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Keira ordered a maid to bring Zeke. Not long after, she returned with Zeke.
Zeke’s expression darkened a little.
Zeke: “I heard the results of the search. Is that why you called?”
Keira: “It’s not that
 Come here and sit down.”
When Zeke sat across from the table, Keira gestured to all the servants. In the strange atmosphere, Zeke’s expression became more serious.
Zeke: “What’s going on?”
She answered with a sigh.
Keira: “I didn’t want to use this kind of method
 You know that they didn’t find anything in the Weinberg’s mansion.”
Zeke: “And?”
Keira: “I think I will have to leave the capital for a while. I have something to find.”
“
”
Zeke quickly understood what she meant.
Zeke: “Is this dangerous?”
Badump–. Keira almost flinched when Zeke got it right.
‘You’re quick to notice
’
But Keira couldn’t exactly say she was going to the demon realm. If she did, he might persuade her not to do it or, worse, insist on going with her.
Keira: “It’s not. I just meant that I didn’t want to use this method because Cosette would be suspicious if I left the capital. It’s something I really need to investigate.”
Zeke: “Really?”
Keira: “Yes.”
Zeke’s eyes narrowed in doubt.
Zeke: “Don’t do anything dangerous.”
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Keira: “Of course. I also value my life.”
Fearing that she might get caught, Keira quickly changed the topic.
Keira: “In that sense, I’d like to ask you a favor.”
Zeke: “If you promise not to do anything dangerous, I’ll do it.”
Keira: “Of course.”
Keira thought to herself, ‘I’m sorry, Zeke.’
Keira: “As I said before, Cosette shouldn’t notice my absence.”
Zeke: “Yes.”
Keira: “So we should try not to let the outside know that I’m not in the capital. For that
”
Zeke: “Father’s cooperation will be essential.”
Keira: “That’s right.”
For Keira to leave for a while without being questioned, there was one last person she had to convince– Ludwig.
Ludwig wouldn’t send her off without asking or arguing with her if she told him she had something to find.
Zeke: “Well, why don’t you use Grandfather as an excuse to take a breather? You don’t want society to gossip about it, so you want to keep it a secret that you’re leaving.”
Keira had the same idea. She nodded and said.
Keira: “I was about to use that, too. So, I need your cooperation.”
“
?”
Which part of this simple plan would require his cooperation? Zeke’s eyes lit up with intrigue.
Keira: “I’m planning to say I’m going on vacation to the family villa, but the place I have to go is far from there. At any rate, they might find out that I’m not there
”
Zeke: “You’d like me to deal with the chance you’ll get caught?”
Keira: “Yeah, can you make it seem like you went on vacation with me? You don’t have to fool the maids who serve you. I’ll take care of them.”
Zeke: “Well, it doesn’t matter as long as Noonim can guarantee that you won’t go to do anything dangerous.”
“
”
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Keira wondered where he got his tenacity from. Ignoring the voice of her conscience, Keira answered.
Keira: “I’m just going because I have something to find out. It’s not dangerous.”
She tried to convince herself that while it was a dangerous place, it wouldn’t be bad because she was with Erez.
Zeke: “But there’s no one else to convince other than me, right?”
Keira: “
 There’s one last hurdle left to overcome.”
The last hurdle was Ludwig.
Of course, Keira had no intention of explaining the situation in detail. The only question was whether she could convince him why she had to go on vacation.
Keira: “He might just tell me I shouldn’t look weak.”
Considering how they were raised until now, this was quite a possibility. Beside her, Zeke nodded in agreement.
Strike while the iron is hot. It would be better to push through with the plan immediately rather than delay it any longer.
She rose from her seat and headed straight to Ludwig’s office, thinking of even shedding a few tears if necessary.
Ludwig: “What’s going on?”
At Ludwig’s question, Keira answered.
Keira: “I want to go on vacation. I think I need to leave the mansion for a while.”
But just as Keira thought, ‘Should I start crying because I’m stressed?’

Ludwig: “Do as you please. Instead, don’t be away for too long.”
“
?”
Strangely enough, he gave her permission.
As Keira stared at him strangely, Ludwig slightly frowned.
Ludwig: “What’s the problem?”
Still surprised, Keira answered.
Keira: “No. Rather than a problem
 I wish to keep my departure from the capital a secret.”
Ludwig: “Why? I don’t think it’s necessary to hide that you’re on vacation.”
Keira: “If I go on a vacation at this time, people will surely talk and say I left the capital in shock because of what happened to Grandfather. I don’t want to be the target of gossip. It’s not good.”
Ludwig: “That’s true.”
Ludwig quietly nodded. He hated it whenever people gossiped about his family.
Ludwig: “Then why do you want to go on vacation all of a sudden?”
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Keira recounted the excuses she had prepared.
Keira: “First of all, I’ve been thinking about taking a little break for a while, but I couldn’t easily leave the capital because of Cosette. But when Grandfather’s death and her house arrest overlapped
 I thought I should take a break.”
Ludwig: “When are you going to come back?”
Erez said they only needed to discuss something briefly, so it shouldn’t take long.
But Keira deliberately set aside plenty of time.
Keira: “I think I’ll be gone for about ten days. If I want to rest a little longer, I will send you a letter in advance.”
She was thinking of instructing Zeke to write a letter to the capital for her if she hadn’t returned three days before her vacation ended.
Ludwig: “Okay.”
Ludwig gave permission without a hint of suspicion. Her Grandfather’s incident a while ago seemed to be a big help in convincing him.
Keira said goodbye and left the room.
Preparations for her departure proceeded quickly.
Keira had decided to go to the villa owned by the Grand Duke, built near a lake shore.
Of course, it was a long way from where she and Erez were supposed to meet. He summoned Keira to a small village at the foot of the mountain.
Because of that, she had to travel by carriage for a long time.
Even though she was traveling, hiding her face was a little tricky. The only comforting thing was that it was a small town that didn’t check the identity of each visitor.
In the pitch black night, Keira, a sword in her hand, groped through the darkness as she headed to her appointment alone. It was a warehouse located in a sparsely populated area.
As she entered the warehouse, the disgusting smell of oil stung her nose.
Keira: “Ugh!”
Could it be a warehouse for storing oil? Keira grabbed her nose and looked around but couldn’t see anything.
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After closing the door, she went in a little further, and a lamp lit the inside.
It didn’t look like it was a dirt floor, and there was a big white cloth all over the warehouse where piles of straw and unknown grains were stacked.
And in the middle was a person drawing a big picture

Erez: “Oh, you’re here?”
Erez asked as he turned to Keira.
Keira: “You’re slow to react.”
Erez: “I didn’t notice because I was concentrating.”
Keira looked closely to see what he was drawing, but she couldn’t figure out the pattern.
Perhaps it was because she knew he was a demon, but it looked quite ominous. It seemed to be a magic circle to go to the demon realm.
Keira: “Why does this place smell like oil? It’s disgusting.”
Erez: “I doused the whole warehouse. I’ll burn this place.”
Keira realized why before she could even ask. After they’ve left, only a seemingly ominous magic circle would remain.
It would be easy to see this was black magic if someone investigated deeply.
The country would be in a state of chaos if traces of black magic were found in a small country village.
Erez: “I’m going to drop the fire right before I cast the spell. You can stand it even if it’s a little hot, right?”
“
”
Erez: “Oh, you’re going to have to hold your breath for a while. If you breathe in the smoke, your airways will get hurt.”
Well
 There was no other way, so I couldn’t say I couldn’t do it.