She Is Not a Witch

Madam Mela hurriedly bent down to pick up the broken teacup pieces, but Ceres stepped forward.

“Please sit, madam. I’ll clean this up.”

Madam Mela paused, then slowly returned to her seat, wringing her hands nervously and keeping her head bowed.

“I’m deeply saddened to hear this news. Lord Angus was a kind man. Why would such a thing happen to him?” Her voice was broken, seemingly in great distress.

“Please accept my condolences.” Loranhil then waited for Madam Mela to compose herself.

After a while, Madam Mela stopped her quiet sobbing, wiped her tears with a handkerchief, and slowly raised her head. Her eyes were red and swollen.

Seeing her gradually calm down, Loranhil continued.

“Although Lord Angus has passed, he entrusted me with caring for you and your child before his death. Please rest assured on that point.”

“Thank you, thank you, Miss Lacy. I… I don’t know how to repay this kindness… If you have any requests, please don’t hesitate to ask.”

“I have no particular requests, but I would like to see your child today.” Loranhil stated her main purpose for the visit.

“Of course, please wait a moment. Diel is upstairs, I’ll go get him.”

“No need to trouble yourself. Let’s go together. It’s my first time here, and I’m quite interested in seeing the layout.” Loranhil shook her head, smiling kindly as she stood up from the sofa.

“Al-alright, please follow me.” Madam Mela hesitated, then led Loranhil forward.

The building had three floors. The second floor contained bedrooms, while the third was an attic connected to the roof, used for storage. The floors were all marble, with doors, railings, and furniture made of redwood. Everything looked relatively new, likely made in recent years.

Passing through the second-floor corridor, they reached a door at the far end. Madam Mela took out a key to unlock it. Inside was a child about 10 years old, sprawled on the floor painting with colorful paints. Colorful building blocks were scattered on the floor nearby.

Seeing the door open, the child looked up. Excited to see Madam Mela, he proudly brought his painting to show her.

“Mama, I drew this. Do you like it?” The child seemed happy at his mother’s sudden appearance.

The thick white paper was covered in childish scribbles of a small figure. Yellow paint exaggerated the hair, while light red paint formed a wide, smiling mouth. Overall, it was barely recognizable as a person, with various paints piled on the paper in a chaotic manner.

“I apologize for this, Miss Lacy.” Madam Mela quickly pulled the child over, carelessly tossing the painting aside.

“It’s fine.” Loranhil went to pick up the drawing and asked the child, “Who did you draw, Diel?”

“It’s Mama.”

“Why is Mama’s hair yellow?”

“Because I want Mama to be like the sun, taking me out… and smiling. Mama rarely smiles at me…” The child’s voice dropped.

Hearing the child’s words, Madam Mela looked embarrassed but didn’t dare to intervene openly.

Loranhil had no intention of mocking. She looked at the child, pulled aside by his mother. He wasn’t very tall, wore clean clothes, and stared at her with large eyes full of curiosity and admiration.

“Come here, little one.” Loranhil crouched down, patting her hands, to be at eye level with the child, smiling.

Madam Mela reluctantly let go, allowing the child to approach.

Loranhil stroked Diel’s head, blinking as she assessed his condition.

Overall, he seemed healthy. His features resembled his mother’s, softer than Angus’s angular face.

After some more conversation, Loranhil presented a gift box of snacks for the child and invited them to move to the Carithes Merchant Association headquarters for better safety.

However, Madam Mela declined. Loranhil didn’t press the issue, saying she’d visit again in a while before leaving.

Donning her black hooded cloak once more and boarding the carriage, Loranhil pondered the meeting.

“Ceres, how did Lord Angus meet Madam Mela?”

“It was at a party ten years ago. The master’s business was taking off, and he often attended various gatherings. One time he got drunk, and Miss Mela happened to be there—she was the daughter of a small merchant.”

“In his drunken state, the master had relations with Miss Mela. Afterward, Mela’s father, hoping to curry favor, tried to send her to be a concubine. Though the master didn’t agree, he gave Mela’s father considerable benefits out of guilt.”

“Over time, Mela’s father became increasingly greedy, making larger demands and even threatening to expose the affair if the master didn’t comply.”

“The master had been tolerant out of sentiment, but after that, he took action. Mela’s father nearly went bankrupt before finally backing down. Madam Mela, caught in the middle, had previously asked the master for many favors on her father’s behalf and always felt uneasy. Later, she even began to fear the master.”

“I see…” Loranhil listened to butler Ceres’s account, feeling there were still some unclear points.

Why was Madam Mela more panicked than sorrowful upon hearing of Angus’s death? Why did she keep Diel locked in his room—was it concern or mistreatment? Why did she instantly refuse Loranhil’s invitation to stay at headquarters without any hesitation?

Madam Mela must be hiding something. There might be more to her relationship with Angus. Loranhil sipped her tea, wondering how to uncover the truth.

After a while, she spoke again.

“Ceres, can you arrange for someone to inquire about Madam Mela’s acquaintances from the past? I want to know about her situation ten years ago, before and after her encounter with Angus.”

“That might be difficult, young miss. It’s been ten years, after all.”

“Even after a decade, many things leave traces. Send someone to investigate.”

“Very well, Miss Lacy.”

Back at headquarters, Loranhil handled some association matters before dinner. Afterward, she sat in a chair on the balcony, enjoying the starry night view and cool evening breeze.

Head maid Chelsea gently opened the balcony’s French doors and approached.

“Young miss, did you call for me?”

“Yes, I have a task for you.” She paused briefly, gazing at the distant city lights as the wind rustled through the trees beyond the balcony.

“Have trusted confidants secretly investigate butler Ceres and all the subordinates he’s been in contact with these past few days, then report back to me. You’ve been with Carithes the longest, so you should have plenty of reliable people, right?”

Loranhil turned to look at the head maid, her smooth hair gently swaying in the night breeze.