The Snow Leopard Baby of the Black Leopard Family

Karsus, upon receiving Alpheus' message, hurriedly returned to the mansion. However, by the time he arrived, the girl had already exhausted all her energy and was asleep.

The girl had indeed told Alpheus everything she knew, and Alpheus had instructed his assistant to write everything down.

Before she fell asleep from exhaustion, there was one question that had been bothering him, which he asked her.

"Then, why didn't you mention your younger sister right away when I first asked you?"

The girl hesitated before answering. He did not press her but patiently waited for her response.

"......"

"Tell me. Why didn’t you say that your sister had been taken hostage, and that’s why you had no choice but to do those things? If you had told me right away that you took all the poison so Tiel wouldn’t be hurt, I wouldn’t have had to question you like this."

"...I thought you wouldn't help me."

Lissa hesitated, and Alpheus frowned.

"You thought I wouldn't help you?"

"Yes... I thought you wouldn't listen to me. I was told no one would listen to me, and I’d end up dying anyway..."

"Was it Oshian who told you that?"

"Jae..."

Alpheus shook his head, signaling that she didn't need to say more.

It seemed that they had already brainwashed her, likely in preparation for the time when she might escape and seek help. This was why she had appeared as though she had no expectations of assistance.

Alpheus had the girl's quarters moved from the dungeon to the servants' quarters.

Of course, he couldn’t fully trust her words yet, so he didn’t release her from surveillance.

He temporarily confined her to the servants' quarters and stationed soldiers to guard the area.

When Karsus arrived, he was briefed by Alpheus about Lissa' situation and looked over the notes carefully written down by his assistant.

He raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"What is this? I have no clue what’s going on here. This name, Oshian, seems familiar. I think I’ve seen it on the list of nobles before."

Karsus pointed to the part where Oshian's name was written.

Oshian Russell.

Oshian Russell, the head of the Russell family, was a baron who ruled a sizable territory.

The Russell family had once controlled a much larger territory but had lost more than half of it in territorial disputes with other families. Now, they were little more than a hollow noble family.

Oshian and Karsus, and even Alpheus, had never met in person, but as he was a noble of the Russell family, they had at least heard his name.

If you are reading this translation anywhere other than Novelight.net or SilkRoadTL, it has been stolen.

"I’ve asked them to check. Since Oshian and Jae have seen each other's faces, maybe they'll recognize Oshian's portrait when they see it. For now, we’ll find a portrait of Oshian and investigate the Russell family. Until we have solid evidence, we can’t act rashly."

"If they were conducting experiments on children, they would have kept them in a place within Russell’s territory. It would have been in a secluded area, and since they needed to avoid being detected, they probably restricted access. However, since essential supplies would have been brought regularly, we should focus on buildings in remote areas where goods are continuously delivered, but no people are seen entering."

Karsus spoke rapidly. Alpheus nodded in agreement.

"That sounds reasonable. Also, it would be best to restrict Tiel's outings for now, and prevent Ferdie and Ludian from returning to the academy as well."

"Even Ferdie and Ludian?"

"Yes. Even though they are capable of protecting themselves, we still don't know what kind of poison the criminals used. There's no harm in being cautious."

Karsus nodded in agreement. The two men drank their tea in silence for a long time.

At first, they thought this was just the work of those who didn't like Tiel becoming the family head, but it seemed that the issue was far more complex than that.

"She’s awake?"

Tiel asked, her eyes wide with surprise. Ludian nodded calmly.

"Yeah, she woke up. They’ve moved her from the dungeon to somewhere else. But it's still basically the same, she’s still locked up."

"That's a relief! So what did she say? What happened?"

Tiel grabbed Ludian’s arm excitedly and looked up at him with wide eyes.

Ludian, looking troubled, lightly pinched her cheek.

"I don’t know! Father and Grandfather didn’t tell us any of that. They just said it’s best if we stay put for now."

"We'll find out when the time comes."

From behind Tiel, Ferdie suddenly appeared and lifted her away from Ludian.

Tiel was very curious, but she didn’t ask any further questions and nodded along.

As Ferdie and Ludian had said, Karsus and Alpheus would always share what they felt was necessary for them to know.

On the other hand, the fact that they hadn't shared any details meant that this matter was something they didn't need to know at all.

"But I’m still curious."

Why did they attack me? Could it have been something my grandfather sent?

Tiel’s maternal grandfather, Chender Nestian, the head of the Nestian family, had remained very quiet for the past five years.

He had intentionally avoided provoking the Asterian family and hadn’t been involved in anything that would draw attention to him. Chender had hardly left the Nestian territory during those five years.

It wasn’t unusual for heads of families to stay within their territories for years at a time, but the Nestian family had some peculiarities.

For five years, they had cut off most contact with other territories.

Karsus, while explaining this to Tiel, kindly reassured her that she didn’t need to worry about meeting Chender.

However, with everything happening now, the first thing Tiel suspected was the Nestian family... Since Nestian still represented such a scary and painful memory for her.

"Could it be...?"

Tiel had grown quite a # Nоvеlight # bit, her hair was longer, and she had become a strong, capable young beastkin who could use her abilities freely, but facing the Nestian family still made her nervous.

As her expression turned serious, Ferdie and Ludian, sensing she might be getting upset thinking about her attack, quickly changed the subject.

"By the way, there was a gift from the Imperial Palace. Ian Dross sent it."

Ludian said.

"Ian?"

"Yeah, it came with a letter. Let’s go see it."

"I think you’ll really like it!"

Ferdie lightly set Tiel down. She quickly adjusted her dress and nodded.

The three of them headed down to the first floor. The maids were sorting through the gifts that had come from the Imperial Palace. Ian Dross had sent a large number of them along with a letter.

As Tiel descended the stairs, the butler, who was organizing the gifts, approached and bowed respectfully.

"The most important-looking gift from Lord Ian has been placed in the family head's room. I will sort the rest and make a list for you."

"The most important-looking one?"

"Yes, Lady Tiel."

"I wonder what it is...! Anyway, thank you!"

Tiel thanked the butler cheerfully and, along with Ferdie and Ludian, headed back upstairs.

At the door to her room, Tiel grabbed the doorknob with excitement and looked at Ferdie and Ludian.

"I wonder what Ian sent?"

"I swear, it’ll be something less to your liking than what I’d give you."

"I bet it’ll be worse than the gifts I give you."

Tiel pouted at their teasing.

"Don’t say that, brothers. No matter what, every gift is precious and wonderful..."

"Alright, alright. Open it already."

Ferdie and Ludian, unable to resist their little sister’s adorable reaction, smiled and nodded.

Tiel, her eyes sparkling, carefully opened the door.

And then...

Whoosh!

A blindingly white shape flew toward Tiel.