“Don’t worry! She works at the Pfalzgraf household.”

“The Pfalzgraf household? Ahh, you should have told me. Gosh, I’m sorry.”

“Just excuses wouldn’t do much, I know. But it’s also because we’re scared of the rumors going around.”

When the bedding store owner approached and spoke up about where I was from, the two others relaxed their expressions surprisingly quickly. They seemed to be more relieved to hear that I was someone who worked for Count Pfalzgraf’s family.

“How is it in the Pfalzgraf manor these days? His Lordship is so kind-hearted that it must be easy to work for him. By the way, my daughter is turning thirteen years old this year and she’s got skilled hands and good ears. It would be so great if she could go to the Count’s manor and work there, too.”

“What? Didn’t you tell me last week that your daughter ruined all your clothes while doing the laundry? You can’t make her work there. Miss, why don’t you meet my child instead? My child is really good at working. And I’m not joking here—”

“Oh, so are you saying that complimenting my daughter is a joke, huh?”

Up until now, they were talking leisurely while sitting on that bed, but the two people started fighting now. As they said, ‘What did you say about my daughter?’ and ‘What did you say about my daughter?’ in increasingly louder tones, I looked at them with a strange sense of wonder.

It’s the first time in my life that I’m being asked to be a person of reference. I’m just a mere worker in the Pfalzgraf manor and I’m already hearing something like this. It’s a testament to just how great the status of the count was.

As soon as I entered this village, the entire world seemed to be screaming at me that House Pfalzgraf was a prestigious and well-respected family. And since it was like that, it would be absurd for anyone to suspect that the successor to such a household was a devil and a serial killer.

“Um, do you know more details about the murders they were talking about earlier?”

I turned to the bedding store owner and asked her instead because it seemed impossible to ask the other two now. She smiled then answered.

“I don’t know the details, but I do know some things since it’s in my job description to meet people. What are you curious about?”

“Was there anything unusual about the incident? Maybe the victims have something in common with each other? That is, do they work in the same area, do they frequent the same places…”

Since it seemed like the rest of the world wasn’t suspecting anyone from Pfalzgraf, there was no other choice for me but to doubt everything. Even if this was for the purpose of letting Adrian kill other people more easily, it felt as if I was being an accomplice so that he wouldn’t get suspected.

The welcoming atmosphere for any and all things related to House Pfalzgraf made me strangely uncomfortable.

I might be being too sensitive here, but this was because I still felt chills running down my spine every time I saw Adrian. It felt like his eyes were seeing right through me, like he could clearly see what’s going on in my head, and this instinctive fear was like a thorn that I just couldn’t remove.

“Umm, no. The inspector said that the victims had nothing in common. That’s why everyone’s thinking that they’re random cases of murder.”

“Really?”

“What was it again? I think he said that he wasn’t sure if the killer’s a resident of this village. Some of the other victims are from the next village over, so he mentioned something about having to expand the scope of his investigation sooner or later. Gosh, it’s so scary.”

As the bedding store owner shuddered in fright, I probed again.

“Where can I meet the inspector you mentioned?”

“Are you going to meet him yourself?”

“No! I mean, not right away, I just want to know in case something might happen. I do work at the Pfalzgraf manor, but you never know if something would happen out there. Uuugh, I’m also so scared.”

I shuddered in an exaggerated manner, and as the bedding store owner saw this, she nodded as if she understood my sentiments exactly.

“Yes, it’s a scary world, so it’s important to be prepared at all times. But you’ll definitely be safe in the Pfalzgraf manor. Probably a lot more than this village. Inspector Harrison’s the one in charge of this case, but he’s not technically a member of this village’s neighborhood watch—ah, that’s the team that supports the police officers in crime prevention. The team’s headquarters is located at the third alley next to my store. From faraway at the Lukebell Village, Inspector Harrison comes by here every few days and stays there.”

“I see. Thank you so much for letting me know.”

“It’s nothing to be thankful about. Do you know how much our village owes His Lordship?”

The bedding store owner gave me one last smile, then she turned to stop the other two people who were still fighting on that bed over there. I then left them behind and exited the store, following the bedding store owner’s directions.

I have to wonder though. As far as I’ve seen, the game had given Adrian the characterization of a sickly constitution. He battled a lot of minor illnesses ever since he was young, and he constantly had to take medicine. Drinking medicine a little late would make him cough up blood, even as far as having to lie sick in bed for a few days after that.

But you’re telling me that he’s running out to some other villages to kill people? No way.

If this was the handiwork of someone else besides Adrian, then who was it? 

Who’s the guy messing with Adrian’s food in this game?