Chapter 41 Fallen into the Water + Pearls

Michelle quickly regained consciousness, finding herself surrounded by a crowd. Samiyah was wailing uncontrollably, crying, “My daughter, wake up, please!” Several noblewomen gathered around while Ryker performed resuscitation. However, Eleanor had been submerged for too long and had yet to regain her breath.

Michelle struggled to open her eyes, and the first thing she saw was Isolde’s worried face. “Michelle, you’re all right? Thank goodness,” Isolde said. A surge of rage overwhelmed Michelle, and she coughed up a mouthful of blood. Pointing a trembling finger at Isolde, she shouted furiously, “It was you! You pushed Eleanor and me into the water!”

At those words, Samiyah immediately turned her tear-streaked face toward Isolde and lunged at her, ramming her head into Isolde’s abdomen. “Why are you so vicious?” she screamed. “What did Eleanor ever do to you? Why did you want her dead?”

Isolde sidestepped the attack just as Matilda arrived, leading Milton and several other noblemen in haste. Milton’s usual kind demeanor had vanished; his face was contorted in fury. “What happened?” he demanded. “How did Eleanor fall into the water?”

Estella, sobbing with grief, cried out, “Milton, it was Isolde! She pushed Michelle and Eleanor into the water! She said she would kill Eleanor so she wouldn’t be able to marry William!”

The gathered generals and Tyler exchanged startled glances, their gazes turning to Isolde. Tyler, however, remained silent, parting the crowd to kneel beside Eleanor. He retrieved a needle pouch from his sleeve, and at that moment, everyone remembered—Tyler was highly skilled in medicine. With just a few well-placed acupuncture points, Tyler pulled Eleanor back from the brink of death.

But just as she regained consciousness, fresh blood began seeping uncontrollably between her legs. She had suffered a miscarriage. Eleanor let out a heart-wrenching scream, and Samiyah clung to her daughter, sobbing hysterically.

Matilda, her face dark with rage, turned to Michelle. “Is what Estella said true? Did Isolde push you and Eleanor into the water?”

Michelle, her clothes soaked, water dripping from the ends of her hair, was still trembling from the lingering terror of near-death. Matilda held her close, but Michelle’s entire body shivered violently. Lifting her slightly rounded chin, her wounded face marred with fresh pain, she glared at Isolde with venomous fury in her eyes. “How could you be so cruel? I’m your sister! You actually tried to kill me?”

Isolde stood there, her own clothes dripping wet. She held Leonis in her arms but did not respond to Michelle or Matilda. Instead, her gaze shifted to Randy, who had also been pulled from the water. Unlike the others, he had only suffered minor injuries—thanks to his skill in holding his breath underwater, he had avoided the worst. But his face was ghostly pale as he gasped for air, still shaken. Seeing Isolde staring at him, he extended a trembling hand and stammered, “It was Isolde. I saw it—I saw…”

“We saw it too,” Michelle and Eleanor’s maids immediately stepped forward to testify.

Milton, his chest heaving with rage at the loss of his unborn grandchild, stormed toward Isolde, his dark face twisted with unbridled fury. “You’re still so young, yet your heart is already so ruthless. Just for William, you dared to harm not only your own sister but also your cousin? If we let you go unpunished today, who knows what you’ll do in the future?”

Isolde met his enraged glare without a flicker of fear. She did not retreat, nor did she show even the slightest hint of panic—almost as if she didn’t care whether she spent the next ten years in prison.

Milton suddenly turned to Tyler, clasping his hands in a firm salute. “Tyler, since you’re here, I leave this matter in the hands of the judiciary.”

Tyler was the High Magistrate of Argentum, responsible for maintaining law and order. Since this was nearly a murder case, even if it originated from an internal household dispute, it had now escalated into a legal matter.

A flicker of suspicion crossed Tyler’s mind. He had been invited here today and had felt uneasy about it from the start. Originally, it was his day off, and he hadn’t intended to come. However, with the Southern Watch investigating corruption within Shadowmere, particularly the ties between corrupt officials and military commanders, Milton himself had been under scrutiny. Just yesterday, Geoffrey had warned him that Lord Harmon and Milton were colluding. Then, out of the blue, Milton had sent lavish gifts and invited several high-ranking generals to Montlins Manor—as if trying to pull Tyler into his circle and pry into the investigation.

So Tyler had pretended to accept the invitation, hoping to use the opportunity to gather intelligence on whether Milton and the generals were indeed conspiring with the criminals. Now, with Eleanor nearly drowning, his instincts told him something was terribly wrong. Tyler had handled countless cases over the years—his sharp instincts rarely failed him. And now, as Milton turned to him with an air of righteous indignation, he realized he had walked straight into a trap. He was being used.

But there was no time to dwell on it. Milton was already pressing forward. “Tyler, this is a grave crime,” he declared. “She didn’t just harm my daughter—she harmed William’s unborn child.”

Tyler slowly lifted his sharp gaze, glancing at Isolde. She stood there, holding her black dog, her expression calm and composed, without a single word of protest. He already knew about the conflict surrounding William’s marriage. If this case involved the Valen family, it was no longer a simple household dispute—it had political weight.

Tyler finally spoke. “Men.” The two guards he had brought with him stepped forward, bowing in obedience. “Return to the magistrate’s office. Summon the scribe and Lord Harmon. Bring officers to gather evidence. Also, notify Geoffrey.”

“Yes, sir.” The guards immediately departed.

Hearing Geoffrey’s name, Matilda’s expression shifted. She knew that Geoffrey no longer trusted her, and his presence here would only complicate matters. She stepped forward and urged, “Why not take her into custody immediately?”

Still seething over being manipulated, Tyler shot her an icy glare. “I do not need you to tell me how to conduct an investigation.”

Matilda bit her lip and stepped back, embarrassed. Milton, however, was not satisfied. “Tyler, I trust you will handle this impartially. Do not let her title as County Princess sway your judgment.”

Tyler turned to him with a piercing gaze. Milton’s face, once known for its forthright honesty, was now filled with unmistakable ruthlessness—he was far from a simple man. “Milton, what makes you think I would show bias?”

“If you’re not biased, then why haven’t you detained her?” Samiyah cried out in despair. Her voice, hoarse from screaming, made it sound as though Tyler was deliberately making things difficult.

Tyler’s voice was like a blade. “None of you have the right to detain her. She holds a royal title—only after a verdict is passed can she be arrested. The case has yet to be tried. Or are you suggesting that you take matters into your own hands? Each of you is under investigation yourselves—what right do you have to detain a County Princess? His tone was sharp, making his displeasure clear. I have ordered officers to collect evidence and question witnesses. What exactly are you in such a rush for? If anything, shouldn’t you be calling for a physician to tend to the wounded? Medical care cannot be delayed.”

With those words, Tyler not only vented his frustration at being manipulated but also subtly hinted that Milton’s urgency might be covering up something else.