The Sixth Plan. To Know Thy Enemy. (6)
Charlotte adamantly claimed that she was only being taken advantage of by Count Petrika himself.
“I will give my testimony against Count Petrika and I also remember the face of the servant who had given me the poisoned weed from before. I honestly hope that it can be some sort of a little atonement for Amanda as well as the child.”
As if he was sincerely apologizing, Charlotte lowered her head slightly. Even as I was confused by all the anger and sadness, I still had to think. Was she really not aware of the fact that the poisonous weed would have killed my child?
“Really—if you really knew that the poisonous plant would cause a simple stomach upset, there would be no reason to try and prevent Carl from consuming that drink. It would have been much more advantageous for the said plan which you just mentioned that Carl became sick instead of Theodora, who was obviously born from my own belly. But you had taken Carl back then and sent him away.”
“I only did that because I thought that it would be a serious matter for him to drink that himself.”
Charlotte was taken aback momentarily, but she quickly recovered and instantly excused herself. It seemed like she was not a really good liar.
“A written order from Count Petrika himself. I can’t put my trust in you without it.”
“That thing—”
“Don’t say no. The Count would never convey his orders just through mouth.”
Those were the words that my mother seemed to have remarked. Even though my father was often at home, Count Petrika’s messenger would still give him a letter that needed to be opened by hand. The person who was sent by Count Petrika would sometimes be my father’s colleague like Baron Viette, but the messenger had never conveyed the Count’s message at all.
Was it because of my confident voice? As if she tried to emphasize her sincerity, the bitterness that escaped from her face while looking at me seemed like she was actually clinging to me. Her shrunken body was slowly straightened up and Charlotte began to ask as she tucked her fluttering hair back behind her ear.
“If I give you the order, what will you offer me in return?”
Charlotte, who had her arms crossed while her head tilted crookedly, seemed to have a very different impression from earlier. She moved her steps lightly and took a seat in her chair by the tea table while looking straight at me.
“Including the order from Count Petrika, if there is any other proof that you really have received his order—hand them over to me. And also, not the lie that you’ve just told, but the original plan that you are well aware of. As a reminder, Count Petrika would have given you that poisonous weed on purpose just to turn you into a criminal. That way, you, as the accomplice, will eventually die and the evidence will just vanish into thin air.”
“…Even so, I won’t say or even give you anything unless you offer me something as well.”
Charlotte’s eyes flashed with rage, but it quickly faded in a single breath. I had seen a lot of people who were good at managing their facial expressions, but she seemed to have the most freedom in framing her facial expressions and voice—this Charlotte—out of anyone whom I had ever seen before. With that kind of ability, she must have shown a proper sense of such decorated appearance to the person who wanted it right at the moment it was truly needed. I had no intention of letting her live in the first place, but I had been aiming to use Charlotte to the fullest, who was a great liar in dealing with Count Petrika, as the key witness.
I needed some strong evidence.
“Charlotte, I will offer you a new identity as well as a name and send you off to a very far place. Probably no one in the East or West knows your face. The money I give you will depend on the proof you give me.”
“You have to take real good care of me.”
It was utterly disgusting to see that she was actually trying to take care of herself while casually recalling the incident of hurting an innocent child before.
“I don’t want to see any blood being spilled in the Duchy anymore. If Count Petrika is really planning on something bad again, I just want to stop it all.”
She put her hands across her chest and looked downwards. A lady from a Viscount family who had become the Duchess only due to Count Petrika. A woman who began to whine at her mother-in-law just because she couldn’t really take care of the Duchy’s internal affairs with her own hands. Charlotte must have been looking down on me since the beginning. Similar to Merilyn, she must have been born into a Count’s family and raised with respect. In other words, she had probably—implicitly—looked down on me, who was a mere Viscount’s daughter.
I didn’t have the confidence to fake a desperate look on me like Charlotte. I just hoped that she would believe in this weak voice of mine.
“Great. If I can get revenge on Count Petrika for trying to have me killed, it’s best to cooperate with you then. Take a seat, Amanda. Since the story might take a while.”
Charlotte’s voice instantly turned rather confident before she even knew it as if she had taken the initiative at that moment. Charlotte then raised her chin with an unfamiliar face that was tinged with arrogance which she had no intention of hiding at all.
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