Betrothed to My Sister's Ex

I cried a lot, then laughed, and suddenly my stomach started growling.

As I tried to continue our conversation despite the rumbling, Mio pulled out a bunch of chocolate cookies from her pocket and shared them with me. There’s nothing that can’t fit in Mio’s pocket.

“But the real feeling behind all this is that I want to do something about Ella’s situation…”

I said while eating the cookies.

“I mean, not just Ella, but the attendants at Granado Castle. It seems she has become terribly disliked. If this continues, the atmosphere in the castle, no, the security will deteriorate. We have to do something…”

“Well, attendants are human too. It’s natural to like or dislike your colleagues.”

“But it seems like there’s bullying involved too. Someone even stuck something like this on her.”

I handed Mio the crumpled note I had tucked inside my desk. It was the nasty message that had been stuck on Ella’s back when I invited her for tea before. Even after showing it, Mio’s expression remained unchanged. Instead, Lord Cyrus frowned in displeasure.

“This is... quite a childish prank. Malicious and unpleasant.”

“Right? When I peeled it off, Ella noticed. I was glad she couldn’t read Dirts language.”

“Ella... doesn’t understand Dirts language?”

Mio’s eyebrows twitched. I wondered what caught her attention, and then she pulled out a folded piece of paper from her apron pocket. This time, she thrust it toward me.

“This is a contract. Just a moment ago, I, as chief chamberlain, formally signed it after putting it on hold until my return. I had her silently read it and asked her to sign if she had no objections to the employment terms.”

I was surprised and checked the document. Indeed, it was as Mio said—details about working hours and wages, with Ella’s signature at the bottom. And of course, the language was Dirts.

“What... does this mean? Was Ella lying? No way…”

“If she had claimed to only understand Sphainese, we could have prepared documents in that language. But she said nothing.”

“Isn’t it more likely she just found it hard to speak up? Maybe she pretended to read it and just signed her name.”

“Because Mio’s face is scary.”

Lord Cyrus teased, while Mio stepped on his foot. Putting aside Mio’s expression, considering Ella’s personality, it seemed possible. We couldn’t dismiss that possibility or outright call her a liar.

When I said this, Mio hesitated a little, then reached out her hand to me.

“Marie, you and the culprit are the only ones who handled the harassment note, right?”

“Yes, that should be the case.”

“If so, we might be able to identify the culprit. Marie, I’m terribly sorry, but could you please give me a foundation or blush... some powder with as dark a color as possible, and a soft-bristled brush?”

Suddenly, she said something strange. I tilted my head but offered no resistance, taking some cosmetics from the cabinet and handing them to Mio.

She glanced around and picked a dark silver eyeshadow. Scraping its surface with her nail, she collected the powder on the brush... then, for some reason, rubbed it over the paper’s surface. Once covered in powder, she blew on it to clear the excess. Then she began to stare intently at the paper, which still had some smudges remaining.

What on earth is Mio doing...?

“Here it is. Fingerprints.”

“Fi-fingerprints? You mean these patterns on the pads of fingers?”

“Yes. When writing, people usually hold a pen with their dominant hand and steady the paper with fingers of the other hand. Human skin has oils and sweat, so unless someone just washed their hands or wore gloves, fingerprints get left on the paper. Usually invisible, but dusting powder reveals them.”

Sure enough, fine ring-shaped patterns appeared here and there on the paper. On the left side, four small fingerprints stood out clearly. Considering the situation, these must be the culprit’s prints. But so what?

At that moment, Lord Cyrus exclaimed from beside me.