Chapter 08
For a moment, I thought he was joking, but it didn’t seem that way. I asked again to be sure.
“Are you sure you really don’t see anything?”
“Yeah. It just looks like blank paper.”
“That’s strange… Is it really necessary to go this far…?”
Could there be some secret hidden in the mansion? Why did no one else seem able to see it but me?
Even when I showed Killian the first page of the diary, where Yurina apologized to me, he just blinked.
Soon losing interest, he went back to washing the rice.
I sank deeper into the chair and continued reading the diary.
The pantry has preservation magic cast on it. Therefore, even ingredients with a short shelf life can be stored for a long time.
There are 24 frying pans and 30 pots in the kitchen, and 109 forks…
He really wrote down every little detail. But it didn’t seem immediately important, so I flipped through the diary again.
I wanted to learn about the magic traps installed throughout the mansion.
The types of magic are as follows:
-
Arrows made of magical power. Being hit may result in instant death.
-
39 pits created by magic. Falling in may result in instant death.
-
A mace that pops out of thin air. If an intruder survives the above two traps, it will appear at the entrance. Being hit may result in instant death.
“Didn’t he just make this to kill everyone…?”
If no one can enter the mansion, who am I supposed to live with?
Also, those arrows that rained down on the thieves yesterday were made of magic.
Thinking of them collapsing like rag dolls before my eyes sent shivers down my arm.
I found myself glancing at Killian, who was now grilling sausages.
“Why?”
“For what?”
“You’re staring. Don’t you have something to say?”
The sizzling aroma of meat filled the kitchen. Killian turned to me with a blissful smile.
“Is your shoulder better now?”
“Just a little uncomfortable when I move it.”
He proudly rotated his injured shoulder. If it were me, I wouldn’t have done that after barely surviving yesterday.
“Did you… get hit by an arrow when you came in here?”
“Yeah. The ground suddenly caved in, and I almost died.”
“A mace must have popped out at the front too, right?”
“It’s not easy to knock on the door while dodging one.”
For an ordinary person, that would have been impossible. Like the thieves yesterday, they would have already been done in by the arrow rain.
I realized anew that Killian was no ordinary man.
And that anyone like him who came to our house would probably die before even seeing me.
“Why would Dad set up all these magical traps…?”
“Hmm. I guess I would have done the same if I were your father.”
He stirred the rice in the pot with a spatula as he spoke.
“The world collapsed overnight. But the Artur mansion survived intact? Anyone lucky enough to live would want to come here.”
“Since there’s enough food, it wouldn’t matter if people came. But living alone would be lonely.”
“You’re too kind, Marie. But what if someone who comes here intends to harm you, and someone else intends to kill you and take over this mansion?”
I wanted to ask if he meant me in that latter scenario but held back.
After all, there’s no guarantee that only good people survived, so Killian’s point made sense.
“Either way, that sounds terrible.”
“That’s probably why the wards were set up for the worst-case scenario.”
“But what about when someone comes who isn’t a threat… like a child or a mother with a baby?”
“Breakfast is ready.”
Killian didn’t answer my question. Honestly, it was a difficult topic to conclude.
If only bad guys came and died, I might feel uneasy, but I could accept it.
I held my head in thought while chewing the perfectly cooked, sticky rice in admiration.
Killian propped his chin on his hand, smirking as he ate with a fork. Was he planning to enjoy my reactions during every meal?
I returned his gaze with a blank expression and quickly finished my food.
“Finished eating? Want to check out the greenhouse?”
“I’ll do the dishes after.”
“No one’s going to scold you for taking your time.”
“You have to be diligent to earn Marie’s favor.”
“….”
Even though I knew he was flattering me to keep me in the mansion, hearing that still made my heart race.
Maybe it was because I hadn’t dated in so long. I washed my face and led the way.
“By the way, where did you sleep last night?”
I asked as we went upstairs, looking for the door to the greenhouse. Killian picked up the kitten that had been following us with one hand.
“The mistress asked me to watch over the hallway.”
“Wait, did you just call me ‘mistress’?”
“Cancel it if you don’t like it.”
“It’s not a bad title.”
A dark underworld boss calling me “mistress”? Thrilling. I realized for the first time in 29 years that I had that kind of taste.
But if this keeps happening, it’ll get troublesome. I spoke first to prevent Killian from saying anything unnecessary.
“This must be it.”
We went out the back door, and I saw the glass greenhouse, preserved perfectly within the mansion’s grounds.
But maybe no one else can enter this place either?
I had Killian open the greenhouse door.
“Ugh!”
He flinched, clutching his shoulder. Holding the kitten, he shook his hand.
“Ah, I guess it’s not possible.”
“Like the pantry. If someone who isn’t Marie touches it, it feels like an electric current flows.”
“You had the same thing happen in the early morning? You should’ve told me if you knew.”
Saying that, I kept an eye on the kitten. The current seemed to affect humans only; the kitten was fine.
“I wanted to check for myself. I really can’t manage without Marie.”
At least, I thought, Killian poses no threat to me. I finally relaxed.
“Is that an apple tree? Looks like there’s peaches too!”
“And cabbages and root vegetables underneath.”
We raised our voices in excitement, as if we had found a treasure.
No matter how good the meat is, fresh, crisp vegetables and fruit are essential.
I opened the greenhouse door without hesitation. Seeing Killian step in cautiously behind me, I asked:
“Can you bake cakes too? Like one with whipped cream and peaches on top.”
“Marie… you’ve probably never been outside, huh? You’re so innocent.”
“Are you insulting me now?”
“Of course not.”
He stepped closer and brushed a strand of hair off my cheek. Standing in front of the peach-laden tree, I smiled brightly for the first time.
“We have to live anyway. What’s wrong with being cheerful?”
“That’s true. And you look beautiful when you smile.”
He twisted my curly hair and gave me a wink. The flirting had become familiar.
Maybe because I finally realized he couldn’t easily touch me. I smiled openly and returned Killian’s playful comment.
“You just figured that out now?”
“….”
I should have responded immediately, but he gradually hid his smile and stared at me.
Then he avoided my gaze entirely.
“Why are you acting like that all of a sudden?”
“Nothing.”
He walked past me toward the peach tree. I noticed his ear was slightly red.
He had been teasing me endlessly, yet he got shy after smiling at me just once.
Wait, he’s five years younger than me, isn’t he?
Feeling mischievous, I tried to approach Killian.
“Aren’t you my knight sworn to protect me? Lead the way!”
A deep, angry middle-aged man’s voice boomed from somewhere.
“Ah, that startled me!”
My heart jumped. Killian seemed oblivious, still picking peaches.
“What’s going on?”
He asked, glancing back at me.
“Someone… seems to be near the mansion.”
Could it be that I’d have to watch someone die in front of me again? Panicking, I dashed out of the greenhouse, leaving Killian behind.
I ran through the mansion and flung open the front door. The air hit me like a humid desert.
“But Your Grace, haven’t two Holy Knights already perished to the mansion’s curse?”
“They were only sacrificed trying to protect me. Do you insist on arguing in this suffocating heat?”
I could clearly hear the two men’s voices. In the middle of their conversation, the muffled cry of a child reached me.
I curled my hands into circles and pressed them to my eyes.
‘Where are you? Where are you?’
