Episode 110
During the peak of preparations for the Founding Festival, Lily Lowell finally arrived in the capital. Instead of a formal entrance, the meeting took place at the hideout of the Gordon Trading Company.
Having received the summons, Lily entered the capital alone, avoiding any escort to elude potential pursuit by the Duke. Azade welcomed her warmly.
“You’ve finally arrived. I’ve been waiting forever.”
“It’s been a long time, Your Majesty,” Lily replied, kneeling on one knee and presenting her sword in the manner of a knight. Her tied-up hair fell forward with her bowed gaze.
The silver armor she wore shimmered with dignity, reflecting her status as a knight.
“Sorry for the sudden call. The matter is urgent.”
“It’s alright. I was planning to come to the capital for the Founding Festival anyway,” Lily said with a slight smile as she stood. Jack, who was beside her, spoke up.
“Don’t just stand there, Lily. Come, take a seat. And seriously, why are you still wearing that stiff armor? It must be uncomfortable.”
“You’re still as rude as ever,” Lily retorted.
“And you’re as rigid as always,” Jack shot back, chuckling. Shaking her head, Lily took a seat next to him and went straight to the point.
“Nocturne has disappeared.”
“He left this behind and vanished,” Azaid said, holding out a note but then paused.
“Hmm?”
“What’s wrong?” Lily asked, puzzled. Azade muttered in confusion.
“The mark… Where did it go?”
When he last checked with Serena, the cat symbol was clearly visible. But now, it had completely disappeared. As Azade fell silent, Jack urged him.
“What’s going on? Did the signal you mentioned disappear?”
“Yes, it’s gone.”
“What?” Jack exclaimed, snatching the note to inspect it. Traces of Nocturne’s mana lingered faintly, but the symbol was nowhere to be seen.
“What does this mean?” Jack asked.
“I’m not sure,” Azaid admitted, staring uneasily at the note. Magic typically doesn’t vanish unless the caster dispels it personally.
This could only mean one of two things: Nocturne had removed the magic themselves, or something had happened to them.
“Lily, we need to act quickly,” Azaid said in a low voice. Lily nodded firmly.
“Yes, I agree, Your Majesty.”
Her voice also carried a grim tone, causing Jack to nervously run a hand through his hair.
“What on earth is going on?”
As the tense atmosphere lingered, Leonard sat lost in thought. Azaid noticed and asked, “What are you thinking about?”
“Ah, it’s nothing,” Leonard stammered, startled, rubbing the back of his neck. Although it seemed suspicious, Azaid chose to shift the conversation.
“What’s the latest on James Greenwood?”
“He’s still desperately searching for Nocturne.”
“Nocturne seems quite popular. The uproar over finding them is impressive,” Jack quipped with a whistle. Leonard continued.
“After the explosion incident involving Patrick Greenwood, it seems James Greenwood harbors resentment towards Nocturne.”
“They must have been close, then.”
“Considering there were no reported casualties, it’s clear the Duke tried to cover up the incident. He might have entrusted Patrick with something important.”
“Then investigate what Patrick was involved in before his death,” Azaid instructed.
“Understood. What about James? Should we keep monitoring him?”
“Of course. His reasons for finding Nocturne don’t seem good. The Duke might even reveal Nocturne’s location to him.”
“Understood,” Leonard replied, carefully observing Azaid. After a pause, Azaid asked, “Is there anything else to report?”
“Well…” Leonard hesitated, prompting all eyes—Azaid’s, Jack’s, and Lily’s—to focus on him.
“What is it?”
“Um, well…” Leonard struggled, and Jack impatiently pressed him.
“Spit it out! You’re killing us with suspense!”
Sighing deeply, Leonard finally spoke. “It’s not certain, but… Ophelia Greenwood seems to know Nocturne’s whereabouts.”
“What?”
“What do you mean by ‘not certain’?” Azaid asked. Leonard hesitated again before replying cautiously.
“I saw Lady Greenwood with a cat that looked similar to Pie.”
***
Serena arrived at the Pharmacy with a bundle of gifts in hand. It was Levin’s birthday, and she decided to stop by. With the jingle of the doorbell, Serena cheerfully announced:
“Happy birthday, Levin!”
At that moment, Levin, who was manning the counter, ran over in surprise.
“Miss Serena!”
“How have you been? You seem to have grown since I last saw you.”
Serena ruffled Levin’s hair and handed over the gift. She had noticed Levin’s gaze repeatedly darting toward the gift.
“Wow, thank you so much!”
“You seem more excited about the gift than seeing me. That’s a little disappointing.”
“No way!” Levin shook his head excessively while stealing glances at the gift. Seeing this, Serena gave her permission.
“Go ahead and open it.”
“Wow!”
As Levin excitedly unwrapped the gift, Elda and Genzo emerged from the storeroom and greeted Serena.
“It’s been a while.”
“How have you both been?”
“We’re doing fine. Nothing out of the ordinary,” Genzo said with a hearty laugh, warmly watching Levin revel in his gift.
“You didn’t have to bring anything, you know.”
“Bringing something makes me feel less guilty for not visiting in so long.”
“Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me just yet. Levin, have you had cake yet?”
When Serena leaned in to ask, Levin shook his head vigorously.
“No, not yet.”
“Then how about we check out that new dessert shop? My treat.”
“Can I have two pieces of cake?”
“You can have three.”
“Wow, let’s go!” Levin cheered, hopping excitedly. But Elda tried to intervene.
“Don’t trouble yourself. If it’s for him, we can buy it ourselves.”
“It’s no trouble at all. I’ve been meaning to visit that shop too. Would you both like to join us?”
“We’d love to, but we have goods to deliver, so it’s not possible.”
“Then I’ll eat enough for Mom and Dad too!”
“Levin, in such cases, you should offer to bring something back for your parents. You little glutton,” Serena playfully scolded. Levin grinned sheepishly.
“Let’s go already! We’ll be back!”
“Alright. Just don’t trip in your excitement!”
With Levin tugging on her hand, Serena quickly parted ways with Elda and Genzo. They soon settled at the dessert shop, waiting for their cake.
As the bell chimed, signaling a new customer, familiar faces entered the shop. It was Ophelia and Lydia.
“!!!”
Serena immediately pulled her veil down to cover her face. Lydia, oblivious to Serena’s presence, chose the table directly behind her.
“This spot gets great sunlight. Let’s sit here,” Lydia said cheerfully.
Hearing this, Serena hesitated.
“Should I leave?”
Though she tried to ignore their conversation, she was close enough to hear every word. She debated quietly packing her cake and leaving, but the waiter brought it out just then.
“Wow! Cake!” Levin cheered, grabbing his fork and diving in. Serena sighed inwardly.
“Alright. Let’s just eat the cake quietly and leave. I’ll pretend I can’t hear anything.”
However, no matter how much she tried to convince herself, their voices were impossible to ignore.
“You bought a lot of cat supplies again?” Lydia asked.
“They seemed perfect for Dorothy. This ribbon is pretty cute too,” Ophelia replied, her tone lively.
Lydia, unimpressed, changed the topic.
“More importantly, what did you think of the cookies I brought back from my trip? They’re famous, so I saved them just for you.”
“I haven’t tried them yet.”
“Ugh, that’s disappointing. Ever since you got Dorothy, all your attention has been on that cat.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
“It’s not ridiculous. You’ve been talking about Dorothy this whole time,” Lydia grumbled. Ophelia didn’t respond, merely sipping her tea.
It seemed that Ophelia had recently started taking care of a cat named Dorothy. Shaking her head, Serena thought, Lydia just can’t stand not being the center of attention, even here.
Of course, it was clear that Lydia’s complaints wouldn’t sway Ophelia. When Ophelia remained silent, Lydia tried to engage her again.
“By the way, I was worried when I didn’t see you at the reception.”
“Disappointed I wasn’t there?”
“That too, but…”
“I wasn’t feeling well, so I left early.”
“Actually, I had a lot to talk to you about that day. But since you weren’t there… Well, I guess it couldn’t be helped if you were sick.”
“What did you want to talk about?” Ophelia asked, puzzled.
“Well… you saw it too that day, didn’t you? How Serena humiliated me,” Lydia said.
I was wondering when she’d bring me up, Serena thought, well aware of Lydia’s tendency to badmouth her at every opportunity.
She fully expected Ophelia to join in the gossip, but to her surprise, Ophelia’s reaction was unexpected.
“Are you bringing that up again? I’ve already heard about it several times,” Ophelia said, her tone slightly annoyed and tired.
• ❁ • ❁ • ❁ •By Esraa• ❁ • ❁ • ❁ •
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