[Chapter 108] The Missing Child

"Oh my, Liz. Where have you been?"

Neris's mother approached her as she returned from the greenhouse to the tournament grounds.

Her mother looked excited. Dressed in the sophisticated dress Neris had carefully chosen for her, adorned with dignified jewelry though not the finest, she was no less elegant than the noble ladies around her.

In fact, the noble ladies were laughing and chatting with her as if they were long-time friends. Neris greeted them lightly and replied to her mother.

"I just stepped away for a moment. Did you find me?"

"No, there was a leaf stuck in your hair."

Her mother removed a fallen leaf that was stuck in Neris's hair. Neris blushed slightly.

While she had brushed off all the leaves stuck to her clothes when she left the garden, she was unaware of anything stuck in her hair.

"Thank you."

"I thought the Advisor was flawless, but you have a cute side."

One of the noble ladies who was watching the tournament with Neris's mother said with a smile. Neris's face turned a bit redder.

Wow. People cheered at that moment. A huge crowd gathered around. It was because of the person who had just entered the arena, where Neris, her mother, and the noble ladies were watching.

With a sharp gaze and a relaxed posture. A smooth smile that seemed unruffled by anything.

Cledwyn stepped onto the stage in casual attire.

His opponent was a lower-ranking knight who had come from afar. He was entrusted with a small estate under the Grand Duke, similar in status to the Lord of Rohes, Neris's hometown, Wilmont, who managed a small estate for the Grand Duke.

Normally, there was no need for someone of Cledwyn's stature, almost like the king of Maindland, to have direct conversations with others. However, in this tournament, he could directly face his opponent.

Cledwyn's lips curled slightly on both sides.

"Come at me without hesitation. Show me your skills."

He had come a long way to participate in the tournament. The knight was confident in his abilities.

"Excuse me, Your Grace! Charge!"

Fierce momentum.

The silver blade scattered sunlight. Swish, clang!

Just a few seconds after the charge, the knight's sword fell to the ground. It seemed not to have been released easily as his grip tore, causing blood to flow.

Without changing his expression, Cledwyn stood tall and lazily stroked his chin.

"Well done."

The Grand Duke's sword, shining brilliantly like white heat, returned to its scabbard. Longer than the average knight's sword yet relatively slender, the blade was elegant.

Thud. The knight, appearing to be in his mid-forties, let his legs give way. A slow smile of disappointment crept onto his astonished face.

"Ha, haha, ha...."

It was just one swing. With that alone, his full-force attack was thwarted.

The overwhelming power, speed, precise technique... There was nothing but admiration. After all, he had personally suppressed a rebellion at such a young age.

"Long live the Grand Duke! Hooray for our liege! Long live Maindland!"

People were ecstatic about his overwhelming skill. Neris was slightly bewildered. She had never seen people so fond of their ruler. Even the royal family, hailed for being the descendants of three heroes, and the Elendria family did not receive such absolute support.

Cledwyn turned and left the arena. As he approached where Neris was, he kissed her mother's hand in passing.

Unlike other participants who tried to stand out in every possible way with their attire or colors, Cledwyn was dressed in a white shirt and trousers. Ironically, it made him stand out more than anyone else. It naturally revealed who the owner of this castle was, more than any attire could.

"Lady Trued."

Neris's eyes widened as he kissed her mother's hand, and the noble ladies smiled as if they had seen something amusing.

"Congratulations on your victory, Your Grace."

"Thank you. Are you enjoying yourself, Lady Trued?"

"Thanks to Your Grace."

Her mother looked a bit embarrassed and unsure of what to say, but she seemed secretly proud. The noble ladies looked at her mother with even more friendly faces than before.

Neris felt that he was considerate.

Despite coming from different regions, at this festival where Maindlanders gathered, Neris and her mother were like foreigners. While Neris had a somewhat established position as an advisor, her mother did not.

Although her mother had been here for several years, the local nobles unfamiliar with the central region did not know her well. By showing kindness in such a public setting, the Grand Duke's favor would likely help her mother's standing.

After finishing the conversation with her mother, Cledwyn nodded arrogantly to the noble ladies, showing courtesy as a knight. Finally, he met Neris's eyes and smiled.

"Did you come to watch my match?"

"I happened to be here at the right time."

Neris spoke the truth. While she knew he would be having a match at this time as the overseer of the tournament, she did not come specifically to watch him...

Cledwyn gave a wry smile.

"Too bad."

"Are you going to go straight to work?"

"Yes."

"Got it. See you at lunch later. Oh."

Neris suddenly realized that the knot of Cledwyn's shirt ribbon was crooked. As her gaze lingered on the ribbon, Cledwyn casually asked.

"Want me to fix it?"

"Yes, please."

She didn't know why he wasn't doing it himself, but perhaps his hands were dirty or sweaty from the recent match... Even though it was an impeccable match to everyone else, Neris accepted it as it was.

She earnestly fixed the knot shape while Cledwyn looked down at her fiddling with the ribbon on his chest and let out a silent chuckle.

While the crowd dispersed to watch other matches, the noble ladies did not move. They blushed and barely concealed their laughter.

They were kind to Neris. Her reputation was good among the lords for being helpful to Maindland. Even though she was an outsider, well, being someone who could come to Maindland and live there as the direct descendant of three heroes, there was no reason to feel bad.

Moreover, she seemed to have an aura that made people look up to her. The noble ladies themselves knew this well, as they were once girls of Neris Trued's age. They knew that such calm and graceful demeanor did not come easily, even in a prestigious family.

But it seemed there was another reason to be friendly with her.

After the knot was neatly fixed symmetrically, Neris took a step back. She thought about asking Cledwyn about the toy with the letter C carved on it.

If it was a toy buried next to the greenhouse used by the former Grand Duchess, it was most likely his.

But was it okay to ask?

Unaware of the complexities of others, Cledwyn grinned mischievously.

"Thank you."

"It's nothing special."

Due to the height difference, Neris looked up at Cledwyn's face, which seemed to touch the sky. Seeing his face tilted slightly under the azure sky, she felt something.

❖ ❖ ❖

The tournament qualifiers continued for several days.

Challenges from disqualified participants, winners with injuries, post-match conflicts... There were many unexpected situations in selecting the participants for the main event. However, as the number of spectators increased day by day and the enthusiasm grew, the lower-ranking officials in charge were thrilled.

The day the names of the 128 participants advancing to the main event were announced was a frenzy not only in the castle but also in the lower town. Even after the festival in the central region ended, Maindland would likely remain a hot topic for years to come.

There was a day of rest between the qualifiers and the main event to allow the participants to recover from injuries. Neris sent the tired tournament management officials home early and stayed alone in her office to catch up on pending work.

The diminishing sun hid its face, and darkness quickly engulfed the sky.

Lost in work and forgetting about time, Neris suddenly lifted her head and leaned back against the chair.

Outside was unusually quiet compared to the past few days. Perhaps by now, the nobles in the main palace were gathering for card games, and among them, if there were participants advancing to the main event of the tournament, they would be enjoying the attention directed at them.

It wasn't bad. This kind of time...

'If I could have lived like this in my previous life, it would have been nice.'

"Her mother is alive, and Neris is finally proving her worth to people without being hated for the first time since entering the Academy in her previous life.

A life where she doesn't have to fear what terrible things might happen tomorrow.

For someone, such an ordinary daily life was a puzzle that she could barely grasp after all sorts of struggles.

'This peace won't last forever.'

The Elendria family had already set their sights on her. If they found out about the jewel in the safe, they would surely make a move even in the royal family.

Rumors within Maindland didn't spread outside, but they didn't stay completely hidden either. The fact that Neris Trued was working for Cledwyn Maindland, and that she had the Elendria's protection, would eventually be known over there.

The key was 'when' and 'how' it would be revealed.

Since she had dedicated her life to revenge, there was no thought of running away. Neris turned her gaze back to the list of head taxes paid by the subordinate lords within Maindland that she had been reading.

At that moment, someone urgently knocked on the door.

"Advisor? Advisor? Are you inside?"

"At the moment. Who is it?"

"It's Hilbrin."

"Come in first."

The door opened.

Hilbrin was pale and out of breath. About the unexpected visit, Neris, who was about to scold him, narrowed her eyes.

"What's the matter?"

"Gebertha is missing."

Neris stood up abruptly.

"Where? When did she go missing?"

The Hilbrin family was staying in a mansion close to their family, not in the castle. So, if the child was missing at this time, it was best to search the mansion.

Unless there was a reason to suspect kidnapping.

Assuming the worst, Neris's forehead furrowed. Hilbrin shuffled his feet.

"A witness saw her playing with other noble children in the castle at noon. My wife wasn't feeling well and went in early today, so I thought the child had gone in with her! But now someone came and said that Gebertha was going in with me, so my wife just went in alone..."

There was no immediate reason to suspect kidnapping. However, the fact that the child had been missing for a few hours and where she might have gone alone was a cause for concern.

"First, inform the steward and the chamberlain to search the castle. Just in case, you should find the way down to the mansion where you are staying. Gebertha is smart, so she might know the way and try to go back alone."

"Yes!"

Hilbrin rushed out with a face that looked like he might cry.

Neris rang the bell and called Gilbert and Ellen. After instructing them to search the castle, she pondered her thoughts.

'Gebertha is a smart child. The probability of her going out of the castle alone without a plan is low. Even if she gets lost in an unfamiliar place, she would likely ask for help from people around her.'"

Furthermore, the castle is currently full of guests, so it might have reached a point where they couldn't accommodate everyone and had to send some to the lower town. If there was a lost child wandering around, a report would have been made.

Moreover, earlier, Hilbrin came in so urgently that there might have been a concern, but it was difficult to find someone in the current castle with a motive to deliberately abduct Gebertha. Hilbrin was so popular, and there was no one with a sharp enough conflicting interest to abduct a child and gain something from it in the current setting.

Taking all these points into consideration, Neris felt she knew where Gebertha might be.