Chapter 10
“Good.”
The duke closed his eyes briefly, then said,
“Prove that you can handle the monsters.”
“Prove it… how?”
“I’ll give you seven days. Survive.”
It was a short sentence, but the meaning was clear.
The monsters, especially Gaul, will try to drive you out. I won’t help you. Prove your worth by surviving on your own.
Kyria understood right away, but she kept her expression calm and nodded.
No turning back now.
“Fine.”
Her quick, confident reply made the duke stare at her for a moment before he spoke again.
“From this moment, for seven days, you are the temporary apothecary of my castle, ruled by me, Zenon von Lanperse.”
“Yes. Call me Kyria.”
“Understood, Kyria. Go to your room. I’ll send a temporary servant to clean it.”
Zenon snapped his fingers.
Suddenly Kyria felt her body float, and in the blink of an eye, the scenery changed.
“Whoaa—!”
She landed on the floor and almost tripped. Looking around, she saw a cozy guest room with a bed and desk.
Except…
“Ugh, so dusty. Even spiderwebs?”
Clearly, nobody had cleaned it for a long time.
“Well, I’ll just wait for the servant.”
Soon, there was a knock at the door.
Kyria happily opened it wide.
“Finally! Come in and clean this place—huh?!”
“Excuse me. By the king’s order, I—huh?!”
Both froze, eyes wide.
Standing at the door was a man with black horns, dark skin, and a dog’s tail—Gaul, the demon.
Pointing at each other, they shouted at the same time:
“What are YOU doing here?!”
“What are YOU doing here?!”
Meanwhile, Zenon returned to his office.
His right arm ached from using magic. Normally, he avoided spells because they drained him badly.
But today, strangely, it hadn’t been so hard.
‘…Because I leaned on Kyria and slept?’
He sighed. How embarrassing. In front of a stranger, no less… and while showing his monstrous arm.
Still, he couldn’t shake the strange familiarity about her. She felt… oddly known, even though it was their first meeting.
While lost in thought, his aide, Rohanen, came in.
“Lord, bad news. The two kidnapped people are both missing.”
“They’re not missing. One’s in a guest room.”
“What? How—?”
Zenon explained briefly about Kyria answering the recruitment notice.
Rohanen was stunned.
“You actually allowed it? You, my lord?”
“Do I joke with you?”
“…No, but I’m shocked. You never accept outsiders.”
“It’s only a test. She seemed prepared.”
Rohanen was even more shocked. His lord hated dealing with strangers—he usually left everything to him.
But now he was giving this mysterious apothecary a chance?
He grew curious about Kyria.
“But still, my lord, a normal person can’t fight demons.”
“She won’t face demons. She’ll face monsters.”
Zenon wanted to see if Kyria could protect herself in this castle swarming with unpredictable beasts.
“Fine. I’ll watch closely… but what about the other missing person? Should we send monsters to search the forest?”
“Leave them. If monsters are chasing, it’s probably not to rescue them. Better to let them run. If they fail… give them a proper burial.”
“…You do realize you say scary things without noticing, right?”
Zenon just shrugged. Death didn’t scare him. What scared him was the way bodies rotted on the battlefield like discarded meat.
“Anyway, there’s something else. Find out who this Kyria really is. If she’s a mercenary, she’ll have records. If an adventurer, she’ll have a license.”
“Didn’t you say you don’t care about her past?”
“Her past and her identity are different.”
He’d noticed the plant Kyria used earlier—it was a poisonous herb, Nymphis weed.
Ordinary apothecaries didn’t carry poisons like that in travel bags.
He needed to know who she truly was.
“Don’t dig too deep, but find out what kind of person she is.”
“Yes, my lord. Also, here’s the book you asked for.”
Rohanen handed him a magazine: From Cradle to Grave. It wasn’t usually sold in the north, but he’d managed to get a copy.
Zenon eagerly flipped to the back, where his favorite section always was—
And froze.
“……!”
Shock filled his face.
Back in Kyria’s room, Gaul scowled.
“So the ‘guest’ my lord accepted was you? A mana beggar?”
Mana beggar?! Kyria thought. He looks more like a beggar than me.
But surprisingly… he wasn’t as scary as before. Compared to the duke, Gaul felt like the “mini boss.”
Sure, he was rude and condescending, but at least he wasn’t like the commenters who trashed Medeia online.
‘If I can win him over, the monsters will follow him. That’d solve everything.’
Kyria sneaked a glance at his muscular arms.
She couldn’t overpower him. Poison could work, but that might backfire badly.
‘Guess I’ll have to trick him instead… ugh, not my strong suit.’
She recalled what she knew from the original story:
Gaul was deeply loyal to the duke. Rude to others, yes, but faithful to him.
When the duke turned into a dragon and was killed, Gaul disappeared completely.
Demons were simple—once they gave their loyalty or desire, they never betrayed it.
‘Good. If I can show him it benefits him to side with me, he won’t refuse.’
Gaul growled, “Whatever the king’s thinking, this castle isn’t for humans. Leave before morning, or else—”
He turned to go. Kyria didn’t stop him, but muttered to herself, staring at her nails.
“As the duke said… Gaul has two weaknesses.”
Gaul froze.
“One, he never finishes his sentences. And the other is…”
His ears twitched. His tail, once lazy, perked up.
“…the other is…”
“…What?”
“…the other will be revealed in 60 seconds.”
“You little—!” Gaul spun around, slapping his chest in frustration.
“Spit it out! What is it?!”
Kyria coughed dramatically.
“Cough, cough! Ah, so dusty. My throat hurts.”
“Don’t change the subject! Tell me!”
She faked coughing harder, shoulders bouncing.
Gaul glared. “You’re acting up just because the king gave you a trial. Careful, or I’ll hit you.”
‘Ah, so he can’t touch me because I’m under the duke’s test,’ Kyria thought. What a golden opportunity!
She tilted her head innocently.
“Go ahead then. Hit me. But won’t that mean you ignored the king’s orders and even beat up his guest?”
“You—!”
He raised his fist, but in front of her big, sparkling eyes, his hand just trembled.
Kyria smirked inwardly—until she really started coughing.
“Cough, cough!”
This time it wasn’t acting. The dust in the room was terrible.
Gaul’s brows furrowed. He hesitated, then sighed and ruffled his hair.
Finally, he shoved Kyria aside.
“Move.”
“Huh?”
“The king ordered it. I’ll clean.”
He stepped inside, glaring at her once more.
“But listen carefully! I’m NOT cleaning because I want to hear your stupid secret. I’m not curious at all! Got it?!”
Then, from thin air, he pulled out cleaning tools—mask included.
Kyria blinked.
‘Wait… is he actually the castle’s cleaning guy?!’
