NOVEL NEXT Ch. 33
“Among the people in the mansion, it was found in the room of the one who displayed the most suspicious movements.”
Stia reported this to me as she handed over a few sheets of paper.
“I noticed traces of something being erased with magic, so I traced it and managed to restore these documents.”
I took them and asked.
“Is this the only decisive evidence?”
“Yes. We traced magic for a year, but nothing else came up.”
“And the reaction of the watchers?”
“They have pledged loyalty to the Alton family itself, so they carried out your orders without much resistance, Lady Belladi.”
“Alright, thank you for your hard work.”
At my words, Stia quietly bowed her head. The angle of her glasses shifted slightly, causing them to glint.
“I’ll handle the rest. You may leave now.”
“Yes, Lady Belladi. I will await your orders at any time.”
With that, Stia left the room.
Click.
The sound of the door closing echoed, and I began to examine the papers Stia had handed me.
“It hasn’t been long since I gave the order, and they’ve already found evidence.”
The papers were filled with intricate details, even about changes in the relationship between me and Meldor.
As I read through them, a faint smile crept across my face.
‘The spy must have thought he’d completely erased the evidence.’
If that were the case, the saying,
After sending out decoys, I immediately called Stia and informed her that I wanted to utilize other watchers. Stia recommended a few individuals among them.
Upon receiving her suggestions, I gave orders through Stia to those individuals.
-There’s a traitor. They deliberately spread rumors in the mansion. If anyone shows suspicious behavior, secure evidence immediately.
I hadn’t had many incidents to use the watchers before, so I was eager to test their abilities this time.
‘I had my suspicions about someone, but I didn’t feel the need to mention it outright.’
A few days later.
The watchers pinpointed the person I suspected as the spy.
On top of that, they restored decisive evidence in less time than I had anticipated, and I was genuinely impressed.
‘At this rate, I didn’t even need to send out decoys.’
Especially Stia.
Stia had used an exceptional formula to perfectly restore the documents that had been erased by magic. That restoration formula had been incredibly useful even in the original story.
‘Didn’t they say all the watchers had a special skill of their own?’
It was as if the Alton family’s mansion was a treasure chest.
It felt like all these outstanding talents had been gathered under the pretense of being watchers…
But of course, I had no intention of opening up this precious treasure chest to anyone else.
Thinking about it that way, this particular spy was rather lucky. The only watcher planted within the mansion was Zeppelin, but he was often away due to external missions.
‘This is all because Father trusts the knights too much.’
As the ruler of the northern lands, who revered the sword, Father was very proud of the knights and trusted them deeply.
That was why he could comfortably send Zeppelin, who was in charge of the knight order, on external missions.
‘When Father makes a mess, I have to clean it up, don’t I? What else can I do?’
Although Zeppelin had now returned to his role in the knight order, I needed him by my side as a close aide. So, it seemed wise to plant a separate watcher within the knight order.
‘The new watcher… will have to be completely loyal to me.’
With that thought in mind, I placed the papers I had been reading down on the desk.
“The only leaked information is about my relationship with Meldor…”
How trivial, how dull.
Shouldn’t a spy be leaking more significant information if he was going to act in that role?
‘If the Alton family had been hit hard once, Father would have been affected.’
That way, I would have had more room to maneuver.
… but then again, Father personally managed the core information that could control the family, so it would have been nearly impossible for a spy to access that.
Though I felt a bit disappointed, I decided to brush it off. I hadn’t even come of age yet, so there was no need to be overly ambitious.
‘For now, it’s time to prepare carefully for a bigger leap.’
By the way, what should we do with this spy?
Thinking about him made me chuckle bitterly. I had expected the spy’s identity since I knew the original story, but it still left a bad taste in my mouth.
A despicable spy who betrayed both me and the Duke of Alton. His identity was none other than the
He was also a pathetic fool who had forgotten his duty and harbored feelings for his master.
Still, as a knight of our family, he maintained a good poker face and had been very thorough in hiding his emotions.
Even so, there had always been something unsettling about him every time I saw him.
‘To think he would dare have such improper feelings for my mother… I never imagined that.’
After my mother’s death, he began to harbor animosity toward the Duke of Alton. His reason? He blamed the family for failing to save my mother.
Then, when Nesia was adopted, he swore a new loyalty to her, which made me slightly uneasy.
‘After my mother’s passing, the fact that he returned to the knights’ order was consistent with the original story.’
But there was nothing about him becoming a spy.
‘In the original, this escort knight’s only role was to highlight how much the heroine, Nesia, resembled the duchess>.
So why?
‘… oh, now that I think about it.’
In the original, Nesia stayed in the capital, not in the North.
But because of my plan, my father went to the North, and naturally, Nesia followed him there.
‘He was supposed to swear his loyalty to Nesia during that time, but he couldn’t, so did he turn into a spy?’
It was a plausible theory.
‘Yes, it wouldn’t do to have anyone else besides Prince Killian causing unexpected trouble.’
That would only make things more complicated for me. It wasn’t good for the plot to twist on its own without me altering it.
I picked up a pen. Regardless, I had to report all of this to my father.
‘If the spy had come from among the servants, I could have arrested him under my authority.’
But when it came to high-ranking personnel like knights or retainers, that was beyond my jurisdiction.
All management rights over high-ranking personnel belonged to my father as the head of the family.
‘… if my father had given me that authority, I wouldn’t need to write this report.’
Not only would I not need to write a letter, but my standing in the mansion would rise significantly. Managing servants and managing knights had entirely different levels of responsibility.
As I was drafting the report, I paused and raised an eyebrow as I muttered to myself.
“I can’t just waste the perfect opportunity this spy has given me.”
Testing the ability of the watchers wasn’t enough to satisfy me.
Wouldn’t it be better to take full advantage of what was available?
Rip-!
I tore up the letter I was writing without hesitation.
Knowing the original story was quite useful in many ways.
‘Besides, there’s another person who’s tied up with this spy.’
I smiled slyly as I thought of the prey who would soon stick his neck out, waiting for me to seize the opportunity and elevate my influence.
***
After my father left for the North, three retainers were assigned to stay at the estate.
One of them was Baron Ricken, my father’s closest aide who had practically lived at the mansion, while the other two were selected from vassal families of the Duke of Alton.
‘The Brooks family and the Dermi family.’
Of the two, the one I had business with was from the Dermi family. He was the second son of Baron Dermi, who would one day embezzle funds from the North.
At that time, the North was busy developing a gemstone mine, so it was possible. Eventually, Nesia, having grown older, would uncover the embezzlement.
This was how Nesia came to take over the internal management of the mansion from my father.
‘But with me here now, that won’t happen.’
The period of the second son’s embezzlement and the present didn’t align.
So, I decided to set a trap myself.
‘Even if the original story has been twisted, people don’t change.’
In the original, my father never left for the North. Naturally, neither the Brooks family nor the Dermi family’s people stayed at the estate for long.
But now that my father had left, they were staying here permanently.
From the moment the Dermi family’s second son arrived at the estate, I observed him closely. My conclusion was that he was greedy and foolish.
Although this wasn’t the North, the mansion in the capital still dealt with significant sums of money. To lure him in, I intentionally loosened the review of the mansion’s budget.
‘I created the perfect environment to whet his appetite.’
And it didn’t take long for the second son to approach me discreetly.
-Lady Belladi, I heard that the annex is being renovated.
The moment he said that I had to suppress the smirk threatening to surface.
I already knew, thanks to the original, how the second son embezzled funds.
I nodded as if nothing were amiss.
-That’s right. The renovation is almost finished.
-Have you already chosen the new furniture? If not, I’d be happy to help.
-You want to help?
-It’s nothing major. I used to run a business in the capital, and I know some reputable furniture dealers. Their craftsmanship is excellent, and I thought I could introduce them to you if you’re interested.
The second son had a simple and amiable smile on his face.
Seeing that, I couldn’t help but smile back.
‘Yes, this is how you need to play your part for things to get interesting.’
I slowly nodded.
-That’s fortunate. I was thinking of hiring a specialized company rather than going through a department store. Oh, why don’t you, Young Master Dermi, act as my representative and handle the transaction?”
-W-what? Me, as your representative?
Caught off guard, the second son’s already wide eyes grew even larger.