The Countess sat stock still upon hearing Count Schatten's threat.
Though they were of the same rank, the difference in their authority was a world apart. Countess Hamlin was sentient that the Count could get away with her murder if he so wished.
Marquis Benedict didn't bother defying the Count's desire. If anything, he wanted to be of aid to his fellow representative. Ilya, on the other hand, just looked at the Countess while surveying her reactions.
"Marquis Benedict, Count Schatten, we'll leave the discussion about the martyr and my Rahichna for another time. It will be better to confer with the others regarding this matter." Ilya put her thoughts into words without breaking eye contact with the Countess.
Ilya then took a gander at the Count and nodded. Count Schatten was on his feet in no time, subsequently approaching the Countess.
He stooped down and grabbed a handful of the Countess' hair.
"Ah! What are you doing?! Let go!" Countess Hamlin screamed as she struggled out of the Count's hold.
Still, no matter how hard she tried, Count Schatten never loosened his grip. He wasn't even making an effort in keeping her under his grip.
"Are you not ashamed?! I'm a woman! This is violence!"
"I don't treat monsters as humans, Countess Hamlin. Now behave and listen to Lady Gertrude."
The Countess clung onto the man's arms, wailing as he dragged her towards the bed. He proceeded to pull her head back so she wouldn't have any choice but to look at Ilya.
With gritted teeth, the Countess spoke first, "What?! What do you want from me?! Why did you even call me here?! To mock me?!"
Ilya waited for a few seconds to see if the Countess would calm down. However, the glints on the woman's eyes only turned sharper.
"Countess Hamlin," Ilya said in a cold voice, "Do you really think I will make the same mistake again? Why would I use my Rahichna for the sake of the Empire?"
"Huh?! Why are you asking me that?!"
"Honor is not valuable to me. I won't go out of my way and be of help to someone who won't be of benefit to me, Countess Hamlin."
The Countess furrowed her eyebrows at Ilya's remark. Again, she attempted to get away from the Count. But the Count only tightened his grip on her hair. Countess Hamlin yelped at the pain of her hair strands being uprooted.
Buttoning her lips, the Countess breathed heavily through her nose. She wanted to glower at the Count, yet it was Ilya who was on the receiving end. The Lady didn't mind the disrespect that the Countess had for her.
After all, it's not like she could be courteous to the Countess.
"Countess Hamlin, where did you hide your family?"
Almost immediately, the Countess' glare turned into a sullen look. Her eyes started to water, her mouth went wide agape. She became short of breath, losing strength in her limbs.
"What are--"
"I've requested a report from the Obelisk. They were done scouring the affected area, but the remains of your family members were not found. Only the bones of your servants were left beneath the wreckage. Strangely, the main residence of the family was devoid of a single body."
"I… I don't know what you're saying."
"Moreover, there was an area right at the edge of the estate. It was filled with piles of bones, children… bones. Based on the number of skulls, there were around a couple hundred children living in that small cottage before the fire."
"Stop… stop… I don't know what you're saying."
"Just why in the world are those children inside your estate? There are no reported kidnappings within the capital, not even in the neighboring fie--"
"Stop! I said stop!"
A second later, the Countess let out an ear-shattering scream. The knights outside of the mansion were able to hear it, prompting them to be alert. Soon, the leader and a handful of knights were outside of Ilya's bedroom.
Sir Kretov hurriedly knocked on the door, helping himself in without waiting for permission.
"Lady Gertrude, we heard someone sc-"
Obliging the knight to pause was the bloodied corpse of a woman on the floor. Blood was scattered all over the room, most notably on the faces and garments of the three nobles inside.
The knights didn't dare assume what happened. Nevertheless, some of them couldn't help but think that the Count, who was directly beside the woman, was the suspect.
"Sir Kretov, tell the knights that nothing is wrong. As for the ones you brought with you, let them enter. Prohibit any one from entering the mansions for the next two hours."
The leader didn't question Ilya's orders and simply heeded all of them. The knights quietly entered the bedroom, forming a rank by the door as it was closed.
"Can you do us a favor and place the Countess' body on my bed?" Ilya said as she got down from the bed.
She went straight to the Marquis' side and called the Count to join them. As the three began their discussion, four of the knights went near Countess Hamlin and debated on how to carry her.
They turned her over, squirming at her exposed gut.
"We should be careful. The body might break."
"Walk slowly so we won't slip on the blood."
The knights took their place beside each of the Countess' limbs before lifting her off of the ground. As opposed to their expectations, the body was much heavier than they thought. It was as if they were carrying a man that was bigger than the four of them combined.
Still, they were able to accomplish their task, albeit a bit behind time. Since most of the Countess' blood was spilled on the floor, the stain on the white bedsheets didn't spread that much.
The four knights faced Ilya, bowed, and returned to their positions right away. Meanwhile, Ilya, Marquis Benedict, and Count Schatted walked to the bed and began inspecting Countess Hamlin's body.
The Countess' eyes were still opened, her mouth too. The source of her death was rapid blood loss due to her abdomen suddenly bursting open.
Ilya hummed as she noticed something. Without warning, she put her hand inside the Countess' stomach and dug through her innards.