Chapter 57

"Milady Delphine, there is something I would like to ask you."

"What is it?"

Normally, I am not allowed to speak to Her Highness the Princess, but since this matter is unavoidable in my role as a shadow, I must ask for your forgiveness.

As I combed Lady Delphine's hair, I met her blue eyes in the mirror.

"Was it you, Milady Delphine, who had Nina make Ellie ingest the poison?"

Lady Delphine's expression turned to one of feigned surprise, and then she smiled faintly, countering my question.

"Me? I would never make such a loyal maid ingest poison. Kate, you are saying some rather strange things."

"In the garden's trash area, I found a bottle of the perfume that Her Highness often uses, hidden away. The lid still had the unmistakable scent of the perfume that Milady uses. The bottle itself had been washed to remove the smell, but the cork had absorbed it. No one in the castle uses the same scent as Her Highness, and only Ellie can dispose of the empty bottles of the perfume that Milady uses."

The beautiful expression on Lady Delphine's face vanished.

"So?"

"I suspect that the poison was placed in an empty bottle of Milady's perfume. Only Ellie manages Her Highness's cosmetics. After the deed, Ellie must have thrown away the bottle containing the poison. She likely transferred the poison to a small container, hid it in her sleeve, and poured it into the food while serving it. She must have been surprised and panicked when she didn't die after tasting the poison herself."

"If Ellie drank the poison herself, why do you blame me?"

"The poison that Ellie drank was a weak one. Didn't Milady instruct her to use a weaker poison because you didn't want her to die?"

Lady Delphine glared at me with a stern expression in the mirror.

"You are being incredibly impertinent. You should just quietly do your job as a shadow."

"I am here on a commission from the country's organization, and I have an obligation to report what I know to the country. This includes the fact that Her Highness was involved in an attempted poisoning. A thorough investigation will be conducted, and the matter will be reported to His Majesty the King and Prince Conrad. The noble council will also have a say in what Her Highness has done."

Lady Delphine's expression twisted slightly.

If the use of poison were to become public, not only would Ellie be punished, but even as the Crown Princess, Lady Delphine would be held accountable. Bringing and using poison in the royal castle, where His Majesty and the Crown Prince reside, is a serious crime.

If the truth were to come out, she would not only lose her current position but also be separated from her children, the future kings. As a foreigner, Lady Delphine's position is not as strong as one might think.

A moment of silence.

I continued to stare into her blue eyes in the mirror. No matter how impertinent or disrespectful it might seem, I couldn't afford to lose my nerve here.

Suddenly, Lady Delphine sighed. The expression on her perfectly composed face was not one of authority or royal pressure, but that of a troubled woman.

"I thought my amateur plan would work, but it seems that a professional like you can easily see through it."

Lady Delphine picked up the bottle of her favorite perfume from the dresser. It was a beautiful glass bottle, the same shape as the one found in the trash.

"The scent of the perfume I use is that of the white wildflowers that bloom in the northern part of the Eagar Kingdom. It's a scent that my grandmother and mother also love. It is delivered to me every month by a messenger. Along with the cosmetics, the messenger also brings verbal messages from my grandfather and father, who are concerned about my well-being."

"I see."

"I also heard about Ellie's family from the messenger. That's why I had Nina look for Ellie."

"Was a powerful poison found in Ellie's room?"

"Yes. It was a poison that would cause immense suffering for hours before death. I was told that it was a very strong poison, far beyond what my usual poison resistance could handle. Nina is very knowledgeable about poisons."

Tears quickly welled up in Lady Delphine's blue eyes.

It was as if a beautiful gem was being born right before my eyes.

"I was informed that poison would soon be used against me, but I knew that Ellie couldn't bring herself to kill me. If she had to poison me, I thought she would drink the poison herself and die. She is that loyal."

"That's why you had Nina replace the poison before Ellie drank it."

"Yes. That way, Ellie wouldn't die, and if my taster was poisoned twice, I thought the Third Knight Regiment would finally take action. I wanted them to catch the person who wished for my death."

That's what I most wanted to know.

"Why did you have to go to such lengths to get the Third Knight Regiment to act? Who is the person responsible for the security of the royal family and can also block the Third Knight Regiment? And who would benefit from your death, Milady?"

"Right now, the Eagar Kingdom is unstable. I couldn't let the elders of this country know anything that would disadvantage Eagar..."

So, Lady Delphine thought that if she asked for help by saying that someone from Eagar was trying to kill her, it would harm both Eagar and her own position.

"Please tell me the information you have. The Third Knight Regiment can handle it. The person who gave the powerful poison to Ellie might try to harm Prince Oscar and Prince Lucas in the future. It's easy for an assassination expert to make it look like an accident."

Knowing the love a mother has for her children, I don't want to use this method. But if nothing is done, the two young princes are at high risk of being disposed of in a staged accident after Milady's death.

There are many people in Eagar who would benefit from getting rid of Milady and sending a new Crown Princess. And there are likely people in Ashberry who would kill Milady and her children to gain favor from those people.

"You're right. It can't just be me. As long as my sons are alive, killing me wouldn't mean much. Kate, I trust you. Please help me and my sons."

"Of course, Milady. Who is the person targeting your life?"

"The one connected to the anti-royalist faction in Eagar is the Deputy Minister of Military Affairs, Bryan Wilks. This information was relayed to my father from Eagar's special task force. However, I can't determine if it's true. I don't know who to trust or what to do anymore."

Lady Delphine covered her face with both hands.

"Thank you for telling me. For now, I will inform the Third Knight Regiment that the Deputy Minister of Military Affairs might be involved and that the information comes from Eagar's special task force. Milady, you don't need to worry about Ellie anymore. I won't let her commit suicide."

"Oh, Kate. Please help Ellie. I beg you. Please."

Lady Delphine took my right hand in both of hers and pressed it to her forehead.