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IBP 103
I tilted my head as I took the invitation from Lady Miru handed to me by the postman.
‘Usually, she sends invitations through my sister.’
Lady Miru's invitation was quite sudden.
The invitation, sealed with wax, read in an elegant script: "Awaiting the visit of Lady Coco Ardos."
Lady Miru, Cherry's older sister!
If I went to Lady Miru's mansion, I might get to meet the puppy. Just like when I threw a bone to the stray dog, it was a very mouth-watering prospect.
However, a flash of intuition hit me, and I simultaneously felt that this situation was a bit suspicious.
‘Huh? Why is my brain spinning so fast?’
...I, Coco.
They said my intelligence only sparks and rises when it comes to my sister's affairs.
Even when I was drinking orange juice, I had the mind of an ordinary puppy.
‘The reason I suddenly feel this letter sent to me is suspicious is...’
I hopped off the sofa and spoke to my maid.
“Um, you know, I want to look at this invitation later. Mr. Postman! Thank you for bringing the invitation!”
“Yes, my lady.”
Even after the simple-faced postman bowed and withdrew, I remained lost in thought.
“You know.”
“Yes?”
“I don't think I saw the postman when Lady Miru sent an invitation before.”
“That gentleman came from the Postal Hub. Usually, the Postal Hub is not used when sending invitations.”
“I see...”
According to the maid, when hosting a private tea party, the family's own servants handle the invitations.
However, when sending an invitation for an official event that requires verification of status, it is notarized by the Postal Hub located right next to the Imperial Palace.
If that's the case, this must be an invitation sent by Lady Miru.
Then why am I hesitating to open it?
I looked down at the surface of the invitation and made a decision.
‘Sister said that if something is dangerous, I should do it when adults are around.’
Then, I hid the invitation in a corner of the room, as if hiding a bone.
‘I'll wait.’
I should spend time with my friend until my sister arrives.
* * *
“Lady Delécant sent a letter?”
“Yes, Lady Pepe.”
“I haven't seen her since that one time at the country house; we aren't even acquainted.”
Lady Pepe of Count Mars's estate looked puzzled upon receiving the invitation.
‘Seeing the seal of the Postal Hub, it should be an official party. But can Lady Delécant, who lives in the countryside, host such a party?’
Thinking this, Lady Pepe stared at the invitation with her hand clad in the usual snow-white glove.
However, the invitation looked so tempting that she couldn't resist checking it.
Gulping, she broke the seal of the invitation.
It was just an ordinary invitation.
But as she read the contents, a sudden headache struck her.
In social circles, it was one of the important etiquettes to express one's intention to attend immediately after receiving an invitation.
However, her body felt so lethargic that she couldn't even hold a quill.
She handed the letter to her maid and said, “M-Mil, I'm sorry, but could you write a reply saying it's difficult for me to visit?”
“Ah, yes! I understand.”
But it was at that very moment.
The maid, Mil, who had answered energetically and reopened the letter to ghostwrite the reply, had her expression distort.
“Mil? What's wrong?”
And then...
Mil's limbs moved as if convulsing, and she collapsed to the floor.
Watching the maid roll across the floor, stiff as a piece of wood and without making a sound, a panicked Pepe hurriedly stood up and screamed.
“Kyaaa! M-Mil!”
It was a very sudden situation.
Pepe hurriedly pulled the bell cord.
“M-Mil. J-just wait a moment. What on earth is this...”
“G-ghhh...”
The moment Mil barely let out a groan, Lady Pepe saw it clearly.
A small amount of soot rising above the letter Mil was holding in her hand.
At the sight of that darkness-like soot, Lady Pepe slumped to the floor.
This was, in other words...
A warning sent through darkness.
* * *
I met Caligo at a coffee house in the downtown area of the capital. Sure enough, a message had come through a servant saying Caligo was waiting at the coffee house.
However, Caligo had a very philosophical expression on his face.
Seeing Caligo's troubled look, I paused while eating a sweet cake.
I wondered if a strange invitation had come to Caligo as well.
“Caligo, your expression is weird. Is something wrong?”
“Hmm. I feel like people are afraid when I'm with Amius.”
“Huh, really? Amius is kind and cute. Maybe it's just a misunderstanding?”
He's a bit big, but he's really just a slightly large cat.
I looked around with a worried expression.
Strangely, there wasn't a single person at the tables around us.
People were crowded only at the bar table, the furthest spot from us.
“It must be a misunderstanding...”
“It's probably just the prejudice of the world that Amius and I must overcome.”
“Wow! Caligo, you sound so grown-up right now!”
“Hmph. I've always been grown-up. As your first friend, I should be at least this much.”
And right then.
Amius, who had been lying down like a cat next to Caligo, diligently wrote on the children's sketchbook I had placed on the floor.
[SAD]
Amius's expression looked truly sad as he struggled to hold the crayon with his paw to write the word.
Because of that, I felt a bit upset too.
Then, Amius, who had been twitching his ears in silence for a while, began to write again.
[BUt I thInk somEthIng strAnge Is happenIng]
“Huh? Why?”
[BecaUse it lOoks lIke peOple sUddenly hAte lAdy chloE]
Now that I thought about it, I saw many people sitting at the bar table clicking their tongues simultaneously while reading the newspaper.
“It feels like something suspicious is happening.”
“Yeah, I heard people over there talking about an 'extra'. What's an extra?”
[I dOn't knOw. Is iT tAsty?]
“Sounds yummy...”
The three of us put our heads together, but no one knew what the word 'extra' meant.
Amius, who wore a thoughtful expression, soon stood up.
And then...!
He moved quickly and stole a newspaper from a distant table.
“H-huh.”
“A-a tiger...”
The people there were shocked to the point of fainting, but no one dared to express discomfort while a spirit beast tiger held a newspaper in its mouth.
And what appeared in the newspaper Amius brought was...
“Gasp, what is this? It's my sister!”
...One hour ago.
Attempted murder cases using invitations had occurred simultaneously.
The victims were said to be three ladies who were close associates of Lady Dahlia.
One had a maid collapse, one was in critical condition, and another had a nosebleed?
None of the three lost their lives, but the situation was said to be worsening.
[According to simultaneous testimonies, it has been revealed that the attempted murderer stole the identity of a secluded lady and used dark magic to attack the recipients... (omitted)]
The investigators had secured the letters as evidence.
There was even talk that an arrest warrant might be issued for the person who dared to use forbidden dark magic!
‘Strange. The only person who knows how to use dark magic is my sister.’
At that moment, I overheard whispers suggesting that Lady Chloe, harboring a grudge due to an 'affair scandal,' had intentionally targeted the ladies close to Dahlia.
My eyes widened.
Yes, my puppy nose is accurate after all!
I told you it felt like something suspicious was happening!
* * *
The inside of the makeshift laboratory in Grand Duke Rivera's mansion was bustling.
Grand Duke Rivera was preoccupied with analyzing the bead he had obtained from Chloe.
“The traces left on this bead only indicated that it had been touched by many people.”
“And?”
“Why not try utilizing this magic tool?”
Checking a simple reagent in the lab, he narrowed his brows slightly.
A small maze-like pattern was drawn above the reagent.
It was a drawing that seemed to indicate coordinates.
“Oh. It seems to be the place where the bead was created. However, since it's just a drawing, it's difficult to identify exactly...”
He smirked and gripped a fragment of the bead in his hand.
“Why, I think I know where it is.”
“Pardon?”
“The place where this bead was first made. It's familiar.”
It could be a trap.
But the very fact that a trap was set means there is something they want to hide.
And Grand Duke Rivera was adept at relentlessly pursuing the secrets of others.
“I'll be back.”
Tossing the experimental gloves carelessly on the floor, Grand Duke Rivera opened the lab door.
He intended to go to Chloe immediately.
However, an aide was standing in front of the door.
“H-huh. You startled me.”
“What is it?”
“Ah, Your Grace. You told me to report immediately if anything happened to Lady Chloe's well-being.”
“What about Lady Chloe? Is she sick or something?”
“No. If you look at this fresh newspaper...”
“Oh. I looked away for a moment, and Lady Chloe has become a murderer?”
“W-well, not quite a murderer, but she's suspected of attempted murder...”
“That's the same thing, isn't it?”
His voice sounded as if he had discovered something quite interesting, but there was a considerably uncomfortable mood contained within it.
“Strangely, this makes me want to wreck everything.”
“S-suddenly?”
“Why? Am I not allowed to?”
With an expression that said he was indeed an unpredictable lunatic, the aide squeezed his eyes shut.
“Please make it a wreck that is manageable to clean up.”
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