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chapter 12
Vincent refused to give up. Looking straight at her, he asked again,
“Then… what about my house?”
Adele blinked.
“What about it?”
“You can’t go hungry. I’ll share my meals with you.”
…What a good kid.
Adele immediately pulled herself together.
Her subordinate was offering to share his own food with his commander. Such touching loyalty nearly brought tears to her eyes. She gave a solemn nod of approval.
She had been wondering what to do after that wicked mage had suddenly disappeared, leaving her plans in disarray.
“Very well. I accept your proposal.”
She crossed her arms with dignity.
“Then our next training session shall be held at the Rogato Ducal Estate.”
Usder Rogato, Duke of Rogato, stood in the garden wearing a thoroughly bewildered expression.
Without warning, a sharp stab of pain shot through the back of his head.
“…!”
He instinctively reached back and rubbed the spot.
There wasn’t a single wound.
Yet…
This sensation…
He had felt it before.
His mind drifted back to that strange afternoon.
A brief nap that had somehow turned into an unusually deep sleep.
A shattered window.
The inexplicable blankness in his memory.
The moment those memories surfaced, his head felt clouded, as if wrapped in thick fog. His stomach churned, cold sweat gathered on his back, and an indescribable sense of unease washed over him.
And every one of those symptoms had begun…
The instant he saw that child.
Bright crimson hair.
It reminded him of roaring flames. The hair itself wasn’t moving, but somehow it looked as though fire danced within it.
Is it… because of that hair?
Is that why I feel so overwhelmed?
But it wasn’t only the hair.
Those vivid green eyes…
For some reason, simply meeting them was difficult. They looked almost… vicious, as if they belonged to someone with an impossibly foul temper.
No…
More importantly—
Why was such a sharp-looking little girl wandering around his estate?
Had another noble family come to visit?
But if so, how could he possibly not recognize a child with such unforgettable features?
The Duke of Rogato knew nearly every noble family in the kingdom—including their children.
Yet no matter how carefully he searched his memory, he couldn’t place her.
Not the face.
Not the fiery red hair.
Not the green eyes.
Nothing.
The realization immediately reminded him of someone else.
Vincent.
The son who resembled him in absolutely no way.
The parasite who had infiltrated his bloodline under false pretenses.
Disgust surged through him almost instantly.
Then—
“Urgh!”
The child vanished from his sight.
At the exact same moment, unbearable pain exploded across the back of his head.
As darkness swallowed his vision, Usder Rogato managed one final thought.
Th-this feeling…
It’s the same as before…
“It loses its effectiveness if I do it too many times.”
Standing in the middle of the garden, Adele shook her head after delivering another swift knife-hand strike to the duke’s neck.
She had never expected to run into the owner of the estate.
Again.
Why wasn’t this old man at work?
She had always imagined being a duke meant endless responsibilities.
Adele’s earliest memories after returning were of the war Vincent would eventually ignite, when the entire kingdom had been thrown into chaos.
By then, Duke Rogato had already been murdered by his own son.
She had never known what the man was like during peaceful times.
“…Maybe he got fired like I did?”
The thought suddenly occurred to her.
Even now, she vividly remembered the humiliation of being dismissed from the construction site.
They begged me to work when they needed me, then threw me away without hesitation.
What kind of kingdom treats workers like this?
If things had gone just a little worse, she might have starved to death… or become a bandit.
A woman destined to conquer the world…
Reduced to highway robbery?
That simply wasn’t stylish.
Thinking back, she regretted showing mercy.
That foreman deserved far worse.
Maybe she hadn’t needed to punch a hole through his stomach…
But she should have made him suffer something close to it.
She absentmindedly clenched and unclenched her fist, still dissatisfied with how lightly she’d let him off.
If her guess was right, then this pale-faced Duke Rogato, sprawled unconscious before her, was probably lamenting his miserable life after being humiliated by the king.
“…That’s actually kind of pitiful.”
She stared at his face.
Perhaps he was having a nightmare.
His greedy-looking mustache twitched.
His thick brows were tightly furrowed, making his already irritable expression look even more ferocious.
“…No.”
She quickly looked away.
“They say you shouldn’t worry about rich people.”
“Even if he got fired, he’ll eat just fine.”
With the obstacle removed, there was only one thing left to do.
Raid the ducal kitchen.
A broad grin spread across Adele’s face.
Vincent’s training had already been forgotten.
She didn’t know the estate’s layout, yet marched forward without hesitation.
Then—
Her nose twitched.
“…!”
A delicious aroma drifted through the air.
Adele’s eyes widened.
“This is…”
“The smell of freshly baked bread… and ham.”
“If there were fresh vegetables too…”
“…it would make the perfect sandwich.”
Her imagination immediately came alive.
Golden-brown bread sliced neatly in half.
A layer of crisp lettuce.
A few rings of onion.
One slice of ham wouldn’t be enough.
Two.
Maybe three.
A drizzle of sauce…
Or perhaps just freshly cracked black pepper.
And if there were cheese inside…
Pure happiness.
By the time she’d finished imagining it, drool had already gathered at the corner of her mouth.
She wiped it away and immediately headed toward the heavenly scent.
Like a starving beast stalking its prey after a week without food.
Whenever servants walked past, she slipped behind low hedges.
If avoiding them wasn’t possible, she erased her presence completely.
At one point, she even leaped straight upward and clung to the branches of a nearby tree.
At this moment…
No force in existence could stop Adele from obtaining that sandwich.
Finally, she reached the kitchen without incident.
Timing her chance perfectly, she slipped through the slightly opened back door that connected to the garden.
Lucky.
And even better…
The head chef seemed to be away.
The kitchen was empty.
Sniffing repeatedly, Adele quickly pinpointed the bread’s location.
She rose onto her tiptoes and reached toward her prize.
Just then—
“So this is the first time the young master has ever asked for something to eat himself?”
“So it is.”
One cheerful voice.
One icy voice.
“…Tch.”
Adele clicked her tongue and crouched down.
If only her hand had moved a little faster…
That bread would already be inside her stomach.
She quietly circled around the servants, waiting for another opportunity.
Her eyes never left the bread sitting on the table.
“Still, isn’t this a bit much? There’s no way he can eat all of this by himself.”
“Maybe he just feels like it.”
“Do you think a friend is coming over? Eating this much before today’s tea party doesn’t seem like a good idea.”
“Pfft!”
“The young master? A friend?”
“A passing dog would laugh at that.”
“And besides…”
She snickered.
“What if he completely forgot there was a tea party today?”
“Oh, come on. There’s no way.”
Hearing Vincent become the subject of ridicule, Adele finally tore her eyes away from the bread.
One servant wore a twisted smile filled with unmistakable contempt.
Her light brown hair, somewhat resembling Duke Rogato’s though duller and rougher, was tucked beneath a white maid’s cap.
She looked exhausted.
Still…
She was fairly pretty.
Though nowhere near Queen Laila.
The drool at the corner of Adele’s mouth disappeared.
Her attention was now fixed entirely on the brown-haired maid.
“Becky… why do you dislike the young master so much?”
The maid called Becky shrugged as if considering the question.
Unlike Becky, who had paused to gossip, the other servant continued working busily, apparently accustomed to these complaints.
Watching her hands, Adele realized she was assembling the sandwich exactly as she’d imagined.
Bread.
Lettuce.
Ham.
And—
“…Cheese.”
The moment the cheese was placed on top, Adele felt another flood of saliva.
“Well…”
Becky finally answered.
“He might not even be the real young master.”
“So why would I bother liking him?”
“I wish there were some way to test whether he’s actually the duke’s son.”
“Oh, stop!”
“You shouldn’t say things like that inside this estate!”
“If someone hears you, you’ll be in serious trouble!”
“So what?”
“You’re the only one here.”
“Don’t be so dramatic.”
No one?
How naïve.
They said birds heard words spoken during the day.
Mice heard those spoken at night.
And words spoken in the kitchen…
Were heard by Adele.
How outrageous.
How dare this woman belittle her subordinate.
Insulting Vincent was no different from insulting Adele herself.
Her emerald eyes began to blaze.
Perhaps the murderous aura reached its target.
“…Brr.”
“Doesn’t it suddenly feel cold in here?”
Becky rubbed her arms, shivering.
Her coworker merely tilted her head.
“Cold? With the oven burning?”
“Maybe you’re coming down with something.”
“I don’t know.”
“I’m freezing.”
“Let’s hurry.”
The two servants picked up the beautifully prepared sandwiches and quickly left the kitchen.
Adele stood frozen, silently staring at the door through which they had disappeared.
Her sandwich…
Gone.
An unpleasant feeling welled up inside her chest.
Was it anger because someone had stolen the food right before her eyes?
Or was it something else?
She couldn’t tell.
But one thing became perfectly clear.
She would have her revenge.
On the servants who had taken away her food.
Especially…
That brown-haired woman.
Becky.
Or was it Baki?
Whatever her name was.
She would remember her.
