A person named Estella was the hostess of the family.

I didn’t feel the emptiness of her place because I thought Cade was enough.

Of course, there must have been a hostess in this house as well. So… she was Cade’s wife and the mother who gave birth to Seth and Arban.

No one mentioned her in front of me, so I just assumed she wasn’t here.

I asked after shutting my wide-open mouth.

“…Then where is she now?”

“Ah.”

In an instant, Messi’s complexion turned dark.

“Madam is dead.”

“…..Why?”

“Because she died while giving birth to the masters. It’s rare, but it’s not uncommon.”

“I see. I’m sorry.”

“You don’t have to be sorry. It’s something you should know, too.”

Messi didn’t seem to care much, but I didn’t feel good. I decided not to ask any more questions about Estella.

But one question arose.

Why was the Loisard family allowed to visit when she was mentioned? What’s the connection between me and Estella, who died before I was even born?

She wanted to ask Cade directly, but now that I know who she is, I don’t have the courage to ask easily.

I stepped onto the ground and looked at the lawn, Messi called me.

“Well, miss.”

“Huh?”

“…By any chance, now that you found out who Lady Estella was… you’re not curious, are you?”

“Uh?”

What is he talking about now?

I blinked slowly.

I didn’t really understand what he wanted to hear when he asked such a question. Messi was waiting for my answer with a very tense look on his face.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. What do you mean?”

“So, I mean… maybe the young lady’s mother is…”

Messi, who had restlessly stuttered his words, sighed and shut his mouth, and then I could feel him paying attention to my mood.

Why are you doing this?

“Why did you stop? You have to tell me until the end.”

“No. I was wrong. Let’s just skip this one.”

“What it is?”

“No, nothing.”

Messi hurriedly waved his hands.

Watching his back disappear as if running away, I tilted my head.

What were you trying to say?

I didn’t realize the intent of his question even after he went far into the distance and disappeared completely.

 * * *

In fact, there was a reason for Messi’s question.

The tired heart of the Black Mambas, that only Irene didn’t know, caused it. Everyone was feeling anxious about the visit of the Loisard family.

The cause……

‘What if the lady meets a member of the Loisard family and wants to go East?’

….started out of a pointless worry like such.

Because of this, the Black Mambas were reacting very sensitively to things related to the East.

“Who’s going to pick them up at the Terra Forest?”

“Do we have such a thing on our schedule? Aren’t they supposed to cross the Terra Forest on their own?”

“It’s an order from above.”

“Sigh.”

They wouldn’t disobey, but it was frustrating to have to give such consideration to a group of evil people trying to steal their young lady.

Arya, who became the middleman in charge of this task, slammed the papers with dissatisfaction.

“Say we’re understaffed.” 

“They will take your word for it.”

A long silence followed.

Arya let out a sigh full of concern.

If there is someone similar to you, you will be eventually drawn to them. Because of that, Arya and the other Black Mambas did not stop worrying about it every day.

Irene had never met her kind since she was born.

Right now, she might run into the Head’s office and insist that she won’t go, but when the time comes, there’s no telling what will happen.

If the moment comes and she says that she wants to be with her kind…

“We were told to prepare meals containing mainly food that the Loisard family prefers.”

“How long are they going to be here?”

“I don’t know about that either.”

With a shrug, the black mamba snapped the papers down. There were too many things to worry about in the East.

Arya clenched her pen.

Woodduck.

The pen in her hand split in two.

But no one cared, because this was a fairly common phenomenon.

‘I don’t know what the Lord is thinking.’

Arya naturally threw the pen in the trash can. She then took a new pen out of the drawer.

“Whoa. I want to go home.”

I’ve been working overtime for several days already. 

Arya glanced at Judith, who was working next to her. His pale complexion didn’t look very good either.

“Hey, Judith.”

“Yes.”

“…What should I report to Sir Durias today?”

Twitch.

Judith’s shoulders shrank to the point of pity. It’s not a very good situation over there either.

“…I’ll put off the report for another day.”

“I’d appreciate it if you could.” 

Durias must be still smiling. 

Arya made a “no report today” motion to the colleagues next to her. 

“What do we do if this report gets too delayed?”

“I don’t know. It’s better to get scolded when he’s in a good mood. Just brace thyself.”

“…I’m really scared to death.”

Recently, that was a common thought of the Black Mambas working under Durias.

It was a sign of ominousness when Durias was smiling. Therefore, everyone prayed earnestly for him to remain with an expressionless face.

However, recently, Durias has been seen frequently smiling as if their prayers did not reach heaven.

Arya felt her eyes moisten.

And that anger was heading straight to the East.

Bang!

If they try some wicked trick to drag our young lady to the East.

At that time…..

“I’ll never leave you alone. Whoa. We’ll have to hold onto the young lady’s heart first. Let’s all gather together.”

Arya decided to make a small plan.

The name of the plan was, the grand operation to capture the heart of the young lady.

 * * *

“Miss Irene! Hello, my name is Arya!”

“……Uh?”

……Who is this?

I stopped walking and looked up at my opponent.

I was walking alone to go back to my room when a woman suddenly appeared and approached with a little scary spark in her eyes.

The woman who introduced herself as Arya took a deep breath in and smiled.

“You must be going somewhere.” 

“To my room.”

“I see! Do you want me to take you there?”

“No, it’s okay. I can go alone.”

Why are you suddenly offering to take me? It’s very suspicious.

I remained vigilant and looked suspiciously at Arya. 

Actually, a strange thing has been happening around me since a few days ago.

Like now, black mambas that I had never seen before, spoke more often while pretending to know me.

Despite my bold refusal, Arya smiled and showed no sign of backing down.

“Isn’t the weather really sunny today?”

 …I think this one is a little stronger?

I decided to answer Arya’s words first.

“Yes. The weather today is very good.”

And I rolled my brain without a break.

The result is that Arya is a bit suspicious, but not a strange person. Since we’re in the mansion, she must be someone who works here, right?

“By the way, why did you call me?”

“I was so happy to see the young lady on the way, so I called you out!”

“Really?”

I checked that there was no one in the hallway. The suspiciousness of Arya increased by +1.

Arya, who was not aware of that fact, still spoke her words with a wide smile.

“You know what? The southern seasons are famous for being very distinct.”

Again. Listing the advantages of the South for no reason. I nodded very naturally.

“I see.”

“You won’t find any other place with four distinct seasons like this. In the southern part of the country, there are festivals every season!”

“I see.”

It wasn’t surprising, because I already knew it. It was something I had already heard several times from the Black Mambas who passed by.

Arya’s expression was distorted by my calm reaction to the point of being embarrassed.

She had an expression of, ‘This isn’t it,’ on her face.

I looked up at Arya with a sullen look.

“Are you done?”

I didn’t have time to stay here anymore because I had to go back to my room quickly. 

“Now, I have to go to class.”

“I, I… Not only this, but the South is also the best for security in all areas. Did you know?”

“Yes. Is it over?”

At my second question, Arya bit her lip.

It seems like there was something more she wanted to say to hold onto me, but she didn’t seem to remember.

“Then I’ll go.”

“Ah, Miss Irene!”

“……What?”

I really don’t have time now. Why are you calling me again?

As I looked back with my feet rolling in impatience, Arya, who was crying, desperately grasped my hand. 

“Do you still prefer the South?”

“……Uh?”

“The South is much more beautiful than the East. There are many tourist spots and it’s peaceful…!”

For some reason, a subtle atmosphere made me unable to nod my head.

There was even a scene of people, that came out of god’s know where snooping around while cheering Arya from behind her.

What the hell is this? 

It seems like everyone is on the same side except for me!