Something Feels Off
With the disappearance of Lady Alyssa, the unrest within the estate gradually intensified.
Eventually, the other attendees also became aware of the situation, but their reactions varied widely.
Some voiced complaints like, “I cleared my schedule for this,” while others began arranging their next plans by coordinating with those around them… Looking at it this way, not a single person seemed truly concerned about Lady Alyssa’s wellbeing.
Most likely, this is how things usually are, not just today.
Thinking that, I couldn’t really blame Lady Alyssa for wanting to run away.
For the time being, we explained the situation to Lord Doyle in order to confirm our next steps.
“I’m worried… I’ll try looking for her.” He said.
Unlike the other men, Lord Doyle stood up with genuine concern for Lady Alyssa and prepared to search for her.
It was obvious this came from the heart.
If you’d seen how he usually behaved, you’d understand.
However, even if he said he’d search, this is the mansion of a duke. If he wandered around aimlessly, he might end up looking suspicious. So, Elina and I decided to accompany him. We had Marietta and the others remain in the waiting room in case any new developments occurred, and told them to let us know if something came up.
And so, the search for Lady Alyssa began with the three of us—me, Elina, and Lord Doyle—but… as expected, we couldn’t find her.
“Maybe… she went outside?”
“The servants are already splitting up to search outside as well, so let’s keep our focus on the inside of the estate.”
“Yeah, good idea.”
So, we continued roaming through the mansion, keeping our eyes open for any sign of Lady Alyssa—when suddenly…
“Well, well, what a coincidence running into you here.”
… And at that very moment, we ran into someone particularly troublesome.
“Hank. What are you doing here?”
“What do you think? I heard Lady Alyssa had gone missing, so I’m searching for her.” He said with exaggerated gestures.
His expression now had an oddly relaxed air, different from before.
From his actions, it was hard to believe that he was genuinely concerned about Lady Alyssa’s safety… which only made him seem all the more suspicious.
Knowing him, if we’ve spent this much time and manpower searching for Lady Alyssa and come up empty, he’d normally be in a frenzy by now. After all, if he were the one to find her, Lord Donold—head of the McCreed family and Lady Alyssa’s father—would surely be deeply grateful. He’d likely resort to any means to track her down.
But now, he seemed strangely subdued.
Even now, he just said, “Well then, I’ll be off,” and left without so much as a proper conversation.
Honestly, I’d expected him to at least leave us with a sarcastic remark.
“He actually seemed kind of normal this time, didn’t he?” Elina said.
I wanted to point out that this implied he’s never normal, but I realized… she wasn’t wrong. So I let it go.
Besides… I had a feeling that her comment was actually a very important clue.
What do you think about this chapter?
