“Why would anyone feel lust for a lifeless gun?”
After locking the collected muskets into the secret chamber hidden within the wall of the Lord’s office, Vera pushed the bookshelf back into its original position.
She couldn’t help but vent her frustrations to Anke.
“Who?”
Anke looked up, appearing quite interested.
“Thomas. He named the musket issued to him Juliet and treats it as his lover. He even kisses the weapon goodbye whenever the muskets are being collected…”
At this point, Vera pressed a hand to her forehead in exasperation.
She believed she already had a deep understanding of humans, but there were always extraordinary individuals who managed to challenge her perception.
“Pfft, cough, cough, hm.”
Anke let out a stifled laugh before quickly pulling his expression back into a serious look.
‘Your Highness, your smile was forced. If you want to laugh, just laugh,’ Vera thought silently.
“Moreover, this situation has persisted for three days. There have been multiple complaints. Thomas even calls out the name Juliet in his sleep, which is terrifying the other knights sharing his room,” Vera continued.
Under normal circumstances, a simple fetish for a weapon wouldn’t warrant a report to Anke.
However, it was a different matter when it began affecting the other knights.
Anke’s Imperial Guard Knights currently numbered only twenty-four, including herself.
If three or four men started having issues, it would be a significant problem.
“Huh? Is the situation that ridiculous — I mean, serious?”
“As it stands, things haven’t reached the worst-case scenario yet. However, I still suggest that Your Highness invites a priest to Border City to perform an exorcism,” Vera advised.
“Invite a priest? What a waste of money. I can solve this myself.”
“Your Highness can solve it?”
‘That makes sense. His Highness has a god backing him, so why look for the followers of other gods?’ Vera thought to herself.
“It is merely sexual frustration in a single male. It isn’t that difficult to resolve. Have a servant call him here; I will speak with him privately.”
‘Single male? Sexual frustration?’
These were two more terms she didn’t understand. Was it a form of desire? The God of Science was truly mysterious.
“By the way, Vera, go to the study and exchange these finished journals for some new Lord’s Journals.”
Anke pointed to several journals on his desk.
“Understood, Your Highness,” Vera replied with a nod.
She gathered the journals and, upon exiting, instructed a servant to notify Thomas to come.
Only then did she head toward the study downstairs.
……
Vera stepped into the study to find messy manuscripts scattered across the desk.
Before her stood a servant holding one of those manuscripts — a textbook example of a crime scene.
“What are you doing? Do you intend to steal His Highness’s secrets?”
Vera blocked the study doorway, her gaze fixed intently on the flustered servant.
Her right hand rested on the hilt of her longsword, ready to execute the man at any moment.
“Lady Vera! I wasn’t trying to steal anything! I just saw the paper fall to the floor, so I picked it up. I am illiterate; I can’t even understand what is written on it!”
The servant dropped to his knees before Vera, just as he had done outside the firing range that day, begging for her mercy.
This servant was Kano, the commoner who had been caught by guards while gathering branches near the range.
Anke had pardoned him, replacing a hanging sentence with forced labor.
He looked pitiful, but his abnormal heart rate spoke the plain truth to Vera, who was a Mimic Beast — Kano was lying.
“Your heart tells me you are lying! Tell the truth, or die here!”
Vera walked toward Kano step by step. She unsheathed her sword, the tip of the blade hanging just before his forehead.
“I really didn’t steal anything. I just wanted to pick it up.”
Kano remained adamant about his innocence.
“Hmph—”
Vera snorted coldly and sheathed her sword. She walked to the bookshelf and placed the Lord’s Journals she had brought back into their proper spots.
Then, before Kano could relax even slightly, Vera grabbed the top of his skull with her left hand.
Kano tried to struggle, but under Vera’s absolute strength, he was as powerless as an ant against an elephant.
Vera dragged Kano out of the study and into the hallway, then threw him with enough force to slam him against the opposite wall.
The rough stone wall tore through Kano’s clothes and skin, leaving bloodstains behind.
The massive commotion drew the attention of nearby maids and servants.
However, once they saw it was Vera, they all recoiled.
They hovered around the corners, quietly watching the events unfold.
“There are too many books in the study. A thief’s filthy blood would ruin the place.”
Clutching her sword, Vera walked toward Kano as if talking to herself.
The candlelight on the walls stretched her shadow exceptionally long, making her look like a reaper from hell come to harvest a living soul.
“No, don’t kill me! I’ll speak! I’ll speak! I am literate, I can read! But I truly didn’t peek at the contents on those papers!”
Faced with Vera’s killing intent, Kano confessed the truth of his literacy in terror.
“Tch, the truth… Then why did you lie before and say you couldn’t read?”
“Because… because if I admitted I could read, I would definitely be treated as a spy. But I really didn’t look; I just picked them up.”
Vera glanced at Kano, who was nearly driven mad by fear. Admitting he was literate would indeed make Kano appear more suspicious. It was a pity; if the fellow had kept lying, she could have executed him on the spot.
The most crucial point was that Kano indeed had not peeked at the contents of the manuscripts.
Therefore, the judgment had to be left to Anke.
Given Anke’s personality, he would likely spare the boy’s life again.
Martha, the Head Maid of the Lord’s Castle, hurried to the scene with her skirts gathered after being informed of the incident.
Seeing Kano’s panicked state, she immediately guessed that perhaps the new servant was unfamiliar with the castle’s rules and had offended Vera.
As the superior of all the maids and servants in the castle, Martha had both the authority to manage them and the duty to protect them.
Martha took a deep breath and asked Vera what had happened in a respectful tone.
“Lady Vera, may I ask what this servant has done to provoke such anger?”
“It is nothing. I simply suspected him of peeking at His Highness’s manuscripts. However, Martha, was this boy assigned to work in the study today?” Vera asked casually.
“Yes, Lady Vera. Because his body is very weak, His Highness ordered me to arrange lighter work for him first. Today was indeed his turn to clean the study,” Martha replied, indicating that it was all according to Anke’s wishes.
“Is that so? But he is literate. Letting him clean the study is a security risk.”
“Heavens! This shameful fellow! He deceived me! He told me he was illiterate!”
Martha realized in an instant what a dangerous mistake she had made. Her expression turned to one of pure horror.
“Fortunately, you caught him, Lady Vera! Otherwise, there is no telling what danger His Highness might have faced!”
“Now you know. In the future, be more vigilant toward strangers.”
Vera turned and stepped back into the study. When she emerged, she was carrying a large stack of journals.
“I will take him to His Highness for judgment. Remember this lesson, Martha. Do not let it happen a second time.”
Vera lifted Kano with one hand and escorted him toward Anke to face judgment.
Simultaneously, she couldn’t help but wonder: ‘Will His Highness forgive him again? Or punish him for hiding his literacy?’
Once Vera had walked far away, the servants who had been hiding and watching finally emerged.
“Auntie Martha, Lady Vera looked so terrifying just now. Who exactly is she?” a young maid who had rarely interacted with Vera asked.
“I do not know Lady Vera’s origins. I only know that she is the one who saved His Highness. That day, she brought His Highness back while covered in blood, her eyes as bright as a beast’s. His Highness announced her as the new Chief Knight right there in public. Do not be afraid. As long as you follow the rules, Lady Vera will not make things difficult for you.”
Martha shook her head as she answered the young maid’s question.