It had been months since he heard that name. A slight crease formed on Franz’s forehead.
“Is she in the south?”
“Yes. In the southernmost region of the south, a place called Urentum.”
The knight began to elaborate unasked – how backward the southern region was, and within it, how insignificant the village of Urentum was. Franz, listening to this, rubbed the remaining cigar into the ashtray.
“Until now, there was no reaction from the magic stone, so I worried that the Countess might have discovered our ruse of selling it under pretense. Thankfully, it seems that was not the case. Upon checking, all four magic stones have exploded properly.”
She hadn’t been seen for months. So she had fled to the south? Such an unpredictable woman, Franz muttered.
“And now?”
“Pardon?”
“I mean, where is Countess Louijette now?”
“Ah, that is…”
Franz’s piercing gaze flew towards the knight, who involuntarily shrank back despite having done nothing wrong.
The loud whistle of the train brought back memories from half a year ago. It was the same train she had taken when she first came to Urentum… She quietly watched the landscape whizzing past the window, disappearing rapidly.
She hadn’t expected to leave Urentum so suddenly. She probably wouldn’t miss her life in this remote place with almost zero chance of returning.
But the unease was likely due to the unplanned and sudden journey to the capital.
“As soon as day breaks, we will return to Rahat.”
On the day of the explosion, after receiving treatment from the doctor, Carl finally spoke. It was after sending everyone away, leaving just the three of them – him, her, and Valerie – in the police station.
He said he had wasted too much time looking for her and needed to return to the capital immediately to deal with the backlog of work.
She thought he meant he was leaving alone, but Carl insisted that since she was connected to the poisoned Duke of Schweben, she too must go to the capital for investigation. His reasoning that this would help clear any suspicions felt logical.
Thus, she ended up boarding the train to the capital with the knights.
“We will thoroughly investigate the incident at the royal palace, including matters related to the child…”
His gaze, scanning the child, was sharp. From his words and demeanor, it seemed Carl hadn’t seen the potion with his and the child’s blood mixed.
Was that fortunate? Or not? Without an answer, she boarded the train with Valerie in her arms. They never found out who left the child at her doorstep.
The journey from here to the mid-southern train station took four days, and from there to the capital, another three, if they traveled non-stop.
The empire was divided into five major regions.
The central region, with the capital Rahat, was surrounded by four large areas in the cardinal directions.
The Manus River in the northeast crossed the empire, so most major cities were near the river. The farther away from the river, the more underdeveloped the area became, especially in the north and south.
Urentum, at the very southern end, was so rural that there was no direct train connection from the capital.
That’s why she thought it was the perfect place to hide.
Knock, knock.
Pulled from her thoughts by the knock, she quickly withdrew her gaze from the window. Turning around, she saw a now-familiar face.
Carl Ludwig Johann Albrecht.
It had been two days since she last saw him on the train.
“Let’s talk, Countess Louijette.”
The moment she had been anticipating. Probably to resume the interrogation that hadn’t properly taken place due to the sudden accident. She tensed up, straightening her back.
“You will meet people as soon as you arrive at the Rahat train station, Countess.”
She had braced herself for questions about the child, even clenched her fists, mentally preparing for a few anticipated queries. But his words caught her off guard.
“What people?”
“People who came to welcome the Countess. At the train station.”
“Welcome? Who would…”
“People from the Countess’s household, of course.”
His expression suggested it was a silly question. The return of a house’s owner naturally meant the attendants would come to greet. That’s the look he had.
“I would like to step inside.”
“Please do.”
Until then, Carl had been halfway out the door, but finally stepped in and closed it. Perhaps he was uncomfortable with onlookers in a closed space with just the two of them? And of all times, it had to be when Hanna was away.
“I don’t see the Countess’s aide.”
“Yes, she had something to attend to…”
Hanna had mentioned needing to speak with Carl’s aide, Clovis, about something important. Committed to fulfilling her duties as a lawyer, she had been incredibly busy even in this place where there seemed nothing she could do.
Though they were moving to the capital together, it was a voluntary company, not a criminal escort, she had emphasized before heading off to find the busy aide. Her actions showed how loyal she was to the Countess’s household.
She had wanted to make preparations in advance so that she could defend and protect more effectively once in the capital.
She was fortunate to have Hanna by her side, unaware of everything.
Carl, awkwardly standing aside, glanced around the compartment. What was he looking for? Following his gaze, she found Valerie at the end. Ah, he must have been curious about Valerie.
“She’s asleep.”
Valerie, who hadn’t slept at all and was fussy all of the first day on the train, had adjusted and was now sleeping soundly since the second day.
Her chubby cheeks wriggled adorably with every breath. She resisted the urge to poke them and instead gently stroked Valerie’s hair.
“First, I will arrange for you to return to the Countess’s residence, but you will need to appear at the Capital Police Department soon.”
Contrary to her expectations, Carl didn’t seem interested in whether Valerie was asleep or not. She was about to say how well Valerie had adapted to the train, but then she just silently closed her mouth.
“But how did you know people would be at the train station?”
She was puzzled. In a place without modern communication means, how did news of their departure reach the capital before they did?
“You’re asking that, Countess?”
“Yes? Why…”
“We used the Louijet Transmitter. It can send a note in less than five minutes.”
So there was such a thing. The name sounded familiar somehow. Louijet?
“Interesting. So that exists.”
Carl stared at her as if she was strange.
“Why?”
“The Louijet Transmitter. It’s a product of a company owned by the Louijette family.”
“The Louijette family?”
“Yes. Your family, Countess.”
That’s right. She remembered now. Celeste’s family had jumped into mining and secured exclusive rights to magic stone mining, amassing a huge fortune.
Eventually, they went beyond just mining and selling magic stones and developed inventions using them… She belatedly remembered.
“It seems the Countess really has lost her memory.”
He hadn’t completely believed my story about losing my memory in a carriage accident. Carl’s eyes narrowed again, as if trying to discern whether I was acting or not.
“Yes. I truly don’t remember.”
At least this wasn’t a lie. Except for basic information about Celeste and the future, I knew nothing else.
“The investigation won’t be easy. Having memories would have helped to scrutinize your whereabouts before and after the Duke of Schwaben’s death.”
“There’s no need to waste time investigating. I’ve been in Urentum for the past six months. That’s certain.”
“What about before six months?”
“That’s… I don’t remember…”
“Yes, you said you lost your memory of the last six months due to a carriage accident. That’s why we intend to investigate that part. Your whereabouts during the last few months when there was no news of you, and even whether there actually was a carriage accident, all of it.”
Carl’s face was masked with the same unreadable coldness I had seen the first time I met him.
My Ex-Girlfriend Is The Regent In The Female-dominant World (Male lead transmigrates to the matriarchal world)
Two years ago, Gu Sui picked up a homeless woman in ancient costume from the street.
Apart from occasionally claiming to be a princess from a female-dominant country due to illness, her figure, appearance, intelligence, and martial arts skills were impeccable.
Naturally evolving from roommates to girlfriends, as time went on, Gu Sui found it increasingly difficult to tolerate her queen syndrome.
“Mu Jiulu, can you stop controlling me inside and out? Let’s break up.”
Gu Sui made a breakup call, and since then, he couldn’t find any trace of her.
A year later, Gu Sui, who was planning to move, woke up the next day and found himself in a different place.
“Young Master, today is the day you choose your Wife-master through martial arts competition at Jade Dew Pavilion. Please get up quickly.”
Gu Sui: Who am I? Where am I? What am I doing?
As the only son of a general’s mansion in a female-dominant dynasty, the young empress personally issued a decree allowing Gu Sui to select his Wife-master through martial arts competition. Whoever could defeat him could marry him.
Gu Sui: “……”
He didn’t inherit the original owner’s martial prowess, so anyone could defeat him! And what the hell is a Wife-master?
Forced to come to Jade Dew Pavilion, the densely packed women below made Gu Sui’s agoraphobia act up, and his face was full of resistance.
Until he saw the Regent sitting on the second floor, with a smile on the corner of her lips, her eyes wicked and nonchalant.
Hmm… she looked a little familiar.
It turned out that the Regent also found him a little familiar.
Mu Jiulu fiddled with her bone clasp, her deep gaze locked on the man who was out of place in this world.
“Finally, I found you.”
Male transmigrates into female-dominant world
One-sentence summary: What goes around comes around, taking turns in the crematorium
