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Chapter 12
“Lady Hilde is the suspicious one.”
It was the butler who spoke first. He said that he had been greatly angered by Lady Hilde taking out the security magic stone.
I brushed it off as nothing serious. Lady Hilde was originally a person with a quick temper. However, Noah pondered for a moment and then agreed with the butler’s opinion.
“Not long after we hired the servants, recently Lady Hilde has been recklessly dismissing servants and hiring new ones. And lately, her spending has become more extravagant. Expenditures have increased significantly. It’s certainly suspicious.”
This, too, didn’t seem particularly strange to me. Lady Hilde was very much a person of moods, loved spending money, and was only satisfied when everything went her way.
However, the decisive evidence came from the security magic stone.
“I’ve seen that person somewhere…”
“She’s a maid newly hired by Lady Hilde.”
Lady Hilde’s maid boldly entered Jest’s office and ransacked the desk. She didn’t care if papers or objects were left in disarray. Her attitude suggested she didn’t mind if anyone noticed. After rummaging for a while, apparently not finding what she wanted, the maid showed her irritation and took a few documents.
“Could she not have found the seal?”
The butler let out a short groan and answered.
“Probably so. Lord Jestian usually leaves the seal with me when he leaves the castle for an extended period, and when he just steps out briefly, he either takes it with him or leaves it in his bedroom.”
Noah clicked his tongue repeatedly before opening his mouth.
“At this rate, too many people are implicated. The servants in charge of cleaning Lord Jestian’s office, the knights guarding the vicinity, Lady Hilde, that maid, and consequently the person who created the forged seal and signature. We’ll have to investigate everyone thoroughly, so it seems we’ll be busy from now on.”
It certainly seemed that way. Someone boldly entered the office like that and no one stopped them, and even though the room was ransacked, no gossip spread afterward. The butler nodded gloomily. I lowered my gaze to the floor.
‘Even if the Lefgaen crest is one thing, he should have at least recognized Jest’s signature.’
Having followed Jest around for years during my stay in the North, it was embarrassing I hadn’t noticed that one thing. Then the butler cautiously spoke to me.
“Lady Linea. The fault is largely mine. I should have kept a closer eye on the servants, but I failed to do so. I should have realized they were planning something like this.”
“Huh? No, it’s not your fault. They were deliberately trying to deceive us, so how could you have known in advance? It’s even harder to notice when Lady Hilde was helping from behind.”
“That’s true.”
The butler smiled warmly and comforted me.
“The ones who orchestrated this are the ones at fault. Lady Linea was merely suddenly subjected to this misfortune. Please don’t worry too much.”
“…Yes.”
The butler’s words were appreciated, but my anxiety didn’t easily fade. Noah was exchanging messages with Jest and planning something, and the butler began quietly tightening control over the servants.
Sylvia was mingling with the knights during sword practice, and I… I was the only one doing nothing. There didn’t seem to be anything I could do to help.
‘What if I really get kicked out for being useless.’
I grew anxious. I had to do something before Jest returned. After much deliberation, I secretly began tailing Lady Hilde. Sometimes I followed the maid too.
I didn’t intend to make a big deal out of it, so whenever it seemed I might be noticed, I quickly fled. Since I knew all the paths throughout Lefgaen Castle, it was fairly easy for me.
I wanted just one thing.
‘I hope I find something.’
Actually, while following the maid I did find one suspicious thing, but it was somewhat ambiguous. I wanted to find more solid evidence. But then…
“Huh? Huh? Wait, you’re not…?”
Hair as red as a rose, reaching down to her waist, and matching red eyes. A strikingly beautiful woman, clearly out of the ordinary, suddenly appeared.
I’d never seen her before, and she was obviously suspicious. Moreover, this was a secluded path in the castle where even servants rarely passed.
I cautiously stepped back. But at that moment, the woman called my name.
“Linea? You’re Linea, right?”
“…Yes?”
“Oh my goodness, Linea, it’s been so long! How many years has it been? Five? I missed you so much! Have you been well?”
“Um… Who are you?”
The woman, who had been rattling off words without pause, widened her eyes.
“Do you not know me?”
“You are Linea, aren’t you?”
“My name is Linea, but I’m seeing you for the first time.”
“First time? You don’t know who I am?”
“No.”
“Really? You don’t know me?”
I didn’t. She was truly a stranger to me. I didn’t have her in my memories, and just in case, I tried recalling the original story’s content, but there was no woman with such striking red hair.
The woman laughed incredulously and approached me closely. Her clearly well-maintained hair swayed, releasing a scent of roses.
“I’m Brynhildt, Brynhildt!”
“Brynhildt? I’ve never heard that name before.”
Brynhildt’s eyes sharpened.
“Why do you keep saying you’ve never heard of it?”
“I really am hearing it for the first time. Could you be mistaken? The Linea you know might not be me.”
The world is wide, and there are many people with similar or identical names. Of course, as far as I know, I’m the only Linea in the North. But anyway. A Linea living elsewhere might have come to the North. Brynhildt’s face twisted slightly.
“It’s you. And for your information, the Linea I know grew up in the temple as a child, has light orange hair and green eyes. Her surname is Hanover.”
“…Surprisingly, that matches me. However, since I don’t know you, I can’t be that person. Well then, I’ll be going.”
A complete stranger knows me? This meant troublesome things were afoot. As I hurriedly tried to escape, Brynhildt’s red eyes began to glisten with moisture.
“You… didn’t you like me? Was it really not true?”
“…”
“I see. It was just me who liked you. It was just my one-sided friendship. I thought we two got along so well.”
“…When did we ever share a friendship?”
Brynhildt’s maid, who had been fidgeting anxiously behind her, handed over a handkerchief. Brynhildt dabbed under her eyes with it as she answered.
“In the capital, five years ago.”
That would be when I was eleven, still at the temple. I began to feel a little uneasy. Perhaps she really was someone I used to know.
But it was hard to recall the memory. I had lived until twenty-two and then returned. Memories from when I was eleven weren’t from five years ago, but from a whopping eleven years ago.
“Was there perhaps something particularly memorable? Since I can’t remember anything at all when I try to recall it outright.”
“Memorable? That would be me! Meeting me is itself memorable.”
“…”
Should I have just ignored her and left? I regretted it. Meanwhile, Brynhildt seemed to have regained her composure and threw her shoulders wide open.
“Hoo, Linea. But it’s all right. No, it will be all right. It can’t be helped. I’ll help you.”
“With what…?”
“Your memory. I’ll stay by your side and help you until you remember me again. Don’t worry. We’ll soon recover our friendship. You really liked me, you know.”
“…”
I don’t think so. Given how utterly unappealing the idea was, it seemed completely false. I wanted to refuse. Vehemently, at that. Then Brynhildt’s maid clasped her hands together and spoke in an awed voice.
“As expected of Lady Brynhildt! Ah, I too wish to emulate that generous spirit of cherishing a friend.”
“Oh, it’s nothing. Linea is a very precious friend to me. This much is nothing.”
Watching the two of them banter, I reluctantly opened my mouth.
“Um, excuse me, what should I call you? Lady Brynhildt?”
“Call me Bry. Casually.”
At those words, I paused.
“Wait, is that a nickname? Were we close enough for nicknames?”
We were that close and yet I have no memory of it? Do I really have a problem with my memory? As I stood there flustered, Brynhildt lowered her eyes and gave a sad smile.
“Actually, you never once called me that.”
“…”
“Even so, I’d be so happy if you called me that now. Hey, hey, where are you going?”
Was she toying with me? I should have just ignored her and left. I wasted my time engaging with her. From behind, Brynhildt kept calling me, but I ignored her and went on my way. It had been quite a while since I lost track of Lady Hilde’s maid, so I needed to find her quickly. However, there was something I had overlooked.
“Linea. You walk rather slowly, don’t you? That’s fine, though. It feels like we’re taking a stroll together.”
The fact that my ankle still hadn’t fully healed, and so I couldn’t walk fast. If I increased my pace, my limp would become noticeable, and I didn’t want to be seen limping around the castle. That would draw too much attention.
“Are you not going to call me by my nickname? Hmm?”
Brynhildt kept following and talking to me.
“Or are you just shy, Linea? That’s okay. I understand everything. Although we only had two short days together, it was enough time to know each other.”
“What? Two days?”
I shrieked and whirled around to face Brynhildt.
