To my darling sister,
Have you been well? I heard that you arrived safely in the Royal Capital, and that you have now opened your detective agency. I must say, I was surprised. I never thought you would really leave the House of Reine. Prince Edward and Father were shocked as well, and they are worried about you.
I think that you might have misunderstood our intentions, as we never actually tried to drive you out. We only thought that, if you were to remain in the earl’s estate, it might feel cramped; so, in consideration of that, we wanted to have a proper talk about the future. Now, with the sudden departure of your positively vital self, I am left bewildered, along with everyone else.
Why, our grandmother has only just passed away, so we are still not done divvying up her mementos...and, well, it must have been difficult for you, living in that mansion without our grandmother there. Someone like Father might have been angry with you, but I understand how you feel.
Only, I think dealing with the inheritance properly would benefit you as well. As for those effects that are inherited along with the Earldom of Reine, Father has already made progress with the necessary formalities. Still, I imagine that our grandmother left behind some personal property, too, just like the mansion in the Royal Capital that she bequeathed to you.
Perhaps you found something of hers in that mansion.
If there were something there, you could be criticized for having hidden part of her inheritance. I’d like to avoid that. Any such items would be mementos of a grandmother who was dear to us as well, so I think we should manage them appropriately.
I’ve spoken with Father and Prince Edward, too, about what we should do. For now, Edward has decided to set out for the Royal Capital, in order to discuss the matter with Her Majesty the Queen. It would appear that Her Majesty is busy, and it will take time to arrange this discussion; but, as we have decided we’d like to speak to you directly as well, we intend to head to the Royal Capital as soon as we’ve heard from Prince Edward.
This discussion will take place at Prince Edward’s invitation, so you may receive some communication from the royal palace. If you do, I would like for you to come and say hello. I know this is a rare occurrence, so you may feel nervous, but I have heard that Her Majesty is really very kind.
That’s right—Father said that he would also like to properly discuss the matter of you working as a detective in the Royal Capital, like our grandmother. He said something to the effect of this: regardless of the fact that you weren’t able to make your societal debut, an earl’s daughter working like a common laborer is one provocation too far. I, too, am worried.
Besides, Father said he would consider introducing you to potential husbands! I heard him say that, within the year, you would be able to choose a partner and sort out your engagement. That would place your wedding next year at the earliest. As for me, I am marrying into the royal family; no matter how much we hurry our marriage along, the wedding will have to be some time from the year after next. Because of this, your wedding will come first, which I don’t think sounds too bad.
On the subject of marriage, I must say that I feel terrible about what happened to you. In the matter of Prince Edward, I feel I must have caused you all manner of distress. Perhaps you no longer feel enthusiastic about marriage, but you are already seventeen. The truth is that you will have to hurry to find a good match.
I’ve heard you lament in the past about having children, so surely it can’t be that you have no desire to get married. I’ll do my very best to encourage you. So, in order to prevent the spread of any strange rumors in the Royal Capital, be very careful in your dealings with other people, and especially with men. As a matter of fact, I’ve heard it said that a young man has been seen coming in and out of the mansion where you are living. I have heard that he is your assistant, though. As we are talking about my sister here, I am sure he isn’t your lover; such a thing would be unthinkable. All the same, the most improbable of things can happen. If it is something like a wayward romance with a servant, please let me know in secret. If, conversely, he is a nobleman or a merchant, please be careful. He may have ill intentions for you.
You may be worrying about a great many things, but Father surely wouldn’t want you to be subjected to the struggles of working life. I am sure he will find a perfect suitor to introduce to you. Please rest assured, and look forward to your engagement.
I know we’ve nagged you quite a bit, but neither I, Prince Edward, nor Father is angry with you in the least. We have only been worried about you. After all, we’re all family! Some may speak ill of you, and we may only be half sisters, but please do not forget our family bonds.
Now, I must sign off, but I look forward to the next time I will see you, this time in the Royal Capital.
Your loving sister,
Jessie
This letter from Octavia’s half sister was most puzzling. Octavia put the kettle on the fire to boil, then frowned and groaned, “Hat, what on earth is Jessie trying to say?”
Her partner, Hat, had retreated to a corner of the kitchen for fear of grime and flames. Now he spun around to face her. Ever since Octavia had started advertising her services as a detective, Hat had begun taking the shape of a deerstalker hat. This was said to be an indispensable item for a detective.
“That’s a good question, Octavia. I, who am all-knowing and all-powerful, shall deliver your long-awaited answer! To be all-knowing and all-powerful means to know that there are things in this world that we do not know, and cannot know.”
“Hmm,” mused Octavia. She took a breath, thinking about this. “You mean to say that I don’t understand what Jessie wanted to say in this letter? And I never will?”
“Precisely.”
“But if I leave it at that, I won’t be able to write a reply. It would be nothing but trouble if she were to suddenly show up at the mansion. If even more doubt is raised about the inheritance, I may have to worry about more people coming after me...”
Recalling last month’s commotion on the overnight train, Octavia sighed. Since she had safely entered the Royal Capital, she hadn’t seen any more pursuers, but judging by the contents of this letter, they were investigating her again. That must have been because of the mansion that her grandmother, known far and wide as the Lady Detective, had bequeathed to her.
Her father had searched this mansion from top to bottom and judged that there was nothing left inside but rubbish. All the while sneering at her grandmother’s eccentricity, he’d agreed to the transfer of the property to Octavia while her grandmother was still alive. The moment her grandmother had passed away, though, having driven Octavia out of his house, he’d begun to feel more deeply apprehensive about the fact that he hadn’t paid any attention to the distribution of her grandmother’s mementos. Once again, he’d begun to suspect that there might be something of value in this mansion after all. So Octavia supposed, at least.
Even if he did find something, though, it wouldn’t do him any good. There was indeed a full complement of furniture and appliances in the mansion, so one could live there comfortably. Apart from those, her father had judged everything else in the mansion to be rubbish, or else lacking in monetary value. That was correct. In fact, if one considered these items in economic terms, their value would probably be negative.
The rubbish her grandmother had left behind was, in fact, the Imperial Heirlooms. If anyone besides the rightful heir to the empire tried to use them, they would run amok as Demonic Heirlooms, cursed by the exiled god. Possession of these tools was liable to lead to one being pursued by inquisitors.
Neither her father nor her half sister were heirs to the empire. The only successor was Octavia herself.