I’m Just a Counselor Chapter 84

Estella took a deep breath and stood in front of Vanessa’s room.

 

“I think she’s going to be fine without me.”

 

At the time, she was too stunned to say anything, but now it seemed like the right time to respond.

 

To be honest, she had a million things running through her mind when she heard that, from did she do something wrong to Vanessa to did she want something else.

 

But Estella knew Vanessa better now. She knew that Vanessa had said it for her own good.

 

“So I have to tell her exactly what I think.”

 

Determined, Estella knocked on the door.

 

“Sister, it’s me, Estella. I need to talk to you. Can I come in?”

 

But there was no answer from inside the room.

 

Maybe Vanessa was saying no, but it didn’t sound like she was even trying, so Estella shook her head.

 

“Sis? Sis, I’m coming in for a minute!”

 

When she didn’t get a response, Estella hurried to the door.

 

It swung open to reveal an empty room with no one in it.

 

“Did she go out?”

 

Estella looked around the room and asked a passerby about Vanessa’s whereabouts. The answer came back that she had left the room in the afternoon.

 

‘She left, but she made sure to come back before sunset, and she had an escort with her…’

 

It’s already late evening. Estella glanced out the darkened window and hurried down the stairs. Her heart pounded uneasily in her chest.

 

“Shane! Shane!”

 

The first person Estella saw when she landed in the lobby was Shane.

 

One of the staff had heard her distressed call and brought him to her. Shane came up to Estella with a puzzled look on his face.

 

“What’s wrong?”

 

Shane’s presence here meant that Vanessa hadn’t brought an escort.

 

Of course, she could have taken someone else, but Shane was still the most likely choice.

 

Speculating, Estella stammered.

 

“Well, since she hasn’t come back yet… does Mr. Shane know where Vanessa went?”

 

“Vanessa’s not in her room?”

 

Shane didn’t seem to know about Vanessa’s whereabouts either. Estella had a gut feeling that something was wrong.

 

Nearly crying at the seriousness of his expression, she hurried out of the lobby. Her next stop was Jeremiah’s office.

 

She burst through the door without knocking, and Jeremiah’s eyes widened.

 

“Esti? You didn’t knock… What’s going on? Why did you come running?”

 

“Brother!”

 

Estella gasped, then shouted.

 

“I need you to find my sister Vanessa!”

 

“What’s that… Miss Vanessa is not in the mansion?”

 

“She’s not at the bar, she’s not in her room, and Mr. Shane doesn’t know where she went. I don’t know where she went. Ho, did I do something wrong, did she leave without telling me? Did I…”

 

“Of course not. Esti, calm down.”

 

If Vanessa had disappeared without a word, she had more to blame than Estella.

 

Swallowing hard, Jeremiah rose from his chair and hurried to Estella’s side.

 

He put his arm around her sobbing shoulders and patted her back, then glanced over at Shane, who had already approached. Shane’s expression was grim.

 

“The other day…… she told me that she wanted to get out of the Duchy, so…”

 

“Well, even if she did, there’s no way Miss Vanessa wouldn’t have told me, and I’m not going to let her, considering how much she likes you.”

 

“What if she’s been kidnapped like last time…”

 

“Don’t say that, Esti. I found Miss Vanessa safely last time, and I’ll do the same this time, okay?”

 

Estella barely managed to stifle a sob as Jeremiah soothed her gently.

 

Jeremiah bit his lip, trying to control his nerves.

 

He shouldn’t have been the one to show his anxiety in front of his sister. But Vanessa’s disappearance in this situation…

 

‘What if, by some chance, the Earl of Huons had something to do with Vanessa?’

 

A disturbing hypothetical flashed through his mind. This time he could not sit still.

 

 

* * *

 

 

Before entering the mansion, my eyes were drawn to the table in front of me. It was because I saw something vaguely familiar among the shiny trinkets.

 

“Is that…?”

 

It was the emerald brooch that a market vendor had given Estella on our first market day in Loasen. It had been worn by the slave masters, who had mistaken me for Estella and kidnapped me instead.

 

“Of course, it’s not the same one.”

 

But then I saw something that resembled the missing brooch, and my eyes were drawn to it.

 

I immediately thought of Estella. I remembered how happy Estella was when she received the brooch from the vendor…

 

If I gave her something similar as a gift, I wondered if she would remember and like it.

 

‘She lost it because of me, so it’s only right that I make it up to her…’

 

In fact, I had forgotten about it in all the hustle and bustle, but once I remembered, I became increasingly concerned.

 

“Miss, take your time looking through it.”

 

I leaned over it, and the vendor spoke to me in a friendly tone.

 

I glanced up at the merchant. He was wrapped tightly in his robe.

 

“Thank you.”

 

As I bowed and examined the emerald brooch, I suddenly realized something was wrong.

 

‘Why would a vendor wrap himself up so tightly?’

 

They usually show their faces for service, and it’s not like there’s a crackdown.

 

As I stared at the vendor, speculating, our eyes met. The merchant’s eyes, deeply drawn in his hood, were watching me carefully.

 

Just when I thought his gaze was a little odd.

 

“……!”

 

Someone punched me hard in the back of my head. The intense pain knocked me out cold. When I opened my eyes again, I realized I was dumped in an unfamiliar room.

 

“Ugh…”

 

I groaned softly at the lingering pain, and I rolled over.

 

A rustle.

 

The unfamiliar feel of sheets brushed my cheeks. I winced, soon realizing that my wrists and ankles were bound.

 

“This, this…”

 

As I rolled my eyes in surprise, the door to the room opened and a man walked in. I recognized him.

 

“Earl Huons!”

 

“Hmph. Long time no see, Vanessa.”

 

Earl Huons stood a short distance from the bed and smiled at me.

 

“I was a little surprised to hear about you from Gale. It’s been three years.”

 

“What happened…  to bring me to this place?”

 

“Well, that’s a shame, I thought the first thing you’d say when you met me would be something else.”

 

“So it was Gale who told you about me.”

 

The Earl shrugged, a wicked grin on his face as he glared at her, unable to do anything but glare at him while bound.

 

“You must have fared well in the north, from what I hear of your close friendship with the Duke of Oppenheim.”

 

I wanted to deny that I was close to Jeremiah, as I had been to Julian, but the words didn’t come out. Perhaps it was because I knew there was some truth to it.

 

“To be honest, I was kind of glad. I figured I’d have a use for the bitch who’s been giving me so much trouble.”

 

“What…”

 

“I need to expand my business north. So far, the Duke of Oppenheim, that brat, has been a hindrance, but I think you’ll make things easier, so I’m going to use you as bait to lure him in.”

 

“……!”

 

The Earl mumbled something else, but it was already out of earshot, only the idea of using me to lure Jeremiah pounded in my head.

 

‘What the hell are you going to do with me?’

 

I don’t want Jeremiah to get caught no matter what happens to me, but the Jeremiah I know will do whatever this man demands to save me.

 

I tried so hard not to embarrass Jeremiah like that. How could one momentary mistake lead to this? Tears welled up in my eyes.

 

“The last time they failed to kidnap the princess and ruined all our hard work, I thought it was all over… I guess you can’t just die when you’ve lived so hard.”

 

“……!”

 

My head snapped up at that. Shane’s words from earlier flashed through my mind.

 

“I think Earl Huons is reaching for the wrong things.”

 

I turned to Earl Huons in disbelief.

 

“Are you dabbling in the slave trade?”

 

“I see you knew nothing of it, Vanessa.”