Chapter 85
Chapter 85. I'm Not on the Permanent Staff Yet
"Miss Peini, there is no need to be nervous—just treat this as a casual chat."
Seeing the maidservant seated across from him looking rather stiff, Rol put on what he considered a warm smile.
"N—nothing's wrong, I'm not nervous at all, please go ahead and ask!"
"……"
Rol instinctively touched his own face. He felt that while his current face might not be strikingly handsome, it ought at least to leave people with a favorable impression?
Why was the maidservant sitting across from him so frightened of him?
Oh well—that seemed to just be how this girl's personality was.
Having thought it through, Rol commenced the formal questioning:
"Miss Peini, over the past seven days, have you noticed anything unusual?"
This time, Rol had not limited the question to any particular scope, giving Peini a very wide range within which to answer freely.
"Anything unusual?" Peini seemed a little puzzled.
"Yes—anything you felt was out of the ordinary."
"Let me think," said Peini, lowering her head and pondering for a moment before responding: "Mr. Rol, over the past seven days, I came down with a sudden, inexplicable case of Autumn Chill."
"Autumn Chill?" Rol repeated.
Autumn Chill—a condition that tends to occur at the turn of summer and autumn, characterized outwardly by physical weakness, loss of appetite, and frequent cold sweats.
It generally appears in individuals with weaker constitutions and irregular eating habits.
"The timing of falling ill is plausible enough, but…… would a maidservant of the Duke Manor really come down with this illness?"
Rol carefully recalled his memories of the past few days, and confirmed that there had indeed been one day when he had not seen Peini. At the time he had simply assumed he had not happened to run into her—after all, the Duke Manor was enormous, and it was perfectly normal to go a day or two without crossing paths with one of the maids.
But he would not believe that Peini had come down with Autumn Chill.
The reason was simple: the Duke Manor's dietary arrangements were exceptionally well-regulated. Even when servants had to be roused urgently from their beds to perform emergency duties—as was happening right now—the manor would still supply them with ample tonics and even supernatural medicaments afterward, ensuring the servants' health was maintained.
The question was, Medillion just had money to spare.
"Miss Peini, how long did your Autumn Chill last?"
"A day…… a bit more than that, I'd say?" Peini counted on her fingers and worked out the time. "I came down with it at noon on the 17th and was completely recovered by the evening of the 18th."
"To tell the truth, I was quite frightened at the time, because the morning of the 18th was exactly when I was scheduled to liaise with the purchasing staff. But to my surprise, Sister Pati volunteered to take over this errand for me and saved me a great deal of trouble!"
Having said that, Peini seemed to open up entirely and went on: "Mr. Rol, you wouldn't know, but Autumn Chill typically requires at least three days to recover from even with medication—I never expected to recover in less than two days!"
Rol listened as he silently recorded in the notebook, without saying a word throughout.
Of course you recovered quickly—Autumn Chill primarily affects those with weaker constitutions, and as a maidservant of the Duke Manor, raised on a comprehensive dietary regimen and supplemented with supernatural medicaments, even a sickly person would be fattened up to the picture of health.
'Strictly speaking, given Peini's physical condition, she should not have come down with this illness at all.'
Having arrived at this thought, Rol formed a certain theory in his mind—but it would still need to be confirmed a second time.
He quietly noted this matter down and continued: "Very well, Miss Peini, let us move on to the next question."
"Of course."
"……"
After seeing Peini off, Rol set down his recording pen and turned to face Serela. "Your Highness, I have an impertinent request—would you be willing to hear me out?"
"Oh? Mr. Detective Rol, what impertinent request might you have?" Serela turned her head, and before Rol had even stated his request, added:
"Also—since it is an 'impertinent request,' I am within my rights to refuse, am I not?"
"……"
This woman!
Rol's heart sank slightly, thinking to himself that Serela was truly inscrutable—it was impossible to guess what she was thinking.
He touched his face, confirmed there was nothing wrong with his expression, and made his request in earnest: "I beg Your Highness's indulgence—this request concerns whether I can quickly identify the Mole within the Duke Manor."
Having said so, Rol rose and performed a respectful bow toward Serela.
This behavior was perfectly normal—if anything, the truly unusual thing would be a minor Security Patrol Squad member daring to make a request of the Fourth Imperial Princess of the empire upon their first meeting.
In truth, Rol could apply to the Arcane Association himself for professional assistance, but given his current rank as a mere squad member, requesting such assistance in the middle of the night was uncertain business……
But if Serela were the one to make the request, the situation would be entirely different.
Upon seeing Rol's deferential and earnest manner, the corner of Serela's lips curved up with a barely perceptible trace of amusement, and she said unhurriedly: "Since Mr. Rol has been so sincere about it, there is no harm in hearing you out."
"Thank you, Your Highness." Rol straightened up again. "I would like to request that Your Highness submit an application to the Arcane Association asking them to dispatch a professional Trace Investigator—I wish to have Miss Peini's body examined."
"How so……?"
"I have some concerns regarding her Autumn Chill from a few days ago."
The Imperial Princess's violet eyes glanced at Rol's slender fingers and gave a nod. "I see—since it is for official business, of course I can."
"Is there something wrong with Miss Peini's Autumn Chill? It is quite normal to come down with that illness at the turn of summer and autumn, isn't it?"
Rol glanced at the blank-faced Anya who had posed the question, and thought inwardly that he had forgotten there was a person here whose intelligence could not keep pace with his own and Serela's.
But he could not be bothered to explain it to her—after all, Anya didn't know the situation inside the Duke Manor.
"Miss Anya, the matter involves rather a lot—it is difficult to explain in a few words……"
Rol had unconsciously deployed the riddle-speaking technique on her again.
"?"
Anya tilted her head, as though analyzing the meaning behind Rol's words.
"……"
'He can't be bothered to explain it to me?!'
Insufferable! How dare he look down on this young lady!
Having thought it through, Anya was just about to give Rol a righteous piece of her mind.
Knock knock knock—
"Come in."
Rol, ignoring the girl who had been brewing up a retort and was about to let it fly, called out in response to the knock at the door.
"The next person is……"
Insufferable, why was this fellow just as irritating as Luo Nan? Always managing to cut her off at the exact right moment?
The girl could not help feeling annoyed, and ended up not even paying attention to Rol's subsequent questioning of the remaining persons.
"Your Highness Princess Serela, the questioning of all persons has concluded."
Rol flipped through the notebook, now filled to the brim with his writing, and addressed Serela.
"Mm—just as Captain Grego said, Mr. Rol's professional ability is quite impressive."
The Imperial Princess uncrossed those silk-stockinged jade legs she had kept crossed all along; as they parted, her skirt hem gave a faint flutter, revealing a slender and beautiful curve. "But based on the inquiry I just sent to the Security General Bureau—how is it that there is no member by the name of Rol Mes within the Third Brigade's Fourth Patrol Unit?"
Serela was of course bluffing. She had never truly doubted her own judgment—the fellow standing before her…… was most interesting.
"Ah…… I am currently in my probationary period and have not yet been formally placed on the permanent staff—I am classified as an outsourced contractor. Naturally Your Highness would not find any information about me."
Upon hearing this, Rol's wrist gave a slight tremor—but fortunately his reactions were quick, and the excuse surfaced naturally in his mind.
These were his memories from a past life lending him a hand!
"I see…… well then, best of luck with your transition to permanent staff, Mr. Rol—I have high expectations for you."
"I am grateful for Your Highness's auspicious words."
Having received Rol's answer, Serela made no further difficulties for him. The Imperial Princess stretched out her limbs, rose gracefully to her feet, and stepped ahead on her high heels toward the exit of the reception hall, not forgetting as she went to inform Rol:
"The Arcane Association's personnel have already arrived—go do what you need to do, Mr. Rol."