Chpater 48

Chapter 48

I left Cassis’ room with a hardened face. With each step, my pace became faster as if I were running away. I had made up the lie about guiding the Pedelian scouts to safety in order to put his mind at ease. My actual plan was to lead them north and into the Dark Forest. It was a swamp and home to the most dangerous of the demon monsters. It was also notorious for being the sort of place that didn’t allow individuals to leave until their souls and bodies had parted ways.

I smiled bitterly as I considered why the Agreces in the novel had so viciously tortured and tormented Cassis to death. It was because he was everything they were not, like a circle in a land of triangles and squares. In fact, for a while, I had also been feeling somewhat out of whack in his presence. It had only gotten worse after he witnessed me crying in my sleep. Perhaps it was because I was afraid of reverting to my old, helpless self. I even regretted not pushing his hand away as he dabbed at my tears. Things had to change. There was no denying that I had to remove Cassis Pedelian from my presence as soon as possible.

* * *

There was something akin to dread hanging in the air at the Agrece compound as of late, and it was heavily in part due to Roxana. To be precise, it was due to her poisonous butterflies. Over a hundred butterflies were feasting on the corpse of a fallen beast. After only a few days, they had multiplied from a mere few dozen.

The men in charge of bringing in the demon monster carcasses winced as the sinister sounds filled the air all around them. Despite how beautiful they were to look at, the sight of them voraciously attacking the flesh of the slain creatures was beyond gruesome. The men unloaded another corpse onto the pile, then hastily left. The delivery of these dead demon monsters had become a daily event since Roxana announced that she was going to raise the butterflies to be killers.

The heroine lazily watched her crimson creatures eat from nearby.

“Bring me something cold to drink, will you? it’s a bit warm today.”

As she sat daintily at the tea table that had been set out for her, Roxana’s elegant appearance looked completely out of place considering what was taking place not too far in front of her. But she had no trouble remaining serene while looking on, unlike her poor maid who looked properly mortified. Even the men who were bringing in the dead demon monsters appeared somewhat green in complexion.

Some of the Agrece clan had also tried to visit out of curiosity, but almost immediately turned tail due to the sheer horror of the spectacle. It was certainly far from a pleasant sight even for the most sadistic of the lot.

“Can’t you all work a bit faster? If my butterflies aren’t sated, they might decide to start feeding on something else.”

Despite delivering her request calmly, the men began to shake in their boots all the same. After a fearful glance at the butterflies, they quickly dashed away to fetch the next haul. Once she was satisfied that everyone was plenty afraid of her winged beasts, Roxana decided she had scared everyone sufficiently. She had deliberately arranged for people to witness the feeding spectacle. And since no one knew her true intentions, they all began to eye her warily. She had of course always been seen as terrifyingly beautiful, but she suddenly seemed even more unapproachable. She had become a lot like her gorgeous, yet deadly butterflies.

One of the stragglers who had met Roxana’s scarlet gaze began to run away huffing furiously. Once all the men had scurried off, she returned to watching her butterflies.

* * *

Once in a while, Roxana would stare at Cassis with something akin to a chill playing at the back of her neck. It wasn’t while staring at each other, but afterward that the cool, calm nature of her gaze would return to her eyes. She had been patiently waiting for the moment when all the gears of her plan would fall into place. As time went on, she had come to suspect that Cassis could break out of the Agrece compound alone if he chose to do so, but purposefully hadn’t for whatever reason. She supposed that if she was right, then it was likely due to his inexplicable worries about her. Rather than bring her comfort, such thoughts only made her insides churn.

“How are the butterflies coming along?”

Lante had asked her to come to his room.

“Quite well, Father. They will not disappoint.”

The edges of Roxana’s lips turned slightly upward to create what could pass as a smile in the dim candlelight that had cast her face in shadow.

“However, I think fairly soon their current diet may not be enough to sustain them.”

“Just tell me what you require and I’ll get it for you.”

Her father made the offer without hesitation as he had taken a significant interest in the poison butterflies.

“I just think that if they could feed on much stronger and more powerful creatures, they would become far more potent. Don’t you agree, Father?”

Lante readily nodded in agreement with Roxana’s bold idea.

* * *

The monthly evaluation was three days away, and soon Deon would return from his trip to the carantul habitat. Earlier that day, Roxana had received updates from her butterflies about the Pedelian scouts.

“Okay, I see.”

After learning that the scouts had successfully made it to the northern border, she smiled in satisfaction. As a welcoming gesture, she had sent the butterflies she had fattened with the flesh, blood, and guts of demon monsters for several days to serve as their guides.

A breeze wafted through an open window causing the curtains to flutter. With the seasons about to change, there was a hint of residual green in the air. Almost a month had passed since Cassis first arrived at the Agrece mansion.

“Almost time to say goodbye.”

Roxana spoke quietly to herself while gazing out the open window. She would soon return to life without him. After feeding her overworked butterflies her poison-rich blood, she left for Cassis’ room.

“You look pale.”

Cassis commented on her appearance as soon as she entered his room. Her stanch complexion couldn’t be helped since she had to imbibe such a great deal of poison, only to turn around and feed her own blood to her butterflies.

“I just came to update you about the scouts. Aren’t you worried about them?”

“If Isidore is leading them, they’ll be fine.”

Roxana squinted slightly at his halfhearted response.

“Whereas I wouldn’t be? Is that what you’re implying?”

Her face was composed, but her words were anything but. His doubt about her ability seemed to stem from having witnessed firsthand her moments of weakness. After staring at her with an odd gaze, Cassis moved ever so slightly.

Clang

The magical cuffs around his wrists simply fell away.

What the actual hell is he?

Is it really that easy for him to get loose now?

Then within the blink of an eye, he reached out to her with outstretched fingers. Roxana’s shock only doubled. Before she realized it, she was sitting on his bed. It was still awkward for her to feel the warmth of his touch passing over to her. She tried to free herself from his grip, but he wouldn’t have it.

“What are you doing? Who said you could touch me?”

“Do you think it’s fair for someone who’s done far worse than touch me really qualified to ask me such a question?”

Roxana couldn’t find the words to answer him. After all, it was true that she had made those marks on his neck without his invitation.

“So this is who you really are?”

She tried to sound as cold as possible as she spoke.

“If anything, you just have a habit of making things difficult for others.”

The fact that Cassis was smiling as he spoke made Roxana feel even more foolish. She decided to rationalize the turn of events in her head instead. Simply put, Cassis was merely healing her as quickly as possible to prevent any of her weaknesses from hampering their plan. And knowing that Cassis’ special power could help the plan, she was allowing him to hold her like that again.

Despite reasoning everything away, something still made her burst out somewhat crossly.

“Perhaps you’ve forgotten, but I’m still an Agrece.”

Cassis simply stared at her for a while before answering her very quietly.

“I know.”

After that, there was no more discussion. Before long, it was the day before the monthly evaluation.

Rumble.

The entire Agrece compound shook as if it had been rocked by an earthquake. The mazes were opening along with the path towards the Dark Forest. All the gears of her plan had finally fallen into place. The time to act had at last arrived.