Suppressing his rising anger, Mrs. Wells’ actions seemed rational.
“I had not expressed my gratitude for enabling me to live like a human because of you, so I will let this incident pass in exchange.”
“From now on…this will not happen again.”
Her voice caught in her throat. She owed a debt of gratitude to Carol.
Mrs. Wells’ voice grew thick with emotion. The Duke pretended not to notice.
“It’s been a while since we had tea together.”
“We did have tea occasionally before the teacher came…It has been a long time.”
After composing herself while fetching water, Mrs. Wells returned and brewed tea with a composure that belied her earlier emotions.
Taking a sip, the Duke sighed.
“That child must be completely unaware of his circumstances.”
“…Yes. He believes Your Grace took him in and may even make him your heir.”
“Yet I have never seen him, so he must have been anxious, not even being allowed in the main castle.”
The Duke clicked his tongue, pursing his lips.
Poor child. Being oppressed from a young age may help him better adapt as a monster, but wasn’t that no different than livestock?
“I have no intention of having a child.”
“…Yes, I understand.”
No woman would wish to be embraced by one with his appearance. He refused to become a stud forced to sire an heir.
‘So that child will become the heir as the council intends.’
The reason the orphanage brought Noah specifically was because he was born with silver hair and red eyes.
The most concentrated blood of the Winternox line.
It left a bitter taste. While silver hair and red eyes were said to mark the heir, it was really no different than a stigma.
“Let’s put that discussion aside for now. We still have time.”
“Yes, I will counsel him well. Your Grace need not worry excessively.”
The Duke set down his teacup. There was still a matter to address first.
“Please do. And have Young Viscount Walden be summoned to the castle.”
****
Louis sighed heavily, gazing at the box he held.
The box Mrs. Wells had handed to the Duke was now clutched in Louis’ hands.
“Whew…”
And he once again set foot into the Duke’s Mansion, which he thought he may never re-enter.
Louis deliberately visited the mansion in the early afternoon. Though the chances of an encounter were low, he did not wish to see Carol even with those small odds.
He did not want her to know he had come here at the Duke’s behest, nor that all of this was for her sake.
He knew it was petty, but he couldn’t help it.
Why did the Duke go to such lengths? The Duke’s actions to protect Carol only made Louis more uneasy.
Yet it was something he could not refuse.
He had heard everything from the one who brought these jewels about the humiliation Carol suffered yesterday.
‘I lost completely.’
As much as he didn’t want to admit it this time, he had no choice.
This was an unavoidable situation, even after being warned.
Click.
Before his thoughts could spiral further, the reception door opened.
“…I heard you left early.”
Margaret Chesworth looked Louis up and down. Her displeasure at this visit was palpable.
“I turned back in haste after hearing some news before departing.”
There was no need to mention here that he intended to stay until Founding Day.
“Ah. I certainly warned you. This wouldn’t have happened if you had left sooner.”
“My, you think I’ve come to confront you.”
“…Haven’t you?”
“Not at all. The idea of confronting the Miss is preposterous.”
Louis deftly flattered Margaret. One of her eyebrows arched in suspicion that it wasn’t a confrontation after all.
“Haha. You’re more nobly bred than I thought.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
Margaret scoffed at his cold composure, unlike rushing to the north to see a friend.
“Then why have you come?”
Louis took out the box clutched in his hand, set it on the table, and slid it towards her.
“What’s this?”
“You’ll understand faster by seeing for yourself than listening to my explanation.”
Click.
The box opened and Margaret’s eyes slowly widened.
“Why does the young viscount have this?”
This item would only be a burden for the Duke to possess.
To clear the false accusation, this item needed to surface. But then who would end up with these jewels would become an issue.
‘The Duke has no intention of marrying the Miss.’
If so, he could have simply gifted her jewels he personally selected, and the matter would be settled.
But what if the Duke gave the emerald to Carol?
‘Miss would take it as a grave insult.’
Among those aware of the theft incident who had the means to buy the emerald and willingly return it, Louis could only think of himself.
“…I happened to visit the general store and purchased it, thinking it was a quality item.”
“Happened to?”
“Yes. I was struggling to find a suitable gift for my mother.”
“Ah, for the Viscountess.”
Margaret’s gaze softened upon hearing who the jewels were for.
“But just before departing, I was asked to testify to clear Carol’s false charge. They also asked if I had seen these jewels before.”
The Duke’s reason for giving Louis the jewels was simple.
It was because the simplest way to resolve this incident was for the Duke to remain completely unassociated with it in any direction.
“Thanks to you coming, we’ve recovered this precious item.”
His purpose in coming here was not just to return the jewels.
He had just brushed off the suspicion on Carol as none of his business, but in truth, this was the main point.
“From what I heard, there wasn’t much time difference between when the store owner bought the item and when I did.”
“To go to such lengths. You must be quite busy, so I’ve caused you unnecessary worry.”
Margaret seemed uncomfortable with Louis involving himself in this matter.
But Louis had no intention of stopping.
“Right after that, I visited Carol’s residence, so I can likely provide her an alibi.”
“…I see.”
“Ah, and that’s not all.”
Louis paused briefly and sipped his tea. Noting the frozen atmosphere and eyes on him, he spoke in a more relaxed tone than before.
“Coincidentally, it seems I encountered the culprit on the way to the general store.”
“…The culprit?”
“You said brown hair, did you not?”
Louis’ gaze shifted behind Margaret, appraisingly eyeing Kate’s build. She trembled under his blatant stare.
“You saw the culprit?”
“Only from behind, but still.”
With no concrete evidence and only a witness, they could put forth a witness of their own.
From here, it was a bluff.
In card games with a poor hand, one deliberately plays aggressively to force the opponent to fold, as if holding stronger cards. The opponent can only hesitate.
Testifying with the stolen item itself would lend considerable weight to that testimony.
Louis pursed his lips. Margaret was likely inwardly weighing whether his words were true or not.
“I see.”
“The person seemed taller than Carol. Ah, yes, about the same height as your servant standing there, Miss.”
While he said “seemed”, his lingering gaze made it appear he knew full well Kate was the culprit.
Kate had checked repeatedly on the way back – there was definitely no one there.
Yet under this man’s piercing gaze that saw right through her, Kate became flustered.
‘Did I not look behind me properly?’
If so, if the young viscount outright accused her as the culprit…
The mere thought was dreadful. Cold sweat beaded on Kate’s palms.
“You have a good memory.”
It was a probing question – how could he have seen and remembered the culprit in that brief moment?
“The owner was in an uproar, saying the item had just arrived. A face impatient to sell it quickly.”
“…I see.”
Doubt still lingered, admirably unwilling to let down her guard until the very end. But Louis had anticipated the possibility she might not believe him when coming here.
“And if you still find me suspicious, I was with another customer before entering the general store, so please let me know if you need another witness.”
That man would probably just say “I think I may have seen him” in a confident tone, despite merely sitting at a tea shop drinking tea. Especially since he was putting effort into his daughter’s capital society debut, he would certainly side with Louis, tipping the scale of witnesses in his favor.
“Since I’ve recovered the jewels, I have no intention of causing a further commotion.”
“Is that so?”
“While catching the culprit is important, this castle seems to dislike disturbances.”
Margaret shrugged as if she couldn’t help it. Her expression appeared calm.
‘But her servant’s face behind her tells a different story.’
The servant looked ghastly pale. Louis felt pity, but had no intention of helping another’s servant.
“It’s my utmost joy if I could be of any assistance to the Miss.”
“As for the jewels’ cost…please bill the family when you return to the capital. I’ll be grateful.”
“I’d rather not put a price between us.”
She surely didn’t think this whole situation was mere coincidence. But in any case, he had become someone who recovered jewels that were almost sold.
‘It wasn’t my doing, but since I was used, I might as well get this much.’
It was more profitable to collect this debt in another way later instead of money.
“I won’t forget.”
The tea had long grown cold. After draining the chilled cup, Louis rose from his seat, having no desire to prolong polite conversation wasting time.
“Then I shall take my leave to look for a new gift.”
“Take care.”
Margaret also seemed to feel the same, giving a brief parting remark.
