"Hello, Minerva."
Navia greeted her warmly. There was a definite warmth in her demeanor compared to how she treated the two maids.
The maids sneered as Minerva appeared.
To them, Minerva was an easy target, not worth their concern.
When Sairen forcibly pulled up Navia's sleeve, Minerva shouted out.
"I need to see a doctor!"
Startled, Sairen glared at her, her expression souring.
'She's really been a nuisance since yesterday.'
Minerva, swallowing hard, strode forward and stood right next to Sairen.
"I need to be treated, please let me go with you."
"Hah."
It was then that Sairen's eyes flashed fiercely.
"Oh, everyone's so diligent."
Margaret's voice came from the direction of the door.
Benny and Sairen, who knew Margaret, hurriedly showed respect.
"Greetings to Count Romanov."
Navia internally sighed in relief at Margaret's arrival.
Minerva seemed to feel the same, her shoulders, which had been tensed, slightly lowered.
"Count Alvin's house has sent a message for you. They are waiting in the lobby on the first floor."
Benny and Sairen exchanged glances and nodded.
"Then we'll be going."
As they left, Margaret approached, surveying the area.
"Was there any trouble?"
"Yes, fortunately, Minerva came at just the right time."
At this, Minerva blushed and looked shy.
"That, they might have troubled you......"
Navia paused.
'She must have been scared.'
They had been assaulted just yesterday, yet Minerva had shown courage. She stood up against injustice.
"You were brave despite being scared. That's really admirable. Thank you."
"Oh, you are more......"
"Hmm?"
Minerva, looking at Navia who tilted her head, spoke in a shrinking voice.
"There are no nobles who would say such things to a lower person. You saying that makes you more admirable......"
Navia wasn't stingy with compliments, but she wasn't one to praise everything either.
Somehow, she tended to encourage or praise Minerva more.
Perhaps she was giving Minerva the words she herself wanted to hear.
'Minerva reminds me of myself from a long time ago.'
Having forced herself to become strong and numb, it was now natural, but that didn't mean the process was easy.
"We both are admirable, right?"
"Yes......!"
Navia smiled softly and asked.
"May I call you Mina?"
At this, Minerva's face turned even redder, as if it would burst.
"Yes, yes."
Margaret, standing back, watched this with a content expression.
Navia turned to her and asked.
"Margaret, did someone from Count Alvin's house come?"
"Yes, Navia."
'Seems like they have orders to give.'
Even with foreseen danger, they couldn't dismiss the maids without reason.
'The best and safest counterattack is to use the enemy's mistakes.'
It wasn't time yet, she had to wait a bit longer.
'If only I were a magician.'
"I'll redress your wounds."
As Minerva spoke, Navia lifted the blanket to lie on the bed.
"Oh."
Under the blanket was a dead rat.
"Yikes!"
Minerva was startled, and even Margaret's expression hardened.
Only Navia wore a curious expression.
'Just a dead rat?'
"Hmm."
She was slightly disappointed by their childish prank. At least, they could have put dozens of rats, but just one?
'Wood once collected live bugs and scattered them in my room.'
At least that level of effort would have surprised her. Navia reached out to pick up the rat.
Then Margaret gently held her hand, preventing her from touching the dead rat.
"Navia, rats are dirty, you shouldn't touch them."
That's when a black shadow began to rise.
'What is this...?'
Margaret explained.
"It's a magic that summons shadows."
That was Margaret's ability.
"The mouse couldn't have suddenly appeared on the bed. It must have been the maids' doing. I'll firmly reprimand them..."
"No, Margaret."
Navia looked down at her wrist, which was held by a black shadow.
Black Moon remained quiet, as if waiting for a command.
'It's shadow manipulation.'
Navia raised the corner of her mouth.
"I thought of a better way than scratching and causing a rash for no reason."
Black Moon subtly began to absorb mana while shrouding itself in a small black light.
***
In the lobby of Eseled, there was a lone servant sent by Theorban.
Fortunately, as soon as he arrived at the mansion, he met Margaret and was able to ask her to summon the maids who were sent here yesterday.
The servant felt a petty satisfaction, thinking of Margaret obediently listening to his request.
'Even if she's a noble, it's nothing special.'
Even if they were nobles, for now, they had to obey Theorban as their master, and she had to listen to their orders as a mere servant.
'Why would nobles come here and put themselves in such a pathetic situation? Are they truly like trash in a garbage dump?'
Kick.
While the servant was smirking, Benny and Sairen arrived in the lobby.
"You called for us?"
"Yes. Our master has a special request for you."
As the servant handed them the scroll, the two of them immediately checked its contents.
There wasn't anything particularly important in the scroll.
It simply instructed them to ensure that there were no disruptions in preparing to receive guests early tomorrow, as there might be guests arriving.
'Guests arriving tomorrow? ...Ah.'
In this regard, Benny, who was quick-witted, understood the meaning right away.
This was definitely a message indicating that assassins would be sent tomorrow morning.
'We just arrived at the Duke's mansion yesterday, and we’re already going back tomorrow.'
"We will keep Lord Alvin's request in mind."
The servant nodded and left the mansion.
Benny whispered to Sairen, conveying her interpretation of the message.
"Really? Oh, that's a relief. I really didn't want to stay here."
"Shh! Be careful what you say here."
Sairen didn't pay much attention to Benny's warning.
That's how scary it was to be here.
Among the servants at the Eseled Duke's mansion, there were many stories circulating like ghost stories.
Among those stories, the most credible one was about a "curse."
"They say the current head of the family suddenly died one day along with other family members, including the former Duke of Eseled."
Sairen had asked Alvin's butler about this story once. At that time, the butler dismissed it as nonsense, saying that they all died from a sudden epidemic.
What if she were to receive a curse while being here and end up dying?
But if she could endure just for today...
"Time can't pass quickly enough."
Sairen climbed to the second floor with light steps.
The idea of killing a girl who had nothing to do with her didn't bother her in the slightest.
When they arrived at the room, Navia was lying on the bed, looking perfectly fine.
Benny raised an eyebrow.
'Hasn't she discovered the mouse yet?'
"You're here?"
Navia greeted them with a bright smile as they hesitated.
"...Yes."
At that moment, Sairen noticed Minerva, who was glaring at them with a stern expression, and nudged Benny's arm.
'There.'
Benny also turned to look at Minerva.
'Oh, did she find the mouse first and remove it?'
That was unexpected.
Such a girl would usually panic and eventually get hurt and cry if even a single bug was thrown into her room.
'Or could it be that Count Romanov, that woman, found it...?'
Margaret wasn't in the room right now.
If she had been caught by Margaret, it would have been a bit awkward.
Even though she was a noble who had fallen from grace, she was still a person of a different status from them.
'But if it's not Count Geneger and instead Count Romanov, it should be fine.'
Moreover, there was no evidence that they had left the mouse on the bed.
They chuckled and relaxed.
'But still, I should do something about that stubborn girl.'
"Despite being warned yesterday, she continues to act disruptively. It seems she wasn't intimidated enough."
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