punished Lucrezia, was angry, and now even these things were difficult. He wanted to forget everything and sleep.
***
“300 Ducato?!”
The head of the Commune Nuova regional cooperative was delighted.
“This, I must accept. I have never heard of a nobleman giving such generous consolation money. As expected of a priest, as expected of a cardinal!”
Commune Nuova was a backward, low-income, densely populated area. Naturally, the area needed a lot of money, but the amount of money that local residents could apply for in the cooperative was extremely small. Commune Nuova sometimes even delayed the salaries of the local cooperative workers. If they couldn’t pay their salaries, the leader would get scolded. The leader of Commune Nuova, who was always struggling financially, insisted that he should receive consolation money. After all, the person who died was from the neighboring district. The head of the local cooperative in Castel Ravico only watched both sides. He was neutral, but if Commune Nuova was left out, Castel Ravico would put pressure on the Cardinal’s residence alone. That kind of appearance was burdensome.
“But my daughter is dead! Can you buy a person’s life with money?”
Mr. Scampa became so angry that he shouted at the representative of Commune Nuova.
“They didn’t even come to offer condolences and there was no mention of funeral arrangements. All they’re saying is they’re going to stop it with money. Is this all there is to it?”
But the representative of Commune Nuova calmly objected.
“Sincerity is like gold. I have never heard or seen a nobleman who showed such great sincerity.”
He asked.
“Do you remember the consolation money that the Marquis of Campa gave to the Cortisans of Karampan two years ago?”
50 ducatos (about 50 million won). There was talk that it was too generous a sum to give to a young courtier. It was also the money that Karampan's pimp happily accepted. But Scampa was furious.
“My daughter is not a prostitute!”
“She’s a girl of the same age. No, Paola is older, so her commercial value is actually lower.”
The representative of Commune Nuova was cold.
“This is an unprecedentedly generous offer. If you don’t take it, Scampa, you’re an idiot.”
The representative of Castel Rabico also cautiously recommended it while keeping an eye on the situation.
“Mr. Scampa, no one can deny that this is a very generous offer. I understand how the bereaved family feels. They probably wouldn’t agree even if they were offered a thousand dollars. But things in this world don’t always go as planned. I hope you know that this is a very advantageous offer.”
Mr. Scampa was very excited. The representative of Castel Robico persuaded the representative of Commune Nuova to call off today's meeting.
“Mr. Scampa, think about it carefully this evening. We’ll talk again tomorrow.”
In Mr. Scampa's neat but modest living room, the two local representatives stood up and left. Mr. Scampa sat in the living room, his guests gone, sprawled out on the sofa.
“Paola...”
He didn't want anything. He just wanted his dead daughter to come back. His old mother came and poked Mr. Scampa in the ribs.
“Come to your senses.”
"Mother?"
“The higher-ups said it was a good suggestion! How long are you going to hang yourself over a girl?”
Mr. Scampa's mother was a woman who considered giving birth to her youngest son after giving birth to seven daughters in a row to be the greatest achievement in her life. She was displeased with her daughter-in-law who died after giving birth to only one granddaughter, and was even more displeased with her son who did not remarry and raised his granddaughter after his daughter-in-law died.
“Take it when they say you will.”
"Mother!"
“She’s a worthless girl. Her daily wage was two florins (about 20,000 won)! How can she possibly make more than 300 ducatos?”
There was a knock at the front door.
“Excuse me for a moment.”
Mr. Scampa and his old mother looked at the front door at the same time. A young, or rather, a young woman's voice rang out from the front door.
“Of course, an amount higher than 300 Ducatos is also possible.”
A girl with black hair wearing a thick robe stepped into the living room.
She came over to the sofa where Mr. Scampa was sprawled and bowed her head.
“But a life must be paid for with a life, not with money.”
It was Ariadne with sparkling green eyes.
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