Despite being the daughter of Sangdanju, she thought Isazel was acting this way because she naturally didn’t know how to handle everything related to accounting. However, Isazel was very proficient in accounting.

“It can’t be that there are so many employees in Fortrion Castle…. Sophia, where’s the list of employees?”

Isazel quickly realized that the accounting ledger was strange and began to inspect the ledger with the veterans of the Carkus Sangdan.

‘What has changed in her mind in just a few days?’

Sophia missed the old Isazel, who used to practice singing as if she had no interest in the affairs of the world.

“It doesn’t make sense that they put the names of already fired employees on the roster and paid them salaries, and there’s no way they bought this many supplies they use.”

“…….”

“Sophia. I want to verify the spending vouchers for the purchases, where are they?”

“It’s… it will be somewhere.”

Sophia gave a soft, aristocratic smile, but that did not defuse the situation.

She had colluded, but Whitman, who was good at calculations, handled the actual errands, so Sophia did not even know if the evidence existed.

Just when she felt like biting her nails, the people around her began to murmur.

The employees, especially the female employees, shifted their gazes to a man’s face, carrying the Butler Chief, like hunting prey.

Sophia, who did not usually remember the faces or names of the servants, could not but recognize this face.

“……Walter.”

“It’s been a while, Lady Sophia.”

“I specifically told you not to catch my eye, nor step foot inside the mansion.”

“I wanted to faithfully follow your command, but I was ordered to bring the Butler Chief by anyone.”

Thud―

Walter put down Whitman, the Butler Chief, he was carrying like luggage.

Whitman’s body slumped like a dead person, and all the color drained from Sophia’s face.

“He’s not gone yet.”

Walter kindly added, as if he knew why Sophia was reacting so sensitively. Sophia’s face darkened even more.

Isazel looked at the Butler Chief, who seemed unwell, and frowned, but that was it.

“Sophia. You said you knew nothing about the embezzlement, right?”

“…….”

“Then it must be something Butler Chief Whitman did on his own. I will have to punish him severely.”

Only Sophia and Whitman could have tampered with the accounting book, and after comparing some documents, it was concluded that Whitman’s handwriting matched the ledger.

The situation was too clear to even need to hear from the accused.

Isazel had no hesitation in inflicting a severe punishment, as she was unaware of the relationship between Sophia and Whitman.

Sophia felt like all the blood was draining from her body.

“But Butler Chief Whitman has been dedicated to Fortrion since my grandfather’s time, hasn’t he? Hiring and firing the Butler Chief is also within the Lord’s rights…….”

“Hmm, is that so.”

Isazel thought she could not fire the Butler Chief, ignoring the authority of the bedridden Lord.

As she pondered what punishment could rectify the embezzlement, Walter slyly slipped a word.
“Then how about detaining the head butler Whitman in the Carcus upper level until His Lordship wakes up?”

At the word “detention,” Sophia’s gaze grew fierce, but Walter did not care at all.

“The head butler, along with the money sent by the Carcus upper level, embezzled it as if it were no different.”

“Well, His Lordship trusts his father. He always said that there is nothing as trustworthy as a relationship involving money.”

Isabelle glanced at Sophia.

“It’s okay to detain the embezzler in Carcus until His Lordship wakes up, right?”

“…….”

Sophia could not answer immediately.

The moments spent with Whitman, avoiding people’s eyes, passed by like a series of lanterns.

If the situation were reversed, would Whitman have kept his mouth shut to the end? If he kept his mouth shut, would it be a confession of complicity?

Sophia opened her mouth at last, feeling as if the moment was suffocating.

“……There’s no other way, so it can’t be helped. Let’s do it that way.”

When she made her decision, Walter chuckled inwardly. Using people and then discarding them as if nothing had ever happened was a typical Sophia decision.

If it were the fourth madam, she would not have abandoned her people to the end.

Walter briefly glared at Sophia’s pale face and lifted Whitman again like luggage.

“Then I will move him to where the people of Carcus upper level stay.”

It was Walter’s first revenge against Sophia, who had imprisoned Edith in this barbaric mansion.