Chapter 37
Chapter 37
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 37
Chapter Title: The Poisoned Prince
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The corridor leading to the third floor had the lights dimmed to almost nothing, leaving it shrouded in darkness and silence.
But it shouldn't have been this quiet.
With a growing sense of unease, I rounded the corner toward Erich's room—and that's when I saw the third-floor guards slumped on the floor.
Are they dead?
I hurried over in shock, but only let out a sigh of relief after confirming they were still breathing, faint as it was.
There was something unnatural about the two of them, fast asleep as they were.
No matter how much I shook their shoulders or whispered in their ears to wake up, not a single eyelash fluttered. They wouldn't stir.
If they're sleeping this deeply, it can't be natural.
I caught a faint whiff of alcohol from the guards.
Drunk?
No. The wine I'd handed out to the servants in celebration of my birthday today was supposed to be very low-proof.
I pictured Betty sipping it away like it was just juice.
Did they spike the wine with sleeping pills?
The only person capable of something like that was the family physician.
If he'd really done it, then every servant in this mansion—except the nurse, who never touches alcohol—had been...
If I can't count on the guards, I'll have to step up myself.
I gritted my teeth and headed for Erich's room.
The moment I reached for the doorknob, something shattered inside.
I twisted the knob at the sharp breaking sound.
"Don't come in!"
A voice as sharp as the crash rang out from within, but it was quickly drowned in a fit of harsh coughing.
The door was locked, but it felt loose.
Dietrich must have slammed it last time and broken something inside.
In that case, it might work.
I threw my full weight against the knob, and with a snapping sound from within, it finally turned all the way.
I didn't miss a beat, shoving the door open with my shoulder and bursting inside.
"Perry."
My question—Are you okay?—died in my throat before I could even start.
It wasn't just because a child was kneeling on the floor by the table, surrounded by scattered shards of broken glass.
Is that blood?
Even in the feeble light of the dimmed candle, I could make out dark stains.
On the child's lips. On the floor.
Once I registered it, a bitter, metallic tang seemed to assault my senses.
"Get out... right...!"
He seemed to be trying to tell me to leave, but before he could finish, blood sprayed from his mouth with another cough.
What?
Why is he like this?
Maybe because he wasn't feeling well, he couldn't muster the usual fiery glare to chase me off.
Seizing the chance, I rushed right up to him.
The floor was dangerous—not just from the shattered glass, but there was liquid soaking into the carpet too.
I tried to help him up, but he was so uncooperative, and the size difference made it tough.
"Call the... doctor...!"
I started to say I'd fetch the physician, then snapped my mouth shut again.
No way. He's the most suspicious person in this house right now.
Regretfully closing my mouth, I thought of the nurse instead.
The only reliable adult who wasn't drugged with sleeping pills.
Whether it was his chronic illness or not, the boy looked in serious condition. I needed a trustworthy grown-up to help.
But before I could fully stand, he grabbed my arm first.
With strength unnatural for someone so ill, he held me tight and rasped in a voice like scraping metal.
"No."
"But Perry hurts lots. Spitting blood."
Even in the hazy light, his bright red eyes glared at me fiercely.
His hand gripping me was bloodless and ice-cold, but those eyes burned with intense heat.
"This level of poison... is nothing."
Poison?
The word was so absurd I just blinked at him, speechless for a moment.
Poison? Like the kind that kills you?
Why would we have something like that in our house? Unless...
The prince wasn't sick—he was poisoned by the physician.
This kid's body was so inconvenient. No one ever took my words seriously.
I ground my teeth hard enough to ache, then stood up.
There was no need to get mad now.
Protecting the prince was far more important.
With Father gone, this was the perfect chance to assassinate the first prince.
They probably used poison this time and think they're in the clear.
So the best move was to sneak him out while the physician let his guard down, hide him somewhere safe, and get Father back as fast as possible.
"Come. Can't stay here. No good."
I tugged his arm like I was dragging him and hauled him to his feet.
"Don't play the good girl. Your father decided to kill me too, it seems."
He tried to shake off my hand, but he was even weaker now and couldn't pull free.
...His body felt too cold.
He said this poison was nothing, but was he really okay?
I frowned and whispered urgently.
"Daddy not home. But know where. Tell other person."
The tension drained slowly from his body as he tried to push me away.
Let me sort this out.
The physician took advantage of Father's absence to poison the first prince.
Judging by the broken glass, he'd probably slipped it into his water...
With the rain stopped, he couldn't collect more rainwater, so he must have drunk the water the servants brought.
If he's been secretly drinking only rainwater since he arrived—just in case—he's used to attacks like this.
If someone was this relentlessly after him, they might come back to confirm the kill.
And with the lock broken, he couldn't defend the room.
"My room go."
It wasn't perfectly safe either, but better than staying in Erich's room.
As I stood, I pulled his arm to help him up.
I meant to support him, but even stumbling, he refused to lean on me and insisted on following on his own two feet.
What a stubborn kid!
The moment we reached my room, I shoved the exhausted-looking boy into the wardrobe and piled clothes on top to hide him.
No one would spot him easily here.
"Stay here. Okay?"
I patted his arm a couple times and turned to go, but he lightly grabbed my sleeve.
What now? I'm swamped!
I looked down at the pale fingers poking out from between the clothes.
After coughing a couple times to clear the rasp from his voice, he asked quietly.
"What are you going to do?"
"Sneak to Nurse, tell get Daddy."
I couldn't trust anyone else.
Getting Father back fast was the only way to guarantee safety.
There are still guards in the house, but I can't trust them all.
Most were from the main estate anyway.
Father had definitely said he was heading to the Takiten barony.
I'd never imagined something like this, but at least I'd remembered the destination.
The boy hesitated like he wanted to say something, then silently let go of my sleeve.
He looks oddly resigned?
Whatever! I'm in a rush—who cares if he's giving up or not!
I slipped back into the unusually dark hallway and tiptoed as quietly as I could toward the nurse's room, whose location I knew well.
She's the only one I can trust in this house right now.
She's the only one Father trusts too.
"Nurse, sleep?"
I quietly opened the door to her room and peeked in. Seeing Dietrich asleep in her arms made me frown enviously.
What a jealousy machine.
Did all the birthday attention on me today make him jealous?
Monopolizing the nurse like this.
Still, he wasn't lashing out at me with his usual ugly insults.
Instead, he was handling it by hogging alone time with her. Had Dietrich grown up a bit?
Good timing, actually.
With things like this, I'd have to send Dietrich off with the nurse too.
Unlike me, who couldn't ride a horse at all, or the prince, who wasn't in any shape to, Dietrich had recently learned the basics of riding—and with the nurse, he could handle a big horse no problem.