I climbed the stairs absentmindedly and headed towards the center of the commotion.
I followed the commotion and found people crowded around a room.
'Oh my god... Oh my god...!'
A little while ago, I felt the castle was a bit noisy, so I stopped one of the employees who was running around in a hurry and asked him what was going on.
“The maid you brought from the palace has been murdered!”
I thought I heard something wrong.
'There must have been some mistake.'
A murder occurred in Ronheim Castle.
And not far from my room, my maid died.
I wanted to believe that someone was playing a bad prank.
But judging by the atmosphere, it didn't seem like a joke.
“Everyone, get out of the way.”
As I spoke urgently, the employees who had just discovered me began to move away from me like an ebb tide, clearing the way.
I approached the wide-open door with a trembling heart.
Then someone suddenly popped out of the room.
“I would prefer that you don’t see this, Madam.”
It was Granada.
I saw the blood trail on the floor every time she walked.
There was blood on the heel of one of her shoes and on her prosthetic leg.
“The body is so gruesome that it is not fit for Your Highness to see.”
I shook my head.
“No, I’ll see for myself.”
I was very nervous, but I wanted to see it with my own eyes.
What happened, how it happened, and who the victims were.
Whoever it was, it was because of me that they came here.
Granada readily gave way to my stubbornness.
I swallowed hard and looked around the room.
There were two small beds in the windowless room, and a desk and a wardrobe that seemed to be shared.
And there was a body in the space between the beds.
'...!'
The corpse lay in a grotesque position, like a marionette with its strings cut off, its clothes and face covered in blood.
Blood was still flowing from under the corpse, spreading widely across the floor.
“Vanessa...!”
The dead maid was Vanessa.
The guards who arrived first were examining Vanessa's body here and there, trying to determine the cause of death.
The moment I saw her wide-open eyes, I felt dizzy and staggered.
“Chloe.”
Someone caught me.
I looked up and saw Callius looking down at me with his hair all disheveled.
I heard he was at the training ground, so it looks like he came running after hearing the news.
“Are you okay?”
I shook my head. My lips felt cold.
Callius looked worried, wondering if the color had drained from my face, and handed me over to Granada.
“Take Madam to her room.”
But instead of going back to my room with Granada, I grabbed Callius's arm.
“Who could this be? Have you guessed anything or heard anything?”
"I haven't received any reports yet. The gates are closed, so the murderer probably can't escape. We need to gather all the employees and investigate."
Callius told the knight to stay close to him, as there was a killer inside, and it was dangerous.
“Escort the madam.”
He left me in the care of Alex, the red-haired knight among the knights who followed him.
Alex seemed a little embarrassed to be singled out for such a heavy responsibility, especially since he was the youngest, but he answered loyally.
"Yes!"
Then one of the guards who had been examining Vanessa's body approached Callius.
"It appears to have been struck by some magical, superhuman force. There are no signs of weapons or tools."
"Magic?"
Until then, the employees who had gathered in the hallway heard that and started to murmur.
“Is there anyone in the castle who knows how to use magic?”
“I’ve never heard of such a thing.”
“A wizard? Did you come from outside?”
“But outsiders won’t be able to get in here.”
“Even if you came in through the outer wall, there aren’t any windows in this room... That’s strange.”
I also had a feeling that it wasn't the work of an outsider.
Why would an outsider risk his life to sneak into Ronheim Castle and kill Vanessa, the maid?
'Vanessa was annoying, but she earned a grudge that was enough to kill her... '
When I thought about it that far, I suddenly remembered the fight Vanessa had earlier had with Lamia, where they had grabbed each other by the hair.
It was clear that Lamia's life depended on her identity being revealed.
If it were Lamia, she would have thought of shutting Vanessa's mouth somehow.
'But Lamia said she only used a little illusion magic. And besides, she's probably imprisoned by now.'
I didn't want to think that Lamia would do such a terrible thing.
For various reasons, it was the moment when I concluded that it couldn't be Lamia.
“Madam! We’re in trouble!”
Two guards came running from across the hallway.
“The maid whom the madam ordered to be confined has disappeared!”
“...!”
Callius and Granada looked at me.
It had only been a few dozen minutes since Vanessa and Lamia had been fighting over hair, so it seemed like neither of them was aware of the commotion in the bedroom.
Callius asked.
“Did you tell them to lock up the maid?”
“Oh, that’s...”
“What happened?”
Since things had come to this, I had no choice but to confide in my husband, Callius, and my assistant, Granada, about what had happened with Lamia.
“...So Lamia was falsely accused in my place. So I took responsibility and brought her here to help her escape, but Vanessa recognized her and...”
I looked at Callius worriedly.
"Did Lamia really murder Vanessa? She's not the kind of person who would kill someone just to silence them..."
I remembered the warm water bag Lamia had given me.
I honestly wanted to defend her, if only I could, by saying that my arms were bent inward.
But the leader's sense of responsibility said that this should not be the case.
'If it was really Lamia who killed Vanessa... I can't forgive murder anyway.'
I want to believe Lamia, but given the circumstances, she was the most likely suspect.
I desperately hoped that Lamia wasn't the culprit.
Callius listened to me and was lost in thought.
"That's strange. She was running away from the Empress's Palace. What happened there?"
That part seemed to bother him the most out of all the things I had said.
Granada was surprising in her own way.
"Are you saying she escaped the palace alone? She even hid for days without anyone noticing, then disguised herself and escaped?"
The two of them looked strangely relaxed.
She seemed convinced that even if she ran away, she would never escape Ronheim.
Granada asked.
“She was a gypsy and had a history of putting you in danger, yet you trusted her?”
It stung.
My shoulders hunched involuntarily, as I had recently heard from Karl that I was too trusting of people.
“In my opinion... She seemed like a good person.”
I muttered without meeting Granada's gaze.
Granada said sternly.
“Raise your head, Madam. When you speak, look people straight in the eye and speak clearly.”
"Yes."
I couldn't overcome her momentum and reluctantly raised my head.
Granada asked.
“Do you still believe her?”
I spoke uncertainly, trying not to drop my gaze.
“Honestly, I’d like to do that, but the circumstances are...”
"I asked about your feelings, Madam, and nothing else. Let me ask again: Do you still trust her?"
That was a really difficult question.
Granada was asking me to make the right decision.
I had only two choices: believe in Lamia or not.
I couldn't mumble or hesitate, nor could I give a vague answer. Granada wouldn't let me do that.
I looked at Callius with eyes that asked for help.
But Callius just watched me and Granada silently, as if he had no intention of helping.
He seemed to want me to talk to Granada directly.
I had no choice but to make a big decision and answer.
“Yeah. I trust Lamia.”
"Great."
Granada suddenly smiled faintly.
“Since you have confided your secret to me, I will also confide mine.”
“...?”
It was an unexpected turn of events.
Granada spoke in a firm tone.
“I have decided that you are trustworthy and that I will trust you, so I will speak with the determination to take responsibility for the consequences.”
I thought it was really cool that Granada said that she trusts her own judgment and that she will take responsibility for the consequences of that judgment.
I listened to her seriously.
“I was originally an assassin.”
“Cougj!”
I followed the commotion and found people crowded around a room.
'Oh my god... Oh my god...!'
A little while ago, I felt the castle was a bit noisy, so I stopped one of the employees who was running around in a hurry and asked him what was going on.
“The maid you brought from the palace has been murdered!”
I thought I heard something wrong.
'There must have been some mistake.'
A murder occurred in Ronheim Castle.
And not far from my room, my maid died.
I wanted to believe that someone was playing a bad prank.
But judging by the atmosphere, it didn't seem like a joke.
“Everyone, get out of the way.”
As I spoke urgently, the employees who had just discovered me began to move away from me like an ebb tide, clearing the way.
I approached the wide-open door with a trembling heart.
Then someone suddenly popped out of the room.
“I would prefer that you don’t see this, Madam.”
It was Granada.
I saw the blood trail on the floor every time she walked.
There was blood on the heel of one of her shoes and on her prosthetic leg.
“The body is so gruesome that it is not fit for Your Highness to see.”
I shook my head.
“No, I’ll see for myself.”
I was very nervous, but I wanted to see it with my own eyes.
What happened, how it happened, and who the victims were.
Whoever it was, it was because of me that they came here.
Granada readily gave way to my stubbornness.
I swallowed hard and looked around the room.
There were two small beds in the windowless room, and a desk and a wardrobe that seemed to be shared.
And there was a body in the space between the beds.
'...!'
The corpse lay in a grotesque position, like a marionette with its strings cut off, its clothes and face covered in blood.
Blood was still flowing from under the corpse, spreading widely across the floor.
“Vanessa...!”
The dead maid was Vanessa.
The guards who arrived first were examining Vanessa's body here and there, trying to determine the cause of death.
The moment I saw her wide-open eyes, I felt dizzy and staggered.
“Chloe.”
Someone caught me.
I looked up and saw Callius looking down at me with his hair all disheveled.
I heard he was at the training ground, so it looks like he came running after hearing the news.
“Are you okay?”
I shook my head. My lips felt cold.
Callius looked worried, wondering if the color had drained from my face, and handed me over to Granada.
“Take Madam to her room.”
But instead of going back to my room with Granada, I grabbed Callius's arm.
“Who could this be? Have you guessed anything or heard anything?”
"I haven't received any reports yet. The gates are closed, so the murderer probably can't escape. We need to gather all the employees and investigate."
Callius told the knight to stay close to him, as there was a killer inside, and it was dangerous.
“Escort the madam.”
He left me in the care of Alex, the red-haired knight among the knights who followed him.
Alex seemed a little embarrassed to be singled out for such a heavy responsibility, especially since he was the youngest, but he answered loyally.
"Yes!"
Then one of the guards who had been examining Vanessa's body approached Callius.
"It appears to have been struck by some magical, superhuman force. There are no signs of weapons or tools."
"Magic?"
Until then, the employees who had gathered in the hallway heard that and started to murmur.
“Is there anyone in the castle who knows how to use magic?”
“I’ve never heard of such a thing.”
“A wizard? Did you come from outside?”
“But outsiders won’t be able to get in here.”
“Even if you came in through the outer wall, there aren’t any windows in this room... That’s strange.”
I also had a feeling that it wasn't the work of an outsider.
Why would an outsider risk his life to sneak into Ronheim Castle and kill Vanessa, the maid?
'Vanessa was annoying, but she earned a grudge that was enough to kill her... '
When I thought about it that far, I suddenly remembered the fight Vanessa had earlier had with Lamia, where they had grabbed each other by the hair.
It was clear that Lamia's life depended on her identity being revealed.
If it were Lamia, she would have thought of shutting Vanessa's mouth somehow.
'But Lamia said she only used a little illusion magic. And besides, she's probably imprisoned by now.'
I didn't want to think that Lamia would do such a terrible thing.
For various reasons, it was the moment when I concluded that it couldn't be Lamia.
“Madam! We’re in trouble!”
Two guards came running from across the hallway.
“The maid whom the madam ordered to be confined has disappeared!”
“...!”
Callius and Granada looked at me.
It had only been a few dozen minutes since Vanessa and Lamia had been fighting over hair, so it seemed like neither of them was aware of the commotion in the bedroom.
Callius asked.
“Did you tell them to lock up the maid?”
“Oh, that’s...”
“What happened?”
***
Since things had come to this, I had no choice but to confide in my husband, Callius, and my assistant, Granada, about what had happened with Lamia.
“...So Lamia was falsely accused in my place. So I took responsibility and brought her here to help her escape, but Vanessa recognized her and...”
I looked at Callius worriedly.
"Did Lamia really murder Vanessa? She's not the kind of person who would kill someone just to silence them..."
I remembered the warm water bag Lamia had given me.
I honestly wanted to defend her, if only I could, by saying that my arms were bent inward.
But the leader's sense of responsibility said that this should not be the case.
'If it was really Lamia who killed Vanessa... I can't forgive murder anyway.'
I want to believe Lamia, but given the circumstances, she was the most likely suspect.
I desperately hoped that Lamia wasn't the culprit.
Callius listened to me and was lost in thought.
"That's strange. She was running away from the Empress's Palace. What happened there?"
That part seemed to bother him the most out of all the things I had said.
Granada was surprising in her own way.
"Are you saying she escaped the palace alone? She even hid for days without anyone noticing, then disguised herself and escaped?"
The two of them looked strangely relaxed.
She seemed convinced that even if she ran away, she would never escape Ronheim.
Granada asked.
“She was a gypsy and had a history of putting you in danger, yet you trusted her?”
It stung.
My shoulders hunched involuntarily, as I had recently heard from Karl that I was too trusting of people.
“In my opinion... She seemed like a good person.”
I muttered without meeting Granada's gaze.
Granada said sternly.
“Raise your head, Madam. When you speak, look people straight in the eye and speak clearly.”
"Yes."
I couldn't overcome her momentum and reluctantly raised my head.
Granada asked.
“Do you still believe her?”
I spoke uncertainly, trying not to drop my gaze.
“Honestly, I’d like to do that, but the circumstances are...”
"I asked about your feelings, Madam, and nothing else. Let me ask again: Do you still trust her?"
That was a really difficult question.
Granada was asking me to make the right decision.
I had only two choices: believe in Lamia or not.
I couldn't mumble or hesitate, nor could I give a vague answer. Granada wouldn't let me do that.
I looked at Callius with eyes that asked for help.
But Callius just watched me and Granada silently, as if he had no intention of helping.
He seemed to want me to talk to Granada directly.
I had no choice but to make a big decision and answer.
“Yeah. I trust Lamia.”
"Great."
Granada suddenly smiled faintly.
“Since you have confided your secret to me, I will also confide mine.”
“...?”
It was an unexpected turn of events.
Granada spoke in a firm tone.
“I have decided that you are trustworthy and that I will trust you, so I will speak with the determination to take responsibility for the consequences.”
I thought it was really cool that Granada said that she trusts her own judgment and that she will take responsibility for the consequences of that judgment.
I listened to her seriously.
“I was originally an assassin.”
“Cougj!”
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