The man was now sitting up.

Of course, it wasn’t a comfortable position. He was tightly bound to the chair. His arms were tied behind his back, his legs secured to the chair’s legs, and a strap crossed his chest, fastening him to the back of the chair. If he wanted, he could probably struggle to free himself, but all he would achieve would be to tip over.

Like all the furniture and decorations in the room, even the chair he sat on was luxurious. It wouldn’t break from just a fall.

“The imperial family was aware.”

I repeated the last thing the man had said.

“What does that mean?”

“It means exactly what it sounds like.”

Blood was flowing from the man’s face. Seeing his face up close brought back clearer memories. The man with the round glasses. His distinctive mustache and well-kept hairstyle. Of course, his clothes were different now, as he was wearing just a rolled-up shirt and trousers.

His nose was crooked. It looked like it had been broken when he slammed his face against the floor earlier.

Considering he was answering my questions so readily, it seemed he thought the reason I was asking him these things was simply because I was part of the royal family.

It was understandable. He had never seen my face, at least not since I had turned back time.

“The imperial family must have known. That there are places in the institute and other cities where drugs and people are sold.”

A soft groan interrupted my thoughts, and I turned to see Mia Crowfield standing there, her face pale. Leaning against the wall, it seemed she couldn’t stand comfortably.

However, Alice didn’t let her go outside.

It seemed she thought she needed to hear this.

She had been the one to ask the questions from the start.

Moreover, it seemed Mia Crowfield wasn’t planning to leave. Even though she was barely managing to stand, her eyes were fixed firmly on the man.

“Nobles are all turning a blind eye. As long as their authority isn’t challenged and it doesn’t interfere with running their territories… they haven’t captured us. It’s easier to control those gathered in sight than those moving stealthily in uncontrollable places.”

Thus, the relationships became intertwined.

“But, the Emperor must not have directly permitted it, unlike some nobles.”

“...”

However, my response didn’t elicit any further excuses from the man.

It was just a blind eye. The orphanage I had been in was under the watch of Lucas. If Lucas had wanted to, he could have killed the orphanage director and taken all the children away. But Lucas didn’t seem inclined to do that. Moreover, the Emperor hadn’t given Lucas orders to save the children...

...Wait a minute.

“In the institute, what was your position?”

At my question, the man looked up at me as if he couldn’t believe I didn’t know that.

For a moment, I thought about striking his cheekbone, but I restrained myself and waited patiently for his answer.

“I was just a middleman. I bought the goods requested by busy people and resold them.”

“...”

I glanced at Alice. She nodded, her face rigid.

She had said that those at the top were thoroughly messed up before it reached this point.

This man was just a nobody. He acted gentlemanly and spoke with an air of ease, but the real buyers were the nobles, and he was merely a distributor who took requests... buying raw materials to process and sell.

Those “goods” were likely children at times, or maybe drugs.

But if that’s the case...

Then that orphanage he frequented must have just been one of many.

If so, why was Lucas keeping an eye on that ordinary orphanage? If the Emperor didn’t intend to obliterate that organization, it wouldn’t make sense for Lucas to monitor the orphanage.

“Silvia.”

Suddenly, Alice called my name, pulling my thoughts back to the present.

“Are you okay?”

Though she asked that, her expression indicated she knew I wasn’t.

I wasn’t okay. But it wasn’t because of this man. I felt discomfort and thought that it wouldn’t be wrong to kill him right now, but a more significant issue arose in my mind.

If Lucas was intentionally watching that orphanage—of course, he must have had some reason for targeting it—

If Lucas’s reason for being there was to find “Claire,” then there must be a basis for Lucas choosing me instead of Claire.

And the Emperor saw me, taken by Lucas, and made a judgment on what I was.

What was the Emperor “looking for,” what “something”?

What was it like in the original story?

Claire, who barely survived in a terrible environment, ultimately awakened her abilities under extreme stress, causing a massive fire in the middle of the institute. The cause of the fire was a lamp, but she emerged from that huge blaze without a scratch thanks to her innate talent.

In the original story, Lucas sought Claire after seeing that talent.

In the original story, after Claire sacrificed herself for Alice, the Emperor’s plans began to collapse rapidly.

In the original story, several hints suggested that there was some secret to Claire’s birth.

Then, what about here?

Here, Lucas sought “me” after seeing my talent.

If so, that’s a misunderstanding. I have no secret regarding my birth. Such a thing doesn’t even exist.

What did the Emperor mistake me for to accept me?

“Silvia?”

Alice cautiously called my name again.

I looked at Alice’s face.

It was a face I had seen for the past ten years. From a very young age until now.

Perhaps Claire sacrificed herself for Alice for that very reason. For Alice, who had been like a sister she had fought with every day.

Then, what if...

What if I were to sacrifice myself for Alice in this world?

If Claire were still alive and the story flowed similarly to the original...

...Why hadn’t I noticed this until now? I knew that Lucas had specifically taken Claire, and I knew there were many orphanages besides that one. I had even entertained similar questions in my mind several times, so why was it only now that I was realizing it?

*

“So, what happened here?”

After the man was taken away, Mia Crowfield asked with a sense of urgency.

“Who is that man? What connection does he have with our father...?”

Right, this was another issue.

“Mia, for now, just sit down a little.”

There were still no knights in the room. It was just us inside.

Alice pointed to the bed rather than the chair where the man had been sitting until recently. While there wasn’t any blood on the chair, it seemed she was uncomfortable making Mia sit in a place where a criminal had been bound.

Of course, the bed had been used by a criminal too.

“That man... sold things to your father, to Count Crowfield.”

“What things?”

Even Mia Crowfield should have been able to recall something vaguely from the previous conversation, but maybe she didn’t want to believe it. She asked as if she didn’t know anything.

“...Children. Conversely, opium was probably the product being sold here.”

Alice hesitated for a moment before answering.

Mia Crowfield’s face went blank. It looked as if all emotion had drained away.

“...No.”

After a moment of silence, she murmured.

“No way!”

And her voice gradually grew louder.

“No way, my father, my dad couldn’t have done that!”

Her previously dazed eyes sharpened again. The sharpest I had ever seen Mia Crowfield, including her face from before I turned back time.

“You’re tarnishing the honor of our deceased father—”

“...His eyes.”

Just as Mia Crowfield was about to get up from her seat, I opened my mouth.

“Do you remember your father’s eyes?”

“...”

Mia looked up at me, still wearing a confused expression.

“Have you ever seen his pupils shrink to a dot?”

Mia’s mouth opened slightly.

I had seen it. Every time I faced the Count, his pupils were tiny dots. I had never seen them change size.

A pale face. An emaciated body. Dark circles under his eyes. Bloodshot eyes, as if he hadn’t slept for days, and pupils that had shrunk to dots.

Even in a dark place like this dim room, his pupils had remained tiny dots.

“It’s the characteristic of someone who uses drugs. In the dark, their pupils keep contracting.”

“Ah, my father... he was just working hard for the territory...”

“Do you truly believe that?” 

At my question, Mia Crowfield looked up at me, speechless.