Chapter 107: Whose Child Is This
After Evelia carried Rachel out of her room, the smell of ketchup was finally gone. Rachel immediately felt the air around her was much fresher. She took a few deep breaths and even felt her head clear up a little.
This place was a lot bigger than Rachel had expected. She couldn’t even see the end of it. Servants were coming and going, each busy with their own work. Judging by how lively and well-organized the staff were, this had to be the estate of a very wealthy and powerful family.
But where was this place? And why was “Red Crow” here?
The Second Prince had asked Rachel to change the appearance of “Red Crow,” but he never told her the real purpose or meaning behind it.
Of course he didn’t. Why would the Second Prince ever explain something like that?
Just knowing that the pink-haired girl was “Red Crow” was already enough to get her head chopped off. There was no way he’d go further and say, “Since you’re going to die anyway, I’ll tell you everything.”
Normally, if this was a noble’s estate, there would be some sort of family crest on display. But as Rachel followed Evelia through the hallways, she didn’t see any special symbols on the servants’ clothing.
However, Rachel had spent enough time in the royal palace to notice some important details.
Unlike the personal guards raised by noble families, the ones patrolling this estate were all wearing Royal Knight uniforms.
And that was not something you could fake.
If anyone dared to forge the royal army’s badges and uniforms, they’d face severe punishment.
The only two princes with the authority to command the Royal Knights lived inside the royal palace.
Sure, maybe they had some private estates outside the palace, but it was unlikely they would set up something this grand so openly.
So then, whose place could this be?
A mansion with no noble family crest, but still grand and guarded by Royal Knights...
Rachel’s first guess was Deputy Commander Carle Morr, the current vice-commander of the knights.
After all, he had plenty of money, and his wife was known as a business genius. It wouldn’t be surprising if they owned such a luxurious estate.
And since he was a knight leader, it made sense for him to have knights guarding the property.
But as Rachel looked around at the busy staff moving about, something still didn’t feel right.
Everyone here looked like ordinary house servants, there weren’t any signs of people managing businesses or estates.
Even if Carle wasn’t a noble, he came from a long line of merchants. A family business like that would definitely have its own logo or emblem.
Yet none of the servants had anything on them that pointed to the Morr family, and there was certainly no one around who looked like they were running a commercial estate.
Everyone knew Carle’s wife, Melian, was obsessed with money. She was always on the move trying to make more of it.
If this really were her place, then the servants would definitely be involved in something business-related.
That’s when Rachel thought of another possibility.
The Royal Knight Commander, Armand Systalia.
No noble background.
No title.
Yet he had the authority to command the Royal Knights.
Only he fit all three criteria.
If this whole situation were a puzzle, Rachel would write his name down as the answer without hesitation.
And when Evelia led her around the back of the building to the main entrance, Rachel saw the royal crest on the banner hanging above the gate.
That confirmed it.
Rumor had it that after the knight commander returned victorious from battle, the Crown Prince rewarded him with a huge, luxurious estate.
This had to be it.
The Crown Prince really knew how to play the game. By giving control of the Royal Knights to people like Armand and Carle, neither of whom were difficult nobles with complicated family ties, he kept everything under control.
Armand had no noble family and no connections, he was basically a nobody
that the Crown Prince had raised from nothing. His fate was now completely in the prince’s hands.
As for Carle, he had some influence through business, but compared to dealing with old noble families who were full of politics and nonsense, dealing with a businessman was much easier for the prince.
In short, the Crown Prince held all the cards.
So that means… this “Red Crow” is actually a spy sent into enemy territory?
Once Rachel sorted out everyone’s background, the truth hit her.
“Red Crow” was an assassin loyal to the Second Prince. But right now, they were in the estate of the Royal Knight Commander, the very person the Crown Prince trusted the most.
If “Red Crow” had entered this place in some normal way, it would’ve been one thing. But she had changed her appearance and sneaked in as a maid.
And considering how loyal “Red Crow” was to the Second Prince, there’s no way she’d betray him and side with someone else.
So wasn’t it obvious?
She was here as a spy.
Which meant… Rachel now knew another one of “Red Crow’s” dangerous secrets.
To Armand, Evelia wasn’t just a man disguised as a woman working as a fake maid, she was also a spy planted by the Second Prince.
No, actually calling her a spy wasn’t accurate.
She was an assassin.
Someone like her wasn’t sent here just to gather intel. She was probably here to kill the Knight Commander when the time was right.
‘Then… if I go and switch sides to the Knight Commander now, would I still have a chance to live?’
He and “Red Crow” were clearly enemies. If Rachel went and told him Evelia’s secret, that this “maid” was actually “Red Crow”, maybe she could save herself?
But the moment she thought of that, Rachel hesitated.
Everyone on the outside said that Armand wasn’t very smart. They said his empty brain was filled with nothing but watered-down beer.
Could she really trust a guy like that?
Would he mess things up and accidentally expose her instead?
Rachel definitely didn’t want to die at “Red Crow’s” hands again.
“Red Crow”, the one who killed her.
A creepy maid who said children eat people.
And now this supposedly not-so-smart Knight Commander…
Why did everyone she met in this place feel so weird?
At first, Rachel thought that once Evelia put her down, she’d be able to find a chance to escape.
But even when Evelia had to lower her to sign a document or take a file from another maid, her eyes never left Rachel.
That intense stare, like a hunter watching its prey, made Rachel break out in cold sweat. She could barely even move her little legs, let alone run away.
But then, something unexpected happened.
Another maid came over and started talking to Evelia, and that gave Rachel a chance to catch the attention of the other maids.
Her cute face quickly made her the center of attention. The other girls pulled out little snacks and circled around her, and for a moment, Rachel felt like she had gone from hell to heaven.
The warm, friendly atmosphere was contagious.
At first, Rachel was still tense because Evelia had captured her. But surrounded by all this kindness, she relaxed much faster than she thought she would.
The girls kept calling her cute things like “little sweetheart,” and before long, Rachel was laughing and playing with them.
Evelia didn’t stop her. She just stood quietly to the side, holding all the cookies and candy Rachel couldn’t carry in her tiny hands.
No one knew how much time had passed when Armand finally returned from the Royal Knights’ base.
He walked through the front gate at a leisurely pace, chatting with the guards about who came and went that day.
Then he looked up, and saw a little child giggling and running nearby, chased by a few cheerful maids who were playing along.
“…We have a kid living in the estate?” Armand asked, sounding a little curious.
Of course, he didn’t mind kids being around.
Back at the Royal Knights’ base, some knights would temporarily leave their children there when they were too busy. Taking care of kids wasn’t a rare sight for him.
Still, out of habit, he asked about the new face.
“Ah, I think that’s Miss Evelia’s child,” the guard answered casually.
“Oh, Eve’s—”
Armand started to respond without much thought, but then his brain caught up with what he just heard.
“—Wait, WHOSE child?!”