“Um, er...what are you talking about? I’m just an ordinary employee.”
The man denied being Bill, but Kelly mercilessly pointed out his emotions from behind Lord Nazel.
“I can feel lying, panic, and unrest.”
“Mm-hmm, it seems that you are indeed Bill. Just like we communicated in advance, we have something to discuss with you.”
Bill was a small, plump, middle-aged man who’d started approaching old age. He looked older than Kelly’s father. He was using a handkerchief to wipe the rivers of sweat pouring down his face—perhaps he was panicking because his lie had been exposed. He seemed restless and fidgety.
Since I heard that he’d approached Kelly’s family offering them money, I’d expected a more confident man. He looks afraid of Lord Nazel. I understood that he was feeling awkward since he’d tried to forcefully court Kelly, a handmaiden under Lord Nazel’s employ, but was that enough to make him behave like this? It seemed that there was another factor at play here.
“Can we talk for a moment, Bill? I don’t mind having our conversation right here. What would you like to do?”
Lord Nazel’s smile carried undeniable pressure, so Bill yelped timidly once more.
“P-Please come farther inside.” Perhaps accepting that he couldn’t fool us, Bill hung his head dejectedly and led us to a drawing room deeper in the store.
I know how he feels. It’s impossible to disobey when faced with the pressure of Lord Nazel’s smile.
We followed Bill into the drawing room, which was as luxurious as the rest of the store. I could feel the Shipish Company’s ostentation.
But their taste is a bit... I’m not sure how to put it. There are many gaudy, mysterious ornaments like the ones that used to be in our manor in Sutrena.
We each sat down on a high-quality leather sofa, and an employee brought us tea. Even the teacups were flashy. Kelly and Torre stood by behind us, ready to move at any time.
Once the employee left, Lord Nazel started the conversation.
“Now then, why did you try to arrange a marriage with Kelly? Not to mention it was in a forceful way which involved her family.”
“Well, it was love at first sight...” In his panic, Bill gave a wrong answer right at the beginning.
His eyes gleaming, Lord Nazel immediately questioned Bill.
“She has been working at our estate in Sutrena for the past several years. I don’t believe you would’ve ever had a chance to see her. Kelly also said she isn’t acquainted with you.”
“Urgh...” Even more sweat poured down Bill’s face and his eyes wandered.
“Why did you approach Kelly’s family?” I asked him. “Why did you specifically try to get married to Kelly, who lives so far away? You obviously knew she’s my handmaiden, didn’t you?” Was Bill after a connection with the House of Florescruz? But I have a feeling that’s not it. Anyone thinking about it logically should realize that this was a bad method to get in contact with our house. It would only end up antagonizing us.
“No, I had no idea that the woman for my marriage interview was your handmaiden. I wanted to help her family since they had financial troubles...”
“Lady Agnes, what he just said also seems to be a lie. I sense that he’s trying to deceive us,” Kelly whispered.
“I see...” Kelly’s magic was very reassuring. I continued questioning Bill. “Did you intentionally get in contact with Kelly’s family? When they visited the city, they were lured into gambling and racked up debt, then you offered them a helping hand. I feel like the timing is a bit too convenient.”
“I have done no such thing. Your words are highly insulting.”
“He’s lying again, Lady Agnes. I feel deception and panic. The truth is likely the exact opposite of what he said.” In other words, he’d intentionally approached Kelly’s family and trapped them.
“Wh-What has that woman been on about all this time?! She seems to be your servant, but she keeps calling me a liar; her disrespect knows no bounds!” Bill pointed at Kelly, evidently perplexed. “That woman” was the person he was trying to arrange a marriage with, though.
Wait, has he not noticed? What a careless proposal he made.
Lord Nazel let out a short sigh, perhaps thinking the same thing I had.
“She’s our house’s handmaiden. Her magic can see through people’s lies.”
And it wasn’t just lies; it could broadly identify emotions too. Kelly was an outstanding individual. Thanks to her magic, we’d learned that Bill had been lying, was feeling frightened and anxious, and had been trying to deceive us. He was extremely suspicious in many ways.
“Incidentally, I heard some rumors that your company has been doing really well recently. Apparently, you’ve been making profit by trading with a foreign country,” Lord Nazel said.
“Eek!” Bill screamed again. It seemed that something in Lord Nazel’s words had frightened him. He clearly had some shady dealings going on with a foreign country.
“Is that country Myzahn?”
“Eep! S-So what if it is?” Bill started shaking like a tiny animal. Even though Lord Nazel had only asked a leading question, it was like Bill had confessed to doing something. His initial actions in pursuing Kelly had been bold, but he was thoroughly timid at heart. That was the sort of impression he gave me.
At first, it seemed that he was trying to pretend to be out for our visit. He didn’t look like the type to do anything particularly outrageous, I guess. But then why had he gone out of his way to approach Kelly’s family? That kind of behavior didn’t seem to fit a person like him.
“Were you planning on doing something to the House of Florescruz through Kelly?” Lord Nazel’s tone was gentle, but he wasn’t letting up on the questioning. “Or were you planning to use her as a hostage to blackmail us? Kelly is our precious handmaiden, so I imagine Agnes would try to rescue her no matter what. And I would be unable to turn down a request from my beloved wife. Maybe you intentionally tried to get Kelly to come to her parents’ house since you couldn’t do anything to her in Sutrena. Did you think it would be difficult for us to keep an eye on her there?”
At this point Bill’s eyes were darting all over the room. The handkerchief he’d been holding this entire time was now drenched in all the sweat he’d wiped with it.
“Agh! Aah, it’s all over... I-I can’t tell you anything!” Bill seemed unwilling to share any more with us; perhaps someone had ordered him to keep quiet.
His lies are easily exposed and he’s also a terrible actor. He didn’t seem particularly skilled. His business must also have been flourishing thanks to Myzahn’s influence.
To our surprise, Bill jumped up, looking terrified, and tried to run out of the room. Did he actually think that was possible?
“Haaah, you don’t know when to give up. Robin’s magic would be really useful at times like this.” Lord Nazel sounded exasperated.
“I agree,” Kelly added, nodding with a composed expression.
Master Robin’s magic could cause psychosomatic purification and mental recovery, but since the latter allowed him to ask someone questions while their mind was vulnerable, I believed it would be useful in this kind of situation. It would be easy to make someone confess.
“This is the only thing I can do with my magic.” Lord Nazel sighed again and used his magic to block Bill’s path with plants. Vines suddenly sprouted from the walls, starting to grow thick to cover the door.
“Whoaaa! Plants suddenly came out of the walls!” The horrified Bill fell on his backside, his face growing pale.
Torre immediately broke into a sprint, shouting, “Got him!” as he leaped upon Bill and pinned him to the floor. Bill was helpless against an attack from someone as strong as Torre, so he simply fell down onto his back.