KFBRV Ch 88
- Feb 22
- 5 min read
Courtney flailed, a desperate scream clawing at her throat, but the thick cloth gag stifled every sound.
In the manor, the hierarchy had shifted overnight. Paula had already been dragged away to begin her penance at the laundry, while Mrs. Becker gleefully claimed the Countess' office.
Amidst the upheaval, Doly trembled.
If I hadn't confessed the Madam's transgressions earlier, I would be next.
She knew she was nothing more than a common fly to the cold-hearted Count. She had believed the Countess at least valued her senior staff; after all, the woman had been generous with tips and protective of maids like Paula. She had assumed a commoner-born mistress would understand their hardships.
To think she would sacrifice Courtney so easily to save Paula.
The realization that she had narrowly escaped Courtney's fate chilled her to the bone.
When Rolf announced a cut to her weekly wages as punishment for her involvement with the Countess, Doly remained silent.
Fear paralyzed her, preventing even a hint of protest. She failed to notice Odette watching her with a piercing, knowing gaze.
Rage fueled the Count's orders to Ferdinand: kill Courtney, and ensure no one sees the deed.
[Ulrich] "Make her death as agonizing as possible. She is a mere servant who dared to touch my keys."
Ferdinand agreed.
While his father fumed over the interference with Karl, Ferdinand's fury stemmed from the insult to Odette. He didn't care for the nuances of which servant had actually struck his sister; in his mind, the lower class lacked the right to judge.
[Ferdinand] "How dare these two insignificant things, Paula and Courtney, conspire to touch what belongs to their superiors?"
He chose his Transcendent ability—the manipulation of insects—to deliver the sentence. Without the mercy of anesthesia, he summoned a swarm of the most venomous insects to bury their stingers into Courtney's flesh.
Once he was certain of her impending death, he turned his back, leaving her to rot in the graveyard.
Courtney lay dying amidst the tombstones of the execution grounds, her airway so swollen from venom that she couldn't even manage a whimper.
The sun...... It's almost up.
The night had been an eternity of agony, but the pain finally began to recede. She knew this was merely the onset of the end, her consciousness flickering like a dying candle.
Thirty minutes...... maybe less.
No physician could save her now. The poison had mapped out her entire nervous system.
Just as the silence of the graveyard settled—the insects having departed with their master—a voice as soft as a flute melody drifted through the air.
[Odette] "Hello, Courtney."
She stood over her.
[Courtney] "......Uuugh."
[Odette] "It is quite a pleasure to meet you like this, with our roles reversed from my past life. Back then, I was in your position, and you were the one laughing."
She wore a black cloak over a matching dress. She stood alone in the pitch-black cemetery of the execution grounds, yet not a trace of fear touched her features.
[Odette] "Are you resentful, dying for something you didn't do? I certainly hope so. A frame for a frame. Resentment for resentment. I wanted to return everything you gave me."
Courtney's mouth hung open, but she couldn't respond. She had already lost her tongue.
Odette looked down at her with eyes that seemed almost gentle.
[Odette] "Even so, this is a peaceful death compared to what the others in the Albrecht manor will face."
[Courtney] "Ugh."
[Odette] "Of all those I must settle scores with, your sins were the lightest. You only followed Father's orders to silence my tongue, didn't you? That is why I am gifting you such a tranquil end."
What is this woman talking about? When did I ever......?
Before Courtney could process the madness, Odette jammed a needle into her arm.
[Odette] "This injection restores your senses. I have no desire for you to slip away in peace."
The dull ache exploded back into a searing, white-hot agony. She thrashed, glaring at Odette through a mask of tears.
[Odette] "Did you think I didn't know? You hid pins in my clothes and tacks in my shoes. You were the one who embedded needles in Paula's whip."
She smiled thinly.
[Odette] "When I was a child, you took pleasure in slipping Clonia berries into my tea to make my throat swell. Since I spent my life feeling stung and swollen because of you, I thought you should experience the sensation as well."
She let out a low, elegant laugh—a sound as refined as a flute.
[Courtney] "Haa...... Haa......"
As the pain intensified, her vision blurred. Through the haze, Odette's smiling face remained vivid.
[Odette] "My brother is quite something. He commands so many insects; he could have easily granted a lifelong servant a quicker end."
She rose with a graceful, fluid motion. Her poise and refinement looked noble.
[Odette] "But I suppose his coldness allowed me the chance to witness your final moments, Courtney."
She beamed. Clad in her mourning black with that icy smile, she looked every bit the villainess.
A villainess? No...... I know better than anyone...... that she isn't...... Argh!
To Courtney, Odette had always been a pathetic thing, unworthy of even the title of villainess.
As the pain surged, she remembered the young girl. The child who never told on her, even when pins pierced her skin, or Clonia berries left her gasping for breath. She had even hidden pins in Paula's whip for the sheer sport of it.
She...... she knew all along.
Tormenting that doll-like girl had been her greatest joy. She was a woman who thrived on the dark pleasure of watching others crumble, convincing herself that everyone was equally wretched at their core.
Now, Odette was the one watching her hit rock bottom, wearing the smile of a true demon.
[Odette] "Farewell, Courtney. I hope you feel your death with absolute clarity as you descend into hell."
The woman in black turned and vanished into the night.
On the walk back from the graveyard, Odette no longer used the secret passages.
[Gatekeeper] "My Lady, you have returned? I shall open the gate for you."
The guards bowed low. Mrs. Becker had issued new orders the moment the Countess departed.
[Becker] “Do not interfere with Lady Odette's outings. And even if she uses the front gate, do not report it to the Count, Rolf, or the Head Maid. Report only to me. You are my people now, and I am the one with the power.”
Dawn broke just as she reached the manor. She smiled, climbing the grand staircase toward her room.
I should change rooms soon. Living next to Ferdinand is revolting.
The rest of her plans could wait.
As she opened her door, the warm morning light flooded through the open window.
[Lize] "You've returned, My Lady?"
[Odette] "Lize."
[Lize] "I came back as soon as I checked Gisella's telegram. Karl arrived safely at her house."
[Odette] "Thank you."
That part of the plan had been formed before she knew the truth of Karl's past. She had hoped that seeing how well the Fenrir children were treated might lower his Loathing toward her.
But I know better now. I don't need to worry about his Loathing.
Regardless of his tragic past, the fact that he followed 'Command' was all that mattered. Such blind obedience was a fatal weakness—an absolute leash for whoever chose to pull it.
Karl, I finally know how to use you.
She sipped the tea Lize poured, contemplating the most effective way to utilize her new weapon.
It was the perfect tea time; she no longer had to worry about her throat swelling shut.
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