“Dorothy, you know? She turned out to be a spy for the Pose family.”
“What? Dorothy, the one I know? The one who read those adult novels all by herself?”
“Yes, she was a spy.”
“No way. I never saw that coming.”
“Right? The war just ended, and now there’s a spy…”
Everything went as I expected.
As soon as Dorothy’s maid uniform with the report was found, the Kreutz duchy went into chaos.
‘Now, when Calypse visits the Duktia Kingdom, he can bring his knights for protection, right?’
It was so obvious.
Just discovering a spy could restart the war. So, the one who needed to beg and bow now was the Duke of Pose.
‘Even if Calypse brings about 100 knights, they wouldn’t dare complain.’
Hmph. Serves them right.
Bam-
Lying on the bed, I raised my thumb in victory.
Things were going well. Now, if Calypse could bring the Lady back, I might finally escape from the Pose family.
“Until then, I should take a nap…”
Bang-!
“Aisha. His Excellency has ordered you to come to the office.”
“…What?”
I was supposed to be taking a nap.
I had one leg raised in the air, frozen in place.
* * *
As I followed the knight out the door-
Someone’s scream echoed in my ears not far away.
“If you’re taking me, take that Aisha kid too! She’s a spy too!”
It was Dorothy.
She was being dragged by two knights but was struggling so hard that she barely held her ground in the corridor.
“I’m telling you, Aisha’s a spy too! Why are you only taking me?”
Her bloodshot eyes were not normal.
She should have been preparing to leave the Kreutz duchy by now, but she couldn’t believe she was suddenly being taken to prison by knights.
“Oh, Aisha?”
At that moment.
Dorothy’s face brightened slightly upon seeing me.
“You’re taking her too, right? Right?”
No way. Did I get caught too?
I looked up at the knights nervously, but they didn’t seem to be listening.
“Knights, please take her away quickly.”
Instead, a maid muttered in discomfort.
“Resa, believe me and soak the kid’s clothes in ice water. We were close.”
Dorothy pleaded pitifully, her eyebrows drooping sadly, recognizing a familiar face.
It seemed she intended to act humble since things weren’t going her way.
“It’s true. I didn’t want to tell you, but… until yesterday, we were planning together. Spy plans. So, you need to expose that kid as a spy too. Please?”
Unfortunately for her, the maid named Resa wasn’t listening either.
“Please take her away quickly. I’m ashamed to even be associated with her.”
“……”
“No, I’ll just leave.”
Resa, looking like she didn’t want to be in the same corridor as Dorothy, walked away.
‘Wow. That’s the end of a failed spy.’
A spy, regardless of intentions, builds connections while carrying out their mission.
When people realize you’re a spy, the blame and ridicule fall solely on you.
“…Being a spy is so pathetic?”
Servants gathered around, whispering about Dorothy’s outburst.
“Right? And clinging to a child too…”
“That kid found the Lady’s whereabouts, right? How can she be a spy?”
“But how did that kid know? It’s a bit suspicious.”
I almost flinched at the obvious remark but relaxed when the next words followed.
“Even so, no way. The Pose family wouldn’t send a five-year-old as a spy, would they?”
Yes, they did.
Feeling their gaze piercing through me, I hid behind the knight.
But it was clear now that the Duke of Pose’s suspicion was correct. A five-year-old would easily escape the suspicion of being a spy.
“Ignore her nonsense. Let’s go.”
The knight also dismissed Dorothy, speaking kindly to me.
So, it really was just the Duke calling for me.
Relieved, I answered boldly.
“Yes.”
As I followed the knight and passed by Dorothy,
“You! Do you think you can hide your identity forever?!”
Dorothy, who had gone quiet, started screaming again.
“If you keep switching sides, you’ll be abandoned and unrecognized! Choose a side and act accordingly!”
“……”
“And, you found my clothes while doing laundry?! You did it on purpose!”
‘…I found it?’
Among the curses I tried to ignore, there was one I couldn’t overlook.
I hesitated for 0.5 seconds but continued walking.
Something felt off.
I did reveal Dorothy’s identity, but I never showed her report to anyone or said anything about her being a spy.
“……”
That means someone else knew my actions.
“Your Excellency, I have brought Aisha.”
Lost in thought, I clenched my fists.
With a polite knock, the knight announced, and a deep voice replied from beyond the door.
“Enter.”
As I stepped inside, I saw Duke Calypse, whom I hadn’t seen in a while.
“Leave the child and wait outside.”
“Yes, I will wait outside.”
The knight, who had greeted me with a glance, quietly closed the door and disappeared.
Before I knew it, only Duke Calypse and I were left in the office.
Calm down, Aisha.
Why did the Duke call me at this time?
“…Your, your Excellency.”
Trying to act nonchalant, I greeted him, but my voice nearly broke into three parts from nerves.
The air around me felt like it was weighing down my shoulders like heavy lead.
For some reason, something felt terribly wrong.
I looked at Duke Calypse, who always wore a mask.
His long, straight fingers tapped rhythmically on the luxurious oak desk.
A private audience. No escort knights, not even his aide Knox, just the two of us.
His eyes, the only part of his face visible above the mask, were focused entirely on me, creating a tense atmosphere.
Just as I blinked in this odd staring contest,
“!”
A black mask suddenly appeared in front of my eyes.
“……”
Startled, my body involuntarily flinched.
In just a blink, Duke Calypse had approached me and knelt, meeting my gaze.
‘How… when…’
The question I wanted to ask,
“How.”
Duke Calypse asked first.
“How can you be so calm?”
With an inexplicable question.
“If you were an ordinary child, you’d either faint or burst into tears. Even adults wouldn’t be able to look me in the eye.”
And he said it so nonchalantly.
“……”
His blood-red eyes, glowing through the black mask, were observing me.
After staring into my soul for a long while, he finally explained the meaning of his words.
“I’m emitting enough killing intent that would make even adults faint or cry. Yet, here you are, standing unscathed.”
We were so close our breaths almost touched.
Though he knelt to meet my gaze, his stature was intimidatingly large.
Resting his elbows on his knees, he looked like a crouching predator.
“You’re not scared at all, are you?”
There was a hint of amusement in his low voice.
I finally managed to answer with my trembling voice.
“I’m scared.”
“Then you’re pretending not to be scared.”
“Yes.”
“I see. You must have been taught that way at the Pose family.”
“!”
But his seemingly casual words made my eyes widen in shock.
‘He already knew?’
Unbelievable. No one was supposed to know.
Duke Calypse shouldn’t have found any evidence proving I was a spy.
Sure, he might have noticed I was smarter than a typical five-year-old. But what else could he have seen?
“How, how did you know…”
My voice shook.
His sharp gaze exposed my hidden emotions.
“…Now you’re acting like a typical five-year-old.”
Watching my frightened reaction, Calypse muttered softly.
Why?
I didn’t know why, but he seemed slightly relieved that I was behaving like a normal five-year-old.
But I was too overwhelmed by the realization that my identity was discovered.
“Are you going to kill me?”
My fingers spread like spider webs, terrified by my own question.
“……?”
His cold eyes softened slightly for the first time.
“Where did you learn to say such things?”
“Oh… from the Pose family.”
“Stop talking about that damn family. Answer my questions from now on.”
“Yes.”
Straightening up, I stood stiffly.
But my legs were trembling, barely holding me up.
“How many young spies are there in your family?”
“I’m the first to be assigned a spy mission at five…”
At that moment.
“Sigh-.”
Before I could finish, the Duke sighed deeply.
What did I do wrong? Get it together, Aisha!
“!”
Just as I braced my shaky legs, the Duke suddenly grabbed me under my armpits.
Startled, I closed my eyes, feeling myself being moved somewhere. Soon, I felt the soft cushion of a sofa under my bottom.
‘This touch. I’ve felt it before.’
‘Ungrateful children can’t stay in the garden. Get out.’
“… Mr. Gardener?”
“What?”
Both the Duke and I widened our eyes in surprise.
“…Oops.”
I hastily covered my mouth, but it was too late.
