Odely spent her days in the detached annex, settling into a quiet routine.
She strolled through the garden with Leona, read books in the old library, and chatted over meals about the supplies arriving from the nearby village.
On the surface, she looked nothing more than a polite, quiet noble guest.
“Princess, a shipment of Wembella roots arrived this morning. If you brew them into tea, they should help with the cold in your hands and feet.”
Leona spoke proudly.
Odely looked at the basket of herbs cradled in the girl’s arms.
Wembella root, known for improving mana circulation and easing coldness in the extremities, was one of the more expensive medicinal herbs.
“You worked hard to get these.”
“Hehe.”
Odely gently ruffled the shy girl’s hair as she smiled, clearly hoping for praise.
At the same time, she picked up one of the herbs and examined it closely.
The purple color was unnaturally vivid.
It also felt oddly light.
And at the bottom of the basket, there were obvious signs that someone had cut off the ends of the roots.
“Did they arrive like this? Did you notice anything unusual? The wrapping paper, for example…”
“The wrapping paper? Ah… It was wrapped in several layers. I think they used recycled paper. I guess some shops do that sometimes, depending on what they have.”
Odely said nothing.
Instead, she became certain.
He’s still not planning to stop stealing.
If anything, his greed worked in her favor.
If he had sold the necklace and disappeared, it would have been much harder to gather evidence or bring him to justice.
But he was still at it.
Thankfully.
“Go back to your room early tonight and get some rest, Leona.”
“Huh? All of a sudden?”
Did I do something wrong?
Her round eyes widened in confusion.
“But what if you start coughing in the middle of the night, Princess? I need to make ginger tea for you right away…”
As if soothing her, Odely placed a small piece of candy into Leona’s hand.
It was one she always carried to eat after taking her bitter medicine.
“I’ll be fine for one night. I’ve already taken my medicine, and thanks to you, I’m feeling much better.”
“But…”
“Go get some proper sleep. I heard the weather will warm up tomorrow. You might have to go into town to buy supplies.”
Leona hesitated.
Perhaps because they had spent every day together recently and had grown close.
She clearly didn’t want to leave.
Although Odely understood how she felt, she repeated herself in a voice that was both gentle and firm.
“You can’t stay here tonight.”
Not understanding the meaning behind those words, Leona lowered her head with a disappointed look.
“Instead, could you give this to the head butler? Wait until just before he finishes work today.”
Odely picked up a single Wembella root, wrapped it in paper, and placed it in Leona’s arms.
“This?”
“He’ll understand when he sees it.”
Leona sucked on the candy Odely had given her as she reluctantly left.
The door closed.
Odely stood up and fastened the ties of the cloak she had prepared beforehand.
****
That night.
As usual, Head Butler Theodore was walking down the corridor after finishing his work.
His back ached from carrying stacks of documents and ledgers.
“I really am getting old.”
He muttered to himself as he headed toward his quarters.
Then he stopped.
At the end of the corridor, beneath the lantern light, stood a small figure.
“Head Butler.”
Theodore recognized her immediately.
“…Leona?”
Ordinarily, the head maid oversaw the lower-ranking servants, but since Leona had been assigned to serve Princess Cardel, he had made a point of remembering her.
Leona carefully approached, bowed deeply, and held something out with both hands.
“The Princess asked me to deliver this to you.”
In her hands was something wrapped in thin paper.
When he unfolded it, he found a single Wembella root inside.
“This… isn’t this the herb you confirmed arrived this morning?”
“Yes, but now that I look at it, something seems strange. It’s already starting to wilt…”
“Wait.”
Theodore took the herb and examined it carefully.
Then he suddenly froze.
“…This isn’t Wembella root.”
“It isn’t?”
“It’s Lilpoa root. It costs barely a fifth as much as Wembella. Someone dyed it purple to make it look convincing.”
“W-What?”
Leona’s eyes widened.
She had almost brewed tea with it and served it to the Princess.
“How could anyone do something like that?!”
Her face flushed with anger and disbelief as she declared she would confront the merchant who had delivered the supplies first thing tomorrow.
But Theodore thought differently.
This didn’t seem like the work of a merchant…
As though he had realized something, he lowered his gaze for a moment before immediately turning around.
He understood why the Princess had gone out of her way to send this herb to him.
This wasn’t simply a report about defective goods.
It was a signal that something was happening at the annex.
“…I need to summon the captain of the guard.”
“…Huh?”
While Leona stood there in confusion, Theodore hurried off into the darkness.
****
An alley where even the moonlight barely reached.
A shadow hidden behind the stone wall moved with extreme caution.
It was Zeke, the servant in charge of the warehouse.
For the past ten years, he had been skimming the castle’s supplies bit by bit—grain, meat, herbs, metal fittings, and anything else he could get his hands on.
At first, it had been nothing more than a casual thought.
“They’re leftovers anyway. What’s the harm?”
But theft became a habit.
The habit became routine.
And the routine turned into corruption he could no longer stop.
Ten whole years.
He had never been caught once.
That flawless record had made Zeke bolder and bolder.
…I should do it tonight after all.
He decided to pull one last daring job.
Petty embezzlement was no longer enough for him.
The trigger had been simple.
It all started the day he had wandered into the annex and stumbled across a collection of valuable jewelry.
A necklace with a crimson gemstone.
An exquisitely crafted ring.
Several luxurious ornaments he couldn’t even identify…
He hadn’t sold them yet because he was still looking for a fence.
But he was certain they would make him rich.
He had no idea why treasures like those had been left forgotten in a dusty corner of a building used as little more than a storage shed.
Nor did he care.
Only one thing mattered.
Even after taking them, no one had noticed they were gone.
I’m sure I saw another one in the annex.
After that day, Zeke began lurking around the annex again, hoping for another big score.
But things didn’t go as smoothly as he had hoped.
Princess Cardel had chosen that exact time to move into the annex.
Did that pampered little princess suddenly decide she wanted to experience living like a beggar?
Nobles really were impossible to understand.
After grumbling for a while, however, Zeke realized the situation might actually work in his favor.
A perfect scapegoat had just appeared.
Why not pin everything on the Princess?
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