TVDE CH 17

~Chapter 17~

There was a jar sitting in the hallway I was walking down. Without hesitation, Anthea reached out and pushed the jar. Because it was heavy, it could not be pushed with one hand, so she hit it with her torso and only then fell to the floor.

Poseok.

Instead of the clear, clean and refreshing sound I wanted, it sounded like a heavy brick breaking. Anthea had no choice but to push the other jar next to her.

Clink.

This time there was a really sharp and loud sound. The loud noise made by the jar breaking made even people who were passing by turn their heads and look in this direction. While she was thinking about breaking all the jars lined up in the hallway with this momentum, Julie and Ellie hurriedly came running.

“Ma’am, are you okay?”

“Please come this way, ma’am.”

“I pushed this.”

Since she pushed it outright, this was an action that could not be considered a mistake. However, the two maids comforted Anthea with sad eyes.

“The head maid was really mean. The other kids are so scared of the maid that they can’t take Madame’s side and just watch what she does, but even we… really sorry.”

“No, I broke the pot?”

“It’s okay, ma’am. You can break ten or twenty jars.”

“Sure. We can do it for you instead, because you might get hurt.”

The maids, who thought breaking the jar was Anthea’s anger, responded as if she deserved it considering what happened with Rosa. The two maids have only known Anthea for a few hours, so why were they so loyal?

“If it bothers you, would you mind bringing the other jars from her storeroom before the maid blind sees them?”

“Don’t worry, we’ll secretly clean up anything that’s broken.”

The two maids felt sorry for Anthea, who was under the sway of her maid, Jean, even though she had become a Duchess. Anthea thought back to the conversation she had with Rosa in her private office, which her maid, Jang, found absurd. As a result, the conversation ended in Anthea’s favor. However, the contrast between Anthea, who smiled as if she knew nothing, and Rosa’s strict tone, which was increasingly distorted like a demon, made her small and lovely girl look like her victim.

“Ma’am, how about throwing away the chipped dishes?”

“There are quite a few items in the warehouse that have not yet been disposed of.”

Rather, seeing the maids encouraging her, Anthea sighed deeply. She thought the level of destruction of items was too one-dimensional. At Julie and Ellie’s urging, Anthea lost her motivation and returned to her room. Because she had lived peacefully in her countess’s home, Anthea had not yet realized that her standards for a villain were too low. When her dedicated maid comes, take a lot of her money and go shopping to fuel her wicked flame. She made up her mind and waited patiently for several hours. Anthea was taken aback when she saw the new rug on the floor and the sheer curtains added to the windows.

“Wow, this really hit the mark.”

Not only the couple’s bedroom but also the Duchess’ room where Anthea would stay were covered with thick rugs. As she watched the strings on the curtains change steadily, she was surprised that Rosa did not do anything. It was so different from what she had expected that she would drag on for a few days and then, when she couldn’t stand it and went to complain, she couldn’t even stand it and would laugh at her, asking if she could be called a Duchess. That’s why she waited for her dedicated maid to arrive without much doubt. It was only when the sky outside her window was colored with a red sunset that Anthea realized that the wait was not boring because the days in the North were long.

“They told me to tell the dedicated maid about my wife’s money.”

It never occurred to her that she wouldn’t send her dedicated maid.

“You waited for no reason.”

She waited like a fool when Rosa told her that she would give her money if she told her dedicated maid. As expected, Rosa. In some way she gave Anthea her fuck. She fell asleep halfway anyway, so it was difficult for her to go out. That’s why she waited all day like this, and the dedicated maid couldn’t even see her nose.

“The head maid’s power was poised to pierce the duchy’s ceiling.”

“Julie, have you heard anything about my personal maid?”

“The lady-in-waiting said that she would send you among her chosen people soon.”

From Julie’s words, Anthea guessed that he wouldn’t come tomorrow, let alone today. As she took off her going-out shoes and put down her shawl, Julie quickly helped Anthea change her clothes.

“Ma’am, I have to go down to eat. Would you like me to bring you a light dress?”

“No. I’ll have a quick bite to eat in my room.”

“Yes, ma’am. I will come fully prepared.”

Anthea shook her head as she saw Ellie burning with enthusiasm even though she said she would eat lightly.

“Please only have enough to fit on one tray.”

Also, she felt burdened by the mountain of food on the table they were preparing for her, so she had them bring only one tray to her room. Then, this time, a tray of terrifying height came in, as if it were some kind of tower-building competition. Instead of nagging Ellie for her efforts, she calmly looked at the dishes she brought. Dishes that look greasy, thick, and hard. This time too, there were only a few things she could eat. In the end, she sent her away, leaving behind only soft bread and soup. She must have been waiting outside the door when she heard the worried voice of a gloomy Harmon, but she pretended not to notice.

“Haaam…”

Her stomach felt heavy and she felt sleepy even though it was early evening.

“Eat and sleep, it’s a very desirable unemployed life.”

She spent the day lazily, so wasn’t this also a bit of a villain? Anthea fell asleep as she raised the villainess point that no one recognized.

* * *

Duke of the North. The Black Knights’ ability to kill demons was so famous that there was no need to doubt it. Not only was she amazing as a knight, but his horsemanship in running down mountains was also outstanding. Although it would take three or four days to reach the nearby territory, if an unreasonable schedule was set, they would arrive through the difficult mountains in just one day. However, this expedition was not even a mission, but a request. Even though he was given a generous period of one month, Richard could not make it to 15 days. This time it wasn’t even the Emperor’s order. In response to Richard’s sudden order, the knights did not delay at all, lightened their loads and mounted their horses. The knights, comprised of elites with excellent horsemanship, took no more than a day to reach their destination. As soon as they arrived at the area where the beast was infested, they dealt with it without any time to catch their breath, and managed to secure a safe campsite by the time the sun went down.

“At this rate, it will take less than fifteen days.”

“With the new recruits missing, it’s quite possible.”

“Then I will prepare a meal.”

The calm attitude of the knights, as if they were doing their job without any tension, made the atmosphere of the camp even better. Fires were lit in several places and the atmosphere became more lively. The knights, who had finally had their first meal, put the pot on the fire in a somewhat excited mood.

“I’m not fully recovered yet, but I think I’ll catch a couple more.”

“Arthur. Don’t you know that in the mountains where you can’t even see your feet, tree roots are scarier than demonic beasts?”

Hunting in the middle of the night was less efficient, so it was better to eat and sleep. When smoke rises and an animal that smells food approaches, it is ready to relax and use it as food. In this relaxed atmosphere, an immature demon beast sniffed and snooped around. Although it was said to be a magical beast, the weakest snow rabbit that any northerner could take on at least one or two, even if they were not a knight, approached without fear. The magical beast, which was larger than a child and had pure white fur that was difficult to exist in the wild, was not a problem when it was away. Approximately 5 meters. The moment it entered its range, it suddenly turned and bit the person with its large front teeth. For a knight, the snow rabbit was not even a job to the extent that it was used as a dagger target before it even came within range. Even though the snow rabbit approached the Duke, Richard did not move. He didn’t even bother to clean his sword, so everyone paid no attention, assuming they would break his neck the moment they attacked him. Moreover, even the elite knight in charge of guarding the Duke was relaxed and asked whether he would like sweet or salty raisins. Sure enough, the snow rabbit jumped towards the duke in an instant and was caught by Richard’s hand. Everyone expected to hear the sound of bones breaking.  They also heard people giggling, saying that snow rabbit meat goes well with stew. However, no matter how long they waited, there was no sound of bones breaking or a scream of death. One of the guards, who was not helping Richard but was listening, put down the beef jerky and raised his head. What he saw was Richard’s antics, turning the snow rabbit around and rolling his eyes in his hands. They were kneading it so much that they were afraid that he was trying to chop it alive.

“Your Excellency, no matter how much it is a demon beast, it would be pitiful to treat it like that.”

As the inferior guard cautiously interfered, Richard reacted uncharacteristically with a flinch.

“What does it mean to be pitiful?”

“Aren’t you trying to break its bones alive now? If you want to soften the meat, it is enough to remove the blood.”

“I don’t feel pain from this level of force.”

Richard’s bluntness seemed to have doubled from his usual bluntness, so the guard secretly checked the snow rabbit’s condition. Contrary to the guard’s expectations, the snow rabbit that was being turned over by Richard’s hands was only confused and did not feel pain. Unlike Howie, who became serious as he tried to figure out his master’s intentions, Richard quietly played with his hands. It was definitely different from fruit or jelly. The fruit lacked elasticity and the jelly was too crumbly. As expected, creatures with heartbeats and muscle movements were different. Whenever Richard’s hand was held incorrectly, his muscles tensed, and when he held it loosely, his entire body tensed as if he was trying to escape. While rolling the snow rabbit in his hand to find the right amount of force so as not to miss it, Richard slowly got a feel for it.

‘You look like my wife.’

He thought of the snow rabbit, or rather, his wife, Anthea, who he had suddenly encountered in the hall where they had gathered for the departure ceremony a little while ago. Next time they meet, if he controlled his hand strength like now, he wouldn’t hurt her. When he thought of Anthea, Richard’s eyes softened. He must have let his guard down without realizing it, and his hands relaxed. As the snow bunny tried to escape without missing the opportunity, Richard instinctively tightened his hand.

Poseok.

It made a suspicious sound and blood flowed down Richard’s hand.