(From Carmila:)

I turned down the radio’s volume, served a cup of tea to the little girl, another cup for me, and then I sat next to her. Thinking about it, that might have been the first time she had asked anyone but her mother for help.

—Now, can you tell me why you are worried about Rosanne?

Violett furrowed her eyebrows a little.

—She has been really busy recently…

—Yes, I think she received a great task from his Majesty when they met at the Academy.

She hasn’t told us anything, but it was pretty clear. She has focused her attention on researching… something, leaving behind her usual hobbies and neglecting some of her duties. She was also staying up until very late, and even playing less with her daughter.

—Do you miss passing time with your mother? —I asked.

Violett shook her head, but then paused for a moment.

—A little, but I understand. What she is doing is important, and she promised it was only temporary. But she is working too hard, something bad might happen if things keep up like this.

—Mmm, well, it is true that your mother’s health has never been her forte.

—Her health? —Violett asked, sounding a bit confused.

Her vocabulary and eloquence was so advanced, that I forgot for a moment I was talking with a five year old girl.

—Don’t worry about it. I’ll talk with her, and I’ll make her take a rest, even if I have to force her.

She drew a slight smile on her face.

—Thank you, Carmila.

The little girl finished her tea and walked out of the room, waving me goodbye before walking into the hallway to her and her mother’s room. I ponder for a moment how I should proceed. I considered asking Maxwell his opinion. He also seemed to be involved in whatever they were working on, but he was usually able to keep an unbiased perspective.

I noticed that my cup of tea was empty, and I still had work to finish before I went to sleep, so I got up to pour myself another one. I fell back to the chair immediately, with my head spinning for a few seconds.

—Perhaps I am also working too hard —I said, and decided to leave the remaining work for the next day.

I woke up the next day feeling more rested, so I got up to do my usual activities and duties. I was usually one of the first to wake up in the whole house, aside from Gabby. But that morning I decided to take a peek into Rosanne’s room. If I hadn’t heard the worries of the young lady, I might not even have considered doing it. But my suspicions were correct, Rosanne was already awake. Violett and Eve were sleeping to her right side, and to the left there was a pile of books and papers.

—Ah, Carmila, G-good morning —she murmured when she noticed me.

—Good morning, Madame —I replied in the same hushed tone—, did you have a good night sleeping?

She froze for an instant.

—Y-yeah, I just woke up a bit early.

I sighed. The bags under her eyes told me she had not slept too much, if at all. Perhaps the worries of the young lady were even more justified than I had thought.

—Madame, we’ll have a very serious conversation after you have had breakfast.

For a moment, she looked like a scared puppy.

—Y-yeah, I’ll go down in a moment.

—Very well, if you excuse me then.

About an hour or so later, I was working on the task that I had left interrupted the day before, when someone knocked on my door. This time, it was Rosanne.

—Please, take a seat.

—Y-yes…

I let the tension build a bit before speaking.

—I heard that you got an important request from his majesty. It is not my intention to pry into the details, but it is pretty obvious that this is taking a toll on you.

—I… I know. But if I don’t find her, then everyone–! —she said, sounding distressed, but her gaze crossed mine and she shut up.

—I see. You have to find someone? If this is an urgent matter, shouldn’t more people be helping you?

She shook her head.

—No, I am the only one who can find her. And it is not… THAT urgent. There should still be time, at least 5 months or so.

—5 months? —I came closer to her, with a disappointed look —If you keep forcing yourself to this extent, you’ll burn yourself before you find the answer. Besides, tiredness and exhaustion can block your mind from seeing what is right in front of you.

—Ughhh…

—So at least for this week, you are to rest and recover. That might help you clear your mind.

—...Fine —she said, sulking a bit.

—Now that THAT has been settled, what would you like to have for your birthday party?

—Eh? —she blurted —What did you say?

—Your birthday. The young lady was born soon after the start of the year, but you were born in the middle of it, weren’t you?

—W-who told you?

—Sophie, of course.

—G’mit! —she said between her teeth.

Rosanne loved to celebrate other people’s birthdays, especially her daughter’s, but she apparently wasn't fond of celebrating her own. After all these years working for her, I had a pretty good guess about the reason for this. She was a noble woman, so big parties were to be expected, but multitudes of unknown people were her weakness. Whenever she was forced into those situations, her face would freeze into an emotionless expression, but I’m pretty sure she was panicking on the inside.

—Do not worry, we’ll just invite your close friends, nothing too fancy —I said.

After all, the whole reason for the party was to help her relax, not to make her even more stressed. I saw her breath in relief and drew a smile on her face.

—I will appreciate that.

We concluded the meeting there, but I had to tell everyone to keep an eye on Rosanne, to make sure she was actually resting. Later that day, once I had finished my duties, I started writing all the invitations, so that Adrian could deliver them to the capital. The radio was playing softly in the background. I wrote a letter for her Majesty and her family as well, though I had heard she was still out of the country. At the very least, the princes Julius and Gaius might come to play with the young lady.

When all my work was done I got up to go to bed, but I noticed I felt more tired than usual, and my body felt stiffer. I had moved a bit more than usual, but nothing to that extreme. Perhaps the humidity was finally getting on to me, it has been quite a while since the last sunny day after all.

I dragged myself towards my room, but I had to check on Rosanne before going to bed. She had listened to my advice, and was fast asleep while holding Violett and Eve. Strangely, she didn’t wake up even when I entered the room. I think she had spent the day playing with her daughter, so perhaps she was as tired as I was.

The next morning I woke up feeling fine, only to realize I had gone to bed still wearing my uniform. Thankfully I had a spare ready. I sent the invitations, and the day went by without any further incidents, though I took things a bit more calm. The last thing I wanted was to be unavailable when the birthday arrived.

Letters started to return from the invitees confirming their assistance. To my surprise, even the Queen had stated she was going to come, taking a break from her business out of the country. I had to polish our preparations to be fit for her majesty, though I was pretty sure she would have been fine with anything. If I’m being honest, I had become a bit too focused on making Rosanne’s first birthday party in years memorable for her and for her friends.

The day finally arrived, all the preparations were ready, and even the sky had cleared a bit. Maxwell and Victor were the first to arrive, followed by the adventurer family. Finally, the royal yacht arrived at our dock. His Majesty was absent, only the Queen and the princess had come.

—Erzi, good mor —Rosanne tried to say, before her Majesty hugged her. She held the embrace far longer than I would expect, and even when she let go of her, she still held her shoulders.

—Augustus has been telling me everything. Are you alright?

—Y-yes, yes, I am fine, I have just been busy trying to find… you know.

The Queen held his hands.

—Don’t worry, I’ll be helping you from now on.

—But what about your job?

—The situation with the vassals states is still a bit tense, but this is much more important.

I was shocked when I heard those words. The northern territories had been going through famines for almost a decade now, mostly due to an extreme descence in the temperature. That region has always been cold, since it is located in the mountains, but this was something extreme. Some people even said that they had been cursed. The only reason why they had survived was because we have been sending help, but it was never enough, and tensions have been rising. Many had turned to crime in order to survive, raiding the travelers and the settlements that had managed to survive, but this only made the situation worse.

That’s what took Arthur’s life…

And now, people were afraid those bandits might descend on our nation. Some nobles even started demanding that the royal family stop sending help to them, calling everyone in the northern territories savages and barbaric. If whatever Rosanne had been working on was even more dire than that situation, I just couldn’t imagine what it might be.

My head started to hurt, and I bit my thumb to stop that train of thoughts. There would be other days to worry about that, that one was to celebrate Rosanne’s birthday. I ushered the royal family towards the garden, and the celebration officially started. The radio was playing music, the kids were playing, while the adults shared stories. I noticed Alyssa sat next to Victor, even having to push Maxwell to the side. Gabby was preparing ribs and chicken skewers on an improvised grill. I tried to keep the other attendants to act as such, but Rosanne insisted on all of us to sit down and enjoy with the rest of them.

—You are all my family! —she said, and the rest of the guests didn’t seem to mind.

I was a bit too tired to argue, so I agreed. It was quite a lively celebration. Finally, around dusk, everyone started to get ready to leave. The botanist had to leave early, to the chagrin of Alyssa, followed by Neil, Anna, and their grandfather. The Queen and her sons were next, but I overheard something curious between her and Rosanne when she accompanied her majesty to our pier.

—There is a castle in the west that not many people know about. It is quite isolated and secure, so I’m planning to send Julius and Gaius there if… the situation requires it. You can take Violett and go with them, I would actually feel better if you and your bodyguard were with them, and of course, knowing that you two will be far from the danger.

—T-thanks for the offer. I… I’ll think about it.

The royal family departed shortly after that, and only the doctor remained. Rosanne and Maxwell were drinking wine, Violett and Eve were sleeping next to them, while we started to clean up.

—Carmila —Rosanne spoke—, thank you so much for today. I really needed to get a breather.

—I am glad to have helped —I said —, now if you excuse me, I’ll retire for the day.

—Yes, have a good night.

I nodded and tried to walk away, but my legs felt suddenly numb. The next thing I knew was that I was facing the grass, but I didn’t even feel the impact. Someone rolled me over, the doctor was examining me, while Rosanne was calling for me. Or at least, I think that’s what she was doing. I could barely hear them, their voices sounded so muffled and distant. I felt like I was falling and falling into darkness. After who knows how long, I hit something that felt like threads. I couldn’t move my body, not even to look around when I started to feel that the threads were moving. Not that it would have helped, it was pitch black there. But I knew something was approaching me, something that wanted to harm me. I could feel it breathing right in front of me, but I just couldn’t move. Then I heard someone call my name, loud as a thunder, and for an instant I saw… something, even bigger than the creature that was about to devour me.

I jolted awake, gasping for air.

—That’s it, breathe slowly —the all so familiar voice of the doctor said.

I could only see his silhouette standing next to me. Someone else was holding my hand.

—W-what? —I tried to say, but I just babbled.

—Relax, we managed to stabilize you, for now you are out of danger, but we need to monitor your state very closely —he made a pause. I felt the person who was holding my hand, tightened their grip, —you were infected by a disease that we were… researching, known as Calliope’s curse. This treatment should help your body fight it more efficiently, but currently… there is no cure.