Chapter 7

"Lock this room."

Anna said this and left the attic. The servant who had been waiting by the side firmly locked the door behind her.

"Haa..."

She dropped the knife she was holding onto the floor, and without realizing it, a sigh escaped her lips. She must have been tense without noticing. Anna realized that her hand, which had been holding the knife, had turned white.

She had hit someone with a stick before, but she had never used a blade. It was an act of impulse, but she had no regrets. Rather, she felt a sense of relief now that the eyesore was gone.

She had originally planned to make her die of illness. There would be no problem even if it happened a little earlier.

When she first came here, she had not intended to do anything so grand. Though they were not blood-related, Anna had wanted to get along with her new sister.

However, no matter how much she tried to reach out, she could not understand what Olivia was thinking. She never laughed, cried, or got angry. Anna thought of her as just a strange person.

But the day she saw the many birthday gifts given to Olivia, a dark emotion overflowed in Anna's heart. Delicate and beautiful trinkets she had never seen before, colorful and shining jewels and dresses, things that she could never obtain no matter what. When Anna saw them, envy overcame her more than admiration.

Even though they were in the same family.

Even though she had nothing, why did only Olivia have everything?

What was so different about her?

She was frustrated.

So frustrated that she cried.

At first, it was a moment of weakness.

She had no intention of stealing lightly.

She just wanted to borrow them.

If she was caught, she would return them immediately.

But Olivia did not notice.

Tasting the thrill, Anna began to use Olivia's personal items without hesitation. When she wore the expensive and beautiful items that Olivia owned, she felt as if she were the most noble lady in the mansion, and that Olivia did not even come close to her.

She was more suitable than that cold woman.

Surely Lord Arthur thought so too.

Lola also did not have a good impression of Olivia. Knowing that her husband, Alex, still thought of Shera, she found the existence of Shera's daughter, Olivia, to be a hindrance.

As a result, the two, who had similar thoughts, did not take long to start moving to eliminate the troublesome Olivia.

"Was it noisy just now? Are you okay?"

As soon as she descended to the first floor, Lola, accompanied by a butler, called out to Anna.

"Mother," Anna smiled in relief.

Lola was a beautiful woman with voluminous black hair and green eyes, but she was very flashy. She preferred to wear red or purple dresses with deep necklines and adorned herself with large jewels. She always wore bright red lipstick, even at Shera's funeral.

"My sister went into the forest alone and has gone missing..." "Oh, oh, oh."

Lola laughed merrily.

"That place is unexplored. There must be terrifying beasts and monsters living there. She might never return."

"Yes, really. Poor sister."

The two laughed together.

"Anna, from now on, you must live as Lord Arthur's fiancée without shame. Change out of that dress immediately. I will write to Alex now."

When Anna looked at her dress as Lola said, she saw that it was covered in Olivia's blood.

"Oh!?"

Shocked, Anna turned to return to her room when,

"Madam! There's a visitor!"

A servant ran in from the entrance in a panic.

"What is it? It's noisy. We had no visitors scheduled for today."

Lola glared, but for some reason, the servant's face was pale and he was trembling.

"? What? What on earth..."

As Lola was about to ask suspiciously,

"I am Leo of the First Knight Regiment. We are here to interfere."

Pushing the servant aside, a group of burly men entered the mansion with a gruff voice. A red-haired man named Leo stood at the front, with two men, one with black hair and one with white hair, standing expressionless behind him. They all wore black military uniforms and silver cuffs on their ears.

"Wh-What impudence!!"

Lola screamed hysterically at them, but the butler, who was the only noble-born person in the mansion besides Lola, stepped in and bowed deeply. He knew about the First Knight Regiment.

"Welcome, members of the First Knight Regiment. Please follow me."

"Ah."

The men nodded lightly and followed the butler without even glancing at Lola.

"Oh, right."

Leo suddenly turned around.

"Gather all the residents and workers of this mansion in one room. Immediately. No exceptions."

Saying this, Leo turned and walked away again.

Lola, whose face was contorted, looked at the butler, who nodded silently, and signaled the servants to gather everyone.

The First Knight Regiment.

One of the knight regiments directly under the king, composed only of the sons of high-ranking nobles. They mainly maintained the country's security and order. The fact that they were here meant that the king had given them a command. After hearing this from the butler, Lola and Anna decided to comply silently.

Along the walls of the reception room, a dozen or so servants lined up, with Lola and Anna sitting on the central sofa and the three members of the knight regiment sitting opposite them.

"My husband, Alex, is currently in the capital, so this is everyone."

Lola told Leo with a smile.

"Where is Lady Olivia?"

Leo looked around the room.

"Olivia is out."

Lola answered without any particular concern, but Leo's eyebrow twitched at her words.

"I said everyone. Are you defying my orders?"

As Leo glared at Lola, the black-haired knight put his hand on the hilt of his sword.

"Ah!"

Lola, a former baroness, had lived only by her beauty and feminine wiles, and knew almost nothing about the customs of high-ranking nobles. She truly believed that if she smiled, men would do anything she asked. Because of this, she had no idea what she had done wrong.

"But! Actually, my sister said she was going for a walk this morning and hasn't been seen since..."

Anna spoke up.

"..."

Leo shifted his gaze to Anna, expressionless. He had gathered everyone in this room but had not given her permission to sit. Yet, she was sitting boldly on the sofa and even eating sweets.

Leo clicked his tongue and recalled the report he had read before arriving.

The former baroness, Lola, and Anna, born to a commoner. These two were not nobles. They were parasites drawn to the sweet honey. Cutting them off here would not be a problem, would it?

Leo began to think such things, irritated.

The air in the room grew heavier in proportion to his bad mood, but Anna continued to chatter on, completely oblivious.

"We searched the forest, but we couldn't find her at all..." Anna lowered her brows sadly and looked at Leo with moist eyes.

"Did she just say she was going for a walk, and you are searching the forest?"

The white-haired knight, sensing Leo's silence, asked in his place.

"Well... um, my sister often goes to the forest under the pretense of a walk... so I thought she might be there this time too..."

Anna blushed at his beautiful face and stammered in response.

"Hey!"

Leo suddenly stood up and said to the butler standing by the wall.

"Show us to Lady Olivia's room."

The air in the room froze instantly.

"Why... why is that?"

Lola interjected anxiously, but Leo completely ignored her and urged the butler to lead them out of the room.

"We will also join the search."

The white-haired knight answered Lola in Leo's place.

"Such... such a thing, there's no need to trouble the knights..."

Lola moved her gaze frantically.

"Do it quickly."

Leo said to the butler.

"Y-Yes, right away."

The butler, glancing at Lola's expression, reluctantly led them to Olivia's room. Lola and Anna, along with the other servants, followed silently.