“Yeah, I just called you ‘friend’ a little while ago.”
With her mouth agape and frozen in place, Mia Crowfield received Alice’s somewhat sharp remark.
“Or do you not consider me a friend?”
“Uh, no, it’s just…”
Seeing Mia Crowfield struggle to respond, Alice shook the teacup she had been holding.
“At least, judging by how you hesitated to criticize this teacup, you don’t seem to see me as a target for revenge like your mother does. Or maybe friendship is a bit ahead of vengeance?”
Mia Crowfield clamped her mouth shut at those words. However, she couldn’t maintain her poker face effectively; her lips quivered, her eyes darted around, and her face turned as red as a tomato.
“Anyway, let’s talk. The biggest reason I’m here is naturally because of Sylvia, but… well, it’s also related to your family.”
I found myself staring intently at Alice.
Related to me?
Did Alice somehow learn about my past?
…Then again, thinking about it, if Alice set her mind to it, there was nothing she couldn’t find out. The Emperor’s children, Bella or Jayden, could tell her where I came from since they were somewhat accessible.
But…
“If you thought the place I was from is linked to here, that’s probably a mistaken assumption.”
As Mia Crowfield listened, her gaze cautiously shifted towards me. She seemed to be seriously contemplating whether to interrupt or not. However, inside, her heart appeared to lean towards ‘do not interrupt.’
“Really?”
But even after hearing my words, Alice remained unfazed, simply placing the teacup onto the table with an elegant motion.
“That wasn’t the case when I last investigated.”
Before killing the Count, I had rummaged through various documents. There was no evidence linking me to the orphanage where I lived.
After all, the orphanage that sold children wasn’t the only one. The Empire is vast. Instead of buying children from that place, it would be easier to gather orphans from a nearby location. There would be enough orphans in the Crowfield territory, and due to the border area, it’s possible they could purchase orphans from overseas.
In fact, Claire seemed to have conducted her own investigation to some extent, but since she couldn’t find connections to that orphanage…
Thus, I tentatively concluded that the orphanage operated independently on a small scale. It was consumed by the flames I created.
The man and woman who came looking for that orphanage ultimately couldn’t find it.
“If you thought that, it means you missed something.”
Alice fidgeted with her fingers as if she felt empty-handed. Perhaps she thought discussing this over tea would fit the atmosphere better.
“No matter how clandestine the operation, there must be connections.”
When I continued to stare at her as if to say, “Explain further,” she shrugged her shoulders and replied,
“It’s like saying that no one buys from only one store continuously. If there’s nothing appealing, they’ll go around other shops until they find what they want. Especially when there’s custom-made merchandise involved.”
“Ah, um…”
Even though Mia Crowfield had just shown a ‘don’t interrupt’ expression a moment ago, it seemed she ultimately couldn’t contain herself while struggling to understand the ongoing conversation.
“What are you talking about? Are you saying that merchandise relates to our territory?”
Alice and I simultaneously turned to Mia Crowfield. The one who took less time to look away was me. I caught a glimpse of her flustered expression before immediately turning back to Alice and staring at her intently.
Did Alice want to reveal that I killed Count Crowfield?
“Yeah, it’s related. It’s about the business the Count was involved in before he died.”
But Alice didn’t go as far as to say I killed him. It was still a tightrope act… Then again, thinking about it, Mia Crowfield already knew that I killed her father. Even if she didn’t know exactly, she had already come to that conclusion.
So the more I did for her, the more confused she would become. For her, the less she saw me as a target for revenge, the more chaotic it would be. After all, it would feel empty if she didn’t want to kill someone she had considered a lifelong enemy…
“…”
No matter what Alice said, I had no intention of stopping her.
It wasn’t easy to stop a stubborn Alice, and above all—
I wasn’t sure if it was okay to say this, but to be honest, I found the current situation a bit interesting.
I wasn’t taking the lead, but rather seeing the ‘relationships between characters changing on their own’.
“What kind of business was it?”
Was Mia Crowfield genuinely asking out of ignorance?
She might not have known anything during her childhood. But as time passed, after her father’s death, wouldn’t she have started to notice little by little when her mother prepared for revenge and brought Mia Crowfield into it? She might have just been turning a blind eye…
“Anyway, let me finish my explanation.”
However, Alice neglected to provide a proper answer to the oblivious Mia Crowfield and continued with her explanation.
Conveniently, or perhaps unfortunately, Mia Crowfield wasn’t reckless enough to argue against the Crown Princess, who almost explicitly stated, ‘I won’t say it.’
“So, looking for connections is pointless if you search the already burnt down shop. That place turned to ashes ten years ago. Instead, you should look for the ones that are still operating.”
Alice let out a small sigh, almost like a lament.
“Start from the top, look for the nobles addicted to opiates, pick out the debauched ones from among them, and as you dig through the opium dens one by one, you’ll likely find what you need more easily than you think.”
“…Did you go there yourself?”
As I asked with a hint of disbelief, Alice frowned.
“Of course not. That’s unrelated to my skills— I don’t give off a very intimidating impression. Instead, it’s much scarier to send a knight holding a warrant backed by the Emperor.”
“Are you saying the Emperor permitted that?”
“I didn’t exactly ask for permission. I just borrowed the warrant format. I already knew how my father’s signature looked. Despite the appearance, I am his daughter, you know? It’s not odd that my handwriting resembles his significantly.”
“…”
I had to use all my strength to refrain from making an ugh sound. Alice’s face looked far too proud as she said that, leaving me temporarily at a loss for words.
“Are you saying you forged the Emperor’s warrant?”
“The Great Emperor surely knows I’m doing this, so I consider it as being authorized, in a way.”
No, but even so, the Emperor doesn’t really know everything.
This time, I had to tighten my arm to avoid smacking my forehead.
“Anyway, so… you wreaked havoc in that area you were in, right? So you learned some things for sure.”
Alice said with a smile.
“Nobles, no matter how much they want to escape, often can’t. Leaving behind their territory and name is so much more of a burden than their own worth.”
“…”
“And seeing someone looking out for them, they think, ‘That’s only natural.’”
Mia Crowfield seemed to be deeply lost in thought, perhaps a bit slack-jawed. At this rate, shouldn’t she at least see an orthodontist or dentist?
“Hmm.”
Having said that much, Alice seemed a bit disappointed as she took up the teacup again, reflecting her face against the surface of the tea.
“…But, do you really think there’s something in here?”
Alice asked with a somewhat serious expression.
“…”
Well, it wouldn’t hurt to be cautious. There might actually be a trace of drugs in it. To be honest, the Countess wasn’t that crazy, and it could just be that Mia Crowfield was the only one scared.
But was that really the important matter right now?
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