After the meal.

Nerea casually said as she walked through the garden with Heather.

“Our capable Heather. Are you enjoying your daily life these days?”

Heather nodded with a slight smile. And she whispered in a small voice.

“Lady Countess. If there’s anything you want, just say the word. I’m an excellent informant.”

“As expected.”

Nerea gave a thumbs up.

Heather adapted quickly.

After being sick in bed for a day with carriage sickness, Heather got up and briefly summarized her thoughts on learning that her employment was by no means a coincidence.

“Then I didn’t fall for an employment scam, but rather received an employment benefit. Thanks to you, Lady Countess.”

Cleverly, Heather perfectly understood the role assigned to her.

From the neat and tidy apothecary of the Rosa estate to the abundant herbs. She even clenched her fist, vowing to take perfect care of the Countess’s health while being closest to Nerea.

“It’s a secret from Lord Alejandro that I misunderstood Sir Johan Jenax. I really thought Sir Johan Jenax was responsible for sending the poisonous herbs. You understand, right Lady Countess? Absolutely!”

Of course, while also keeping her mouth shut.

Nerea brought up the main point.

“Would you like to find out about Lady Grace Lancaster?”

The rose of high society.

Even Nerea, unfamiliar with high society, knew that being called by a flower name meant ruling over high society. After all, she had heard to the point of memorization that Brianna was called the lily of high society.

If one could seek advice on etiquette from such a person, it would be an even more welcome opportunity than the miracle of not attending a masquerade ball.

Nerea desperately wanted the tournament. So she just needed to get through the masquerade ball without standing out as a commoner, yet not appearing to be a powerful noble either.

A clever child didn’t need many words.

“You mean deeper stories that can’t be seen in newspapers, right?”

Heather added firmly. Nerea grinned in response instead of answering.

“Is there anything else you need?”

Ah. Come to think of it, the attitudes of Martha and the maids earlier had been a bit off.

“The people of this mansion. You know.”

The people of the mansion strangely avoided Nerea. At first, she thought she was being oversensitive, but they seemed to overreact in subtle corners or try to hold back things they wanted to say.

But before she could finish speaking, Heather’s eyes lit up.

“The mansion? Isn’t it really great? Everyone is so kind, and there’s even that sour yogurt I ate in Osfilen!”

“Osfilen? Where you used to live, Heather?”

“Yes! Ah. Now it’s called Orlandro, they said. Anyway. It seems everyone used to live near the border during the war, but when Lord Alejandro revived Orlandro, they came to the islands together. Just as the memory of seeing a twinkling star remains for a long time even during difficult times, eating that sour yogurt left a deep impression on me.”

Heather’s voice was wistful. Nerea knew well what that wavering emotion was. After all, it was such small and precious memories that gave strength in between grueling battles.

“By the way, Lady Countess, what were you going to say about the mansion people?”

Nerea hastily changed her mind. She had thought the mansion people were particularly avoiding her, but now she wondered if perhaps they just hadn’t escaped from their trauma enough to face her, still the very symbol of war.

“…Related to the mansion. That is, I’d like to know about the central figures of the Rosa Company as well.”

The words she blurted out made some sense. She was going to ask Alejandro anyway, so it would be good to know in advance.

“You mean investigate the high-ranking executives, except for Lord Alejandro, Sir Johnny, and the vice president Lady Lancaster?”

“As expected. You understand at a glance.”

Heather, who had adapted faster than anyone in the world of maids, clearly understood what her lady wanted.

And the next day at lunch, not even a full day later.

“I’ll start with Lady Grace Lancaster.”

Beautiful hydrangeas full of water were blooming in the garden. As soon as they were alone, Heather urgently began her first words.

“As you know, she’s the young lady of the Lancaster barony and the vice president of the company, but there’s one more thing. Would you believe it, they say she’s a stronger heir candidate even though she has a brother who received knighthood. They say if the young lady had just received knighthood, she would have become the heir.”

Thankfully, Alejandro had agreed with her words that stricter security was more suspicious.

The only one listening to these words besides them was a single guard standing against the wall.

“She’s been called the rose of high society since her debutante.”

Heather added in a whisper.

“By the way, Her Highness the Crown Princess who attended then is called the lily of high society. Even though lilies have a lot of poison.”

Nerea chuckled. It was the same as what Heather had said when she once brought a sack to boil taro and lily bulbs, unable to distinguish between them.

Asking if she knew what toxins were extracted when lily bulbs were boiled, it seemed like just yesterday that she had nagged for the first time. The grown-up Heather said seriously.

“And regarding the Rosa Company, look at this first.”

It was a newspaper she had never seen before.

It was far inferior in quality to the gossip magazines read by the nobility, but because of that, it was full of more sensational content and more detailed information in strange places.

“The unnie in the kitchen collected these newspapers, and she says these four people are the center of Rosa.”

Centered around Alejandro Rosa were the vice president Grace Lancaster, the guard captain Colin Vanson, and Johnny in the role of butler.

But a strange sense of incompleteness remained. Nerea felt that this perfect composition wasn’t everything.

It would be difficult to gather information on those whose faces were known. Then wouldn’t there be one more person?

“Heather. Is there no one else besides these four?”

Nerea deliberately raised her voice. Loud enough for the guard standing against the wall to hear.

And that evening.

“The remaining one you were curious about is the informant Anzer Hart. I thought you would only confirm up to Grace Lancaster, but as expected, you saw one step further, Sir Knight.”

As expected. Nerea smiled slightly.

“Alejandro, you have a loyal guard with sharp ears.”

In fact, she had known since the guard’s eyes were diligently rolling as if he had been listening to the conversation all along.

“Of course. A person of the company should prick up their ears wherever they are.”

Alejandro’s nonchalant tone conveyed that it was natural.

Nerea smiled slightly. It was exactly the same as what the peddlers used to say when she pointed her sword at them as they pressed their ears against the tent in the battlefield.

Alejandro took out a letter from his chest and said.

“As it happens, a letter came from ‘that’ Anzer. Shall we look at it together?”

“But why is the envelope so dirty?”

An obvious gaze was directed at the stains on the envelope. Alejandro smiled slightly and shook the letter.

“It’s from the border Grand Duchy of Valere. It’s barren and full of chaos, and also…”

“Where they say Gauwe’s restoration forces are rampant.”

As if she had guessed correctly, Alejandro’s eyes curved lazily.

“Because of that damned special law.”

She had seen it in the newspaper.

The border Grand Duchy of Valere.

The grand duke’s territory that is connected to anywhere on the continent along with Alejandro’s Orlandro, but always continues a harsh life due to rugged mountains and riots.

As a result, they said the person the people of the Grand Duchy of Valere hate most is Nerea Esteban, who failed to properly drive out the remnants of Gauwe.

The faces of those who once supported her the most came to mind. The people who had cheered for Nerea Esteban in the place where Gauwe’s army retreated were all gone.

With a vague sense of loss, Nerea’s lips quivered. She tried to collect herself and lowered her eyes to the letter.

−All the Crown Prince has done is bring the relief rice that had been held back until now and walk the streets for a few days accompanied by the knights. In reality, it’s the Grand Duke who is suppressing the riots in the duchy. However, because of the special law created by the Emperor, there’s no way to deal with the rioters, so he certainly can’t subdue them, and only the Grand Duke’s image is hitting rock bottom. I wonder if the rumors are true that the Emperor accepted the Grand Duke just to hate him for a long time.

It was a blunder.

As soon as they read the first paragraph of the letter together, Alejandro clenched his fist tightly.

If I had known it would contain such content, I should have checked it myself before showing it to Sir Knight.

The son who most resembles the Emperor yet incurs the Emperor’s hatred. Apart from the difference in birth as an illegitimate child and a legitimate child, it was a subject that reminded of Sir Knight’s current situation.

Alejandro reflexively looked at Sir Knight. The face without even the slightest change in expression was the same as ten years ago.

No, perhaps it looked even smaller and more youthful than ten years ago.

Suddenly, Alejandro recalled the rumors about the Grand Duke. How much of the rumors would Sir Knight know?

Edward Castarty Valere. The son born from a woman the Emperor met before ascending to the throne.

High society was full of dirty rumors that the woman used drugs or got him drunk.

The Emperor, who didn’t even know the Grand Duke had been born, eventually married the current Empress and later showed mercy by adopting the Grand Duke, they said.

A terribly hated son born from a terrible woman.

If it’s a hated son, could he do that? Not content with sending him to the most barren land, he takes away and belittles his son’s achievements. In the end, he makes him the scapegoat of the empire and drives him into a corner.

The young Alejandro would never have known. But now he knows.

There are parents in the world who love their children and cherish them preciously, like his parents.

And there are those who are terribly unfit to be called parents.

Like the current Emperor. And like the acting count and his wife who shamelessly occupy the Esteban estate.

“Alejandro.”

“Yes.”

Alejandro responded reflexively to the voice that pierced through his thoughts. Sir Knight smiled slightly.

“This Anzer person. How’s his drawing skill?”

Alejandro blinked. Drawing skill? What was Anzer’s drawing like again?

“Um… It’s quite good.”

“That’s good.”

Seeing the brightly smiling face, he felt somewhat strange. Sir Knight pointed to a part of the letter with her finger. It was the part Alejandro hadn’t properly seen while lost in thought.

−What’s more interesting is that there’s someone else who’s watching the Grand Duke as closely as I am. I’ll investigate these people further and include related content in the next telegram.

“It would be nice if he could send a drawing of the person who’s closely watching the Grand Duke along with the telegram. Preferably the Grand Duke and his aide as well. I should at least know the face of the person I’m always tied to and criticized with.”

While there were plenty of portraits of the Crown Prince in the newspapers, there wasn’t a single portrait of the Grand Duke.

“I’ll make sure to convey that.”

“I’m curious about this Anzer Hart person too. Is there no portrait or anything?”

“If you wish, I could have him come up for a moment.”

Nerea shook her head firmly and pointed to the end of the letter.

−By the way, when can I return? It’s still quiet here, but you’re not really going to keep me here until a riot breaks out and I catch five people, are you?

“He shouldn’t come up until he catches the five main culprits of the riot. It’s the president’s order, how could I interfere?”

Alejandro laughed softly. Sometimes Sir Knight seemed unaware of her own position.

“You should know that my Sir Knight’s orders are always above the president’s movements.”

Hearing the low voice, Nerea looked at Alejandro. As their gazes intertwined and the black pupils sparkled brightly for a moment, Nerea felt as if she had become a very large sky.