Chapter 9

The Arrow Below

I let his nonsense go in one ear and out the other before launching into a full-blown lecture.

“Raising a child isn’t something you can take so lightly. To you, they might just be some random kid, but to that child, you’ll become their entire world! Besides, if you need an heir, you can just take one from among your relatives. Why do you specifically need some child you don’t even know?”

“You don’t know that? It’s because there aren’t any suitable children among my relatives.”

Cain sounded genuinely incredulous.

I sighed.

“Then I suppose I know some suitable children?”

“You have a good eye for people.”

Cain said it with complete confidence.

“You’re the one who discovered my talent, after all.”

“……”

For a moment, I was rendered speechless.

His words had brought back old memories.

My life at the academy had started out full of hope, but eventually became a nightmare. That was why I had pushed myself so hard, advancing grades one after another until I graduated two years ahead of my classmates.

But the incident Cain was talking about had happened around the time I first entered the academy.

It was one of the few memories I still cherished.

Still, all of that is in the past.

There was no reason for me to help Cain now.

And besides…

“How did you know I was staying in Arendel?”

“I went to your office, but you weren’t there. I asked the director, and he told me right away.”

“……”

Leaving my lodging address behind in case of an emergency had been a mistake.

“Either way, no. I can’t do it. I don’t have the ability, and I don’t know any suitable children.”

“Tessa…”

There he goes again.

Well, considering how many women fell for that pitiful expression whenever he hunched those enormous shoulders and furrowed his brows sadly, I suppose that was why he acted like this.

Back when we were at the academy, he had just been ridiculously tall and lanky. I had no idea when his shoulders had gotten so broad.

But if he thought that would work on me, he was mistaken.

I knew the real Cain far too well.

I turned away coldly.

“I’m glad to see you seem to be doing well. Don’t come looking for me again.”

I thought that, if he had even a shred of conscience, he would at least give me a carriage ride back to the hotel.

Unfortunately, Cain Incaris and conscience were one of the most incompatible combinations in the world.

“How are you planning to get there? Walk?”

“……”

I stopped dead and remained silent.

His intentions were so obvious that I didn’t even want to answer.

“Oh, uh… Tessa, are you angry?”

You’re only realizing that now?

“I was joking. I’m sorry. Did I upset you that much?”

Despite his increasingly desperate voice, I didn’t move an inch.

Cain quickly walked over and stood in front of me. His amber eyes were filled with an earnest look as they followed my gaze from moment to moment.

“I’m sorry for teasing you. I was just so happy to see you after such a long time.”

Every single subordinate standing around him looked utterly horrified, their faces pale.

Well, of course they did.

Cain Incaris was absolutely not a man who apologized easily.

…Unfortunately, I had heard him apologize quite often.

That only meant he owed me quite a lot.

I folded my arms.

“I’m glad you know that.”

“Then… Tessa, I’ll take you back.”

Hmm. At least he had enough sense to figure that out.

If he had tried to keep me there even a little longer, I was prepared to expose all his embarrassing secrets to the entire world.

But I absolutely did not want to go back with him.

“I’d rather have that person take me.”

I pointed toward the soldier who had brought me here.

“That bastard?”

Cain’s face immediately twisted into a frown.

“I’m much more trustworthy than he is! And it’s been so long since we’ve seen each other. Aren’t you happy to see me? I have so much I want to talk to you about.”

“……Cain.”

I slowly opened my mouth.

“What do you think your parents would say if they knew you and I were acting like this?”

Cain rolled his eyes around.

“They’d probably be happy, wouldn’t they? Both of them liked you more than they liked me.”

I stared at him in disbelief.

The former Commander-in-Chief of the Incaris family and his wife had never liked me.

Of course, they had treated me well.

I could hardly be called anything other than their son’s benefactor.

But there was one thing Cain apparently had no idea about.

They had been incredibly wary of me, afraid that some presumptuous commoner might bewitch their precious son and somehow end up marrying him.

That ill-tempered brat? I’ll be the one rejecting him!

I believe that was what I shouted the last time I met them.

I thought they would have passed that message along to Cain, but considering how completely clueless he was, perhaps they had been too embarrassed by their own behavior to tell him.

“Anyway, I like that person much better.”

“Tessa!”

Unfortunately, the soldier seemed to have absolutely no intention of going along with my request.

“Deputy Director, my stomach is feeling rather unwell, so I think I’ll have to excuse myself. I’m afraid I might cause trouble if I stay…”

“Oh, really? Then that gentleman—”

“I-I’m sorry! I suddenly have a terrible migraine, too…”

“That gentleman—”

“I’m sorry!”

It was almost as if they had rehearsed their excuses beforehand.

Every one of Cain’s subordinates gave me the same answer: an apology.

Beyond their pale faces, Cain smiled at me brightly, almost angelically.

“Now are you satisfied, Tessa?”

…This damn bastard.

“Be careful, Tessa.”

Of all things, this was what he brought up the moment the two of us were alone in the carriage.

I stared at him sitting across from me.

“About what?”

“Grand Duke Cardicha.”

“……”

Somehow, the request to help him adopt an heir had been far too ridiculous to be the real reason.

There was no way Cain didn’t know that the Child Protection Bureau was, in practice, responsible for matters that had almost nothing to do with children.

Cain frowned.

“I don’t know what you’re thinking, but he isn’t someone you should take lightly.”

“I know.”

I gave him a short answer.

“You know that, yet you’re spending time with his younger sister?”

“It just happened that way.”

“Tessa…”

Cain let out a sigh.

“He’s dangerous. I want you to stay away from the Grand Duke’s family.”

My body stiffened instinctively.

Surely Cain hadn’t obtained information about the treasonous plot.

If he had, he would have spoken far more directly than this.

But there had to be a reason Cain was warning me.

“…I simply happened to become acquainted with the young lady. You don’t need to worry.”

“Lady Melissa is only ten years old. Do you really think that makes any sense?”

“Whether it makes sense or not, it’s the truth.”

Cain let out a hollow laugh.

“You really don’t know anything, do you? There are rumors everywhere that the Grand Duke has taken an interest in you.”

“……?”

I blinked.

Was Cain implying…

“What are you talking about?”

“There are widespread rumors that the Grand Duke intends to take you as his mistress.”

Cain explained it very helpfully.

“Of course, I don’t think that’s possible. You care an awful lot about looks, don’t you? And the Grand Duke is a little… lacking in that department.”

What the hell was this guy talking about?

Achilles Cardicha was a devastatingly handsome man, the kind of man whose face alone was enough to make one’s eyes feel dazzled.

Even I, who rarely found myself flustered by someone’s appearance, had been momentarily captivated by him.

Still, once I realized that all of this was simply a misunderstanding, I felt considerably more at ease.

I snorted.

“People actually started such a ridiculous rumor?”

“It’s not that surprising. The Grand Duke hasn’t shown the slightest interest in women since his fiancée died several years ago. And then you appeared.”

I frowned.

People obviously don’t know the details… And with the Grand Duke suddenly pretending to be my backer, I suppose it’s only natural that such rumors would spread.

“Thanks for letting me know. I’ll be careful.”

Cain had gone all the way to the Child Protection Bureau because he was worried about me, and he had even followed me to my vacation destination.

Even though he had once owed me a great deal during our academy days, I felt almost guilty for having been so suspicious and wary of him.

A short while later, the carriage arrived at the hotel.

Cain didn’t even properly say goodbye. The moment I got out, he climbed back into the carriage and left.

…I wasn’t disappointed.

Absolutely not.

Fortunately, the book was still lying on the table where I had left it.

Wanting to distract myself from my troubled thoughts, I picked it up again.

The story gradually reached more and more fascinating parts.

Finally, when I reached the last page, an irritated voice pierced my ears.

It was a conversation I couldn’t help but hear, even though I had no desire to listen.

“What do you mean there are no rooms…?”

“I’m terribly sorry, madam. We currently don’t have a single room available for check-in. Perhaps you could try another hotel…”

“That’s impossible. We sent a servant here two months ago. Didn’t that servant make the proper reservation?”

“No servant from House Diber has ever come here.”

The hotel manager looked troubled as he flipped through the records.

“We record every reservation, and as you can see, there isn’t a single one under House Diber…”

“Hmph.”

The Marchioness of Diber glared at the servant standing politely beside her, holding her luggage.

Slap!

The sharp sound of a slap rang through the hotel.

The short servant tumbled to the floor and simply lowered their head without saying a word.

Wait.

My eyes widened on their own.

At first glance, I had simply assumed the servant was small and slight.

But when I looked more carefully…

That’s a child.