CHAPTER 21
“Ah!”
“Eek!”
I lost my balance for a moment, but thankfully Greta caught me before I could fall flat on my back.
Who just barges in like that without warning?
When I looked to see who had fallen, it was a small child wearing a black robe.
Oh dear, that must’ve hurt.
The hood was pulled deep over the child’s face, hiding it completely.
I reached out a hand, mixing concern and scolding in my voice.
“Hey kid, are you okay? Did you get hurt? You shouldn’t run around without looking—”
Smack.
The child slapped my hand away sharply and jumped up. Red eyes flashed briefly under the robe before vanishing.
Brushing the dirt off their clothes, the child turned and ran off.
Without even an apology.
“…?”
Did I just get hit-and-run by a kid?
I stared blankly at the small figure disappearing into the distance, then shrugged.
Well, maybe the kid had somewhere important to be.
I didn’t plan to chase them down, so I just kept walking.
Then I noticed no one was following me and turned around.
“Greta? What are you doing back there?”
“Oh, I’m sorry. I’m coming.”
Greta, who had been staring intently in the direction the child disappeared, slowly tore her gaze away and walked toward me.
“Why? Did you see something?”
“No. I thought it might’ve been someone I know… but I was mistaken.”
“Really?”
“Yes, don’t mind it. Let’s go inside.”
Greta opened the shop door for me.
“Welcome, to Julia’s Dress Shop!”
A warm-looking woman with curly brown hair greeted us with a cheerful smile.
“Hello, I came to get a party dress made.”
“A party dress? Are you perhaps the wife of some noble house?”
As the owner looked me over quickly, Greta answered for me.
“She is the wife of Baron Kreutz.”
“Oh my, forgive me for not recognizing such an esteemed guest! We don’t usually have nobles visiting, so my manners are lacking.”
“That’s fine. Can I get a dress made here?”
“Of course! My dream has always been to make a dress for a noble lady.”
“Oh, that’s perfect. But my budget’s only up to five gold…”
“Oh, that’s plenty. Our most expensive gown isn’t even one gold. Ah, but that doesn’t mean I’d use cheap fabric for you!”
Excited, the owner led me to the sofa in the middle of the shop, then called out to a young girl scrubbing the floor in the corner.
“You! Go fetch my sketchbook.”
“Yes, ma’am…”
“Don’t dawdle. Hurry!”
“Y-Yes!”
The sweet tone she used with me turned cold and harsh with the girl.
The girl hunched her shoulders and ran to bring back a thick sketchbook. The owner took it and spread it open before me with a bright smile.
“I’ve designed many beautiful dresses. Take your time and choose.”
“Sure, Greta, will you help me look?”
“Of course.”
The three of us sat side by side, flipping through the designs and sharing opinions. Before I knew it, an hour had flown by.
I chose the most elegant design and set a fitting date.
“I’ll have it ready for a fitting in two weeks. Just a one-gold deposit, please.”
“Alright, just a second.”
I picked up my cloak and reached into the inner pocket for the money.
Hard coins should’ve been there…
“Hm?”
Nothing?
I turned the cloak upside down and shook it. Only a stray thread fell out.
What? Where’s my money?!
“My lady, what’s wrong?”
“Greta, the money’s gone. I must’ve dropped it somewhere.”
“Then I’ll go look for it.”
“I’ll come too!”
After apologizing to the shopkeeper, we retraced our steps.
We searched every inch of the street but didn’t find even a brown pebble, let alone gold coins.
“No way… this can’t be happening…”
At a time when every coin mattered, I’d lost hard-earned money.
As I stood in the middle of the street clutching my head, one of the clerks from the luxury boutique we’d visited earlier recognized me.
“Oh, Baroness Kreutz? What are you doing here? Is something wrong?”
“Oh no, what happened? Were you pickpocketed?”
The sympathy in their voices made my eyes widen.
Come to think of it, maybe I didn’t lose it—maybe someone stole it.
And if it was stolen, there was only one suspicious person.
That strange little kid in a black robe with red eyes who’d bumped into me earlier.
“Don’t tell me that’s why they ran off without apologizing? That little brat…”
A hit-and-run and theft?
As I muttered under my breath, Greta grabbed my shoulder anxiously.
“My lady, are you alright? Maybe we should just go home and get more money—”
“No, Greta. That’d be a waste, given our finances.”
“Then what will you do?”
“I’ll find the thief and get my money back.”
Three weeks left until the Kalrad Duke’s banquet.
Julia said she could finish the dress in two, so if I caught the pickpocket within a week, it’d be fine.
“I’ll get my money back, no matter what!”
I clenched my fists.
***
Behind the Kalrad Ducal estate.
A boy in a black robe slipped quietly through a side door.
Avoiding people, he ran down a deserted path until he reached a balcony. Picking up a pebble, he tossed it at the window.
Tap, tap, tap.
After the third throw, the balcony door opened, and a young servant boy appeared—it was Tommy, who worked at the estate.
“You’re here! You’re late today!”
“Idiot, keep your voice down. Someone might hear.”
“Ah! Sorry.”
Tommy clapped a hand over his mouth and lowered a ladder for him.
The boy climbed up, threw off his robe, and revealed golden hair like melted sunlight and ruby-colored eyes that gleamed like jewels.
No painting of an angel could match how beautiful he looked—except for the slight defiance in his eyes.
“I’ll take your robe, Lord Matthias.”
Tommy extended his hands respectfully as he spoke the boy’s name.
Matthias Kalrad.
Grandson of Klaus and Renée, nephew of Aizen, son of the late Michael and his wife—currently the only young heir of House Kalrad.
That was the boy’s true identity.
As Matthias tilted his head with mild pride, Tommy asked carefully.
“Did something happen today?”
“…”
Matthias’s lips pressed together before he answered slowly.
“I checked around the dress shop where your sister used to work, but didn’t find any clues.”
“Oh, I see…”
Disappointment filled Tommy’s face, and Matthias looked uneasy in return.
The two had grown close about two months ago.
When his family got busier and left him feeling lonely, Matthias met Tommy while playing in the garden.
He started spending more time with Tommy than with his own family.
Then one day, he found Tommy crying behind the bushes.
“What’s wrong? Did Walter scold you?”
“No… it’s just… my sister’s gone, my lord… sniff…”
“Your sister? She’s missing?”
“Yes… she hasn’t shown up for days. She used to visit me every other day…”
Tommy once lived in an orphanage with his older sister, Anna. Later, he started working at the ducal estate while Anna found work at Julia’s Dress Shop.
They stayed close even after separating, until one day Anna vanished—and when Tommy went to look for her, he heard something shocking.
Anna had supposedly stolen money and fled.
The shop owner demanded Tommy repay the debt, shouting and beating him when he said he couldn’t.
Terrified and bruised, Tommy told Matthias everything.
“My sister would never do that, my lord. Please believe me. She’s not that kind of person, I swear…”
“Stop crying. I’ll find her for you.”
“You will, my lord? R-Really?”
“Yes. I promise on my name.”
Back then, Matthias had been full of confidence. As a young noble, he believed nothing was beyond his reach.
But—
“Oh, young master, there are plenty of orphans who steal and run away. Your friend’s sister is no different.”
“Tommy’s sister isn’t like that! I heard she was kind and—”
“She looked kind! They all do, but inside they’re rotten. You’ve been fooled, young master.”
The guards treated him like a naive child and dismissed the case.
They sneered at Tommy and Anna for being orphans.
Hmph, what did they know?
Refusing to give up, Matthias tried asking his family for help.
But that went nowhere too.
“I’m sorry, Matthias. I have urgent matters to attend to.”
“My apologies, young master. The duchess is away.”
“I’m busy reading something important. Leave a message with Walter.”
All it did was confirm that he’d been forgotten by his own family.
That only fueled his stubbornness.
“You think I can’t do this alone? I’m not a kid anymore!”
Seeing his family act as if he didn’t matter, Matthias decided to prove he didn’t need them.
He began investigating Anna’s disappearance by himself.
He disguised Tommy as himself, leaving him in bed pretending to nap, and snuck out unnoticed.
But a nine-year-old noble boy couldn’t do much beyond wandering near the dress shop.
After more than a week, he still had no results.
“What’s this, my lord?”
Tommy picked up a small pouch that had fallen from Matthias’s robe.
“I don’t know.”
“I’ll just put it back then.”
“Yeah.”
Matthias didn’t realize that the pouch belonged to the woman he’d bumped into earlier.
He started planning his next move.
Two days later, while lingering near the dress shop again, someone suddenly grabbed his shoulder.
“…?!”
“Gotcha, you little hit-and-run thief!”
When he turned, he saw a familiar woman smiling triumphantly as she called him names he’d never heard before.
It was Jena.
To Matthias, a stranger pretending to be his aunt.
