“Are you all right? I heard there was… an unfortunate incident at the hunting festival yesterday.”
A look of concern flickered in his clear eyes, as pure as a crystal lake.
To think someone would come all the way from Hamilton just for me…
A corner of my heart ached with emotion.
“As you can see, I’m perfectly fine. I’m sorry for making you worry, Sir Kerif.”
“Could it be… you came all the way here because of me?”
Sir Kerif’s eyes wavered.
His cheeks flushed slightly, and his gaze slowly dropped downward.
His eyelashes, delicately layered like those of a doll, were beautiful.
“…Yes. The thought of something happening to you—I just couldn’t sit still.”
As expected, he was a caring and gentle person.
Wondering how I could express my gratitude, I remembered the gift I had prepared for Sir Kerif.
“You came at the perfect time. I actually had something I wanted to give you.”
“To me?”
“Yes. I’ll be right back, so please wait here for a moment.”
Leaving Sir Kerif behind, I went into my room and picked up the cute lamb plush doll I had placed on the shelf.
I quickly brought it outside.
Fortunately, Sir Kerif was still standing in the same spot.
“This is it. It’s not much, so I wouldn’t call it a real gift…”
He looked momentarily surprised, then carefully accepted the lamb plush doll I had made.
“This is…?”
“In Medderland, when a child is born, we give them a doll shaped like a lamb so they can receive the blessing of the lamb god, Briya. Your younger sibling isn’t a lamb beastkin, but I made this hoping they could still feel that warmth in some way.”
For a moment, his expression twisted faintly.
He looked as if he was struggling with pain yet overwhelmed with emotion.
It was strange for him to react so strongly to such a simple gift.
Not wanting him to feel pressured, I added more explanation.
“It’s kind of clumsy, right? That’s why I said it was a little embarrassing to call it a gift.”
“…Not at all. This is far too precious a gift for someone like me. I don’t know if I deserve to receive it…”
“Of course, you do. If you really feel burdened… just think of it as a gift from a friend!”
“…A friend?”
Saying it out loud myself made me a bit embarrassed.
But Sir Kerif truly felt like a friend—someone I could be comfortable with.
If possible, I hope we can continue to get along like this in the future.
“Yes, but if you’re uncomfortable with that, I understand…”
“No, not at all. Thank you so much, my lady… I’ll definitely pass this on to my younger sibling.”
Now I wished I had put a little more effort into making it.
Having gone through failures with version one and two, that was probably the best I could do.
Even knowing that, I couldn’t help but feel a bit of regret.
Just then, a familiar voice came from behind.
“What’s that?”
The emperor’s cold eyes landed on the lamb doll in Sir Kerif’s hands.
***
“What’s the current situation with the affected families?”
“Yes, Lord Argon. The heirs of the following five families have died: Pirione, Suribinyu, General, Kuman, and Aspana.”
“The condition of the bodies?”
“They appear to have been attacked by beasts, but…”
“It’s not certain, is it? Coincidentally, four of those families were supporters of mine.”
It was an obvious ploy. Imagining them gathering their prey in one place and picking them off one by one made a bitter laugh escape.
I had expected they’d make a move eventually, but I hadn’t imagined they’d act so boldly.
What had driven her to such desperation?
The answer wasn’t hard to guess.
‘I guess the lamb beastkin by my side must’ve really gotten on her nerves.’
I turned to Samuel and asked,
“Who did that to Perry?”
“It appears to be a Komodo Dragon beastkin. Half of them came from the desert, and the rest were vicious criminals wanted in other countries.”
“So those scumbags were roaming around Hamilton unchecked. Tighten border checks for the time being. If you spot anyone suspicious, arrest them on sight.”
“Yes, understood.”
Samuel pushed his glasses up with a hand as he flipped through the documents and added, “Regarding the recent movements in the ‘Underground’ you asked me to look into—there was someone going around saying strange things.”
The Underground was a place where you could do anything if you had money.
It was the most lawless and backward zone within the Hamilton Empire, filled not only with drugs, but also with gambling, human fighting pits, and countless other illegal and dangerous activities.
Those who frequented the place were often people so broken they were beyond help.
Others included vagrants with untraceable identities or members of the wealthy class who, driven by idle curiosity, stepped into the place only to walk a path of ruin.
“Strange things?”
“Yes. They were going around claiming there was a special drug brought from a foreign land. Supposedly, if you take it, you can become an immortal warrior. But…”
“They’ve vanished, haven’t they?”
“Yes, that’s correct. They disappeared just before the Hunting Festival, and no one knows where they went.”
“Most likely silenced.”
There was suspicion, but no proof.
There were plenty of ways to throw the Grand Duchess into prison and force the truth out of her, but if possible, he wanted to uncover every one of her crimes first.
As he mulled this over, Samuel pushed his glasses up once again.
“But apparently, the smuggler’s younger brother is still alive.”
“And what kind of person is the younger brother?”
“Not much to speak of. He seemed to be living off the money his older brother made, drifting in and out of the Underground.”
“Then he must know something. Look into him soon.”
The never-ending meeting was finally nearing its end.
He tried to pause and catch his breath, but suddenly, two beastkin girls’ faces appeared in his mind’s eye, floating like phantoms above the ceiling.
One face was trembling with pleasure, the other drenched in sorrow.
The way she shed fat tears, looking as if she’d collapse at any moment, created a strange sense of unease in his chest.
She must have visited Perry by now.
According to Hapone’s report, she was still unconscious from the enemy’s poison.
‘Is she still crying?’
There had been too many matters to deal with right after returning from the forest.
Not only assessing the damage, but since it had been an event hosted by the Imperial Palace, compensation had to be offered to the parents who’d lost their children.
Still, the fact that he left her behind weighed on his mind.
As he squirmed under the pressure of this unfamiliar emotion, he suddenly felt a persistent gaze on him.
When he turned his head, Samuel was observing him with a meaningful look in his eyes.
“Be honest. What happened in the forest?”
“Nothing happened.”
“It’s hard to believe that someone who was acting like a rabid stray dog recently is suddenly so calm… And that doll you’ve been carrying around since earlier—it looks out of place. Did you pick it up in the mountains or something?”
Samuel’s gaze landed on the doll placed on the office desk.
Though it had been stepped on by a bear and covered in dust, it was otherwise intact.
“With that weird appearance, it wouldn’t be strange if it really was a cursed doll.”
“It’s not a cursed doll. It’s a wild boar. Can’t believe you have such a poor eye.”
At the word “wild boar,” Samuel frowned with one eyebrow.
It was the particular expression he made when encountering something that didn’t make sense or he couldn’t accept.
“I’m stepping out for a bit. Just letting you know.”
“What? But there’s still a mountain of pending matters—!”
Leaving behind Samuel’s shouting voice, he walked out of the office.
Strangely, his chest had been feeling tight and uneasy since earlier.
He thought maybe the heavy feeling, as if a stone had been placed on his chest, would lighten a bit if he got some fresh air and looked at the open sky.
But for some reason, when he looked at the shape of the floating clouds, one person naturally came to mind.
Mayhen.
A hopelessly clumsy assassin—no, a foolish beastkin girl… and the one I accidentally imprinted on.
My thoughts spiraled endlessly, one after another.
Like the countless cumulus clouds filling the sky above, her face kept appearing in my mind.
Sometimes, she’d grin foolishly with a silly smile.
Other times, she’d boldly meet my gaze with eyes glowing like gold.
And then, there was that face—the one where she couldn’t hold back the rising sadness and finally let a tear fall.
‘Why the hell am I like this?’
It felt disturbingly invasive, like someone had barged into my mind and was rummaging around without permission.
At some point, my feet naturally carried me toward the room where the beastkin girl was staying.
I didn’t have anything in particular to say, no real reason to go—
But I couldn’t help but wonder if she was crying again, like yesterday.
‘Just a quick check, then I’ll leave.’
However, as I approached her room, someone was already there—someone whose face I hated to see.
A symbol of immorality, a disgrace to the imperial family.
And yet, he always puts on airs like some virtuous saint. I hated that the most.
On top of that, he looked just like my detestable father.
‘What the hell is he doing here?’