He kept looking at Rosentine, and it was a bit of a burden for her, as she had to turn her eyes away from Hostang and make eye contact with him.
It was fortunate she wasn't laughing. If she was laughing, he wouldn't have had to be on high alert, but he wouldn't have been able to focus on the report.
Rosentine thought of Arolne. The thought of the face that would search for Shartus seemed to make him feel a little more at ease.
"I have been entrusted with the guidance of a noble young lady. I think I will be able to walk around the palace a little more comfortably from tomorrow."
"A noble young lady? A fortune teller's etiquette is not up to par, so why are you being shamed?"
The answer came from Hostang. Although his face was new as he spoke, he was a man who could not learn. Rosentine thought so and fed the counter.
"Surprisingly, the noblewoman seems to like my etiquette. Perhaps I am better at etiquette than Sir Hostang?"
Hostang wrinkled his face. It reminded her of a bag of chips that she had eaten.
"Who is it? Name."
"Young Lady Arolne."
Shartus asked, blocking the line between the two of them. He wanted to refrain from any more grumbling.
Rosentine's answer made the air in the reception room subtle.
"Arolne..."
"Arol.... Could it be that Arolne Mulde?"
In particular, when Lucen stammered as if he was about to say something, Rosentine caught the fact that he knew Arolne.
The angle of his slanted face and his restrained expression were honestly so cute that she wanted to laugh out loud.
"Yes, do you know?"
Rosentine responded with a shameless face.
She knew what Lucen wanted to say. Rosentine, who was sensitive to the gossip that spread secretly in high society, especially among women, couldn't have been unaware of her.
Of course, Lucen wouldn't know she knew the rumor. How much could a sorcerer outside of high society possibly know about the nobles? Perhaps it wasn't the first time he'd sought out a maid like this.
He would want to warn her. Anyway, Rosentine thought Lucen was a man of great recognition.
Shartus was clenching his chin in an oblique position.
Clashing eyes, Rosentine noticed that Shartus's gaze was not moving from her.
The way he smiled briefly, his face making a gust of wind, was so charming that it made her secretly chew her tongue. He smiled silently, but it was clear that he had sensed the unspoken message in Rosentine's demeanor.
"No, no. Hmm, I, Roan. One thing to note..."
"She was a very beautiful and elegant young lady."
This is a bold posture that blocks advance warnings.
Lucen couldn't continue and bit his lip. No, he can't even warn her.
But this was a sign that Rosentine had already been checked and would deal with her alone.
Lucen let out a groan at the mark of the territory. It was like saying that Rosentine would do something through the fight that Arolne was walking on.
There's something to be desired. After all, she had a temperament that could be called a swordsman, not a shaman, Lucen thought.
***
Arolne Mulde. Her acting skills are those of a woman who reads slander and power structures between people and cunningly elevates her position.
If her skills had been a little more sophisticated, she would have established herself as a definite talent, but unfortunately, she was only an enemy of women who were a little behind in the social world.
The so-called weak to the strong and strong to the weak, the young ladies who offended Arolne would cleverly have their lovers stolen one after another precisely because of her covetous beauty.
'Oh, what should I have done about Sir Morott's heart turning to me? Don't you think that restraint is only done by women who lack restraint? If you wanted to catch him for sure, you should have tried a little harder.'
'You seduced him!'
'It's almost as if I threatened you. Don't you think so, Sir Morott?'
'I didn't expect you to be such a narrow-minded woman.'
'I don't know!'
"All people live the same."
This was the thought that Rosentine had come to mind as she watched the scene. It wasn't right in front of her, but she could see the situation from the balcony across the street, even if she didn't bother to show it.
A ball some time ago. In terms of timing, it must have been before she was by Shartus' side.
The conversation, which could only be seen in morning dramas, culminated in the appearance of 'Lord Morott' from behind the curtain.
The man who gave the woman who once whispered love with a cold glance was not even handsome.
It was a disastrous defeat for a noblewoman who was at odds with Arolne in social circles. It was clear that the man's eyes were captivated by Arolne.
After subduing the Young Lady, Arolne neglected Morott. Rumors spread that Morott was begging to see Arolne, and Rosentine wondered what Morott's ex-lover, the Young Lady, would think.
Nevertheless, Arolne's popularity continued to grow. It was because she was the one in power.
'How long have you been by Shartus's side?'
She doesn't remember much. In the first place, there weren't many balls that Rosentine attended.
All she could hear from the mouths of the ghosts was that the black-haired beauty was hovering around. At some moments, it was visible, and at some moments it was not.
How much that stimulated Arolne's pride. Looking at Lucen's reaction, it was clear that she had also done quite a bit of trickery around him.
She was definitely a beautiful woman. Every moment she speaks, her gaze and pale skin leave a strange aftertaste. It was not unreasonable for many men and their followers to be fascinated.
However, Rosentine continued to think. A natural gaze turned to Shartus, who was looking at her.
Perhaps Arolne thought the same way as Rosentine. The bridge and contours of the nose make you sigh. Is there anyone else who fits the word magical so well?
"She's dazzling. Of course, it's not as good as Your Highness."
Shartus opened his eyes wide. Rosentine laughed proudly at the momentary collapse of his careless face.
But only for a moment.
Rosentine immediately bit her tongue and regretted it. Soon, Shartus had a charming smile that took her breath away.
"It's an honor."
The low-pitched voice was so rich that Rosentine wanted to cover her ears.
"...That's why work is done."
"So?"
His voice was full of playfulness as if he was teasing her.
'I'd rather die than know.'
Rosentine thought so, looking away from Shartus, and frowned at Hostang.
He was also looking at Chartus intently. Lucen had a subtle face that seemed to frown and looked funny.
Rosentine wanted to tell him, if you're going to make that face, why didn't you just tie my tongue a long time ago?
Of course, Lucien couldn't have anticipated what Rosentine would say.
As if it were a habit to see Shartus, she continued.
"I'm going to go downtown."
"Is it downtown?"
Shartus nodded with a smile on his lips. Fortunately, he didn't seem to want to play pranks anymore.
Rosentine spoke, still avoiding Shartus' gaze.
Once you officially become the noble lady's guide, your free time increases significantly. In addition, it would be even better if Arolne asked her to run an errand at a boutique in the city.
If Arolne didn't ask for an errand, and planned to falsely sell Shartus' taste, and volunteered to run an errand. The Prince likes dresses with a corsage.
"We will have to start with the investigation."
"Does anyone really know about Perutsa?"
"I want to ask my sorcery, not people."
"I'm really curious about the principle."
"It's a family business secret."
Lucen made a serious face. Normally, no matter how much he searched the city, the information that came out was limited.
Of course, Rosentine wasn't planning on roaming the streets lined with boutiques and shops, shouting out Perutsa poison. He wanted to find a more discreet way to obtain more useful information.
Hostang's face crumpled at the thought of Rosentine's continued secret.
Even if it wasn't particularly funny, she couldn't tell him anything about the ghost. While she felt a vague sense of camaraderie while foiling a poisoning plot, she still had to be careful.
"Do you know anything about Perutsa's poison?"
Rosentine was lost in thought. Originally, she was going to find out the mastermind through poison. Rare poisons will be easy to find out the route.
But Perutsa is also a poison. A very rare poison. There was no way she could know where they got this. However, time was running out for her to go to the Auro family.
In the meantime, Shartus may be killed by another conspiracy.
It was obvious that the poison was something that the mastermind originally owned or had been handed down to him personally.
It wouldn't be easy to get such poison anywhere. Rosentine was also aware of the existence of the underground auction house, but if the poison from such an auction house was used, it would surely be rumored after Shartus was assassinated.
Since he used poison that left no trace, he probably wouldn't have wanted that.
"Only one. The alchemist told me something."
"What is it?"
Shartus raised an eyebrow. They weren't just playing around while Rosentine worked.
The information in the palace was Rosentine's, and as always, it was the Imperial Family's own job to monitor the silence. The alchemist that Lucen visited was also the one they had kept a relationship with.
"To activate the poison, you need to put a catalyst."
"Catalyst?"
"Yes. Perutsa's poison is not an ordinary poison. It is a poison made by grinding magical scales, so it needs a magical medium. To properly exert Perutsa's unique effect, it is necessary to add a catalyst to activate it."
"If poison is difficult, how about a catalyst? What kind of catalyst do you need?"
"They say they don't have that information."
Lucen looked troubled. First of all, there was no information about Perusa's poison, let alone about Perusa itself. The books that featured Perutsa's poison the most were books that recorded myths.
Shartus rubbed his chin, lost in thought. The languid falling hair hid his downward gaze.
"Information... What did you think of the words that came out of his mouth?"
It was a word for a spy.
The man said his name was Nord. Along with poison, it was the second clue they had.
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