Translator and Editor: Bunny and Wyvern

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Chapter 7

“…”

Silence, once again.

The inside of the dining room turned cold as winter. Dad stopped eating and looked at me.

“I said you should eat three vegetables and one piece of meat at a time…”

My unstoppable mouth suddenly stopped chewing, and my reticent father took a mushroom and put it in his mouth.

I started eating meat with peace of mind only after I confirmed that he ate meat once and three vegetables like a doll.

However, in the end, my dad only ate a few pieces of meat and vegetables then drank water, apparently because he had no appetite.

How hard it was to feed an adult like this.

Halfway through my portion, I glanced at my dad’s plate again. The tall broccoli which he hadn’t touched at all, caught my eye. I opened my mouth but I gave up. I was already nagging him this much without saying anything else. An overcooked broccoli without any spices is absolutely unforgivable.

I shut my mouth and bowed my head.

About the time my plate was almost empty, Dad asked again from the other side, “Should I say ‘thanks for the food again after eating?”

I was a little surprised. I thought he would just go without saying anything.

“…That’s right.”

“I got it once.”

I just shrugged because I had never praised an adult before.

At that moment, loud applause rang out from behind.

When I turned around in surprise, I saw the chef, the head maid, and the butler clapping their hands in shock.

“For the first time, you got the answer, my lord!”

“You’re amazing, Young Miss!”

“Even His Excellency ate five bites of his food!”

“N-no, that…” Just by looking at their faces and applause that seemed to have seen the light of day, you would think that Dad had brought victory in the war.

I was just teaching my dad the dining etiquette I learned from my mom.

“Shut your mouths.”

Their applause disappeared like a bubble as soon as they heard Dad’s low voice. Both the head maid and the butler bowed as they did their jobs silently. It didn’t even take three seconds for them to finish.

‘I want to change the way he talks about killing people…’

But I shut my mouth for fear that he would really kill me if I nagged him more.

* * *

The chilly and uncomfortable evening was over. Fortunately, my father stopped drinking alcohol.

I couldn’t see Dad after dinner until I was ready to sleep. Dante stayed right next to me and taught me things instead, and with me kicking my feet as I sat on the bed and listened.

“The maids will help you with your bath in the bathtub inside. You can tell the maid anything you need.”

“Hmm, yes.”

“Don’t hesitate to pull the rope when you feel uncomfortable sleeping. I’ll come here myself, or if you’re uncomfortable with me, the maids can”

I shook my head. “I’m not uncomfortable with it. I will pull this.”

“Good job. Uhm…” Dante told me this and that, and without leaving the seat, he knelt down in front of me on one knee and looked at me.

It looked like he had something to say.

“Why?”

“…Are you very unfamiliar with each other?”

I paused for a moment, then nodded frankly. “A little.”

“But still, you’re very polite. The lord has been looking for you and Yurie for a long time.”

“Hmm, I know.”

“And the reason the lord hasn’t visited the young lady is…” Dante sighed as if he was looking for the right words to say.

“…”

Maybe he was just trying to find words to appease me. I just kept waving my feet back and forth without urging him.

“He is sorry towards you, Young Miss, and he thinks he can’t be forgiven. He’s not as bad a person as he seems, so can you wait for him until then?”

I stared at Dante.

Dante sacrificed his life for Callen in the original story when he was in danger. That’s why he was very loyal to my dad, and he (Dante) trusted him (Callen) too.

‘If, by any chance, the temple finds out I’m a witch and is killed by them, please protect my father, Dante.’

I swallowed the words I couldn’t say and nodded.

“Thank you, miss. Please have a good night, and have a nice dream.”

“Hmm, Dante too.”

As Dante had said, the maids brought a lot of hot water as soon as he left, and they just stood there waiting for something.

‘Oh, I have to take off my clothes to take a bath.’

I wanted to quickly take a bath so I untied the ribbon at the front of my dress

The maids were startled and tried to stop me. “Yo-young Miss, let us do it for you.”

“Sorry, I thought you gave us permission…”

The two maids hurriedly knelt in front of me and reached out as if to help undress me.

I was surprised and took a step back.

“Ah, this dress is precious… I’ll take it off.”

“…”

“…”

I was just telling the truth, but my surroundings turned quiet as if it had been poured with cold water.

‘No, why are people here so often quiet?’

It was awkward since I was a stranger here and they seemed busy, so it was meant to ease their work, but it looks like they misunderstood.

“And I can do it well on my own, ah, uhm. You’re also busy,” I quickly added.

“…”

“…”

But it only got quieter.

Reluctantly, as I was about to undress again, a maid made eye contact with a colleague, putting her hands together politely. “No, young lady, it is our job to help you bathe. We’re sorry we couldn’t prepare in advance, it’s all our fault. Please be comfortable.”

“Ah… it’s fine.”

I didn’t know what they were apologizing for.

“I will take special care not to damage your precious clothes. May we help?” The maid again asked if they could take my clothes off.

As soon as I nodded, the two maids unbuttoned my clothes and prepared me for my bath. Their hands were very skillful and fast, and they constantly asked me for my opinion, asking if there was something I didn’t like.

‘Please raise your right hand, please raise your left hand.’

‘Now, turn around and show your back.’

It felt strange because it was different from Dahlia, who always spoke clearly. Sometimes, before she could even speak, I turned around and she would burst into laughter.I reminisced about my memories of her as I soaked in the fragrant, foamy bathtub.

After bathing, the maids stopped me from putting on my usual black dress. Perhaps it was because the clothes were very dirty and old.

I had to change to a different set of clothes because the maid repeatedly told me they would wash it and take care of it so it wouldn’t get damaged.When everyone left as night came, I climbed on the cushion and laid down on the bed. But no matter how soft the bed was, I couldn’t sleep in this unfamiliar place. It felt more empty because there was no one to kiss me goodnight.

Then, while holding the pillow and tossing and turning, a thud made me jump.

“What is that dripping sound?”

It was coming from the bedroom next door, Dad’s room. I got up on the bed wondering if he was doing something. I went straight into the hallway and grabbed the doorknob of the black door next to my room. I paused for a moment as I was about to grab it, because it didn’t look like something happened. It was so quiet inside the room.

‘Did he fall out of bed, by any chance?’

In that case, it might be better to pretend not to know.

Just as I was about to release the doorknob, I heard something rolling inside.

People didn’t make that kind of noise when they rolled.

I grabbed the doorknob again and turned it as slowly as I could to avoid making a sound. Then, very carefully, I opened the door and peeked into the room with only one eye, squinting.

The moonlight was faint. It was only after some time had passed before my eyes got used to the darkness that I could determine the cause of the commotion.

Next to my father who was sleeping on a chair, was a table full of glass bottles. The empty bottle probably made a sound as it fell.

But, all these empty bottles…

‘Alcohol…?’

‘Do you drink like this every day? In the daylight, do you kill those people who interfere with your business? How could you be so fine during the day if you drink that much alcohol?’

There were no monsters.

He didn’t even smell like alcohol.

‘Is there any alcohol that doesn’t smell like alcohol?’

Maybe it was because of the smell of blood on him the first time we met so I didn’t notice it.

I closed the door and went back to my room, laid on the bed and pulled the quilt over my body.

Apparently, my father was much more broken than I had thought.

I was safe from the temple right now because they didn’t know I was here, but I might bump into the temple people head-on in the future. It seemed like I had to find a way to make my dad better sooner rather than later.

I sat with my legs raised as if meditating and closed my eyes.

Tock, tock, tock.

As I was about to focus my thoughts, I heard a knocking sound.

“What is that?” I rolled up the blanket and looked out the window. There was something dark clinging to it.

[Descendant, open this.]

Tock, tock.

The Guardian, who pretended to be a crow following me, turned into a cat at night and was knocking on the window.

“…When did you ever help me?” I mumbled as I got out of bed and went to the window.

Even though I used quite a bit of force, the window was closed tightly so I couldn’t open it.

[Open it, open it.]

The Guardian knocked louder.

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