Two days after returning from Lady Sinclair's mansion, Eloise found herself alone in the house she'd inherited from her father's godmother.
"Ugh! Oh, dust!"
With every step, clouds of dust rose, and Eloise—hastily brushing it away—opened the window.
Perhaps the frame had rotted from long neglect? The window creaked and barely budged.
Just when she was beginning to worry the window would break rather than open, the frame finally lifted slightly and cold air rushed in from outside.
"Phew..."
Only then was Eloise able to catch her breath. After coughing subsided, she could properly examine the mansion's interior.
*It's not as bad as I thought.*
Perhaps it was because the outside—covered in ivy—looked like a ruin.
Inside the mansion, which she'd entered with difficulty, there was considerable dust, but everything wasn't as terrible as she'd imagined.
But that was her impression *after* reaching the second floor.
When she'd first opened the front door, the floor directly ahead had collapsed—and she'd debated for a long while whether to simply turn around and leave.
Fortunately, that had been the worst spot in the mansion.
Thanks to this, there was nothing further to disappoint her. Eloise walked alone through the entire house, reaching the second floor.
*With a little renovation, it would be quite nice.*
The problem was that "a little renovation" in the capital was not at all easy.
If this mansion had been in Feltham, she would have quickly completed repairs—hiring or asking for help from her family and the villagers.
But in the capital, there was nowhere to expect such assistance.
*We could, of course, hire workmen here—but it would be too expensive.*
Eloise looked at the table. Newspapers and magazines purchased on the street lay there.
On the way, she'd leafed through the newspaper and—as expected—found numerous job postings. Of course, there were also several advertisements for mansion repairs and cleaning.
The ads listed prices the advertisers themselves considered reasonable.
The problem was that for Eloise—accustomed to Cambon and Feltham's rates—these amounts were so high she'd had to recount the figures several times.
*I have money, but I can't spend it thoughtlessly.*
She'd thought she could use her saved funds to make minor repairs to the mansion. She'd been very wrong.
Eloise walked to the table and rummaged through her bag, which lay atop the newspapers.
Soon she found the letter at the very bottom and sighed.
It was a letter sent by Mr. and Mrs. Severton.
The letter began with concern for Eloise—who had gone alone to the capital—and instructions to behave with the utmost politeness to Lady Fairfax.
Then the topic turned to this mansion.
*"...The transfer of ownership is now complete. So I thought you might need it while you're there—I'm sending the house deeds along with some money. Find out about the taxes you need to pay, and if you're short, let me know."*
Seeing the words "transfer of ownership," Eloise sighed heavily again.
She'd heard from locals that the godmother's son and other relatives had also visited this mansion.
Judging by the timing, it had been after the will revealed the house would pass to Mr. Severton. It seemed they'd rushed over—even before the funeral ended—to see what kind of property it was.
The real estate agent Eloise had hired separately to handle the house documents had immediately clicked his tongue upon seeing the mansion.
*"You've gotten yourselves into quite a mess."*
*"What do you mean?"*
*"You said they contested the inheritance at first, then suddenly changed their attitude?"*
That was correct. Thanks to this, Mr. Severton had been able to quickly settle a dispute that could have dragged on—and return home.
*"A house like this brings nothing but tax losses. The capital levies fines for property neglect. You either need to demolish it or restore it."*
The agent had explained that since the transfer of ownership was complete, all responsibility now rested with Mr. Severton—including repair costs or fines.
*I'll have to contact home again.*
Eloise rubbed her aching temple with a finger.
*Why did Father's godmother even bequeath this mansion?*
She'd heard the woman had been of sound mind right up to her final day.
Moreover, people said she'd expressed displeasure with her children—who had argued about the inheritance in her very presence.
So she'd spoken extensively with Mr. Severton, who'd remained by her side to the end, and died holding his hand tightly.
*So why did she leave behind such a burden?*
The real estate agent had said that sometimes people did this to prevent their children from suffering losses—transferring debt-laden property to distant relatives instead.
But no matter how much she considered it, Father's godmother didn't seem like someone capable of such a thing.
That was why Eloise was now—despite the difficulties—inspecting the mansion.
*I think she had some other intention.*
She couldn't have simply passed this to her godson who'd come to see her off without reason.
The mansion, which had initially seemed empty, upon closer inspection proved full of belongings left behind.
"These are... detective novels."
The spines bore the godmother's initials—so these appeared to be books she'd read when living in the capital.
Examining the books left behind, Eloise was somewhat surprised.
Not only was an entire cabinet filled with detective fiction—among them were quite a few rare first editions.
If anyone had known their value, they surely would have taken them. But since they stood among old-looking volumes, it seemed those who'd entered had mistaken them for ordinary books and passed by.
But among them, one book stood with its spine turned inward.
*What kind of book would be placed backward?*
She pulled it out. The cover bore no title.
*A new way to intrigue readers?*
She opened the book. Inside was handwritten text.
**[To whoever finds this book: Would you like to play a treasure hunt?]**
"Huh?"
Eloise looked at the inscription in confusion.
Looking more closely, she recognized the godmother's handwriting—which she'd seen once before.
"A treasure hunt?..."
*What kind of joke is this?*
Eloise continued reading.
Though she'd begun with a smile, gradually her expression grew more serious.
"Is this... a cipher?"
Seeing the sheet covered with dots, lines, circles, squares, and triangles, Eloise's voice rose in excitement.
Come to think of it, when her father had first taught her cryptography, he'd mentioned being taught as a child by his godmother—who loved such things.
Eloise momentarily forgot about the mansion's tax problems and read the text following the cipher with a pounding heart.
**[Anyone who reaches the end of this riddle will receive a reward worthy of their efforts and wisdom. May God's blessing be upon you.]**
It was unclear when this had been arranged, but the handwriting in the notebook was firm.
*She probably created this before falling ill—to have some kind of entertaining event.*
Eloise remembered a game she'd seen at Lady Sinclair's mansion. A popular parlor game involving solving riddles using old, obsolete military codes.
She'd asked and been told it had been fashionable for several years. So it was entirely possible her godmother had been preparing a game here before her illness.
*Unless she retrieved the reward she'd prepared later.*
*Perhaps if I can solve this, there's something that will help with the taxes?*
Having thought this, Eloise smiled bitterly.
After all, at Lady Sinclair's house, the reward for solving the riddle had been a not-very-expensive uncut gemstone.
The code had been simple. Eloise had easily deciphered it and given the answer to Beatrice, who'd received the reward.
So even if a reward remained here, it would most likely be a slightly larger banknote or some item suitable for gifting.
Eloise placed the book in her bag and closed the window.
She felt chilled from being in the draft for so long. She needed to return quickly.
Besides, Beatrice had invited her to another appointment this evening.
Perhaps because Eloise accommodated her so well—or because she'd given her the answer to the riddle at Lady Sinclair's mansion—Beatrice had grown quite fond of Eloise and took good care of her.
After closing the window and leaving the mansion, Eloise hailed a carriage and hurried back to the Fairfax residence.
The moment she stepped from the carriage and walked inside—
"Eloise!"
Beatrice's excited voice rang out from above.
**"Lady Sinclair sent you a letter!"**