'If Caroline is involved, there's no way that guy named Revals isn't involved.'
Thinking that way, Karina unknowingly spoke strongly to Jeremiah.
"This maid might not have committed suicide either. The culprit who killed Lord Genon might have killed the maid who had achieved her goal and was no longer useful to silence her."
Jeremiah glanced at Karina.
His expression was hard to read.
However, the answer to Karina's words came from Ron, not Jeremiah.
"I'm sorry, Your Highness, but you can consider that the possibility is very low."
"How can you be so sure?"
"There was circumstantial evidence that Lord Genon tried to fake suicide, but this maid's case is different."
Ron continued calmly.
"I asked the maids around her who worked in the kitchen about this maid, and they said that she's been very anxious and startled a lot lately. They say she was much more sensitive than before. As if she had committed a great sin.”
Karina continued to listen to Ron.
“The handwriting on the will was confirmed to be that of this maid, and it was confirmed that she had sent a farewell letter to her family who lived outside the Grand Duke’s residence, apologizing.”
“Isn’t it easy to fabricate something like that if you put your mind to it?”
Karina asked seriously.
“If that were all, it could be true, but there was also testimony that the maid had confessed her sins at the Northern Temple.”
“What?”
Karina’s eyes widened.
“The description of the woman who confessed to killing a person matched the description of the maid who died this time. At this point, it’s definitely suicide.”
“...”
“Is it really true ?”
Karina’s gaze lingered on the teacup in her hand.
“They even confessed to killing a person.”
There was no room for doubt.
The circumstantial evidence was too clear.
However, the bitter aftertaste that still lingered did not end.
“Grand Duke. What do you want to do?”
Jeremiah suddenly asked.
“Is there something bothering you?”
Karina hesitated for a moment before opening her mouth.
“There is someone I suspect.”
“Who is that?”
But she couldn’t answer that question.
She couldn’t trust Jeremiah.
Karina kept her mouth shut.
Jeremiah, who had been staring blankly at her, opened his mouth again.
“This matter is not unrelated to you, so I will do whatever you want.”
“...!”
Karina was surprised to hear Jeremiah’s words.
“You will do whatever I want?”
“Yes.”
Karina immediately looked suspicious and stared at Jeremiah’s face.
“Why?”
Jeremiah’s face was expressionless.
“I told you. It is not unrelated to you.”
Jeremiah said calmly.
“So if you want a reinvestigation, I will do so.”
“...”
'It's a little embarrassing, but there's no need to refuse since he'll do whatever I want.'
Karina nodded and accepted.
"Then please do a thorough reinvestigation from the beginning. Even the smallest details, and don't miss a single thing."
Karina said seriously.
"Yes."
Jeremiah nodded to Ron.
"You heard that, right?"
"Yes...?"
Ron was surprised at Jeremiah's appearance, who really ordered a reinvestigation.
'In this situation where there is no evidence and there are too many circumstantial testimonies, why are we reinvestigating again...'
It was clear to him that Jeremiah was making such an irrational decision because of Karina.
He had a lot to say, but it seemed that even if he said it here and now, the reinvestigation wouldn't change anything.
Ron, who had gathered his turbulent thoughts, answered.
"Yes. I understand."
Ron nodded without saying anything and left the office.
Jeremiah and Karina were the only ones left in the office.
"Are you really okay?"
Jeremiah’s question broke the silence.
“...Yes.”
Karina answered briefly.
Jeremiah picked up the teacup in front of him and took a sip of tea.
“Is there anything else you want to tell me?”
'What do I want to say?'
Karina tilted her head with a puzzled expression.
However, no matter how hard she thought about it, she couldn't think of anything to say to him.
"Nothing."
"..."
Jeremiah stared at Karina's face for a while without saying anything.
Karina looked puzzled, not knowing what was going on.
"I see. Then you should go back to your room."
It was a welcome guest order.
"Yes. Then I'm off."
Karina quickly got up and left the office.
Jeremiah was left alone in the office after Karina left.
'I have nothing to say...'
Jeremiah let out a deep sigh. Jeremiah thought that if he asked her like this, Karina would tell him what had happened with Caroline.
From Caroline taking all her living expenses to the fact that she had prepared for what Lord Genon had done in the study, to her suspicion that the maid's death was not suicide.
She had her own reasons for all of it.
'But you mean you have nothing to say...'
Even though she seemed to have no intention of saying anything to him, he felt uncomfortable in a corner of his heart. The reason he had gone to Karina's room last night and waited for her was to ask her about this.
However, when Karina, who had gone out alone with her escort, did not return until late at night, he felt his patience wear thin. When he saw her avoiding the question of where she had been as if she was embarrassed, he felt frustrated and angry for a moment.
'This is driving me crazy.'
Jeremiah felt that he had been too emotional lately.
And whenever that happened, he vaguely knew that Karina was always involved.
'Why on earth are you doing this?'
Jeremiah's sigh deepened.
When she returned to his room, Mikhail was waiting for him.
"You were here?"
Karina pretended to know him happily.
"I came as soon as I woke up."
"Did you wait long?"
"No."
Mikhail shrugged.
“The room has changed a lot. It’s just right.”
“Ah.”
Karina looked around the room, which she hadn’t gotten used to yet.
“When I first came in, I thought I had come to the wrong place.”
“Do you like it?”
“There wasn’t much at first. It’s better now.”
“I see.”
Mikhail made a face that seemed to indicate that he was not happy.
However, Karina didn’t notice and moved on to another topic.
“By the way, did you hear about what happened in prison yesterday?”
“I overheard some gossip.”
It seemed that none of the Grand Duke’s escorts had told him the details of what had happened last night.
‘Then I’ll take care of it myself.’
Karina told Mikhail about what had happened yesterday and what she had just heard.
“That’s why I went to see His Highness the Grand Duke.”
As Karina continued to speak, the smile on Mikhail’s face gradually disappeared.
“Have you become close with the Grand Duke?”
“What?”
Karina suddenly made a face that seemed completely incomprehensible to the unexpected remark.
“It seems like you’ve become closer than before.”
Mikhail’s tone of voice was somehow blunt.
“What are you talking about? There’s absolutely no way that’s true.”
Karina denied it with a serious face.
“I see.”
Mikhail’s expression softened slightly at Karina’s stubborn denial.
“What...?”
Karina tilted her head for a moment but continued speaking.
“Anyway. That’s why I’m thinking of secretly entrusting you with the investigation. I can’t just sit back and do nothing.”
“Do I really have to? I don’t even know who’s behind it. What if Karina gets in danger?”
“You’ll be here then.”
Karina smiled confidently.
“You’ll be by my side to protect me, so I don’t have to worry.”
Mikhail asked back after hearing Karina’s answer.
“I’m the only one who can protect Karina, right?”
His expression was completely serious.
“Of course. You’re my only escort.”
Karina answered as if it were obvious.
Mikhail smiled prettily, even raising the corners of his eyes.
The gentle laughter made the room feel warm.
The sunlight coming in from the window hit his silver hair and scattered light in all directions.
Thanks to that, the entire room seemed to be bright.
“Karina?”
“Ah...”
Karina, who had been absentmindedly staring at Mikhail’s laughter, suddenly came to her senses.
“Oh, by the way. I want you to go to the flower shop today to take care of a request. And check on the orphans while you’re at it.”
“Yes. I’ll be right back.”
Ah, Mikhail turned around again.
“Did you leave something behind?”
Mikhail smiled and shook his head at Karina’s question.
Mikhail approached Karina and politely took her hand.
Then he kissed the back of her hand.
Karina was a little surprised.
It was the first time she had received a kiss on the back of his hand since meeting Mikhail.
However, she thought that Mikhail, who was originally a magician, might not know much about such social etiquette.
She never wanted such pretense, so it wasn't really a problem.
'But I guess you learned something new about guarding the Grand Duchess.'
While she was thinking that, Mikhail grabbed Karina's hand and didn't let go.
Even after kissing her, he kept looking at her hand.
It was rude to keep holding her hand after a light kiss on the back of her hand.
Karina hesitated for a moment whether she should tell him this properly.
'You should learn properly when you learn.'
However, when she actually tried to say it, her mouth wouldn't open.
'It seems like he's watching my reaction.'
Mikhail seemed to be looking at her with expectant eyes.
'Should I praise him for learning well? Is that what he's hoping for?'
She thought it was a bit odd to point out this and that in a situation where he was expecting praise for learning hard.
'Yeah. He learned it in a good mood and is trying hard, so I shouldn't criticize him.'
"This maid might not have committed suicide either. The culprit who killed Lord Genon might have killed the maid who had achieved her goal and was no longer useful to silence her."
Jeremiah glanced at Karina.
His expression was hard to read.
However, the answer to Karina's words came from Ron, not Jeremiah.
"I'm sorry, Your Highness, but you can consider that the possibility is very low."
"How can you be so sure?"
"There was circumstantial evidence that Lord Genon tried to fake suicide, but this maid's case is different."
Ron continued calmly.
"I asked the maids around her who worked in the kitchen about this maid, and they said that she's been very anxious and startled a lot lately. They say she was much more sensitive than before. As if she had committed a great sin.”
Karina continued to listen to Ron.
“The handwriting on the will was confirmed to be that of this maid, and it was confirmed that she had sent a farewell letter to her family who lived outside the Grand Duke’s residence, apologizing.”
“Isn’t it easy to fabricate something like that if you put your mind to it?”
Karina asked seriously.
“If that were all, it could be true, but there was also testimony that the maid had confessed her sins at the Northern Temple.”
“What?”
Karina’s eyes widened.
“The description of the woman who confessed to killing a person matched the description of the maid who died this time. At this point, it’s definitely suicide.”
“...”
“Is it really true ?”
Karina’s gaze lingered on the teacup in her hand.
“They even confessed to killing a person.”
There was no room for doubt.
The circumstantial evidence was too clear.
However, the bitter aftertaste that still lingered did not end.
“Grand Duke. What do you want to do?”
Jeremiah suddenly asked.
“Is there something bothering you?”
Karina hesitated for a moment before opening her mouth.
“There is someone I suspect.”
“Who is that?”
But she couldn’t answer that question.
She couldn’t trust Jeremiah.
Karina kept her mouth shut.
Jeremiah, who had been staring blankly at her, opened his mouth again.
“This matter is not unrelated to you, so I will do whatever you want.”
“...!”
Karina was surprised to hear Jeremiah’s words.
“You will do whatever I want?”
“Yes.”
Karina immediately looked suspicious and stared at Jeremiah’s face.
“Why?”
Jeremiah’s face was expressionless.
“I told you. It is not unrelated to you.”
Jeremiah said calmly.
“So if you want a reinvestigation, I will do so.”
“...”
'It's a little embarrassing, but there's no need to refuse since he'll do whatever I want.'
Karina nodded and accepted.
"Then please do a thorough reinvestigation from the beginning. Even the smallest details, and don't miss a single thing."
Karina said seriously.
"Yes."
Jeremiah nodded to Ron.
"You heard that, right?"
"Yes...?"
Ron was surprised at Jeremiah's appearance, who really ordered a reinvestigation.
'In this situation where there is no evidence and there are too many circumstantial testimonies, why are we reinvestigating again...'
It was clear to him that Jeremiah was making such an irrational decision because of Karina.
He had a lot to say, but it seemed that even if he said it here and now, the reinvestigation wouldn't change anything.
Ron, who had gathered his turbulent thoughts, answered.
"Yes. I understand."
Ron nodded without saying anything and left the office.
Jeremiah and Karina were the only ones left in the office.
"Are you really okay?"
Jeremiah’s question broke the silence.
“...Yes.”
Karina answered briefly.
Jeremiah picked up the teacup in front of him and took a sip of tea.
“Is there anything else you want to tell me?”
'What do I want to say?'
Karina tilted her head with a puzzled expression.
However, no matter how hard she thought about it, she couldn't think of anything to say to him.
"Nothing."
"..."
Jeremiah stared at Karina's face for a while without saying anything.
Karina looked puzzled, not knowing what was going on.
"I see. Then you should go back to your room."
It was a welcome guest order.
"Yes. Then I'm off."
Karina quickly got up and left the office.
***
Jeremiah was left alone in the office after Karina left.
'I have nothing to say...'
Jeremiah let out a deep sigh. Jeremiah thought that if he asked her like this, Karina would tell him what had happened with Caroline.
From Caroline taking all her living expenses to the fact that she had prepared for what Lord Genon had done in the study, to her suspicion that the maid's death was not suicide.
She had her own reasons for all of it.
'But you mean you have nothing to say...'
Even though she seemed to have no intention of saying anything to him, he felt uncomfortable in a corner of his heart. The reason he had gone to Karina's room last night and waited for her was to ask her about this.
However, when Karina, who had gone out alone with her escort, did not return until late at night, he felt his patience wear thin. When he saw her avoiding the question of where she had been as if she was embarrassed, he felt frustrated and angry for a moment.
'This is driving me crazy.'
Jeremiah felt that he had been too emotional lately.
And whenever that happened, he vaguely knew that Karina was always involved.
'Why on earth are you doing this?'
Jeremiah's sigh deepened.
***
When she returned to his room, Mikhail was waiting for him.
"You were here?"
Karina pretended to know him happily.
"I came as soon as I woke up."
"Did you wait long?"
"No."
Mikhail shrugged.
“The room has changed a lot. It’s just right.”
“Ah.”
Karina looked around the room, which she hadn’t gotten used to yet.
“When I first came in, I thought I had come to the wrong place.”
“Do you like it?”
“There wasn’t much at first. It’s better now.”
“I see.”
Mikhail made a face that seemed to indicate that he was not happy.
However, Karina didn’t notice and moved on to another topic.
“By the way, did you hear about what happened in prison yesterday?”
“I overheard some gossip.”
It seemed that none of the Grand Duke’s escorts had told him the details of what had happened last night.
‘Then I’ll take care of it myself.’
Karina told Mikhail about what had happened yesterday and what she had just heard.
“That’s why I went to see His Highness the Grand Duke.”
As Karina continued to speak, the smile on Mikhail’s face gradually disappeared.
“Have you become close with the Grand Duke?”
“What?”
Karina suddenly made a face that seemed completely incomprehensible to the unexpected remark.
“It seems like you’ve become closer than before.”
Mikhail’s tone of voice was somehow blunt.
“What are you talking about? There’s absolutely no way that’s true.”
Karina denied it with a serious face.
“I see.”
Mikhail’s expression softened slightly at Karina’s stubborn denial.
“What...?”
Karina tilted her head for a moment but continued speaking.
“Anyway. That’s why I’m thinking of secretly entrusting you with the investigation. I can’t just sit back and do nothing.”
“Do I really have to? I don’t even know who’s behind it. What if Karina gets in danger?”
“You’ll be here then.”
Karina smiled confidently.
“You’ll be by my side to protect me, so I don’t have to worry.”
Mikhail asked back after hearing Karina’s answer.
“I’m the only one who can protect Karina, right?”
His expression was completely serious.
“Of course. You’re my only escort.”
Karina answered as if it were obvious.
Mikhail smiled prettily, even raising the corners of his eyes.
The gentle laughter made the room feel warm.
The sunlight coming in from the window hit his silver hair and scattered light in all directions.
Thanks to that, the entire room seemed to be bright.
“Karina?”
“Ah...”
Karina, who had been absentmindedly staring at Mikhail’s laughter, suddenly came to her senses.
“Oh, by the way. I want you to go to the flower shop today to take care of a request. And check on the orphans while you’re at it.”
“Yes. I’ll be right back.”
Ah, Mikhail turned around again.
“Did you leave something behind?”
Mikhail smiled and shook his head at Karina’s question.
Mikhail approached Karina and politely took her hand.
Then he kissed the back of her hand.
Karina was a little surprised.
It was the first time she had received a kiss on the back of his hand since meeting Mikhail.
However, she thought that Mikhail, who was originally a magician, might not know much about such social etiquette.
She never wanted such pretense, so it wasn't really a problem.
'But I guess you learned something new about guarding the Grand Duchess.'
While she was thinking that, Mikhail grabbed Karina's hand and didn't let go.
Even after kissing her, he kept looking at her hand.
It was rude to keep holding her hand after a light kiss on the back of her hand.
Karina hesitated for a moment whether she should tell him this properly.
'You should learn properly when you learn.'
However, when she actually tried to say it, her mouth wouldn't open.
'It seems like he's watching my reaction.'
Mikhail seemed to be looking at her with expectant eyes.
'Should I praise him for learning well? Is that what he's hoping for?'
She thought it was a bit odd to point out this and that in a situation where he was expecting praise for learning hard.
'Yeah. He learned it in a good mood and is trying hard, so I shouldn't criticize him.'
Don't you praise children who are learning something for the first time?
Karina finished thinking and just smiled brightly at Mikhail.
“Take care and come back safely.”
After sending Mikhail on an errand, Karina called Charlotte, the head maid.
Charlotte, who had been called by her, came over right away.
“I heard you called.”
“Come in.”
Karina brought Charlotte into the room.
“The reason I called you is because I wanted to ask you something.”
“I’ll tell you everything I know. Feel free to ask.”
Karina got right to the point.
“How much do you know about the maid who served food to Lord Genon?”
“That maid...”
Charlotte began to talk about the maid in detail.
“It’s quite detailed. Did you know I was going to ask you?”
Charlotte answered Karina’s question truthfully.
“We had a cross-examination yesterday during the investigation, and there was a lot of talk about it, so I learned a lot of things this time.”
“I see.”
It was detailed, but there were no facts that were different from the investigation.
‘What should I do...’
Karina’s shoulders lost all strength.
“But...”
Charlotte hesitated and opened her mouth again.
Karina finished thinking and just smiled brightly at Mikhail.
“Take care and come back safely.”
After sending Mikhail on an errand, Karina called Charlotte, the head maid.
Charlotte, who had been called by her, came over right away.
“I heard you called.”
“Come in.”
Karina brought Charlotte into the room.
“The reason I called you is because I wanted to ask you something.”
“I’ll tell you everything I know. Feel free to ask.”
Karina got right to the point.
“How much do you know about the maid who served food to Lord Genon?”
“That maid...”
Charlotte began to talk about the maid in detail.
“It’s quite detailed. Did you know I was going to ask you?”
Charlotte answered Karina’s question truthfully.
“We had a cross-examination yesterday during the investigation, and there was a lot of talk about it, so I learned a lot of things this time.”
“I see.”
It was detailed, but there were no facts that were different from the investigation.
‘What should I do...’
Karina’s shoulders lost all strength.
“But...”
Charlotte hesitated and opened her mouth again.
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