Chapter 5 — Who’s Dying, Who?!
The meals Loren prepared were perfect for a patient’s diet — soft porridge that went down easily and egg dishes that melted in her mouth the moment she tasted them.
“But it’s like I haven’t eaten anything at all,” Mio muttered.
Every time she ate and moved even a little, her food digested too quickly — which was a problem. She hadn’t had any meat for days now. A fox wasn’t a herbivore that could survive on grass alone; she was an omnivore through and through.
That’s it! I’ll just eat that thing.
Her hunting instincts snapped awake, and her heart began pounding.
Wait for me, duck!
With her bony, stick-like hands, Mio quickly grabbed the wheels of her chair and spun them forward. The chair moved at the slightest touch — smooth, almost gliding. Her gaze was fixed solely on her prey.
It’s slightly downhill, isn’t it?
The chair began to pick up speed. Too much speed.
What— I can’t stop it!
At this rate, she was going to crash straight into the lake.
“Uh, uh…!”
Right before she went headfirst into the water, she jumped off and rolled to the side. The wheeled chair shot straight into the lake with a splash, sending up a spray of water. The startled duck flapped wildly and flew off into the sky.
Watching that, Mio made a small, pitiful sound.
“…Don’t go.”
Her arms and legs stung from the fall, but she forced herself to get up.
I have to stand up. I must.
It had been so long since she’d walked on two legs that her body swayed like an inflatable doll in the wind. Gritting her teeth against the pain, she staggered toward the lakeshore.
If I can’t get a duck, then I’ll eat a fish.
Her eyes, taken over by primal instinct, locked onto the fins of the carp gliding lazily beneath the surface of the water.
I might not be in top form, but…
With a single swipe of her claws, she could easily catch something that size.
“Fish. Hehe… Blame the duck for running away.”
Just as she was about to step closer to the water, her foot caught on a rock, and she fell forward with a loud splash.
The lake rippled again, this time even larger than before. Face-first in the shallow water, Mio didn’t move for a few seconds, dazed by the shock.
“Ugh…”
Cold. The lake water was ice-cold, so cold that her heart felt like it had stopped.
“Is anyone—”
As soon as she tried to speak, her mouth filled with water. She tried to push herself up, but her body wouldn’t respond.
Ha, great. What now?
It felt like she’d fallen into a trap before she even got a chance to go after Geoffrey this time.
That’s why I wanted to stay in bed…
As her lungs filled and her vision blurred, instinct made her thrash weakly.
Mio didn’t even have the strength to cry at such a ridiculous ending. Her consciousness grew dim, and death loomed closer.
Splash, splash.
Then — footsteps, faint but approaching.
Is that… the angel of death?
Someone crouched down and lifted her up in strong arms.
“Mm…”
Dangling limply, Mio felt water drip from her nose. Judging by how vivid everything still felt, she wasn’t dead after all.
“Are you out of your mind?”
A sharp voice cut through the haze.
Water in her ears made the sound muffled, but beneath the smell of lakewater, she caught a faint, familiar scent.
No way… It can’t be him.
The thought of being rescued by Geoffrey was unbearable. When she tried to squirm away, the grip around her waist only tightened.
“You tried to kill yourself because I wouldn’t take you back?! Are you insane?”
…Kill myself? Who said anything about dying?
Mio blinked, her mind finally starting to clear. None of this made sense.
“Stay here for a moment.”
The man set her down gently on the grass, then turned back toward the lake. With the light behind him, she couldn’t see his face clearly. She rubbed at her ears to get the water out, coughing up the rest through her nose and mouth.
“Cough, cough!”
“You’re really thorough, aren’t you,” the man remarked dryly.
When he returned, he draped a cloak over her shoulders. Only then did she look up and confirm it — the man’s wet hair clung to his forehead, emphasizing his painfully handsome face.
“…Duke Geoffrey.”
“Back to calling me ‘Duke,’ are we?”
“…That’s…”
Mio dropped her gaze, fiddling with her soaked hem, but Geoffrey suddenly lifted her up again.
“I-I’m fine!”
She wanted to bare her fangs and demand he put her down immediately.
“If you really want, I can drop you right here,” he replied coldly.
You don’t need to say that — I already know you’re capable of it.
Any fleeting gratitude she’d felt evaporated instantly.
Then why did you even bother saving me?!
Noticing the discomfort written all over her face, he added curtly,
“Endure it, for now.”
He sat her back in the chair and wrapped her tightly in the cloak. His hands were rough and completely devoid of gentleness.
“If you die like this, it’ll be troublesome.”
Geoffrey had no intention of letting this suspicious woman go — not until he learned the truth about her. Besides, he couldn’t ignore Loren’s earlier request.
‘Your Grace, something’s come up and I can’t leave my post. Could I trouble you to check on Miss Mio by the lake?’
‘Then send Samuel or the butler.’
Geoffrey hadn’t yet found any solid evidence of the woman’s suspicious behavior, and helping her wasn’t on his agenda.
‘Oh, heavens! I can’t just ask anyone to look after her, can I?’
‘Loren… You’re giving me a headache.’
He couldn’t bring himself to flatly refuse her. After his mother’s execution, it wasn’t his father or the imperial relatives who’d supported him — it had been people like Loren, Alfred the butler, and Samuel.
‘You’ll do it, won’t you, Your Grace?’
‘I’ll just bring her back. That’s all.’
So he’d reluctantly gone to fetch the suspicious woman by the lake. Even so, he walked slowly, dragging his feet.
There she is.
He spotted her leaning against a large apple tree. He still couldn’t tell whether she was a threat or not, and his eyes narrowed.
She seems to really love nature.
Her attention was fixed on the wind, the sky, the water — all things that meant nothing to him. Her silvery-white hair fluttered enchantingly in the breeze, and Geoffrey found himself watching in silence.
What on earth is she doing?
Just as he was wondering that, she suddenly pushed her chair toward the lake — charging straight for it.
Is she… trying to die?
At first he merely walked, but before he realized it, he was running. When she fell face-first into the shallow water, she didn’t move again.
Now, wrapped in the cloak that reeked of Geoffrey’s scent, Mio sat in the chair he pushed along. The humiliation made her blood boil.
Who’s dying, who?!
All she’d wanted was a duck. Or maybe a fish.
She muttered her secret frustration under her breath. Geoffrey’s scolding voice beside her made her feel like she was sitting on a bed of thorns.
“So this is what love drives you to? I despise people who treat life lightly.”
Mio stared at him, speechless.
Despise? Really?
Who in this world had a stronger will to live than she did?
Thrown into one miserable situation after another, yet she’d never once given up.
“Achoo!”
Even with the cloak around her, her wet clothes made her teeth chatter.
I’m not cold. I’m just angry.
As she shivered, Loren came running toward them.
“Oh, heavens! I only asked you to bring her back! Why is the young lady soaked to the bone? Look at her lips — they’re blue!”
She shot Geoffrey an accusing glare. He cleared his throat.
“Ask her. I don’t know anything.”
Handing the wheelchair over to Loren, Geoffrey turned and walked away. Mio, half-conscious from the cold, didn’t notice that his shirt and trousers were drenched as well.
“Come, let’s get you into a bath. You’re not well — what a mess this is.”
“It’s nothing serious,” Mio replied weakly.
A fox in water — it really wasn’t anything special. But Loren only grew more upset.
“Nothing serious?! Our Duke used to be such a kind boy. How did he become so cold-hearted?”
Her voice trembled, and she nearly broke into tears as she pushed the chair.
That beast… was ever kind?
Mio murmured softly to herself, surprised.
The air in the bathroom was thick with steam. Loren had filled the tub with warm water, preparing everything for Mio.
“I really am fine,” Mio said quickly, clutching the front of her dress with pale, trembling hands. She’d never undressed in front of anyone before, and having someone bathe her felt mortifying. But Loren wasn’t having it.
“Come now, take it off, or you’ll catch a cold.”
With Loren’s help, she sat in the chair and removed her soaked dress and chemise one by one.
“You’re already in poor health. What were you thinking?”
“…It was an accident.”
Her discarded clothes piled up at her feet.
“You’re so thin, my goodness…”
Loren scooped warm water with a small basin and poured it over Mio’s back.
“After rinsing off lightly, soak in the bath with the flower petals over there. Just thinking about it makes you feel better, doesn’t it?”
“…Yes.”
As Mio stared at the steaming tub, her mind was filled not with warmth — but with Geoffrey’s cold voice echoing over and over.
‘You tried to kill yourself?’
Of all people, for him to say that… the man who had driven her to death countless times before.
No words could have been more absurd.
