CBOM 11

Chapter 11

“But next is Grace.”

There was barely two weeks left.

“We have to uncover it before then.”

“How?”

It would probably be fastest to just get caught directly, but saying that out loud would surely make Rivanu flip.

This was someone who found the idea of Grace disappearing far scarier and more unbearable than any skin disease.

Still, because of the experiments, Grace had become someone who couldn’t easily die.

Since she believed she could get herself out somehow, she could consider the idea of being caught on purpose. But Rivanu would never understand that.

“For now, I’ll try to find out more about the maids who disappeared.”

“And after that?”

“The head maid seems to be in on it too, so I’ll have to look into her.”

“And then…?”

“…Shouldn’t we make it public…?”

“Do you think Father would listen?”

To nobles, the disappearance of a few mere maids was nothing. They’d say, What’s the big deal? Of course.

Most nobles thought that way.

Which probably explained why so many maids had already gone missing without anyone making a fuss.

Even though Rivanu had now resolved to leave for the countryside, back then Grino would have been clinging to him until right before independence—likely quite a number had vanished without a trace.

“You think he won’t listen?”

“…They were only my assigned maids, so he probably wouldn’t care either way.”

“Oh, come on, that can’t be true.”

Grace waved her hand and smiled, insisting there was no way the duke would ignore it, though inwardly she suspected he probably would.

Either way, if more victims appeared, the duke could no longer stay silent. It was a problem Grace had to take on herself.

Keeping those thoughts to herself, Grace tried to calm Rivanu.

“Nothing’s going to happen.”

“…But still, still…”

Rivanu couldn’t shake the worry, no matter how he tried.

Seeing that, Grace thought for a moment, then said:

“If nothing changes and it looks like there’s no progress, we’ll just leave.”

“Really?”

Only then did Rivanu’s expression brighten a little.

Grace still felt uneasy about leaving without completely dealing with Grino, but that didn’t mean she was willing to be captured in his place.

Honestly, dying right away didn’t matter much to her—but living as an experiment subject was something she couldn’t stand.

“Yes. I know my own life is valuable too.”

“…Alright. If that’s the case…”

Rivanu, thinking it over, realized this was probably the best they could do and reluctantly nodded.

“But why would they specifically assign them as my maids before making them disappear?”

“There are strange rumors going around. I think they’re using them, so it won’t seem unusual if the maids suddenly vanish.”

“Strange rumors?”

“…Mm. Something like that.”

Since Grace seemed reluctant to explain further, Rivanu didn’t press, though it was clear he had some guesses of his own.

Grace first wanted to confirm whether the head maid really was colluding with Grino, so she casually walked into Winia’s office.

There weren’t many people around, but there were still eyes watching. If she acted suspiciously, she’d be found out right away. Still, Grace felt she had nothing to fear. After all, the head maid had done wrong first, not her.

Creak—

The old, unoiled door groaned loudly as it opened.

As expected, Winia wasn’t in her office at this hour.

Grace had come secretly for one reason only: villains always left traces of their schemes. That was her theory.

Those traces always came back to bite them later, and yet they never failed to leave them. It must be some kind of bad-guy habit.

They didn’t trust each other, so they left traces to make sure they wouldn’t die alone.

The head maid, being one of those sorts, surely left something behind as well.

Grino wasn’t an idiot—if Winia had left something truly incriminating, he wouldn’t have let her live. But since he urgently needed a steady supply of experimental subjects, he was probably just using her for now.

Once this was all over, the head maid would likely meet the same fate as the maids she’d betrayed.

Grace clicked her tongue, half in pity, half in disdain.

Why didn’t people realize?

That doing wrong often meant it would all come back to you in the end. Grace herself had plenty to be guilty about, but at least she didn’t go around pretending she was innocent.

On the contrary—she was all too aware of her mistakes, and her conscience pricked her constantly.

But now wasn’t the time for confessions. What mattered was whether there was evidence here.

“They wouldn’t hide it somewhere obvious…”

She didn’t really expect to find anything in the office.

But just in case, she searched thoroughly.

She turned the office almost upside down looking for evidence, but it seemed things were hidden far more carefully than she thought.

Well, of course. The office was too visible a place, with many people coming and going. Not the best hiding spot.

Grace had suspected Winia might be naive enough to leave something out, but clearly not to this degree.

“Then where could it be? She must have left some trace…”

As a commoner, Winia had some money, but nowhere near the scale of nobles.

At most, she’d hide things in a place only she knew, or entrust them to someone she thought reliable.

“Hmm.”

Maybe looking for a ledger right away was too much.

Grace frowned.

“At times like this, you just throw money around.”

Her irritation didn’t last long.

Catching small fry like this was nothing she couldn’t handle.

Afterward, Grace also went out to investigate the missing maids.

She stopped by a secret place only she knew and picked up some jewels.

Then she headed straight to an information guild she was familiar with.

“Welcome.”

It looked like a tavern on the outside, but in truth, it was a place that sold information.

“I’d like to see the Dragon’s Tear.”

“…Pardon?”

The clerk looked startled, flustered, then quickly excused himself and ran upstairs.

Not long after, a commotion was heard, and a strikingly handsome man came down with a smooth smile.

“You wish to see the Dragon’s Tear?”

“Yes.”

He was an exceptional beauty, his features so finely balanced it was as though a god had carved them: sharp eyes, a straight nose, full but not excessive lips.

Golden hair like spun sunlight, and deep violet eyes like the midnight sky—everything perfectly symmetrical.

His name was Ahin.

Right now, Ahin wouldn’t recognize her, but Grace knew him, which was why she had come.

So, even back then, he really was this good-looking.

She thought briefly to herself as she looked at him, but didn’t waver.

“…Come upstairs, then.”

Seeing her steady gaze, Ahin realized his looks wouldn’t work on her. Without wasting words, he led her inside to his office.

“What kind of request is it?”

His directness confirmed he’d dropped the pretty-boy act.

“I want to know about the maids who worked at the duke’s estate.”

“…The maids?”

“I’ll pay as much as it takes.”

“As much as it takes?”

Ahin’s eyes swept up and down, assessing her. He spread out five fingers, as if to ask whether she could even handle such a price.

In response, Grace emptied a pouch full of jewels onto the table.

Ahin’s eyes, which had looked bored a moment ago, immediately sharpened.

“…These are quite valuable stones.”

“Are they?”

Of course, Ahin would know their worth better than anyone. Pretending ignorance was almost laughable.

Grace began sweeping the jewels back into her pouch and stood.

“I don’t care to deal with people who don’t know value.”

“Ah, wait! Wait!”

Ahin quickly stopped her, flustered.

“My apologies. I’ll give them their full worth. Please, sit.”

His apology was swift.

Grace sat again, setting the pouch on the table. Ahin carefully examined the jewels, his manner now respectful.

Yes, clearly genuine. His demeanor grew formal.

“My deepest apologies for not recognizing a distinguished client.”

“As long as you do well from here on, that’s what matters.”

“Of course. I am Ahin, master of the information guild Veronix. Pleased to serve you.”

He introduced himself properly, serious now.

“Alright.”

“Which maids do you wish to know about?”

“Everything on Winia, the head maid of Duke Forette’s estate, and also the whereabouts of the maids who recently left the estate.”

“I’ll begin the investigation immediately. Should we deliver the report to your residence?”

The request was made on the spot. Given the massive payment, Veronix would waste no time finding out everything they could.

“No. I’ll hear it here.”

“Very well. Please wait.”

Finding out the basic records and whereabouts of a few maids wasn’t something that would take long.

Soon after, Ahin reported: all of the maids had gone missing after leaving the duke’s estate, and before disappearing, they had been seen meeting with a certain man.

The man was named Galleon. He worked as a coachman at the duke’s estate.

“A coachman?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

So, even people from within the estate had been pulled into Grino’s schemes?

Did that coachman know what kind of person Grino really was?