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Chapter 8
Of course, it was too late.
When Daisy met the boy’s gaze, it clearly said, If you hesitate for five more seconds, I’ll really knock you unconscious.
Without wasting any more time, Daisy rolled off the boy.
Roll, roll.
“…….”
What? Why are you looking at me like that?
The boy looked at her pathetic-looking form as if she were ridiculous, then slowly stood up.
He brushed the pieces of stone off his hand.
“…….”
His hand was very large.
About this big.
Daisy looked down at her own hand.
He had grabbed her so tightly that the skin where his fingers had been was red.
When she looked up, she could clearly see the maze corridor behind the boy.
Definitely not heaven.
Daisy stared at the dark corridor before asking,
“Were you the one who pulled me up?”
The boy turned around.
Pale skin.
Pitch-black hair.
Light gray eyes.
Sharp features.
His face was beautiful, but there wasn’t even the slightest trace of warmth or humanity in it. Under the faint candlelight, the boy looked almost unreal.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
By that point, Daisy had already been falling.
No matter how strong someone was, pulling another person upward against gravity was never easy.
Maybe he had fallen too.
Down beneath the collapsing floor of the dormitory hall……
“……because.”
The voice that slipped between his slightly moving lips was extremely quiet.
“What?”
Daisy took a step closer so she could hear him properly.
But she didn’t get any closer than that.
The boy had already turned around without hesitation and started walking deeper into the maze.
Step. Step. Step.
Daisy stared at his back as he quickly disappeared into the darkness.
Then she suddenly came to her senses and shouted,
“Thank you!”
She hated teamwork.
She absolutely hated group assignments.
But she wasn’t the type to ignore someone simply because they had helped her.
The boy stopped for a moment.
He remained silent for a while.
Thinking that he probably hadn’t heard her, Daisy was about to speak louder when—
“Tut.”
Tut?
“What a pathetic person.”
This guy?!
The boy continued walking without even turning around.
“……Huh?”
Watching his back disappear around the corner, Daisy let out a hollow laugh.
Seriously? Even if I did crush you a little, you clicked your tongue at me after I thanked you?
“What an asshole.”
Daisy reached a firm conclusion.
He really was an incredibly rude bastard.
“Just like a future villain……”
Wait.
Villain?
“Oh.”
Daisy’s voice echoed through the empty maze corridor.
“I remember.”
Felix Arderon.
The villainous duke who inherited his mother’s madness and became the nightmare of the Empire.
In the original novel, he only appeared once despite all the rumors surrounding him.
But Daisy had never forgotten his unforgettable appearance.
Because he had nearly killed Daisy Sableheart’s husband.
***
He appeared from the darkness.
“Daisy.”
His hand, which called Daisy’s name, was covered in blood.
Was he injured?
But his movements as he slowly approached her were incredibly smooth.
His gray eyes glowed strangely in the darkness.
It wasn’t difficult to figure out who he was.
Felix Arderon.
The fallen duke.
‘Duke, my ass. He’s a monster.’
Daisy’s husband couldn’t hide his disgust.
He had said that the number of people killed by Felix alone was in the dozens.
But even so, he hadn’t expected Felix to personally come after another duke like this.
“Daisy Sableheart.”
His gray eyes somehow looked full of affection.
Daisy felt as if she had seen those eyes somewhere before.
A very long time ago.
Daisy’s lips slowly parted.
“Fel—”
But Daisy couldn’t finish saying his name.
“My lady!”
“Duchess!”
“Are you all right?!”
At that moment, the knights came rushing in.
And when Daisy turned her head—
Felix Arderon was gone.
For reference, when Kwon Do-yo had read that part, she had thought:
There is no way Felix should be called a villain.
A villain who tries to assassinate another villain?
Shouldn’t he actually be called an angel?
Honestly, he even looked a little like one.
Even if he was somewhat lacking in color……
The satisfaction Daisy felt when Felix nearly beat that bastard to death was incredibly refreshing.
Ah, of course, after that, Daisy devoted herself to nursing her husband back to health, and the terrible frustration started all over again……
That one sip of refreshing satisfaction only made her thirst for more even stronger……
The bright smile that had appeared on Daisy’s face quickly faded.
What a miserable novel.
Why on earth did I ever read something like this? What did I think I was going to gain from it?
Then Daisy suddenly shook her head.
“……No. I don’t have to live like that anymore.”
The maze was extremely quiet now that all the students had scattered in different directions.
Right.
The original story was just the original story.
From now on, she simply had to live differently.
Quietly and peacefully.
Alone.
“Ugh.”
Daisy stretched her stiff body and said without thinking,
“It’s peaceful.”
She really shouldn’t have said that.
“—zy!”
A faint echo came from far away, carried through the damp air.
“—Daisyyy!”
“Daisy?”
“—Daisyyyyy!”
“What? Who the hell……”
“Daisyyyyyyyy!”
At the end of the quiet corridor, a brown puppy suddenly appeared.
Milo Everett.
Despite the damp air, his fluffy curls bounced wildly as he came running toward her at full speed.
He didn’t seem to have a single injury on him.
Seeing how healthy he looked, a proud smile appeared on Daisy’s face.
Of course, her voice was still grumpy.
“You little brat. If you could run this fast, you should’ve done it from the start……”
“Daisyyyyyyyy!”
“Huh?”
“Ruuuun!”
Daisy frowned and looked behind Milo.
There was nothing there.
No.
There was one thing.
A tiny cockroach was running after him at incredible speed.
“Ha.”
Daisy let out a hollow laugh.
Cute.
“Oh, I see. You were that scared of a cockroach? I’ll kill……”
At that moment—
The cockroach grew to a height of 180 centimeters.
“……I can’t!”
Why is Gregor Samsa here?!
Daisy remembered the protagonist of Franz Kafka’s The Metamorphosis, the novel about a man who wakes up one morning and discovers that he has turned into a giant insect.
She desperately held onto her fading consciousness.
Two antennae as thick as forearms waved around above the head of the cockroach, which was roughly the size of a human head.
“Ugh.”
I don’t want to call you a 180-centimeter cockroach, so I’ll call you Mr. Gregor for now!
Skreeee!
Mr. Gregor made a horrible insect-like sound and began charging toward them, moving six enormous legs independently.
Dear God!
Daisy quickly turned around and ran.
I think I’m going to pass out……!
The excessive level of detail was more than disgusting.
It was overwhelming.
Gritting her teeth as she ran, Daisy shouted,
“Damn it! Why did you have to bring something like that with you, you damn brat!”
Skreee!
“I wasn’t talking to Mr. Gregor!”
“WAAAAH! It’s disgusting!”
“This way!”
Daisy turned the corner, narrowly avoiding Mr. Gregor’s antennae that were practically brushing against her.
And she regretted everything.
I should never have said it was peaceful!
