A new voice chided Dorothea and Marilyn.
“Didn’t you keep your mouths shut too! Why didn’t you say from the beginning that the nanny was an accomplice?!”
“Well, the Third Prince’s nanny is said to have been involved in the kidnapping, so I must be careful. The Third Prince may have been involved in the crime as well.”
“How could that be!”
Richard's displeased screams reverberated through the small room.
Glass bottles displayed on high shelves were seen shaking slightly.
Dorothea nodded with a look of understanding towards Richard, who seemed to have almost lost his sense of reasoning.
“Then His Highness the Third Prince was also deceived by Mrs. Jenix.”
“Yeah, yeah!”
Dorothea shrugged her shoulders at Richard, who nodded hastily.
“But most people would think of us similarly. She’s the Third Prince’s nanny. It’s hard to believe that you're not related.”
Richard, his face pale, looked around.
It was funny that he was only now becoming aware of their gaze, even though there had been no sentries or coroners guarding this place since he had come in.
“I don’t know. Maybe Mrs. Jenix was threatened or forced to cooperate.”
“That, that is...”
“The nanny was such a great person that even His Highness the Third Prince trusted her.”
“Yeah, there’s no way she would do something like that.”
Richard nodded with a rather earnest look in his eyes at Dorothea's words.
Dorothea, who had been looking at the Prince who had lost his mind somewhere, opened her mouth again.
“Of course, if she really had to cooperate under duress, it wouldn’t be easy to reveal that fact. Unlike the evidence that has been revealed, such backstory can only be revealed after a very long time.”
“...”
The trial process will drag on. In the meantime, Mrs. Jenix's reputation will fall to the ground, and even if it is somehow revealed and proven that she is truly innocent, by then the rumors will have already snowballed and become common knowledge.
And, everyone would know that she was the Third Prince's nanny.
That means even Richard's reputation is in danger of being buried.
No, it doesn't matter since his reputation is already ruined, but the problem was the Emperor and Crown Prince's reactions.
Now, facing a problem that is on a different scale from the petty accidents he has committed so far, will they just quietly let it go like before just because Richard is his son or his brother?
Dorothea asked kindly, looking at Richard's pale face.
“But His Highness the Crown Prince trusts you, so he will gladly ask the investigator to investigate you closely. Since you are upright.”
Just because he had nothing to do with this kidnapping, does that mean Richard was an innocent person?
If a full-scale 'investigation' begins, will it end with only clarifying the rights and wrongs of this matter?
Dorothea whispered in his ear as she saw the impatience creeping into Richard's face as if the countless wrongdoings he had committed while associating with Dover Spencer flashed before his eyes.
“Don’t worry. I trust Your Highness the Third Prince, so even if Your Highness is suspected, I am sure you will be cleared of the charges.”
“...”
Richard stared blankly at his dead nanny, speechless, his eyes longing had long since disappeared.
Dorothea, who had been observing the Prince's eyes, which were gradually growing colder as if wondering what he was thinking, reached out her hand to Marilyn.
Dorothea, linking arms with Marilyn, who had been hesitating, gave Richard a polite greeting and quietly left the private room.
Marilyn glanced back and looked at Richard's hunched back, which looked unusually narrow today. Then she quickly turned her head and faced forward.
As they left the building in silence, Freed naturally followed behind them.
“Are we going to continue like this?”
"Yes."
At the short answer, Marilyn asked again in a subdued voice.
“Why did you come here? Why did you call His Highness the 3rd Prince?”
“I would like to give our dear Prince a chance.”
“Chance?”
“The chance to choose.”
It was the moment when Dorothea, who had answered in a calm voice, got into the carriage that had been prepared.
Marilyn, who was about to sit in the carriage with her, smelled a burning smell coming from somewhere and turned her head.
Acrid smoke could be seen rising from the autopsy building, which was quite far away. Someone could also be heard shouting urgently, “Fire!”
Even after the carriage pulled away, Marilyn's gaze did not leave the smoking building.
“The flames...”
A blazing red flame engulfed the building.
A flame so high that it illuminated the dark streets engulfed the building, flickering as if warning anyone who approached.
Dorothea said quietly.
“It seems our Prince has finally made his choice.”
“...”
It was a vain ending.
He acted so violently as if he cared about them, but when it came to his own safety, he couldn't even put the dead body to rest and burned it as if nothing had happened.
Dorothea smiled faintly at Marilyn, who swallowed a sigh.
It was a gentle smile as if she was comforting Marilyn and telling her it was okay.
“Marilyn.”
"Yes?"
“I know you don’t like this kind of thing, but could you help me with a ceremonial ritual to appease the spirits of the dead, guide them to the afterlife, and pray for the well-being of the living?”
Marilyn paused, looking away from the towering fire and toward Dorothea.
“It was just me and Marilyn who watched over Mrs. Jenix until the end. No one in the Earldom would know of her death, and once the investigation begins, there will be even less to commemorate her death.”
Marilyn, who was staring intently into the blue eyes, sighed.
“Young Lady has never asked me to do something I couldn’t do.”
You always cause me trouble.
“Yes, I’ll help you with that command.”
Baron Jonathan Lehr, Marilyn Lehr's biological father, was in a very good mood from early in the morning.
'I wonder where she will go and do her best. How did the worried girl catch the eye of the Lady Highclare?'
No matter how the work went or what his daughter did, he was happy with it.
He had always wanted to build connections with the central aristocracy, so he had no intention of missing out on this golden opportunity.
“I trusted you. You ended up doing great things.”
The man, who was in a good mood for once, showered his daughter with compliments.
“Well, it was worth keeping an eye on.”
“...”
Marilyn made no reply.
The father, who had 'believed in' and 'kept an eye on' her for so long, didn't even know what his daughter had done the night before when she went out.
He's just saying whatever he feels like.
Their pleased gazes turned to the 'Imperial Herald' waiting for them outside the mansion.
“I never thought the day would come when the palace would send me a carriage directly!”
A well-raised daughter is better than a spoiled son.
“Why didn’t you come out and do something better? Something fancier and prettier!”
“This is enough, Father. If I dress up too much, I will stand out.”
“You wear it to stand out!”
Jonathan, who said that with a regretful tone, said that his daughter was indeed stupid.
Just a moment ago, he had been praising her as great, but for a moment, he was looking at her as if he was looking at a foolish child like no other in the world. Marilyn turned her head away, accustomed to it.
“Yes, that’s fine. I guess there’s nothing I can do.”
Normally, he would have been nagged, but that didn't matter to Jonathan right now.
The fact that 'he was ordered to enter the palace' is more important than anything else.
“Okay, let’s go now.”
The messenger from the palace said nothing when he saw the man, dressed in clothes that did not suit him and cost a lot of money, get into the carriage excitedly and forget to escort his daughter, who was the one who had actually been invited.
However, he nodded his head in greeting, albeit very slightly, to Marilyn, who was following Jonathan in the carriage from some distance.
'How pathetic.'
Compared to her father, who was only greedy and didn't even understand how the situation was going, the daughter at least seemed to know how to distinguish right from wrong.
Besides, isn't Marilyn close friends with 'that' Lady Highclare?
His calculation was that she was a person who would make a good impression and not do anything bad.
Dorothea Highclere has always been a topic of conversation, for better or worse, ever since she first came into the public eye.
As the carriage carrying the calm Marilyn and the excited Jonathan arrived at the palace, the carriage carrying Valerie Germain and his father, Viscount Germain, also arrived at the same place at about the same time.
It was inevitable that those who followed the instructions would meet.
“His Grace the Viscount has taken a difficult step.”
At Jonathan's friendly greeting, the Viscount Germain glanced at him and reluctantly nodded his heavy head.
Jonathan, who had already known about the reputation and position of the Viscount Germain, felt even more excited.
He never thought that the day would come when he would enter the palace alongside him.
Looking back, Jonathan saw Valerie Germain linking arms with his daughter and smiling friendly.
'If the other person is that aggressive, I should just be moderate in my response.'
Although he was displeased with Marilyn's stiff expression, he didn't want to ruin the mood by saying something on such a glorious journey.
“If I had known that you had been invited, I would have greeted you sooner.”
“Well, I’m not sure if this is the glorious position that the Baron thinks it is.”
Jonathan opened his mouth with a puzzled look at the cold voice of the Vicount Germain, who was stroking his sharp mustache.
“What do you mean?”
“There have been many carriages entering the palace since early in the morning. Do you really think that the reason they invited us, lower-ranking nobles who don’t even have proper territories, to a gathering of all the high-ranking officials must be for a good reason?”
Jonathan blinked with a dazed expression.
The Viscount Germain glanced at his daughter who was following him, talking nonsense with Marilyn's arm in his.
It had been known for a long time that both she and Marilyn had stayed together in the Earldom of Spencer under the pretext of caring for the young lady of the Marquis of Highclere.
Since the return date was yesterday, if you wanted to discuss the public announcement, you should have been considerate of the other party and called them a few days later.
However, rather than making a fuss, Valerie returned quietly like a thief, avoiding everyone's attention, and it bothered him that he had called them all together before the news of her return had even reached the others.
'It looks like there's nothing to find out from this guy.'
After making that judgment, Viscount Germain closed his mouth and started walking quickly, ignoring Jonathan's words standing next to him.
Soon, the door to the ornately decorated audience room opened before them, and they saw high-ranking officials standing on both sides.
The chief chamberlain, who was standing next to the Emperor, looking down at those standing at the door from the highest position, opened his mouth.
“Welcome to the interim hearing, which has been arranged to examine the charges in detail before the trial. Please take your seats.”
Jonathan's mouth, which had been agape, opened.
Charges? Hearings?
His head slowly turned back to face the dark-faced Marilyn Lehr.
What on earth have you been doing?
Marilyn said nothing.
She just held her head up straight and looked at the empty space where no one had come yet, sending a worried look.
“Lady Highclere has announced that she will be a little late for health reasons, but I have no choice but to begin the hearing.”
Blair Millionaire's face was filled with displeasure as she spoke.
The faces of the aides sitting on either side of him, as well as the other nobles sitting there, did not look so good.
His score had definitely already been significantly reduced by the fact that the person in charge of the important task had unilaterally informed him that she would be late, making excuses.
Jonathan, who had been gaping and unable to comprehend the situation before his eyes, opened his mouth.
“A, a hearing? Charges? What the..."
The nobles lined up on either side were mostly those who had visited the Earldom of Spencer with Dorothea.
They all stood there as if they had been forcibly dragged in, with pale faces and sunken cheeks as if they had been tortured in some way.
Jonathan was the only one who entered with a lively face and a fancy outfit.
Blair's eyes swept over him sharply, and then he opened his mouth.
“I hope you all had a great time? You were busy touring the leisurely earldom every day.”
“...”
“Don’t you drink day and night without fail? You even go on expeditions to places to gamble, and you even invite other Princes to official occasions without His Majesty’s permission.”
The nobles who had been bowing their heads raised their heads all at once.
“You must have had a great time playing!”
That was the moment.
Count Jubel, who was at the very front, opened his eyes wide.
The sight of Blair glaring with his bloodshot eyes red was extremely bizarre.
“Who said he rested?”
A voice split open as it was.
Blair, who had lost the fight for a moment, unconsciously shut his mouth, but then pulled himself together and opened his mouth again.
“So you all drink, smoke, gamble, and indulge in luxury tourism...“
“Who said that we are having a hard time because we are not working and are just playing around?!”
“Do we look like we’re not working and looking like we’re just having fun?”
“I regret taking on this job so much, and now you’re saying something like...!”
The nobles who were accused began to run wild.
These extremely tired people were brought here early in the morning without even being able to rest properly as soon as they arrived home.
Amidst all this, the crime they are charging them with is laziness. Laziness.
“Yeah, I had a drink! I had one drink!”
They only played for half a day once.
After that, they woke up and found themself being forced to work as a meat farmer and working under Dorothea's thumb.
“A collateral branch of the Spencer family? Do you know what he has been doing at His Highness the Third Prince’s villa?”
As he worked his way through Spencer County, it was only natural that his reputation and the state of affairs in the county would become more severe.
Also, in the past, Dover Spencer and the Third Prince used to play wildly in the castle called the villa.
“To be honest, I was just wandering around like I was having fun here and there...!”
Before anyone could continue speaking, the door to the hearing room opened.
'What?'
There, even more embarrassed, and much thinner than the nobles who had already been brought in, Dorothea Highclere came in, coughing, in Aiden's arms.
With a face that looks like she's dying.
“Didn’t you keep your mouths shut too! Why didn’t you say from the beginning that the nanny was an accomplice?!”
“Well, the Third Prince’s nanny is said to have been involved in the kidnapping, so I must be careful. The Third Prince may have been involved in the crime as well.”
“How could that be!”
Richard's displeased screams reverberated through the small room.
Glass bottles displayed on high shelves were seen shaking slightly.
Dorothea nodded with a look of understanding towards Richard, who seemed to have almost lost his sense of reasoning.
“Then His Highness the Third Prince was also deceived by Mrs. Jenix.”
“Yeah, yeah!”
Dorothea shrugged her shoulders at Richard, who nodded hastily.
“But most people would think of us similarly. She’s the Third Prince’s nanny. It’s hard to believe that you're not related.”
Richard, his face pale, looked around.
It was funny that he was only now becoming aware of their gaze, even though there had been no sentries or coroners guarding this place since he had come in.
“I don’t know. Maybe Mrs. Jenix was threatened or forced to cooperate.”
“That, that is...”
“The nanny was such a great person that even His Highness the Third Prince trusted her.”
“Yeah, there’s no way she would do something like that.”
Richard nodded with a rather earnest look in his eyes at Dorothea's words.
Dorothea, who had been looking at the Prince who had lost his mind somewhere, opened her mouth again.
“Of course, if she really had to cooperate under duress, it wouldn’t be easy to reveal that fact. Unlike the evidence that has been revealed, such backstory can only be revealed after a very long time.”
“...”
The trial process will drag on. In the meantime, Mrs. Jenix's reputation will fall to the ground, and even if it is somehow revealed and proven that she is truly innocent, by then the rumors will have already snowballed and become common knowledge.
And, everyone would know that she was the Third Prince's nanny.
That means even Richard's reputation is in danger of being buried.
No, it doesn't matter since his reputation is already ruined, but the problem was the Emperor and Crown Prince's reactions.
Now, facing a problem that is on a different scale from the petty accidents he has committed so far, will they just quietly let it go like before just because Richard is his son or his brother?
Dorothea asked kindly, looking at Richard's pale face.
“But His Highness the Crown Prince trusts you, so he will gladly ask the investigator to investigate you closely. Since you are upright.”
Just because he had nothing to do with this kidnapping, does that mean Richard was an innocent person?
If a full-scale 'investigation' begins, will it end with only clarifying the rights and wrongs of this matter?
Dorothea whispered in his ear as she saw the impatience creeping into Richard's face as if the countless wrongdoings he had committed while associating with Dover Spencer flashed before his eyes.
“Don’t worry. I trust Your Highness the Third Prince, so even if Your Highness is suspected, I am sure you will be cleared of the charges.”
“...”
Richard stared blankly at his dead nanny, speechless, his eyes longing had long since disappeared.
Dorothea, who had been observing the Prince's eyes, which were gradually growing colder as if wondering what he was thinking, reached out her hand to Marilyn.
Dorothea, linking arms with Marilyn, who had been hesitating, gave Richard a polite greeting and quietly left the private room.
Marilyn glanced back and looked at Richard's hunched back, which looked unusually narrow today. Then she quickly turned her head and faced forward.
As they left the building in silence, Freed naturally followed behind them.
“Are we going to continue like this?”
"Yes."
At the short answer, Marilyn asked again in a subdued voice.
“Why did you come here? Why did you call His Highness the 3rd Prince?”
“I would like to give our dear Prince a chance.”
“Chance?”
“The chance to choose.”
It was the moment when Dorothea, who had answered in a calm voice, got into the carriage that had been prepared.
Marilyn, who was about to sit in the carriage with her, smelled a burning smell coming from somewhere and turned her head.
Acrid smoke could be seen rising from the autopsy building, which was quite far away. Someone could also be heard shouting urgently, “Fire!”
Even after the carriage pulled away, Marilyn's gaze did not leave the smoking building.
“The flames...”
A blazing red flame engulfed the building.
A flame so high that it illuminated the dark streets engulfed the building, flickering as if warning anyone who approached.
Dorothea said quietly.
“It seems our Prince has finally made his choice.”
“...”
It was a vain ending.
He acted so violently as if he cared about them, but when it came to his own safety, he couldn't even put the dead body to rest and burned it as if nothing had happened.
Dorothea smiled faintly at Marilyn, who swallowed a sigh.
It was a gentle smile as if she was comforting Marilyn and telling her it was okay.
“Marilyn.”
"Yes?"
“I know you don’t like this kind of thing, but could you help me with a ceremonial ritual to appease the spirits of the dead, guide them to the afterlife, and pray for the well-being of the living?”
Marilyn paused, looking away from the towering fire and toward Dorothea.
“It was just me and Marilyn who watched over Mrs. Jenix until the end. No one in the Earldom would know of her death, and once the investigation begins, there will be even less to commemorate her death.”
Marilyn, who was staring intently into the blue eyes, sighed.
“Young Lady has never asked me to do something I couldn’t do.”
You always cause me trouble.
“Yes, I’ll help you with that command.”
***
Baron Jonathan Lehr, Marilyn Lehr's biological father, was in a very good mood from early in the morning.
'I wonder where she will go and do her best. How did the worried girl catch the eye of the Lady Highclare?'
No matter how the work went or what his daughter did, he was happy with it.
He had always wanted to build connections with the central aristocracy, so he had no intention of missing out on this golden opportunity.
“I trusted you. You ended up doing great things.”
The man, who was in a good mood for once, showered his daughter with compliments.
“Well, it was worth keeping an eye on.”
“...”
Marilyn made no reply.
The father, who had 'believed in' and 'kept an eye on' her for so long, didn't even know what his daughter had done the night before when she went out.
He's just saying whatever he feels like.
Their pleased gazes turned to the 'Imperial Herald' waiting for them outside the mansion.
“I never thought the day would come when the palace would send me a carriage directly!”
A well-raised daughter is better than a spoiled son.
“Why didn’t you come out and do something better? Something fancier and prettier!”
“This is enough, Father. If I dress up too much, I will stand out.”
“You wear it to stand out!”
Jonathan, who said that with a regretful tone, said that his daughter was indeed stupid.
Just a moment ago, he had been praising her as great, but for a moment, he was looking at her as if he was looking at a foolish child like no other in the world. Marilyn turned her head away, accustomed to it.
“Yes, that’s fine. I guess there’s nothing I can do.”
Normally, he would have been nagged, but that didn't matter to Jonathan right now.
The fact that 'he was ordered to enter the palace' is more important than anything else.
“Okay, let’s go now.”
The messenger from the palace said nothing when he saw the man, dressed in clothes that did not suit him and cost a lot of money, get into the carriage excitedly and forget to escort his daughter, who was the one who had actually been invited.
However, he nodded his head in greeting, albeit very slightly, to Marilyn, who was following Jonathan in the carriage from some distance.
'How pathetic.'
Compared to her father, who was only greedy and didn't even understand how the situation was going, the daughter at least seemed to know how to distinguish right from wrong.
Besides, isn't Marilyn close friends with 'that' Lady Highclare?
His calculation was that she was a person who would make a good impression and not do anything bad.
Dorothea Highclere has always been a topic of conversation, for better or worse, ever since she first came into the public eye.
***
As the carriage carrying the calm Marilyn and the excited Jonathan arrived at the palace, the carriage carrying Valerie Germain and his father, Viscount Germain, also arrived at the same place at about the same time.
It was inevitable that those who followed the instructions would meet.
“His Grace the Viscount has taken a difficult step.”
At Jonathan's friendly greeting, the Viscount Germain glanced at him and reluctantly nodded his heavy head.
Jonathan, who had already known about the reputation and position of the Viscount Germain, felt even more excited.
He never thought that the day would come when he would enter the palace alongside him.
Looking back, Jonathan saw Valerie Germain linking arms with his daughter and smiling friendly.
'If the other person is that aggressive, I should just be moderate in my response.'
Although he was displeased with Marilyn's stiff expression, he didn't want to ruin the mood by saying something on such a glorious journey.
“If I had known that you had been invited, I would have greeted you sooner.”
“Well, I’m not sure if this is the glorious position that the Baron thinks it is.”
Jonathan opened his mouth with a puzzled look at the cold voice of the Vicount Germain, who was stroking his sharp mustache.
“What do you mean?”
“There have been many carriages entering the palace since early in the morning. Do you really think that the reason they invited us, lower-ranking nobles who don’t even have proper territories, to a gathering of all the high-ranking officials must be for a good reason?”
Jonathan blinked with a dazed expression.
The Viscount Germain glanced at his daughter who was following him, talking nonsense with Marilyn's arm in his.
It had been known for a long time that both she and Marilyn had stayed together in the Earldom of Spencer under the pretext of caring for the young lady of the Marquis of Highclere.
Since the return date was yesterday, if you wanted to discuss the public announcement, you should have been considerate of the other party and called them a few days later.
However, rather than making a fuss, Valerie returned quietly like a thief, avoiding everyone's attention, and it bothered him that he had called them all together before the news of her return had even reached the others.
'It looks like there's nothing to find out from this guy.'
After making that judgment, Viscount Germain closed his mouth and started walking quickly, ignoring Jonathan's words standing next to him.
Soon, the door to the ornately decorated audience room opened before them, and they saw high-ranking officials standing on both sides.
The chief chamberlain, who was standing next to the Emperor, looking down at those standing at the door from the highest position, opened his mouth.
“Welcome to the interim hearing, which has been arranged to examine the charges in detail before the trial. Please take your seats.”
Jonathan's mouth, which had been agape, opened.
Charges? Hearings?
His head slowly turned back to face the dark-faced Marilyn Lehr.
What on earth have you been doing?
Marilyn said nothing.
She just held her head up straight and looked at the empty space where no one had come yet, sending a worried look.
***
“Lady Highclere has announced that she will be a little late for health reasons, but I have no choice but to begin the hearing.”
Blair Millionaire's face was filled with displeasure as she spoke.
The faces of the aides sitting on either side of him, as well as the other nobles sitting there, did not look so good.
His score had definitely already been significantly reduced by the fact that the person in charge of the important task had unilaterally informed him that she would be late, making excuses.
Jonathan, who had been gaping and unable to comprehend the situation before his eyes, opened his mouth.
“A, a hearing? Charges? What the..."
The nobles lined up on either side were mostly those who had visited the Earldom of Spencer with Dorothea.
They all stood there as if they had been forcibly dragged in, with pale faces and sunken cheeks as if they had been tortured in some way.
Jonathan was the only one who entered with a lively face and a fancy outfit.
Blair's eyes swept over him sharply, and then he opened his mouth.
“I hope you all had a great time? You were busy touring the leisurely earldom every day.”
“...”
“Don’t you drink day and night without fail? You even go on expeditions to places to gamble, and you even invite other Princes to official occasions without His Majesty’s permission.”
The nobles who had been bowing their heads raised their heads all at once.
“You must have had a great time playing!”
That was the moment.
Count Jubel, who was at the very front, opened his eyes wide.
The sight of Blair glaring with his bloodshot eyes red was extremely bizarre.
“Who said he rested?”
A voice split open as it was.
Blair, who had lost the fight for a moment, unconsciously shut his mouth, but then pulled himself together and opened his mouth again.
“So you all drink, smoke, gamble, and indulge in luxury tourism...“
“Who said that we are having a hard time because we are not working and are just playing around?!”
“Do we look like we’re not working and looking like we’re just having fun?”
“I regret taking on this job so much, and now you’re saying something like...!”
The nobles who were accused began to run wild.
These extremely tired people were brought here early in the morning without even being able to rest properly as soon as they arrived home.
Amidst all this, the crime they are charging them with is laziness. Laziness.
“Yeah, I had a drink! I had one drink!”
They only played for half a day once.
After that, they woke up and found themself being forced to work as a meat farmer and working under Dorothea's thumb.
“A collateral branch of the Spencer family? Do you know what he has been doing at His Highness the Third Prince’s villa?”
As he worked his way through Spencer County, it was only natural that his reputation and the state of affairs in the county would become more severe.
Also, in the past, Dover Spencer and the Third Prince used to play wildly in the castle called the villa.
“To be honest, I was just wandering around like I was having fun here and there...!”
Before anyone could continue speaking, the door to the hearing room opened.
'What?'
There, even more embarrassed, and much thinner than the nobles who had already been brought in, Dorothea Highclere came in, coughing, in Aiden's arms.
With a face that looks like she's dying.
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