The day Cassion was to leave, the late snow that had been falling all day ceased.
And even the snow piled up melted in the sunshine, making it a warm day.
It was as if celebrating Cassion’s departure.
There was a crowd in front of the Carter family’s main gate to see him off.
They were the members of the ducal household and their servants.
‘As expected, the first Young Master fits in perfectly with the ducal family. Even the sky seems to agree.’
That’s what the servants thought, eyes transfixed upon the uncharacteristically clear winter sky.
Their gazes, flitting about, fixed back on the ducal family as the duchess spoke.
“Take care of yourself.”
Her soft voice carried the warmth of concern.
Stepping forward, the duchess patted Cassion’s arm with trembling hands.
“We’ll be waiting for you, so promise that you’ll return safely. Alright, Cassion?”
Their bond, tender and caring despite no shared blood…
…But the two sides knew perfectly well that it was all just pretense.
An empty shell of concern without a hint of sincerity.
Cassion, smiling faintly, held the hand patting his arm.
As he gently wrapped it with both hands, her expression ever so briefly flickered with discomfort.
“Don’t worry, Mother. I will return safely, especially for you.”
His smiling face seemed very much like a reliable son.
“Brother.”
“Yes, Leo.”
From behind the duchess, Leo appeared.
Seizing the moment, the duchess pushed Cassion’s hand away and stepped aside.
“Safe travels, Brother. Be cautious in the Skarm Plateau. Not much is known about its terrain.”
Leo extended his hand.
“It wouldn’t do for you to have an accident.”
As he said this, his tone carried a mix of warning and ‘concern’.
Obviously, it was more of the former.
Cassion looked intently at his younger half-brother, then smiled and shook his hand.
“Thank you for your concern. I’ll return safely—for your sake as well.”
As their handshake ended, Cassion patted Leo’s shoulder.
A gesture usually from an elder to a younger.
‘This annoying bastard.’
But only for today.
Leo, grinding his teeth, put on a smile and nodded.
At long last.
This was the final goodbye.
Between the duchess and Leo, the duke, leaning on a cane, emerged.
“Cassion.”
“Yes, Father.”
“I expect you to pass the second trial successfully. We have high hopes for you.”
His voice mixed with genuine satisfaction, unlike the previous two.
Without responding immediately, Cassion observed the duke before him.
His father, now markedly more gaunt and more ill than just months ago.
‘…Leo, Eiane.’
Cassion muttered internally.
Days before, Rosetta had hinted that the duke’s worsening health was due to Leo and the duchess.
That they had been gradually poisoning him.
It was odd, how a healthy man had deteriorated so rapidly.
That day, Rosetta also gifted him a plant-based antidote made by Logan.
It was a detoxifier that naturally neutralizes nearby poison.
It couldn’t reverse the damage already done to the body or the accumulated toxins.
But at least, it would be able to eliminate the poison consumed that same day.
Receiving the antidote, Cassion pondered.
To use it, or not to use it.
It was a cruel thought.
His father had always been harsh, never treating him as a son.
He was always quick to scold him for being ‘needlessly weak’ whenever he faced trouble.
Quite frankly, Cassion did not consider this man to be his father.
All his life, it always felt as if he was drifting in a vast ocean, and his father never once considered his situation.
Even so, a few days after he received the antidote.
Cassion relented and did his duty as a decent human being. He mixed the antidote with the plants in his father’s bedroom.
“Yes. I will live up to your expectations.”
He smiled slightly with his somewhat delayed response.
“…I’ll be back soon. Stay healthy, Father.”
“You’re making such a fuss when you’ll be away for just a few days.”
The duke chuckled heartily in response.
His demeanor was sadly like that of any ordinary father.
It was painful that he never showed this side to him before, not even for a moment.
After bidding farewell to the duke, Cassion mounted his horse.
From the moment he left the ducal residence, he was to travel alone on horseback.
“Well then, I shall be off.”
With that last farewell, the horse slowly moved forward.
As the sound of hooves quickened, Cassion’s figure swiftly receded into the distance.
Those watching his departing figure eventually returned to their respective places when he was no longer in sight.
All except for Leo.
He stood still in the now-empty space, silently staring down the path Cassion had taken.
Eventually, a twisted smile appeared on his lips.
“Safe travels, Cassion.”
Whether he would truly return safely, however, remained uncertain.
* * *
‘I wonder how Cassion is doing.’
Rosetta, sitting close to the cold window, thought to herself.
As she remained lost in thought for a long time, at the other side of the room, Diana cautiously started a conversation while adeptly arranging the bedding.
“Are you thinking about Sir Maxwell… No, about Lord Cassion?”
“Yes. It’s already the third day since Cassion left, and there’s still no news.”
Her voice was calm, but her words noticeably contained unease.
“…It’s only been three days.”
“Each day feels like a year.”
“For Milady to say such a thing…”
Diana murmured in disbelief, shaking her head.
“Still, don’t worry too much. Lord Cassion is strong, though not as much as you, Milady… In many ways, I think he’s still not up to par with you. But anyway, Sir Carter is quite powerful.”
“That’s true. But…”
The problem was that the enemies were no less formidable.
“Let’s trust and wait. If need be, we’ll all rush to help him, right?”
“Wouldn’t that be cheating?”
Rosetta’s comment surprised Diana, who then made an exaggeratedly shocked expression.
“…Good heavens, are we really worrying about that?”
The exaggeration in Diana’s voice was quite adorable.
Rosetta quietly laughed and nodded anyway.
“That’s true.”
“Right? Ah.”
In the middle of speaking, Diana seemed to remember something and rummaged through her pocket.
“What is it?”
“Well, this strange letter arrived, and I’ve kept it. I came to give it to you but got distracted with tidying up the bed…”
Her voice trailed off as Diana pulled out an envelope from her pocket.
“A strange letter?”
“Yes. It feels heavy, but there’s no sender written on it. Here it is.”
Rosetta took the envelope from Diana.
Although sealed, it felt weighty.
It seemed unlikely that it contained just an ordinary letter, judging by its thickness.
‘Urien, perhaps.’
It was a plausible guess.
The arrival of an anonymous letter coinciding with Cassion’s absence was likely not a coincidence.
If so, there was only one person capable of such an act.
Urien.
“Well then, I’ll leave you to it. Call me if you need anything.”
Seeing Rosetta’s expression darken as she examined the letter, Diana tactfully excused herself.
Left alone, Rosetta slowly opened the envelope.
Thump.
First, something small and shiny fell out of the opened gap.
Rosetta reached out and picked it up.
“…What in the world?”
Her voice was tinged with perplexity.
The object in question was a necklace.
A necklace that, notably, exuded magical power.
Baffled by the enigmatic contents that appeared right from the start, Rosetta’s gaze returned to the envelope.
After placing the necklace on the desk, she checked the remaining contents.
‘A notebook?’
What was inside the envelope turned out to be a notebook.
Apparently, it was this that had given the envelope its significant weight.
Rosetta examined the palm-sized notebook and her expression hardened as she saw a familiar name written on the front page.
〈 Katie 〉
An unwelcome name.
Yet, it made her want to open the notebook immediately.
Rosetta quickly flipped through the notebook.
Page by page, one after another.
From beginning to end.
“…Good heavens. What is this…”
What is this?
With each dwindling page of the notebook, Rosetta’s face grew more rigid.
The notebook was a diary written by Katie over twenty years ago.
It detailed how Alicia and Rosetta had been switched.
Anger welled up within her.
To think that her mother’s death was not a mere illness but due to the side effects of a drug.
They betrayed her mother, who treated them both like sisters, for money and power.
They drove her to death.
And they brazenly switched her and Alicia, deceiving the duke and his family.
As if the immense pain it would cause to the remaining ones mattered not to them.
“…Ah.”
Her hands trembled with rage, yet she needed to stay composed.
It was crucial to decide what to do with this first.
If discovered carelessly, it could become a rather troublesome matter.
And then.
‘Who could have sent this?’
Once again, Urien seemed the likely suspect.
How he knew, she didn’t know, but he was also aware that Alicia and Rosetta had been switched at birth.
Not to mention, he had previously used this fact to plant nightmares in Alicia’s mind.
But.
‘How did this end up in Urien’s hands?’
It was baffling.
It was a two-decade-old diary of the nanny who had been executed by House Valentine.
How it ended up in Urien’s possession was a mystery.
However, her contemplation was short-lived.
Or rather, it couldn’t last long.
As Rosetta stared at the notebook in her hand, lost in thought, there came a loud knocking at the door.
Before she could even utter a word to come in, the door swung open abruptly.
“Diana?”
The person who appeared was Diana.
Unlike just a few minutes ago, her face was now fraught with urgency and anxiety.
“What’s wrong, Diana?”
Rosetta asked, rising slowly from her seat.
A sense of unease filled the room, accompanied by Diana’s panting breaths.
And, as expected.
“Lady. There’s trouble. Investigators from the imperial court have burst in.”
The unease was not just simple anxiety.
The day Cassion was to leave, the late snow that had been falling all day ceased.
And even the snow piled up melted in the sunshine, making it a warm day.
It was as if celebrating Cassion’s departure.
There was a crowd in front of the Carter family’s main gate to see him off.
They were the members of the ducal household and their servants.
‘As expected, the first Young Master fits in perfectly with the ducal family. Even the sky seems to agree.’
That’s what the servants thought, eyes transfixed upon the uncharacteristically clear winter sky.
Their gazes, flitting about, fixed back on the ducal family as the duchess spoke.
“Take care of yourself.”
Her soft voice carried the warmth of concern.
Stepping forward, the duchess patted Cassion’s arm with trembling hands.
“We’ll be waiting for you, so promise that you’ll return safely. Alright, Cassion?”
Their bond, tender and caring despite no shared blood…
…But the two sides knew perfectly well that it was all just pretense.
An empty shell of concern without a hint of sincerity.
Cassion, smiling faintly, held the hand patting his arm.
As he gently wrapped it with both hands, her expression ever so briefly flickered with discomfort.
“Don’t worry, Mother. I will return safely, especially for you.”
His smiling face seemed very much like a reliable son.
“Brother.”
“Yes, Leo.”
From behind the duchess, Leo appeared.
Seizing the moment, the duchess pushed Cassion’s hand away and stepped aside.
“Safe travels, Brother. Be cautious in the Skarm Plateau. Not much is known about its terrain.”
Leo extended his hand.
“It wouldn’t do for you to have an accident.”
As he said this, his tone carried a mix of warning and ‘concern’.
Obviously, it was more of the former.
Cassion looked intently at his younger half-brother, then smiled and shook his hand.
“Thank you for your concern. I’ll return safely—for your sake as well.”
As their handshake ended, Cassion patted Leo’s shoulder.
A gesture usually from an elder to a younger.
‘This annoying bastard.’
But only for today.
Leo, grinding his teeth, put on a smile and nodded.
At long last.
This was the final goodbye.
Between the duchess and Leo, the duke, leaning on a cane, emerged.
“Cassion.”
“Yes, Father.”
“I expect you to pass the second trial successfully. We have high hopes for you.”
His voice mixed with genuine satisfaction, unlike the previous two.
Without responding immediately, Cassion observed the duke before him.
His father, now markedly more gaunt and more ill than just months ago.
‘…Leo, Eiane.’
Cassion muttered internally.
Days before, Rosetta had hinted that the duke’s worsening health was due to Leo and the duchess.
That they had been gradually poisoning him.
It was odd, how a healthy man had deteriorated so rapidly.
That day, Rosetta also gifted him a plant-based antidote made by Logan.
It was a detoxifier that naturally neutralizes nearby poison.
It couldn’t reverse the damage already done to the body or the accumulated toxins.
But at least, it would be able to eliminate the poison consumed that same day.
Receiving the antidote, Cassion pondered.
To use it, or not to use it.
It was a cruel thought.
His father had always been harsh, never treating him as a son.
He was always quick to scold him for being ‘needlessly weak’ whenever he faced trouble.
Quite frankly, Cassion did not consider this man to be his father.
All his life, it always felt as if he was drifting in a vast ocean, and his father never once considered his situation.
Even so, a few days after he received the antidote.
Cassion relented and did his duty as a decent human being. He mixed the antidote with the plants in his father’s bedroom.
“Yes. I will live up to your expectations.”
He smiled slightly with his somewhat delayed response.
“…I’ll be back soon. Stay healthy, Father.”
“You’re making such a fuss when you’ll be away for just a few days.”
The duke chuckled heartily in response.
His demeanor was sadly like that of any ordinary father.
It was painful that he never showed this side to him before, not even for a moment.
After bidding farewell to the duke, Cassion mounted his horse.
From the moment he left the ducal residence, he was to travel alone on horseback.
“Well then, I shall be off.”
With that last farewell, the horse slowly moved forward.
As the sound of hooves quickened, Cassion’s figure swiftly receded into the distance.
Those watching his departing figure eventually returned to their respective places when he was no longer in sight.
All except for Leo.
He stood still in the now-empty space, silently staring down the path Cassion had taken.
Eventually, a twisted smile appeared on his lips.
“Safe travels, Cassion.”
Whether he would truly return safely, however, remained uncertain.
* * *
‘I wonder how Cassion is doing.’
Rosetta, sitting close to the cold window, thought to herself.
As she remained lost in thought for a long time, at the other side of the room, Diana cautiously started a conversation while adeptly arranging the bedding.
“Are you thinking about Sir Maxwell… No, about Lord Cassion?”
“Yes. It’s already the third day since Cassion left, and there’s still no news.”
Her voice was calm, but her words noticeably contained unease.
“…It’s only been three days.”
“Each day feels like a year.”
“For Milady to say such a thing…”
Diana murmured in disbelief, shaking her head.
“Still, don’t worry too much. Lord Cassion is strong, though not as much as you, Milady… In many ways, I think he’s still not up to par with you. But anyway, Sir Carter is quite powerful.”
“That’s true. But…”
The problem was that the enemies were no less formidable.
“Let’s trust and wait. If need be, we’ll all rush to help him, right?”
“Wouldn’t that be cheating?”
Rosetta’s comment surprised Diana, who then made an exaggeratedly shocked expression.
“…Good heavens, are we really worrying about that?”
The exaggeration in Diana’s voice was quite adorable.
Rosetta quietly laughed and nodded anyway.
“That’s true.”
“Right? Ah.”
In the middle of speaking, Diana seemed to remember something and rummaged through her pocket.
“What is it?”
“Well, this strange letter arrived, and I’ve kept it. I came to give it to you but got distracted with tidying up the bed…”
Her voice trailed off as Diana pulled out an envelope from her pocket.
“A strange letter?”
“Yes. It feels heavy, but there’s no sender written on it. Here it is.”
Rosetta took the envelope from Diana.
Although sealed, it felt weighty.
It seemed unlikely that it contained just an ordinary letter, judging by its thickness.
‘Urien, perhaps.’
It was a plausible guess.
The arrival of an anonymous letter coinciding with Cassion’s absence was likely not a coincidence.
If so, there was only one person capable of such an act.
Urien.
“Well then, I’ll leave you to it. Call me if you need anything.”
Seeing Rosetta’s expression darken as she examined the letter, Diana tactfully excused herself.
Left alone, Rosetta slowly opened the envelope.
Thump.
First, something small and shiny fell out of the opened gap.
Rosetta reached out and picked it up.
“…What in the world?”
Her voice was tinged with perplexity.
The object in question was a necklace.
A necklace that, notably, exuded magical power.
Baffled by the enigmatic contents that appeared right from the start, Rosetta’s gaze returned to the envelope.
After placing the necklace on the desk, she checked the remaining contents.
‘A notebook?’
What was inside the envelope turned out to be a notebook.
Apparently, it was this that had given the envelope its significant weight.
Rosetta examined the palm-sized notebook and her expression hardened as she saw a familiar name written on the front page.
〈 Katie 〉
An unwelcome name.
Yet, it made her want to open the notebook immediately.
Rosetta quickly flipped through the notebook.
Page by page, one after another.
From beginning to end.
“…Good heavens. What is this…”
What is this?
With each dwindling page of the notebook, Rosetta’s face grew more rigid.
The notebook was a diary written by Katie over twenty years ago.
It detailed how Alicia and Rosetta had been switched.
Anger welled up within her.
To think that her mother’s death was not a mere illness but due to the side effects of a drug.
They betrayed her mother, who treated them both like sisters, for money and power.
They drove her to death.
And they brazenly switched her and Alicia, deceiving the duke and his family.
As if the immense pain it would cause to the remaining ones mattered not to them.
“…Ah.”
Her hands trembled with rage, yet she needed to stay composed.
It was crucial to decide what to do with this first.
If discovered carelessly, it could become a rather troublesome matter.
And then.
‘Who could have sent this?’
Once again, Urien seemed the likely suspect.
How he knew, she didn’t know, but he was also aware that Alicia and Rosetta had been switched at birth.
Not to mention, he had previously used this fact to plant nightmares in Alicia’s mind.
But.
‘How did this end up in Urien’s hands?’
It was baffling.
It was a two-decade-old diary of the nanny who had been executed by House Valentine.
How it ended up in Urien’s possession was a mystery.
However, her contemplation was short-lived.
Or rather, it couldn’t last long.
As Rosetta stared at the notebook in her hand, lost in thought, there came a loud knocking at the door.
Before she could even utter a word to come in, the door swung open abruptly.
“Diana?”
The person who appeared was Diana.
Unlike just a few minutes ago, her face was now fraught with urgency and anxiety.
“What’s wrong, Diana?”
Rosetta asked, rising slowly from her seat.
A sense of unease filled the room, accompanied by Diana’s panting breaths.
And, as expected.
“Lady. There’s trouble. Investigators from the imperial court have burst in.”
The unease was not just simple anxiety.
