K-Eldest Daughter Possessed a Childcare Novel - Ch. 36

“Lady Belladi!”

Rover came running towards me, panting heavily. It was just when I had arrived at the stables after finishing a run across the plains with Alexander.

As I dismounted, I asked.

“Did Act Dermi go outside?”

“Yes! As you said, Lady Belladi, he had a grim expression on his face!”

“Is that so?”

He must have been startled by the mysterious promissory note and the amount on it.

I chuckled slightly and ordered Zeppelin, who was standing beside me.

“Take some soldiers and bring that man back.”

“Yes, Lady Belladi.”

Zeppelin bowed politely and moved quickly.

I patted Alexander.

“I’ll be back, so keep out of trouble, Alex.”

Alexander, who now obeyed me completely, made a pleasant sound.

Prrrr.

After entrusting Alexander to the stableman, I looked at Robert.

“Now then, Rover.”

“Yes!”

“You’re coming with me.”

With that, I began to walk briskly. Rover hurriedly kept pace with my long strides.

“Excuse me, Lady Belladi, I don’t mean to question you, but… why do you care so much about Young Master Dermi?”

In response to Rover’s question, I answered in a calm voice.

“The man embezzled funds from the mansion.”

Hearing this, Rover, who had been panting as he followed me, jumped in surprise.

“What?! Young Master Dermi?!”

He was left speechless, only stammering. After a moment of collecting his thoughts, he cautiously asked.

“Is it really true that Young Master Dermi embezzled the fund? He’s the son of Baron Dermi.”

The head of the Dermi family, Baron Dermi, was known to be a mild-mannered person who disliked conflict.

Knowing this, Rover found it hard to believe that the baron’s son would commit embezzlement.

I glanced at Rover. As my gaze landed on him, he quickly shut his mouth and didn’t dare make another sound.

“I’m sorry, Lady Belladi.”

He apologized hastily, realizing that his question had overstepped.

It was clear that Rover had known the Dermi family for a long time. A mere change in expression wasn’t enough for him to believe my words.

This was the clear difference between Rover and Zeppelin.

‘Zeppelin, as a watcher, never questions what I do, but this one can’t resist his curiosity even as he follows orders.’

I had never intended to give Rover any serious or secretive tasks. So, I decided to overlook his curiosity this time.

“No, it’s understandable. The baron and Baron Ricken thought the same way you did, which is why they trusted Act Dermi and invited him to the mansion.”

Rover looked at me with eyes full of gratitude at my understanding.

Ignoring this, I arrived at the temporary office of the second son, set up in the annex of the mansion. When I grabbed the door handle, it turned easily.

‘He must have been in quite a hurry.’

He was so flustered that he hadn’t even locked the office door. Thanks to that, I could enter without any trouble.

As soon as I entered, I headed straight for the desk. Papers and pens were scattered all over it.

Without even glancing at those, I reached under the other side of the desk.

“Lady Belladi?”

Rover, who had followed me, asked in a puzzled voice.

Without bothering to answer, I groped around the underside a few more times until my fingers brushed against a different texture.

‘As expected, he hid it here.’

I tore it off quickly. Just as I thought, the embezzlement ledger hidden by the second son appeared.

‘I love how predictable the original story is.’

It was so convenient when all the information you needed was laid out without having to look for it.

From the mercenary group’s private vault key to the set password — it was all written down, making it easy to send the promissory note to the second son.

Similarly, in the original story, the second son hid all the documents he needed to conceal on the underside of his desk.

He was cautious enough to trust the vault with his money but couldn’t trust others with his weaknesses.

“How foolish.”

If he was going to be so cautious, he shouldn’t have coveted someone else’s money in the first place.

I opened the embezzlement ledger and skimmed through its contents. Inside, it detailed how the second son had siphoned off funds during the furniture renovation of the annex.

After a quick review, I handed it over to Rover.

“Hold this.”

“Ah, yes! Is this the evidence of the embezzlement?”

“You can take a look if you’re curious.”

With my permission, Rover glanced at the ledger. As he read through the details, his eyes grew wide.

“This… this…! That scoundrel! How dare he deceive Lady Belladi!”

Ssrk.

Flipping through the pages, Rover grew even more upset.

“I never thought Young Master Dermi could be such a scoundrel! How could he betray the Alton family’s trust like this! Could Baron Dermi be involved too?”

The image of Baron Dermi desperately trying to save his captured son flashed through my mind.

“… no, Baron Dermi isn’t involved.”

Baron Dermi was merely a pitiful father doomed to an unfortunate old age because his son was foolish.

I cleared my thoughts and asked Rover.

“Where is Baron Ricken?”

“He should be resting with Mr. Brooks by now.”

“Then, they’re together?”

“Yes! Should I call them for you?”

“No, there’s no need.”

I would visit them myself in a bit.

Then, I heard a commotion outside. Soon, the door to the second son’s office opened, and Zeppelin entered with a few soldiers. Behind them, the second son was being dragged in, his mouth gagged, and his hands bound.

I chuckled at the sight of the second son, but then I noticed a man I didn’t recognize, also bound, being dragged in.

I stared intently at the thin-faced man, and Zeppelin, noticing my gaze, spoke up as he approached.

“He’s the one in charge of the mercenary group’s private vault. We brought him in as a witness.”

Zeppelin then leaned closer to whisper in my ear.

“He’s the one who received the pearl directly and wrote the promissory note.”

“The pearl?”

“We have it with us.”

With that, Zeppelin took out a box containing the pearl from inside his coat and handed it to me.

I accepted the box without saying much and opened it. Inside were the promissory note that Zeppelin had written and the pearl.

My mother’s pearl was still shining brilliantly, just like it did at the beginning.

‘It wouldn’t hurt if it had a scratch or two.’

Well, I wasn’t expecting that in the first place.

I shifted my gaze from the pearl to the thin-faced man. The man, who had been struggling against the soldiers, stiffened when our eyes met. He reacted like an animal instinctively sensing danger.

“Good job, Zeppelin.”

You brought him here without me even having to ask.

Zeppelin bowed his head respectfully at my praise.

I ordered the soldiers.

“We’ll interrogate Act Dermi later, so put him aside for now and bring that so-called witness over.”

“Yes, Lady Belladi!”

The soldiers dragged the second son to the corner of the office, leaving the thin-faced man before me.

“Mmmph!”

The second son struggled, but he couldn’t escape the grip of the trained soldiers.

The thin-faced man, his legs giving out, knelt before me, looking up with fear in his eyes.

I gestured to the soldier holding him. Understanding my signal, the soldier removed the gag from the man’s mouth.

“W-who are you…?”

The man gasped for breath as he spoke.

I tilted my head slowly, watching him.

“Do you want to live?”

At my words, the man quickly bowed his head to avoid my gaze, then prostrated himself on the ground.

“I-I’m sorry. I was too greedy, wanting more than I deserved. P-please, just spare me this once!”

He seemed quick to grasp the situation. Admitting his wrongs without hearing anything more.

‘In that sense, he’s better than the second son, who’s still resisting.’

I glanced briefly at the second son huffing in the corner, then returned my gaze to the thin-faced man.

“Did you think you could get away by claiming you just lent the money and kept the pearl?”

The man shook his head furiously in response to my quiet words.

I closed the box containing the pearl.

Thunk—

At the sound, the man’s shoulders trembled as if it were a death sentence.

I handed the box with the pearl to Rover without looking at it.

Rover, perceptive as he was, took the box without any questions this time.

I spoke slowly.

“If you want to live, just tell me exactly what you saw.”

“Y-yes?”

I lowered my voice even more, whispering.

“Act Dermi came there himself to deposit this pearl. He used it as a collateral to request ten million gold… that’s the truth, isn’t it?”

The man desperately nodded at my words.

It seemed he had already figured out who I was…

And he knew that getting involved with a high-ranking noble like me could put his own life at risk, as he kept sweating profusely.

‘Why did you get greedy, then?’

Of course, I had been the one to tempt him into it.

And all of this was for one thing alone.

I turned my gaze from the man back to the second son. He was still struggling defiantly.

I addressed the soldier beside him.

“Remove the gag from his mouth.”

“Yes!”

One of the soldiers removed the gag from the second son’s mouth.

As soon as it was removed, the second son shouted.

“What on earth are you doing, Lady Belladi?”

His face turned red, and veins bulged on his neck as he yelled.

“I am a noble of this empire, a member of the Northern Alliance! I have come to the capital by the command of Duke Alton, offering my loyalty!”

I ignored his words and walked forward leisurely. Naturally, my steps led me to stand right in front of him.

“This is absolutely outrageous! No one in the world would do such a thing! Order the soldiers to release me immediately!”

As I continued to stay silent, his voice grew louder. A hint of a sneer appeared on his face.

“Even if I am guilty of something! Even then, you have no right to investigate me alone, Lady Belladi! You must be too young to understand, but if you dare to arrest a noble —!”

That was as far as he got.

While he droned on and on, I stepped right up to him and, in a swift motion, grabbed his face and shoved him backward.

Crash —!

The back of the second son’s head hit the wall with a loud thud.