“I guess you’re right,” Hat went on. “If he really is Crow, the Phantom Thief, then he has the emergency activation key. If we suppose he can use the Imperial Heirlooms, then, provided he isn’t in the royal castle’s tower of confinement, he should be able to escape any jail. And go anywhere— Octavia?”
Octavia, surging to her feet, opened her chest of drawers and pulled out a change of clothes.
Hat leapt on top of her head. “Are you going out somewhere? It’s still early, you know.”
“Today is all we have left. I’ll need to submit a request to meet with Raven, so I’d like to move quickly.”
“Yes, yes, but what are you going to do?”
“I’d like to turn my thinking upside down. Just like Prince Henry, who was able to find the girl.”
Octavia tore off her pajamas and threw on a white blouse. Seeing this, Hat turned into an adorable bonnet and settled atop her head. Then he spoke. “That would be dangerous. Your vision is liable to cloud over, and you will only gather evidence that supports your assumptions.”
“I know that. But we’re running out of time.”
“All that being said, this bonnet doesn’t really suit you, does it? Hmm. How about this?” Looking over Octavia’s outfit in her full-length mirror, Hat tried this and that style of hat to find the right one for the day. He did this every day, of course.
“I’m a detective. I should be able to do things differently from the police.”
“I suppose you have a point. Hmm... This one doesn’t seem quite right, either...”
“Lady Octavia, are you awake?” With perfect timing, Ann’s voice chimed in along with a knock on the door.
Having just finished changing, Octavia answered her. “Yes! Come in. You’re up early, Ann.”
“I heard from the other tools that you were having trouble getting settled, Lady Octavia.”
“Really? Aren’t my tools just splendid? I can always count on you.” Octavia turned around with a smile, causing Ann, who had entered with a tray, to blush slightly.
“Well, I hope you don’t mind, but I’ve brought you some light refreshments. Would you like to partake?”
“Thanks. I’ll have that for breakfast. By the way, Ann, do you really not remember anything from before you were registered? Just making sure.”
It was Raven who had sold the malfunctioning Ann to Mrs. Smile. He had played it off as a mere procurement, of course. Thinking back on it now, though, it was very likely that Raven—knowing Octavia’s true identity—had decided to take full advantage of the choice Mrs. Smile and Colette had made, and to relinquish the doll he had held onto as a Demonic Heirloom.
Ann placed Octavia’s light meal on the table. She blinked, then assumed a serious expression. “In the course of being repaired, any data I had in my memory at the time was erased.”
“Do you remember anything at all? It doesn’t matter how faint a memory it might be. Anything like, for example, where you were when you were still broken. Or what form you took, or... Ah, that’s right!” The photograph of the girl was still in Octavia’s pocket. She showed it to Ann. “Do you recognize anything in this photograph? Look, this humanoid doll here is you, isn’t it?”
Ann took the photograph from Octavia. Her eyes widened. “This antique doll—why, it certainly looks like me, but I wonder if it might not be an imitation.”
“That’s what I thought—that it wasn’t you after all.”
“If I were to be anywhere in this picture, I think it would be here.”
Seeing Ann point at the girl, Octavia looked up in astonishment. “You’re the little girl?!”
“No, the soft toy she is holding. The rabbit,” murmured Ann. “Perhaps before I could return to my usual form as an antique doll, I took this shape. At least, that’s the feeling I get...”
“Do you remember anything else? In particular, about the young girl holding you.”
Octavia was now grasping Ann by her shoulders. Ann looked surprised, but she still inclined her head and pondered the question.
“I wish that I could, but...I cannot recall anything about a girl of this age. Even with Colette, I only have the haziest feeling of nostalgia.”
“This would have happened before you were given to Colette. Did you have any notable owners before her?”
“I only have the feeling that my owner changed many times. And as this happened many years ago, I can no longer distinguish them.”
Octavia sighed. Hat said reproachfully, “Don’t be so unreasonable. Her recognition faculties were damaged. It can’t be helped.”
“You have my deepest apologies. I changed hands so many times—there were so many children, so many little girls and boys.” Ann handed the photograph back.
“I see.” Octavia was despondent for a while, but then seized upon something. She stared hard at the girl in the picture once more. “Boys too, you say? Now that you mention it, in my grandmother’s memoirs that I borrowed from Raven, there was something about...”
“Lady Octavia?”
“Ah, nothing. Don’t worry about it. Hmm. Come to think of it, Ashton noticed something about this child, too.”
Last night, Ashton had been lamenting the sudden arrest of Raven as a suspect, and the fact that the music box, which had been the Phantom Thief’s quarry, had been carried off by Edward. The prospective crime scene had fallen apart bit by bit, leaving Ashton unable to speak properly.
“If it’s Ashton we’re talking about, we can probably find him staying overnight in the police station. He’s probably swamped with the paperwork left over from yesterday,” Hat pointed out.
“Then we’ll visit the police station first. After that, the art museum.”
“The art museum? You mean the Royal Museum of Art? Why would you want to go there again?”
“I’d like to have a look at the music box to confirm something. Ann, sorry to ask this of you, but could you throw together some food, so I can give some to Ashton as a snack and have some for lunch?”
“If that’s all, then I already have a number of dishes ready and waiting in the kitchen. If you would like to take some with you—” Ann glared at Octavia, who had scarfed down all the sandwiches on the table in one or two bites each. “Lady Octavia, that’s bad manners.”
But Octavia proceeded to drink her milk in one gulp, before firing herself up for the investigation ahead. “Let’s go, Hat. The investigation is underway.”
“Hmm! In that case, the most appropriate style of hat would be this, I think!”
“I will see you later, Your Majesty. Please don’t forget to conduct yourself like a queen.” Ann’s parting words were a little sarcastic, pricking Octavia like barbs.