“When my father first collapsed, the doctor diagnosed him with an incurable disease and prescribed specific herbs that he needed to take regularly to prevent his condition from getting worse.”
The disease diagnosed was one where the hands and feet gradually stiffen, and there’s still no special treatment available.
As the disease gets worse, the patient stays mentally sharp but can’t move their body, which makes it tough for both the patient and their caretaker.
“Since the diagnosis came from the duke’s personal physician, I believed without a doubt that my father had a disease. Luckily, the duke was understanding of our situation and continuously supported us with the herbs…”
Gallian clenched his jaw tightly.
“It turns out Albert planned everything. He poisoned my father to make his hands and feet stiffen, bribed the doctor to give a false diagnosis, and even took over the vacant head butler position after my father retired… Everything was his plan!”
“And the person who delivered the herbs for five years…?”
“It was Albert. He mixed poison into the herbs to gradually worsen my father’s condition.”
Despite not taking the medicine for weeks, his condition continued to deteriorate due to the poison he had been exposed to over time.
The duke’s household servants were murmuring in shock.
“But if you were receiving the herbs for five years, that means you didn’t realize Albert was up to something. How did you find out?”
“…The day before yesterday, I came here. Albert hadn’t sent any herbs for over two months.”
After enduring all sorts of mockery and insults, he was thrown out, and that’s when he ran into Daisy while he was in despair.
“It was just as I was going out with Hilde.”
Actually, she had asked Hilde to investigate Gallian.
But she happened to run into Gallian, who was looking for Albert.
“Seeing how serious the situation was, we decided to meet Mr. Leitner directly.”
Since Daisy was already working with Hilde, she contacted Jerome with her help to bring a competent doctor.
That’s how they uncovered the truth of the situation.
It was also revealed that the herbs received from the duke’s household were actually poisonous when combined.
“He’s been scheming from the start, wanting the head butler position, and poisoned my father. Looking back, all the caregivers who caused problems while taking care of my father were introduced by Albert.”
The caregivers neglected to take care of Leitner properly or even mistreated him, forcing Gallian to quit his job.
“So, is your father doing a bit better now?”
“Yes… Fortunately, we discovered it before it got worse, and he could get treatment. However, they said there would be some aftereffects from being exposed to the poison for so long.”
It’s clear that the poison wasn’t too strong; Leitner had survived for five years without dying.
The intention was probably to keep his health stable so Gallian wouldn’t be able to return to the duke’s household.
But now that Humphrey was about to take over Winston, Gallian would have no place to return, so he cut off the herbs.
“Your Highness, Albert is a selfish man. He won’t hesitate to harm others to climb higher; do you really think he has any circumstances worth considering?”
Leonhard shook his head with a serious expression.
“…I don’t think I need to hear anymore.”
His voice was sad, but there was a difficult decision hidden within it.
“That’s a wise choice.”
Hestia placed a hand on Leonhard’s shoulder, trying to comfort his troubled heart.
“Well, we’ve uncovered all the traitors now.”
Hestia scanned the guilty parties, then fixed her narrow eyes on the nervous Malrus.
“Count.”
Malrus flinched and cautiously lifted his head.
“You’ve been listening to everything I’ve said so far, right?”
“Y-yeah…”
“Then you must understand who these people have been giving their information to all this time?”
The fact that they were leaking internal information meant that someone had either ordered them to do so or bought that information.
And circumstantially, that person could only be one person.
“Why were you so curious that you planted so many spies in the duke’s household?”
“Ha, ha… I was just worried as a distant elder about whether you could do your job properly…”
“Right, so you were trying to frame me and throw me in prison.”
“Frame? I only acted on Albert’s tip…”
“Stop making excuses. Everyone has a brain, and it’s easy to guess who gave the orders, right?”
Malrus looked around. Many people were already looking at him with disdain, thinking of him as the culprit.
“B-but is there any evidence that I did it?”
“Hm?”
“You can’t just accuse someone without proof! You all should speak up! Did I ever tell you to go gather information for me? Or did I say to fake documents to frame Lady Frost? Go on, say it!”
Malrus yelled at those kneeling behind him.
At first, their faces were colored with shock, but soon they turned pale or trembled in humiliation.
“…No, it was all my own doing.”
“I was the only one who provided information to the count.”
“The count… didn’t make any offers to us.”
“Did you hear that? I’m innocent!”
As Malrus grew more confident, he smiled smugly.
‘Ah, I see how it is?’
Even if they committed the same crime, Malrus was a noble and could easily wriggle out using his connections and money, but these others couldn’t.
If they accused Humphrey, as mere commoners, they could face retribution.
Especially since they all knew firsthand how ruthless Humphrey could be.
“So, let’s at least get these restraints off…”
“Even so, that doesn’t clear your charges. Circumstantially, there’s no other suitable suspect than the count right now.”
“…Ugh.”
“If you’re truly innocent, please cooperate with the investigation. I’m not one to trap those without guilt.”
I won’t do the dirty work like you.
Hestia’s hidden meaning made Malrus frown, but for now, it was crucial not to provoke her mood, so he remained silent.
“Take the count safely away. We’ll proceed with the interrogation of the others as per protocol.”
Even as a noble, Hestia was giving Malrus some leniency.
As they watched the others being dragged off one by one to the underground prison, Lloyd quietly approached.
“Are you sure this is okay?”
“What do you mean?”
“If it’s Count Humphrey, he’ll definitely deny everything. It might be better to corner him into confessing…”
“That’s one way to go, but Count Humphrey isn’t going to confess that easily. Plus, it’s not like I can torture a noble without evidence, right?”
If Hestia’s status were higher than Malrus’s, it might not matter, but she was merely the guardian of the duke’s household.
Without that title, she was just a baroness.
If she wasn’t careful, she could face backlash from other nobles.
“And I don’t intend to let Count Humphrey go just like that.”
“Huh?”
“There are other ways to cut off his influence.”
With her cryptic smile, Lloyd unconsciously swallowed hard.
“I noticed that Oliver and a few other traitors seem to have a grudge against Count Humphrey. Focus on them. If possible, try to lure them into testifying that Humphrey is behind this.”
“Understood.”
“Now it’s just Albert left…”
“I’ll send someone to check on Chester.”
“Isn’t Albert staying in the servant’s quarters?”
“Yes, but I believe he also has a house in Chester.”
“Check the quarters, and send someone to his house in Chester too. We can’t afford for him to catch wind of this and run away.”
“Sure, I’ll take care of it.”
Aside from that, Hestia moved swiftly, calming the chaotic atmosphere.
Leonhard, who had been quietly watching her, clenched his fist.
‘She’s just like my father.’
A kind yet strong person.
That’s the perfect description for Hestia.
When Hestia’s gaze met Leonhard’s, her icy eyes softened into a gentle smile.
Leonhard’s heart raced.
“I’m sorry, my lord. I must have looked so foolish to you.”
“No way! Hestia, you’re amazing!”
“Really?”
“Yeah! Just like a father figure!”
Hestia’s eyes widened at that and she burst into laughter.
“You flatter me.”
“Flatter?”
“It means I’m really happy to hear that. But what’s that you’ve been holding in your hand?”
“Oh…!”
Leonhard finally looked at the paper. It was crumpled at the ends and damp with sweat from being clenched in his fist.
Suddenly feeling embarrassed that the drawing didn’t capture even a fraction of Hestia’s coolness, he stammered, “Ah, no.”
“Hm? Is that for me?”
“How did you know…?”
“I know everything. I don’t miss a thing about you, my lord!”
While Leonhard’s eyes sparkled and he gaped, Hestia caught the eye of the maid behind him, who gave her a thumbs-up.
“Actually… I wanted to give you a gift since you’ve been so busy lately…”
Leonhard fidgeted and shyly handed over the drawing.
It depicted Hestia and Leonhard standing against the backdrop of a grand duke’s castle.
Seeing their beaming faces in the drawing made Hestia feel an inexplicable warmth.
“I’m sorry… I could’ve drawn it better…”
“What are you talking about, my lord? It’s so wonderful!”
“Really?”
“Yes! It’s the best gift I’ve ever received. I’ll treasure it!”
Hestia hugged the drawing tightly, beaming with happiness, causing Leonhard’s cheeks to flush.
“Hehe, I’ll draw you another one next time! It’ll be even better!”
“I’ll be looking forward to it.”
The smile in the drawing clearly reflected Leonhard’s current feelings.
While busy with work, she sometimes felt anxious about whether she was doing enough to care for Leonhard and whether the child was truly happy.
After all, Leonhard was the one who had killed her in a previous life.
So sometimes, she saw glimpses of the cold-blooded person who had killed her, but today, she finally saw Leonhard’s true self instead of the shadow of his past.
All her previous worries and anxieties vanished in an instant.
‘I’ll make you smile even more from now on.’
━━━━━ ∙ʚ(✧)ɞ∙ ━━━━━
“Huff! Huff! Huff…!”
Gasping for breath, Albert finally managed to unlock the door and stepped into a house.
Then, he began throwing various items into the fireplace.
“Damn it, damn it…! She ruined everything just when I was almost there!”
Just 15 minutes ago, Albert had witnessed Hestia’s counterattack when he returned to the duke’s castle.
While everyone’s attention was focused on the central hall, he quietly slipped out of the castle and returned to his home in Chest.
‘If I get caught like this, I’ll definitely face all sorts of torture!’
He had only overheard a little, but Hestia had already captured all the spies around the castle and seemed to know all the crimes they had committed.
Since she had even detained Malrus, she must have had some solid evidence to act on.
Whether she knew whose orders he had been following, he didn’t know.
‘I must not get caught!’
If everything were to come out, a fate worse than rotting in a prison cell awaited him…!
“Is this enough?”
He stuffed everything into the fireplace until the flames roared. His room looked like a mess, as if a thief had ransacked it.
“I have to escape before they come to catch me…!”
Just as Albert was about to grab his last belongings and head out, he opened the door and came face-to-face with something.
His face turned pale in an instant.
Hello! This is the same as chapter 57.
Fixed
Thank you!
No problem Thank you so much for your Support❤️