The somewhat perplexing and quite satisfying dinner for some had ended, and the two walked through the garden shrouded in the night’s veil, conversing. The main topic was the upcoming Founding Day.

Every year in the first week of July, there was a festival across the empire commemorating its founding, but Liliana, who had always stayed in the capital, had never once been to festivals in other cities.

“I heard that in Cardin, the snow doesn’t melt even in July, so they have snow-related events during the festival. Is that true?”

“It is. Of course, the snow isn’t piled up on the streets, but on Mount Terpora. The mountaintop is so cold that the snow doesn’t melt even in midsummer.”

“Ah, I know! You’re talking about the permanent snow, right?”

Liliana’s eyes sparkled as she recalled the permanent snow she had read about in books.

“No matter how cold the mountaintop is, it’s summer, so it’s fascinating that the snow doesn’t melt. I’d like to see it in person.”

“We can go see it together.”

Herald said it sincerely, but Liliana, taking it as a joke, laughed and replied that they should go together someday.

As they strolled through the garden, talking about this and that, Liliana’s gaze suddenly stopped somewhere. She stared intently for a while, so Herald also looked in that direction. He thought there was something, but he couldn’t see anything.

“What are you looking at so intently?”

“Ah, I thought it was strange.”

“What is?”

“The statue.”

Liliana pointed in the direction she had been staring at until just now.

“I’m sure there was a statue over there… I thought it was strange that I couldn’t see it.”

Ah, that nonexistent statue from back then. Or more accurately, the intruder.

Herald’s eyes darkened as he recalled when he first brought Liliana to the Braden estate. It was dark around him too, and Liliana, focused on the vanished statue, didn’t notice.

“That statue was removed. As you know, keeping a statue in the garden isn’t a very good idea.”

That’s true. Never dreaming that the statue might have been an intruder, Liliana brushed it off as trivial.

The atmosphere afterward was also friendly, but near the end of their walk, it sank a little at Liliana’s abrupt words.

“…Just in case, listen without misunderstanding.”

At a reaction similar to during dinner, Herald sensed it would be related to Grace Benjamin.

“I have no intention of using shock therapy on my mother.”

As he thought. Herald looked down at Liliana’s face, gloomily sunken as if the darkness surrounding them had seeped in. But the green eyes holding his were more resolute than ever.

“It may be effective in finding your mother’s lost memories.”

It had actually been effective, but he couldn’t say that now.

“Or it may not be effective at all.”

Liliana smiled bitterly and refuted.

“If it’s simply ineffective, that’s fortunate, but my mother’s condition could worsen even more than now.”

If Grace Benjamin’s condition had stabilized even a little, it might be different, but as it was only getting worse and worse, Liliana grew even more afraid.

“So I will never use shock therapy.”

Herald firmly grasped Liliana’s slightly trembling hand.

“I understand your fearful feelings, but you can’t solve anything by just continuing to run away.”

“…No. You don’t understand my feelings at all.”

Liliana clenched the hand held by him inward and spoke firmly.

“Because you don’t know how terrible it feels to lose a precious family member overnight, you can say such things.”

“That’s…”

“I don’t want to feel that way ever again, Herald.”

Liliana appropriately used the weapon he had placed in her hand to silence him.

“So please respect my choice.”

After Liliana collapsed with a terrible fever, Herald didn’t return to the Maximilian ducal residence and continued to stay at the Braden estate. Although her condition had improved, she wasn’t completely well yet, so he said he was worried.

Of course, that wasn’t the only reason. Dillon’s absence was also one of the reasons Herald remained at the Braden estate.

Following his superior’s orders, Dillon had vacated his post to see if there was anything else strange in the snacks Fredrick Benjamin brought to the sanatorium every Monday.

Since there was no one to watch over Liliana in the meantime, Herald had to stay at the Braden estate until Dillon returned. Thanks to that, he was able to spend more time with Liliana and even developed the somewhat absurd hope that Dillon would return late.

“I’m back, Captain.”

“……”

Was that why? Dillon’s face, seen again after about two days, wasn’t so welcome. No, it seemed welcome, but the annoyed feeling was greater, so Herald clicked his tongue and ran his hand through his hair.

“What’s with that reaction?”

I went and investigated diligently without even getting proper sleep, and this is the treatment I get. As Dillon looked at him in dismay, Herald spat out words as if throwing them.

“Good work.”

“Can’t you say it with even a little bit of soul?”

At his request, Herald drew a faint smile on his dry lips. But his eyes looking at Dillon were still chilly.

“Good work.”

“…I should just shut up.”

I should expect from someone I can expect from… Dillon engraved the maxim someone had said deep in his heart and shook his head. His hair, wet with the night dew, swayed with the shake of his head.

“Judging from the Captain’s reaction, it doesn’t seem to be an urgent matter. I’ll rest a bit and come report again when it’s light out.”

He had come straight here without even washing, let alone taking off his dust-covered coat, thinking Herald would be waiting, but being treated so coldly like this sapped his motivation. Extreme fatigue filled that spot, making the bag on his shoulder feel as heavy as a boulder. His eyelids were even heavier.

“Sorry for the late night intrusion, Captain. Then I’ll see you again in the morning.”

“Just report now.”

As Dillon bowed his head in greeting and tried to turn around, Herald grabbed his ankle.

When he looked at me like an unwelcome guest interrupting a good time, that was fine, but now he says to report. Dillon looked at him in even more dismay than before, but Herald was nonchalant. Faced with his brazen attitude as if he had no idea what the problem was, Dillon clicked his tongue inwardly but thought it was just like him.

So he obediently nodded his head without arguing or complaining. It wouldn’t work on Herald anyway. It would only make his own mouth hurt. It was wiser to quickly finish the report and go rest well.

Though he wasn’t sure if he could rest well even after reporting. Swallowing the uneasiness creeping up, Dillon took out the bundle of papers he had neatly placed in his bag and handed it to him.

“As you predicted, Captain, there were other impurities mixed in those snacks.”

Sitting on the back of the sofa, Herald read the contents written on the paper and listened to Dillon’s report.

“Eranthis, Paris polyphylla, Lemmaphyllum, Angelica, Galium, etc. are mostly medicinal herbs used to treat diseases of the nervous system.”

Medicinal herbs, not poisonous herbs. Herald carefully read the efficacy briefly written under the herb names. It was as Dillon reported, and there didn’t seem to be any other special matters.

Then was Fredrick Benjamin bringing snacks to the sanatorium every Monday simply to treat Grace Benjamin?

Just as bringing outside food into the cafeteria was strictly prohibited, it was also strictly forbidden to bring in treatment made outside the hospital. The same went for tonics. If a problem occurred, the hospital would have to take full responsibility, so it was natural.

But to leave it entirely to the hospital when Grace Benjamin’s condition was getting worse and worse, the family, feeling uneasy about this, secretly fed her treatment by mixing it into snacks…?

It was a flawless perfect family, but if that family was Fredrick Benjamin, it was a different story.

If what that guy really wanted was Grace Benjamin’s full recovery, he wouldn’t have done the troublesome show of personally going to the sanatorium carrying a snack box.

No, if that was the reason, he would have had her discharged long ago. A guy who does anything for money wouldn’t do such a foolish thing that doubly leaks money.

Just what are you thinking, Fredrick Benjamin?

The more he dug, the more questions arose instead of being resolved, so deep wrinkles formed between Herald’s brows. As he was checking again to see if he had missed anything, Dillon, who had wet his dry throat in the meantime, spoke.

“It’s true that there were impurities in the snacks, but that in itself is not a problem.”

‘In itself’? The golden eyes that had been intently reading the contents turned to Dillon.

“It sounds like there’s a problem elsewhere.”

“That’s right. Could you look at the last page?”

Herald immediately opened to the last page. On that page was a description of a medicinal herb called ‘Paemino’.

“The herb written there is not an impurity that was in the snacks.”

“Then?”

“It’s an herb contained in the treatment prescribed to Grace Benjamin by Salvador Sanatorium. Actually, it’s closer to a sedative than a treatment.”

The efficacy, side effects, and uses of Paemino were written in detail on the paper. Even after reading the contents thoroughly, Herald still couldn’t find the strange part and looked at Dillon with puzzled eyes.

“As written on the paper, Paemino is a Class 1 caution herb. Its efficacy is very excellent, but the side effects are also severe. Especially…”

From here on was the really important story, so Dillon continued with a serious and grave face.

“If taken together with the impurities in the snacks, it causes problems like memory deterioration and hallucinations. In the worst case, the mind can be completely ruined and even lead to death.”