“Excuse me, but what do you intend to do by inquiring about that child…?”

“Oh, it’s nothing special. I just wanted to know how she’s been all this time. Also, about the blonde woman.”

“Oh, are you planning to find her and kill her?”

“…What?”

“If that’s the reason, I won’t teach you even if you’re a noble!”

When René closed her eyes and shouted, René stared at her with a dumbfounded face.

“Uh, no. Lady, are you misunderstanding something…?”

“Are you really the child’s father? Even if you abandoned the family so recklessly and now only come looking for the illegitimate child, how could you commit such a heinous act…”

“…What?”

It was at that moment when René was making a shocked face as if she had been hit on the back of the head with a mallet.

“René, you don’t look like that, but you’re quite trashy.”
Hazel, who had changed into an ordinary dress from the costume area without anyone noticing, raised her head. The corners of her eyes seemed to curve as if she found something amusing.

“Gasp…!”

Meanwhile, René realized what she had done only after speaking.

If this aristocrat decided, she could easily have René, at least, detained with some false charges.

Even if they couldn’t easily kill a commoner, René could get away with just a light fine after a few beatings. It was an amount that meant nothing to them, considering their perspective where money was abundant.

“Oh, I’m sorry! What have I said! Please forget about it!”

“No, it’s nothing.”

After treating the government as trash and treating a bastard child as if she intended to kill her, now she saw René, who was suddenly apologizing, and René was perplexed by her awkward expression.

He couldn’t fathom the flow of events that led to such behavior.

“Is she brave, or is she thoughtless?”

Probably both.

Thinking that the woman’s mental state seemed a bit strange, he sighed.

“Maybe you’re misunderstanding, but I am not the child’s father. I’m her uncle.”

“…What? What do you mean by that?”

René’s pupils shook.

“Are you talking about Aria’s brother?”

“Is it friendly enough to call by name? Well, anyway, that’s how it is.”

In reality, he was not Aria’s brother, but considering the contents, it wasn’t entirely wrong.

“Aria and Bonita have reclaimed their original status and are living well. What I want to know is how the two of them have been living here for the past seven years.”

“Ah…”

René sighed, hearing the news about Aria and Bonita.

“I’m relieved. Truly.”

While Aria might be so, René was always concerned about Bonita, who seemed timid and introverted. But hearing that the noble-looking young man assured her that Bonita was doing well, she felt somewhat relieved.

She wanted to ask in more detail about the circumstances, but that would be a luxury for her as a commoner.

“Well then, um. I’ll be changing shifts soon, so could you wait for a moment…? I’ve been quite close to Aria for a long time, so I might be able to explain a bit more openly.”

“I’d gladly do that.”

“Huh. What’s all this, Your Highness?”

“It’s candy.”

“I can see that.”

Rebecca asked as she looked at Luke, who came to her with a gift box.

“Who gave you this romantic gift…? Don’t tell me it’s Aria?”

“Nonsense.”

At Rebecca’s cheeky attitude, Luke coldly retorted. Sitting on the duty room chair, he leaned back and nodded.

“It’s a gift Bonita received.”

“Ah, I see… What?”

Rebecca, who was nodding her head, suddenly looked bewildered.
“Intercepting a child’s gift secretly, Your Highness. I didn’t know you liked candy that much.”

“Let’s stop joking.”

“…Then, why did you intercept and give me the candy Bonita received?”

Without a response from Luke, Rebecca narrowed her eyes, deeply lost in thought.

In the process, she recalled the commotion that happened a few days ago when Bonita fainted. It could be related to health issues.

Her gaze became serious.

“Do you want to inspect all of these?”

“Yeah. There might be someone targeting Bonita’s life. Also, the person who gave her the gift-”

“Hold on a moment.”

Rebecca raised her hand to silence Luke.

“Why is that?”