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However, where there is light, there must be shadow. This was the main motif in “Espressivo of Light and Darkness” and also the sad reality of this world. Of course, I didn’t intend on refusing all of it. Just like the Dark guild, there were some shadows that this country needed, too. If one were to word it in a somewhat pompous way, there were some people who could not live in the light.

My pet theory was that ‘There are exceptions to everything’. However, there were exceptions to these exceptions as well. If I were to explain it further— Oh, it seemed that the person I was waiting for had arrived. Appearing abruptly, a girl linked her arm with mine.

“Hehe, sorryfor the wait,” a charming voice whispered into my ear.

When I shifted my gaze to the direction of the voice, a beautiful woman with reddish hair was smiling at me. It was Isabella, the lead actress of a leading theatre troupe located in the city, as well as the person who had become my informant. She was donning a disguise.

“I should be the one apologizing for calling you out so suddenly.”

She told me that she had heard something worrisome from a fan of hers. He said that an organization hidden within the shadows of Londobell had set their sights on Lady Sophia. It was unclear whether that statement was true. The Dark guild didn’t have any information about it either. Therefore, it was very likely that it was a false rumor. However, if it were true, it would be detrimental to Lady Sophia. So, in order to confirm whether it was true or not, I summoned Isabella.

‘You needn’t worry about being a little bit late,’ is what I wanted to reply to her but her expression suddenly transformed into disinterest.

“You have a sought-after actress clinging to you so show some excitement, will you?”

“I’m afraid that I am used to seeing beautiful women.”

There were many beautiful girls around me like Lady Sophia, Alicia and Fol as well. In comparison, calling  Rouché a ‘beauty’ was a much rarer occurrence, but when she was quiet, someone like Rouché wasn\'t bad-looking either. 

By the way, it wasn’t only the women who were beautiful. Or rather, I should say that there were more beautiful men in this world than women. I guess that was to be expected from an otome-game world.

Wondering just what I was thinking about, I noticed that Isabella was thinking about something as well.

“…Is something the matter?”

“Although it’s an honor to be classified as a ‘beautiful woman’, I also feel like I was being treated like an ordinary beauty. So I was wondering if I should express my thanks or get angry?”

I wanted to sigh and reply ‘Whichever is fine.’ but I restrained myself and decided to  bear with it. This was an issue that women, especially flourishing actresses, couldn’t ignore.

“Each woman possesses a different type of beauty so is there really any point in thinking about it?” 

“Then, between me and Lady Sophia, who do you find more beautiful?”

“… Hurting women’s feelings isn’t a habit of mine.”

“Isn’t saying that the same as answering? Well, I suppose I understand so it’s fine.”

Since I transmigrated when I was a student, my preferences were heavily influenced by it. For example, I had no problem eating foods children usually didn’t like and drinking my black tea straight was also due to my previous world’s influence. So in that sense… ah, it’s not really that important.

“More importantly, would you tell me in detail about the information you heard?”

“Ah, yes, that’s right. Since we’re already here, would it be alright for me to tell you while taking a stroll?”

Of course, I didn’t have any objections. Although she was in disguise, she was still a famous actress and neither of us could afford to stand out too much. Thus, we began walking but Isabella kept her arm linked with mine.

“…It’s hard to walk like this, you know?”

“Hey, stop looking so unhappy! That’ll ruin our pretense of being a kind big sister and a cute little brother doing some shopping, won’t it?”

“…Do we look the part?”

As she was in her twenties and I was thirteen, the only certain thing was that we didn’t look like a couple. However, if you were to ask me whether we look like siblings…I was  extremely doubtful about that.

…No, if it was a younger brother being at the beck and call of his free-spirited older sister, it might be possible.

“You’re not thinking something rude, are you?”

“I’m not. More importantly, could you tell me, in detail, about the information you heard?” I asked her as we walked along the main street. Even while talking about important things, we didn’t forget to pretend like we were simply having a casual conversation as we shopped. Isabella was better at this kind of acting than me.

“First off, I received this information from my patron. So fundamentally, I cannot tell you who I heard it from. You understand me, right?”

I nodded. The patron she spoke of was someone who supported Isabella, the actress. In other words, patrons were people of high status and they were the ones who made Isabella, the actress, into a star. Therefore, to sell out a patron would be the same as shooting yourself in the foot. She was perfectly justified in taking precautions and telling me that she wouldn’t disclose the source of the information.

But then, she had also added the word ‘fundamentally’. Deliberately putting in such a word could be interpreted as her declaration of being our ally if we were to find out that this person held open hostility towards Lady Sophia.

In other words, if she were to be compensated by securing her another patron or something of the sort, she would most likely disclose the source of her information. However, it was possible that a rumor that Isabella had sold out her patron would spread. Considering that she would be extracting information in the future as well, I wanted to treat it as a last resort.

“Naturally you have an alternate plan, don’t you?”

When I asked her this, Isabella flashed me a charming smile.

“As expected of the ‘Sir Butler who cuddled up to the Saintess’.”

“…What’s with that?”

I knew that people called Lady Sophia a Saintess, but ‘Sir Butler’? Come to think of it, I did hear something like that before…

“Seems like you’re the talk of the high society. But, well, it was also the start to the conversation with my patron.”

Isabella said that she talked to her patron about the school festival. When one becomes responsible for tutoring a noble, not to mention a daughter of a marquis, in acting, they gain prestige. If someone were to hide this fact, they would be suspected of feeling guilty about something. Coming to this conclusion, Isabella didn’t hide anything besides becoming my informant.

Well…she was right. It was very likely that if a person was able to become Isabella’s patron, they would naturally know that a play would take place during the school festival and they would even know that Isabella was the one who tutored them in acting.

“Then, what did they tell you?”

“All I heard from him was that ‘those guys apparently even have their eyes on Lady Sophia’.”

“He told you that?” I asked.

Isabella smiled as if to say: ‘You get it, don’t you?’ 

“Yes, it looked as if he felt like he let something he wasn’t supposed to slip out and he didn’t tell me anything more than that. So I didn’t press him for answers.  I tried asking my other patrons as well. And in doing so-”

Apparently, her other patrons knew about it as well. And so, relying on the information that she got from the other patron, Isabella broached the topic with them as if she already knew about it herself and was able to slyly extract information out of them.

As a result, she was able to obtain the information that a Doll maker of Frau had set their sights on Lady Sophia.

“Doll maker of Frau…it’s some kind of a codename, isn’t it?”

“Undeniably. Apparently, on the black market, there even exist goods such as black magic that can break a person’s spirit and things like that. Since they have acquired the skills to use this black magic, one can’t deny that they are… doll makers.”

“It can’t be…”

I didn’t say this because I thought that it was impossible. It was certainly hinted that a part of the ‘darkness’ in “Espressivo of Light and Darkness” was the existence of such dark magic. It was a taboo that Lady Sophia attempted to get her hands on during a certain route, after falling to darkness.

“Do you know something about it, Cyril?”

“I’ve heard rumors about it. I never made it as far as to determine whether they actually exist or not but… if this kind of dark magic truly exists, we definitely cannot let it go unchecked.”

Not to mention that if they truly were after Lady Sophia, we absolutely couldn’t just let it be.

“I thought that you’d say that so I also obtained the code with which you can get in contact with the Doll maker of Frau.”

“…As I thought, you’re brilliant.”

Her companions were people powerful enough to be able to become her patrons. No matter how close they were, they wouldn’t just blurt out such things so easily. She was able to go as far as gathering information from these people and even obtaining the code. 

I guess that in front of the patrons, she acted as if shared their sentiments?

“Ah, have you perhaps gotten scared of me? That I might just be pretending to be your ally…?”

“…No, I do not get scared of such things at this point.”

‘Because I didn’t eliminate that possibility from the very start.’ 

I, naturally, didn’t say it out loud. At that time, I was able to understand Isabella’s feelings of wariness towards Lady Sophia very well. However, even if I were to put deciding whether I could trust her or not on hold, at the same time, I didn’t intend on being needlessly suspicious of her. 

“Because I have decided that I would trust and utilize you.”

“Hehe, you’re making such a manly face. You’re so cheeky for a kid!”

She squeezed me tightly. Since she did it in the middle of the main road, it really stood out. Even if there were people watching us, they probably just saw it as us messing around. Although I could understand it in that sense, it was very effective…

“…May I ask you to stop with the teasing?”

“You’re right, she doesn’t seem like the type to get jokes either.” 

Isabella chuckled and finally let go of my arm. I felt like it came a little too late but since I wouldn’t be able to move when necessary with our hands linked, in that sense, one could say that I was saved.

“Then, do you know who uses this code?”

“Unfortunately, no. But there are several candidates.”

 It seemed that we were currently headed to one of the proposed sites.

“If that’s the case, you could have just given me the information.”

“Oh, is the actress, whose specialty is to act, unneeded?”

“That’s not what I meant…. But I understand. If you won’t mind then…”

If she made a wrong choice, there was a risk that the fact Isabella leaked information she got from her patrons would come to light. I was worried about it but it seems like she already took that into consideration. It would be more advantageous to not hold back here and compensate her in the form of a reward later.

Thus, the first place we came to was a shop located on the main street, showcasing women’s accessories.They used a large glass pane with a high degree of transparency as their showcase, so I was able to infer that it was a high-end shop. It was oriented towards wealthy commoners but the quality was more than enough to pass for a shop aimed at low-ranked nobles. As I was thinking along these lines, a man—most likely the shop manager— came out from the inside, emitting a calm aura.

“Welcome! Are you looking for something?”

“The doll of Light and Darkness.”

“…Dear me, a doll of Light and Darkness?”

The correct code was to respond with: ‘To make them into a doll would be a shame.’ followed by ‘But I heard that there’s a doll maker for whom it’s possible.’ 

It seemed that the shop manager didn’t know this code…

“No, nevermind. We’re not really looking for anything in particular so could we take a look around?”

“Of course. If you need anything, please let me know.”

Having said so, for a short while, Isabella and I looked around at the articles this boutique was selling. This shop was one of the places that might use the code that Isabella had her eyes on. There was no need to doubt Isabella’s competency at this point. Thinking about it that way, this shop might not necessarily be completely uninvolved.

For example, as a matter of fact, this place might actually have been the correct one but one of us might have used the wrong code, or this code could have been just a decoy in order to reveal traitors from the start. Possibilities such as these couldn’t be denied. Taking this into consideration, I decided to look at the goods for a while and wait and see what the shop manager would do.

Incidentally, the accessories inside the shop were quite fashionable. Although the materials were nowhere near first-class goods, I had no objections saying that the designs were indeed, first class. As I admired them, thinking that it was to be expected of a shop located on the main road of the royal city, I discovered a blue corsage in the shape of a rose.

“…A blue rose corsage?”

“This blue rose accessory that symbolizes the royal family is very popular among celebrities. Of course, they’re restricted to designs that make it obvious that it’s a fake flower.”

“I see…”

Red roses symbolizing the Rosenberg marquis household were also a common appearance on the market. While the circumstances were different because the blue rose only grew within the royal castle grounds, I guess as long as one didn’t pretend that they were the real thing, there were no problems with selling them. I silently raised my hand and called over the shop manager who was observing us.

Afterwards, we went to other candidate shops but we weren’t able to successfully use the code in any of them. Although Isabella was overflowing with confidence at first, when she realized that the last shop was another miss, her shoulders drooped.

“Looks like it was a false rumor after all. I’m sorry, I made you go on a fool’s errand.”

“You don’t have to worry about that. Doing something like this is essential when confirming the truth for a lot of information. We cannot deem something a false rumor and discard it while failing to notice the truth sprinkled within.”

“If there’s any such information in the future, please do report it to me without hesitation,” I continued. Isabella appeared to be thinking about something.

“Deeming it a false rumor and discarding it while failing to notice the truth sprinkled within…could it be…”

“It appears like you’re onto something.” 

When Isabella lifted her head, her eyes indicated that I had caught on.

“To tell the truth, there is a place that I had automatically removed from the list, believing that there was no way that could be it.”

“I see. Was it a theatre?” I responded immediately and Isabella’s eyes went wide.

“H-how did you know?”

“Because you take a lot of pride in theatre. Since that’s the case, when your reason for removing it from the list was because you believed that there was no way that could be it, I was naturally able to pinpoint the place.”

At first, I thought of the theatre troupe that she was affiliated with. However, if her own theatre troupe was involved, there was indeed no way that she wouldn’t have noticed. Thinking about it this way meant that the theatres various theatre troupes used, were way more suspicious.

“…As expected, you’re really something. I thought that the theatre in the town square was suspicious. Normally I would think that it was impossible but since my patrons talked to me like I obviously knew the place…”

“A stage actress like you would naturally know a theatre.”

Thinking of it that way, it even added up to the first person carelessly letting the information slip. He probably thought that Isabella, someone who belonged to a theatre troupe, would know about it and blurted it out without thinking. Of course, at present time, this was a mere hypothesis, but—

“It appears that we have to go there and confirm it. But…what should we do? It would be better if ‘Isabella’ didn’t accompany me, wouldn’t it?

For example, even if the theatre turned out to be a bad place and exposing that would bring harm to her theatre troupe, it would most likely result in Isabella being talked about behind her back. Although I was taking these things into consideration, Isabella said that she would accompany me without any hesitation. As I thought, theatre was very sacred to her. Accompanied by this woman who was hiding this kind of resolve within her, I decided to head towards the theatre located in the town square.

Quite the interesting chapter! Though all the date-likes parts just made me go Oh no, oh no, oh no no no… lmao Thank you for reading!