The Saintess and the Villainess

Chapter 78

"I would very much like to know the same thing," said Corvina, glaring at her agent. "I thought I told you to stick to asking around the commoners. What were you doing in the Tulin's library?"

"I'm so sorry, my lady," said the agent, bowing. "But every line of inquiry I followed led to a dead-end! My contact at the church found nothing of use. Everyone I talked to either didn't remember anything of note happening around that time, or they remembered too many things. A series of shops being burgled, an especially bad flu that season, a mysterious house fire—"

Most people, when they listened to someone talk, would look at the person who was talking. Corvina had long since learned that sometimes it was more useful to pay attention to the other listeners instead.

That's how she was able to notice that, when the agent mentioned a house fire, Justine's brow briefly furrowed. A sign of recognition.

"—I really couldn't think of what else to look into," continued the agent. "And I just thought... Well, as the family in charge of the region, maybe the Tulins would have records stored in their library that didn't exist anywhere else."

"I see," said Corvina. "And did you find anything useful?"

"No, my lady," said the agent, looking down in shame.

"I interrupted her before she could find much of anything," said Justine. "Because, and this might surprise you, I'm not particularly fond of strangers snooping around my library without permission."

"I'm terribly sorry for the trespass, Lady Justine," said Corvina, with a low curtsy. "I will take full responsibility for my agent's actions. Whatever restitution you see fit, I will see that you receive it."

Justine sighed. "You don't... have to act like that. Just explain to me what it is you're so desperately looking into. I've lived in this area my whole life, and I've seen it from both sides—poor and rich. Perhaps I can help."

Corvina looked at Justine. Justine had defensive tendencies, especially when it came to her family and her home. But that was perfectly understandable, given that, according to the laws of the empire, technically neither her home nor her family legally belonged to her. It made sense for someone living like that to see their position as precarious—It was precarious.

But still, despite all that, Justine was a genuinely kind person. Corvina could see where Belle got her personality from. She smiled a little at the thought.

Then Corvina glanced at Anne. Anne had been watching these proceedings with an air of confused interest. She was still in her nightshirt, with her hair unkempt from sleep. She looked unbearably cute. Corvina desperately wanted to reach out and ruffle that hair.

Corvina turned away. This whole mess really wasn't what she had wanted to talk to Anne about today. But she couldn't avoid the topic any longer.

"Alright," said Corvina. "I'll explain, but I think we should allow Anne to get dressed first."

Corvina sent her agent away, and then she and Justine waited together in a nearby drawing room while Anne got dressed. Helen brought them tea, which they sipped slowly while making polite small talk about Justine's gardens and the management of the region. It was a bit tense, but Corvina and Justine were both well-practiced in ignoring tension for the sake of being polite.

Finally, Anne came back in, wearing a blue suit Corvina had seen before, but without the stole to mark her status as a religious figure. "Sorry that took me a while," said Anne, looking sheepish. "Honestly, Eva usually helps me with the buttons and I forgot how tricky they can be..."