Rona pounded the pillowcase to the floor and hit it repeatedly.
After a while, the thrashing inside the pillowcase stopped.
Everyone, including me, watched in a daze. Among the servants, Greta was there as well. She looked at me with bewilderment for a second, but then she quickly averted her eyes.
“How did a snake get in here?” someone asked.
“Isn’t that the snake we were chasing after in the garden?”
The others murmured in agreement.
But I couldn’t think the same way.
“…”
I stared at Rona for a long time as she was still holding down the pillowcase, then said, “The commotion has died down now. Everyone, go back.”
The servants continued to murmur for a moment, but eventually ambled away.
Then, when Rona and I were left alone again, I sighed for a long time.
“Someone must have sent it as a present.”
Rona’s eyes grew wide.
“No way… Milady, don’t tell me…!”
“I don’t think the snake crawled all the way here by itself.”
It was a clear warning directed at me as if saying, Don’t go any further. Just continue doing what you’ve been doing. Live like you’re dead. That’s your role.
I could hear it loud and clear.
‘Well sorry, but I can’t do that.’
The original Selena lived as if she were dead, and she really did end up dying.
I’m still a bit partial to my neck, so I won’t follow a line of fate that would lead me to the executioner.
I wish to live a long time with my head intact.
“I need to find out where and how this snake got in.”
“The snake should have come in from the garden. While trying to catch the snake…”
“Rona. Do you think a snake could come from the garden and climb the steps to come here to this room all by itself?”
“Ah, well…”
I grabbed the pillowcase.
“Rona, this snake—keep it safe.”
“Yes. Wait, pardon?”
In return, I simply nodded.
“There’s something I need to check up on.”
At my declaration, Rona nodded fervently even though she didn’t know what I was talking about.
“And…”
I continued with my eyes shining.
“There’s a place I have to go to later.”
* * *
“Do you really have to do this, Milady?”
Rona was sitting opposite me inside a carriage, clutching the box that contained the snake. I was wearing a black robe that wrapped around me.
“Yes. Otherwise, I won’t be able to go out.”
Then, I looked at the huge man sitting in the driver’s seat.
“Are you doing alright there, Jean?”
“Of course, Milady.” Jean smiled as he nodded his head. “I have to go out for the fish auction anyway.”
The only way for me to sneak out of the estate was at dawn when Jean was on his way to the port for the fish auction. Jean drove himself there, so this was the best way for me to go out without anyone knowing.
And this was the only method I had left because I couldn’t rely on the other option anymore.
Even if it was a roundabout way to go, I needed to do this because there’s somewhere I had to be.
“Then, I’ll pick you up later.”
Jean dropped us off in front of Walter’s pharmacy, then he steered the carriage over to the port.
Bang, bang!
I knocked loudly on the front door. After a while, with his eyes still half closed, Walter opened the door.
“Who… huh?”
“I’m going in.”
I pushed through Walter and entered the pharmacy. After we went in, Rona looked around in wonder.
“Walter, there’s something I need you to take a look at.”
“What the hell do you even need with me at dawn!” Walter exclaimed with a startled expression, as if the pharmacy had been lit into flames.
“This.” I placed the box on the table.
“What is it?”
“Please look inside. You know a lot about snakes.”
“There’s a snake inside?!”
Walter looked appalled as he looked at the box, but he opened it carefully nonetheless. The pillowcase was inside.
“…This snake is quite rare.”
“Huh?”
It’s rare? What was he talking about?
“It’s a viper that lives only in foreign countries. Where the hell did you find this?”
Walter inspected the snake with a curious face.
“Is it venomous?”
“Yeah, but it’ll only make you a little swollen and a bit itchy.”
“So you won’t die even if you get bitten by it?”
“With the venom it has? Not a chance. And it’s not dead yet.”
“What? But I’m sure it was hit many times…”
“It must have just fainted.”
At Walter’s nonchalant reply, Rona and I embraced each other tightly.
“So what you’re saying is… that snake won’t hurt people?”
“Hurt people? Well, maybe if you want to tickle them or something.”
Don’t tell me someone sent me this snake just for that purpose.
“Well, we’ll have to raise him for a different purpose.”
“What do you mean?”
“This snake’s venom is very useful for many other things. It’s especially effective for painkillers and contraceptives.”
Before I knew it, Walter’s eyes were twinkling with glee.
“You’re giving this to me, right?”
“What? Well, I guess…” I nodded half-heartedly. “But then, is it really not a snake from this country?”
“Yes. And it’s an expensive breed,” Walter hummed. “If this snake’s venom is purified, it’s used for medicine. But it’s very expensive because it’s a rare breed.”
“Oh.”
Listening to Walter more made me more contemplative.
‘Just what is going on in that mansion?’
Next to me, Rona was thinking of the same thing.
“I think it escaped from the person raising it.”
“…Raise? This snake?”
“Yeah. Since it’s not from around here, I’m sure someone’s been raising it dearly.”
“I see…”
Snakes. Raising. It’s being raised?
It was something I totally didn’t expect. And this snake was completely different from the one I saw in the garden, so I wonder if this really was the case.
“Thanks for letting me know, Walter.”
“No, thank you. I’m more than grateful, Selena. This is more than enough to repay me,” Walter chuckled and waved his hand.
* * *
Rona and I left the pharmacy and rode Jean’s carriage again.
“Are you done with your business here, Milady?”
“Yes. And can I ask you for more favors in the future?” I nodded and asked carefully, but Jean readily said yes.
“Of course. I’ll give you a ride whenever you want. It’s going to smell fishy though, haha!”
“It’s fine.”
The carriage had become heavy after his trip to the port. Inside the compartment was a ton of fish.
“I got a lot of fresh ones. They’ll be on the Duke’s table, so of course I was very meticulous with picking them.”
“Good job, Jean. Thanks to you, I can also eat delicious food every meal.”
“No, it’s all thanks to you, Milady. You’re allowing me to use the highest quality kitchen equipment and ingredients.”
“It’s nothing.”
“Well, Greta doesn’t seem to like it much.”
“…Really?”
“Originally, the person who holds the budget calls all the shots, but I’m sure she’s now a bit frustrated because she couldn’t touch the kitchen budget.”
As he said this, Jean seemed to be satisfied by this fact.
The carriage arrived at the Ducal estate without any problems.
As I got off the carriage, I looked around to see that it wasn’t very bright out yet because it was still around daybreak.
It would be perfect if I just hurried back to my room and pretended nothing happened as I went back to sleep.
I hurried my steps.
“…That’s strange.”
I looked up at the building where I reside and stared at the window of my room.
“What is it, Milady?”
“There’s someone in my room.”
I pointed to the window. The lights were on, and there were several shadows moving beyond the curtains.
“I guess they found out that I was gone.”
“Oh no, what should we do, Milady?”
“…”
This was unexpected for me as well.
“Ah, who the hell went into my room?”
It was so bothersome, but I needed to come up with a solution right away.
“…”
I looked down at my bandaged hand.
“Milady?”
“Go back to your room, Rona. Let’s pretend we don’t know what’s going on.”
“What about you?”
“I need to make an alibi.”
For that, I’d need an accomplice.
* * *
The corridor leading to Amoide’s room was still dark. I walked carefully, making sure that my footsteps didn’t make a sound, but now that I was standing in front of his door, I hesitated to go inside.
Ah, what am I even doing here. It’s not like that guy would do me a favor.
I paced nervously in front of his door and sighed deeply.
“I’m here now, but…”
Maybe it’s too much to expect that he’d help me.
With no other choice, I turned around to leave.
Creak.
At the sound, I looked back and saw that the door was half open. And there was an arm sticking out.
“Huh…?”
Without a moment to process it, I was pulled inside and got pinned down by someone’s arm.
Thud.
The small sound of the door closing behind me was strangely loud.
After the door closed, the room was filled with a suffocating silence.
My lips were sewn shut and I couldn’t open them. Because the man in front of me was looking intently at me while I was locked in his arms.
“…”
I could hear the pounding of my heart behind my ears.
Whether or not his blue eyes had the power to captivate people, the fact was that I couldn’t move at all.
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