The next day, Rayna waited for Lucius from early in the morning.

Since he asked to meet again to discuss details, she naturally expected him to visit the orphanage.

However, Lucius was late in arriving, causing Rayna to become anxious.

How can I get Lucius to tell me about the curse?

The chances of Lucius revealing the true circumstances of the Ingerson family to Rayna ranged from slim to none.

I don’t know if I’ll have the opportunity to get him to open up.

Rayna thought that maybe she could get that opportunity more easily than she thought.

‘When we meet today, Lucius will probably be…’

Lost in thought, Rayna suddenly looked up.

A commotion had ensued outside.

At last, Lucius had arrived.

The sight of Lucius all by his lonesome filled her with relief.

Perhaps thanks to her painstaking efforts yesterday, Lucius didn’t come with his knights to conduct an additional search.

After checking her attire and her expression in front of the mirror, Rayna went out to meet him.

As she headed toward the yard, Ellie greeted him before her and was rubbing her body against Lucius.

Rayna thought that Lucius would shove Ellie away out of annoyance, but he reached out to stroke her head.

His expression was as indifferent as always, yet his gesture put the dog at ease.

…Just like yesterday. How surprising.

With that thought, Rayna took a step forward. Lucius turned his gaze away from Ellie and looked at Rayna.

“You’re here, Grand Duke. I’ve been waiting.”

Rayna said with a smile.

Without answering, Lucius stared at Rayna.

Every time he looked at her without a word like that, she felt her lifespan decrease.

“Come on in. In case you haven’t eaten…”

“I saw a walking trail.”

Lucius cut off Rayna and pointed to the path leading to the forest.

“Would you like to take a brief stroll?”

“…Only the two of us?”

A forest where you can secretly attack and bury at least one person, with neither a witness nor anyone who can save that unfortunate soul?

Lucius slightly frowned at the question Rayna inadvertently posed.

“I only need you.”

This time, Rayna’s expression became awkward.

Phrasing!

How could he suggest that they should talk together without anyone else interfering?

Despite her nervousness, Rayna still nodded.

She sneaked a glance out of the corner of her eye and confirmed that no sword was attached to his waist.

Not even Lucius would draw his sword around here.

With that thought, Rayna walked through the forest with Lucius.

They had nothing to say to each other.

Rayna pretended to admire the surrounding scenery with a calm expression, but her feet were busy matching at Lucius’ pace.

You asked me to take a walk with you, but you didn’t care about my speed at all!

Well, it made no sense to expect such consideration from the Monster Grand Duke.

While Rayna inwardly cursed Lucius, he began to speak.

“If I contact the orphanage, how long will it take to hear back?”

Rayna quickly caught up with him and answered.

“It’s usually faster than sending and receiving letters.”

In the first place, the reason for establishing a contact network was to communicate quickly.

Some orphanages were also involved in rescuing street children, so they were used to often exchanging information.

“If I send a message asking if there’s a new child matching the description I was looking for, when would I receive a reply?”

“If you send it today, you may receive it as early as tomorrow or the day after.”

“Good. It’ll take less time than going to the suspected orphanage to look for him.”

Lucius stopped walking and looked back at Rayna.

“I heeded what Ms. Rayna said yesterday and did some research.”

“Research?”

“Ms. Rayna said with certainty that the child was in one of the orphanages, so I was curious what basis there was for that.”

Rayna was chagrined.

Lucius had noticed her intention to divert his attention to other orphanages.

“While I was away from the empire, a new system was created.”

It was a system to rescue lost orphans, whose numbers were increasing day by day in the empire.

The system was devised by the imperial palace as the number of crimes involving kidnapping and selling orphans increased.

Anyone who found a lost orphan and placed them in an orphanage would receive compensation.

“I heard that crime has decreased considerably because there’s less risk than selling them for less.”

“…”

“Hence, I felt the need to search the orphanages. So, Ms. Rayna…”

Lucius looked straight at Rayna.

“I would like to ask for your help.”

“…”

“If you help me, I’ll repay this favor in the name of my family.”

Rayna bit at her lip.

…It was to stop the corners of her mouth from rising.

As expected, Lucius will accept my help!

Rayna had observed how the situation was going and expected him to eventually ask for her assistance.

Who would’ve guessed that he would even put his family’s name on the line?

In other words, it was a formal proposal from family to family, not from person to person.

He even said he would repay the favor.

Doesn’t that mean that Lucius is no longer suspicious of me?

Rayna’s heart beat rapidly.

Stay calm.

If she acted too giddy, he’d be suspicious once more.

Her expression became even more stern, when Rayna was just moments away from answering.

“—But.”

Lucius quietly stared at Rayna and continued speaking.

“I need you to join me.”

“To join you…?”

“I mean, I need you by my side.”

Rayna gaped.

“Can you please tell me specifically what you mean by that?”

“Wouldn’t it be easier to get their cooperation to search the orphanages if we go together?”

Even if the other party was the Grand Duke of Ingerson, he couldn’t easily obtain cooperation if a nursery outside his territory was suddenly approached.

In addition, due to the new system for orphans in the empire, protection for orphans was stronger.

In short, the orphanage had the right to refuse a search.

While Lucius could certainly proceed with searching forcefully, he wouldn’t be able to do so without wasting a lot of time.

“If you, who also run an orphanage, ask them instead of me, they would be less inclined to caution.”

Rayna was speechless for a moment.

Going with Lucius.

That wasn’t part of the plan.

Even if she agreed to cooperate, she had no intention of sticking by his side and helping him.

The stakes were increasing for her, as she had to leave Calyx alone.

I was deluded in thinking that he wasn’t suspicious.

Rather, Lucius was utterly skeptical of Rayna.

His offer for her company contained his intention to keep her by his side and delve into the inner workings of her mind.

When Rayna, in her despair, didn’t respond, Lucius spoke once again.

“I’ve already received permission from Count Krollot and his wife.”

Rayna’s eyes widened.

“Then, the reason behind the delay in your visit today…”

“It’s because I stopped by the Krollot mansion.”

Rayna wanted to clutch her forehead.

He proposed to Count Krollot and his wife first.

Now that it has come to this, I won’t be able to refuse.

After all, this is Count Krollot and his wife we’re talking about.

“Ms. Rayna, as well as the Krollot family, said that they would help in whatever way they could.”

Uh-huh.

They would more or less say that.

…After all, an opportunity appeared to form a relationship with the Grand Duke of Ingerson, something the Count and his wife had craved.