"Excuse me, but what is young Lady Lohanson's name?"
"Young Lady Lohanson? Evangeline Lohanson."
"Evangeline Lohanson..."
Michel repeated the name slowly, reverently, as though savoring each syllable.
_Why is he asking?_ A sudden pang of alarm shot through Rafaella. This reminded her uncomfortably of the recent incident with Gabriel—when he had kissed Evangeline's hand in farewell.
"Commander, Lady Rafaella!" Michel's eyes shone with fervent intensity. "The moment I saw her, I understood my destiny."
_It can't be... Please don't tell me this is love at first sight._
Rafaella prayed desperately that her suspicions were wrong.
"Lady Evangeline is an angel, isn't she?"
_No. Not **that**._
Rafaella groaned inwardly. _It would have been better if he'd simply fallen in love._
This madman—who had already tried to throw himself into a burning painting because he believed an angel awaited him there—had now decided that Evangeline Lohanson *was* that angel?
The problem was, this time he might actually be *correct*. Even after hearing Daisy's testimony, neither Gabriel nor Rafaella could discern Evangeline's true nature.
"Even if she isn't," Michel continued, his voice dreamy, "it doesn't matter. When Lady Evangeline baptized me, I knew—down to the marrow of my bones—whom I was meant to serve."
_Is he talking about that moment when he almost passed out? When he had that deranged look in his eyes?_
Rafaella hadn't been mistaken. She had witnessed firsthand how Michel had become utterly captivated by Evangeline.
She tried to understand his perspective. If you were engulfed in flames and some girl appeared out of nowhere to douse them with water, you would naturally be grateful. Perhaps even a little awestruck.
But the anger boiling within her chest refused to be contained. She cast aside all attempts at sympathy.
"You *crazy idiot*!"
A normal person would simply say "thank you." You might even *think* she was an angel. But *serving* her? *Baptizing* her? This man was clearly not all there!
"Sir Rafaella, Sir Michel just woke up," Jeremy pleaded, clamping a hand over her mouth to muffle her screams. "Please calm down."
Michel seemed utterly oblivious to her fury. He continued as though discussing the weather:
"I can no longer serve as Lady Rael's knight. I must go where *she* is. I will ask Lady Lohanson to accept me as her guardian knight." He paused, considering. "Perhaps she will refuse, given the suddenness of my request? In that case, I would even be willing to become her groom. I simply want to breathe the same air as her."
Rafaella mentally prostrated herself before the goddess.
_Lady Rael, please forgive this fool. He has temporarily lost his mind. I apologize for these heretical speeches being delivered in the immediate vicinity of your Great Temple._
"Commander... Lady Rafaella looks like she's about to faint," Jeremy reported nervously.
Gabriel finally intervened.
"Michel."
"Yes, Commander?"
At least, despite his madness, he could still recognize people. That was marginally better than before.
"You *do* understand what a grave sin you have committed before the Goddess?"
"Yes."
"Then stay here. Consider this Lady Rael's punishment."
"I understand." Michel nodded solemnly. "Serving Lady Rael here while my heart already belongs to another—*that* is my punishment. Lady Rael is truly merciful." He turned his shining gaze toward Gabriel. "But what about you, Commander? You'll have to stand beside a heretic like me."
"I have always respected you."
"Commander! I respect you no less than Lady Rael herself!"
Rafaella wanted to *reform* this man with such a rotten soul—who had just called himself a heretic in one breath and then claimed to respect the Commander as much as the Goddess in the next.
When he had been obsessed with the painting, at least it had been impossible to converse with him. But *now* he spouted nonsense that made her want to die of secondhand embarrassment.
"Did Sir Michel just call himself a heretic?" Seraph asked, his eyes wide with confusion.
"Of course!" Yuriel confirmed cheerfully.
Listening to their bickering—which sounded like a dialogue between two court jesters—Rafaella came to a decision.
_Perhaps it would be better if I went to the Lohanson estate myself._
---
## — Evangeline —
"The weather today is simply *wonderful*."
I lay sprawled across my bed, savoring the sweetness of idleness while eating the fruit Hena had brought. The sky was overcast, but a pleasant cool breeze drifted through the open window, carrying the fresh scent of impending rain.
_Perhaps I've already died and gone to heaven?_
"My lady, you'll catch a cold."
Kanna draped a soft shawl over my shoulders. The temperature wasn't unbearably hot, so the extra warmth was actually quite comfortable. My Kanna was so thoughtful—she anticipated my needs without being told.
As a token of gratitude, I speared a piece of fruit with my fork and offered it to her. Kanna's cheeks flushed pink as she accepted it.
Normally, Hena would have intervened by now, scolding Kanna for such improper behavior...
But not today.
I stole a glance at her. She stood motionless by the window, staring at nothing, lost in some distant thought.
"Hena."
"Yes, yes? You called me, my lady?"
She only snapped back to attention after I spoke her name directly.
_Is she actually ill?_
"If you're tired, you may rest. Kanna is here to attend me."
"No, everything is fine."
There was no energy in her voice whatsoever. *How* could everything possibly be fine?
"Go and rest."
"...Very well."
I repeated my request more firmly, and this time Hena nodded and left the room. She hadn't been herself since returning from the Temple.
"Kanna, is Hena sick?"
"She's not sick, exactly. But she's hiding something—even from me..."
_It's probably because of what Daisy told her. I should have pressed for more details..._
Was Daisy the cause of Hena's troubled state? It seemed that woman hadn't only entangled herself with the male leads, but had also caused problems for Hena.
So Hena was suffering because of *me*?
_What exactly did Daisy say to her?_
Wait—I still had the note from Gabriel! And my translator had been fixed. If I read it now, I would finally understand what Daisy had told both Gabriel and Hena.
"Kanna, please bring me the note that Sir Gabriel gave me."
"It should be in your room. I'll fetch it immediately."
Kanna departed and returned some time later.
But her eyes were brimming with tears. Something had happened.
"Kanna? What is it?"
"My lady... I'm so sorry... The note..."
Sobbing, Kanna handed me the document.
I took it and felt my heart sink.
The ink had run and bled, transforming all the words into an illegible mess of smeared lines.
"I think I ruined it while doing the laundry," Kanna wept. "I'm sorry, my lady. I'm so sorry."
She was crying harder than she had when Donau kidnapped her. Perhaps she feared my wrath?
"Kanna."
"*Sob*... Yes?"
"Everything is fine. Would I scold you for ruining a note?"
Of course I was disappointed—devastated, really—but I couldn't blame her for an accident. After all, *I* was the one who had carelessly asked her to take the document.
_Now I'll never know what was written there._
I couldn't return to Gabriel and ask him to explain. He would think I was illiterate! Evangeline was an aristocrat—she *must* be able to read! In this chaos of frustration, a brilliant idea suddenly occurred to me.
"Daisy?"
"Yes?"
There was one other person I could question. After all, the testimony had been based on Daisy's account. So I simply needed to find Daisy herself!
Last time, I had been penniless because I'd spent everything on holy water. But this time, I would approach her with a substantial sum of money and offer a sincere apology. Money couldn't heal emotional wounds, but it was a start...
"If only I knew where this Daisy lives, I could find her."
"Why? Do you have business with her?"
Jelly, who had just returned from his walk, interjected at precisely the right moment.
"Jelly."
He and Daisy shared a common past. Perhaps he knew her whereabouts?
Pudding leaped from Jelly's arms and climbed into my lap, kneading enthusiastically with his little paws. He seemed to have worked hard today—there were fresh claw marks across Jelly's face. Fortunately, werewolves healed quickly.
"Jelly, do you know where she lives?"
"No? How would I know?" He shrugged carelessly. "But she knows I'm here, so if she needs me, she'll find me herself."
_And **this** is supposed to be the second male lead who endured countless trials alongside Daisy?_
His striking looks and werewolf nature had made him a prime candidate for that role. But the more I observed him, the more he resembled... a simpleton.
Or perhaps... a dim-witted dog?
Jelly transformed into his wolf form and curled up on my bed without so much as a by-your-leave. It was a clear nonverbal signal: *"I'm going to sleep now. Don't disturb me."*
It seemed I wasn't raising a dashing second protagonist, but a spoiled teenager.
I couldn't bring myself to kick him out. What should I do? Perhaps I should ask Gabriel...
That *useless*—
I clicked my tongue in irritation.
Then Kanna offered a brilliant suggestion:
"Daisy used to work at this estate, didn't she? You could ask the butler. He should have her information on file."
Pudding meowed approvingly.
_My Kanna is so clever! I could applaud her._ Not at all like that useless furball currently occupying my bed.
"Kanna, thank you. You've been tremendously helpful."
"My lady..."
Strike while the iron is hot. I needed to speak with the butler immediately.
"I'll prepare everything for our departure," Kanna said.
There was no point in visiting the butler just to obtain Daisy's address. Kanna would handle the preparations while I gathered information. A perfect division of labor.
As soon as I stood up, Pudding began scurrying after me. I picked him up and deposited him beside Jelly's slumbering wolf form.
"Will you wake Jelly while I speak with the butler?"
How convenient that he understood human speech. I scratched behind Pudding's ears, and he purred contentedly.
_Ah... even in this world, cats are the greatest remedy for stress._
"Don't tell Hena anything," I instructed Kanna.
"Understood. I'll simply say we're going out briefly."
I couldn't bring Hena along when my entire purpose was to interrogate Daisy about what she had told her. I would also discover what she had revealed to Gabriel. And I would offer her money as compensation.
An excellent plan.
_What if they don't appreciate my approach?_
In real life, perhaps not. But this was the world of a romance novel, and Daisy was a secondary villain who would constantly obstruct the protagonist. The script demanded her frequent appearances.
Everything would work out fine.
Although my conscience did prick at me. Just a little.