The contact from the royal family arrived just after noon.
“The gift from Her Majesty the Empress is arriving?”
The quiet Count’s residence suddenly buzzed with activity, with the servants rushing around.
Under the command of Lady Margaret, the servants moved in a well-coordinated manner, beginning to wonder what kind of gift their noble lady, now an Empress, might have sent for them.
Having suddenly become a grand duchess, and with Karl ascending the throne, Celeste’s elevation to Empress was a great honor for the Louisette family.
“Oh my, the Empress is sending a gift! I can’t wait to see what it is; I can’t even imagine!”
“Stop the fuss and go do your work. A servant working for the Empress’s family shouldn’t act so thoughtlessly.”
“Yes, my lady.”
The Louisette family, which boasted wealth comparable to the Ginger royal family but faced open disdain for lacking honor, was now set to become the undisputed top noble family.
As Lady Cecilia entered the royal family alongside Celeste, Margaret naturally took on the role of the final authority managing the Count’s household.
Worried about any potential gossip or criticism, Margaret diligently ensured that every task was executed flawlessly.
Though she felt pleased that the Empress seemed to recognize her efforts, it was not suitable to express such personal feelings, given her position as the head maid of the Count who served the Empress.
Restraining her emotions and crafting her expression, Margaret calmly awaited the arrival of the royal procession as it traveled from the palace.
However, when the royal entourage arrived at the Count’s residence, it was far from what she had expected. Although the lined-up carriages were filled with gifts, the appearance of those delivering them was unsettling.
As they hastily unloaded the gifts, they conveyed messages of understanding and began inspecting various areas of the Count’s residence.
Seeing Lady Margaret flustered, a man who appeared to be the head of the procession approached her and briefly explained the situation.
He introduced himself as the squad leader from the royal investigation team and mentioned he was searching for something on the orders of His Majesty the Emperor.
Margaret was taken aback. Watching the knights disperse in all directions, she hesitated about whom to follow.
“Rest assured, this is not something that will harm Her Majesty.”
As Margaret’s face turned anxious, the knight offered a few reassuring words and gently patted her shoulder.
However, there was no way she could feel reassured by their emotionless consolation, which also failed to explain what they were looking for. Margaret decided to follow the knight who had patted her shoulder and hurried after him.
***
The knights, who had been examining the Count’s various aspects for some time, seemed frustrated that they couldn’t find what they were looking for.
“If you could tell us what you’re searching for, we could assist you.”
Margaret felt just as frustrated. It would be better to ask her, who knew the Count well, for help instead of poking around among themselves.
As the imperial knights lingered longer, Margaret grew inexplicably anxious.
“I’ve been with Count for a long time.”
“Yes, over 30 years.”
“What is there here?”
Lieutenant Matthias, who had been rummaging through the mansion’s underground storage for a while, turned his gaze outside. The expansive garden, wide like a vast plain, appeared freshly manicured.
The neatly trimmed trees were evenly aligned in the same shape, and the flowers planted along the path bloomed beautifully in coordinated colors.
“There is… um, what is it that you’re asking?”
“It’s a matter relating to Her Majesty the Empress. I cannot go into detail.”
“Is it, perhaps, related to the commotion in society?”
Having lived in the Count’s household for decades, Margaret knew it would be impossible to manage such a large mansion without substantial discernment.
Margaret suspected that the reason the royal investigation knights were suddenly examining the mansion was connected to Franz.
While searching for a notorious fugitive, they couldn’t overlook the past ties between the Luisette family and the Duke of Toskur. If there were still any remnants of that connection, they might want to exploit it.
“Yes.”
After giving a brief answer to Margaret’s question, he slowly scanned the garden. Although it simply appeared beautiful and peaceful, Matthias instinctively felt that something was hidden here.
***
In the secretum, there was a greater quantity of mana stones stored than Stilikov had expected.
If this place has this much, it’s likely that there will be even more mana stones stored as they head south. Unexpected hope filled Stilikov’s voice.
At their final destination, Urentum, there might be enough mana stones to move to another country.
No matter how much the outside world labels Marina as a notorious villain, she was undoubtedly a brilliant person.
If she had been born a man, she surely would have gained much more fame through different paths. Stilikov suddenly rejected this thought and shook his head.
He believed that the most useless endeavor in the world is to dwell on the past, imagining the impossible with “what if” scenarios. Fantasies are merely illusions. It’s just a waste of time.
They had no time to waste. If they didn’t make decisions quickly and wisely, they would be engulfed by the death that was chasing them.
“We should be able to reach Urentum faster than expected, Franz.”
“That’s fortunate. There’s really no law that says we have to die.”
It was something Marina often muttered whenever new breakthroughs were found upon hitting a wall in her plans.
There’s no law that says we must die, and God is on my side. Unaware that what guided her was the devil’s hand leading her to eternal hell, Marina ultimately fell into the ruin hidden behind the name of success.
Stilikov felt a strange déjà vu as he listened to Franz mutter words similar to those of his mother, but he chose to ignore the vague unease, holding onto the hope that Franz would meet a different fate.
***
The Count had no suspicious points to speak of. In the underground warehouse where everything was stored, no secret door leading somewhere secretly was discovered.
After inspecting all the doors of the mansion and scrutinizing the floors and walls of the corridors with no results, Matthias immediately contacted Clovis.
In his message, Matthias asked whether he should return without any findings or if he could examine all the territories of the Count.
Clovis immediately sought Karl in response.
“Nothing has come of it.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
At that moment, Karl had taken a break from his busy schedule to visit his wife and child.
Whenever he came to see his wife, Valerie, Pulcheria, and Monica were always there, allowing Karl to leave the child with others and enjoy a delightful time alone with his wife.
Today, he intended to enjoy such a secret and sweet date, but Clovis’s unwelcome visit interrupted him.
There should definitely be a secret passage from the Duke of Toskur to Count Louisette.
However, the path leading from the Duke had collapsed due to an explosion, so it would take considerable time to restore it, and the path starting from Count Louisette could not be found at all.
It felt like being blocked by an unexpected wall right before the answer. What should he do? Deep wrinkles formed on Karl’s forehead.
“What are the two of you discussing? Is it related to the imperial investigation squad you sent to my family home today?”
When Karl suddenly mentioned sending a gift procession to Count Louisette, he had a vague suspicion.
He had told me to enjoy good things only with Valerie, and had not shared any stories related to Franz.
However, no matter how hard one tries not to listen, there are words that get passed from mouth to mouth.
Franz, who escaped from the imperial underground prison, vanished without a trace. To accomplish such an escape, mere physical strength would not suffice.
He was certainly using magic stones hidden somewhere to move from one hiding place to another.
Amid all this, Karl suddenly announced, “I will send a gift to the Countess Louisette.”
To me, that remark sounded like a suggestion to look for any clues through the Countess Louisette, as it is difficult to find traces of Franz in the past.
‘No, you don’t need to worry about that.’
‘No, please answer honestly. If you are looking for something related to the Grand Duke from the Count, I can help. It’s impossible with just the imperial investigation team.’
I recalled the day I had looked around the Count’s place under the pretext of trying to recover my memory, and how I had stumbled upon a secret passage. The secret cavern, which could only be accessed by those who carried the blood of the Count’s family.
The imperial investigation team likely does not know of this cavern’s existence.
Even if they were to find out, the cavern, sustained by magical power, would not allow anyone who does not inherit the bloodline of the Louisette family to enter it. So, I would definitely be a great help to Karl right now.
