Chapter 27

27

A heavy silence descended upon Avery Hall. It was like the calm before the storm.

I was actually looking forward to the storm that was about to break. This was the first time Mrs. Seymour had lost her composure so completely, even when Theodore had lost his memory and was clinging to me.

I kept my lips from curling into a smile, maintaining a firm grip on them. When I looked at Theodore with the most pitiful expression I could muster, the shock on his face gradually turned into anger.

"This is... "

His low, deep voice echoed through the quiet hall.

"What on earth is going on...? Aunt..."

He clenched his fists and strode over to me. Behind him, the captain of the knights stood with wide eyes. Mrs. Seymour, who had been staring at the two of us in a daze, finally opened her mouth.

"T-Ted, just now, I..."

I never thought I would hear Mrs. Seymour's flustered voice, let alone see her distorted expression, something I had never seen before.

I felt extremely pleased. Was this what they meant by karma? As I chuckled inwardly, Theodore, who had already approached me, carefully examined the swelling on my cheek.

"...It's swollen. It would be best to apply a warm compress quickly."

"I'm fine, it's nothing serious."

I almost replied in my usual indifferent tone but quickly put on a pained expression. It would be better to act a bit now.

Theodore sighed as if he himself had been hit, then turned to look at Mrs. Seymour.

Mrs. Seymour still looked bewildered but had already straightened her back, putting on a composed face. She had probably already thought of an excuse. I could roughly guess what she would say.

"Aunt, why did you lay hands on Lily?"

There was clear anger in Theodore's voice. Seeing him, of all people, angry at Mrs. Seymour made me feel strangely. Perhaps the saying "you live and learn" applies in such moments.

"Ted... I know you must be shocked, but there was a reason."

"No matter the reason, laying hands on the Duchess of Valentine is unacceptable. Even if you are an elder in the family."

Theodore's resolve did not waver, and his tone was icy. Mrs. Seymour, perhaps unable to believe that he was angry at her, looked shocked, her eyelids trembling.

She looked like a mother who had seen her son rebel. I suppressed a sneer. Mrs. Seymour thinks of Theodore as her own child, and Theodore knows this.

However, he does not like it.

"I hope you will never lay hands on Lily again, no matter the circumstances. I mean it."

His words were a cold warning. If something like this happens again... What will Theodore do to Mrs. Seymour?

Given her influence in this castle, he won't take immediate action, but it sounded like he won't tolerate a second incident.

Mrs. Seymour, looking incredulous, took a step toward Theodore.

"Ted, please listen to me."

"There's nothing more to hear. I will take Lily and leave now."

Theodore's stance was firm; no excuse for hitting someone would be accepted. He wrapped his arm around my shoulder, and I followed him out of the hall, with Charlotte and the captain of the knights following behind.

After glancing back at them, I briefly explained the situation to Theodore.

"...I see."

After listening to my story, Theodore nodded and opened the door with one hand, still holding my shoulder with the other. I kept flinching, wanting to shake off his hand.

"...Your Grace, Madam...?"

The smell of medicine hit me. Theodore had led me to the treatment room of my personal physician, Jane Soper.

Jane Soper looked back and forth between Theodore and me, her eyes wide, and asked urgently.

"What happened? Is Madam unwell... Oh."

The "Oh" carried many meanings. Her gaze fixed on my swollen cheek, and she quickly composed herself, speaking seriously.

"Please, sit over here."

After I sat down, Jane started the treatment. A cool antiseptic-soaked gauze tapped on my cheek. It stung a little but wasn't particularly painful.

I had been injured more severely while staying at Everett Castle, so this was nothing.

"Does it sting?"

"I'm fine."

"Does it throb...?"

I shook my head. Jane Soper sighed softly and then applied a cream-like medicine to my cheek.

After the treatment, the swelling seemed to have subsided a bit. As I stood up, Charlotte, who had been hovering nearby, approached and asked.

"Doctor, should I apply an ice compress?"

"After the medicine has fully absorbed, apply it for 30 minutes before bedtime. It should be fine not to do it tomorrow..."

Jane Soper trailed off, examining my cheek again, and then prescribed an oral medication to reduce swelling and help with pain and inflammation.

"Madam is in a state where she cannot take just any medicine... so you must take only the one I have prescribed."

As Jane added this, Theodore's expression darkened. I could guess the reason but didn't want to think about it deeply, so I quickly pushed it out of my mind.

After leaving the treatment room, Charlotte returned the gold ornament to the captain of the knights. The captain, looking a bit agitated, exchanged a few words with Charlotte and then glanced at us, looking for Theodore's reaction.

He soon left, claiming he had an urgent matter to attend to. Theodore turned to Charlotte and said,

"Thank you for your hard work."

"!"

This was the first time Theodore had said such a thing to Charlotte. She looked at him in surprise and then nodded awkwardly. It was clear she didn't appreciate his kindness.

"...Lily, you should go back to your room and rest. I will take care of the rest, so don't worry."

I was about to answer when I remembered Adelaine. But it would be problematic to face her in this state. After thinking for a moment, I spoke.

"Adelaine, the daughter of the Duke of Albinis, is waiting in the parlor. Please tell her that I am not feeling well and need to rest, and that I apologize for making her wait so long."

"..."

Theodore's eyebrow twitched at my words. It seemed he had just learned that Adelaine was at Valentine Castle. A hint of annoyance flashed across his face before he replied.

"Don't worry about the daughter of the Duke of Albinis. You just rest."

"..."

And Theodore escorted me to my room. His unusual kindness still made me feel uneasy. After he left, the goosebumps on my arms finally disappeared.

Feeling mentally drained, I sighed deeply and collapsed onto the bed. Charlotte hurried over to check on me.

"Madam, are you hurt anywhere?"

"I'm fine. Just prepare a warm cup of tea for me."

"Yes, yes!"

A short while later, Charlotte brought me tea and recounted the events with the captain of the knights.

"...So I went to the captain's room and waited. But after 10 minutes, he still hadn't come, so I went outside."

"I see."

To summarize:

The captain had to urgently accompany Theodore, who had just returned from an outing. He asked Charlotte to go to his room and wait for 10 minutes, but it took longer than expected. During that time, the theft occurred.

Serena and Ayla must have stolen the gold ornament after Charlotte left the room. Seeing Charlotte, Serena likely thought to frame her. When the captain returned, Charlotte was gone, and the ornament was missing.

'And while Charlotte was being summoned by Mrs. Seymour, the captain had another urgent matter to attend to.'

This created a situation where Charlotte was easily misunderstood. If Jenna hadn't come to me with the news, Charlotte would have been beaten by Mrs. Seymour.

"...To think she would try to beat you without any evidence. I'm still angry when I think about it."

At my low mutter, Charlotte's eyes widened. After a moment's hesitation, she looked at me with moist, shining eyes and said,

"...Thank you, Madam."

"?"

"I-I'll go to the garden and pick some flowers! Seeing fresh flowers will make you feel better. I'll be back quickly, so rest!"

And she dashed out of the room.

By the time she returned with the flowers, my mood had indeed improved.

* * *

Since the message couldn't be delivered to the captain due to the misunderstanding, I had to go myself.

Throughout our conversation, the captain kept glancing at Charlotte, who was standing behind me, with a peculiar look.

Moreover, Charlotte kept apologizing for her wrongful accusation, which hindered the progress of our conversation.

After finally concluding the conversation, I was able to review the military records the captain had brought.

Originally, I would need Theodore's permission to show these to anyone, but he must have thought it was fine given how Theodore treated me yesterday, so he showed them to me without hesitation.

If the captain is reprimanded by Theodore later, it won't be my responsibility. It's because the captain was distracted by Charlotte.

I carefully reviewed and memorized the records from the time Theodore was injured and then returned them to the captain. I then casually asked,

"Besides what's written in the records, were there any suspicious or strange points at the time?"

The captain, who had been glancing at Charlotte, fumbled for a moment before answering.

"There were... none. At least, not that I remember. But there were more monsters pouring out of the rift that day."

"I see."

After finishing the conversation, I headed to my room with Charlotte, planning to have a light snack. The captain's voice called out from behind us.

"Miss Charlotte."

He seemed to have something to say to Charlotte. He glanced at me to gauge my reaction. I nodded expressionlessly.

The captain, looking slightly more cheerful, then spoke to Charlotte.

"If you're free, next week...?"

I silently watched as the captain timidly invited Charlotte, who politely declined.

The captain soon looked dejected, like a large hunting dog that had lost its master.

After entering the room and being left alone with Charlotte, she sighed deeply and said,

"I'm busy. I'll always be by Madam's side."

I smiled without a word and drew the curtains by the window. The sunlight was unusually bright today, hurting my eyes.

* * *

Four days later, the Crown Prince's hunting party was held.