Holly returned to the bedroom assigned to her through the secret passage. On her way from the bedroom to Lyla’s study, she ran into the butler Albert.

“Is there a problem?”

His gaze swept over the three of them. It was only then that Holly realized how dusty both she and Cahill were.

“I have something to tell Lyla.”

Even though Holly replied with an embarrassed face, Albert’s interest had already drifted away from her.

“She is…”

He frowned at Seria, whom Cahill was holding.

“We will go in together.”

Seeing Albert’s face twisted even more at her response, he seemed reluctant to bring Seria to Lyla.

‘Albert and Chase don’t seem to like Seria much either.’

Holly thought to herself, trying to lift her foot again.

“Holly!”

Someone was calling her from a distance and running towards her.

“I’m popular today.”

While Holly turned her body as if muttering tiredly, Cahill’s expression twisted with displeasure.

“Ah, ah…?”

Chase, who had run up to her, couldn’t hide his surprise upon seeing Seria next to her. His blue eyes were visibly shaken as he asked.

“Were, were you going to Lyla?”

Noticing her strange gaze, Chase spoke in a fluster. He looked clearly bewildered.

“Yes. I have something to discuss…”

She looked back and forth between the startled Chase and Seria, her face turning pale.

“Do you want to come along, Chase?”

Upon Holly’s suggestion, Albert shot an irritated glance once again.

“Really? Is it okay, though?”

Chase was perplexed by the sudden invitation but seemed pleased. In the meanwhile, Holly nodded with a meaningful smile.

* * *

She led the expanded group towards Lyla’s study. Chase reached out to open the door first, but Albert pushed him aside with his shoulder.

Glancing at Chase, Albert lightly knocked on the door.

“Master, Miss Holly is here.”

Upon hearing the response from inside, Albert opened the door. Cahill pushed Seria into the open door as if he were discarding her, then wiped his hand with a handkerchief as though it had touched something dirty.

Lyla, who had been examining the faces of the people who entered the room, sent a questioning gaze at Holly.

“I met Seria in the secret passage.”

Her brow furrowed at Holly’s words. She kept her gaze fixed on Holly’s face, her expression wanting to ask many questions.

“And?”

Holly took a deep breath and then extended her hand, revealing the necklace she had found in the crack of the secret room’s door.

“And this…”

Chase, who had been frozen in the unexpected and heavy situation, suddenly rushed forward and snatched the necklace from Holly’s hand.

“My necklace!”

He was so excited as he held the worn-out seashell.

“I’ve been looking for it for so long! Thank you so much!”

Overwhelmed, he tried to grab Holly’s hand, but before he could, she stepped back, avoiding his touch. She stared at Chase with widened eyes, clearly surprised.

“What, what’s wrong? Why are you acting like this?”

Feeling the strange atmosphere at last, he asked in a puzzled tone.

“I found that in the secret room.”

As Holly turned to Lyla with a stern face, she could see that her gaze fell upon Chase’s hand holding the necklace. Chase, whose face had gone pale, couldn’t even clench the hand that held the necklace tightly nor fully extend it, showing his evident agitation.

“Are you still carrying that around?”

Lyla asked in a calm tone.

On the other hand, Chase, taken aback by her indifferent attitude towards the old necklace, choked up.

“Of course! You made it for me, Lyla…”

His voice, once confident, gradually dwindled. Watching Lyla’s reaction with rolling eyes, he seemed to remember where he had left the cherished necklace.

“Somebody must have stolen it…”

“Stolen it? Just an old seashell?”

Lyla asked back as he attempted to justify himself.

“What, just an old seashell? It’s precious to me…”

“Maybe to you.”

As she cut off Chase’s retort as his face turned red, Lyla’s voice lacked any emotion, almost sounding frosty. Chase looked at Lyla with wounded eyes.

‘To one person, it’s a sweet memory, but to another, just a passing memory.’

Holly lowered her gaze. Although it wasn’t her business, she felt somewhat bitter.

‘I wonder if I’ll be a sweet memory to Cahill or just a passing memory.’

As she absentmindedly turned her head, her eyes met Cahill’s. He smiled cheerfully, as carefree as a child without a worry. In that moment, Holly felt a pang of anguish, as if she were the only one wrestling with such concerns.

She abruptly turned her head to look at Chase and spoke.

“Well, let’s say someone stole it and left it there. How did you know it was me when I was beyond Chase’s room?”

Chase’s eye twitched at her sharp tone. However, upon confirming Lyla’s gaze fixed on him, he nonchalantly replied.

“I, I heard your voice…”

“Is that so?”

Holly’s eyes narrowed as she looked at Chase. She had conversed with Cahill as usual without any concern about being overheard. However, Chase’s response seemed too nonchalant to attribute it to him realizing it was them only after hearing their voices.

“Weren’t you startled when you heard a voice from the other side of the wall all of a sudden?”

“I, I was initially surprised. But I recognized your voices and felt relieved.”

Chase replied with a slight smile to her question. However, the trembling at the corners of his smiling lips was apparent even to Holly, who didn’t know him well, making his expression seem suspicious.

“Did you overhear my conversation with Lyla and find out about it? Right behind us.”

When she pointed to the wall that could potentially hide a secret space, not the door, Chase hesitated to speak, looking flustered a beat too late.

However, Lyla was quicker to interject.

“So, it means…”

Lyla paused her fingers that were tapping on the desk and glanced up at Holly, locking eyes with her.

“The one who sneaked into the secret passage without my knowledge was both Seria and Chase.”

Holly nodded slowly.

“It wasn’t me!”

Seria, who had been anxiously fidgeting in one corner of the study, suddenly raised her head and exclaimed urgently. When Holly turned to look, Seria was glaring at her as if she were prey.

“It seems you forgot that you ran into me in there.”

Holly was sarcastic, just like Adam.

“It, it was just a coincidence that I came in today!”

Startled, Seria looked at Lyla as she defended herself. However, Lyla, seemingly detached from the situation, sat slumped in her chair with an emotionless face as though it were unrelated to her.

“That was quite skillful for such a thing, don’t you think? Knowing the exact position of the candlestick at once and lighting the fire…”

“You lit a fire in my house?”

Lyla, who had been watching all along, interrupted Holly and raised her voice to Seria. It was the first time a distinct emotion appeared in her eyes.

It was cold anger.

“We should make this matter public.”

“What? No, Lyla! If we do that, I’ll end up being driven out of the village!”

As Seria clung to Lyla, her face turning pale, Holly was greatly surprised to see her almost on the verge of tears. Lighting a fire was considered a grave offense for the elves, even more so than she had thought.

“Holly, can you testify?”

When Lyla asked her in a tone that assumed she would, Cahill pulled Holly into his arms, hiding her.

__