Episode 5
Cesion’s fury was immense, and the Crown Prince, caught off guard and flustered, beat a hasty retreat.
By the following day, rumors of the incident had spread like wildfire. The Crown Prince was branded a scoundrel, a man so easily swayed by a mere concubine that he had murdered a loyal retainer of his own brother. It was a result diametrically opposed to the improved reputation he had so desperately craved.
To make matters worse, the Emperor placed the Crown Prince under house arrest. A sentence spanning an entire year.
Anna and the other servants wept as they held the funeral for Hans. Only Cesion remained dry-eyed. He had suspected Hans of being a mole all along. Having no one else to confide in, Cesion retreated to Gremory’s room to vent.
“Look, Mori. It’s just too strange. I suspected Hans was the Crown Prince’s spy, and yet the Prince chose to kill him of all people? I did a proper investigation last night, and it turns out Hans was the mole.”
“……”
While Cesion used her as a sounding board, Gremory simply sat there, crunching on the black goat meat he had offered her.
“What was he thinking? Why plant a spy by my side only to kill him out of the blue? It’s too odd to be chalked up to a simple fit of temper. The Crown Prince is a man who has never stepped foot on a battlefield, let alone a hunting ground. He wouldn’t know how to kill a bird. And yet, he killed a man?”
“……”
“Regardless, the outcome favors me. I feel a sense of betrayal regarding Hans, but I’ve managed to dispose of both a spy and the Crown Prince in one stroke. Thanks to the confinement order, I’ll at least have a year of peace.”
Puzzled by the mystery, Cesion’s violet eyes flickered back and forth. He eventually pulled out a handkerchief and wiped the goat blood from Gremory’s chin. Having raised a younger sister, his touch was practiced and natural.
“Did good fortune follow because I brought you to my mansion?”
A sudden grin spread across his face.
“It seems I’ve brought home a lucky charm.”
Gremory, now accustomed to Cesion’s penchant for jumping to his own conclusions, offered no reaction. She set down her cutlery and picked up a pen and a notebook, scribbling a few words.
「One more black goat = Peace period extended by 1 year.」
Cesion chuckled, reaching out to pat Gremory’s head.
“Haha, Mori, you’ve learned how to joke. Even if you didn’t say that, I’d bring you as many goats as you want if you’re still hungry.”
Gremory roughly slapped his hand away and returned to her meal.
In the dawn hours when the world was asleep, Gremory sensed a presence and threw back her covers. Iris, who had been lingering nearby since noon, was approaching hesitantly.
‘What now?’
Meeting Gremory’s dark gaze, Iris flinched. However, as if reaching a resolution, she clenched her fists and spoke.
—Why… why are you helping my brother?
Gremory applied strength to her mouth for a moment.
Hup.
After reattaching her dangling tongue to its proper place, she spoke.
“None of your business. Get lost.”
—You’re a witch. A witch who feeds on human misery! So why aren’t you making my brother miserable? Why are you making him happy…!
“You’re noisy. Get out before I decide to eat you.”
—Eek!
Terrified, Iris scrambled backward. Gremory turned her back to the ghost and pulled the duvet up over her head.
She expected the scare to work, but suddenly her shoulder felt an itch. Iris, braver than she looked, was poking her shoulder with a finger.
—Ex-excuse me.
“……”
—I don’t know why you’re helping him, but… thank you. For now.
Gremory jerked her shoulder in annoyance. Undeterred, Iris pressed on.
—So, if you’re going to help him anyway, could you do it more… properly?
“No. It’s a drag. My goal is to live here quietly like a speck of dust. I’m not doing anything more prominent than that.”
—For someone who wants to live like dust, you made quite a scene yesterday killing Sir Hans…
“I said no. Get lost.”
This time, Iris yielded more easily. She let out a deep sigh, but as she was fading away, she stopped and lowered her voice.
—There is one thing you don’t know. When that event happens, you will come looking for me.
“What?”
—When that time comes, let’s make a deal. I will give you what you need, and in exchange, you must help my brother.
With that, Iris vanished. Gremory scratched her ear canal vigorously before falling into a deep snore.
The following afternoon.
Anna brought in several pieces of strange-looking meat.
“Miss Mori, it’s jerky. I thought you might get tired of eating only raw meat, so I made this using a recipe from the Northern Snowfields.”
“……”
Gremory didn’t even look at it. Food prepared the human way always tasted atrocious. Meat was always best raw.
“Oh, come now, try some. I stayed up all night making this, hoping you’d recover quickly.”
“……”
“I wasn’t sure what flavor you’d like, so I used various spices to make a variety. Please, have a taste.”
How persistent. Gremory thought. This girl, who had lost her family and friends because of her, had stayed up all night cooking for her. She couldn’t ignore it entirely.
Ultimately, Gremory picked up a piece of red jerky from the far right and took a bite.
“…?”
It wasn’t as bad as she expected. The scent of spices was faint, while the aroma of blood was strong. The seasoning was actually quite decent.
Gremory’s hand naturally moved to the second piece from the right. Mm, this one is too spicy. Pass. The next one… ugh, garlic. Not touching that.
Out of the six pieces, two passed Gremory’s test. Anna beamed, overjoyed that more pieces had been chosen than she had hoped.
“Wow! What a relief! I’ll make plenty more, so you must eat a lot and get healthy soon. My wish is to see the day you can stand and walk on your own, Miss Mori.”
Gremory stopped chewing. Not a wish for herself, but for someone else to walk? Why?
Gremory chewed the jerky and wrote in her notebook.
「Why?」
Her tongue was perfectly fine now, but she didn’t bother showing it. In human terms, a tongue that had been half-severed for a long time suddenly reattaching itself would be considered a miracle—or a freak show. It was better to keep pretending she couldn’t speak.
“Because you’re like a friend and family to me now, Miss Mori. I’ve talked so much about myself that you know almost everything about me. I know your pain, and you know mine, so haven’t we become kindred spirits? It’s only natural to worry about each other in a relationship like that.”
Gremory’s chewing slowed. Her heart felt strangely restless.
‘Worrying about me? How foolish.’
Worry. She didn’t know much about emotions, but she knew what ‘worry’ was.
An old conversation with a human friend who had died four years ago drifted into her mind.
‘Gremory, it’s because I’m worried about you! Is it really okay for you to stay there? You get hurt every day. If it’s too hard, just stay at my house.’
‘I’m fine. If I just give it a little strength, it all heals.’
‘But… doesn’t it hurt? Isn’t it painful?’
‘Why do you care?’
‘Because we’re friends. It’s only natural.’
‘Hah. Do humans really fret over each other’s feelings just because they’re friends? What a tiring way to live.’
‘You’re the same. You come to see me every day because you’re worried I’m living alone. You’ve been coming to protect me ever since that burglar broke in, haven’t you? I know.’
…She shouldn’t have left that friend alone that day.
Anna continued talking while tidying up the plates.
“To be honest, my real wish is for my late parents to come back to life, but I know that’s impossible. So, I want to make wishes for the people who are still alive.”
Fine, I get it. You have offered me this thing called ‘jerky’ and satisfied me, so I shall grant you that trivial wish.
Gremory’s eyes glowed a faint crimson as the contract was sealed.
Grunt. Gremory exerted strength in her lower body, straightening her left leg. Then, she stood up before the table as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
“You seem to prefer spices that aren’t too strong, Miss Mori. In that case, next time I’ll grind some Leoren seeds and—Aaaah!”
Anna, who had been focused on the dishes, nearly tumbled backward when she saw Gremory. If Gremory hadn’t swiftly caught her hand, she would have certainly landed on her backside.
“M-my goodness! You stood up on your own? And you even caught me?”
Gremory nodded.
At that, Anna began to clap her hands in delight…
“Oh, thank goodness! Now you can start working!”
“?”
“All the ladies who were rescued get hired as servants! But as you know, this mansion is so gloomy that everyone either runs away or goes on medical leave. Anyway, I’m so glad to have another pair of hands, Mori!”
“……?”
“Let’s go do the laundry together, Mori. It’s time you earned your keep.”
It turned out that the kind maid Anna had prayed for Gremory’s recovery solely so she could put her to work.
