“This is…”
Gerard looked around with a grave expression, as if he couldn’t believe what he was seeing.
The items from inside the palace were piled up like a mountain, and the garden soil looked as though a herd of moles had rampaged through it.
“Chut? Chu-ut?”
A mess? A disaster?
I couldn’t find anything to say either and simply backed away.
“Ah, you’re here…?”
Lord Ferdinand greeted us while scratching his head.
Judging by his sheepish expression, he was clearly the culprit behind this chaos.
Under Gerard’s lead, we sat down at one of the few intact tables in the garden.
Before beginning today’s objective—the search for Lady Solania’s treasure—we planned our approach.
“To make the search more effective, I’d like to confirm a few things first.”
At Gerard’s words, Lord Ferdinand nodded seriously.
“First… do you have any idea what kind of item the treasure Lady Solania left behind might be?”
“Well… I suppose it must be something very valuable.”
“Value differs depending on the person, sir. Then… do you at least have an idea of where it might be?”
When Gerard asked carefully, Lord Ferdinand responded after a two-beat pause.
“Ahem, wouldn’t it be somewhere in this Black Dragon Castle?”
“So you’re not even certain it’s inside the White Sun Palace. Yes, I see.”
Gerard’s spiritless voice dragged out the end of his sentence.
It seemed even this short interview had already told him what the outcome of today’s search would be.
My thoughts weren’t much different.
“Chuuut…”
This grandpa… does he even know anything?
His wavering gaze shifted to the piles of furniture stacked in the corner of the garden.
Since overwhelming strength was something he had in abundance, it was obvious he had tossed everything out except the furniture.
Still, thanks to that, checking the rooms became easier.
“Then, since time is short, let’s begin. We’ll start with the first floor.”
With Gerard’s suggestion, our treasure hunt began.
But after an hour, then two…
“Lady Cherry, have you found anything?”
“Chuut, chut.”
Not at all.
We had checked not only the lobby but even every shelf in the library, but nothing that resembled a “treasure” turned up.
“I haven’t found anything either.”
“Nor have I.”
When Gerard and Lord Ferdinand returned empty-handed, we headed to the second floor.
“Lady Cherry, please take the room at the end. I will check the bedrooms.”
Lord Ferdinand had supposedly checked several times already, but the more familiar one is with a space, the easier it is to overlook things.
While the two headed east, I made my way to the room at the western end.
“Chuut…”
The door was shut firmly unlike the others, but that wasn’t a problem for me.
I hung onto the doorknob and shook it twice—click—and it opened.
“Chut-chut.”
Excuse me. I’ll just rummage around a bit.
I greeted the empty room and went inside.
White cloths covered the furniture as though no one had stepped inside for a long time.
It looks like some kind of secret room…
My purpose in coming to the White Sun Palace was to find the hidden treasure.
So this was unavoidable.
I bit the corner of the white cloth and carefully pulled it away.
What was revealed was a canvas large enough to be displayed in an imperial gallery.
A portrait?
Naturally, the subjects were members of the Kreuz family.
Lord Ferdinand at the forefront, a woman who must be Lady Solania, and a young couple with a child.
Anyone could guess who the young couple was with a little thought.
“Chuut…”
König’s parents—the son and daughter-in-law of Lord Ferdinand.
I stared at the couple’s faces for a moment, almost entranced.
It was no wonder.
König really takes after his father.
Except for the white hair he inherited from Lady Solania, König resembled his father to the point they could be copies.
And Sister Eloise looks exactly like their mother.
Tall, with fiery red hair ready to burst into flame at any moment, and a striking beauty with sharp features.
“Chuut.”
Hello, I’m Cherry—no, Muriel Aymond.
I bowed without thinking.
“Ahem.”
A presence behind me made me jump. It was Lord Ferdinand.
“Chuut…”
I flinched like a child caught doing something naughty.
I hadn’t done anything wrong, but it felt like I had uncovered a closely guarded secret.
Yet Lord Ferdinand waved his hand dismissively.
“It’s fine. It’s not a secret. Rather—what do you think?”
“Chuut?”
About what?
“Solania, of course. Isn’t she the most beautiful person you’ve ever seen?”
Kneeling beside me, Lord Ferdinand grinned broadly.
“Chuut…”
I nodded, almost spellbound.
Honestly, I couldn’t help but fully agree this time.
She was the most beautiful person I had ever seen, young or old, man or woman.
“Ahem. It may be odd for me to say this, but how else do you think kids like König and Eloise were born under a shabby old man like me? It’s all thanks to our Solana doing her best.”
“Chuu-oot…!”
An involuntary exclamation slipped out.
I had wondered the first time I met Lord Ferdinand:
How did a face like this—a mountain bandit, basically—produce someone as delicately beautiful as König, like a porcelain doll shaped by the gods?
This puzzle that had been stuck in my mind like an acorn shell in the throat was finally resolved.
“You tiny thing—your thoughts show right through your eyes.”
“Chuut…”
Sorry. But the truth is the truth.
He frowned briefly, then looked back at the portrait as if it didn’t matter.
“It was such a blessing that we had this portrait made.”
His rough fingers couldn’t bring themselves to touch the painting; instead, they traced the edge of the canvas.
He looked afraid to damage it.
“The truth is… everything in this room is a treasure to me.”
The piano where his beloved wife and young son once sat side by side, playing together.
The handkerchief his wife embroidered with care.
The awards his son brought home every year for graduating top of his class.
And this portrait capturing their happiest days.
He said each object carried unforgettable memories, marked by the hands of the people he loved.
Just holding onto these was enough for him.
However—
“I still want to know what Solana wanted to show me.”
So he had spent over a decade desperately searching for her hidden treasure.
Seeing the deep sorrow that lingered behind his smile, I pounded my tiny chest.
“Chut-chut!”
Just trust me.
As I said before, back in Bear Mountain I was a prodigy at hunting down even a single cookie crumb hidden in someone’s pocket.
I wanted to release the burden he had carried for so long.
So we renewed our determination.
We checked inside the piano, the ceiling corners—everywhere.
But the treasure refused to appear.
Eventually, the blue sky turned red-orange, and it was time for Gerard and me to return.
“I fear we’ve only caused you more heartbreak. My apologies.”
“Chuut…”
I bowed deeply along with Gerard.
Of course, we hadn’t given up.
“Chuut!”
We’ll come again tomorrow!
I raised my hand high, but Lord Ferdinand only shook his head slowly.
“Your hearts alone are enough. I’ll find it someday. I can’t stay tied to this place forever, after all.”
He said the living must keep moving forward.
While he let out a hearty laugh, the White Sun Palace—its white marble walls—glowed under the sunset.
Then—spark.
A spark?
The window glimmered as the sunset passed through it.
It was the room where all his precious belongings were gathered.
And at that moment, a thought flashed through my mind.
Maybe it’s there!
No—it must be.
The certainty hit me and I dashed forward.
“Lady Cherry!”
“Squirrel!”
Back in the second-floor room, the arched window’s sunset painted half the space in crimson.
“Lady Cherry!”
“Chuut!”
I pointed at the carpet on the floor.
“You want us to remove the carpet?”
“Chut!”
Before I even nodded, Gerard had already rolled the carpet up from the edge.
Revealed beneath it was an ordinary wooden floor.
But our eyes—mine, Gerard’s, and Lord Ferdinand’s—all focused on one spot.
A section of the floor where the sunlight pooled brightly.
And right there, we saw it—clear signs that someone had cut and reattached the wood.
Lord Ferdinand let out a strangled gasp.
His trembling hand slowly reached forward.
