Chapter 64. Julietta Iris Kiellini, Part II

Oswald caught Count Valerian in a hurry, who was about to leave after Killian quickly disappeared with the knights.

"What is it that His Highness just said?"

"I don't know. I'm just doing what he ordered me to do. Both of you, please come back to the castle as soon as possible."

As Count Valerian also disappeared, raising dust; Oswald cursed as he abandoned his usual elegant demeanor.

"How did I get here… but I have to go back to the castle without a day's rest? I can't, I can't."

Adam spoke to Oswald, ordering a servant to bring his horse. "If I arrive at the castle, I would like to send you a carriage, but I think His Highness will feel worse if he doesn't see you there. Why don't you just ride behind me?"

"Do you mean for me to hang behind a man's back in a nasty way?"

As Oswald fluttered his handkerchief like crazy, Adam shrugged. "Then come on your own. Your horse is as gentle as a horse that noble ladies ride, so it'll take you safely on your way."

Oswald looked after Adam, who disappeared without asking twice, and ground his teeth furiously.

"If she wanted to run away, she should have gone tomorrow! I have to use my unused muscles again without any time to rest. I won't even be able to get up tomorrow."

--------------------------

Thomas, the servant, held out the hood to Julietta, who was smiling with her colorful blond hair exposed.

"Put it on."The carriage arrived at the gate at the same time Julietta gently donned the hood.

"Your Excellency, where are you going?" The captain of the guards at the gate greeted the Duke with friendly words.

"I'm going to buy a present for my daughter."

After peeking inside the carriage, the captain of the guard said, "Please have a good trip," after confirming that everything was fine.

The carriage safely escaped from the castle and traveled for a long time outside before stopping in a quiet place. There was a row of pretty large mansions in the quiet, deserted neighborhood, as if it were home to wealthy commoners.

"Turn around this building and go to the second blue roof house from the left. If you just tell a woman I sent you and show her what you are, she'll take care of you even if you won't say anything. Be careful not to reveal yourself as much as possible until you get out of Bertino. After being thoroughly educated as Princess Kiellini for two months, you will make your debut on Iris' coming-of-age day."

Duke Kiellini turned his head out of the window when he said it was Iris' coming-of-age day. Julietta was sad and frightened by the look, and hurried out of the carriage. She seemed to be the one who the Duke hated the most now.

After she quietly said goodbye to him, she walked around the building with the dark and narrow alleys, walked out to the side of the boulevard as she was informed, and could see a house covered with a blue roof.

Knock, knock, knock...

While Julietta was nervous about the command to avoid being seen as much as possible, and raised her hand to knock on the door again, the door opened silently from the inside. When a woman with a silver hair and a sharp figure stared silently at her, Julietta introduced herself as Duke Kiellini had told her.

"Duke Kiellini sent me. My name is Julie..."

A skinny hand grasped the arm of Julietta, who was trying to take off the hood and pulled her into the house. The woman closed the door in a hurry.

"Take off your hood."

At the cold voice, her blonde hair was revealed when Julietta took off her hood. The inside of the dark house glowed as if a light was turned on. The woman looked at the dazzling figure carefully, and finally opened her mouth.

"I'm Marquise Raban. Duke Kiellini is my brother-in-law. Originally, I was supposed to prepare for Iris's social debut and chaperone her."

The stiff-talking woman's voice seemed to indicate that Iris was sick because of her. The woman stared at her, and burst into a fit of laughter as the defiant Julietta faced her coldly.

"At least you have a strong enough spirit to play a fake princess. But you'll have to keep in mind that you're a fake anyway, and that you can't be real, and you can't even decide that you want to be real. If you love your life, don't have that kind of heart even later."

At Marquise Raban's words, Julietta shrugged as usual. "I don't want that kind of tiring work. I just want to go and live in a place where no one knows me when this is over with the fundsHis Excellency promised me."

At Julietta's reply, Mrs. Raban smiled dryly. "I'm glad you understand who you are. Always make sure you don't forget what you think now."

Julietta smiled radiantly at the woman who warned her with a lifeless face. "Madam, do you know why I, born a bastard, have been able to survive without a guardian in a theater where I lost my parents at a young age?"

Mrs. Raban looked silently, waiting for the reply of the dazzling, beautiful girl, like an angel who had come down from heaven.

"It's because I know myself. So don't worry about it at all. I'm going to do enough of what I've been entrusted with the pay I've received. I don't want to do anything more than that, I don't have any intentions otherwise."

***

"There's no sign of her being out of the gate."

Adam pressed as if it couldn't be true.

After returning from the hunting ground, the captain of the guard had been called before the Prince, and wanted to hide himself while reporting on what had been confirmed throughout the afternoon. He didn't know what kind of a big mistake she had made, but he had not seen the maid whom the Prince was looking for so seriously and he couldn't help, but feel uncomfortable.

As the expression of Killian, who thought he could find her quickly grow more violent over time, Oswald approached the captain of the guard and whispered, "Is it true that you have thoroughly scoured all the gates that are connected to the outside?"

"Yes, Your Excellency. I have thoroughly searched the castle and the city under Sir Albert's order, and I have checked the list of people who have been in and out since this morning."

"And she's not been found yet?"

"Yes, that's why I am embarrassed. I've stepped up security at the gates, and I've gone through all the way out of the capital city, and I've looked at all the places where the maid could stay, including lodgings and restaurants, but there's no sign of her."

After watching the two whispering for so long, Killian called in the captain of the guard, "I'll ask you different questions. Tell me who went out of the castle today, regardless of their status."

Even more nervous at the Prince's fearsome expression, the captain of the guard wiped his sweaty hands with his pants and pulled out a list from his pocket.

"The men who left the castle today were Your Highness, Marquis Oswald, Count Adam, Sir Lantern who was escorting..."

"Stop! Except for those who went to the hunting ground." Killian put the brakes on the reports of the inflexible security captain.

"Ah, yes. So, except for the group of Your Highness who went hunting, there was only one maid of the outer castle, two guardsmen, three servants who are in charge of groceries, Duke Kiellini, and Count Valerian. As soon as he found out the maid was missing, Sir Albert ordered me to close the gates, so no one has come in or out since then."

Killian was lost in thought for a moment and opened his mouth.

"Attach people to all of them. Has anyone gone out with a party that you have never seen, among those who went out of the castle?"

When Killian asked, the captain of the guard answered after pondering, "Through the entrance of the servants and maids, people walked out without carriages, so there was no one but those who were identified. The knights rode out, and there were a servant and a maid in the carriage of Duke Kiellini. As they were the party of His Excellency, I didn't identify them separately."