chapter 05
“Venus.”
I brushed my hair back—those thugs had messed it up—and called his name.
“Yes, my lady.”
“Hit th—”
“Yes.”
Thud!
I watched the kneeling thugs get beaten into a pulp, then slowly turned my eyes.
The small boy who had just hugged me tightly stood there frozen in place.
Schleuz Procyon.
The strongest being in this world. The one I loved so dearly. And the one who died tragically, turning this whole story into a full-blown dystopian apocalypse.
Good grief.
As soon as I got a proper look at him, a sigh slipped out. He looked even worse than I imagined—completely beaten up, covered in blood. And yet, he was still standing on his own two feet. No wonder he becomes the strongest in this world.
“My lady, may I treat the boy’s injuries?”
Another knight approached and asked politely. It was a bit amusing that he was asking me instead of Schleuz, but I nodded and walked over to Schleuz.
He looked wary, his eyes sharp, but he didn’t resist.
“You… tried to save me, didn’t you?”
“……”
“Thanks.”
“……”
A faint flicker of surprise crossed his eyes, then disappeared. Right. When was the last time he’d heard a sincere thank-you?
Dark black hair. Striking blue eyes. Even with blood and fatigue all over his face, his unique colors were still just as vivid.
I let out another sigh.
“I should… sit down… for a bit…”
My body had reached its limit. Schleuz flinched slightly, then hesitantly stepped back a few paces, as if inviting me in.
It almost made me smile.
That’s right. He might have grown up abused, with a cold and distant look even in death, but he wasn’t truly heartless.
I left Schleuz to receive treatment and stepped into the house—and this time, a different sigh escaped me.
The outside looked decent, but inside was completely empty. Not a single proper piece of furniture. Those thugs probably stole everything. The only things left were a table and chairs—maybe because they were told to feed him. I sat down and glanced around.
The food left on the table was dry and hard, mostly untouched leftovers.
“My lady.”
I looked up. Venus had returned.
“What shall we do with those men? Should we tie them up and send them to their master with a formal complaint?”
I shook my head.
I was still pretending to be a distant relative of the Lefebvre family, not the main daughter. And I had no intention of revealing my true identity until I left this place.
Now that I’d clashed with the stepmother’s men, it could easily escalate into a feud between noble houses. But that would only hurt Schleuz.
His family might be prestigious, but they were nothing compared to the Lefebvres.
They’d probably blame Schleuz again, and the abuse would get even worse—especially from his own father.
It was better to make it seem like a young noble girl, grateful to have been saved by Schleuz, had stepped in out of youthful passion and good intentions. If the stepmother hears of this, she might get scared and stop pushing the poisoned food—afraid the truth will be exposed if things go too far.
I just needed to slowly cleanse Schleuz’s body of poison, take care of his health, and then quietly leave.
“Just… kick them out…”
“Understood. I’ll have them gone by tomorrow.”
“Mm.”
I nodded and yawned. My eyes were getting heavy. Before I knew it, I had dozed off, leaning over the table. When I opened my eyes again—
“Ahhh!”
I screamed without thinking.
Schleuz, dripping wet, was staring straight at me. He looked a little startled at my scream.
He looks like a soaked rat…
His filthy state had been cleaned up—probably the knights had washed him while treating his injuries. Actually, it looked more like they just dunked him in a water tub. But still, he had bandages wrapped around him, so they’d done a decent job.
“…Sit down.”
Even though he was the actual homeowner. Schleuz obediently sat across from me and asked:
“Why did you save me?”
Gasp.
I felt strangely flustered. Because I didn’t expect him to speak to me so respectfully.
Schleuz was one of the greatest heroes in the kingdom’s history. He never spoke politely to anyone—except maybe the king. And even that, barely. Crown prince? Ignored. Lefebvre family head? Also ignored. He just didn’t care.
“You were… being beaten…”
“…But you were hiding and watching me.”
He saw that?
“……?”
‘What’s this?’
I was genuinely confused. The group that had been beating up Shuloitz had their backs to me, so they couldn’t have seen me. And Shuloitz had his view blocked by their bodies. He had never looked my way—so how did he know?
‘Wow, he’s really something.’
I was once again reminded how amazing Shuloitz was, and I nervously pressed my fingers together.
“I’m just… really shy.”
“……”
Venus, who had been quietly standing nearby, furrowed her brows noticeably. What, was it so hard to believe I was shy?
‘I mean, I was pretty quiet…’
I was always in bed from being sick! I didn’t get why Venus looked like that, but right now, Shuloitz was more important.
“As you can see… I’m a noble too… and I came to say hello… to a fellow noble… but I was shy… so I hid for a bit… and then saw you getting hit… so I ran out….”
Just saying all that left me out of breath. Even though I was speaking much more slowly than usual, Shuloitz didn’t seem impatient at all. He just kept looking straight at me, then finally asked:
“Does a shy person usually jump in like that?”
There it was. He might be speaking politely, but he wasn’t exactly being gentle. Still prickly like a baby hedgehog. And sharp too. I calmly replied:
“Just because… I’m shy… doesn’t mean… I’m scared….”
“……”
Sure, I hadn’t even left the mansion once, but inside, I’d been spoiled rotten and raised with lots of love. That made me quite fearless.
Then I glanced at Venus again. Her face was still stiff with disapproval. Did I say something too mature again?
Oh—wait.
Was Shuloitz staying quiet because he didn’t understand what I meant?
“Are you… too young… to know the difference… between shy and scared?”
“I know the difference.”
His cold reply made me a bit embarrassed. Back at the mansion, the maids and knights always said I was mature for my age, so I guess it went to my head a little.
“Ahem.”
I cleared my throat and looked right at Shuloitz. Then I bit my lip.
‘He’s seriously handsome.’
I almost said it out loud. Even in The Tragic End of a Mad Beauty, his illustration had appeared a few times, and every time it made my heart flutter…. But this was my first time seeing young Shuloitz. In person.
Good-looking kids grow up to be good-looking adults. Even though he was staring at me warily, those features were already there.
‘Wait—is he glaring at me because his pride’s hurt?’
I had seen him getting beaten up and throwing up, after all. I didn’t want to bruise his ego. Even if he looked small and fragile now, he’d grow up to be the strongest in the world. He kept staring like that, and honestly, it was a little scary.
“Just… rest for now. I’ll… come back tomorrow.”
I slowly got up from my seat. Venus followed right behind me.
“Are we… sleeping at the orphanage?”
“Yes, my lady. We’ll have to stay there for a few days.”
I mean, what noble would come to sleep in the slums? There weren’t any proper mansions or guest rooms here. Just a couple of shabby inns for wanderers. We had already planned to either camp in the carriage or stay at the orphanage.
‘Well, the orphanage being so empty kind of worked in our favor.’
The headmaster had just put kids’ names on the list and pocketed the donations, so the place was basically vacant. It was spacious enough for all the knights and inspectors to stay comfortably.
As I walked out, I glanced back one more time. Shuloitz was still dripping wet, just standing there, looking at me.
****
“My lady, that boy… he seems to have been poisoned.”
As soon as we got back to the orphanage, the knight who helped clean up Shuloitz whispered to me.
“I noticed while helping him wash—he had purplish spots around his chest area.”
“…Spots?”
“Yes. I’m not sure what kind of poison it is yet, but it’s definitely a sign of poisoning.”
“……”
Poisoning… I already knew, but hearing the word said out loud felt different. It hit me hard.
He’s only ten years old….
Was it not enough to send him to a place like this? Did they have to go as far as poison him just to cover up their affair?
“We think we can create an antidote after consulting the doctors. What do you think, my lady?”
“Good…”
“Please don’t worry too much. The Lefevre family’s doctors are the best, aren’t they?”
“Mm-hmm.”
The knight gave me a warm smile, trying to reassure me. And honestly, he wasn’t wrong. This investigation team had brought along three of the Lefevre family’s top physicians—because of my own health problems.
‘Well, that worked out, I guess.’
After rushing to develop a cure using the Aelice Flower, the Lefevre family’s medical research had seen a huge boost. The palace doctors used to be unmatched, but lately, people were whispering that Lefevre’s physicians might be the best in the kingdom.
Thinking about all that, I threw myself onto the fur-covered bed the knights had prepared without a second thought.
