To make matters worse, Maria, who used to dislike her, forced her to attend a party against her will.

And that woman, of all places, attended the grand ball, engaged in unusual conversations with other ladies, and even congratulated Maria Rosete on her engagement with Valder.

Could such a change happen just because she lost her memory? No, wouldn’t she be more afraid and withdrawn instead?

Gedis’ suspicion of Ruela Romine was gradually growing.

Could she really have died and come back to life, as the maid claimed?

Gedis shook his head.

There was no one else with such abilities, and if a dead person became a monster, having self-awareness would be impossible.
Nevertheless, Gedis, who was still suspicious, asked about Ruela again to confirm his doubts.

“Do you smell anything strange from Ruela?”

Even if she was a top-tier monster, she wouldn’t emit a smell detectable by ordinary people. However, it was necessary to ask, as sometimes sensitive individuals might notice.

“She didn’t show any signs, but since she didn’t spend much time in the party hall, she might not have noticed.”

“How about Ruela’s expression? Does she force herself to chat with people? Did she reluctantly offer congratulations when talking to Maria Rosete?”

“No. She was very cheerful. In fact, she was so different from her previous self that it was quite surprising.”

“What do you mean by being cheerful?”

Gart tried to describe the scenes he witnessed at the party in detail.

“There were no wrinkles, no dark aspects from before. Even though she had spent little time with guild members, she interacted with them comfortably. It was a side of her that I hadn’t seen even when she was with Lord Valder or Marquis Kamun.”

“Explain it in more detail.”

“She smiled very well. There was no sign of her paying attention to others or caring about each action. In the past, if she felt scorned at a party, she would either cry and run away or ignore and leave. But this time, she easily sided with me. Frankly, I was surprised by the drastic change.”

“She smiled?”

“Yes. I realized it today. I had never seen Ruela Romine smile before.”

Gedis’ expression darkened more and more.

“Yeah, she was a child who didn’t smile. Her brother was the same… Marquis Gart.”

“Yes, Your Excellency.”

“I need to thoroughly investigate Ruela Romine. Make her mingle with people, see if anything unusual comes up, especially regarding the smell.”

With a perplexed expression, Marquis Gart asked in response to the Duke’s command, “Y-Your Excellency, how can I make Ruela Romine socialize with people?”

“Whether it’s a party or a gathering, send out forced invitations.”

Listening outside the audience hall, Ruela couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Why do they want me to socialize with people?”

After Marquis Gart entered and arrived outside the audience hall, the long corridor without hiding spots led Ruela and Kite inside. Therefore, they could only question the invitation once they heard about it.

“Shh! We might be able to hear inside.”

Kite cautioned Ruela by placing a finger on her lips.

It was a small murmur, but since Duke Kuran was not an ordinary human, they had to be cautious.

Ruela quietly nodded to reassure Kite and slightly wet the curtain covering the entrance of the audience hall.

Although the thin curtain made the inside dimly visible, she wanted to clearly see Duke Kuran’s face.
Despite being nighttime inside the audience hall, it was exceptionally bright due to the brilliantly lit illumination that thoroughly covered every corner.

“I will send orders to the families with parties or gatherings. Make sure Ruela Romine attends.”

“That’s not all. Monitor the entire Peroz Guild more thoroughly… Who goes there!”

Duke Kuran, who had been overseeing the garden, turned towards the direction where Ruela and Kite were, shouting with a stern expression.

Startled, Ruela quickly lowered her hand from the curtain, but upon seeing Duke Kuran looking in their direction, her whole body stiffened in surprise.

The moment she saw Duke Kuran with black eyes and no white pupils, her mind went blank.

It wasn’t strange for Maria’s father to resemble the two. However, despite having the same hair and eye color as his daughter, the Duke felt much more eerie and chilling.

“Ruela, what’s wrong? Press ‘Return,’ ‘Return’!”

Distracted by the pounding sound in her ears, Ruela stood there in a daze, but she heard Kite urging her.

“Oh, right. ‘Return.'”

Ruela hastily opened the skill window.

As Gart Marquis, who was running towards them beyond the thin curtain, came into view, Ruela’s trembling increased at the surprised expression on his face.

“Ruela, it’s okay. Even if we’re caught, don’t be flustered.”

In response to Kite’s comforting words, Ruela’s wandering eyes found the return icon in the endless space.

Ruela quickly pressed the button. At the same time, she opened the curtain, locking eyes with Gart Marquis.