C173
"Does it have the name of a person?"
Feeling a creepy sensation, I swallowed dry saliva.
Enrique nodded, clinging to my arms.
"What the hell is this...?"
When I dug into the garden and obtained the letters and the duchess's diary, I scanned everything inside and found nothing particularly suspicious.
Even the crossword puzzle Enrique said had a person's name seemed ordinary to me.
Crossword puzzles are a game that ladies and gentlemen play to clear their minds while enjoying teatime.
"Enrique, I can't understand it no matter how I look at it. Where is the person's name?"
"Here."
"Hmm?"
Enrique touched the intersection where the horizontal and vertical words of the crossword meet.
I squinted.
"J?"
1. PREJUDICE
2. INCANTATION
The answer to horizontal riddle No. 1 and the answer to vertical riddle No. 2 were the same as before, and the word at the intersection of the two words was J.
"Next... Here."
And at the intersection of word 3 and word 4, A was written.
As I moved my gaze diligently following Enrique's fingertips, I began to connect all the words at the points where the horizontal and vertical lines intersect.
The complete word is-
"J.A.M.I.L.L.A...?"
Jamilla.
Surprisingly, as Enrique said, there was actually the name of a person.
"Is this a person's name?"
"Yes."
"Jamilla..? Is that a woman's name?"
There was something that bothered me about the mere coincidence.
"In the novel, when Mia negotiated with Duke Seymour to escape from the twins, she only exchanged the letters."
So, when I discovered the existence of this diary, I was perplexed inside.
"Sister. But, there's something strange here too."
However, the feminine name 'Jamilla' wasn't the only thing.
The number of crossword puzzles is 22 instead of 12.
What came out of the intersection of the remaining ten words was even more significant.
"DEMON..."
Demon.
"Who the hell is Jamilla, and why is she related to the word demon?"
Could it have something to do with the sorcerer making a deal with the devil?
Enrique asked me, looking at the crossword like a warning.
"What is this?"
"It might be a code someone secretly planted."
It is very unlikely that the duchess made this crossword herself.
Most people who did these games were maids, and the royal family and high-ranking nobles enjoyed solving the crosswords they had prepared in advance.
"A secret code, I'm afraid...."
"Enrique. Do you know that your sister is the strongest in the world? If you're scared, stay with me tonight. And can you lend me mother's diary for a moment?"
Enrique nodded wildly, and I stroked the boy's soft hair.
"But my Enrique is very observant. It's easy to see something like this and let it pass."
"It's the only memory of my mother, so I look at it often. And it's a precious gift from my sister."
I looked for a moment at the paper corners of the diary, as if I had read it several times, then sat Enrique on my lap and read him a book of poetry.
Meanwhile, I thought it was fortunate that Mia didn't throw away her mother's diary and that it was in the hands of this child.
After a while, Enrique's head began to droop forward.
As I watched Enrique fall asleep instantly in my lap, saying he was scared, I stared at the crossword puzzle game where the words "Jamilla" and "Demon" were hidden.
"...First, we have to find out who Jamilla is."
-----------------------
"Where are you going instead of resting at home?"
I was coming down the stairs in thick robes to head to Blanchia, and Belreck, who blocked my way, asked bluntly.
"I'm full of energy, but should I stay in bed?"
"This is because the force behind the attack on the Imperial Library hasn't been caught."
Indeed, I was on my way to investigate the decisive clues behind that.
"I'll pass by Armand for a moment. And even though his name is that, Seymour is behind him, isn't he?"
"Mmm. That's right."
"But, brother. It seems you have something to say."
His expression turned slightly serious.
"There are rumors that you have great divine powers. My father only told me to ask you directly. What is the truth?"
Until now, only Isidor and Dad knew that I had awakened divine power, but it was becoming increasingly difficult to hide it, and I no longer had the intention to conceal it.
"That's right. I'm a much better person than you think. Do you automatically feel like calling me 'noona' now?"
Playfully, I conjured a white sphere of divine power above my palm and blew it into Belreck's face.
He, who had been harshly exploited by his slave labor, opened his mouth as if surprised by my confirmation.
"A-are you really a Saint? Lord God... You must have abandoned your empire!"
Leaving him behind, I got on the carriage and headed towards Armand.
Arriving at Blanchia through the magic circle in Armand's basement, Isidor, who concealed his beauty with polymorphic magic, was working.
"It's good to see you."
Every time I see him, I can't get used to the smiling doll face.
"It's been a while since I saw you."
"Yes, if you came here instead of Visconti Mansion, it's because you must have something to ask, isn't it?"
"Yes."
I sat down, petting Cookie, who was yawning, and he served me hot tea as always.
"Master, have you ever heard the name 'Jamilla'?"
He tilted his head slightly.
"Jamilla? It's a name with a unique accent. I remember all the names of many nobles, but this is the first time I've heard that name."
I took out a crossword puzzle and explained that I had found a suspicious code in my mother's diary.
Furthermore, in the future I saw, Mia threw away the diary with this crossword puzzle.
"According to the diary, my mother was close to the empress, so she was often invited for tea at the imperial court."
"..."
"What if one of the maids of the imperial family knew the identity of a sorcerer within the imperial family and secretly reported it through a crossword puzzle?"
"Jamilla..."
Isidor snapped his fingers, and a thick parchment flew through the air, listing the names of the royal family and nobles.
"In this, distant relatives of the emperor are also written. The information has been constantly reviewed and organized by informants for the past three years, so there won't be any missing names. Let's look for it."
"How many nobles are there in the empire?"
Fortunately, the names are arranged alphabetically.
However, no matter how much I searched, I couldn't find the name Jamilla.
"So, why is that name in the crossword puzzle?"
Having fallen into a new obstacle, I slowly opened my mouth after seeing the name of the 4th Queen called "Astella Histach."
"Isidor. Could I get a list of the maids who worked for the 4th Queen 9 or 10 years ago?"
"The princess seems to think that the 4th Queen has a strong background. She's a Queen from a foreign country without external forces..."
Isidor tapped his finger slowly with a worried expression.
"Let's think. Although overshadowed by my older brother, Rosad, the 3rd Prince also, technically speaking, almost became a war hero thanks to the rift."
"..."
"Moreover, Mia's debutante partner this time was the 3rd Prince. Due to the halo of the Saint, there should have been requests from various influential young men to be her escort, but her partner was the 3rd Prince. Isn't that too much of a coincidence?"
"..."
"If we investigate the 4th Queen, we might be able to discover Jamilla's identity."
"I will investigate all the maids who took care of the 4th Queen."
A few days later.
After persistent investigation, they found a woman who had worked as a maid for the 4th Queen in the past.
The woman was currently suffering life's hardships and was now in a small monastery, doing chores for a small wage.
"If she was a maid of the royal family, the pay would have been good, so why did she leave her job as a maid for the 4th Queen?"
The woman, who was clutching the package of silver coins I had given her, with a greedy expression, immediately changed her complexion when the name of the 4th Queen appeared.
"Feel free to speak. No one will hurt you."
When I pulled out a bag with gold and Seymour's seal, she quickly moved her eyes from side to side before opening her mouth.
"Two of the maids I worked with have died. She was a very cruel woman from a young age."
"Were you a maid for the 4th Queen since childhood?"
"We've been together since I was 15, when the 4th Queen came from the Kingdom of Nerman to the Empire."
"Then, do you know the name Jamilla?"
At that moment, the woman's eyes widened in amazement.
"How does Princess Seymour know the true name of the 4th Queen?"