She is not an investigator.

"…Um."

Igris nodded, hesitated for a moment, and then covered Isabella with the blanket.

"It can get a bit cold at night... I don't mind if you hold me while we sleep, even though my body won't be very warm either."

"Heh... I thought you were finally going to do something with me."

Igris fell silent and buried her head in the blankets.

"Good night."

"Good night."

The Bizarre Stage Play – The Book of Secrets: Chapter Four, From Now On, You'll Be Her Mother

The first rays of morning sunlight fell upon Igris's bed and onto her face.

She woke up, awakened by that light.

Beside her, the bed was empty, though still warm, only a black card remained.

Igris silently picked up the card, looked at the familiar handwriting, and couldn't help but smile.

【Good morning.】

As expected, she still couldn't say anything nice.

…………

After changing her clothes, Igris went to the first floor of the agency and unlocked the door.

As the door lock was opened, two figures burst in, startling Igris.

After all, she never expected that someone would be specifically waiting outside her shop.

"…Good morning."

The visitors were none other than Nolan and her daughter, Sharty.

The two entered the store one after the other. Sharti hid behind Nolan, occasionally stealing glances at Igris, his expression extremely tense.

He was probably genuinely worried that Igris would tell Nolan what happened yesterday.

Nolan, on the other hand, seemed somewhat angry, his anger still evident on his face, and his handsome brows furrowed.

"Igris—!"

"What's wrong? Why are you so angry so early in the morning? Sit down and let's talk."

Igris silently returned to her seat and gestured for Nolan to sit down as well.

After hesitating for a moment, Nolan suppressed his anger and sat down opposite Igris.

“Igris, you need to explain this to me.”

"Of course, what do I need to explain?"

"Why did you agree to Sharti's request? Didn't you know she had classes? That kind of problem doesn't need you to handle at all, yet you agreed to take her with you?"

"Mother…"

"Shaltie! Don't talk! I can forgive you for being a little naughty, but you can't let this kind of thing interfere with your studies! Besides... you've already fallen too far behind. If this continues, you'll have to repeat a year."

"Can…"

"Shaltie! I'm your mother! You have to be good!"

Sharti reluctantly shut his mouth and could only look at Igris.

Igris nodded with interest upon seeing this.

"So, you've come here to confront me because of Sharti's problem?"

“Of course! Igris, you can't go along with Sharti's messing around. I know you two have a good relationship, but you can't let it affect her in matters of seriousness…”

"You mean, my matter isn't important?"

Nolan was stunned. She looked at Igris's face, and her anger suddenly dissipated.

“No, that’s not what I meant… I meant, this was a request from Sharti… You could have refused…”

"Then why should I refuse? This is my job. I accepted the commission she gave me, what's wrong with that?"

"...No problem, but you shouldn't have agreed to Sharti's request to go with you."

"I do need an assistant, and since she's willing, why should I refuse?"

Nolan opened his mouth, gritted his teeth, and said with a stiff neck.

“But, but she can’t do that; she has to finish her studies.”

"But I remember that the witch academy had already started its holiday a long time ago."

Igris tapped the table and narrowed her eyes slightly.

"Furthermore, did you ask for her opinion? Or is your daughter's opinion completely unimportant? Are you planning to double Sharti's studies after blaming me as punishment for her immaturity? Is that right, Vice Dean?"

"I…"

“You shouldn’t question me, nor should you doubt Sharti’s autonomy. She has already tried her best, but you haven’t even given her a proper rest. Just because she is your daughter, does that give you the right to blame her without any scruples and put more pressure on her?”

"..."

“Nolan, Sharty knows what she’s doing. She’s not a child anymore; she’s a mature witch. She always understands what she truly needs. She’s been listening to you only because she doesn’t want you to be sad. She understands all your expectations and care for her. But what about you? Do you understand her?”

"..."

Igris sighed and slowly stood up.

“If I were your daughter, my relationship with you would definitely be terrible, at least not like it is now, where she would even come with you to me to listen to you interrogate me.”

“Igris…”

Seeing that Nolan had fallen completely silent, Sharti felt a pang of pity and spoke up in a low voice.

"You've gone a bit too far..."

“I’m speaking on your behalf, and what I’m saying is all true.”

Igris shook her head and continued.

"Also, Nolan, you have to admit that not all witches want to live a settled and peaceful life. Some people hate stability and boredom, just like your daughter. She needs knowledge she sees and experiences for herself more than knowledge from textbooks. I don't think there's anything wrong with her, so I will always stand by her side."

“But…Igris, you can’t give her a truly perfect life…”

"What a joke! Who could possibly give her a truly perfect life? Who truly possesses a perfect life? You can't, and nobody can. If you keep demanding such exaggerated conditions from her, Sharti will eventually find you unbearable, and she will eventually choose to leave you."

"...! Sharti, is what she said true?"

"No, no, no, no, that's impossible! Don't believe her, she's talking nonsense!"

“Nolan, I must say that you are not mature enough and have not truly done what a mother should do. Therefore, no matter what, I will not choose to give up this commission, nor will I let you take Sharti away. From now on, she is my assistant.”

After saying that, Igris walked over to Sharti and slapped her on the shoulder.

“…Igris.”

Nolan let out a long sigh, his expression towards Igris was incredibly heavy and strange.

Igris even saw tears welling up in her eyes, but for Sharti's sake, she couldn't give in.

“You’re right. I haven’t done a good job as a mother. I’ve never been a good mother. I haven’t done enough for Sharti either. So, Igris, I believe in you and I’m willing to trust you. The same goes for Sharti. So, from now on, you will take care of her.”

"...?"

"?"

Sharti and Igris exchanged a glance, both seeing a hint of disbelief in each other's eyes.

"Wait...you mean...?"

"Yes."

Nolan took a deep breath and said through gritted teeth.

"From now on, you will be her mother!"

The Bizarre Stage Play – The Book of Secrets: Chapter Five, The Little Witch and the Little Detective

Nolan is gone, leaving behind only the helpless little witch and the helpless Igris.

She seemed to be serious, although it was unclear how long it would last, but as things stood...

"I've become your mother."

"No way!"

Sharti, looking dejected, slumped onto the table.

Although she did achieve her goal of not having to go to class, she also seemed to have temporarily lost her mother-daughter relationship with Nolan, and in her place, Igris became her guardian.

"I think you should be happier. At least I won't force you to go to class and learn the knowledge in those textbooks."

Igris didn't seem to care much about the decision, and even poured herself a glass of hot water.

She originally intended to brew tea, but then realized she had never bought any tea leaves at all.

"How could we possibly be happy... Igris, why don't we go apologize? If we apologize sincerely and reflect on our actions, she'll definitely forgive us, don't you think?"

Looking into the little witch's hopeful eyes, Igris took a sip of the hot water in her cup and then let out a long sigh of relief.

"No."

"Why?! Do you really want to be my mother?!"

“It’s not impossible, but Nolan must have her reasons for doing this. You may not have noticed, but she is indeed reflecting on her actions. If you apologize now, it will backfire. It’s better to keep her hanging on like this, so that she will really reflect on her mistakes.”

Iglesias seemed to have a lot of experience with this, even though she had never met her mother.

It's truly heartbreaking that we've never met in either of our lives.

"What you said makes a lot of sense... but what if she really doesn't want me anymore?"

Although Sharti's concerns sounded absurd, she was actually genuinely worried about the issue.

She was originally adopted by Nolan, and if she were to be truly disappointed, Nolan might actually sever ties with her.

Ultimately, they are not biological mother and daughter.