Chapter 11
The oil lamp in the bedroom tipped over in the draft, feeding the flames. Thick, acrid smoke filled the room.
The temperature climbed, and the surroundings began to heat up rapidly.
"Cough!"
My eyes stung, a cough escaped me, and soon, breathing became difficult. Of course, I wasn't particularly afraid; I had been trained by the instructors hired by the Pope.
Back then, the training even involved escaping from a burning, abandoned building while my entire body was bound with rope.
'Still, it's hard to endure in a five-year-old's body.'
The problem was that because the body was so young, it was difficult to hold my breath for long. My vision blurred, likely from inhaling too much smoke.
'My body can't hold out as well as my plan.'
It didn't really matter, though, since my plan for today wasn't to walk out of here safely on my own two feet.
Just as Lephonia’s consciousness began to fade, the area outside the bedroom became chaotic.
'They're here.'
The Duke of Kreitan, who hadn't gone to sleep yet, must have noticed. I knew that as an Aura Master, the Duke would realize it immediately.
'It’s a relief that things are proceeding according to plan.'
Outside the bedroom, it was beyond chaotic—it was a full-blown frenzy. Then, with a splintering sound as if someone had kicked the door in, the door was smashed to pieces.
I wanted to open my eyes to see who was recklessly charging through the flames, but my eyelids wouldn't obey me.
A hand that had pushed through the fire scooped up Lephonia, who was lying limp on the bed.
The large hand was trembling violently. I heard a few more crashing sounds, and then I felt a rush of cool air.
It seemed I had been safely pulled out of the raging fire.
The large hand pulled Lephonia into a tight embrace. Startled by the unfamiliar hug, Lephonia stupidly gasped for air.
"Cough, cough!"
A ragged, hoarse cough erupted, as if I had swallowed thick soot. I knew it was safer to wash my hands, face, and mouth with water before taking a deep breath, but the arms holding me were trembling so much that I made a mistake.
"Duke!"
"Lady!"
Screams and shouts echoed from everywhere.
"Get a doctor and bring water! Now!"
A sharp command, like a thunderclap, rang out above my head. The sound of many people running echoed in my ears.
'…The Duke?'
Lephonia forced all her strength into her eyelids and slowly opened them. Even though I knew it wasn't good to open them before washing my face.
I wanted to see the face of the person holding me so tightly with such trembling arms.
"Little one."
The Duke of Kreitan’s face filled Lephonia’s narrow field of vision. Perhaps because he had rescued Lephonia from the flames, there were soot marks left on his face.
The hand holding Lephonia, the trembling embrace—it was all the Duke of Kreitan.
As our eyes met, the Duke of Kreitan called out to Lephonia urgently.
'He could have just put out the fire.'
Lephonia furrowed her brows. I had anticipated that he would act to save me, as he wouldn't want his reputation tarnished by rumors that his adopted child had burned to death in the Kreitan mansion.
There was only one thing I hadn't anticipated.
'Why did you do it yourself…?'
I didn't expect the Duke of Kreitan to jump into the flames himself instead of just extinguishing them.
The Duke of Kreitan’s body was the property of the Empire. If he were to get hurt or put in danger, the Kreitan Family would collapse, which would mean the peace and safety of the Empire would also be shaken.
There was no way that man wouldn't know that.
"…Don't worry, just keep your eyes closed, Ponia."
The Duke of Kreitan took a clean handkerchief from the butler and covered Lephonia’s anxious eyes.
All my questions and anxieties were covered by the clean handkerchief.
"Leave the rest to this father."
Leave it to my father? What a ridiculous thing to say.
'Where would I have a father? Who is there for me to trust and rely on?'
If there had been someone I could trust and rely on, if I had a father, I wouldn't have needed to do something like this in the first place.
I had thrown incense into the fireplace of the bedroom where the adopted child slept to deliberately start a fire, an incident where the culprit could not be identified.
Of course, suspicious eyes would turn toward the vassals who disliked Lephonia, but since there was no concrete evidence that they had done it, they couldn't be interrogated.
I could have fabricated evidence to make it look like the vassals had done it, but Lephonia didn't do that.
The vassals were those who gave their full loyalty to the Kreitan Family. There was no need to turn them into enemies or have the Duke cast them out.
A moderate amount of suspicion. That was exactly the level needed to keep myself safe.
The Duke of Kreitan would do his utmost to ensure Lephonia’s safety until the vassals left, and the vassals, being under vague suspicion for something they didn't even do, would be cautious about hiring assassins.
'……This is enough.'
Everything is going according to plan.
Lephonia smiled and closed her eyes. And then, her consciousness cut out.
* * *
Lephonia opened her eyes groggily.
A canopy of a different color than usual caught her eye first. The ceiling and the chandelier were different, too. Since the bedroom I had been using had burned down completely, it seemed they had moved me elsewhere.
"Lady!"
As soon as Lephonia opened her eyes, someone approached her side. It was Becky and Birdie.
"Ah."
I tried to call Birdie and Becky’s names, but my throat stung, and my brow furrowed automatically.
"Lady, you don't have to speak. Really, it's a huge relief that you're mostly fine, but they said your throat was damaged from inhaling the hot smoke. You need to be careful for a while."
It seemed I had inhaled more smoke than I thought. Becky hurriedly brought some water.
After drinking the cool water, the nausea and the throbbing in my head subsided a little.
Lephonia, who had struggled to lift her upper body, looked around.
Whose bedroom is this, anyway?
"Laaady, …are you okay?"
Birdie called out to Lephonia, who was looking around the bedroom, with concern. Lephonia stopped trying to figure out who the owner of the bedroom was and nodded. Then, she asked in a small, murmuring voice.
"Are you two hurt?"
My voice was hoarse and pathetic. I didn't even have the strength to enunciate properly, so my pronunciation was a mess.
"We're fine. Rather than us, Lady—"
Of course they weren't hurt. I had deliberately started the fire when they weren't around because I couldn't let two people who had nothing to do with this get hurt.
If others got hurt, things would just get more complicated.
However, Lephonia pretended to know nothing, pretending it was a relief, and smiled with difficulty as if she were truly worried.
"That's a relief."
With this, rumors of it being a self-staged act wouldn't spread among the maids.
But suddenly, Birdie fell to her knees and burst into tears.
"Lady, oh Lady… at times like this, you don't have to worry about us, you can be angry and tell us you're in pain, sob."
Why, why are you doing this?
Lephonia blinked in confusion, watching Birdie suddenly wail.
Even Becky was shedding tears. Her eyes were red and swollen, as if she had been crying since before I woke up.
'I'm the one who got hurt, so why are you two crying?'
Lephonia, who had never learned how to comfort someone who was crying, was flustered.
"The Duke entrusted you to us, sob, and since we couldn't protect you properly, we deserve to be punished."
Punished? Sensing that the situation was about to escalate, Lephonia waved her hands in panic.
"It wasn't you two, so why are you doing that? I'm okay. Don't do that."
"Are, are you… sob, trusting, sob, trusting us?"
What is this now?
"Don't you suspect that we started the fire? A broken incense bottle was found near the Lady's fireplace. It's an incense commonly used in the mansion, and it seems someone threw it into the fireplace."
"Ha, haa."
Lephonia pretended to be surprised.
"If it were me, I would have suspected myself first, since I served the Lady closest… sob, but, but it really wasn't us."
"The Duke is investigating, but it has been concluded that we have no suspicion. So, so please… trust us, Lady."
Lephonia held her forehead with an absurd expression.
Of course I don't even have the thought to suspect you.
Because…….
'I'm the one who started the fire, so what are you talking about?'
Lephonia already knew the culprit of the fire incident!
"I never even suspected you."
Please, let's not make this a big deal. Lephonia said firmly.
Birdie covered her mouth with her palms as if she couldn't believe it and burst into tears.
"So don't worry… cough, cough!"
Perhaps because I had spoken too much, a dry cough erupted. With every cough, my small body shook helplessly.
A startled Birdie hurriedly grabbed Lephonia and patted her back, while Becky brought water.
When the coughing finally stopped, Lephonia let out a long breath. Her chest felt raw.
"I'm fine. I wasn't hurt, and I didn't die, did I?"
Lephonia muttered in a voice as small as a candle about to go out in the wind.
"How… how can you ask if we're okay before saying you're in pain—"
"Lady, we will serve you by your side for the rest of our lives, just as you trusted us."
The two said it with a desperate, solemn tone, as if making a vow.
'They say it's easy, not even knowing how long a lifetime will be.'
Lephonia touched her throat and nodded vaguely. Then, she asked about something that had been bothering her since earlier.
"But what is this about the Duke investigating?"
There is no culprit. So it was natural that there was no evidence. I couldn't cast out the vassals, but I thought he would just scold them appropriately and finish the matter since his reputation was almost tarnished, but an investigation?
"The Duke is currently investigating everyone in the mansion himself."
"Huh?"
Lephonia’s eyes wavered.
"On the night the Lady's bedroom caught fire, all the guests were away from their seats."
I know. That night the fire broke out, they were gathered together, plotting.
"Because they wouldn't open their mouths about where they were or what they were doing… the Duke has locked them all in individual rooms."
Lephonia opened her eyes wide in surprise.
"There's, there's no need to do that—"
"The Duke said he would not let this matter pass."
"……."
"He said he would definitely root out the culprit and throw them into the fire pit… ahem. He said he would definitely root out the culprit and show them a lesson, so don't worry, Lady."
"……."
"Whatever the Duke says he will do, he always accomplishes it. This time, too, he will definitely catch the culprit."
At Birdie’s conviction, the eyes of Lephonia… the culprit who started the fire, wavered.
* * *
And at the entrance of the Kreitan mansion.
"Hmm."
Looking at the closed door, the man tilted his head at an angle.
"Why is there no one here?"
The man stepped back, then quickly scaled the high outer wall of the mansion and vaulted over it.
It was a feat no ordinary person could ever accomplish.
Neither leaping over such a high wall, nor daring to set foot in the Kreitan Duchy at will.
Having entered the mansion with ease, the man brushed off his palms and walked inside with a laugh.
"It’s a mess in here. And what is this acrid smell? ...Hey, you."
The man, who had been walking with his hands clasped behind his back, called out to a passing maid. The maid stopped at his voice, and upon seeing his face, she hurriedly bowed in shock.
"Y-Young Master Pretes!"
"My father hasn't even come to greet his son after such a long time away. Where is he?"
It was the return of the reckless second son.
The return of Pretes Kreitan.
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