The mastermind behind the woman’s scheme was surprisingly just one young man. The man was as beautiful as the woman but somehow frivolous.

The woman and man lived together and had squandered the money they got from her father in back alleys until they were broke.

“All your claims about witch hunts and memory loss are lies. You’ll be charged with fraud.”

The guard said.

The woman and man had messed with the wellknown Marsen family of the empire. Incarceration was inevitable. Knowing this, the woman begged her father for mercy, invoking old affections.

Her father, disgusted as if he had seen filth, went inside. Unlike him, Isabelle stayed put.

It wasn’t out of sympathy for the woman.

“Please give her and the others the harshest punishments for fraud and all other crimes. I don’t want to see her face again.”

“I understand, ma’am.”

“Go, I no longer want to see that woman’s face.”

The guard seemed to have been waiting for this, as he took the woman and the man out through the front gate.

Outside the gate was a wooden cage to imprison criminals. The frightened woman screamed towards her mother, but her mouth was covered by the guard.

“Quiet!”

The guard did not hesitate to use violence against the prisoners. Horrified by the scene, I closed the curtain and moved to the sofa.

“Where are the children?”

Isabelle asked the maid beside her.

“Master Swell and Miss Silke have cried themselves to sleep, relieved. Miss Felicia and Master Bernard are still at school. I had someone check on the other kids at school, and fortunately, nothing happened.”

“…Let’s keep this a secret from the two. No good comes from them knowing.”

“Yes.”

“Alright. Prepare the meals quickly; the children will be hungry when they wake up.”

Isabelle managed the mansion as usual. She gave tasks to the maids and finally turned her attention to me.

“What are you looking at?”

“…I have something to say.”

I hesitated. Isabelle waited silently. I slightly parted my lips then stopped.

I did want to thank her for protecting me, but I’d never said something so embarrassing to Isabelle before.

“If you have nothing to say, go to your room. The maids need to clean the entrance.”

“I heard everything.”

“…What do you mean?”

Isabelle paused.

“The conversation you had with father earlier. You said you got your revenge on him.”

“You eavesdropped. A bad habit is emerging.”

“I didn’t mean to. Besides, you said you got revenge on me too. What did I do wrong?”

Isabelle hesitated for a moment. Something had happened between Isabelle and me that I couldn’t remember. What had I done to earn her resentment?

“You haven’t been listening to me for a while.”

Isabelle answered vaguely.

“You’re not the type to seek revenge for something like that.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Because I know you very well, unlike that woman who was dragged away.”

My tone was full of conviction, and Isabelle grimaced as if troubled. Even if it was a past issue for her, it was critical for me. Knowing would prevent me from foolishly repeating it.

Seeing my persistent gaze, Isabelle relaxed her expression.

“…You like space, don’t you?”

“What?”

Suddenly space?

Ignoring my question, Isabelle walked into the room. Before closing the door, she mumbled softly.

“I didn’t like that.”

“What, Mother?”
What was all this about? Even though she wanted to ask more, Isabelle didn’t enter the room.

Space? What space?

‘…It’s not a mystery, is it?’

Her thoughts became more complicated.

Isabelle’s words tormented me.

‘Space, space. Damn space!’

There was only one way to clear her complex thoughts. To see the face of someone she wanted to see.

The place she looked around and headed for was none other than the flower bed between the Marsen and Fenton families. Of course, she sneaked out without Isabelle and the maids knowing. Just in case, she left a note in Viti’s room so they wouldn’t think she was kidnapped.

“……Lise?”

A familiar voice sounded from the front.

On the Monday when the vacation was over, Yurik and she had promised to meet here. Although they had made a promise, they didn’t set a time, so she didn’t expect him to be there. No, she had a slight expectation.

But as soon as she entered the flower bed, Yurik, who had been sitting there, spotted her and smiled.

“Yurik…….”

There was no fairytale book in his hands as usual. She thought he had just come out of the mansion like her, but starting from the back of his hand to his nose was flushed red.

Had he been here for a long time? She ran to him and grabbed his hand. As expected, his hand was very cold.

“Yurik, are you crazy?”

“I’m fine.”

“You’re going to get frostbite! Why are you stupidly sitting here instead of going into the mansion?”

Angry, she started to remove her gloves. Yurik, surprised, stopped her.

“It’s okay, don’t take them off! Lise.”

“It’s not okay. Your hands are freezing.”

“Your hands will freeze too.”

Yurik frowned. The urgent matter was his hands, but he was instead worried about hers.

“Yurik, just listen to me. Or I’ll get angry.”