Chapter 53
A doll resembling Ophensia slowly opened its eyes. Her red eyes were unfocused.
“Is that what you want too, Ophensia?”
“……”
“I’m sorry for poisoning you. I didn’t mean to kill you. I only planned to pretend to dislike you for a while to shake off the family’s opposition. I didn’t expect such a mild paralytic to take you down like this.”
“……”
“I’m gathering human souls to bring you back to life. If you come back, will you smile and call my name again?”
Felix left the room after placing a brief kiss on the doll’s forehead. The demon left behind grinned as it watched Felix go.
The tea party’s host, Isollen, appeared. As she greeted and took her seat, the invited guests also took their places.
Without assigned seating, everyone scrambled to sit near the host.
Meanwhile, Catherine sneaked into the Duke’s mansion and hid in a dark corner to spy. Her red hair was covered by a hood.
“Damn Isollen… How dare she send invitations on the same day as my ball? Because of her, all the guests are flocking here, and I had to cancel my ball! Now she’s openly messing with me?”
Still, she was pathetic to be overshadowed by a maid named ‘Mori.’
“Do you think I’ll just take this lying down? Today, I’ll expose your secrets and ruin this event. This necklace—getting it was such a pain!”
Catherine pulled out a necklace from her clothes. It was a splendid family heirloom made of gold and rubies.
“With this, I’ll reveal Isollen’s secret, get her kicked out of this house, and somehow push out that woman Mori. Then His Grace the Duke will finally notice me.”
Just as she was sizing up the timing, she sensed footsteps. Catherine hid in the bushes.
Voices of a child and a maid drew closer.
“Oh, so that’s why you caught a beetle as my gift? Thank you, Lady Saera!”
“Glad you like it! It was hard to catch, but Alice enjoyed eating it!”
It seemed the youngest princess Saera, who had fled the palace, and her nanny were playing in the backyard.
“But wait, eating beetles? No, I must have misheard.”
Catherine scratched her ear and waited for them to pass. Narrowing her eyes, she watched from the bushes.
Suddenly, blood splattered.
A man dressed in black appeared. Moving quickly, he attacked the nanny. The black-haired nanny collapsed swiftly.
“Ahhh! Cheshion Op… Ugh!”
Princess Saera screamed but collapsed with a poison needle stuck in her neck. The intruder carried the fallen nanny on his shoulder and fled.
Catherine trembled, clutching only the necklace.
“What just happened? What on earth is going on?”
One thing was clear: now was not the time to smear Isollen. The black-clothed intruder might still be looking for witnesses. They had to hide quietly, even suffocating any noise.
But then—
“Help… Help me… There’s no one around…”
Princess Saera crawled, her body weakening. She couldn’t pull out the poison needle stuck in her neck.
Was it just paralysis poison? Probably not. If the needle wasn’t removed soon, the young princess might die.
“Has that man gone? What if he’s still nearby?”
Saera’s strength drained. Her breathing grew uneven; her face paled.
“Please, please save me…”
Catherine hesitated. If she helped Saera, her presence as an unwanted guest would be revealed. She might be attacked by the intruder nearby.
But she couldn’t ignore the struggling princess.
“No way. How could I fight? I can’t even handle a dagger properly. What if that intruder attacks me?”
Just then, an idea crossed her mind.
“I heard His Grace the Duke cares deeply for the princess. If I quickly save her now, then spread word of an intruder and ruin the party… I’ll earn His Grace’s favor and ruin the party.”
As Catherine hid the necklace and prepared to run out of the bushes, something dropped from the sky.
A man dressed in black.
“Ah, really. I was trying not to use my strength because there might be witnesses. Lady Saera, are you alright?”
The black-haired nanny floated down gracefully. She pulled out the poison needle from Saera’s neck and sprinkled a strange green liquid.
Saera suddenly stood and scolded the nanny.
“What is this? Even if you get kidnapped, how could you kill someone? I told you to be a good witch! You only needed to knock people out lightly.”
“But Lady Saera was in danger, and there was no one around. I didn’t kill her—she just lost consciousness from my magic.”
Catherine’s golden eyes darted around, confused.
What are they saying? Witch? What’s that weird liquid? How does the nanny fly down from the sky? Did she kill that intruder too?
Curious, Catherine dared to peek from the bushes. Just then—
“Hey, what are you doing here?”
A chilling voice came from behind.
“Ahhh!”
Startled, Catherine screamed nearly fainting. Gremory adjusted her sore ear and frowned.
“What’s with all the fuss? It’s not like it’s your first time seeing me.”
“I-It’s because you suddenly jumped out! And what’s with that nanny? How does a nanny catch an intruder?”
“Then what did you think? That the princess’s nanny would be an ordinary person?”
“Well, yeah… But what about all that talk about witches and being a good witch? I think I heard something like that…”
“You must have misheard ‘be a good witch’ as ‘be a good beauty.’ There’s no such thing as witches.”
“Yeah, I guess.”
Feeling relieved, Catherine stood and brushed dirt and leaves from her dress.
Princess Saera and Alice finally noticed Catherine. Gremory signaled them to quietly lock the man in black away, and they quickly cleaned up the scene.
Gremory then focused back on Catherine.
“What should I do? Should I erase her memory? No, she’s too dumb to bother. Besides, she’s wearing an amulet that blocks mind control magic. Any forced brainwashing would just wear off quickly.”
Deciding quickly, Gremory chose to handle Catherine lightly.
“Hey, uninvited guest.”
“W-What?”
“Things like this happen all the time at the Duke’s mansion. You know that; it’s widely rumored.”
“I know that much!”
“Good. If you want to stay for the party, sit over there.”
Gremory pointed to a far spot where Isollen looked tiny like an ant. Catherine snorted.
“Hah! I’m an Ortega—how could I sit way over there? Forget it! I’m going home!”
“I thought you were content with this muddy bush floor. I figured you’d be fine with that spot too.”
“What? Since when were you watching me? Creepy!”
“Aren’t we both creepy? What’s that you’re hiding in your clothes?”
Catherine hesitated. Her purpose today was to expose Isollen’s ugly secret with the necklace, so it was best to finish that too.
“A peace offering for Isollen. So don’t stop me from giving it to her.”
“A gift?”
Gremory’s eyes narrowed. She wanted to see Catherine’s darkness, but the powerful amulet blocked the witch’s power from showing.
“No. Give it to me and I’ll deliver it after the party. If an uninvited guest comes during the party with unwanted gifts, it’ll ruin Isollen’s mood.”
“F-Fine! How can I trust you? Next time I’ll deliver it myself!”
With that, Catherine fled. Gremory stared after her for a long time.
“What’s with her?”
Ignoring Catherine, Gremory decided to put out the urgent fire first and went after the man who tried to kidnap Alice.
Meanwhile, Catherine left the Duke’s mansion hastily, wiping tears and vowing she would someday get rid of Isollen and Gremory to claim Cheshion’s side.
It was a very desperate wish.
