[To the very busy and skilled in lying, Miss Trued.
Greetings for the first time, Miss Neris Trued. I am not a remarkable person to boast proudly to a noble lady, but I must introduce myself here with a pen.
My name is Diane McKinnon. Yes, you may be hearing it for the first time.
If you know my name, and even if you know me just a little, you must have not properly informed me of where Miss Trued is located for almost a year.
It's quite absurd, but Lady Kellen, a prominent figure, didn't know Miss Trued's name? Letters sent to her address have surely received replies several times.
Who! Claiming to be busy, busy! Purposely scheduling family trips nearby and never showing your face once! Shouldn't I have been worried?
Oh, how foolish I must have felt worrying! When I received a response to a letter I spent three sleepless nights writing, asking if Miss Trued, the family governess, was healthy and if it would be okay to visit, saying 'There is no such person, perhaps you are mistaken.'
How would I have felt upon hearing that you were in the far north, not anywhere else?
No, you probably wouldn't imagine. Miss Trued has no interest in me!
If Miss Trued, who doesn't even know me and has no interest in me, then why am I writing this letter?
I am not begging for friendship. Yes, whether you agree or not. I have my pride too.
I am going to meet with Joan Mori with my uncle. I heard that Mori is procuring various items in the north from the top, and they need the cooperation of McKinnon's top. Do you remember Mori?
Oh, of course you remember, you must have informed her of your whereabouts? I'm not talking about myself, who was together throughout our time at the academy, but only to Mori!"
"To do business in Maindlandt, one needs permission, so I would like to visit the Duke once. If you happen to see this letter, please don't think I followed Miss Trued. This is a letter from Diane McKinnon.
Spring passed, and Maindlandt was now welcoming the new summer, blooming with flowers.
Dreycum, which corresponds to the entrance of the Maindlandt Ducal Territory, was no exception. This city, centered around the ruins, boasted a charming natural environment and well-established accommodation facilities. It presented a suitable appearance to give a good first impression to those visiting the Ducal Territory.
However, sitting in the living room of the best suite in Dreycum, Neris did not have a bright expression. Despite usually not showing discomfort, she was not in a good mood.
"Finally, you're here."
Taciturn-Talfryn tried to start a conversation with Neris. Neris, who had a stern face, nodded.
"So it seems."
It had been a while since the Marquis of McKinnon, Joyce McKinnon, sent a messenger that they would visit the White Swan Castle with her brother.
It was not just a casual visit; it was a business-related visit that could greatly benefit Maindlandt depending on the direction of the matter. Although it didn't involve the fate of the land, it promised significant gains in the coming years.
As a result, unlike during the time of Tifian Viscount, they were treated as formal guests, and Neris coming all the way to Dreycum to wait for them was part of that courtesy.
It was clearly a good thing. To Talfryn, who knew well about the relationship between Neris and Diane, it seemed even better. Wasn't it a chance to see a friend after a long time?
'And to clear up any misunderstandings.'
Talfryn thought that Neris creating a fictional character named Lady Kellen and making an alibi right after early graduation was because she disliked the Elendria family. It might have been a coincidence, but since Neris left the academy and immediately exhibited her Jewel Anima, it was ultimately a very clever move.
Diane McKinnon could have been told the truth, but isn't it necessarily a bad thing to deceive her to better keep the secret? If Diane had sent letters to Lady Kellen's address and received no response, Nellucian Elendria might have sensed something strange.
Now, Neris was from Maindlandt, and she was not going to be forcibly taken to the Elendria family no matter what they said. So, roughly explaining the situation and reconciling didn't seem to pose any obstacles.
Talfryn had intercepted the letters sent from the McKinnon house to Neris Trued at Lady Kellen's residence and delivered them to Neris at the White Swan Castle. Unfortunately, he couldn't intercept the letter that Diane McKinnon personally delivered to Lady Kellen using her family's messenger from the family trip destination.
Although he didn't like that his perfection was flawed... since it had already happened, wasn't this side better? That was Talfryn's self-justification.
Despite his self-justification, the fact that he had not handled his own affairs perfectly bothered him, prompting him to come all the way here with Neris, the de facto leader of the conspiracy.
Neris also suspected that Talfryn was simplifying the situation. In fact, everyone except her thought so.
It was a big mistake to lie to a friend who had been with her throughout her school years about her post-graduation plans, but there was a reason for it, and they could explain and resolve it.
However, how could they resolve it when half of the reason was unknown to them?
"The McKinnon house shouldn't attract unnecessary attention from the royal family."
Even now, Maindlandt was already a thorn in the side of the royal family. Since Viscount Tifian came to Maindlandt and then the news stopped, they were likely on edge in various places.
If revenge were to proceed further, Neris would have to face not only the Elendria Marquisate but eventually the royal family as well. When that time came, she wanted as few people involved in her affairs as possible. She had reluctantly obtained and intended to protect the necessary allies, but Diane was not among them.
Therefore, Neris had already written a cold response to Diane's letter. She knew that the McKinnon top was collaborating with Mori's top to supply the lacking part of the goods needed in the north. Since she had already received the documents allowing the commercial activities of the McKinnon top from the Duke, it was enough to send a representative.
Yet, the McKinnon siblings were persisting.
Neris sighed. Diane was really...
"I have no words to express. No, maybe too many."
Persistent, reckless... affectionate.
Diane's letter was written in a tone full of anger. But was that really a sign of cutting ties?
If she really didn't want to talk to Neris, she wouldn't have sent a mocking letter announcing her visit like this. No, there wouldn't have been a reason to come here in the first place.
If Diane, who didn't do any top work, had a reason to take a carriage and come all the way here for weeks, there was only one reason.
"She's worried about me. Checking on how I'm doing."
So, she was appealing in this way to show that she was angry. Suddenly, why she was in Maindlandt, why she didn't tell the truth, or if something was wrong... she wanted to know quickly.
"She doesn't know how to take care of herself."
Not caring about others' eyes like this... Talfryn looked at Neris, who sighed unknowingly, strangely.
"When you make that expression, you look like your peers."
Including Talfryn, no one in Maindlandt thought of Neris as young. Seeing people two or three times her age cooking without any hesitation every day, it was inevitable to become like that.
When she first heard that Diane McKinnon was coming, the surprised expression on her face, the scolding she gave Talfryn for how he was handling things... At least when it came to Diane, she was not her usual self. The way she worried about something that would soon be resolved was almost cute in a way.
"So you find that cute?"
While Neris wouldn't think of herself as cute unless it was out of respect, Cladwyn insisted she was cute. Even going as far as finding it cute when she thought hard and spoke carefully without being terrible at lying.
Not being able to lie? Talfryn vividly remembered Neris from their childhood, dealing with naughty classmates. Where could she have learned to lie if she couldn't? Even Lady Gemma found it difficult to detect when Neris made up her mind.
"Well, the advisors surely understand His Highness's intentions without a doubt."
Talfryn, who had endured various hardships with her since childhood, sometimes found it hard to keep up with Cladwyn's thoughts.
So, the two of them had been displaying talents in front of each other that no one else had seen before. It had been like that from the beginning, but it intensified after they reconciled around winter.
Now, their behavior was so familiar that it was no longer amusing.
"Miss."
Dora entered the room.
"I can see the McKinnon carriage in the distance. It should arrive in about half a day."
"Really? Then we should handle it quickly."
Neris's expression, which had been uncomfortable until a moment ago as if nothing was going well, calmly settled. She gestured to Talfryn.
"Bring the documents."
Although it was a tone referring to an object rather than a person, no one complained. Talfryn opened the door and gestured to the guards standing in front of him.
An old man surrounded by knights entered. He knelt down as if thrown in front of the chair where Neris was sitting.
Neris gestured lightly. First, the knights, then Talfryn, left their seats. Finally, even Dora quietly left the room.
Viscount Tifian looked weak and tired, far from the confident nobleman he had been six months ago. Spending the cold winter of Maindlandt in a dark room had taken a toll on his health, but there was a separate reason that had driven him to madness.
"Finally, you can keep your promise."
Neris spoke, looking down at the Viscount. He looked up at her and asked with trembling lips. Even in the warm weather, he still seemed cold, buried in the snow of winter.
"What, what does it mean?"
"What do you mean, Your Grace. You are being released. It's time for you to return to your son."
"H-ha-ha..."
The Viscount laughed with unfocused eyes. The guilt, suspicion, and anxiety that Neris had engraved in his shameless mind had drained his strength during his confinement without anyone to talk to for a long time.
But if that was truly the only reason, a man as ambitious as him wouldn't have crumbled as much as he did now.
"My son, who ignores the letters sent multiple times about his father being trapped, you scoundrel?"
Viscount Tifian's proud son, Sir Tifian, had sent several letters officially inquiring about his father's whereabouts since he was 'missing' in Maindlandt.
However, Sir Tifian actually knew very well about his father's whereabouts. Neris had 'secretly' delivered several letters from the Viscount to his son during the Viscount's confinement.
Yet, the obvious reason for pretending not to know officially was clear. He simply didn't want to bother finding his troublesome father.
Since she knew it would be like this, Neris didn't touch the Viscount's letter at all. After all, he would eventually open it, and once the Viscount returned, he needed to confirm that his letter had been properly delivered to ensure the relationship between them would be more definitively broken.
"Still, you should go. You need to scold your son and seek revenge on the Duke to survive, isn't that right?"
It would have been a surprising statement for anyone to overhear, but Neris looked into the Viscount's eyes and whispered casually. Talfryn and Dora made sure no one was eavesdropping.
They knew that Neris was deceiving the Viscount to make him believe her words. Since it couldn't be hidden anyway, she had roughly revealed the plan to him.
Why the skeptical old man like the Viscount believed her words so easily was unknown.
After trembling for a while, the Viscount nodded. Neris pointed to the terrace. She had the terrace wide open.
"If you go out there, there will be a horse waiting. Your provisions and weapons are prepared, so please go. I pray for your safe arrival."
To the Viscount, who had been alone for a long time and was gradually losing his mind, her words sounded like a kind of prophecy. He nodded once again and went out to the terrace without hesitation.
After enough time had passed, Neris pulled the rope. She then told Dora, who had come in, "Change the carpet. It's dirty."