All eyes were on Dorothea as she was leaving the theater after a 'light' conversation with Mine.
The actors from the theater came out one by one, hesitantly, to see her off.
“There’s no need for that.”
“But...”
“Everyone just does their own thing. I just come and go here because I need to.”
Dorothea didn't really enjoy the grand welcome and see-off she received every time she went to the extreme, as if she were the true owner of this place.
She likes to see things like fluffy, warm blankets, beautiful objects, and magnificent marble hallways, but she doesn't like to see people bowing down to each other.
“If you really want to thank me, just make a great play.”
At the indifferent voice, those lined up in front of Dorothea cautiously raised their heads.
The girl got into the carriage without looking back.
“Freed.”
The beautiful knight, who had been standing still in response to Dorothea's call, quickly climbed into the carriage.
Dorothea smiled as she met his dry eyes, which, as always, bore no emotion.
“Is there anything interesting?”
“I think I’m being followed.”
"Ah."
“Shall we handle it?”
“No, just leave it. If they follow us, things will be easier.”
But she needs to find out more to see if the other person is really the person she's been waiting for.
Dorothea, who had been holding her chin, thought about it and then quietly sent 'Lily' flying.
The advantage of spirits was that they could become invisible to others.
'If anyone recognizes you, run away with all your might. Never fight back.'
Surely they wouldn't do something as daring as attacking the Marquis' carriage in broad daylight, so she needed to know what their purpose was.
After sending the spirit to watch over the stalkers, Dorothea's eyes, which had been half-asleep, suddenly opened.
A feeling as if something sharp is stabbing one's insides.
Dorothea's face hardened as she flinched involuntarily at the tingling sensation rising from her toes.
“Freed.”
"Yes."
“Stop the carriage.”
Strangely enough, Dorothea stopped the carriage in the middle of the street in broad daylight and strode across the street.
Although she was now quite strong, her gait was incredibly fast for a slender noble lady.
She, who had been moving busily, sapping her stamina, stopped in one place.
“...!”
Freed absentmindedly followed his master's gaze and discovered a carriage on fire.
The fire was so huge that even the people nearby couldn't bring themselves to put it out.
“Lily.”
At Dorothea's brief call, the spirit she had sent away returned and transformed into a giant water droplet, enveloping the carriage.
The fireball, now saturated with moisture and deprived of oxygen, quickly died down.
"Government ordinance!"
“It’s a water spirit!”
“Surely that person...”
The crowd's gaze turned to the expressionless Dorothea.
It was only then that she noticed the pattern painted on the charred exterior of the carriage.
“It was the Highclere family’s carriage.”
“Was the person riding in the carriage a member of the Highclere family?”
“It’s too late. With that level of fire...”
The blurry aftertaste was so obvious.
The flames were burning so hot that the heat could be felt in the building next door.
It was so big that it encompassed the entire carriage, so there could be no survivors.
Dorothea saw the security guards running in a panic, having heard the news of the accident belatedly, approaching her as she stood there helplessly.
“Young Lady, is this the carriage that Young Lady was riding in?”
“No, I left my carriage far away.”
“Then this is..."
“It must be Dane. He said he was going out today.”
Dane, who had been wanting to go to the theater with her since morning, was so upset by Dorothea's flat refusal that he drove off in the carriage, saying he was going to another gathering.
If it weren't for that, it would have been Dorothea riding in this carriage today.
The guards hesitated beside Dorothea, who was staring blankly at the carriage without saying a word.
'I think this is dangerous.'
There was not a trace of a smile on Dorothea's face as she stared blankly at the carriage.
One of them, overwhelmed by the intimidation emanating from the girl who had not yet reached adulthood, spoke with difficulty.
“...Young Lady, I’m so sorry.”
“That won’t happen.”
They came running without a single word, so they were moving quite quickly. Even if they had arrived at the right time, there would have been nothing they could have done.
Only then did Dorothea look up from the carriage and at the bewildered guards.
At first glance, they looked young, so it was obvious that they had been assigned to the police force for only a short time.
“In principle, since Young Lady was the one who dealt with the accident, we should hear her statement about the incident.”
"Do by that way."
“Are you okay?”
"Yes."
The answer was refreshing.
The security guards looked at each other in surprise and exchanged glances.
They heard that they were so close that Dane would never leave his cousin no matter where she went, and he didn't really care even though he was burned to death.
Dorothea blinked at the gazes of those who looked at her as if she were a strange person.
“Young Lady, are you perhaps so sad that you are having trouble accepting the situation for a moment...”
“Why should I be sad?”
The constable was left speechless by Dorothea's question, which seemed to be genuinely curious.
What he saw in her blue eyes was nothing but pure curiosity, without any other emotion.
That was the moment.
Someone squeezed through the crowd of people and called her name.
“Thea!”
Dorothea turned her head and saw Dane waving his hand in familiar sight.
Next to him stood a pale-faced woman who looked as if she might collapse at any moment.
Dorothea's head tilted slightly to the side.
'I never thought the two of you would be together.'
What on earth was that idiot doing out there?
***
Dane looked bewildered when he realized that it was Dorothea who had put out the carriage lights.
“How did you find out about this place?”
“What about the Lady?”
“Oh, she's fine. She's just getting her ankle treated because she sprained it a little when she jumped. That’s actually why I stopped by the nearby clinic.”
Dane, who had been answering obediently, shook his head and asked again.
“How did you know there was a fire?”
“Did you carry it with you?”
"Yes?"
“That’s what I gave you.”
Dane nodded and said, “Ah,” at Dorothea’s words.
The 'handkerchief' she handed him was particularly stiff and covered in strange blood-red patterns, making him feel uneasy just by looking at it.
But Dane knew that Dorothea had put a lot of 'effort' into it.
Starting with a yellowish, stiff base fabric that had been soaked in water several times, and then hand-grinding a reddish mineral and mixing it in water to make ink.
Although he said that there were plenty of red-tinged inks on the market, Dorothea glanced at them and shook her head.
'If it's not mirror-faced vermilion, the effectiveness is low.'
Although he couldn't dismiss it as nonsense, Dorothea's serious attitude bothered him so much that he kept the handkerchief in his bosom.
Dane, who had been searching through his stuff, opened his eyes wide in puzzlement.
"What?"
Dorothea looked away from her cousin, who was searching through his arms in confusion.
Fortunately, the 'self-defense amulet' seemed to have been activated before it was too late.
Since this talisman is made only from the minerals and materials of this place, there seems to be no need to worry about it not working properly.
Dorothea's indifferent gaze fell on Marilyn, who was beside her.
“It’s nice to see you often, Young Lady.”
“Yes? Yes, yes.”
Marilyn, who had a blank expression on her face, flinched in bewilderment at Dorothea's words, then repeated the same answer over and over again.
Dane quickly came to her defense for her foolish behavior.
“Lady Marilyn still needs to rest. She had a hard time jumping out of a burning carriage.”
“...”
Dorothea looked at Marilyn, who was biting her lips without realizing it.
It was strange that she got involved with this so often.
After a few back-and-forth arguments, she believed that their relationship was already over because Dorothea told her to 'forget' what happened back then.
'Is it that stupid of me to keep forcing relationships?'
Dane seemed very worried about Marilyn and kept saying things like they should call a therapist and that he would take her to the mansion.
“Dane.”
"Yes?"
“When the sheriff arrives, he will personally ask you to escort Young Lady Marilyn safely to the mansion. She will have a statement to make, so you must never return home first.”
Dorothea met her cousin's eyes, who seemed to be wondering why he had to be left in the care of the police and whispered,
“There’s no way the carriage could have just caught fire. The fact that the fire spread so suddenly and so widely clearly shows that there was a human touch.”
“...”
“And this carriage belongs to the Highclere family.”
Only then did Dane's face harden at Dorothea's words.
He's not usually this stupid.
It seemed that he hadn't thought about it that far, since everyone was safe even in a major accident. Dorothea looked away from her straggling cousin and opened her mouth to Marilyn.
“I’m sorry for the inconvenience, Lady Marilyn. It was my fault. I didn’t think Dane would be so sociable as to ride in a carriage with other people.”
“Oh, yeah... It’s okay.”
Marilyn hesitated as she answered, then asked in a cautious voice.
“Did Young Lady... already anticipate that Young Master would be attacked?”
Dorothea's eyes lit up. Marilyn was quicker and more perceptive than she had thought.
The enemy, who had not even revealed his true identity yet, was extremely cautious.
During the five years Dorothea had been crouching, she had tried to climb over the mansion's walls several times but had never been caught.
As has been the case so far, they will try to provoke those around her rather than attack her directly.
Having already suffered the humiliation of having his spirit stolen once more, she was confident that he would take action soon.
Compared to people like Edwin, who was accompanied by escorts, Aiden, who could survive being dropped naked in the middle of a battlefield, and Colin, who never came out of his mansion, Dane was a much easier prey.
Some people even carried around amulets with them half on purpose.
Because if you just carry it around, it's an item that will save your life no matter what happens.
'But this is too blatant.'
The daylight raid was strangely at odds with their usual distaste for being noticed.
And what a brutal attack. It was as if he wanted Dane dead.
'Why? It wouldn't have been very meaningful to kill Dane instead of me.'
If Dorothea Highclere had not wanted her own death in the first place.
Dorothea's eyes narrowed.
Maybe other odd things are interfering with this situation and clouding the picture.
Dane, who had been quietly rolling his eyes next to her, asked Dorothea in disbelief.
“You knew I was going to be attacked?”
“...”
Dorothea blinked without saying anything.
She indeed expected it.
It was just a little surprising that they moved so openly and aggressively.
Dane's eyebrows rose at the silence that was nothing short of affirmation.
“You told me to carry that suspicious item with me every day, calling it a self-defense item.”
“That’s a talisman. It’s thanks to it that you’re safe now.”
“What on earth could have gone wrong that I was expecting to be attacked?”
Just as Dane, his face distorted, was about to scream like lightning, Dorothea opened her mouth again.
“You would be much better suited to respond to an attack than Edwin.”
“...?”
“You’re much quicker at understanding situations than Uncle Aiden, so you’ll be less likely to get involved.”
“...”
“Because you were the best fit.”
To use as bait.
As he swallowed his words, Dane's stiff face slightly relaxed.
There were also rumors that he was better at responding to attacks than his older brother, that he was quicker at understanding situations than his uncle, and that he was the most suitable.
“Does that mean I’m the most trustworthy?”
-"Yes."
Let's say that's true.
The corners of Dane's mouth began to twitch at Dorothea's affirmation.
And Marilyn, who had been listening to all that conversation, somehow looked at Dane, who had been the one who had gotten her into trouble so many times and who was so clueless, with a worried look on her face.
'Is it really okay for this guy to do that?'
She's saying that he's perfect for use as bait.
Why are you so happy?
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