When Hai Na brought little Sherlock home, she had not even made it through the inner door before her mother blocked her at the entrance to the smithy.
She fanned the air in front of her nose, her brows furrowing as her expression changed. "You took your guest to the swamp?"
...Huh?
Hai Na froze for a moment before realizing that the swamp's stench had clung to her.
Sherlock, standing nearby, let out a perfectly timed sigh.
Hey, what are you sighing about? You didn't notice it either!
Hai Na was more than a little indignant.
But she was no longer the naive girl she had been when she first graduated. After spending several months dealing with those headache-inducing people who talked in circles of logic, Hai Na had already mastered the professional skill of continuing to make up lies in line with what others were saying.
Of course, it was also possible that this was the subtle influence of Iver.
Now that she had spent more time around him, Hai Na had finally begun to realize that Iver really did love lying! When she had first met Iver, she had no idea how much of what he said was actually true...
But it did not matter.
He was Minister Iver now, after all. Even a lie could become the truth.
Thoughts raced through Hai Na's mind. Then, without changing expression, she said, "I just wanted to relive my childhood. I used to love playing over there."
"You don't know how dangerous it is there? That's the village's Forbidden Area!"
Hai Na's mother frowned deeply. "What if you fell in? It's all poisonous marshland!"
"Oh, come on, we wouldn't fall in. I know that swamp like the back of my hand..."
Hai Na laughed it off, pretending not to care.