After an exhausting afternoon reading numerous letters with marriage proposals, Charlotte decided to take a break and have an afternoon snack. While enjoying her favorite cookies and tea, she looked at the young butler standing nearby.
"Come on, it must be tiring to stand all the time. Why don't you sit down? It's just the two of us here; you don't have to be so strict with etiquette," she suggested.
"Don't worry, My Lady, I'm fine. For now, you should focus on choosing a future husband, or your mother will be angry," the butler replied.
"Ugh, don't remind me. Why do I have to choose a groom?"
"You see, My Lady, you're already 17 years old, reaching the age when nobles usually marry. If you wait too long, people might start gossiping about you. That's why your mother is so concerned."
"Ridiculous! My love life is none of her business. Besides, I'm not going to choose a future husband based on some paper proposal."
"In that case, accepting the prince's proposal is not a bad idea. He even came here just to propose marriage."
"No way! I don't like him at all!"
After a bit more conversation, the butler cleared the dishe of the table and left the room.
'Baka baka, how can he not realize my feelings after all these years.'
'And he's even recommending another man to me, Winston no baka, Humph!'
Feeling frustrated that her affection for Winston went unnoticed, Charlotte felt powerless. However, she couldn't do anything about it; after all, you can't force someone to love another.
Furthermore, even if they did love each other, Charlotte knew her mother would never approve of their marriage. The reason was simple, Winston was just a butler, and she was the daughter of a Marquis.
But setting that aside, Charlotte couldn't help feeling uneasy about the seemingly ambiguous relationship between Winston and Elena, her personal maid. It always made her a little upset.
Charlotte sensed that Winston's way of looking at her was different from how he gazed at Elena. While he seemed to desire Elena, his eyes toward Charlotte were more like those of a father or a brother. It made sense in a way since they had known each other since childhood. Although she had fallen in love with him at first sight, it is not as if he was going to return her feelings.
After getting lost in her thoughts, she returned to reading the letters. Even though she didn't plan to choose anyone, she still needed to respond; otherwise, her mother would lecture her endlessly.
Suddenly, Winston entered with a small brown magic tool in the shape of a flattened circle with a blue magic stone in the center. Charlotte's expression turned serious, as this tool was only used in emergencies.
"What's the problem?" she asked.
"I already asked what happened, and the answer should come soon," Winston replied.
The tool blinked, and a tense voice came through. "The Reaper is here in Solaris! He said he wants to settle here and even bought land."
Hearing that The Reaper was in town, Charlotte grew anxious. His reputation among the nobles was fearsome, and everyone was cautious not to provoke him. She couldn't take this situation lightly.
"Has he done anything harmful in the town?" she inquired through the tool, and a response quickly followed.
"No, so far he hasn't done anything. But I noticed something strange; he seemed different from the rumors. He was quite calm and trying to be polite. And also…"
After hearing all the report, Charlotte took the tool from Winston's hands and said, "Don't worry, I'll go there tomorrow morning. Just be careful not to provoke him."
With her answer given, she turned off the tool.
"My Lady, it's not a good idea for you to go there; this person has a reputation for liking beautiful women like you. So if you go, you might end up in danger," Winston said worriedly. "We better let your father take care of that."
With excitement soaring for being called beautiful by the person she loves, she said, "In case things get tough, you can get me out of there."
"My Lady, you must not be so confident; he is an extremely powerful person, and we cannot be careless."
"Don't worry so much, from what Sir Priston said, he didn't do anything violent after he arrived, and he seems to care a lot about a woman. I have a good feeling about this."
After that, she immediately wanted to leave for Solaris, but Winston stopped her, suggesting that leaving early the next day would be enough.
The following morning, she set out with Winston and Elena towards Solaris. Even though it was a little distant, with the magical chariot that Winston had crafted, they didn't take long to get there.
Before heading to the mayor's mansion, she made a stop at the orphanage to check on things. To her astonishment, the person she came to meet was there along with the Dogkin woman that the mayor had spoken to. From what she could overhear, he was discussing the possibility of adopting a child.
Seeing that he appeared enraged at the receptionist, she immediately decided to intervene to prevent a bigger problem.
***
After a long conversation, Sian left the orphanage with Ophilia and Emily, while Charlotte, Elena, and Winston went to a private room.
"Frankly, I'm very surprised. I've never heard of him apologizing for anything," Charlotte said as she settled into a chair by the desk, turning to Winston. "And also, to recognize your strength, he proved to be more capable than the information we have."
"In fact, even though I was concealing it, he still managed to figure it out," Winston admitted.
"What do you think about what he said?" Charlotte asked.
"Except for the part about the army attack, he was telling the truth about the rest," he replied.
"It's quite helpful to have someone as perceptive as you by my side. You can tell when someone's lying without relying on magic."
"You didn't need my help for that; he's a terrible liar. However, you made a wise decision. Handing over the child prevented an unnecessary confrontation. I sensed that if you had refused, things could have turned ugly."
"That wasn't my main reason for letting her go with him. Despite his violent reputation, he seems genuinely caring. I felt his sincerity and determination when he spoke about looking after her."
"Don't be deceived, My Lady. You might have a few things in common, but it doesn't change the fact that he kills people without batting an eye."
"That's true, but I believe he's genuinely trying to change. He must truly care for that woman."
"It's possible, but I find it hard to believe. Given his lecherous reputation and her average appearance, he might lose interest in her soon."
"Don't be so pessimistic about people; my intuition tells me we can trust him. But I admit he might be a bit over the top in his actions."
"Butchering an army can't be considered 'a bit over the top.'"
"Who cares about that? It's beneficial for us if he can rein in those angry lions." Charlotte shrugged.
"So he was the one who attacked Edrorian's army?" Elena, who had been quiet until now, asked.
"Definitely," Winston replied.
"If it had truly been Nervrathan, he wouldn't have left anything standing. Even this town would be wiped out," Charlotte added.
After a brief silence, Charlotte looked at Winston suspiciously. "It's quite unusual to see you to get into a conversation with another nobleman, especially when you shared a cookie with Elena."
Hearing Charlotte's words, Elena became immediately nervous.
'These two are hiding something...' Charlotte thought, observing Elena's reaction.
Remaining composed, Winston explained, "Since My Lady had already broken the etiquette, I decided to test his reaction. Surprisingly, he didn't seem to mind a butler picking up his food. He just enjoyed the gesture like a cook proud of someone appreciating his food."
'That makes sense. It's not like he has feelings for Elena, right?'
"Anything else?" Charlotte asked.
"After observing him, I noticed that despite his inclination towards violence, he doesn't seem like a difficult person to get along with," Winston continued. "He behaves more like a commoner and speaks his mind openly. Although he holds the title of Duke, he seems to use it only when advantageous."
"Well, that doesn't sound too threatening," Charlotte said.
"I agree. However, we can't ignore his violent tendencies. My guess is that something in his past shaped him to believe force is the answer to everything," Winston added.
"I see. So, he goes with a 'best defense is a good offense' approach," Charlotte said carefreely.
"My Lady, you should take this situation seriously. I'm going out for a moment to gather information about the woman who was with him," Winston said. He turned to Elena and instructed her, "Elena, go to Margarida and ask her to bring the little girl's information."
Once Winston and Elena left, Charlotte found herself alone in the room. She took a deep breath and leaned over the desk, lost in her thoughts.
'I can't help but feel something is going on between them... But I feel like I shouldn't intrude, after all, I've been keeping him with me since we were kids.'
'I might be holding him back by keeping him as my butler. He deserves more recognition for his skills, perhaps even a position by the king's side.'
'And there would be a chance we could get married when he got some achievements...'
'It's better not. If he does that, it's definitely going to attract a lot of marriage proposals. I'd rather continue as we are.'
Lost in contemplation, she eventually drifted off to sleep.
Later, she was awakened by knocks on the door. Winston entered and shared the information he had gathered. There was nothing extraordinary about the two people they investigated, except for two peculiar things.
First, Emily had almost no mana, which was unusual for any living being. Even the smallest creatures have a trace of magic within them, but Emily's mana levels remained extremely low and never increased.
Second, there was an envelope with a painting delivered by the brothel owner where Ophilia worked. The orphanage staff hadn't mentioned it earlier, thinking it was unnecessary.
Second, there was an envelope with a painting delivered by the brothel owner where Ophilia worked. The orphanage staff hadn't mentioned it earlier, thinking it was unnecessary due to Sian's presence.
"That's interesting..." Charlotte remarked after carefully examining the painting and the writing on the back. "There are some mysteries to be solved."