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Chapter 2
“Wow, this is seriously ridiculous.”
Outside the window, Sebastian was riding an old horse as he passed through the garden.
The aged horse, which looked like a burden to him, trudged along step by step at almost the same speed as a person walking.
He probably couldn’t afford to rent a young, healthy horse.
What on earth had Espin trusted about that man to hand over the family seal and money?
Then again, once Espin trusted someone, she trusted them to the very end.
That was something I, someone who had been scammed before, knew better than anyone.
“Ha… how can I really screw that guy over?”
Since I hadn’t actually scammed anyone myself, I needed a plan to deal with him.
“It’d be nice if there were someone who could explain what happened between Espin and Sebastian first.”
Maybe because I’d read the novel while empathizing so much with Espin, the story felt vivid.
But Espin was only a minor character, so her screen time in the novel was small and detailed explanations were omitted.
As I reviewed the story in my head, one person came to mind.
“Right—the head butler!”
In the novel, the person who followed Espin to the very end, even when she was driven out of the family, was the head butler.
If it was someone who had watched Espin grow up, he would be able to tell me.
I was alone in the empty drawing room, so I opened the door and called to a maid standing in the hallway.
“Call the head butler here.”
“The head butler, ma’am? He must be busy.”
The maid replied with an indifferent expression.
Ah, right. Now that I think about it… Espin said she was ignored by the family.
Having lost her mother at a young age, Espin was a very lonely person.
Her taciturn father couldn’t give her much affection, and after he remarried, the new countess and her daughter tormented Espin behind his back.
Naturally soft-hearted and overly conscious of others’ gazes, Espin only craved love more the worse they treated her—and eventually began leaning on strange places.
Strange places like Sebastian.
But that Espin was no longer here.
“So?”
“Pardon?”
“The head butler is busy. So what?”
“Well, it just seems like the head butler is busy, and the young lady’s business isn’t very important…”
“Wow, what are you, a fortune-teller? I didn’t even say why I was calling him, and you already know?”
“W-what? No, that’s not what I meant…”
“Then why are you deciding whether what I’m calling him for is important or not?”
“That’s… because the young lady’s matters usually aren’t important…”
The maid, apparently flustered by my attitude—something she’d never seen before—stammered. Then she widened her eyes and continued.
“Miss, if you behave like this, no one will like you.”
So this was how they’d been crushing Espin’s spirit. No wonder she was starved for love and ended up dating a strange man like Sebastian.
The people who turned Espin into an easy mark were the ones who kept grinding down her self-esteem like this.
“Why should I care whether other people like me or not?”
“Pardon? What do you mean by—”
“Things like that are what you should worry about—people who can lose their jobs with a single word from me, fail to get a recommendation, get kicked out, and end up unemployed and worried about making a living.”
When I kindly explained this to the maid, who clearly couldn’t make proper judgments, her face darkened rapidly.
“If you understand what I mean, run along.”
At least she wasn’t completely stupid—the maid hurried off at once.
“Miss, you called for me?”
Not long after, an elderly man opened the door and entered.
Unlike the maids, he greeted me respectfully, yet his eyes were warm, as if he were looking at his granddaughter. He was the head butler who, in the novel, stayed with Espin until the very end.
“Yeah. I have something to ask.”
“Yes. Please ask freely.”
“What do you think about Sebastian?”
“Sebastian, sir…?”
“Yeah. You can be honest.”
“Well…”
His eyes wavered, then the head butler spoke with a resolute, solemn expression.
“It may not be my place to say this, miss, but his background is unclear. His behavior is also unlike that of other nobles, and he gives me a rather poor impression.”
“But Sebastian is a prince of the Kingdom of Arcadia. Even then, you don’t trust him?”
“He is a prince of the Kingdom of Arcadia?”
“You didn’t know?”
“No. You only told me that he was a distinguished person from outside the Empire.”
“Really? So you still don’t trust him?”
“I apologize.”
The head butler’s suspicious attitude toward Sebastian—just like in the novel—made it clear he wasn’t on Sebastian’s side.
At least in this matter, I could trust him.
“Then do you know how I met Sebastian?”
“Yes. You told me about it last time.”
“How did we meet?”
A question mark practically appeared on the head butler’s face at my absurd question.
“If you don’t mind me asking, why are you asking that?”
“I feel like my judgment has been clouded lately. I want to hear it from an objective point of view.”
“It’s only what I heard from you, but…”
“That’s fine. Just tell me.”
“As far as I know, you first met at the festival a month ago, when you bumped into Sebastian, who was being chased by someone.”
Probably being chased after scamming someone somewhere.
I could picture it without even seeing it.
“In that moment, to shake off his pursuers, Sebastian put his arm around your shoulders and pretended to be your lover. That’s how he lost them.”
“And after that?”
“The next day, Sebastian came to apologize, the two of you talked at length, and after that he began visiting the estate every other day.”
“You only met at the estate, right?”
“Yes. You said the outside was dangerous, so you didn’t go out at all for a month.”
Sebastian must have frightened Espin in advance so she wouldn’t go outside and expose his scam.
“Did Sebastian do anything strange when he came to the estate?”
“Well, since you told us not to assign anyone to him, I can’t be certain, but…”
The head butler thought for a moment, then continued.
“Usually, he met only you in the drawing room and then left. Ah—sometimes he seemed to spend a little time in the garden.”
“What did he do in the garden?”
“I’m not sure. It took some time before he left through the front gate, but nothing in particular stood out.”
Instead of enjoying a lavish estate filled with luxury, he spent time in a garden with nothing but trees and flowers—and in a place hidden from people’s eyes.
There’s only one reason for that.
He was secretly meeting someone.
Which meant there was a rat of Sebastian’s in this estate.
Well, from his perspective, he would’ve needed someone to keep an eye on me.
“Head butler, do you know that I lent Sebastian money as well?”
“Lent? Didn’t you simply give it to him? As far as I know, you gave him ten thousand Litas outright.”
“R-right. I just gave it to him.”
What? Gave it to him outright?
You idiot, Espin. How could you just give him that money?
It’s not even my money, but it hurts to think about.
“Good. Head butler, today’s conversation was very helpful. Let’s keep this between the two of us. Don’t let my father know.”
“……”
The head butler stared at me silently for a long time before finally speaking.
“Yes, miss. Khk.”
His voice was choked.
“What’s wrong?”
“It’s just… you seem different from usual, miss.”
Was I already found out? Other transmigrators never got caught—so why me…?
In times like this, insisting was the best strategy.
“What’s different about me? I’m the same. Look.”
“Your face has always been beautiful. That’s not it. Today, you remind me of the old young lady.”
The head butler pulled out a handkerchief and wiped his tears.
“After the former lady of the house passed away, you became very withdrawn. You were always watching others’ reactions and tried so hard to be loved. But today, it feels as if you’ve returned to how you were as a child… and this old man can’t help but cry.”
I couldn’t bring myself to say anything as he shed tears thinking of Espin.
“I’m sorry. This old man has grown sentimental.”
“No, it’s okay.”
“Is there anything else you would like me to do?”
“Ah, I’d like to meet Flaria and Haren of the Ameron Ducal House. Arrange an appointment.”
“Yes. Understood. I’ll send someone right away.”
“And… we need to spread a rumor inside the estate.”
“A rumor, miss?”
“Yeah. A rumor that I’m desperately searching for something.”
At my nonsensical words, the tears in the head butler’s eyes vanished instantly.
