The Viscountess is Clever [Romance/Kingdom Building]

“Is this the correct jewel box, your Ladyship?” Stella asked, gently handing the item to Francesca, who was currently sitting quietly by her grand dressing table.

The small container featured an exceptionally intricate, defensive design, secured tightly by a specialized lock mechanism with the LeonCraft ducal sigil neatly and proudly engraved upon its polished wooden lid.

“Thanks, Stella,” Francesca replied softly.

She opened the intricate box with ease. Resting inside on a bed of faded velvet lay a heavily fractured necklace, holding a mysteriously glowing gem. The ancient name of the magical artifact was neatly engraved right onto the metallic base: The Azure Tear.

“That necklace appears way too broken, your Ladyship... would you like me to find a master jeweler in town to try and fix the links?” Stella asked with a helpful smile.

Francesca slowly shook her head, closing her fingers near the box. “It won’t be necessary, Stella... it was an old keepsake left behind by my mother, so it has always been in this fractured condition.”

“Ah... I see. I am incredibly sorry if I was being insensitive, my Lady,” Stella replied quickly, bowing her head in apology.

Francesca simply nodded dismissively, her eyes never leaving the glowing stone. “I never even met her, after all. She tragically died shortly after giving birth to me... so it is nothing for you to feel bad about.”

Stella just stood quietly by her side as Francesca continued to stare intently down at the gemstone in deep, suffocating thought.

I still don’t know what the exact criteria was for this artifact to trigger and successfully bring my soul back to life into this world... Even within the original Gorgeria’s Revival fairytale's lore, the precise mechanics of the regression were never fully mentioned.

She picked up the fractured chain, bringing the glowing blue gem close to her golden eyes, desperately looking deep into its crystalline depths for answers.

Even father tried to figure out how to utilize its magic for many years, desperately hoping to bring mother back from the dead before eventually giving up entirely. He put it aside as a useless heirloom, only gifting it to me right before my marriage simply because it was Mother's final dying wish for me to inherit it...

Placing the artifact back down into the velvet lining, Francesca gently traced its large, jagged crack with her index finger, slowly outlining the fragile portion where a massive, deep cut ran straight through the center of the stone. She continued her silent train of thought.

It certainly used to be damaged in the past, but it was clearly never this broken before I returned to life. So... one thing is for certain: the artifact's gemstone gets severely cracked upon usage.

I still don’t know anything concrete about its magical properties, and the fairytale's text is just far too vague... even if Ivan comes forward and demands it as blackmail for Jeckson's freedom, I absolutely cannot give it to him willingly.

She picked the necklace up once more, completely dazed as she whispered out loud, “I don’t know what will happen to me if it is no longer in my possession...”

Hearing the faint murmur, Stella raised her head. “What was that, my Lady?”

“Nothing... just... Can you go fetch me a glass of fresh water?” Francesca replied suddenly, snapping out of her dazed, heavy thoughts.

Stella nodded quickly. “I will be right back, your Ladyship!”

As she hurried out of the bedchambers to fetch the drink, the heavy draft from the hallway caused the grand wooden door to slowly creak shut behind her.

Staring at the closing door, Francesca whispered into the empty room, “It might be dangerous for my very survival.”

I really, truly hope my hypothesis is completely wrong and Ivan is not actually after the Azure Tear... because I cannot part with it when everything about my regression remains so terrifyingly uncertain, and my very physical existence in this world is fundamentally linked to it.

The Viscount's Office, Lord’s Castle

“I confirmed that Sir Albert truly did not accompany you and Her Ladyship down to the chapel yesterday,” Kenny reported, handing Miller a fresh stack of internal monitoring documents. He added, “Just as Lord Ivan originally told you, the knight claimed he was severely sick and reportedly stayed confined to his guest room the entire duration of the sermon.”

“Though that alibi might not be entirely true, right?” Miller replied, tapping his fingers rhythmically against his office desk as he stared out the window in deep thought. “A seasoned knight of his caliber could have easily slipped out the window undetected while feigning sickness to the household staff.”

“He is a high-ranking knight from the Capital, after all... so he is certainly skilled enough to pull off a maneuver like that. Furthermore, regarding the incense device that caused the sudden smoke in the assembly hall.. even though it was almost completely burned to a crisp, our craftsman can still clearly make out the structural branding. It was undoubtedly manufactured in the Capital,” Kenny replied with a firm nod.

“And that squire... Reafel. According to the cave guards' reports, the man didn’t possess enough martial skill to even properly fight off a single one of our baseline sentries,” Miller noted, standing up from his chair and walking closer to the glass pane. “It is as if he was deliberately sent into our secret cave to get caught... What's more, the killer didn’t simply slit his throat to silence him cleanly. They stabbed him repeatedly in the stomach. Why choose a slow, agonizing death like that? Were they trying to have a conversation with him while he bled out?”

“The killer must have wanted to extract the exact details of whatever Reafel had managed to discover at the lakeside facility right before his death,” Kenny agreed with a nod, following his commander's assessment.

Miller replied grimly, “That is the exact same conclusion I came to as well. Looking at the pieces, it is exceptionally clear to us that Lord Ivan has a significant hand in this, or outright engineered the entire execution behind the scenes. But...”

“Logically, the exact opposite narrative sounds far more plausible to any outside investigator who is completely removed from what we privately know about Jeckson,” Kenny replied with a heavy sigh. “On paper, Sir Albert never left his secure quarters. Therefore, the only individuals capable of covertly planting a specialized smoke device under the main table would be the event organizers... which means us.”

Miller turned around, his fists clenching tightly at his sides. “The framing narrative Ivan built is incredibly strong. He will argue that Jeckson, utilizing his existing ties with the castle staff, had the incense device planted beforehand. Then, Jeckson strategically slipped out of the hall right before the smoke went off, using the chaotic cover to infiltrate the dungeons and murder Reafel in order to threaten Lord Ivan.”

“And with the Libert House's notoriously collapsed financial situation... Lord Ivan could easily use that desperate poverty angle to justify a strong blackmail or extortion motive to the investigators as well,” Kenny finished realistically.

So... is there truly no other choice left but to publicly reveal my private connection to Jeckson? exposing him as my secret mole within the Vassal Council is the only viable way to get this trial onto somewhat equal, fighting grounds... Miller thought heavily.

“We cannot do much visually right now. Lord Ivan will certainly use his highborn status to demand that Imperial Investigators be formally summoned to handle the murder trial very soon,” Miller finished, picking up a new strategic document from his desk.

“Time is running out for us, Kenny, and we need to make a definitive decision right now. What exactly can we do to construct a solid legal case, one that will actually allow us to protect Jeckson without destroying our own political standing?”

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