IWTTSMD Chapter 96

"In any case, Sir Alexis, I regret that we're meeting under these circumstances… but you may be released if this proves to be a wrongful arrest."

In the cold, sterile interrogation room, Damian Knox looked at the man sitting across from him.

He had faced many nobles in interrogation rooms before, but he had never imagined he would see Lucian Alexis, a foreign royal, sitting in front of him.

Well, life had never gone exactly as he expected anyway.

"If you could simply clear up a few suspicions, that would be all."

Damian rested his hands on the typewriter and studied Lucian's expression. In an interrogation room, even the smallest details, like a change in breathing rhythm or the snap of a finger, could serve as clues to a suspect's intentions.

"If the Head of Investigations puts it that way, I'll do my best to answer sincerely. I am innocent, after all."

Lucian smiled brightly, both hands placed on the table, a gesture that could be seen as showing willingness to cooperate. Damian began typing and posed his first question.

"What was your reason for infiltrating the Count of Travel's household disguised as a maid named Sherry?"

"I never infiltrated anywhere. Two days ago, I re-entered the Hayshal Empire, and on my way from the embassy to my lodging, I was attacked by assailants and lost consciousness. That was yesterday. When I came to this morning, I found myself in the Count of Travel's mansion… and in the form of some maid."

"You expect me to believe that?"

"If you find it hard to believe, all I can tell you is to check the immigration records. And I would appreciate it if you could also investigate the attack on me. It's an important matter diplomatically, too."

Lucian shamelessly fabricated an utterly absurd alibi.

If his claims were true, it would cause serious trouble for the Hayshal Empire as well, after all, a foreign royal had been kidnapped on imperial soil and somehow turned into a maid.

Worse still, he could insist that even the residual potion detected in his body hadn't been taken of his own free will, adding to the outrageousness of his alibi.

Damian frowned and moved on to the next question.

"Berry, Theon, Jeffrey. Why did you ride a carriage with these three children to Goldport?"

"That, too, was not of my doing, so I can't say. It felt as if my actions were being controlled."

Lucian Alexis's claims remained consistent, he was nothing more than an innocent victim who knew nothing.

He was skilled at using nonverbal expressions to his advantage. In diplomatic situations, even the smallest gestures could be used to craft the image he wanted.

Damian's brow furrowed deeper. If only he could see inside Lucian's mind, he wouldn't be in this frustrating situation right now.

'I'm screwed.'

Lucian was inwardly breaking into a cold sweat.

Of all times, the potion's effect had to wear off just as the carriage door opened.

That was the problem with alchemists' potions, no matter how reliable they seemed, one or two out of three hundred would have a shorter duration than intended. The one he took today was one of those faulty ones.

It should have lasted twenty-four hours, but it wore off in barely five. The maid he had been impersonating was probably fast asleep right now in the underground storage of Stone House. By dawn tomorrow, she'd wake up and find her way out on her own.

'I only planned to keep that girl with me until Reytan Quartz Travel arrived… I never imagined things would blow up like this.'

He had been thoroughly outwitted by children. If he'd made the mistake of underestimating them, then that was his fault.

How could he have expected that children, only six to ten years old, would be playing him like a fiddle? She really couldn't hide her bloodline.

Lucian Alexis recalled the conversation he had with his cousin, the one who had sent him here.

"…You're bringing someone back?"

"My daughter."

"That nonsense about you having a hidden daughter in the Hayshal Empire… was it actually true?"

"Is that important? What matters is that I need her now."

"Your Highness!"

"Don't shout. And you're the one who will bring her. Quietly. Without anyone knowing."

In the Kingdom of Edencia, the second son of King Valenhart having a child was precisely why Lucian's cousin now needed that daughter.

It was all to solidify the position of the First Princess, Bellesa Valenhart, as the next queen, to show the people that she, too, had an heir to carry on the royal line.

'So she suddenly decide to bring back a child she had pretended didn't exist all this time? Even if it's what Bellesa wants, I'm against it.'

To Lucian, it was utterly incomprehensible, taking her daughter just to use her for political purposes.

But it was an order, so he couldn't refuse, but he had no desire to comply. Right now, Bellesa seemed completely consumed by the obsession to hold her position.

"A… a tree got overturned…?!"

The whirlwind incident at the Aubawth Church Grand Banquet, It had been Bellesa's warning, not to Reytan, but to Lucian Alexis.

If he didn't give his all to this mission, she would personally move to snatch the child from Reytan Quartz Travel herself.

"If you put in a part of the target's body, it will change your appearance into theirs for twenty-four hours."

"How many bottles in total?"

"Seven bottles."

Bellesa had eyes planted all around him. For a week, Lucian stayed at the Travel household, changing into different targets, so that it would look like he was making every effort to take the child.

He wanted Bellesa to receive reports that he was doing his utmost. As the planned date approached, he even sent Reytan a warning letter under Berry's name.

"Please, just notice my plan. You don't want to lose your adorable daughter either, do you?"

On the sixth day at the Count of Travel's estate, while spending the day in the guise of the main house's butler...

"Our young miss Berry has received a letter."

He had grown so fond of his niece during his stay in the Travel household that the phrase our young miss Berry came out naturally. He had nearly stuffed her into his pocket to take her home with him.

In any case, this had been Lucian's ultimate goal.

A plan that, even in Bellesa's eyes, would appear to be the most devoted, wholehearted effort possible.

And though he carried it out flawlessly, the result was a complete defeat, overpowered without resistance by the Grand Master, Reytan.

If it turned out like this, Bellesa might push back her plan to take Berry and switch to Plan B instead.

There were other ways to secure her position as the queen's heir.

Bellesa always chose the most certain path among her options. If Lucian proved firsthand just how impossible it was to take a child from a Grand Master, Bellesa might choose a different approach.

But Lucian's plan was completely ruined.

The thought of tomorrow's newspaper headlines left Lucian feeling heavy.

For someone known as the right hand of the First Princess to be caught up in such a scandal abroad… Bellesa despised anything that tarnished her dignity.

'The problem is, I have no connections in the press here.'

In the Kingdom of Edencia, he could have manipulated the media with his own network. But here, in the Hayshal Empire, there was nothing he could do.

Lucian glanced toward the wall of glass that took up one side of the interrogation room. It reflected nothing, but he was certain Reytan Quartz Travel was watching him from the other side.

'Would he cooperate with me?'

From what Lucian had seen at the Count's estate, Reytan drew a firm line with those who were not his people. Lucian doubted he would believe his words.

"Do you have anything else to say?"

"My innocence is clear, so I'm not sure what more I could add."

Lucian's eyes crinkled as he smiled. For now, he intended to hold his ground as the victim in this case.

Just then, when Damian's expression began to shadow.

Click.

[Lucian Alexis.]

A man's voice came from the metal horn-shaped speaker on the wall, part of a device that carried sound between the room and the space beyond the glass.

It was Reytan Quartz Travel's voice. Lucian's ears pricked up.

[You-]

[Dad! Are you here?]

The sound of a door bursting open was followed by a child's bright voice. Then came a brief silence in both rooms.

The first to speak was Reytan.

[Berry. Daddy's busy right now.]

[Really? I had something to ask! Should I come back later?]

[Is it important?]

[A little!]

Lucian looked at Damian and asked.

"…What is this?"

"My apologies. Seems a friend's daughter dropped by outside-"