CH 102

Grand Duke Estin was deep in thought, staring out the window at the garden.

He didn’t appear to be aware that Lucas and I had just knocked on and entered the office.

Under the peculiar pressure of the office, my shoulders trembled.

The serious look Lucas had when he ran to call me earlier made me shrink even more.

I cast a quick glance at Lucas’ way, but all he did was shrug.

I quickly turned my head to see if I had recently done anything wrong, but I hadn’t.

But the heavy silence made me look like a sinner for no reason. I wiggled my hands as I stood there.

Grand Duke Estin, Lucas and I in the office were all silent.

I was tempted to ask him why he called, but I didn’t want to disturb Grand Duke Estin at this time.

“Mary Conler.”

Grand Duke Estin called my name after a brief period of silence.

I couldn’t see his face because he didn’t turn around, but there was an unidentified complication in his voice calling my name.

I carefully answered his call. After I responded, however, he fell silent once more.

I patiently awaited him to begin telling the story.

Grand Duke Estin finally turned around and looked at me after gazing at the garden. He came over to me.

“The Marquis of Bourne wrote a letter.”

Marquis Bourne is Astina’s father.

Why would the father of Astina contact Grand Duke Estin?

Given that you called me, I can assume that the letter was in some way related to me. It might be a story involving Astina.

What did it say that made the Grand Duke Estin’s expression not so good?

I cocked my head.

Grand Duke Estin began to tell an unbelievable story.

“I heard that Lady Astina was almost abducted.”

“W-what?”

I was so shocked that my voice trembled.

Astina shouldn’t be abducted right now for any reason.

Astina has been kidnapped a few times as the female protagonist in the original work, but not right now.

“Thankfully, the criminal was apprehended.”

Grand Duke Estin’s statement that the offender had been identified made me sigh with relief.

She wasn’t forced to suffer from an unknown as I was thanks to their ability to apprehend the criminal.

Since you yourself use the word “fortunately,” I’m sure it’s a relief, but why is Grand Duke Estin’s expression so bad? Not in a bad way, though.

The person who attempted to kidnap her is who I was interested in finding out about. I’m sure there’s a reason for that to happen.

Rex, who later turned evil in the original, kidnapped Astina, but before that…

“The criminal admitted that Mary Conler gave the order for the abduction.”

Yes, Mary Conler did make an attempt to kidnap her.

No, it’s me?

Me? Me?

“No way!”

From behind, Lucas, who was only listening, rose to speak.

It appears that I heard it correctly based on the way Lucas is acting right now.

How could something occur that I didn’t even cause?

And in the original, Mary Conler initiated the kidnapping of Astina much later than it is now.

“Why would Miss Mary want to kidnap Lady Astina? There’s no reason for that. Doesn’t the Grand Duke know better that Miss Mary is not the one to do that?”

Grand Duke Estin brushed his hair roughly in response to Lucas’ words, looked at me, and bit his lip hard.

It’s not me…… I also need to persuade Grand Duke Estin, but my lips aren’t easily removed.

The scenes I saw in my dream flashed by in a flurry. Even I can’t believe myself. I tightly shut my eyes.

“……The Marquis of Borneau will soon come to hear the truth.”

“Miss, are you all right?”

The words left me in awe. Standing behind me, Lucas quickly caught me.

“Go back and rest for now.”

“…….”

“I’ll go with you.”

I couldn’t stand straight, so Lucas gave me a hug. I put my head on Lucas’ shoulder and relaxed my entire body.

While I stared at him helplessly, Grand Duke Estin softly patted me on the back and said to me in a firm voice that sounded purposeful.

“Don’t worry, I trust you.”

Astina’s sobbing leaked out of the blanket.

Yohan, who sat on the bed and looked at his younger sister covered in a blanket, sighed quietly.

He felt sorry for his only sister.

It must have been a big shock that she was almost kidnapped and that her most trusted friend was the one who ordered the kidnapping.

Yohan couldn’t fathom the feeling of being betrayed.

“Astina, stop crying.”

Yohan hurried back to the mansion after learning what had happened to Astina at the academy.

His mother was in shock, and his father was unable to stay in the mansion to learn the details of the situation.

Astina wasn’t in good shape. She must have been more nervous given that their parents were unstable in addition to the shock she already felt.

Yohan has been looking after Astina for about a week now.

When her dependable older brother arrived, Astina also appeared to defuse a little. She couldn’t, however, recover so quickly.

Astina sometimes cries like this under the blanket. Yohan could then only console her in this way.

Every day, Astina and her maid stroll along the path that leads to the forest behind the mansion.

A masked man attacked Astina and the maid as they were routinely walking along the path.

The maid attempted to drag Astina’s wrist before fainting after a man who appeared silently from behind covered her mouth with a handkerchief.

Thanks to the Borneau family knights who showed up in response to Astina’s scream, the kidnapping was thankfully only attempted, and the criminal was also apprehended. It’s been a problem since then.

Brian, who resided in the same orphanage as Astina and Mary, was the perpetrator of the attempted abduction of Astina.

Brian admitted during questioning that Mary had asked him to track down and abduct Astina.

“No way!”

Astina screamed as she emerged from the blanket. Her gorgeous blonde hair was a complete mess.

How much of a shock is that to her, a child who doesn’t like to flaunt her messy appearance even to her family?

“Brian is not a kid who hangs out with Mary, so is Brian trying to get Mary into trouble? Mary and Brian were enemies.”

Without saying anything, Yohan gave Astina a hug and stroked her back.

Astina made a good point. But circumstances were telling that Mary was the culprit.

The Mary of today is entirely different from the Mary of the past. Additionally, a lot has changed in what Mary can give to Brian.

Astina was aware of all of these facts but persisted in her attitude.

“Astina, you must have courage.”

Mary was only introduced to Yohan briefly, and she didn’t seem like the kind of youngster who would do such a thing.

However, he was unable to reassure Astina that Mary was not to blame and that there had simply been a misunderstanding, despite what she had claimed.

“Because the world you know may not be everything.”

Astina was kind and overly trusting of others. Everyone, in her opinion, was as good as she was.

Astina had a very positive opinion of Mary.

“But Mary really isn’t that kind of kid.”

Even Astina, who was speaking, was reluctant to accept the truth.

What if Mary did this because she genuinely despised me?

In truth, when Mary and I first met, she didn’t really like me.

Mary just started being friendly with me.

Mary said at the time that I was too quick to forgive.

Did I? Should I have suspected Mary when she abruptly apologized?

Astina hated herself more and more as she thought about these things. She felt awful about doubting Mary. Everything was ambiguous.

“Did you cry it all?

After some time, Yohan gently looked at Astina while holding her in his arms.

Astina’s cute face was a mess, perhaps because she had cried so much. Even though the situation wasn’t pleasant, Yohan laughed.

Yohan stroked Astina’s cheek, which had recently lost its chubbiness due to her lack of eating.

His mother made a lot of efforts to make her eat more.

“You’re ugly.

“Am I ugly?”

Astina stopped crying after a while, perhaps because she had calmed down a bit, and her voice became lighter. But she was unable to hide her puzzled eyes.

“The whole truth will soon be revealed.”

“I suppose so”

“So let’s eat first.”

Astina nodded at Yohan’s words, knowing that whatever misunderstanding existed, the truth would be revealed.

Lawrence Borneau, their father, is currently traveling to the Grand Duchy of Conler with evidence.