Chapter 7
Translated by: ME
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*****
The Kirkland brothers immediately summoned their legal counsel to relay the details of the situation. This lawyer, a man close to them in age, was exceptionally brilliant—the type of man who could hear one word and understand ten, delivering twenty results in return.
The brothers had provided the seed money for his firm back when he was a commoner struggling with finances; now, they were well aware that they relied on him more than he did on them.
「I see... it is certainly possible that the Baron’s daughter—the mistress—is involved.」
「Yes,」 Douglas replied. 「At first, my blood ran cold thinking Siegfried might have tried to do away with Rose to install that mistress as his successor, but that wouldn't explain why Alfred vanished with her. We don't have much time; can you look into it?」
「Understood. From the moment you contacted me, I began monitoring reports of unidentified bodies and suspicious movements, but nothing has surfaced yet. I hesitate to speak prematurely, but I believe there is a high probability that Lady Rose and the Young Master are safe.」
「What makes you say that?」
「First, Lady Rose was likely aware of the mistress’s existence. You mentioned she recently attended a tea party, did you not? High society is full of meddlers. There is no way the petty, prideful women of that circle would ignore a wealthy Kirkland daughter like Lady Rose appearing after a long absence. Some fool surely whispered 'your husband is cheating' just to laugh at her misfortune.」
Douglas was somewhat tone-deaf to the subtleties of women’s emotions, but he knew the lawyer was right about the nature of the social season. Spite, especially among noblewomen, never truly faded.
Rose’s rank wasn't the highest, but she was brilliant and lovely. Though Douglas knew he was biased as her brother, her academic record and serious nature had made her a standout as a student council officer at the academy. Because she was popular, she had also been the target of much jealousy; his wife, a former classmate of hers, often spoke of how much Rose had struggled back then.
Victims were often chosen not from the "peerless beauties," but from the "approachable, lovely women." Douglas had heard the whispers more than once: *How dare a girl of that rank act so smug while surrounded by high-ranking nobles?*
The lawyer nodded, reading Douglas’s expression as he continued his deduction. 「If she discovered the affair, a clever woman like Lady Rose would have sought information on her rival. Once she realized the woman was the daughter of a titled house, she would have naturally anticipated the possibility of being cast aside through divorce.」
「I suspect she feared for Alfred」the lawyer continued. 「In this day and age, divorce is possible for nobles, but custody of the heir almost always goes to the father. She would have seen a future where they were torn apart. Therefore, it is entirely possible she vanished intentionally, waiting for Lord Siegfried to make a move that puts him at a legal disadvantage. Of course, the other possibility is that they truly were set upon by bandits—though I find that less likely.」
「True...」 Douglas agreed, feeling slightly more composed. 「If it were bandits, they would have stripped that hired carriage of every last scrap of value.」
「Precisely. Or, perhaps they were involved in an accident and are being cared for somewhere.」
The lawyer took his leave of the Kirkland estate to begin tracing Rose’s steps through his own clandestine channels.
***
Siegfried was in a state of mounting panic. As he tried to trace Rose and Alfred’s path, he was forced to realize that he truly knew nothing about their lives.
In the middle of the night, a search party composed of Kirkland family laborers found the carriage—but it was an empty shell. It sat by a fallen tree, a wheel missing, and the horses nowhere to be found.
When questioned, the manager of the carriage rental service was dismissive.
「Yes, Lady Pendleton used one of our rentals this morning, but she didn't request a return trip. ...A broken carriage? It matches the model we use, but those are mass-produced. All of our horses are accounted for, and the driver who took Lady Pendleton returned straight to the station from the academy. My Lord, that carriage style is the most common one there is. Other agencies use them too... She likely hired a private freelancer for the return trip. After all... it costs money to have a carriage wait. If you’ll pardon my bluntness, it seemed the Mistress only had enough coin for the trip out. If you insist, I can have the driver speak with you?」
It was as if the man were laughing at him through his nose—the embarrassment of an Earl’s wife needing a rental carriage was plain. Naturally, the driver had no information either.
The next day, Siegfried went to the academy to inquire, only to realize he didn't even know what year or class Alfred was in. When he looked at report cards, he only looked at the marks; the rest had always been Rose’s job. Furthermore, as a man who had dropped out of the academy himself, he found Alfred’s academic success—taking first place in three subjects—irritating rather than prideful. He often felt as though his own son was looking down on him.
Since he had no interest in the school, he didn't recognize a single teacher. Even after being shown into a reception room by a cold-faced faculty member, the space felt suffocatingly uncomfortable.
「Actually... I don't know the whereabouts of my wife and son,」 he confessed to the Headmaster, swallowing his pride and begging for secrecy. The Headmaster’s face twisted in shock.
「Were they set upon by thieves? What do the maids say? Were they abducted along with the servants?!」
It was a natural assumption. Most people believed a noblewoman’s place was in the home, and that they lacked the knowledge to even navigate the world alone. It was difficult for Siegfried to admit that his own servants had been so spiteful that they hadn't provided an escort or a carriage.
「No... due to certain circumstances, no servants accompanied them. The last sighting was here at the academy,」 Siegfried started, wiping away cold sweat. The Headmaster’s gaze suddenly turned sharp and dangerous.
「And what, pray tell, were these 'certain circumstances'?」
「...I cannot say. But... it was certainly... nothing related to their current disappearance. I swear.」
Siegfried could feel his credibility evaporating before this wise old man, but he couldn't recover. 「My wife apparently hired a rental carriage... and... they may have been attacked on the way back...」 He stammered on, hoping the Headmaster didn't know the truth of the Pendleton household. 「Regardless, I must find her. Please, tell me anything you know.」
The Headmaster furrowed his brow in disgust. 「Lord Pendleton, let me be clear so that we both understand. Your wife and Alfred were forced to hire a rental carriage for some reason. They arrived without a family crest, without maids, and without guards—and then they vanished?」
「That is correct.」
「They have been missing since yesterday, yet you are only searching now? Classes ended at the second bell.」
Siegfried fell into a heavy silence. After a moment, the Headmaster rose to ask the gatekeepers and assistants if they had seen the pair. Before leaving, he paused at the door and turned back.
「...Have you heard about the taunting Alfred-kun faced in his class?」
「Taunting? No... I haven't heard anything.」 Siegfried looked back, puzzled.
The Headmaster let out a long, weary sigh, as if looking at a man beyond saving.
「For the past several months, Alfred-kun has been mocked by his classmates because of the day you were seen entering an inn with another woman. They teased him, saying, 'No matter how good your grades are, a child who isn't loved is a pitiful thing.' When an only son and heir is chosen as a squad leader, most families celebrate with great joy—but it seems that was not the case for the Pendletons. Even yesterday, the boys were saying these things to him. He endured it in silence. I am but a teacher; I do not intend to meddle in the affairs of an Earl. However...」
The old man’s aura of quiet fury chilled the room. 「However, as a human being, I cannot allow a boy like Alfred—whose hard work goes unrewarded—to simply vanish. I will investigate thoroughly. I shall contact the Pendleton estate if we learn anything. Good day to you.」
Siegfried left the academy with the hollow realization that his son knew about the affair. He finally understood the cold, hard stares of the teachers. They had been looking at him with contempt: *Ah, here is that unfaithful Count who neglects his family. What does he want?*
He didn't know Alfred’s class, his friends, or even the name of his homeroom teacher. He left the school feeling the sting of being rejected as a father.
***
The second day of the disappearance passed. The servants, finally realizing that a missing Mistress was a serious problem, went out to search, but none returned with information. They knew nothing of Rose’s life over the last two years—not even which shops she frequented. To a commoner, a noble’s movements were a mystery, and without a recognizable lady's maid to vouch for them, the shopkeepers were uncooperative.
When a servant would ask at a high-end boutique, the staff would initially be helpful. 「Oh my! You’ve lost contact with the Lady? How worrying! Tell us what she was wearing!」
But the moment the servants were asked about her dress, they would stammer.
「You... you don't even know the color of her dress?」 the shopkeepers would ask suspiciously. It was common knowledge that a Countess’s maids prepared her wardrobe from morning to night.
「She was likely wearing something dark...」
As soon as they answered, doors were shut in their faces. Professional shops maintained strict confidentiality and wouldn't divulge information to suspicious individuals who didn't even know what their mistress was wearing that morning.
Back at the mansion, the Kirkland brothers looked down on the servants with disdain.
「Truly, brother-in-law... we supported you with our business, but we didn't provide funds for you to keep a house full of such useless servants. A re-evaluation is in order. We don't want any more tea; the swill that maid served earlier was undrinkable. You should replace the entire staff.」
Siegfried snapped back. 「These are my servants! Don't meddle! They are doing their best. Besides, I am the one who supports them!」
The servants smirked at their master’s defense, but their joy vanished when Paley Kirkland’s face darkened.
「Douglas-niisan, I’ve had enough. Can I just cut them off?」 Paley asked in a low, dangerous voice.
The servants wanted to scoff—*What do these mere Viscounts think they're doing?*—but they shrank back at the change in Paley's expression.
「Not yet, Paley,」 Douglas said. 「Endure it until Alfred and the others are found. ...Listen well, Siegfried. You hold the title of Earl, yes. But who put your business on track? Have you forgotten the misery you were in before Rose married you? You didn't let Rose train the servants, and now you have this rabble running wild. How do you plan to keep this house standing? Look at reality! This is a warning. We never wanted to be friends with the Pendleton house. We understand perfectly now what your parents told you about us. We will continue the search for Rose, but you had better think long and hard about what comes next.」
The brothers stormed out. Once they were gone, Siegfried’s fear turned to a white-hot rage.
(How arrogant those Kirklands are! They should be grateful their sister married into a higher house like mine! A plain woman like her... she didn't even have a fiancé back then! That’s why the servants look down on her!)
He convinced himself that the Kirklands only benefited from his title for their business.
「Doril!! Find Rose and the boy, no matter what! If the knighthood finds out, the Royal Family will hear of it! Do you know what happens if word gets out that the Countess of Pendleton has vanished?! You’ll never find another employer again!」
The servants trembled. They knew the Crown was harsh toward houses embroiled in dishonorable scandals. Even if the house wasn't disbanded, their business and lands would be deemed "untrustworthy" and taken away.
The head maid scrambled to gather the staff, and the butler began barking orders.
(How troublesome... Just show up already! And that clever little brat, too!)
Neither the master nor the servants of the Pendleton house could stop their silent curses against Rose and Alfred.
*****
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