READ NOVEL ONLINE Chapter 101
The day after returning home from being kidnapped, Camilla immediately tasked her attendant, Dorman, with commissioning information brokers.
She instructed them to investigate Sky Orphanage and other relatively large orphanages in the area.
The goal was to find out if there were cases like Dennis—Beth the water ghost’s son—where a child left the orphanage and then vanished without a trace. She also wanted to know if there were cases of adoption by nonexistent individuals.
“Not much to go on, huh.”
But the news from the brokers after a few days wasn’t promising. The scope of the investigation had been too broad, and there wasn’t much useful information.
“Ugh, forget it.”
Camilla tossed the documents she had been holding aside.
“What am I going to do with this information anyway?”
Medicine should be left to doctors, prescriptions to pharmacists, and crime-solving to the police.
Deciding she was too tired of dealing with it all, Camilla resolved not to dwell on the matter any longer.
She still felt uneasy, not knowing who was behind the fake Rania, but with Duke Sorpel actively investigating, they were bound to be caught sooner or later.
However…
“Maybe I should have mentioned that too.”
The one thing still on her mind was the matter of Dennis, Beth’s son.
‘But there’s no way to explain it.’
How could she explain it? Was she supposed to say she saw it in a dream again? These were people she had no connection to. Staying silent seemed like the best option.
Knock knock.“Come in.”
The door opened, and someone entered.
“Father?”
It was Duke Sorpel.
“How are you feeling?”
At his question, Camilla let out a small laugh.
“I’m fine, really. The healers said I was fine, remember?”
That was always the first question anyone asked when they entered her room.
“Where have you been?”
“Out.”
He seemed in a good mood for a change, a rarity since the fake Rania incident. Had something pleasant happened outside?
“Where to?”
“A hospital visit.”
“A hospital visit?”
Why would a hospital visit put him in such a good mood?
“That Jabilon fellow wasn’t feeling well.”
“You went to see him, Father?”
At Camilla’s puzzled question, his lips curled into a smile.
“He had a stomachache.”
“What?”
“Even cousins feel the sting of jealousy when another buys land, let alone a diamond mine. Imagine how much his stomach must hurt.”
“Oh…”
Only then did Camilla laugh along.
The mine she had purchased at auction had finally produced diamonds. It was already valuable for its iron ore alone, but now diamonds had been discovered as well.
It was only natural that Duke Jabilon, who had lost the mine by a narrow margin, would be seething.
‘And soon, they’ll find blue diamonds too.’
Before long, Duke Sorpel would likely visit the Jabilon estate again, just to tease him further.
“Is there anything you need help with?”
“Chris has been handling everything perfectly.”
“Make sure to treat him to a meal someday.”
“I’ll let him know.”
Though it was now public knowledge that she owned the Ghost Trading Company, Chris still handled its external operations.
Of course, all major decisions and critical matters still required her input.
“Let me know if you need anything.”
“Yes.”
“By the way, your pile of gifts has grown.”
Duke Sorpel’s gaze shifted to one corner of the room, where an enormous stack of gifts lay.
“…It has, hasn’t it.”
Camilla responded with a slightly exasperated tone.
Ever since news spread that the Sorpel Lady had been unwell, gifts had poured in from everywhere. The problem was that two-thirds of those gifts had come from one person.
‘Does he have a ghost haunting him, driving him to send gifts?’
It was none other than Crown Prince Edsen.
Just like last time, he had sent an absurd amount of gifts. Thinking about his actions gave Camilla a headache.
‘What’s he scheming now?’
A sigh escaped her. Rarely did gifts feel this unwelcome or burdensome.
‘I guess I have to send a thank-you letter?’
He might use it as an excuse to start something again if she didn’t.
‘Ugh…’
What was with Edsen? Why was he suddenly doing things so out of character?
“Camilla.”
“Yes, Father?”
“If it’s too troublesome, let me know. I’ll take care of it.”
Seeing her expression, Duke Sorpel chuckled softly.
‘And he’s not just saying that.’
If she nodded now, he would undoubtedly march straight to Crown Prince Edsen. Alarmed, Camilla quickly shook her head.
“It’s fine, Father. I’ll handle it myself.”
After all, he was the future emperor. There was no benefit in creating unnecessary friction over something so trivial.
‘Let’s just write the letter.’
Camilla stared at the pile of gifts, her face visibly reflecting her annoyance.
*****
Knock knock.“Your Highness, did you cough?”
Edsen’s attendant, Bell, called out politely from behind the door.
‘Is he feeling unusually tired today?’
It was past the time Edsen usually woke up, so Bell tilted his head in confusion.
“Come in.”
When permission was granted, the attendant immediately stepped inside.
“…!”
But as soon as the door opened, Bell froze. The sharp scent of blood filled the room.
“Y-Your Highness!”
Lifting his gaze, Bell stopped short again. Scattered across the room were several corpses. In the middle of the mess, Edsen slowly rose from his bed, looking as though he’d just woken up.
“Good morning, Bell.”
“Y-Yes, Your Highness. Good morning… though it doesn’t seem very good. What happened here?”
Bell, who had instinctively greeted him back, quickly shook his head.
“Why are you so surprised? It’s not the first time this has happened.”
“Don’t tell me… again?”
“Some guests stopped by last night, asking to play, so I entertained them.”
Bell sighed briefly. Apparently, there had been another assassination attempt on Edsen during the night.
“Why didn’t you call for help?”
“It was late. I didn’t want to bother anyone.”
Another long sigh escaped Bell. His gaze drifted to the tightly shut windows.
“Then at least crack a window open next time to get rid of the smell…”
“You’re the one who told me to keep the windows shut, so I don’t catch a cold.”
“…Yes, I’m the guilty party here.”
With a weary sigh, Bell began summoning others to clean up.
“Make sure the bodies are preserved.”
“Pardon?”
“I’ll be sending them to Mother. She went to such lengths to send her gifts to me. I should return the favor. Make sure they’re delivered late at night.”
“Understood.”
As Bell bowed, he glanced around and lowered his voice.
“We received word from Gracia this morning.”
“Oh?”
“They’re about to crown a new emperor.”
Edsen’s eyes gleamed at the news.
“So, the civil war is finally over. Who won?”
“The second prince.”
“Ha!”
The Gracia Empire, the northern conqueror.
Covered in perpetual snow, Gracia had been embroiled in a long civil war ever since the sudden death of its emperor. The first and second princes had been locked in a bitter battle for the throne.
The twist? Edsen’s own mother, the current empress of the Fabler Empire, had secretly supported the first prince.
“And the second prince won?”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Edsen chuckled, amused.
“She must be livid.”
Reports suggested the empress had poured an astronomical sum into backing the first prince, confident he would win.
“She must be on the verge of a breakdown now that she’s lost it all.”
As Edsen chuckled, Bell silently handed him a letter.
“Lady Camilla sent this.”
“The Lady?”
Taking the letter, Edsen began to read.
“…”
His brows furrowed slightly, and then his lips twisted into a faint, incredulous smile.
“What is it, Your Highness?”
“This is a first.”
“Pardon?”
“She poured her soul into writing something so… lifeless.”
The letter was painfully simple, filled with flowery thanks for his gifts and little else.
“Bell.”
“Yes, Your Highness?”
“Did we place the sapphire necklace on top when delivering the gifts?”
“I believe so. It was the smallest box.”
“Ha!”
‘She only opened the top box.’
Camilla had clearly opened the smallest box and chosen it as the focal point of her gratitude.
“Pfft, ha… Haha!”
As Edsen’s laughter echoed, Bell quietly shook his head and returned to supervising the cleanup.