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Iana was on her way to visit Charles in the guest room.
Behind her, the maid Vera followed, carrying a tray laden with various fruits.
Vera glanced around and spoke softly, “The Count said he would cover it up. The head maid has instructed all the staff not to mention it at all.”
“That's a relief.”
“But the Count said he would investigate it himself. I'm so scared.”
Iana leaned close to Vera and whispered in her ear, “Don’t worry. Just keep saying you saw me going to the gallery alone. Got it?”
“...Yes, madam.”
Iana and Vera continued walking.
A few moments later, they arrived at the room where Charles was staying.
Knock, knock.
Iana knocked on the door and said, “Your Highness, may I come in?”
“Countess, please come in. I am Rosso Artien, the mage from Ervin.”
As the door opened, those inside greeted Iana.
When she entered, she saw Charles sitting on the sofa.
“My goodness! Your Highness...”
She was so surprised she couldn't finish her sentence.
His left shoulder to his forearm was wrapped in bandages, indicating that his injury was more severe than she had thought.
However, Charles maintained the dignified air typical of royalty, not a hair out of place.
“It’s not that serious. I apologize for frightening you with our knight's military dog.”
Charles offered a courteous apology.
Vera, who was behind Iana, placed the fruit on the table and quietly started to leave.
At that moment, Charles smiled slightly and spoke to Vera, “Thank you.”
“What? Oh, no. It’s just my duty.”
Vera was momentarily flustered by Charles’s unexpected compliment, but she smiled, pleased that her efforts were acknowledged.
Iana remembered what she had said in the hallway.
“Your Highness, if you dislike a servant, do you have them beheaded?”
‘So, the Grand Duke remembered what I said.’
Iana thought Charles was far more considerate and kind-hearted than she had anticipated.
“...!”
As she looked at him warmly, her cheek stung slightly.
When she turned her head, she saw the knights and mages staring at her intently, their faces full of curiosity and suspicion.
“Why are you all looking at me like that...?”
Iana asked, trailing off, flustered.
“Oh, nothing. Please continue your conversation. We'll take our leave now.”
The burly knight, looking embarrassed, spoke and then bowed.
Everyone left the room, leaving only Iana, Charles, and Rosso inside.
“Countess, please have a seat here.”
At Charles’s words, Iana sat on the sofa opposite him.
After a moment of contemplation, Charles broke the silence.
“The name of the magic dog that attacked you is Khan. I named him myself.”
“Khan.”
Iana murmured the name.
“A great mage from my domain found Khan starving to death on his way back from the battlefield.”
“Starving to death?”
She looked at Charles in surprise.
“Since Khan was blind, his owner abandoned him when they moved elsewhere, not realizing he had been blinded by magic.”
“I see.”
“Yes, Khan has an exceptional ability to detect magic among the magic dogs. No matter how many monsters approached, we could prepare in advance because of him.”
Magic could not be sensed by just anyone.
Only grand mages and magic dogs could detect it.
Magic dogs were trained to react to a certain level of magical intensity and reacted more strongly to stronger magic.
“So, what does that mean?”
Iana asked, sensing the implication behind his words.
Rosso spoke up first, “Countess, do you possess magic?”
“No, I don’t. Only my brother, Marquis Marcel Rechels, inherited my late father’s magic.”
“I knew that from the mage lineage records, but I asked because of Khan’s unusual behavior.”
Iana hesitated for a moment before asking, “Can magic manifest in adulthood?”
“Magic only manifests before the age of ten. After that, it doesn’t appear.”
Rosso answered firmly.
“Then it’s definitely not me. If I had magic, my father, who was a grand mage, would have known right away.”
Charles sighed softly.
“I see...”
“I’m sorry I couldn’t be of more help.”
Iana started to rise, then cautiously asked, glancing at Charles’s bandages, “Your Highness, what will happen to Khan now?”
As someone from a grand mage family, she knew well.
The magic military code was strict.
They never allowed beings with magic to attack innocent people.
Especially since Khan had inflicted a severe wound on a royal, he would undoubtedly face severe punishment.
“...”
Charles remained silent.
For a moment, his eyes met Iana’s, filled with complicated emotions that soon turned cold.
“He will be executed according to the military code.”
“...!”
“A magic dog that attacks people is unpredictable.”
“But still...”
“There are no exceptions to the rule.”
Charles was terrifyingly resolute.
Rosso looked distressed, clutching his hair.
Iana, too, felt overwhelmed by Charles’s demeanor and couldn’t speak further. She bowed and headed for the door.
Khan’s pitiful cries echoed in her ears.
Abandoned.
Abandoned by his master because he was blind.
Just like me, abandoned because of illness.
The short distance to the door felt long as the word “abandoned” echoed in her mind.
She stopped as if making a decision, turned back, and spoke respectfully.
“Your Highness, there should be no exceptions to the rules, but there should also be no injustices.”
“...”
“Even for a mere beast, taking a life is significant.”
“So?”
Charles asked in a dry tone.
“I don’t know how to explain it, but it didn’t feel like Khan was attacking me.”
Rosso saw an opportunity and added, “Indeed, if Khan intended to attack the Countess, he would have bitten first, but he didn’t.”
“And it’s also puzzling that Khan attacked Your Highness, who has been with him for a long time, while trying to stop him from attacking me.”
Rosso agreed, “Exactly! It seems Khan was reacting to something related to the Countess.”
Charles pondered for a moment before cautiously speaking.
“I know the Countess was greatly startled by Khan.”
“...”
“But could you meet with Khan once more?”
Charles looked at Iana with desperate eyes.
She responded immediately.
“I will do so, Your Highness.”
Liel stood by her window, lost in thought.
“There are people who saw you going to the gallery alone. Will you lie?”
She mulled over Karion’s words that she had overheard through the door.
‘Things are taking a strange turn.’
She had damaged the statue of the goddess of pain to get rid of Vera, who was a thorn in her side.
She had secretly taken the gallery key from Iana’s drawer and sprinkled Serranka on the statue just before the cleaning to gradually corrode the marble.
“Vera, I'll clean this side while you clean that side.”
She had naturally led Vera to clean the statue of the goddess of pain while cleaning the gallery.
But it seemed the maids of the Dietrian family had banded together to frame their naïve mistress.
‘This is not a good sign.’
Uncontrollable situations were dangerous.
Unforeseen circumstances could turn into unexpected variables.
Just like the day she had fallen into slavery...
Knock, knock.
At that moment, there was a knock, followed by the head maid's voice.
“Liel, are you there? The Count is looking for you.”
‘Why is the Count looking for me suddenly?’
There were two possibilities. Either he wanted to ask about Iana, or he had found out what she had done in the gallery.
Liel thought for a moment and then opened the door.
The head maid stood there with her usual expressionless face.
“Head maid, why has the Count summoned me?”
“How should I know the master's intentions? Get ready and come out.”
The head maid spoke coldly and curtly.
Liel followed the head maid to Karion’s office.
Creak—
Entering the office, she saw Karion sitting with his back to her, facing the window.
He seemed deep in thought, staring out at the rainy view.
“Master, I brought Liel.”
“...”
Despite the head maid's announcement, Karion didn't move.
“Wait here until the master speaks.”
The head maid spoke softly and then left the room.
Tap, tap, tap.
The branches, swayed by the wind and rain, tapped against the window.
Liel glanced around Karion’s office, which was filled with books, resembling a library.
She noticed "The Biography of Sculptor Nyrke," a book she had read before.
Then Karion spoke in an inexplicable tone.
“I’ll give you a chance.”
His sudden words filled her with a sense of foreboding.
Liel asked cautiously, “What kind of chance are you talking about?”
“A chance to prove your worth.”
Karion slowly stood up and turned around.
“Take the blame for your master’s crime.”
“...!”
Liel’s hands, gripping her skirt, trembled.
‘Foolish Iana.’
Because of the maids framing Iana, her plan had gone awry.
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