WHCP 16

Chapter 16

In the end, even Jamie came running, causing a commotion about whether to call a doctor or not. Mio, having nothing to say to the two who firmly believed she had fainted from pain, eventually collapsed onto the bed with a “whatever” kind of feeling.

“Are you really sure you don’t need a check-up?”
“Yeah…”
“Then I’ll make you some warm tea. Drinking it will help calm you down.”

As Jamie went out to fetch the tea, only Aletheia and Mio remained in the room.

“……”
“……”

An awkward silence fell. Mio, glaring suspiciously, scanned Aletheia sitting next to her.
‘There’s nothing particularly important in that bag. So why hide it?’

She wanted to ask directly, but awkwardly missed the timing.
‘I should have asked as soon as I checked under the bed earlier! But Aletheia shook me so much, telling me to snap out of it, that I got motion sickness…’

After that, Jamie had jumped in, leaving no chance.
‘Anyway, what on earth is going on?’

Mio tried to imagine two possible scenarios for the situation.

First, the possibility that the servants found her bag. But if they had found it, wouldn’t they have confirmed it was a woman’s bag and then immediately asked Mio if she had left anything behind?
Mio was the only young woman who came and went in this gloomy mansion, so if such a lost item appeared, anyone would naturally think of her first. That would have been the most natural course of events.

‘But neither Jamie, Simon, nor even Filippo said anything to me.’

Then there was only one remaining possibility: high probability that it was that guy’s doing.
‘Where did you hide my bag, you thief?’

Honestly, it was an item she could have lost without much concern, but the fact that Aletheia was involved made her stubborn. And somehow, it smelled suspiciously fishy.

Even if she could understand the previous incident where she found the bag under the bed due to things getting tangled up, the bag disappearing without a trace was extremely strange.

‘But why my bag of all things? What are you planning to do with it?’

Mio stared intently at him. Aletheia, with an unreadable expression, spoke.

“…Rest easy. It seems fixing the mansion has been a burden for you. It’s better not to worry about it from now on.”
“Aletheia.”

Mio reached out and grabbed her as if to stop her from leaving. She felt something at the tips of her fingers, but it slipped out of her hand in no time.

Yet Aletheia didn’t leave. Instead, her expression changed subtly. Mio noticed that she was agitated.

There’s something I don’t know right now. Definitely.

“Aletheia.”
“…Speak.”
“You’re hiding something from me, aren’t you?”

At times like this, straightforwardness works. But Mio didn’t specify the bag. Considering he was royalty and had once run across battlefields like a madman, digging recklessly into someone’s flaws wasn’t the best choice.

Moreover, if Aletheia hid the bag, it would be somewhere inside the mansion, and since they had just thoroughly ransacked the house together…
‘That means there’s a place inside the mansion I still don’t know about?’

Leaving an unknown place untouched while having to search the mansion thoroughly was unacceptable.

Mio quickly masked her suspicious gaze with a sudden expression of kindness. With just a slight edge, her clenched teeth hinted through, and her voice came out oddly pudding-like.

“Aletheia. If you’re hiding something, it’s best to tell me now. I’ll forgive anything, literally anything. For example, if you have a bad habit, or recently did something because of an uncontrollable impulse… Whatever the story is, my answer will be ‘It’s fine.’ So speak honestly.”
“…Really anything?”

Mio nodded emphatically, indicating she wouldn’t take issue with thievery.
‘So she was hiding something!’

Honestly, she had been anxious after checking the empty mansion. Even Aletheia’s hesitant reply was a relief. Aletheia rubbed her mouth, hesitating. After a long pause, she spoke.

“Actually… I’m very different from others.”
“Yes, of course. I understand completely.”

Taking someone else’s bag is a rather unusual habit. But if it helps uncover Aletheia’s secret space, a little thievery is something Mio can forgive with a generous heart. After all, once the pledge is gone, they won’t see each other again.

“I’ve been like this since I was young. At first, I thought everyone was like me.”
“It always takes time to realize things for oneself. Probably everyone goes through that.”

“I don’t think it was this serious in the past. It only happened occasionally.”
“Oh, so it means the symptoms have become a bit severe now.”

Aletheia nodded weakly.

“I can’t remember everything, but that’s how it feels.”
So it was something she did out of confusion due to memory gaps?

It wasn’t easy to understand immediately, but it wasn’t unreasonable. Aletheia continued, serious.

“My curse has now reached a completely serious level.”
“W-why call it a curse? It’s just…”

A little bad habit.

Mio, who had unintentionally played the devil in social circles, scratched her cheek, swallowing the remark. Being a social devil taught her the worst of human traits. A similar incident had happened in society a few years ago.

‘At least Aletheia feels ashamed of her thievery.’
At least she recognizes it as wrong. Some malicious types, when caught, shift the blame onto someone weaker.

“No. This is a curse. Definitely.”

Aletheia added in a serious tone. Mio found it awkward to watch. What she wanted to know was where the bag was hidden, not why.

Aletheia rubbed her forehead painfully, muttering to herself.

“This is a curse. No doubt about it.”

Anyone would feel similar sympathy seeing such self-punishment. But of all people, it had to be Aletheia. Mio found the dissonance intense.

Yet she couldn’t simply comfort her or stop her words. As said before, Mio needed to know where Aletheia hid the bag. She had an obligation to listen to Aletheia’s self-reproach. Mio took a deep breath silently.

“I never found out how I got this curse… But I’m glad I met you, Mio.”
“…Huh?”

Was she asking me to supervise her thievery in the future? That would be a problem.

“The archbishop said I was destined to be trapped in a tower and die alone.”
“That… can’t be true…?”

“I was eight, the spring I received my first baptism.”

Aletheia spoke as if recalling a faint memory.

“Honestly, I imagined myself dying like that for a long time. I thought no one would be by my side. So, because of the curse…”
“…That’s a bit of a stretch.”

A royal trapped and dying in a tower because of thievery? Mio wanted to shout, ‘Six years from now, your being alone is only because of your ruined personality!’ But Aletheia beat her to it.

“I’m serious. So far, you’re the only one my curse hasn’t affected. So meeting you was an unbelievable stroke of luck for me. I must have done a lot of blessed deeds in the past six years I don’t remember.”

“N-no, that’s wrong. If the curse didn’t manifest, then my bag—”
“That’s why at first, I couldn’t believe I had a fiancé…”

No, that’s not it. My bag—what about it?

“Mio. I have a curse that lets me hear other people’s thoughts.”
“No, not that, my bag.”

“Hard to believe? But it’s true. I can even show you if you want.”

Ha, seriously. Not that, my bag. Where did you hide my bag?!