Episode 5

The beautifully adorned rose garden of the Imperial Palace.

Inside the lovely gazebo visible along the white stone path, a date between budding lovers was in full swing.

Of course, that’s how it appeared from a distance.

Between the Duke Adler and me, seated across a small table, flowed only a chilly silence, much like the frosty atmosphere of our first encounter at the Emperor’s palace.

The one change was that his blue eyes, which had not even glanced at me before, were scrutinizing me today.

After the butler had placed an elegant tea set on the table and disappeared, I was the first to speak.

“Your name is… Irenaeus von dem Adler, isn’t it?”

“Yes, that is correct. Princess Charlotte von der Haus.”

“Hmm, since the name is quite long, may I call you Lennaeus?”

“That is not acceptable.”

“You can simply call me Charlotte as well.”

“I dislike that.”

He was a man sharp as a knife, resolved never to use a friendly nickname, even upon his death.

Acting pricey. I pouted my lips.

“Alright. I am about to ask you a few questions, Duke.”

“Yes.”

“From now on, you may refuse to testify, and even if you do not testify….”

“What… are you saying right now?”

Duke Adler looked at me with bewildered eyes.

Ah, this isn’t right.

In my mind, this situation was no different from ‘interrogating a murderer,’ and the habits from my past life as a prosecutor inadvertently surfaced. Thankfully, I hadn’t gone as far as to say ‘you have the right to be assisted by an attorney.’

I quickly shut my mouth and showed him the most harmless smile I could muster. I had to do my best to pretend to be smitten with him, if nothing else, to conceal my true purpose.

“Ah! I mean, through questions, I want to know everything about you, Duke. You know? That I fell for you at first sight.”

“Is that… the look of someone who has fallen in love at first sight?”

His doubtful gaze made me suddenly relax the intensity in my eyes that I had, as if interrogating a criminal.

“Of course. It’s a look filled with ardent longing for you, Duke.”

A longing to catch a murderer, that is.

At my answer, Duke Adler’s hand, which was about to pick up his teacup, paused mid-air. Soon, his eyes began to scrutinize me. Then, he casually crossed his long legs and leaned back in his chair, at which moment his abundant golden hair gleamed dazzlingly in the sunlight.

I swallowed hard at his elegant appearance. His looks were absolutely my type.

The man soon lifted his chin slowly with an arrogant expression and gave a slight nod.

“Very well. Ask your questions. I will endeavor to answer only the truth.”

The information I learned from questioning him was as follows:

Name: Irenaeus von dem Adler (Nickname: Lennaeus, though he refuses to be called that)

Age: 27 years old

Education: Graduated from the Royal Military Academy

Occupation: Imperial Secretary of State

Family: Eldest son among one brother and one sister (Note: The former Duke Adler died of unknown causes a year ago)

Physical Size: 185cm tall, with a finely muscled physique

Hobby: Swimming

Specialty: Shooting

First Love: Declined to answer

At my last question, the Duke suddenly frowned.

“Why on earth are you asking about a first love?”

“Well, it’s essential to understand the past of my man.”

“My… what?”

The Duke was at a loss for words at my reply, his mouth agape.

In a ‘murder investigation,’ the most important thing is the ‘motive for the murder.’ Surprisingly, understanding the suspect’s past can be quite helpful in the investigation because it allows us to infer the ‘motive for the murder.’

Especially if the fiancée who became a wife on the first night of marriage is murdered, one cannot help but consider ‘jealousy.’

How about the hypothesis that the Duke, who has a beloved lover, committed the crime because he was forced to marry me by the Emperor?

I looked at him with eyes full of intense curiosity about whether my hypothesis was correct, and the Duke let out a wry laugh at such a gaze.

“The Princess who speaks thus must have a not-so-simple past herself.”

“I have settled my past. Now, my mind is filled only with thoughts of the Duke.”

That was true. I was preoccupied with thoughts of how to capture him. The Duke looked at me with a peculiar gaze.

“I have never had a first love, nor have I ever had a lover before.”

“You don’t have to hide it in front of me. I am open-minded about my man’s past.”

“Isn’t it often those who say such things who cling to the past the most? Well, it doesn’t matter if you don’t believe it, but it’s true.”

“Does that mean I am to be the Duke’s first and last lover?”

It’s like a feast rumored to have nothing to eat. It was ironic that the man who is ranked number one as the most desired bachelor in the Empire actually has no experience in love. I attributed it to having lived without much leisure thus far… and somehow, I felt a pang of sympathy for this man as well.

I gave the Duke a faint smile out of a sense of unnecessary camaraderie.

However, he took a sip of tea with a cool expression, without a response.

Over the rim of his teacup, his sharp gaze seemed to pierce through me.

“Then, allow me to ask the Princess a question as well.”

“What… is it?”

I tensed up at his sharp inquiry. As I anxiously awaited the Duke’s question, he slowly opened his mouth.

“What do you find so appealing about me?”

Caught off guard by the question, I furrowed my brows without realizing. What kind of dog bone question is this?

“I, I told you, it was love at first sight.”

But the Duke did not easily let my answer pass.

“There must be a reason you fell at first sight. I am curious to know what about me the Princess found so enchanting.”

“That, well… your, the Duke’s…”

I racked my brain to come up with a believable answer to his skeptical question.

The Duke looked at me with suspicious eyes as I hesitated without answering.

In my desperation, I opened my mouth with a resigned feeling of letting things take their course.

“The Duke’s… dazzling golden hair like spring sunlight on a meadow, blue eyes reminiscent of a deep and clear lake, smooth porcelain-like white skin, a sculpted and prominent nose, attractive lips, broad shoulders, tall stature, a finely muscled body as if chiseled, a voice low and sweet yet cool, an aura of dignity… I fell for all of it at first sight.”

After laying out this rather lengthy reason, I looked at the Duke with a breathless and flushed face. I couldn’t have squeezed out any more than this.

At my hastily concocted answer, the Duke’s handsome eyebrows twitched slightly.

Anxious, I watched his expressions carefully.

Could he possibly have detected the lie?

“Well, I understand.”

He soon returned to his usual cool expression and responded while stroking his earlobe.

*

Having finished the investigation disguised as a first date, I was thoroughly exhausted.

“My goodness, are you alright, Princess? It seems you overdid it today.”

“Yes. It’s been a very tough day, both mentally and physically.”

With a haggard face, I crawled into bed with the help of the butler.

A murder investigation following a competition. It seems it was too much for my frail body.

“I will bring dinner to your bed.”

The butler, with a worried look, brought simple food to the bed.

While dipping soft bread into potato soup, the butler informed me that John had arrived.

I lifted my head quickly, surprised by his earlier than expected arrival.

“John is already here?”

“Yes, Sir Watson is in the drawing-room. Can you come out to the drawing-room now?”

“No. Absolutely not.”

Though my spirits were high, in my current state, I couldn’t muster the courage to get dressed and go out to the drawing-room.

“Shall I send Sir Watson away then?”

“He must have brought the task I assigned; I can’t send him away. Tell him to come to my room.”

“What? To the Princess’s bedroom?”

The butler seemed worried that letting a man into the Princess’s bedroom might give rise to scandalous rumors.

“One more bad reputation here will not make a difference to the overall trend.”

I said nonchalantly.

Having completed the first investigation of the suspect earlier today, I was eager to see the case records quickly.

The butler, who seemed slightly hesitant, apparently couldn’t disobey my command and brought John into the bedroom.

John, upon entering the room, appeared slightly taken aback at the sight of me leaning against the bed, clad only in a thin lace nightgown with a shawl draped over it.

I offered him a sincere apology first.

“I apologize if it was impolite. But I’m at the end of my strength and simply couldn’t get out of bed.”

“Here, this is the task you assigned me this morning.”

John, with a slightly flushed face, averted his gaze and extended his arm to hand me a stack of documents.

“A copy of the Imperial Investigation Bureau’s records? How did you obtain this?”

“Trade secret.”

At John’s indifferent response, I shrugged my shoulders. Well, how he acquired it isn’t really important.

I focused on reading the thick investigation records. Summarizing the records, it roughly went like this:

Victim 1: A woman in her 20s, a resident governess of ‘Count Mosston’s family’. Strangled with a cord in the city on a weekday afternoon. 16 weeks ago.

Victim 2: A man in his 30s, the head chef of the upscale steak restaurant ‘Sholto’. Strangled with a cord late at night in the restaurant. 15 weeks ago.

Victim 3: A woman in her 40s, owner of ‘Smol’ bakery frequently visited by commoners. Strangled with a cord on her way to volunteer work on a weekend morning. 10 weeks ago.

Victim 4: A man in his 40s, the secretary of ‘Duke Dost’, the Secretary of State. Strangled with a cord near his home in the early morning. 8 weeks ago.

Without taking my eyes off the documents, I asked him.

“Four victims, all strangled.”

“That’s why the suspect is presumed to be a well-built man over 180 cm tall, likely with some training.”

At John’s response, I bit my lip hard.

That description certainly matched the Duke Adler’s appearance.