14.
Judith sent her message through a servant of the Ducal Mansion. Having specified the garden, she trusted the Duchess would naturally prepare for tea there.
After the servant departed, Judith looked at the Master and asked, “Master, by any chance, is there a secret passage in the garden?”
“There is not.”
It was the expected answer; the secret passages seemed confined to the mansion itself. As Judith nodded slowly, the Master crossed his arms. “However, once you are in the vicinity, one could hide their presence and lurk in the trees.”
“Oh?”
“By myself, that is. It is impossible to bring you along.”
Before Judith could point out that she hadn’t asked him to take her, the Master spoke with a chilling edge of murderous intent.
“I thought about it last night; perhaps infiltrating and killing Sarah is a viable method.”
As she opened her mouth to protest, the Master shook his head firmly. “Do not think I am being excessive.”
“Ah, that is…”
“If that woman is not stopped, Karl might die, might he not?”
“What I mean is…”
“To commit such heinous acts against a child—she deserves to die.”
His tone was so resolute it sounded like he were heading to a battlefield. Judith, repeatedly cut off, finally shouted, “Ah, wait! I know very well that you have a reckless disregard for life, Master!”
She stared him straight in the eyes. “Do you think Karl Mayous will break free from those thoughts if you kill Sarah?”
“…Yes?”
“What Karl Mayous needs is the realization that ‘Sarah is wrong.’ If Sarah dies, but Karl continues to act according to her influence, what is the point?”
The Master flinched, struck to the core.
A heavy silence lingered. The Master stared intently at Judith before speaking slowly. “Judith.”
“Yes.”
“You…”
The Master rested his chin on the back of his hand, above his mask. Judith watched the elegant motion, momentarily spellbound.
She hadn’t been conscious of it until now, but after pressing against each other in the secret passage, she felt with startling clarity that he was a man of flesh and blood. His movements and tone were so refined that she found herself mesmerized, piquing a sudden, intense curiosity about the face hidden behind the mask.
“…It seems you are right.”
Judith hurriedly averted her gaze. The Master spoke in a gravelly voice, “I was agitated. I have shown you an unsightly side of myself.”
“Ah, no.”
Judith cleared her throat and fidgeted. The Master called it ‘unsightly,’ but she actually felt a deeper connection to him for revealing such raw emotion. *It’s embarrassing, yes, but after braving the passage together, we feel closer. Even if I still don’t know his face or his name.*
As they shared the same anger and puzzled over the same problems, they felt like true allies. For Judith, who had lived alone since her father’s death, it was a warmth she hadn’t felt in a long time.
As she stood lost in thought, the Master spoke abruptly. “I will follow your will, Judith. Whatever the plan may be.”
“Yes.”
At her indifferent reply, the Master playfully tapped her arm. “Judith, you must understand the weight of these words.”
“What weight?”
“I usually do not follow anyone’s will. I do not trust anyone; I act alone. But this means I will not simply step back and watch.”
Because he spoke with such gravity about something so simple, Judith couldn’t help but laugh. “Then what exactly are you going to do? What if you don’t just sit and watch me?”
The Master did not smile. He simply added, “It means I trust you, Judith. Rationally and emotionally.”
“Uh… that’s sudden. Haven’t we been trading based on that kind of trust for three years?”
“That is why.”
The Master crossed his legs with composure. The mask remained expressionless, but she felt a gaze from behind it more intense than ever before.
“It is simply, as I said, sudden.”
“Is that so? Then I’ll have to be worth that trust.”
Judith looked at the mask—a barrier she couldn’t cross—and smiled softly. “This afternoon, everything will end. Don’t worry.”
“Yes.”
The clouds outside the window drifted by, and the sun poked through. In the space of the Master’s brief reply, sunlight—at once the same as usual and yet entirely different—poured into the room.
“I shall watch.”
It was a voice that, as always, seemed to evaporate into nothingness, leaving no trace, but the sunlight slanting between them settled in her heart like an anchor.
* * *
*I wanted to eat lunch together.*
Isabella sighed as she sat down for lunch with Karl. *I did treat her a bit harshly, though…*
Still, she had wanted to show Judith that there was value in living at the Mayous Ducal Mansion. Inviting her to lunch had been an attempt at exactly that.
She liked Judith. Her sharp wit, the noble grace of her upbringing, and her upright values—all of it impressed her. Even while essentially selling her services for money, she maintained a dignity that commanded respect.
*If Ekian returns, she is truly a child I would want as a daughter-in-law.*
She sighed again. The girl, who claimed to dream of a future, had firmly stated that Ekian would not return.
*She’s also very thin… It must have been difficult to live alone for three years.*
It was a miracle she had endured so long. She wanted to see the girl’s reaction to something delicious, a small kindness to brighten her day.
“Karl, you’re eating well.”
Isabella turned to her eight-year-old son with a smile. “Yes. You must eat well during your growth period.”
“Yes.”
As if her remarks a few days ago about his poor appetite had taken effect, Karl was dutifully clearing his plate. Isabella watched him, feeling a wave of relief. His complexion was still pale, but she hoped good food and sleep would mend him.
Karl had been a genius since infancy. He read at two and showed adult-level intelligence by three; even now, he remembered Ekian vividly. Ekian had cherished him, and his disappearance had been a profound shock. Perhaps that was why, even at eight, Karl could not let go of his memory.
The Duke and Duchess waited patiently, hoping he would one day find peace.
Watching Karl finish his meal, Isabella cautiously changed the subject. “I heard you sent all your tutors away, and you aren’t even attending the Knights Order…”
Karl replied with his head bowed, shoveling steak into his mouth. “I don’t feel motivated.”
Isabella nodded, choosing not to press him. He was a bright child, and perhaps this was just an early, turbulent phase of development. Yet, she couldn’t help but feel that everything would be easier if Ekian were here.
“Right. Well, at least Sarah is here…”
Karl, who had once monopolized the affection in the house, had become withdrawn. She was grateful for Sarah. Since they were children, Sarah, Ekian, and Karl had been inseparable. Sarah was a comfort to him.
“Yes. Don’t worry too much, Mother,” Karl said maturely.
“Indeed. What would I have done if not for Sarah?”
Isabella rarely doted on the staff, but she found Sarah to be unusually intelligent and kind.
*If Judith hadn’t come, I would have asked Sarah to be a temporary daughter-in-law.*
She hadn’t mentioned it to anyone, but Sarah had been her top choice. She had known Ekian since childhood and was beautiful enough to serve as an effective decoy for the family.