However, what he actually said was entirely different from imagination.

“Ariante, there’s no need to think like that. You’re the marquis’s daughter, the Lady of Baltermynster… Believe me. There should be no doubt about that.”

“How does Swan know that?”

Although Ariante responded sulkily, on the other hand, she seemed to want to believe his words.

Swan spoke again, “Believe me. I’m your brother.”

“I told you not to call me brother!”

“Anyway, even if you were someone else’s daughter, it doesn’t matter. Because… Because the marquis thinks of you as his real daughter. He’ll pass everything on to you. He’ll love you. Look at me! I have no relation to the marquis, but I study and play just like you. The marquis allows me to do that.”

Am I saying the right thing now? When Swan was locked in desperate doubt, Ariante’s eyes suddenly blinked.

“Don’t cry.”

Swan said. Ariante’s tears welled up, streamed down her round cheeks. However, she didn’t cry loudly as usual, nor did she scream like before. She just clung to Swan’s neck, swallowing her breath and sobbing quietly.

At that moment, urgent footsteps approached. When Swan turned his head, Mayana burst into the dark room just after opening the door.

“Lady! Swan, young master!”

No matter how much she had been running, Mayana was out of breath with her hair all messed up. Swan patted Ariante’s shoulder, nodding his head towards Mayana. It meant she was okay. She would be fine.

While Mayana, Venti, and Swan were wandering around the mansion in search of Ariante, Cedric was listening to the story told by the forest keeper Becker.

“That day… No, it wasn’t that day. It was the day before. Lady Liria came out for a walk toward the forest. I distinctly remember telling her not to go too deep.”

Becker recalled the memories of that day as if reviewing a bad dream.

As the forest keeper of the marquis’s estate, he mainly hunted small animals with traps and tidied up overgrown branches. The animals he hunted could be taken to the kitchen, and the trimmed branches were stacked on one side until the time to stack firewood arrived. Being alone without a wife or children, he had no complaints about his life.

Occasionally, he would check the rowboat to be floated on the lake. Although the small boat, which could accommodate two or three people when filled, was very sturdy, it was made of wood, so it was customary to check regularly; otherwise, the wooden pegs fixing the bottom or the boards could become sharp.

“Lady Liria came to see the boat. She asked if she could ride it… I said yes and told her she could ride it anytime. The lady was very pleased and said that she wanted to ride the boat with Young Master Vervo and asked if we could prepare for it…”

Cedric could vividly recall Lady Liria’s joyful appearance. With her golden hair fluttering as she rolled her heels to clap her hands, she would have done such a thing. She used to make such gestures when she was pleased with something.

At those times, her azure pupils sparkled purely like those of a child, and the smile that appeared on her lips brightened the surroundings.

To witness Lady Liria’s joy, Cedric always prepared something to make her happy. He also felt pleased himself.

A pain, as if a large thorn was stuck in his throat, surged. Cedric, forcing himself to swallow, spoke calmly.

“Continue speaking.”
“When I tried to show Lady Liria the boat, Jocelyn, the housekeeper, suddenly… really suddenly appeared. Lady Liria tensed up in an instant, and so did I. Jocelyn asked me what I was doing, and when she knew Lady Liria wanted to ride the boat, she got angry.”

“Why did she get angry?”

Becker’s eyes trembled with fear.

“She said that the boat was used by the former Marquis and his wife… and dared to touch it without anyone’s permission. I tried to stop her, but it was useless. When I said I would ask the Marquis for permission, she got even more furious. Lady Liria was scared and couldn’t say anything… she just left. Yes, she just left.”

Licking his dry lips, Becker slowly exhaled. He was now concentrating all his energy on pulling out and arranging each memory vividly as if placing them one by one on a table.

“After Lady Liria left, Jocelyn suddenly said to me like this…”

[Becker, it seems like I said something too harsh to Lady Liria.] [Are you realizing that just now? Oh my god. Lady Liria is the housekeeper’s superior! What were you thinking, saying such rude things…] [Bring out the boat and prepare it. I’ll go apologize to Lady Liria… and prepare for Young Master Vervo to ride the boat with her tomorrow. Also, prepare for Miss Ariante to join.]

Listening to Becker’s words, Cedric clenched his fist. However, Becker continued his speech without seeing that, as if possessed or attached to the past.

“I brought out the boat… and prepared it. I definitely prepared it. I confirmed that there was nothing wrong. But that night, I heard a strange sound.”

“What kind of strange sound?”