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Chapter 07
“Hmm? Rolanda, why aren’t you eating? Don’t you like jerky?”
I sparkled my eyes as if I knew nothing and brought the jerky close to Rolanda’s lips, almost pressing it against them.
Although I was only ten years old, I was the heir to the Gladwin family head.
Smiling brightly and speaking in a clear voice, I offered it, but this was not a simple offer—it was coercion. I was essentially threatening her to prove with her own mouth that the food I put in mine was safe.
Surely, this jerky must have been coated with a drug to incapacitate beastmen.
The plan was probably to feed Karin the jerky first and then devour her.
I had no proof, but I was certain.
Rolanda, who must have been starving from skipping dinner, had voluntarily given the jerky to the beastmen she herself was planning to eat.
Moreover, she even smiled brightly as if my expectation had been fulfilled when I ate it.
To me, who knew the truth, her actions and reactions were painfully obvious.
Rolanda, chewing on the jerky with her sharp teeth, forced a smile.
“Ahahaha, Systia-nim… I… um.”
“Rolanda, why?”
I asked, pretending to be innocent.
It meant there was no escape route because all my attention was focused on her answer.
In the end, Rolanda accepted the jerky I offered.
“If it is Systia-nim’s wish… I suppose I have no choice.”
“Yes! Eat it quickly! It’s really delicious!”
I encouraged her with energy, even though I knew she wouldn’t actually eat it.
And she behaved almost exactly as I had anticipated.
Clang!
Pretending to stumble, she smashed the plate of jerky.
Karin, who was staring at the jerky with a face that screamed she wanted to eat it so badly, shouted loudly.
“Kyaa! Rolanda-nim, are you okay?”
Karin and I helped Rolanda, who had fallen to the floor.
“Rolanda, are you alright?”
“Yes. I’m fine. I was just so hungry that I got dizzy for a moment.”
It was a fairly plausible excuse.
She really was hungry from skipping dinner.
I put on a fully worried expression, like a beastman who didn’t doubt a word of Rolanda’s.
“So you were that hungry. Karin, is there anything we can eat?”
“There should be some meat in the storage that was meant for dinner. I’ll quickly roast it and bring it!”
As Karin bustled off into the food storage, the kitchen was left with only Rolanda and me.
“Can you stand up? Dizzy… If it’s because the work is too hard, do you want to return to your true form? I can tell Tigris-oppa in the morning.”
Rolanda shook her head and smiled brightly despite her effort.
“I appreciate your concern, but I’m fine. I came here of my own will, so I can’t just return because of something like this. I’ll eat well and serve Systia-nim in even better health starting tomorrow. Please trust me.”
I let out a deep sigh.
Refusing to go back was essentially the same as saying she would somehow eat me.
“Alright, then we have no choice.”
I would just have to see it through.
At that moment,
Cheetah, the messenger, arrived at the Laruca household, far from Gladwin.
[To Kaya Laruca, head of the Laruca family:
Please send the beastmen of Laruca to Gladwin. Laruca’s assistance is needed. If you could come as quickly as possible, it would be most appreciated.
Temporary head of Gladwin, Tigris Gladwin]**
The letter was hastily written.
After checking the letter, Kaya Laruca, head of the Laruca family, called in her heir, Difa.
“You called for me, Mother?”
“Prepare to depart. Tigris-nim, the temporary head of Gladwin, asked that you come to Gladwin as quickly as possible.”
“What do you mean all of a sudden? Wasn’t it scheduled for me to go to Gladwin five years from now?”
“Originally yes, but for some reason they want you to come sooner than planned.”
“Sooner? That’s not like Gladwin.”
They had heard rumors that Systia had collapsed during the coming-of-age ceremony, but that had nothing to do with the Laruca family.
The Laruca family would simply follow their predetermined rules and share what they had with Gladwin in due time.
But Difa seemed to think differently from her mother, Kaya.
Through her glasses, Difa’s eyes shone much brighter than usual.
She had been counting the days to go to Gladwin, and this was happening five years earlier than expected—far more exciting than worrying.
Kaya looked at her daughter and sighed lightly.
“I hope it’s nothing serious. I’m worried.”
“Gladwin has been the dominant power governing the beastmen for centuries. Don’t worry too much.”
“Please return safely. When you do, the head of the Laruca family will be Difa Laruca—you.”
Difa nodded at the thrilling words.
“I’ll prepare immediately and depart for Gladwin.”
[Green Moon 21st, Today’s To-Do List]
Finally today! (๑`･ᴗ･´๑)
Roll the log five times
☐ Scold Rolanda
☐ Eat a kiwi
On a morning sparkling with sunlight, I sat in the tea room eating a kiwi.
The green sprout headband that Tabian-oppa insisted I wear bobbed on top of my head, and Rolanda sat beside me, making tea for me.
I scooped a bite of the halved kiwi and asked Rolanda,
“Where’s Karin? I haven’t seen her since morning.”
“Oh.”
Rolanda, who was brewing tea with a serious expression, flinched and lifted her head in surprise.
Wow. Why is she so obviously startled? She really shows it when she does something naughty.
Rolanda, rolling her pale yellow eyes sideways, said,
“Um… She said she wasn’t feeling well and wanted to rest. I guess she overdid it yesterday, being her first day.”
“Really? That’s serious. I should bring her a lot of meat later.”
“I’ll take care of it. Systia-nim, you need to take care of your own health.”
Then, frowning at the kiwi I was eating, she said,
“It’s a pity that your body has weakened enough to need to eat something like that.”
“I’m not eating it because I’m weak—it’s because it’s delicious. Do you want some, Rolanda?”
I scooped a spoonful and offered it. Rolanda jumped back.
“My goodness, are you trying to kill me?”
“It’s really delicious! Just try it once, okay?”
“I’ll pass.”
Rolanda refused outright, as if to say she had no patience for such nonsense, and quickly changed the subject.
“By the way, it seems the young masters won’t be coming today.”
“I guess so. Usually at this time they’d be telling me to try this or that, but maybe they’re busy?”
At my teasing words, Rolanda leaned toward me and lowered her voice.
“Could it be because of that incident? Lately, the incident has stirred up a lot at the main estate.”
Even though there were no beastmen around, she made such a fuss. I decided to play along.
Curiously, I leaned toward her, lowering my voice.
“That incident? What incident?”
“Recently, some beastmen working at the main estate disappeared without a trace.”
“What? How could that happen? This is Gladwin Castle! Beastmen disappearing from Gladwin—it’s impossible!”
“Exactly. You can almost hear Gladwin’s prestige hitting rock bottom.”
“It still seems strange. Tigris-oppa never mentioned it.”
“That’s because he didn’t want to worry or scare Systia-nim. He values you so much. If someone like him couldn’t come here, then surely beastmen have disappeared again today?”
Rolanda pretending not to know why the beastmen disappeared was quite amusing.
She probably thinks I don’t know anything.
As I silently ate the kiwi, Rolanda excitedly continued talking.
“Systia-nim needs to grow into a healthy adult quickly. With the head’s seat vacant, all sorts of accidents happen at Gladwin. Everyone is anxious, thinking doom has come to Gladwin.”
“Really?”
Given the hamster incident, it was obvious how terrified the original Systia would be hearing this.
Rolanda poured tea into a cup, the nutty barley sprout scent tickling the senses.
“Don’t worry too much. Have some tea first. You like barley sprouts, right?”
“Yes! I love barley sprouts!”
Smiling lightly, I grabbed the cup Rolanda offered, and she smiled softly in return.
In the original story, Systia drank the tea Rolanda gave her without hesitation.
But Rolanda, listen carefully.
I am not the original Systia.
“Do you want to drink some too, Rolanda?”
“No, I don’t really like barley sprouts.”
Before she could even finish speaking, I poured the tea over her head
