Chapter 1

“…Adam Thesis and Mary Thesis will now rest at God’s side. Let us bow our heads for a moment of silence.”

When the priest leading the funeral spoke calmly, everyone around him lowered their heads.

“That woman. The red-haired one.”

Ash McCallen followed the gesture of Officer Louis Fiedello, who had come to hand over the case.
Even though the temple cemetery was unusually foggy today, it wasn’t difficult to find the young woman he was pointing at—there were very few mourners.

Her neat red hair was pinned up under a black hat. Her pale skin and lightly flushed lips showed through the veil, drawing attention without trying.

“As you know already, but I’ll say it again—her name is Rosalyn Thesis. She’s the only daughter of the late Baron and Baroness Thesis, and the sole survivor of the Browe townhouse fire.”

“I heard she went for a walk alone when the fire happened.”

“She was lucky. Moments like these make you think fate might be real.”

“Lucky, huh…”
Ash murmured, and Louis shrugged awkwardly.

“Well… it does sound strange, calling it luck when she lost both her parents.”

But Ash meant something completely different.

He wasn’t wondering if she was lucky.
He was wondering if she was too lucky—and if that kind of luck was really coincidence.

“You questioned her, right?”

“Of course. We didn’t get much, though.”

“And the possibility that she started the fire herself?”

“There’s no reason she would. The Thesis family came to the capital for her marriage talks. What would she gain from killing her own parents?”

Because Rosalyn was an only child, inheriting the barony changed almost nothing for her.
In fact, losing her parents could hurt her prospects for marriage.

If everything on the surface was true, Ash would have agreed with Louis.

But in investigations, people often committed crimes for reasons no one expected.

And this case had several odd details at the scene. Details he couldn’t ignore.

“I heard Earl Will Browe became her guardian.”

“Not legally. People are just calling him that. The relatives staying in his townhouse died, after all. He couldn’t just throw the young lady out on the street.”

Will Browe, her distant cousin, had no reason to set the fire either.

He had lost one of his buildings and was now responsible for an orphaned girl.
Along with Rosalyn, he was practically the biggest victim.

Ash opened his notebook and reviewed the case details again.

Louis watched him and finally spoke carefully.

“To be honest, sir… there’s nothing suspicious about this case. The whole building burned down, so we can’t determine the cause. And no one had a grudge against the Thesis couple—they’d only arrived in the capital twenty days before. No one benefits from their deaths.”

In other words, it was simply an accident. There was no need to complicate it.

“Well, I suppose that’s why I was assigned this easy case.”

Louis bit his tongue, realizing his earlier comments were a mistake.
Rumor had it that the superintendent gave big cases to his nephew Jacob, who was desperate for promotion, and handed small cases to Ash—Jacob’s rival.

Truth was, if not for Ash’s humble background, he should’ve been promoted far beyond inspector already.

“I’m sorry, sir.”

“For what? You had to give up your own case halfway—you’re a victim too.”

Ash spoke casually, comforting him.

“Anyway, you must be busy with your new assignment. Thanks for your time, Louis.”

“N-No, sir! If you need anything, please call me anytime, Inspector McCallen!”

Louis saluted sharply and left quietly.

But Ash stayed where he was, staring at Rosalyn. Almost obsessively.

She looked like she was trying hard not to collapse under her grief.
Her handkerchief brushed her eyes now and then; her shoulders trembled sometimes.
But overall, she remained composed while saying goodbye to her parents.

A country girl, losing both parents in an instant, and yet she’s handling it better than I ex—hmm?

Just then, as the fog thinned for a moment, Ash saw something strange.

The Earl standing beside her gently wrapped an arm around her shoulders, comforting her.
Rosalyn glanced down at the place he touched… and one corner of her mouth lifted slightly.

Did she… smile?

Ash narrowed his eyes, looking closely.
But Rosalyn buried her face in her handkerchief as if overwhelmed with emotion.

Maybe I imagined it…

Maybe she had tried to smile politely at her cousin and failed.
Maybe it was grief twisting her expression.

Still, Ash wrote it down in his notebook.
Sometimes a tiny detail became the key that unlocked everything.

Just then, the priest ended the ceremony.

“This concludes the joint funeral of Baron and Baroness Thesis. May they rest peacefully at God’s side. Please give your condolences to Miss Thesis before you depart.”

Ash took one more look at Rosalyn before turning away.
Had her eyes met his through her veil?
He told himself he was imagining it.

***

Does God exist?
If He does, is He good?
And if He is good, does good always defeat evil?

I don’t know the answers.
But this time, I think God might have taken my side.

My name is Emma Hampton.

I have survived two years as the personal maid of Rosalyn Thesis—
That foul-tempered girl.

That’s me.

“Rosalyn. This year, during the social season, we will go to the capital so you can find a husband. Prepare yourself.”

When I realized that “prepare yourself” meant I would be preparing everything for her, my heart pounded.
I didn’t know that moment was the beginning of my misery.

Three days after arriving in the capital Herona, Rosalyn attended her first party—and she even brought me along.

“It’s a large party, so be extra careful.”

“Of course! You’ll be the prettiest one there today.”

Like always, I transformed her face with makeup. She tossed me a silver coin and said I did well.
Back then, everything looked like it would go smoothly.

But then—

“She really brought her maid!”

“Not even a chaperone—just a maid?”

“Everyone is desperate to enter Herona’s social circle these days. So low-class, honestly.”

“Even her makeup looks rustic. Does she really think that’s pretty?”

Under their mocking stares, Rosalyn couldn’t talk back even once.
This wasn’t her countryside estate.
Here, she was a nobody from a nameless family.

When we returned home, she threw a raging fit.
And the one who endured all her screaming and slaps…
was me.

“You humiliated me because of your awful makeup!”

With a sharp crack, my vision flashed and my jaw stung.
But all I could do was apologize over and over while she insulted me for what felt like hours.

And yet the next day, she acted as if nothing had happened.
No—she even seemed happier.
That mood lasted several days.

So I thought she had forgotten the humiliation.

But Rosalyn Thesis never forgot anything. Especially not grudges.

“Emma. If you ruin my makeup again today, I won’t forgive you.”

A week after that horrible first party, she was preparing for another.
I had a bad feeling from the start.

To avoid her anger, I worked even harder than before.
I even copied the fashionable styles I’d observed on noble ladies last time.
And honestly, she looked beautiful—so beautiful that I startled myself.

But makeup wasn’t the problem.

“Oh my, I didn’t expect to see you again.”

The girl who led the bullying last time spotted Rosalyn immediately.
Her name was Heather Dartmouth—or as Rosalyn once described her,
“That annoying girl who thinks she’s special even though she’s not even that pretty.”

I expected Rosalyn to snap back.

Unexpectedly, she smiled sweetly.

“Hello. We met last time, right? I’m Rosalyn Thesis.”

Her tone was still prickly, but for Rosalyn, this was remarkable progress.

Wow… cities really do change people. Even this wild brat is becoming an adult!

While I was feeling proud, Heather lost interest and walked away.

I hoped the evening would end peacefully.

But that was foolish.

Because Rosalyn quietly began walking toward Heather again.

Something bad is going to happen…