Chapter 173

The Duke of Netri’s gaze wavered anxiously at the fully bloomed flower.

“What are you doing? In my mansion…?”

“Don’t worry; it’s not a daisy.”

Despite Scheuer’s kind reply, Erina, sitting across from her, seemed uneasy and started to reach for her sword. 
Scheuer continued, rubbing the Crown flower plant vigorously against the shard of the tablet.

“What I mean is that the mansion won’t be destroyed.”

As her words ended, transparent threads similar to what they had seen before began to extend from the shard.

At the same moment, Erina snatched the sword that was standing at the edge of the sofa and drew it immediately. 
Her quick response indicated that she hadn’t become the commander of the Second Knights by chance.

However, no matter how she swung her sword, the transparent threads didn’t disappear; they simply passed through like light.

Erina’s lips tightened in confusion, her expression twisting in disbelief. 
The Duke, still sitting on the sofa, seemed frozen, stammering as if he had forgotten his noble manners and the need to use formal speech.

“S-Scheuer, are you trying to break the agreement?”

“How is this breaking the agreement?”

Scheuer tilted her head, genuinely puzzled.

She raised her arm and waved it in the direction of the threads, casually shrugging her shoulders.

“Look. They’re just visible; they can’t harm anyone.”

“Why are you showing this to me now?”

“This thread indicates the path the tablet has taken.”

The threads extending from the shard pointed erratically somewhere in the room.

“If you found the tablet through legitimate means, then there’s nothing to worry about.”

When they pulled the thread from the palace, it had pointed toward the south, but now that they were in Netri’s estate, it was spreading out in all directions, making it difficult to determine its end.

She stood up, intent on following the direction of the threads.

Seeing the threads spread out and become untraceable, the Duke appeared oddly at ease.

“I knew you’d catch on the moment I asked about the tablets. Go ahead and take a look!”

Surprisingly, he leaned back against the sofa in a rough manner, arrogantly waving his hand.

Seeing the silver threads in front of him seemed to bother him.

‘Well, if you’re going to show it so openly, I appreciate it.’

Did he have some confidence to rely on?

As they were about to step out of the drawing room, a voice came from behind, sounding almost as if the Duke was trying to contain his anger.

“If what I said is true, then be prepared to tell His Majesty everything.”

With a quick glance back, Scheuer could only see the back of his head as he sat on the sofa.

The Duke continued in a low voice,

“You came all the way to the South, stirring things up without His Majesty’s permission; you’ll pay for this.”

Erina was watching Scheuer with an expression that showed she was at a loss.

‘Why is she so anxious? ‘

Erina hadn’t doubted that the Duke had forged the tablets, had she?

‘But then he is her father.’

That’s why she must have stayed close to him. Scheuer, maintaining her habitual smile, responded kindly to the Duke of Netri.

“Is that so?”

***

Some of the knights already stationed at the Duke of Netri’s estate had noticed the threads scattered throughout the mansion and were strengthening security measures.

This demonstrated just how well-trained the knights of Netri were.

“It has been confirmed that the offices on the fifth floor have been systematically ransacked. Given this unknown ability, we should consider the possibility of a sorcerer.”

As they were issuing strict orders, Raygrain and Scheuer emerged, prompting the knights to bow their heads and block their path.

“I’m sorry, Your Grace. Unfortunately, it seems there is an intruder in the mansion, so it would be best for you to stay with the Duke for safety.

The knight’s voice, initially confident, began to falter as he realized the cause of the heightened security lay in Scheuer’s hands.

“Miss…”

The knight instinctively used the title he had called her while she was in Netri’s territory but hesitated, sensing the cold atmosphere.

Raygrain, who stood beside Scheuer, finally broke the tense silence.

“Do the knights of Netri not distinguish between public and private matters? ”

Glancing at Raygrain’s icy expression, the knight quickly changed his tone.

“Your Grace…”

“Oh, I received permission from the Duke. But it seems the mansion is a bit chaotic?”

As the situation had been orchestrated to allow the beast to steal, Zero whistled from behind, amused by the calm inquiry.

The knight continued, prioritizing the information.

“It seems a thief has broken in.”

“Oh, then could you help us find out where this thread starts while we’re looking for the thief?”

“I’m sorry, but Her Grace is now a member of Blenga.”

This was a refusal, implying that as a knight of Netri, he could not heed her words.

However, just then, the reception room door swung open with a click, and Erina’s sharp voice cut through.

“I’ll find it for you.”

The earlier chaos seemed to have vanished, and she appeared calm, maintaining her usual demeanor.

“The junior knights will follow your orders, and the higher ranks will search for the intruder.”

“Yes, understood! ”

In an instant, the situation was organized. The knights dispersed efficiently to fulfill their assigned roles.

‘What’s going on? ’

Scheuer watched Erina with curiosity as she walked past her.

“I will guide you.”

‘It’s called guiding, but isn’t it just surveillance?’ However, given the visible threads and the presence of the knights, there was little she could do.

However, with the threads clearly visible, she had no way to act against her in front of the knights.

Looking around, Scheuer noticed that the threads extending from the shard of the tablet were tangled up but all pointed outward, toward the mansion’s exterior.

During their walk down the hallway, Erina didn’t say a word.

Due to the short duration of the Crown flower plant’s effect, she had to bloom flowers every few minutes.

After blooming a new flower and rubbing it against the shard, the silver threads spread out once again, prompting Scheuer to ask seriously,

“Your Grace, how far have we gone? ”

“Just keep going straight.”

“Wow, as expected, Your Grace has keen eyesight.”

“If it gets too hard, just leave the shard to me and focus on the flowers.”

“Then I’ll leave it to you.”

As Scheuer placed the shard in his large hand with a clatter, he replied nonchalantly,

“If it’s your request.”

Despite the conversation contrasting sharply with the atmosphere of the Duke’s estate, Erina remained silent, merely continuing to walk.

***

By the time they reached the garden, the end of the thread was still nowhere in sight.

Having confirmed that the threads were not visible within the mansion, Erina let out a silent sigh of relief.

She couldn’t fully trust her father and couldn’t be sure whether it was just bluster or not.

She felt anxious, worried that some forged evidence might actually come to light within the mansion.

‘Fortunately, it doesn’t seem to be anything that happened inside the mansion.’

If it wasn’t in the mansion, there was still a chance to deny knowledge of it.

Erina calmly focused on the silver thread that indicated the path she needed to take.

She had heard that the flowers bloomed by Scheuer had various abilities, but she never imagined they would be so diverse.

Just how far could they go?

It was a family known for blooming flowers with swords, yet Scheuer was handling her powers freely as if they were her own, without any sword in sight.

‘Since Scheuer is using her powers, I shouldn’t use my sword energy today.’

Erina recalled the method she had read about in books, where the powers return to their master, as she continued walking.

However, for some reason, the direction the thread indicated was toward a shabby building behind the Duke’s estate.

At least that was how she remembered it. It was a place she had rarely used since childhood. It was a dump filled with junk, a place she only knew existed. Had it not been for today, she wouldn’t have remembered it at all.

‘No.’

Her heart raced, accompanied by a wave of suspicion.

‘No, it can’t be… damn it.’

She clenched her teeth to hide her frustration, but Scheuer’s voice rang out clearly, almost annoyingly so.

Scheuer casually asked a knight from Netri, who was faithfully following the command to find the end of the thread,

“Is that building being used again? I don’t think it was used much when I was there.”

“Oh, no. It’s still locked.”

Yet the thread was clearly pointing to that building. It was a thin and barely visible line, but the direction was sharp and clear.

The thread was tangled in the narrow space in front of the small, dilapidated building. The firmly locked padlock looked rusted, as if it hadn’t been opened by anyone for a long time.

Erina asked one of the nearby knights,

“What about the key? ”

“The Duke manages it.”

She grated her teeth again.

***

“This is slander! ” 

Upon hearing the truth, Duke Netri shouted loudly, his face flushed with anger.

“You said the lock was on? ” 

He abruptly stood up, rummaging through his desk drawers, and pulled out a bundle of keys, throwing it onto the table. The sharp clatter was overshadowed by his raised voice.

“Go check it out. Am I crazy? ”

In response, Zero replied politely but firmly, 

“Your Grace, you personally cut the lock with your sword and confirmed the interior. Tools were found inside that were used to forge the tablet.”

“Sir Zero, you know me well enough. I would never stoop to forge a mere tablet like that.

“First, I will report this to His Majesty and the temple. You can clarify things later in person.”

His usual amiable demeanor was replaced with a coldness that held no trace of a smile.

Duke Netri’s face twisted in a mix of rage, injustice, and irritation.

“Not yet corpses. Still, we rot “