episode_0008

I opened the door to the sound of a knock, and there she was standing in front of it.

She is wearing a black robe. There are no servants around. It seems she came alone.

“Master···”

I would be happy to see her after a week, but the fact that there was no one around and the late hour made me feel creepy. I wondered if I should let her into my room.

Why did you come to my room in the first place? I can’t guess what you’re trying to do. I keep having ominous thoughts. I want to slam the door right now and hide under the blanket.

Then, all of a sudden, I remembered what she had said. Now that I think about it, didn’t she say that I was scared? My hair stood on end. I had to quickly erase my fearful expression. So that she wouldn’t notice. I desperately tried to suppress the fear inside me by thinking of something else. Fun imaginations… Happy imaginations…

Fortunately, I was able to calm down in time and bring her into the room.

“d, come in···”

I stuttered as I said this.

***

She came into the room and was silent for a while.

It would be nice if she could say something, but she just sits still on the bed and doesn’t move an inch. She just bows her head and remains silent.

“······.”

I felt pressured by the long silence. Should I say something to lighten the mood? No. If I do that, I might end up provoking her. Several thoughts clashed in my mind. And I came to a conclusion. The conclusion I came to was, ‘Let’s just stay still.’ It’s scary to act first. Let’s stay still until we know for sure what her intentions are.

After a long silence.

She opened her mouth.

“······I’m sorry, Master. I was angry that day······ I shouldn’t have······”

She apologizes for what happened in the garden with a very apologetic look on her face.

Fortunately, it doesn’t seem like he came with bad intentions. Only then does the tension in my heart begin to ease.

She then went on to explain the orders she had given to her servants.

“I never meant to harm you, Master··· I was just trying to prevent those lowly beings from trying to seduce you. I had no intention of harming you······ There’s no way I would······ I’m your faithful servant···?”

She makes excuses. She never meant to hurt me.

“I have never forgotten that I am your servant for even a moment······ So please··· Don’t say things like I hold a grudge or think of revenge······ If you suspect me of that, my··· heart hurts so much···”

She looked at me with tears streaming down her face as if in pain, clutching her chest.

At this moment, I couldn’t help but forget my fear and sympathize with her.

Suddenly, it occurred to me that it would be too cruel to judge her and push her away for a sin she hadn’t even committed.

If I think about it, she has never done anything violent to me in this life. From her perspective, it would seem like I am afraid of her even though she has done nothing.

The person you thought was your family suddenly turns into someone else and harbors ill will towards you… I’ve heard this story somewhere. It seems like you did something bad to her.

I apologized to her honestly and told her what had happened.

“······I’m sorry.”

I didn’t say anything about regression, I just said I was afraid for some reason and that it wasn’t your fault. It was just my problem.

He comforted her sincerely, not in vain. Fear and guilt were separate feelings.

I confess to her. The fear inside me is out of control. Reason tells me that you won’t hurt me, but instinct tells me that you will hurt me at any moment.

I confessed my honest feelings to her, just as a father confesses his helplessness to his child.

Watch her reaction. Will she get angry? Or will she cry as if she feels wronged?

And then I checked her face.

She was shedding tears. But her expression was not one of resentment. She was smiling. As if she was very happy.

“Ugh···!”

“!!”

“Thank you for being honest with me, Master······.”

She speaks to me with a bright smile on her tear-stained face.

“It’s okay··· I’ll wait until the master can accept me···”

Her reaction deepened my guilt. What did I do to this child? Maybe it wasn’t her who changed, but me. I treated her coldly and abandoned her, pretending to lose my feelings for her, so it was only natural that she would die. At least, if I had just abandoned her normally without making a fuss like in this episode, she wouldn’t have turned evil. I was stupid. Now that I think about it, the expression on her face as she killed me always looked painful.

I hugged her tightly while she was crying. Just like before.

She hugs me too.

It’s been a long time since we felt each other’s warmth.

But why is she naked like this? It’s uncomfortable to hug… Inside the robe, she was wearing clothes that were strangely narrow.

***

We had a heart-to-heart talk since then. I was able to have a little more sincerity in my conversation with her, although I couldn’t help being scared.

Fortunately, I was free from the pressure of not showing that I was scared. Sometimes, when I trembled, she would smile and tell me that it was okay.

I also mustered up my courage and faced her.

“How have you been while I was away, Master?”

“Well, what have you been up to? While taking classes.”

“I see. I was so tired that I couldn’t even focus on my work.”

She puffs out her cheeks as if she’s pouting. Then she puts her head on my lap. She used to do this a lot when she was little. Now that she’s an adult, it’s a bit strange, but somehow it reminds me of the old days, so I pat her head.

She was grumbling as if she was in a good mood.

Now that I think about it, I had something to tell her. That’s why I asked to see her, but I forgot. Now that I remember, I’m going to ask her.

“Alice. But when does my class end?”

She stopped moving. Silence fell. After a while, she asked me back.

“······Why is that?”

There was a coldness in her voice as she asked why.

“That, what is it? Honestly, I think I’ve learned everything I need to learn···”

“······.”

“I want to go back home··· It’s been so long since I’ve been there.”

The silence is flowing. Did I say something wrong?

She had her head turned away so I couldn’t see her expression. Feeling anxious, I continued to try to explain the reason to her.

“I feel a little suffocated just staying in the palace··· I will come visit often···”

however···

“Lies.”

She cut me off. In a very cold voice.

My heart sinks.

“You’re trying to flirt with that maid in a place I can’t see.”

She was sneer-ing at me with a different, more sarcastic tone than before.

I hurriedly make excuses.

“That’s not it···”

But she didn’t listen to me and got up from her seat. She walked towards the door with a thud. Before opening the door, she paused and muttered something.

“······Master, you always try to get away from me···”

And then she left the room.

Left alone, I felt very uneasy.

And that anxiety soon became reality···

***

I haven’t seen Lily for several days now.

Even when I ask the maid, the only answer I get is that she hasn’t come to work. A strange sense of unease comes over me.

I went to Lily’s house.

Her two younger sisters greeted me. They were crying. They said Lily hadn’t come home since she went to work a few days ago.

A chilling thought occurred to me. I tried to calm them down, gave them some gold coins, and left. I ran quickly.

We must find Lily. Before it is too late.

When I returned to the palace, I went straight to find Alice.

There were people who tried to stop him, but he used his authority to suppress him. He was a grand duke in name only, but he was still a grand duke.

Eventually I managed to get into her office.

Fortunately or unfortunately, Lily was nowhere to be seen in the room. She was sitting at her desk, working hard on her political affairs. She greeted me with a warm smile.

“Ah! Master, you’re here? Come and sit down. I’ll make you some tea. Do you like rosemary tea? I heard from the maid that you like it.”

The same calm, timid demeanor as usual. But I’m sure she did something to Lily…

Ask her straight out.

“······What did you do with Lily······”

“Are you talking about that slut as soon as you get here?”

Her face, as she spoke, was surprisingly expressionless. It was her, after all. She was the culprit.

I got down on my knees and begged her.

“That kid is not related··· Please let him go··· Don’t do this···”

But even after seeing my plea, she just kept smiling brightly. Instead, she asked me a question in a playful manner.

“Why do you think it’s me? This is disappointing.”

I didn’t say anything. Her attitude was so creepy. It was as if she had thrown something at me. It was as if she had shown me everything up until now was a pretense.

“······.”

When I didn’t say anything, she pointed behind me as if she didn’t find it funny.

She turned her head. There was a box where her finger was pointing. It was quite large. It was big enough for a person to fit in it.

I can hear her voice from the back of my head.

“It’s a gift.”