Chapter 16

Previously:

A strange noise came from the lake.

*chapak chapak*

It was loud enough to annoy everyone who heard it.

Strange.

The sound didn’t come from the water when the wind blew. She has a strong feeling that there was something in the water.

‘What is it? A ghost? Corpse? Or a person?’ Her mind was filled with several thoughts.

Recalling the guesses she thought of; she let out a small laugh. No way. She might have watched too many horror movies.

On the other hand, Citrina didn’t even know that Desian was looking at her closely.

‘When in doubt, check it yourself.’

When she was about to turn back and look at the lake.

“Citrina.”

Desian called her name, and he smiled. It was a little decadent, but seeing that smile on his relaxed face was beautiful.

At that moment, however, she felt a little uncomfortable.

“Desian, what just happened… Didn’t you hear it?”

“Nothing.”

“Huh?”

“It was probably nothing,” he answered with confidence.

‘The timing is a little strange, but it doesn’t matter.’

To change the subject, she smiled and spoke again. “Well there’s only two of us here, it must have been the wind.”

As he listened to her, the smile on his face grew deeper. It wasn’t a pleasant smile.

At that moment, the sound of wind rising can be heard, as if someone intended it to happen.

“Yes, the wind. The wind is blowing a lot.”

She just nodded slowly in response to his clear answer.

Desian whispered when she saw her nod. He also seemed to be looking at the lake while talking to her.

“Citrina, you know what?”

“What?”

“I’m curious about something.”

“…Curious about what?”

Desian’s gaze landed back on her.

“As of now, no one will be able to enter here, especially the servants and the mage.”

“There is nothing here that can threaten us. You can rest easy,” his eyes were looking straight at her.

The raw desire that originally couldn’t be seen on him is now clearly reflected. It looks like an immature but innocent boy’s possessiveness.

But what is certain now is the fact that he no longer looks at the world with extreme boredom.

Us.. is it?”

“Yes, us.”

Listening to Desian’s languid voice, Citrina nodded slowly.

The word ‘curious’ gave her hope to begin with, and the word ‘us’ gave her even more so. The thought of putting her in his boundary is not bad either. But there’s one thing she needs to be sure of.

“I have something I want to ask you, Desian.”

“Anything, Citrina,” he replied in a clean, friendly tone.

His desire that can be seen earlier has cleared up a little more.

“What would you do if someone came into your space?”

He said that nobody could enter ‘our space’, so for a person who is obsessed with his own space, how would he react if someone were to step into it?

“I don’t want to imagine that,” she said.

Desian’s gaze stayed on the lake for a quick while, as she looked at him with a bit of anticipation.

“I will kill that person.”

“…Eh?”

“Why, Citrina?” His voice that spoke to her once again was extremely gentle and friendly. She was a person who was rarely embarrassed by the nuances of asking a self-evident answer.

‘Yes. Don’t panic, Citrina Foluin. This is just a barrier to overcome. He didn’t say he’ll kill you!’

“No, because you can’t just kill people.”

“Why not?”

It was a question full of doubt. She was speechless. ‘Indeed, why not? If it’s a bad person?’ Wait. No. She needs to persuade him. Get a grip, Citrina Foluin!

“If you kill someone, that person will suffer….”

“If I kill a person, will Citrina suffer?” Desian looked at her.

“Well, I’m not going to suffer, but wouldn’t the person who’s going to die suffer? The people who know that person will also suffer.”

“I see. It wouldn’t inflict pain to Citrina,” he smiled. It was a friendly smile, just like yesterday. But it’s strange.

Obviously, it was the sound of the wind, but it was as if someone’s last scream could be heard. Whether or not he knows what’s in her mind, he just looks at her as she falls in thought.

‘What if the solution is death? Besides, I don’t know why killing is bad if there is a big serious problem. I shouldn’t just teach emotions, but morals as well.’ (t/n rambling: it seems like her modern-day morals have also transmigrated. It’s the world of magic, what can we do?)

Her life was hanging on a thread for the time being… like a candle against the wind. It seems like she needs a little more time to get him on the straight road.

“You can’t kill people, Decian. It’s more than just about how you feel.”

He just looked at her as if he couldn’t hear her.

While the both of them were talking, the body on the water was slowly sinking. In this way, the servants who were tasked to keep watch on the outer residence faced mysterious deaths one by one.

Naturally, it was a secret Citrina doesn’t know about.

After coming back from the garden to her room, Citrina couldn’t hide her confusion.

There’s no problem with Desian’s clean escort…

‘The problem is Desian’s moral level, which is zero.’

No. Not even zero. It dips in negative.

After a series of events, she decided to raise his moral level as the top priority.

‘Okay. Let’s think of it like a Prince Maker. The player starts off as a juvenile delinquent, who can be very sensitive and has a negative moral sense.’

She bit her lip as she recalls the game called ‘Prince Maker’ she used to play in her previous life.

She doesn’t know how he changed, but fortunately, she can see humane emotions from Desian. Also, it looks like he has a little crush on her.

‘It seems like he has a crush on me, so I need to fix it now.’

She doesn’t believe in people’s hearts so easily. It’s fickle and easy to bend, and feelings like this can fade so fast. She needs to resolve his little crush on her before it gets blown away. At this point, she’s clear of what she needs to do.

‘It’s storytelling that usually moves people’s hearts. Let’s try changing Desian’s thoughts indirectly through a story.’

But she alone isn’t enough. She needs a comrade that Desian believes in, so she decided to call a relief pitcher.

And that relief pitcher is Aron Pietro, the male protagonist.

‘I have to ask Aron and Desian to meet me in the parlor tonight, after supper.’

As she was organizing her plan, she was getting a little impatient.

‘There is a thing called the butterfly effect. Since the contents of the original plot have changed, I have no idea what will now happen to the duke. He could be coming back soon, so I have to get the job done as soon as possible.’

Since it’s summertime, daytime is longer, but even so, evening still came quickly. It’s finally dinner time.

*Knock knock*

After the knock, her door opened even without her answering.

“I have prepared dinner,” as several trays of meals came in. Everything was brought from the main house.

She saw the empty eyes of the attendants who were enchanted by Desian’s hypnosis.

‘Mind control magic. Wouldn’t they be a nuisance if they were to be relieved from it?’

She shuddered lightly upon seeing those eyes. She answered while rubbing her arms with cold creeps, “Thank you.”

They wouldn’t be able to hear it anyway. And the servants left without replying.

She was lost in thought as she looked at the plates that were placed on the table.

“Thank you for the meal.”

Again, no one responded.

A fat shrimp skewer, waffle with apple jam for dessert, and apple juice. Upon entering the duke’s household, she lived quite a lavish life.

After taking a bite of the crispy and warm waffle, she drank the apple juice and quickly felt full.

After a brief dinner in the room alone, Citrina headed to the reception room.

‘Thinking about some of the stories I arranged makes me feel at ease.’

She thought of stories that have lessons in them to tell Desian and Aron.

Only if she succeeds can her future be perfect. Because the only pain of the transmigrated Citrina felt in this life is her predetermined death.

‘Knowing about the future like the back of my hand. I’m satisfied.’

After a satisfying meal, she soon headed to the parlor.

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