TFPOTRN | CHAPTER 40

~CHAPTER 40~

‘Huh, why? Why isn’t Somnir working?’

When the wine broke and they ended up drinking tea instead, he was startled, but he thought it would still be fine.

Right.

Things can’t go smoothly every time.

And if both of them ended up drugged anyway, the situation wouldn’t be that different from what he had planned, so he thought it wouldn’t matter.

Besides, since he used Somnir often, he believed he had built some tolerance.

At the very least, he should be able to keep his senses longer than the woman who was experiencing Somnir for the first time.

That was why he didn’t refuse when she, worried about him, offered him tea.

If he insisted on wine in this situation, the woman might find it strange and leave.

But… if he had known she wouldn’t be affected by Somnir at all…

If he had known, he would have forced himself to drink the wine and waited for her to collapse.

Now he couldn’t ask anyone to bring it.

His strength was fading, and he didn’t even have the energy to raise his voice.

Besides, he had trained his servants to stay far away whenever Somnir was used.

“The candle smells lovely. Lavender?”

It had already been twenty minutes since he lit the Somnir candle.

The woman, who should have been limp and dazed by now, was still sitting upright, sipping tea and commenting on the candle scent and the taste of the sweets.

‘What is going on…!’

He wondered if the Somnir had a defect, but the more time passed, the more confused he became.

His own body, which he believed had developed tolerance, was reacting perfectly to the drug.

“My, Lord?”

He forced his eyes open and tried to straighten his body, but it was useless.

Compared to his collapsing strength, the woman looked completely unaffected.

‘What on earth is she…?’

Serena stood with a spotless, calm expression.

The way she looked down at him carried a new, cold sharpness.

“You must be feeling very unwell. I shouldn’t have kept someone in such a state. I’ll be going now.”

He had to get some compensation out of this.

He had let Bella and her younger brother go easily.

If he also let this woman leave without gaining anything, it would be a huge loss.

He reached out toward her, trying to grab her somehow.

But instead of catching her, his hand was slapped away.

“Don’t you dare touch me with those filthy hands.”

Serena’s eyes flashed as she bent toward the candle and blew out the flame.

Even with her face so close to the Somnir smoke, she looked completely fine, which terrified him further.

He could barely keep his body upright, and yet she was unaffected.

“Right. Compensation for releasing Bella… You should pay something.”

Serena picked up the half-burnt candle and looked back at him.

The sight of him slumped on the sofa, barely conscious, made her frown in disgust.

She no longer had any reason to act like an innocent young lady.

“What would be good.”

She scanned him slowly, then lifted a brow.

“Yes, this will do.”

Serena smiled.

Even through his hazy senses, the smile mesmerized him for a second.

Then the pain arrived and snapped him awake.

“Aaaaargh!”

“So the drug doesn’t have a numbing effect. Too bad.”

No matter how much he screamed, no servants came.

Using the sharp tip of the parasol she had brought, Serena pressed down hard on his lower body.

She tossed the parasol beside him with a satisfied expression.

“You won’t cause trouble again. I’d cut off that dirty tongue too, but I’m holding back. You can keep the parasol. Don’t thank me too much.”

Serena looked at him like he was a bug, then left the manor.

Because of the lord’s terrible habits, the servants stayed far away.

They only found him, badly injured, half a day after Serena left.

***

“Serena, be honest with me. I won’t tell Sian even if he comes back.”

“What did you do?”

Well, I mean… I was going to do that… Yes.

“Come out this instant, Pavrein!”

A furious voice rang in through the open window during dinner.

It was the lord whose precious thing I had crushed.

“Who is shouting for Pavrein like that?”

Illay narrowed his eyes, clearly annoyed, and looked toward the window.

Pavrein was the fake noble house I used in my previous life, a ghost lineage demons used when playing at being human.

Of course Illay, who handled most matters of the demon realm, knew what Pavrein was.

“I just used a bit of status.”

“I see.”

He nodded lightly, but his gaze grew sharper.

‘So that rude fool outside… thinks he can call for the Demon King like that? Like that?’

His displeasure was written all over his face.

“Serena, what exactly did you do yesterday?”

“Nothing much.”

“Really? Judging by how angry he is, it sounds like you took something very precious from him.”

“…”

“…You didn’t, right?”

Zahar shuddered and gripped his spoon harder.

“If Sian hears about this, it’ll be bad.”

Exactly. Good thing he doesn’t know.

No matter how protective Sian is, there’s no telling what he’ll do if he learns I did something violent.

Thankfully he wasn’t back yet.

Latia had gone out unexpectedly yesterday and was sleeping all day from fatigue.

Bella, her brother, and Penny disliked eating with strange men, so their meals were served separately.

So the only ones hearing the lord right now were me, Zahar, and Illay.

I didn’t send Bella, her brother, or Penny home in case the lord tried anything.

I figured he’d find me soon, but I didn’t think it would be this fast.

He must be angrier than I thought.

“Serena Pavrein! Come out and kneel!”

“How dare he,” Illay muttered coldly.

I watched him for a moment, popped a freshly cut steak into my mouth, then stood.

“Serena?”

“He’s calling so desperately. Might as well go.”

I gave Zahar a relaxed smile.

“Illay, come with me?”

“Of course. Even if you told me not to, I would still go.”

“Zahar, keep eating.”

“Are you sure? I don’t really like dealing with nobles anyway.”

“It’s fine. I caused this, so I’ll handle it.”

I answered lightly and left the dining room.

Illay followed right behind me, not missing a step.

“What do you think you’re doing, Lord?”

“Ah, you finally came out. What were you so afraid of?”

“I don’t understand what you mean.”

We passed the lobby, the garden, and reached the iron gate.

Seeing him through the bars, I noticed he looked thinner than he had yesterday.

His greedy eyes were now full of petty rage.

“I looked into your family. Still don’t understand?”

“Are you saying you investigated me?”

“Yes. And compared to what you did to me, that’s nothing.”

His voice dropped, trying to intimidate me.

“Get on your knees and beg. Depending on how hard you beg, I might forgive you.”

Of course he would look into my background.

I lifted my chin.

Behind him, the patrol guards exchanged awkward glances.