A Butterfly Through the Mist - Chapter 106

However, what visited that night was not a thief, but a peaceful sleep.

The next day, Tilia woke up late, just as Ilex had said. After enjoying a breakfast full of her favorite foods, she toured his mansion.

“Essentine Mansion has belonged to the Davenport family ever since it was purchased by the late Duke Preston Davenport. The glass greenhouse and the fountain in the back garden were also installed at that time.”

The butler, who introduced himself as Benjamin Rogers, seemed to take great pride in the mansion.

Following the kindly looking old man, Tilia listened to the history of Essentine Mansion.

“The late Duke Preston Davenport bought this mansion to please the Duchess. Naturally, the landscaping and decorations were all arranged to suit her tastes. Although the late Duchess did not stay here long… during the time she was awake, this was her favorite place.”

At those words, Tilia turned her head and looked at the various portraits scattered throughout the mansion.

They said the late Duke lived here until the day he died. In this Essentine Mansion, filled everywhere with traces of the wife he had loved and created it for.

Wasn’t that too cruel?

“The current Duke, who was especially fond of his grandfather, also spent most of his childhood here.”

Tilia, lost in thought while gazing at a portrait of the late Duchess, turned her head again at the butler’s words.

“Ilex did?”

“Yes, he especially loved the back garden. It’s hard to imagine now, but the Duke was quite a mischievous child.”

Hard to imagine? No, it was very easy.

Tilia easily pictured a cheeky young Ilex playing tricks over the heads of adults and let out a soft laugh.

Perhaps finding joy in her smile, the butler also beamed and continued his explanation.

When his detailed commentary stretched to the number of employees, the annual expenses, and even the notoriously demanding head chef, Tilia’s face grew slightly bewildered.

Do I really need to know all this?

Unaware of her confusion, the old butler remained enthusiastic. Just as she was debating whether to politely suggest they wrap it up, she thought, seeing how excited he was—probably because guests were so rare—and decided to let him continue out of kindness.

“This is the library. It holds numerous rare books passed down through the Davenport family. Of course, it also has most of the newly published works.”

At the end of a long corridor, they arrived at a vast library.

Wow, Tilia involuntarily let out a soft exclamation as she gazed at the densely packed shelves.

“Do you like books, Miss Tilia?”

“I… do like them.”

“That’s wonderful. Please feel free to visit here often.”

How could I visit often? It’s not my house.

Thinking that, Tilia still stepped into the library, drawn in as if bewitched, and began browsing the books.

Unlike her academy days, surrounded by books, working as a foreign consulate officer in Ontaroa had made it hard to even read a book a week.

It wasn’t for lack of money, but lack of time and energy. Especially after Alma Martin became her boss—with endless overtime—every bit of free time was spent catching up on sleep.

Still, her desire to read and learn had never disappeared. She often stared longingly at the library near her office, wishing she could visit it even once a week.

Now, before her eyes, unfolded a library as rich as that public one—maybe even richer.

Since it contained books passed down through the Davenport family, there must be rare, specialized texts not easily found elsewhere.

Without noticing the butler smiling fondly behind her, Tilia wandered through the library with a look of pure enchantment.

While marveling at the shelves that reached almost to the ceiling, she lifted her head—and saw a large portrait.

The late Duke, who had loved his wife so deeply, had even hung her portrait in the library where books alone would have sufficed.

Noticing Tilia staring intently at the lady smiling modestly in the portrait, hands neatly folded, the butler hurried forward to explain.

“This is the portrait of the Duchess commissioned by the late Duke for their first wedding anniversary. Isn’t she truly beautiful?”

“That ring…”

“Ah, the butterfly ring, you mean. That too was commissioned by the late Duke for their first anniversary. It was crafted with amethyst matching the Duchess’s eye color.”

Only then did Tilia notice that the lady in the portrait had violet eyes, and her lips parted slightly.

“Currently, the ring is in the possession of the current Duke. When the late Duke was still alive, he personally gifted it to his young grandson.”

The elderly butler standing next to Tilia wasn’t looking at the portrait but at memories of the past.

“We were all quite surprised when we learned that he had given the Duchess’s possession to the second son. As I’ve mentioned before, the late Duke dearly loved the Duchess. Yet he suddenly gifted such a cherished keepsake to Young Master Ilex…”

Speaking the word “Duchess” in a wistful voice, the butler smiled softly.

“Perhaps understanding how deeply the late Duke cherished it, mischievous young master Ilex always treated that ring with great care. He would frequently check on its condition and send it for cleaning. After he brought it back to the main house during his academy days, I never saw it again, but I’m sure he still treasures it to this day…”

“No.”

The butler’s sentimental story was abruptly cut off by Tilia’s firm voice.

Startled, Benjamin turned to see Tilia staring blankly at the butterfly ring in the portrait.

“Ilex doesn’t have it anymore.”

Regardless of the confusion in the butler’s wrinkled eyes, Tilia’s gaze remained fixed only on the Duchess’s lovingly smiling hand.

“Because right now…”

Muttering so softly it was barely audible, Tilia suddenly furrowed her brow and turned around.

“It looks like there are books upstairs too. How do I get up there?”

Noticing the slight tremor in his guest’s voice, the butler immediately and smoothly stepped back to answer.

“There is a staircase in the center of the room. I shall wait here. Please feel free to explore.”

***

The grand and elegant Davenport family mansion had, beneath it, a space that held an ancient darkness as deep as the house’s history.

“They committed suicide.”

“Yes.”

Ilex, now so accustomed to the dampness of the underground that it no longer felt strange—at times even more familiar than the bright surface—scanned the corpse laid out on the iron table with cold, lifeless eyes.

The intruder who had broken through several layers of defense to enter Tilia’s room had ultimately chosen suicide upon capture.

No—not just a petty thief. No mere pickpocket could have broken through the defenses of House Davenport.

His eyes sharp as blades, Ilex examined the body, then asked the knight standing behind him like a criminal.

“Any trace of identity?”

“Regrettably, we found nothing. No belongings, no tattoos.”

Frowning slightly, Ilex reached out and flipped the body over. The corpse, already beginning to stiffen with rigor mortis, was heavy as stone but flopped over like a doll.

Observing the naked body with a piercing gaze, Ilex suddenly walked toward the feet.

“…It wasn’t suicide.”

“Pardon?”

“Here. There’s a mark from a sharp needle.”

At his words, the knight immediately inspected the spot he indicated.

The Duke was right. Near the ankle, there was indeed a mark where a poisoned needle had struck, contrary to the belief that the intruder had bitten down on a poison capsule.

“…Forgive me, my lord. It was my error.”

“Reinvestigate the area where he collapsed. Interrogate the knights who pursued him as well.”

Ignoring the knight’s deep bow of apology, Ilex continued issuing orders.

“We can deal with punishment later. First, we find whoever is behind this.”

“Yes, sir!”

Leaving the now sharply focused knight behind, Ilex climbed the stairs leading up to the surface.

The higher he rose from the underground, the clearer the light became—and the darker the shadow cast across his face.

Who could it be?

When the heavy prison door opened, brilliant light poured down like a torrent. Yet the afternoon sunlight only highlighted the deep darkness he carried.

Who dared to lay a hand on my Tilia?

Clenching his teeth, Ilex scanned the outside world with a savage gaze.