Chapter 26

Chapter 26

Emily soon returned with a box small enough to hold a single item of jewelry. It was wrapped in fine velvet, luxurious at even a passing glance. I took the box and opened it.

“Wow! The color is so beautiful!” Emily exclaimed at the sight of the round jewels, which were the same navy blue as the deep sea. Lapis lazuli usually had small flecks of gold or white, and the fewer such imperfections they had and the darker the navy color, the more expensive they were. I rotated the box, checking for flaws, but there wasn’t a single impurity to be found in the dark blue gemstones.

“I like them,” I said, placing the box on the desk. The jeweler had bragged endlessly about the good quality of the jewels—and he had delivered—so I didn’t regret the lavish expense.

“Is this a gift for the duke, my lady?” Emily asked innocently as she peered at the enormous lapis lazuli twinkling from where they were set in men’s cuff links.

Of course not, I thought bitterly, changing the subject swiftly.

“Would you bring me one of my jewelry boxes? Any will do,” I said.

“A jewelry box? Yes, my lady,” Emily said. She seemed puzzled by the request but complied without question. With a soft thump, she set down a large, heavy wooden box on the desk. I pretended to mull something over, before addressing her.

“I have an errand I need to be performed.”

“Yes? What is it?” she asked curiously.

“Do you know anything about the information guilds in the merchant district?”

“Information guilds...” Emily hesitated. “I don’t know much about them myself, but the girl I share a room with probably knows a lot. She used to be an errand girl in that district before she started working at the manor.”

“Is that so?” I paused again. “What’s her name?”

“L-Lena, my lady...”

“And where is she now?”

“B-but my lady, whatever it is, I can do it better than Lena!” Emily said quickly. “She knows a lot, but she has a big mouth.”

She carefully studied my reaction. It was as though she was afraid that I’d cast her aside and call for the other maid.

“Emily, it is of the utmost importance that this task is completed in secrecy. Discretion will be needed.” It was because of this task that I’d insisted on taking Emily back as my personal maid. From the start, there had been no other suitable candidate.

“In any case, aren’t you the one who looked down on me all these years?” I continued, intentionally riling her up. “Did you really think I could trust you?”

“L-Lady Penelope!”

It was a subject that hadn’t been brought up in a while. At the reminder of her past behavior, Emily’s face drained of all color.

“I-I haven’t even thought of doing anything to disrespect you since then, my lady! I-I’ve been nothing but devoted to you. How could you think—” Emily said, close to tears as she whined about the injustice of my words.

“Anyone in the manor could say the same about their recent behavior toward me, Emily,” I pointed out coldly.

Emily immediately fell silent.

“I... I think...” Emily started, the tears in her eyes drying up as she fell into deep thought. Her attitude suddenly took an abrupt turn. “You know how perceptive I can be, my lady.”

I marveled at the sudden change.

That was pretty amazing.

Emily was definitely quicker on the uptake than the other NPCs in the game. Then again, that was probably how she’d managed to torment Penelope with the needle she kept hidden in her hair for so many years. Emily continued to appeal earnestly, unaware of what I was thinking.

“Please remember, my lady, I haven’t made a single mistake while completing any of the tasks you’ve given me thus far.”

“...”

“Please leave this to me. After all, I’m your personal maid...”

There was a long silence. The only audible sound was my finger tapping deliberately against the desk. Emily grew more nervous the longer the silence stretched, shifting uncomfortably.

“Fine,” I said finally, “I’ll trust you this time.”

“My lady...” Emily gazed at me with an oddly sentimental expression.

Frankly, after threatening her with the needle I hadn’t thought it likely that she might harbor any goodwill for me. However, the idea that I might begin to favor one of the other maids seemed to inspire some loyalty in her.

“Thank you, my lady! I promise I won’t disappoint you!”

I nodded nonchalantly as she bowed effusively.

“Open the jewelry box,” I said.

Perhaps afraid I would suddenly change my mind, she hastily did as I instructed.

“Until I’m finished reflecting alone in my room, I would like you to go to the guilds every morning after you’ve served my breakfast. I need them to find someone for me.”

“Find someone? Wh-who are you looking for?” Emily asked.

“I’ll write a description down and give it to you. Show it to only the highest-ranked members of the guilds. You’re free to use as many of the jewels in that box as you need to pay for their services.”

The box was filled to the brim with shining gems, showcasing the extravagant taste of the duke’s adopted daughter. Since Penelope didn’t possess a large sum of gold, the only currency I had at my disposal was her large collection of gems. Even if I had to use the whole box, it didn’t really matter since there were plenty more boxes where this one came from.

“Yes! I can do that, my lady! I’m sure you’ll find whoever it is you’re looking for in no time,” Emily assured.

“There’s a catch. You can’t go to the common guilds that specialize in finding people.”

Emily’s eyes went wide.

“Wh-where would you have me go, then?”

“I need establishments that deal in very rare objects or information, organizations that only the high-ranking nobles would turn to. I’m sure you’ll have no trouble, am I right?” I asked sweetly.

“Yes! Of course, I won’t!” Emily promised.

I’d learned from the game that the guild run by Winter was the largest and most well-known of the establishments that provided such services.

It should be easy enough to find him.

I already knew that he was a marquess, a mage, and that he secretly operated an information guild. If I wanted to meet him, all I had to do was frequent the parties that I knew he would attend. Winter was the next best love interest after Eckles, and I’d decided to use the knowledge I’d gleaned from playing in normal mode to pursue a more dramatic meeting.

As soon as she returned to the manor, the female protagonist searched for the benefactor who had helped her locate her real family. All she knew about him was that he was a mage and that he’d been wearing a rabbit mask. At the party for her debut as the “duke’s true daughter,” she had encountered Winter. His eye color made it immediately obvious to her that he was the man who’d helped her.

That doesn’t even make any sense. How do you recognize a person by only their eye color? I’d been grateful for how easy the episode had been when I’d played the game, but that wasn’t relevant now. I had no intention of attending endless parties just so I could meet Winter.

I’ll make him come to me.

“One more thing,” I said to Emily primly. “You must make it obvious you’ve been sent by a noble lady.”

“What? But how do I do that?” Emily asked.

“Make it seem like a noblewoman secretly tasked you with finding her crush,” I whispered.

“My goodness!” Emily jumped out of her seat. “It might be faster to just ask me about this man, my lady.”

I frowned at her reaction.

“All we maids do is talk about the nobles. If he’s an unmarried, handsome nobleman, we’re sure to know all about him—”

“Emily,” I said, cutting her off. “Can you do it or not? That’s all I want to hear.”

“Leave it to me, my lady! I shall find out who it is that has stolen your heart—”

“It’s nothing like that,” I protested. I could practically see the absurd fantasies she was mentally concocting.

You have no idea what’s going on.

Emily didn’t listen though, her eyes glittering happily.

“So, you’ve finally found someone, my lady...”

I pulled up my sleeves and showed her the backs of my hands, forcing her back to reality.

“You’d better practice discretion. Think about what’s on the line here.”

Emily gasped.

“This is an opportunity for you,” I said. “Don’t waste it. You wouldn’t want to be kicked out of the manor, for real this time, because you did something I didn’t want you to do.”

The needle marks had faded, leaving the pale skin of my hands unblemished, but Emily seemed to remember my threats regarding the needle all the same. She gathered herself and assumed a more reserved expression.

Have I grown attached to her?

I felt a little apologetic for being so harsh on her. As I was contemplating this someone knocked on the door.

“It’s Pennel, my lady,” the butler said, announcing himself.

He hadn’t thrown open the door without permission since I’d reprimanded him, but I still waited a few moments to respond.

“Come in,” I said finally. I watched as the butler opened the door cautiously and bowed. “What is it?”

“An invitation has arrived for you, my lady, from the imperial palace,” Pennel said.

“For me?” I asked, confused. There were no major events planned to follow the second prince’s recent birthday celebration.

“Yes, my lady. On the last day of the Founding Festival, a small party is to be held in celebration of the empire’s victory.”

My expression soured. Why were there so many imperial events these days?

“But there was already a party for the prince’s return, was there not?”

“This party is to be hosted by the crown prince himself,” replied the butler. I felt my neck tense until it was as rigid as an un-oiled machine.

“The... crown... prince?”