Cediloy couldn’t help but smirk as he looked at her.

“Me changing, what exactly has changed?”

“You weren’t like this before.”

“That might be true. How was the previous me, Jocelyn? Tell me.”

A dark shadow fell on Jocelyn’s expressionless face. It seemed to be a mixture of sorrow and anger.

“Though it may sound impudent, the previous Duke handled matters with much better discernment. But now…”

“Now? Am I now someone who can’t discern anything?”

Jocelyn looked directly at Cediloy. Flames seemed to flicker beneath her black pupils.

“It seems the Duke’s vision has become unclear. It’s clear who has clouded the Duke’s honorable judgment. Engaging in an affair with a lowly servant, bringing in vulgar people, and showing unnecessary kindness to those without qualification…”

“Those without qualification?”

Cediloy’s cold voice interrupted Jocelyn’s words.

“Who exactly are the unqualified ones, Jocelyn? Is this about stories concerning Ariante? Or…”

As he shook his hand, a stiff envelope made a nervous sound as it shook.

“Is it about Lord Glodon’s son?”

Jocelyn looked at Cediloy again with a meaningful gaze. Black pupils… two holes like pierced through the air. Cediloy thought. It seemed like all sorts of bad things were constantly being sucked into them… Sucked in and piled up.

What would happen if it overflowed? Cediloy unconsciously touched the back of his neck with his hand. There were faint goosebumps.

For a moment, Jocelyn smiled cunningly. It seemed like she had turned the mask inside out.

“Would that be possible? As the Duke said, Lady Ariante is the only heir to the Valternminster family… Also, the son of Lord Glodon is the Duke’s eldest son. How dare I, considering these people. I’m just getting overwhelmed by the Duke’s excessive kindness to those of low status. Those people… often request the favor of the upper class. They tend to delude themselves into thinking they’re special…”

“Enough, Jocelyn.”

When Cediloy interrupted Jocelyn’s words with a slash, the forced smile on her lips disappeared momentarily.

He spoke again.

“Leave now, Jocelyn. And always remember that I do not wish for you to influence Ariante or even Swan in any way.”

Jocelyn, who stood as stiff as a statue, slightly lifted her chin. The hand she had gathered forward seemed to tremble, but eventually, she obediently lowered her head.

“I will keep that in mind, Your Grace.”
Jocelyn left like a ghost, not making a sound with her footsteps. Passing through the door, Cediloy, who had been watching the black hem disappearing beyond the corridor, touched his forehead. A long sigh escaped.

“Jemero.”

After a light creaking sound from the chair, Jemero immediately appeared.

“You called, Your Grace.”

“How is it going?”

Jemero briefly looked back in the direction Jocelyn had left, then nodded with a cautious attitude.

“The tracking is nearing its end. We recently found the place he lived in.”

Just a while ago. In Cediloy’s mind, flames flickered as if it was a moment ago. The place he lived just a while ago… This time, he had to succeed. The forester, the one Verbo and Liria were near when they died by the lake. He had to find him, who escaped and hid his tracks.

“Find him as soon as possible. We don’t have time.”

“Understood.”

When Cediloy gestured for him to leave, Jemero immediately left. He recalled the appearance of the forester he had seen a long time ago. The beak-like mustache and large eyes… And the face with rosy cheeks rolling eyes cunningly.

[I saw.]

That’s all he needed. Clenching his molars, Cediloy repeated the words silently like a spell he had cast countless times before.

[I saw it. Young Lord Verbo and Miss Liria losing consciousness in the middle of the lake.]

That’s all he needed.

“Ash’s lessons are incredibly fun!”

Ariante, sitting on a tall stool without a backrest, swung her toes and spoke.

Contrary to everyone’s worries, Ariante completed her first lesson with Ash excellently. Not only did she not come out once during the three hours, but there were also occasionally laughter and giggles heard from the direction of the study room.

Vaintina Bridget, who experienced numerous troubles with the teachers, including Bemon, due to Ariante’s mischief, was astonished by the unprecedented peaceful atmosphere in the class. Vaintina even said this.

[Isn
The hand that was tightly braiding the hair suddenly stopped. Meiana looked at Ariante’s face through the mirror for a moment, then blinked and asked.

“Locust story?”

“Yeah, you know about it? In the old days, locusts used to swarm like a typhoon once a year! It was to the extent that the sky seemed to be falling. Locusts would come into the house, you know. They even ate all the fruits and crops like wheat.”

“Really… So what happened?”

“Eventually, the wind direction changed, and locusts no longer came to El Bleuën. That’s how people were able to cultivate wheat in El Bleuën. After that, life became better and better. It was quite poor in the very old days.”