Next, just like the first round and the second round.
After dinner, Maria took out that letter, read its contents aloud, and indicated that whoever could solve the epitaph would receive the gold and the position of the Yodaimiya Family Head. Naturally, everyone once again questioned the existence of Beatrice and began to discuss it.
However, this time, unlike the previous two rounds, Kanon, who had always remained silent, finally spoke up.
"Actually, it’s not just a story; Beatrice really exists! I have seen her before!!"
Upon hearing Kanon’s words, the other members of the Yodaimiya family were suddenly shocked, and then, under everyone’s gaze, Kanon began to recount everything.
It was twenty years ago, and Kanon was just a child. One day, she was reprimanded by her tutor and mother, so she was in a bad mood and ran crying into the forest. At that time, Kanon also thought of the legend of the witch in the forest, so she thought it might be better if the witch could take her away.
Walking in the forest, Kanon unintentionally arrived in front of a Western Mansion. She thought it was the witch’s residence and sneaked in. There, Kanon met Beatrice. Despite her somewhat arrogant attitude, Beatrice gave off an innocent aura and seemed oblivious to the world; the two talked a lot then. It was at that time that Kanon learned Beatrice had never left the mansion, and her father would visit once every few days, warning her about wolves in the forest and advising Beatrice not to go out.
However, Kanon obviously knew there were no wolves in the forest, so she eagerly invited Beatrice to go out with her.
At that time, Kanon seemed never to have considered what connection this Beatrice had with her father, but now...
"Wait a minute, how old was the Beatrice you saw?"
Looking at her sister, Eha asked, hearing Eha’s question, Kanon thought for a moment.
"If I had to say, she was definitely older than me at the time, probably about the same age as she is in the oil painting."
"That can’t be right."
At this time, her brother Krauss raised his query.
"According to the legend, Father started the family after getting the gold. It was over forty years ago, so if Beatrice was alive at that time, she would be at least in her forties or fifties! Was the Beatrice you saw that old?"
"Definitely not!"
This time Kanon shook her head very firmly.
"The Beatrice I saw at the time, although indeed identical to the one in the oil painting, was clearly very young if talking about age. Thinking back now, she was probably around twenty years old!"
"So, the Beatrice Kanon saw at that time should be the child born between Beatrice and Dad."
At this moment, Ruffov also spoke.
"Because she was a child born with a lover, she couldn’t appear openly and had to be fostered in another mansion — didn’t expect Dad to be quite handy."
After this interlude, the tense atmosphere relaxed slightly, and Fang Zheng silently looked at the pale, quiet Natsuki Yodaimiya, squinting. But Kanon didn’t seem to notice and continued.
Back then, Kanon only invited Beatrice out simply because she heard Beatrice had been staying in the mansion without going out to see the world.
Unfortunately, something happened on the way. Beatrice accidentally fell off a cliff, and when her head hit the ground hard, Kanon rushed to check, but Beatrice’s head was already cracked. Out of fear, Kanon fled directly without daring to tell anyone about it afterward...
"So... I killed Beatrice. If I had called someone to rescue her back then, if some emergency measures had been taken at the time..."
As she said this, Kanon also began to tremble all over, and Fang Zheng stretched out his hand to gently pat her shoulder.
"Alright, it’s not your fault. Based on your description, Beatrice’s head was directly shattered and her skull fractured; saving her was impossible. Also, she ultimately chose to leave the mansion herself. I believe she wouldn’t blame you because it was merely an accident, and she saw the world she dreamed of..."
"Thank you, Fang Zheng..."
Feeling Fang Zheng’s comfort, Kanon’s emotions finally calmed somewhat, while the others merely watched Kanon. Next, Eha spoke again to inquire.
"And after that?"
"I was scared to death, and when I got home, I kept hiding in my room, fearing Father would come to reprimand me, but nothing happened until Genji came to ask me what had happened around midnight. Then I told him everything, and Genji reassured me not to worry, saying he’d handle everything..."
"None of us siblings knew anything about this."
Krauss also remarked with emotion.
"Seems like Genji truly was Dad’s confidant. Of course, the accidental death of an illegitimate child isn’t something worth telling others about, right."
"The things I’ve mentioned are all I know."
After telling everything, Kanon also felt relieved. Over the years, she had continuously immersed herself in self-blame and guilt for causing Beatrice’s death. That was why she always felt agitated, uneasy, or even fearful when seeing her daughter mimicking a witch. But now... she feels she’s finally emerged from this nightmare.
"Alright, Kanon has confessed her secret."
At this time, Fang Zheng raised his head and looked at Natsuki Yodaimiya.
"Then should it be your turn next, Madam Natsuhi?"
"Natsuhi?"
"Sister-in-law?"
Upon hearing Fang Zheng’s words, everyone turned their heads in surprise to look at the pale-faced Natsuki Yodaimiya, and hearing Fang Zheng’s words, Natsuhi suddenly jumped as if pricked by a needle, looking at Fang Zheng with terror.
"What are you talking about!?"
"Playing dumb won’t work now."
Fang Zheng stretched his hand to point at the letter on the table.
"According to Kanon’s story, the Beatrice she saw was no longer alive. Dead people cannot send this letter. So who sent this letter under the name of Beatrice? I think you might have some idea. In fact, I’ve been observing you all. Only you, upon hearing Kanon’s story, have gradually changed your complexion, clearly indicating you know some inside information."
"Is that true? Natsuhi?!"
At this moment, Krauss also looked surprised at his wife, and Shizuka also looked at her mother in astonishment. Facing father and daughter’s gazes, Natsuhi’s expression became paler.
"I don’t know; I know nothing!!"
"Natsuhi!"
Now Krauss also saw that something wasn’t quite right with his wife. He sternly asked.
"What the hell are you hiding from us?!"
"I...I......"
"The other party sent this letter, not knowing its meaning. If someone among us faces any accident, would Madam Natsuhi be willing to take responsibility? For example, Shizuka?"
"......"
Upon hearing Fang Zheng’s statement, Natsuhi’s face turned pale blue. She hesitated, glancing at her daughter, before finally speaking.
"Alright, I’ll admit it. Actually... I killed someone! Is that good enough?"
"What?"
"Killed?"
Upon hearing this, everyone present was shocked, and Shizuka was even more astounded.
"Mom... murder? Are you joking? Are you, like Aunt Kanon, blaming yourself for some accidental incident? If that’s the case..."
"No, that’s not it..."
As she spoke, Natsuki lowered her head.
"That was nineteen years ago, and I hadn’t given birth. Then, my father came to me and asked me to adopt a baby..."
"A baby?"
"Yes... I couldn’t accept it no matter what, so I directly pushed the baby and the servant holding it off a cliff..."
"........."
Upon hearing this, everyone fell silent, and Fang Zheng stared at Natsuki.
"And then? Did you confirm their deaths? Like Kanon did?"
"How could I do such a thing? Back then, I just lost my mind for a moment!"
At this moment, Natsuki quickly defended herself.
"I was so angry back then! Father was disappointed in me, and he even wanted me to adopt a child from who knows where. How could I accept that?! So, back then, I... I..."
At this point, Natsuki Yodaimiya covered her face and cried bitterly. Watching her cry, everyone didn’t know what to say, and at this moment, Fang Zheng’s voice spoke again.
"This is quite interesting."
"Interesting?"
Upon hearing this, everyone looked at Fang Zheng in confusion.
"What do you mean?"
"It’s very simple."
Facing their gazes, Fang Zheng smiled slightly.
"Look, according to Kanon’s story, she met Beatrice twenty years ago, and then Beatrice accidentally died. Now, we all believe that Beatrice was the child of Mr. Kinzou Yodaimiya and the first Beatrice. Then, Madam Natsuki tells us that nineteen years ago, Mr. Kinzou Yodaimiya brought a baby to her hoping she would adopt it... This isn’t just about an adopted child. If I’m not mistaken, as a member of the Yodaimiya family, there is a right to inherit the position of the family head."
"Yeah!"
Upon hearing this, everyone realized it immediately.
"Dad wouldn’t just bring a random baby and let someone adopt it. Besides, big brother’s family has the right to inherit the family leadership, so, wait a minute, that means..."
At this moment, Ruffov’s expression also changed.
"Hey hey, this joke is getting out of hand!"
"Is it really a joke?"
Fang Zheng narrowed his eyes, half-smiling.
"Look, twenty years ago, Beatrice died, and then a year later, Mr. Kinzou brought a baby hoping Madam Natsuki would adopt it. What kind of baby needs to be adopted? It would obviously be a child who lost their mother. So where did his mother go?"
"No, so you mean..."
Eha also came to a realization at this point.
"Wait, this... this can’t be true!!"
At this point, everyone present almost understood Fang Zheng’s implication that nineteen years ago, the child Kinzou wanted Natsuki to adopt clearly had Yodaimiya family blood, and Kinzou might have intended for that child to inherit the Yodaimiya family. Therefore, he hoped Natsuki would accept and raise the child.
So whose child is it?
Considering that Beatrice died twenty years ago, and a year later, Kinzou brought this child, and if the deceased Beatrice was the child of Kinzou and the first Beatrice...
The truth is only one.
"Kinzou and his lover—the original Beatrice—had a daughter, who was the second Beatrice that Kanon encountered, and Kinzou clearly had some close relationship with his daughter... This is not surprising, Kanon also said that the Beatrice she met looked exactly like the portrait, considering the portrait’s creation precedes her, there’s only one explanation: the daughter looks just like her mother. Thus, Kinzou transferred his feelings for his first love to his daughter, and the two even had a child."
While smiling, Fang Zheng spoke.
"However, after that, Beatrice encountered Kanon, then left the western mansion and accidentally died. A child who lost their mother certainly couldn’t survive alone, especially when that child was still an infant, so Kinzou hoped to hand him to Madam Natsuki for adoption. Perhaps he even planned for that child to inherit the Yodaimiya family to atone. But Madam Natsuki didn’t want to accept the child and pushed him off a cliff—naturally, one would assume death, but..."
Fang Zheng picked up the letter again.
"Now it seems, the person was really hard to kill."
"........."
After hearing this, everyone was dumbfounded.
"Hey hey, this must be a joke, this..."
"But..."
Everyone exchanged glances, not knowing what to say. Although emotionally they couldn’t believe their father did such an absurd thing, their rationality told them it was very likely true!
At that moment, Fang Zheng also stood up.
"So just call her Beatrice, but she should be called Eri Yodaimiya... Kanon, let’s go."
"Eh? Go where?"
Upon hearing Fang Zheng speak, Kanon was taken aback.
"That western mansion."
Fang Zheng pointed to the letter again.
"Didn’t it say that as long as you find the gold, you can inherit the Yodaimiya family?"
"Did you already solve the epitaph?"
"Of course not, I’m not interested in puzzle games."
Fang Zheng shook his head.
"It’s just a simple deduction. Look, the legend of the Yodaimiya family always said that the Witch gave the gold to Mr. Kinzou, right? So it’s simple, the gold is with Beatrice, and where did Beatrice live? Now we have the answer, don’t we?"
"........."
That’s right!
Then everyone else also realized it. Indeed, the legend of the Yodaimiya family gold has been around for a long time, yet they have never seen the gold. This means the gold certainly isn’t in this villa, or else growing up here they wouldn’t have never even seen a shadow of it.
And now, from Kanon, they learned there’s another western mansion in the island’s forest where Beatrice lived. Now, isn’t the answer simple and clear?

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