And a little later.
"Ah, even so...! For people like us, confidentiality is essential...! It would be embarrassing if rumors spread that I sold customer information."
Even though he was on his knees and had his arms raised, the thug appealed in an awkward voice, as if he was having trouble answering Candice's question while looking at her expression.
“Oh, really?”
Candice, who had been sitting comfortably in her chair with her arms crossed, sat up at his answer.
"Let's go."
“Huh? You came all the way here and you’re just leaving without even hearing a response, sis?”
At her words, the information dealer who came with her asked with a large question mark drawn on his face.
"Yes, let's go. Oh, let's take them too. We should hand them over to the authorities and collect the reward."
As Candice said this, conjuring a strong rope with her magic, the thug screamed in terror.
“Yes, I will answer. Who are you looking for?”
"It was supposed to come out like this a long time ago," Candice said, sitting back in her chair and explaining to those seeking her out.
“...Are you talking about the guy without a right hand?”
"Yeah, the one without his right hand. The one with the big scar under his eye. He's probably carrying a thirteen-year-old girl."
“I, I haven’t seen any of those guys...”
The thug answered obediently, sweating profusely.
"Really?"
“Yes...! How could I, how could I lie and say that I am safe?”
Looking at the eyes of the man who was bowing, it didn't seem like he was lying.
At this, Candice glared at the information dealer who had come with her.
“I heard he’s holding on tight to smuggling?”
“That, that’s...! That’s how it usually is.”
Candice sighed deeply as she watched the information officer grumble that if someone higher up was involved, they might have chartered a separate ship.
"You."
When Candice pointed to the thug with her chin and called out to him, he answered in a very tense voice.
“I, you mean?”
"Yes, you. From now on, you'll mobilize all their connections to track down the people I mentioned. Understood?"
“Yes, yes!! I understand!”
Leaving behind the thugs with their military uniforms, Candice left the bar.
She left a request to the information agent to find out about the trading ship Natalia had mentioned. She's sure something will come out of it.
‘...If that doesn’t work, I’ll just have to run.’
She stretched her arms out and walked back to her hotel room.
Having successfully completed his first diplomatic mission as Crown Prince, Winfred was experiencing a hectic schedule. The pile of domestic affairs that had piled up while he was abroad had become a major issue.
He had to quickly find the Duke's house and tell him about meeting Aila, but he had no time to do so.
Only after several days of dealing with urgent matters, leaving him no time to recover from the aftereffects, was Winfred able to visit the Duke's residence.
“The Duke is away from home, so what’s so urgent that you’re rushing out on a rare holiday?”
His father, Hirum, was complaining loudly.
He hadn't been able to see his son for a while because he had been abroad, and he was upset when he said he would go to the Duke's house instead of spending his first holiday with him.
'I feel like my son was stolen by my friend.'
Even that friend is leading the knights to the border to protect the country.
“Oh, I heard about the Duke. The Sekim tribe invaded, right?”
At his father's story, Winfred's face became anxious.
He wanted to tell Rodrick and Ophelia all about Ayla, but why did war suddenly break out?
Fortunately, the situation has stabilized rapidly since the Knights of Weishaffen joined, so Roderick's return should be imminent. Still, he couldn't help but feel a sense of regret.
“So, why did you insist on going to a house where you don’t even have a teacher? Do you miss Noah so much?”
Hiram asked, his lips still pouting with a pouty face.
“That... I’ll tell you when I get back.”
Until now, he had not told anyone about her except her parents, as per Aila's request.
But now that he was certain that this was related to Byron, he could no longer hide it from his father.
Publicly, there was a reason why information about the rebellion could not be hidden from the Emperor, and privately, the same could not be said. Like it or not, the fact that Byron was his father's older brother remained unchanged.
Of course, it was not something Winfred could decide on his own, so he planned to discuss it with Ophelia first and then talk about it.
“...It seems there is something I don’t know.”
Hiram, who had been pretending to be surprised, saw on his son's face that he was hiding something serious, so he put away his playfulness and put on the face of an Emperor.
Winfred neither confirmed nor denied, and Hiram smiled and patted his son's head.
“Have a nice trip.”
“...I’ll be back.”
With his father's permission, Winfred hurried to the Duke of Weishaffen.
He thought that Ophelia would be greatly surprised by the news about Aila that he had brought.
But unfortunately for Ophelia, the news was... not so new.
Although Natalia wasn't certain that the child she had seen was Aila, she had already heard that Aila might have headed to the Inselkov Kingdom with Byron.
“...You’re not surprised.”
Winfred, who had assumed Ophelia would be surprised, scratched his cheek, feeling unnecessarily embarrassed.
“Oh, that’s... someone already told me that news.”
Ophelia brought up the story she had heard from Natalia and the story of Candice's departure to the Inselkov Kingdom to find Aila.
“There wasn’t any concrete evidence... but now I’m certain, thanks to His Highness the Crown Prince meeting Aila.”
She forced a smile and folded her hands neatly on her lap, trying to hide the trembling from Winfred.
It was truly fortunate. Had she not heard of this beforehand, she would have been in danger of showing an ugly side to the young Crown Prince, with no one to calm her down.
“Oh, I didn’t see Director Eposher. I see.”
Winfred answered in a somewhat tired voice.
He'd worked so hard to deliver this news as quickly as possible, only to find it was so late. Feeling a sense of emptiness, he relayed the following information.
“According to Aila... she said that there must be a spy planted by Byron in the Duke’s house here.”
“Ah, I see.”
But Ophelia wasn't surprised by the second piece of information, because it was what Candice had expected.
“It seems you knew this, too...”
“Yes, I expected it.”
Winfred felt needlessly sullen. He felt bad for not bringing Aila back after meeting her, but every piece of news he received was outdated.
He opened his mouth in a choked voice and apologized.
“I’m sorry, Duchess.”
“Huh? What the heck...?”
“...I really wanted to bring Aila this time, but it seems like there were some circumstances, and she said she absolutely had to return to Byron. So I couldn't bring her.”
He wants to help Aila, but all he can do is tell her parents.
Even that is just belated news that everyone already knows.
Ophelia tilted her head in confusion at Winfred's apology.
“...What’s the situation?”
“Yes, I think she’s a little scared...”
He didn't know it then, but thinking back now, Aila must have looked sad and nervous at his words, "Let's go back together."
Is Byron somehow threatening her? Is that why she can't leave him?
As his unforgivable uncle came to mind, Winfred unconsciously ground his teeth and clenched his fists. He couldn't fathom how someone with a soldering iron could be so vicious.
"...Yes."
And Ophelia, who had suffered more from Byron than anyone else and knew his wickedness better than anyone else, chewed her lips and was lost in thought.
If that were the case, he would never have left Aila alone. He would have used any means necessary to ensure she couldn't escape his side.
"Your Highness, by any chance... did Aila ever tell you anything about Byron's purpose? Why did he kidnap the child, for example..."
“Ah, that’s...”
Winfred swallowed hard. No matter how much he thought about it, the act was so heinous that he couldn't bring himself to say it out loud.
"To kill the Duke with Aila's own hands, she said. He intended to take revenge."
“...”
And when he finally opened his mouth in a crawling voice, Ophelia had to clench her fists to keep from expressing her anger.
Byron could not have kidnapped Ophelia and Roderick's daughter with good intentions, but he would have planned such a heinous plan.
It wasn't a new feeling, considering the past when he tried to kill his father with his own hands, but Ophelia couldn't stand the thought that her precious daughter, whom she would never hurt, was involved in that unfilial act.
And revenge, what on earth could possibly be the reason Byron harbored such a deep resentment towards Roderick that he would want to exact such cruel revenge?
It was also disgusting that he was so arbitrarily mistaken that Roderick betrayed him, and that he was so arbitrarily claiming that she was 'stolen' by Roderick.
Ophelia tried her best not to show her discomfort in front of the young Crown Prince, but Winfred, who was watching her closely, seemed to have lost his cool as he watched her expression.
"...I'm sorry."
He apologized in a voice that was ashamed of his face. Aila told him not to worry, but being related to Byron was truly embarrassing and upsetting.
"Ah, even so...! For people like us, confidentiality is essential...! It would be embarrassing if rumors spread that I sold customer information."
Even though he was on his knees and had his arms raised, the thug appealed in an awkward voice, as if he was having trouble answering Candice's question while looking at her expression.
“Oh, really?”
Candice, who had been sitting comfortably in her chair with her arms crossed, sat up at his answer.
"Let's go."
“Huh? You came all the way here and you’re just leaving without even hearing a response, sis?”
At her words, the information dealer who came with her asked with a large question mark drawn on his face.
"Yes, let's go. Oh, let's take them too. We should hand them over to the authorities and collect the reward."
As Candice said this, conjuring a strong rope with her magic, the thug screamed in terror.
“Yes, I will answer. Who are you looking for?”
"It was supposed to come out like this a long time ago," Candice said, sitting back in her chair and explaining to those seeking her out.
“...Are you talking about the guy without a right hand?”
"Yeah, the one without his right hand. The one with the big scar under his eye. He's probably carrying a thirteen-year-old girl."
“I, I haven’t seen any of those guys...”
The thug answered obediently, sweating profusely.
"Really?"
“Yes...! How could I, how could I lie and say that I am safe?”
Looking at the eyes of the man who was bowing, it didn't seem like he was lying.
At this, Candice glared at the information dealer who had come with her.
“I heard he’s holding on tight to smuggling?”
“That, that’s...! That’s how it usually is.”
Candice sighed deeply as she watched the information officer grumble that if someone higher up was involved, they might have chartered a separate ship.
"You."
When Candice pointed to the thug with her chin and called out to him, he answered in a very tense voice.
“I, you mean?”
"Yes, you. From now on, you'll mobilize all their connections to track down the people I mentioned. Understood?"
“Yes, yes!! I understand!”
Leaving behind the thugs with their military uniforms, Candice left the bar.
She left a request to the information agent to find out about the trading ship Natalia had mentioned. She's sure something will come out of it.
‘...If that doesn’t work, I’ll just have to run.’
She stretched her arms out and walked back to her hotel room.
***
Having successfully completed his first diplomatic mission as Crown Prince, Winfred was experiencing a hectic schedule. The pile of domestic affairs that had piled up while he was abroad had become a major issue.
He had to quickly find the Duke's house and tell him about meeting Aila, but he had no time to do so.
Only after several days of dealing with urgent matters, leaving him no time to recover from the aftereffects, was Winfred able to visit the Duke's residence.
“The Duke is away from home, so what’s so urgent that you’re rushing out on a rare holiday?”
His father, Hirum, was complaining loudly.
He hadn't been able to see his son for a while because he had been abroad, and he was upset when he said he would go to the Duke's house instead of spending his first holiday with him.
'I feel like my son was stolen by my friend.'
Even that friend is leading the knights to the border to protect the country.
“Oh, I heard about the Duke. The Sekim tribe invaded, right?”
At his father's story, Winfred's face became anxious.
He wanted to tell Rodrick and Ophelia all about Ayla, but why did war suddenly break out?
Fortunately, the situation has stabilized rapidly since the Knights of Weishaffen joined, so Roderick's return should be imminent. Still, he couldn't help but feel a sense of regret.
“So, why did you insist on going to a house where you don’t even have a teacher? Do you miss Noah so much?”
Hiram asked, his lips still pouting with a pouty face.
“That... I’ll tell you when I get back.”
Until now, he had not told anyone about her except her parents, as per Aila's request.
But now that he was certain that this was related to Byron, he could no longer hide it from his father.
Publicly, there was a reason why information about the rebellion could not be hidden from the Emperor, and privately, the same could not be said. Like it or not, the fact that Byron was his father's older brother remained unchanged.
Of course, it was not something Winfred could decide on his own, so he planned to discuss it with Ophelia first and then talk about it.
“...It seems there is something I don’t know.”
Hiram, who had been pretending to be surprised, saw on his son's face that he was hiding something serious, so he put away his playfulness and put on the face of an Emperor.
Winfred neither confirmed nor denied, and Hiram smiled and patted his son's head.
“Have a nice trip.”
“...I’ll be back.”
With his father's permission, Winfred hurried to the Duke of Weishaffen.
He thought that Ophelia would be greatly surprised by the news about Aila that he had brought.
But unfortunately for Ophelia, the news was... not so new.
Although Natalia wasn't certain that the child she had seen was Aila, she had already heard that Aila might have headed to the Inselkov Kingdom with Byron.
“...You’re not surprised.”
Winfred, who had assumed Ophelia would be surprised, scratched his cheek, feeling unnecessarily embarrassed.
“Oh, that’s... someone already told me that news.”
Ophelia brought up the story she had heard from Natalia and the story of Candice's departure to the Inselkov Kingdom to find Aila.
“There wasn’t any concrete evidence... but now I’m certain, thanks to His Highness the Crown Prince meeting Aila.”
She forced a smile and folded her hands neatly on her lap, trying to hide the trembling from Winfred.
It was truly fortunate. Had she not heard of this beforehand, she would have been in danger of showing an ugly side to the young Crown Prince, with no one to calm her down.
“Oh, I didn’t see Director Eposher. I see.”
Winfred answered in a somewhat tired voice.
He'd worked so hard to deliver this news as quickly as possible, only to find it was so late. Feeling a sense of emptiness, he relayed the following information.
“According to Aila... she said that there must be a spy planted by Byron in the Duke’s house here.”
“Ah, I see.”
But Ophelia wasn't surprised by the second piece of information, because it was what Candice had expected.
“It seems you knew this, too...”
“Yes, I expected it.”
Winfred felt needlessly sullen. He felt bad for not bringing Aila back after meeting her, but every piece of news he received was outdated.
He opened his mouth in a choked voice and apologized.
“I’m sorry, Duchess.”
“Huh? What the heck...?”
“...I really wanted to bring Aila this time, but it seems like there were some circumstances, and she said she absolutely had to return to Byron. So I couldn't bring her.”
He wants to help Aila, but all he can do is tell her parents.
Even that is just belated news that everyone already knows.
Ophelia tilted her head in confusion at Winfred's apology.
“...What’s the situation?”
“Yes, I think she’s a little scared...”
He didn't know it then, but thinking back now, Aila must have looked sad and nervous at his words, "Let's go back together."
Is Byron somehow threatening her? Is that why she can't leave him?
As his unforgivable uncle came to mind, Winfred unconsciously ground his teeth and clenched his fists. He couldn't fathom how someone with a soldering iron could be so vicious.
"...Yes."
And Ophelia, who had suffered more from Byron than anyone else and knew his wickedness better than anyone else, chewed her lips and was lost in thought.
If that were the case, he would never have left Aila alone. He would have used any means necessary to ensure she couldn't escape his side.
"Your Highness, by any chance... did Aila ever tell you anything about Byron's purpose? Why did he kidnap the child, for example..."
“Ah, that’s...”
Winfred swallowed hard. No matter how much he thought about it, the act was so heinous that he couldn't bring himself to say it out loud.
"To kill the Duke with Aila's own hands, she said. He intended to take revenge."
“...”
And when he finally opened his mouth in a crawling voice, Ophelia had to clench her fists to keep from expressing her anger.
Byron could not have kidnapped Ophelia and Roderick's daughter with good intentions, but he would have planned such a heinous plan.
It wasn't a new feeling, considering the past when he tried to kill his father with his own hands, but Ophelia couldn't stand the thought that her precious daughter, whom she would never hurt, was involved in that unfilial act.
And revenge, what on earth could possibly be the reason Byron harbored such a deep resentment towards Roderick that he would want to exact such cruel revenge?
It was also disgusting that he was so arbitrarily mistaken that Roderick betrayed him, and that he was so arbitrarily claiming that she was 'stolen' by Roderick.
Ophelia tried her best not to show her discomfort in front of the young Crown Prince, but Winfred, who was watching her closely, seemed to have lost his cool as he watched her expression.
"...I'm sorry."
He apologized in a voice that was ashamed of his face. Aila told him not to worry, but being related to Byron was truly embarrassing and upsetting.
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