ISTF 05

Chapter  05

That was far from the sacred light bestowed upon the Euredian Empire by Cornu, the goddess of the crescent moon.

The necklaces, rings, and jewelry hung all over the statue of Cornu in the center of the office sparkled so brightly it hurt the eyes.

“It definitely seems like it’s here.”

Only after Keis walked to the window and drew the curtains could they be freed from the glare.

The bishop looked at the statue of Cornu, heavily draped in all kinds of jewels, with a dumbfounded expression.

“After Priest Wyndham took over managing the donations, the finances deteriorated—so this was the reason…!”

Leaving the flustered bishop behind, I walked around the statue of Cornu searching for the golden egg. But the golden egg, which I’d expected to be naturally mixed in among the glittering treasures, was nowhere to be seen.

‘Where is it?’

I checked the floor, but there was nothing as conspicuous as a golden egg on the spotlessly maintained, bare surface.

‘Did he hide it somewhere else?’

What a letdown.

A more private space. Perhaps a bedroom, or like Mother’s diary, it might be in a secret drawer.

I rummaged through every drawer of Wyndham’s desk, but there was no golden egg. I crawled around the office and searched the floor, but couldn’t find it.

Scouring the office with a child’s body had only exhausted me.

I sprawled out on the floor.

‘Where on earth did you put it…’

Lying on the floor, I could see the faded ceiling.

But one ceiling tile looked brand new. Even though it was matched to a similar color as the surrounding old tiles, it was clearly different.

‘No way?’

I ran to the bookshelf and tugged at Keis’s hand.

“Keis, over there.”

Keis looked up in the direction I was pointing.

“Huh? The ceiling?”

“Uh-huh!”

I had no idea if it was really there, but I figured it was worth a look.

Keis brought a chair and placed it under the tile. Then he climbed onto it. His arm barely, perilously, didn’t reach the high ceiling.

“Ah, if only I were a little taller!”

Unable to watch any longer, I jumped up and down. It seemed like if Keis lifted me up, I could just about reach it.

“Me! Let me do it!”

Keis climbed down from the chair and rummaged through his pocket. Then he held out a playing card to me. A token filled with memories of his mother—the ♠A card.

“Want to try slipping this into the gap in the ceiling? It’ll bring Daf luck.”

I took it solemnly.

I didn’t know what good slipping a card into the gap would do, but I wanted to believe in his luck.

“Okay!”

Keis, standing on the chair, hoisted me onto his shoulder. I stretched my arm as high as I could, trying to wedge it into the ceiling crack. Struggling with my shortened arms, they quickly grew tired.

“Daf, not yet?”

“Just a… just a little more……!”

Keis suddenly stood on his tiptoes. The card slid smoothly into the gap.

*Clunk.*

I felt something catch. I pushed the card in further with more force.

And then.

“Whoa!”

As if a button had been pressed, the ceiling tile opened and everything inside came pouring out. Startled, Keis hurriedly climbed down from the chair with me still on his shoulder.

“Good heavens…….”

Multi-layered diamond necklaces, crowns studded with large rubies, and more tumbled out and scattered across the floor.

The items displayed in the center of the office were relatively less valuable compared to these.

“Wow, he really stashed them away well… Ow!”

*Thud.*

With a heavy sound, something hit Keis on the head.

It was the golden egg.

“Oh? Found it.”

Keis rubbed his sore head and beamed.

“Daf, look! We found it!”

Keis picked up the golden egg and showed it to me with a bright smile.

A feeling of victory washed over my entire body.

*We found the treasure first.*

*I won!*

Just then, the Patelliers and Jeremias rushed into the office. The three of them were struck speechless by the sight before them.

“You hid it without anyone knowing!”

Jeremias, pale as a ghost, trembled like an aspen leaf. Now that his secret was out, he was in big trouble.

Jeremias tried to flee. But Etienne grabbed him by the collar.

“You worthless piece of work, I told you to hide it at the jewelry shop!”

“L-Let go of me!”

“What are we going to do! Those brats found it first. What are we going to do about this!”

Etienne shook Jeremias by the collar in a rage. As expected, there had been foul play in the golden egg hunt.

“A priest who serves the gods shouldn’t have secrets like this.”

Keis shook his head as he looked at the chaotic scene. Just then, the bishop entered the office with the investigators. It seemed he’d been moving on his own while we were struggling to open the ceiling.

“Jeremias Wyndham, you are defrocked!”

Jeremias couldn’t make a peep in front of the bishop and was dragged away by the investigators.

“The judgment was flawed from the start! This bet is void!”

Etienne squawked. Juliana stood beside him, pale-faced. Having lost both the gold coins and custody, she must have been at her wit’s end about the debts she’d left unpaid everywhere.

Keis placed the golden egg in my arms and said.

“Here, Daf. You won. Now those people can’t covet what’s yours. What do you want to do?”

This moment, which I’d been waiting for, left me with only one course of action.

I solemnly extended my plump little index finger.

With all the dignity I could muster in my puffed-up cheeks.

With a resolute expression!

“Get out of my castle!”

At my words, soldiers flooded in and dragged the Patellier couple away. They resisted brutishly until the very end, glaring at me. I glared right back without backing down.

“Wow, Daf. That was really cool.”

Keis exclaimed in an excited voice. He took my tiny hand and shook it.

“Pointing with this little finger and saying ‘Get out!’—that’s just so cool.”

My shoulders puffed up with pride at his words.

Finally, I had taken one step away from that wearisome fate. Free from the Patelliers. I’d found a guardian who would treat me like a person.

For the first time since returning, I laughed out loud, heartily.

—

*Thump, thump, thump!*

From early morning, uninvited guests arrived, banging on the front door.

“Open up!”

It was the relentlessly persistent Patellier couple.

The kind Alfred first took them to the small drawing room, and Keis and I had to endure the ordeal of seeing them right after waking up.

Etienne confidently placed documents on the table. With practiced quickness, he opened the ink bottle he’d brought and prepared a quill pen beside it.

—

[Article 1401. Except for the Emperor, a child’s social status cannot be higher than that of their parents. However, this does not apply when the Emperor has bestowed a title.]

—

“What is all this about?”

Keis asked with a bewildered look. Juliana spoke arrogantly.

“It means if you’re on his registry, the Earl loses everything. Both the title and the property.”

They had dug up an old law that no one cared about anymore, one even the Emperor had forgotten to amend.

Keis picked up the document, read that part again, and threw it down.

“What a ridiculous law.”

Etienne, next to Juliana, also chimed in excitedly.

“If he were to receive a title right away, it’d be different, but that’s not going to happen, right? So we have a good proposal.”

“What proposal?”

Keis and I glared at the two of them, arms crossed in unison.

“You, I hear you’re a pretty famous gambler. They say you win wherever you go?”

“Well, luck’s on my side.”

“If I let you have some fun at the gambling halls, the Earl will let you see her regularly.”

Etienne pulled out two contracts and held them out.

Even a quick skim revealed a highly unfair contract with many clauses disadvantageous to Keis. If he accepted it, Keis would be forced to go around gambling halls like a slave to the two of them and hand over money.

I couldn’t stand it anymore.

“Keis isn’t doing this!”

I jumped off the chair and swung my arm, knocking over the ink bottle.

“Oh no……!”

Black ink quickly soaked the documents. While the couple panicked, half the paper turned black.

I clenched both fists firmly and said resolutely.

“Get out.”

The Patelliers flinched at my command. Juliana looked down at me with cold eyes.

“Listen carefully. Even if you kick us out now, the law won’t change.”

“We’ll submit a petition to His Majesty. Let’s see if you can still be this rude then.”

As they left, they added loud enough for us to hear.

“Adelaide didn’t give birth to a person—she gave birth to a monster.”

I didn’t care what they called me. Let them talk all they want.

But I was worried about the half-victory. I didn’t care at all that Keis was a commoner. I just never thought a situation where that would be a problem would come.

“It’s okay, Daf. Everything will work out.”

Keis picked me up, my body stiff with pent-up anger.

“Want to go see your mom?”

I nodded sullenly.

—

If you go around the Valencia Temple, you’ll find the Thesaurus family cemetery. A statue of the Angel of Death holding a white-headed eagle on its arm stood guard at the entrance.

Keis and I opened the iron gate and went inside. Then, something impossible happened.

“Snow…?”

White, cold snow crystals drifted on the wind.

Elmeras was in the south, so snow was rare. Besides, it was currently transitioning from spring to summer.

“Keis, look!”

I pointed to where the snow was falling. Mother’s grave. Snow was falling precisely on that spot.

There was also a visitor who had arrived before us.

‘Who is that?’

A deep blue cloak was the first thing that caught my eye.

The man carrying a stylish brown bag was tall and broad-shouldered. His brown hair was fine and neat, and his slender figure exuded elegance in every line.

“After receiving this bookmark, I knew something had happened to you.”

The man with thin glasses that added an intellectual touch was a handsome man with a gentle impression.

I called out the man’s name in my mind.

‘Albert de la Valliere……!’

The second father candidate was right there.