Iveca raised her eyes and looked at Reina silently. Reina, unsure of how to interpret this look, took a cautious step back. The tension was only slightly arrayed by Sid re-entering the room, though when he stopped to examine what was happening the wall rebuilt itself.

Iveca spoke softly. “I like His Highness… Daniel… a lot. Even if he has this other person in his heart, even if he is not being honest with me.” She laughed sadly. “But the more I pretend I don’t know, the more I feel like something in my heart keeps breaking. Because everyone else knows what I’m pretending not to know. I don’t think this kind of life will last long like this.”

Reina frowned slightly. Then slowly, she raised her hand and grabbed Iveca’s arm lightly.

“My Queen, if you’re having a hard time…”

“Reina.”

“Yes.”

Iveca’s expression seemed rather sad, so Reina held her breath slightly.

“I like Reina and Sid. You two, I mean.”

“My Queen?”

“When I am with you two, I feel like I am with colleagues from the Bureau of Investigation that I can’t even remember. If I had been a good person in the Bureau of Investigation, there would be no way I would have erased my memories and moved away, but more and more often lately, I have wondered if I wasn’t actually a completely bad person…”

“Queen, what are you saying?” Reina’s look of confusion matched her tone.

“So… I thought about pretending not to know, but…” Iveca slowly pulled Reina’s hand off her, holding her arm. Then she took the dagger from the inside of her uniform and aimed it at Reina’s neck. Sid and Reina’s eyes lit up with shock.

In her head, Iveca recited the tenets of the Bureau.

One must place the prosperity and the well-being of the Amethan Kingdom as a top priority.
One must be loyal to King Amethan and protect him with all your might.
One shall not be blinded by personal safety and trust the judgment of the organization.
One must cherish their colleagues; protect and trust each other even in the face of death.
One must always take care of their own about the secrets they have to keep.

The words swam in her head, the last memory of her time at the Bureau lingering in her mind. She tried to stay calm. Even if her current actions were a bit impulsive, she could not pretend she did not know forever.

Today, she had rejected Ewill and Anriq’s advice and kicked them out. She was now pointing a dagger at Reina and Sid, who had been together for several days and even had a conversation about almost everything. And inside, she thought about herself and Daniel. Everything they had been through, and everything that was waiting for them. Were games of line ball worth what she was doing?

Iveca shook her head. She loved Daniel. The Great Constitution must be completed.

Realizing that she might die at Reina and Sid’s hands if she waited much longer, Iveca spoke in a low voice.

“I know that the first attack was undertaken by the Bureau of Investigation.”

And, as always, the beginning of everything went back to the Bureau of Investigation.

***

Iveca graduated from college as soon as she came of age, and immediately applied to the Bureau of Investigation. She knew full well that her observational skills and excellent martial arts skills would shine in the Bureau of Investigation. It was the accommodation she was most looking forward to.

However, on the day she joined the Bureau with the intention of severing ties with the Esselburn bloodline for good, she had to face Wiles, the Chief Investigator of the Bureau of Investigation.

“A woman of the Esselburn noble family? And only eighteen?” Wiles laughed as if it was ridiculous. “Why the hell did you come to the Bureau of Investigation? No one from a noble family has ever been hired to an affiliated organization.”

Wiles frowned as he looked into Iveca’s frightened eyes. In fact, if she was a daughter of a noble family, he was not allowed to speak informally to his heart’s content as a commoner. But anyway, he could not use honorifics to new college graduates. That was a matter of principle.

“Because… I want to come.”

Wiles stared blankly at her report card. She was in the first place in physical arts…. And the rest of the subjects were not bad. Wiles sighed, looking at her intimidated face, and took her to the Bureau of Investigation Chief Officer, Lucas. Lucas was equally perplexed. He knew that the Count’s daughter went to college, but he really did not know that she was intending to join the Bureau of Investigation.

“Iveca der Esselburn.”

“…Yes.”

“I only have one question, really.” Lucas looked at Iveca with his serious eyes. “Are you a woman from the Esselburn family, or an employee of the Bureau of Investigation?”

“I am an employee of the Bureau of Investigation.” Iveca answered without any hesitation at all. “I really want to live as an ordinary investigator.”

Lucas swept his beard at the desperate answer. It was impossible to turn back because she had already pledged. The wheels turned in his head. The story behind the third daughter of the Esselburn family was the most well-known secret in the kingdom; he couldn’t have missed it. Everyone admitted that she was born because of the Countess’s infidelity, so she did not really appear on the outside of her estate. And yet, here she was.

Tap the screen to use advanced tools Tip: You can use left and right keyboard keys to browse between chapters.

You'll Also Like