Chapter 102

Nais, a lawyer with a fierce sense of justice, had a dangerous glint in his eye, like he was ready to shake the place down to its foundations.

In any case, they walked into the orphanage unannounced.

"Welcome. What brings you in?"

A woman with a warm, gentle look stepped out and greeted them.

This wasn't the kind of person who'd abuse children or treat them cruelly, and the party hesitated for a beat.

But you couldn't judge people by their faces.

"Are you the headmistress here?"

"Oh, I'm one of the childcare teachers. The headmaster's stepped out for a moment."

When she peeked further inside, the woman's face brightened.

"Are you here to adopt a child, by any chance?"

"Ah…"

"You two are married?"

"Sorry?"

The woman's eyes went straight to Iberin and Nais.

"No, we are not!"

Nais reacted before Iberin could — strongly.

"You don't have to hate the idea that much, do you?"

"I'd like to live a little longer."

"Die? Why are we suddenly in a horror story?"

"Grace's husband is terrifying!"

"…Ah."

The truth was, back when Nais had first met Lyssel, the feelings had only just been starting.

"Even from far away, he's intensely focused on you, Lady Grace. There were rumors. They said he'd become a complete fool for his wife."

"Hmm. Well."

The woman, listening to the two of them, dropped her head, looking awkward.

"You're not married, then. My apologies."

"It's all right."

"Then — Madam, are you here to look at the children?"

"I'd like to speak with the headmaster."

"Oh, of course. Would you come inside for a moment?"

"Teacher!"

The moment they stepped in, the children broke into bright smiles and came running at the woman.

They were all so cheerful that Iberin tilted her head.

By any angle, this was an ordinary — no, well-managed — orphanage.

"Hmm."

Nais must have caught the same thing, because he rubbed his chin.

"Is something the matter?"

"No, the children are so cheerful. They seem to love you."

"Oh. Thank you…"

At the compliment, the woman flushed.

"I'm still nothing compared to the headmaster. He's truly wonderful!"

"Wonderful? In what way?"

"He's so good with the children. The word's spread far and wide. I thought that's how you'd heard of us."

"Ah."

"At any rate, he just stepped out for groceries — he'll be back shortly. Please wait in his office."

The woman set out tea and excused herself.

"Think there's corruption?"

"Who knows. Places that look this polished often turn out to be rotten on the inside."

"You think?"

"Let's watch a bit longer, and if there's nothing on him, maybe we lean on him?"

Thinking back on it, Rozelia had never talked about her orphanage days in any detail.

All she'd ever said, in passing, was that she'd disliked the temple more than the orphanage.

What if she'd lied to throw Iberin off?

In the beginning, Iberin had tried to send Rozelia back to the orphanage, so it wasn't an impossible scenario.

But it looked this nice — why hadn't she wanted to come?

Because of the temple, after all?

Not long after, the headmaster came back.

"Hello, Madam."

The headmaster, smiling brightly the moment he walked in, had a kind face too.

Through the closing door, the children's eyes followed him — and they really did look like they loved him.

In any case, the goal here was to falsify the adoption records.

If the orphanage turned out to be corrupt, dealing with that later wouldn't be too late.

"You have something to discuss with me?"

Iberin lifted her head and looked the headmaster straight in the eye.

He looked puzzled.

"I'd like a tour of the orphanage, and to hear about how it's run. Is that possible?"

"Of course. Are you here as a sponsor, or to adopt?"

"Let's call it sponsorship."

"Yes. Shall we look around, then?"

She walked through the orphanage as the headmaster led the way.

Just as she'd seen at first, the building was spacious and pleasant. It was clearly well-kept.

Every child they met visibly adored the headmaster.

Nais's expression had gone strange.

"Was there ever a child here named Rozelia?"

She'd watched enough — looking wasn't going to tell her anything more, so she asked outright.

A guarded look came into the headmaster's eyes.

"How does Madam know Rozelia…?"

"Where is that child now?"

"Rozelia? The temple said she had the makings of a Saintess and took her."

"Were there any problems with that process?"

"Just who are you, exactly, to be asking?"

What was she supposed to say?

A vague answer, and he was clearly the type who'd never open his mouth again, even if it killed him.

There was no way the headmaster hadn't heard the recent talk about the Saintess.

He seemed to be bracing for the possibility that she meant the child harm.

Worry sat in his eyes — eyes that couldn't lie.

"Rozelia was never at the temple."

"Sorry?"

"That child told me the temple cast her aside."

So she laid it all out.

"That can't be!"

"…Did you ever see Rozelia after she went to the temple?"

"I went looking for her a few times, but they turned me away at the gate. Said commoners weren't allowed."

"That's because they'd thrown her away."

"Lately there's been talk about a Saintess at the temple, and I wondered if it might be Rozelia, but if they cast her aside, why now…"

"Once they confirmed she'd awakened as the Saintess, they kidnapped her back. I came here grasping at straws — to the orphanage she used to live at."

"What?!"

The headmaster cried out, shocked.

He clearly hadn't known.

"She told me life at the temple was harder than life at the orphanage."

"I had no idea. I'd thought she was doing well. She's the first Saintess to appear in thousands of years!"

The headmaster was at a loss for what to do.

He rambled in disbelief for a moment, then caught himself and frowned.

"She never told me about her orphanage days in detail. I came on the off chance — looks like it was a wasted trip."

"How — how can this be."

"The temple is trying to use Rozelia."

"Because she's the Saintess?"

"Yes. And to tear down Lecashe."

"Lecashe? The teacher said you were — Lady Grace…"

"Sorry for the deception. My name is Iberin Sherburn Lecashe."

The headmaster's mouth fell open, and he went still where he stood.

The Lecashe in everyone's mouth lately — it was no wonder he recognized the name.

"You'd know that Lecashe and the temple don't get along. Our energies are opposites. But it's worse than people realize. The temple will do anything to drag Lecashe down. I'd like your help."

Looking at the headmaster, still frozen in place, Iberin figured he needed time to think and decided to wait a little.

---

When he'd finished thinking, the headmaster asked one question.

"How am I supposed to believe any of this?"

He had a point.

From his side, a Lecashe appearing out of nowhere could just as easily look like someone trying to frame the temple.

"Rozelia loves money."

"!"

"And she's wildly forward. The first time I met her, she told me she was pretty, so she was the kind of person who could be loved. Otherwise she carried on like she was completely useless — it was something else. She's prickly, but she isn't a bad-hearted child."

"…No."

"And she has a mole on her left shoulder, and she's ticklish."

"…That's her. That's Rozel."

The headmaster said Rozelia's personality had made him worry whether she'd actually be all right living as a Saintess at the temple.

So the fact that Lecashe knew about it convinced him that she really had stayed with them, and he decided to cooperate without further fuss.

It was a small mercy that the headmaster seemed to be a decent man.

It meant Rozelia's childhood probably hadn't been an unbroken mess.

So they cooked the ledgers and made it look like Lecashe had formally adopted Rozelia.

The headmaster also promised that if the temple claimed they'd taken the child, he'd insist firmly that they hadn't.

"Hah. Things actually seem to be coming together."

"Indeed. Easier than I expected."

But something nagged at her.

In the original — the Saintess Rozelia, locked up in the temple — how had she ended up adopted by House Cherity?

Looking back now, the idea that the temple would hand the Saintess over to Cherity without a fight was strange.

What were the odds that a runaway Rozelia could have met Cherity and slipped past the temple's watch?

Close to zero.

What if the temple and Duke Cherity were on the same side?

Iberin sketched out the theory and felt a chill prickle up her skin.

What if everything she'd just guessed was true?

"He's a snake."

He'd taken the emperor's hand and tried to have her assassinated, then asked Lyssel not to hate him.

And now the temple too?

The shock of those striking, sculpted features from their first meeting felt like it was draining out of her completely.

"What is it?"

"Nothing. By the way — Duke Cherity's still in the west, I'd assume?"

"He should be. Why?"

"…No reason."

"Lady Grace, you mustn't take an interest in other men. The duke is handsome, sure, but —"

"It's not that."

"Glad to hear it."

They were on their way back to Nais's townhouse when Iberin stopped short.

"Nais."

"Yes?"

"Duke Cherity's in the west?"

"Why are you asking again? Are you interested?"

"No — then what's that?"

Iberin's finger jabbed out, and there, sauntering along, was the duke.

"Huh."

Nais rubbed his eyes and looked again, but no matter how he looked, it was Duke Cherity.

"A man who's supposed to be in the west…"

Iberin muttered, then ducked behind a building with Nais just as Cherity started to turn his head.

He hadn't seen them, mercifully, and his head swung back the other way.

That way leads toward the temple.

Iberin watched him intently.

So he really did have some kind of connection to the temple?

In that case, he was more likely a temple man than an emperor's.

Now that she thought about it, Cherity was the head of the noble faction too.

"Uhh?"

Just then Nais made a foolish noise and started fidgeting.

She'd been about to clamp a hand over his mouth when a dense shadow fell across her.

She flinched.

When she raised her eyes, Cherity was looking down at her.

---

Iberin kept her face perfectly even, then said,

"We were just passing through."

It wasn't a lie.

They had been passing through, and they had spotted the duke by chance.

"Then why are you here?"

"…"

The duke said nothing.

If anything, he was looking at Iberin with a confused expression.

"You'd better have a good answer."

"…"

"Hm? Why are you looking at me like that?"

The stare was open enough that even Iberin found it strange.

Nais shifted uncomfortably, then stepped in front as if to block his view, tucking Iberin behind him.

"We really were just passing through. If there's nothing you'd like to say, we'll be on our —"

"You. Out of the way."

"Sorry?"

Duke Cherity shoved Nais roughly aside.

Nais, sprawled on the ground where he'd landed, looked thoroughly bewildered.