RETURN OF THE FEMALE KNIGHT

23. I Just Need to Catch Them

Nayeon, who was still listening quietly, noted that she also sensed something strange.

"Come to think of it, Joy asked to stay in the luggage carriage alone because she was not feeling well."

Because Lalisa was riding inside the carriage with Roseanne, she didn't know who was on the coachman's seat. Unusually there had been two maids riding on the coachman's seat on Lalisa's carriage, while Joy was alone with the luggage. The full story had to come from her.

"Where is Joy now?"

Nayeon's face turned white at Lalisa's question. She seemed to come to a damning realization.

"W-well...I couldn't find Joy, so the other maids went to look for her."

After hearing this, Lalisa immediately knew who destroyed the dresses without having to delve any further. House Blaise was a family of knights. It would be difficult to sneak past the escort of well-trained soldiers towards the carriage, unless the culprit, however, was an inside woman.

"..."

As Lalisa remained silent, one the knights standing next to her spoke up first.

"We'll search the perimeter, My Lady."

This was all planned out. The chances of finding Joy were low, but it was better than nothing, so Lalisa nodded.

"Then please take care of it."

"Understood."

The knights exchanged glances with each other then quickly scattered. Lalisa couldn't push down the acid feeling in her throat as she looked at the wreckage of the dresses in the carriage.

'...Who the hell was responsible for this?'

Joy, a maid, could not have done this alone. Someone was moving in the shadows behind her, but they were not easily seen. Lalisa wondered if it was someone from a previous life. Since returning to the past, she couldn't think of anything she had done to incur resentment against her.

Lalisa contemplated quietly for a moment, then turned to Nayeon.

"Did you notice anything strange about Joy while we were traveling?"

"Not at all..."

Nayeon, whose words trailed off to a murmur, then suddenly lifted her voice as if something struck her mind.

"Oh! She received a letter from Dahyun a few days ago."

"Dahyun?"

Her memories of dismissing Dahyun gradually emerged to the forefront. Joy and Dahyub worked as maids together, and even if one of them was fired, they still could have exchanged letters. Lalisa had a sense of foreboding.

"Joy was the only one to receive a letter? What about the other maids?"

"No, the other maids didn't receive any. Joy and Dahyun were close friends from the beginning."

"...Is that so?"

"Yes. But it might not be important, My Lady."

Nayeon still seemed to have a guilty conscience over Dahyun, and had a slightly embarrassed expression on her face. Sensing her discomfort, Lalisa replied with slight nod of her head.

"I see. Don't worry, I'll figure out if it's in any way related."

"Y-yes!"

Nayeon's expression turned bright again, and Lalisa looked away from the torn dresses. Staring it at wouldn't return to its original state. For now, she had to think about how to handle this.