TWFLLYM Ch 51

The Triangle

Her voice cut through the quiet darkness.

[Roserikta] "The Prince sees the Black Witch right now, doesn't he?"

[Arad] "Hmm? What makes that so different?"

[Roserikta] "The curse is not like the love potion. It doesn't force him to love her. But if he falls for the Black Witch while the curse is active, those feelings remain even after the curse breaks."

His mouth hung open, his expression blank. If Lady Elona saw him now, their relationship might face a serious crisis.

[Arad] "What? I...... I don't follow. Can you explain that simply?"

[Roserikta] "The curse makes him unable to love anyone. Everyone, that is, except the Black Witch who cast it."

[Arad] "Ah...... I understand now. So if he falls for her, those feelings are genuine."

[Roserikta] "Exactly."

To Kalart, it would become an absolute, irreplaceable emotion. Once that happened, there was no turning back.

[Arad] "Ugh, this is a mess......"

He scratched his head aggressively.

[Arad] "Then, can you break the curse, Lady? Should I put all my trust in you?"

[Roserikta] "I don't know yet. But I must find a way. Before it's too late."

This was why she needed Arad as an ally.

[Roserikta] "I need your help. We must stop the Black Witch from taking more lives. Every death feeds her power."

He looked stunned again. It was a blessing Lady Elona wasn't there to see his face.

[Arad] "Taking lives? What are you saying? Is the Countess committing murder?"

[Roserikta] "Yes."

He shook his head violently.

[Arad] "No, that can't be! I can't believe that. If murders happened, how could no one know? Imperial law is not that weak. As long as a body exists, the investigation never stops until—"

[Roserikta] "No bodies ever appear."

[Arad] "Never...... what?"

[Roserikta] "Showing you is faster. Isn't that right, Clobell?"

[Clobell] "His brain is slow. If he doesn't believe us after this, he's a hopeless fool."

Roserikta led Arad to the secret room behind the fireplace.

When he saw the room filled with boxes of bones, his face drained of color. He nearly fainted.

When she explained that these were the remains of people drained by the witch—and that Eaton might be next—Arad gripped his sword. He wanted to take the witch's head immediately. She struggled to hold him back.

Through this ordeal, she gained a powerful ally in Arad.

---

The next morning.

[Clobell] "Rosie! Rosie! Wake up! It's an emergency!"

Chaos erupted. Clobellina woke Roserikta with frantic urgency. Roserikta forced her heavy eyelids open.

She had only slept a few hours after convincing Arad and seeing him off late last night. Fatigue weighed down her limbs like lead.

[Roserikta] "Ugh, what is it...... Let me sleep a little more......"

[Clobell] "Get up! This is no time for sleep!"

Thump! Thump!

In her haste, she jumped onto Roserikta's stomach and stomped her back paws.

[Roserikta] "Ack! That hurts, Clobell!"

Roserikta bolted upright, clutching her stomach.

[Roserikta] "Do you know how much you weigh? This is practically attempted murder."

[Clobell] "Don't attack my weight! If you had gotten up when I called, this wouldn't have happened! We don't have time to argue! Something terrible is happening!"

[Roserikta] "Terrible? What?"

[Clobell] "The Count is dying!"

[Roserikta] "What?"

She jumped out of bed instantly.

[Roserikta] "What do you mean? Why the Count?"

[Clobell] "The Black Witch is crying and making a scene, saying he has a fatal illness. From her acting, he looks like he'll drop dead any second."

[Roserikta] "How do you know?"

[Clobell] "A nightjar friend of the Great Crow told me. He went to sleep right after giving me the news."

Roserikta was already changing out of her pajamas. She splashed her face with water from a pitcher and put on her shoes.

[Roserikta] "A fatal illness...... he was fine yesterday."

[Clobell] "My point exactly. Something is wrong. Go see for yourself."

[Roserikta] "Yes. I have to."

Roserikta and Clobellina rushed out of the bedroom.

---

[Kalart] "......"

Kalart kept his breathing shallow.

The Countess wept. Tears rolled down her cheeks. As the transparent moisture filled her purple eyes, they looked less like human eyes and more like glowing amethysts.

The Countess wore no makeup today. Her bare face radiated a mix of pity and a strange, raw magnetism. Her plain dress lacked decoration, but it clung to every curve of her body.

The woman before him seemed to be teaching him the definition of beauty, one detail at a time. It was a world he had never seen before. Perhaps it was a world he would never see again.

He couldn't look away. He couldn't stop his thoughts.

What if Roserikta was the one my eyes could see clearly, instead of the Countess?

[Kalart] "......Ha."

He let out a short, involuntary laugh. He already lacked any sense of logic when it came to Roserikta. If he could actually see her face, he would have lost his mind long ago.

[Countess] "Are you happy?"

Her voice shattered his thoughts.

Kalart wiped the trace of his smile away as if nothing had happened. He hated showing a smile to anyone other than Roserikta. Above all, this beauty felt suspicious.

He didn't believe in coincidences. He felt the same way when a beautiful cat suddenly appeared before him. He kept it close, but he never stopped doubting. A woman who flaunted her beauty at every moment was even more suspicious.

[Kalart] "I don't understand. Why would I be happy?"

[Countess] "Because I will soon be free."

The eyes that wept with grief just moments ago now curved with a lazy, seductive smile. The tears on her cheeks were now mere decorations.

[Countess] "The talk of 'dishonor' weighed heavily on my heart as well."

[Kalart] "That is a strange thing for a wife to say in front of her dying husband."

She gave a thin smile.

[Countess] "Don't be like that, Your Highness."

Her body, tracing beautiful lines, moved closer without a sound. Standing before the Count—who looked like a dry, rotting tree after just one night—she placed a hand on Kalart's young, vibrant arm.

[Countess] "You don't care at all that he is dying, do you? It would be strange if you did. He means nothing to you."

[Kalart] "Perhaps for me. But not for you."

[Countess] "We were never close. There has only ever been one man I wanted to hold."

[Kalart] "Is that me?"

He watched her fingers stroke his chin. He reached up and gripped her hand.

[Kalart] "How bold. Those are not words for a married woman."

[Countess] "That man is already dead. Nothing can save him. He used up every drop of his life force."

[Kalart] "How can you be so......"

......certain?

Kalart intended to finish the question. The Countess' absolute certainty about the death—and its cause—felt wrong. Because he was focused on her strange attitude, he was slow to pull his hand away.

At that moment, the door opened.

[Roserikta] "Your...... Highness."

It was Roserikta and a Royal Guard. Since the estate lacked a butler, the knight had been forced to act as one.

---

The Royal Guard had its own excuse. Unfortunately, the door to the room where the Count received the Prince's visit was already open.

The Prince had forgotten to close it earlier. Since closing doors was a servant's job, not a knight's, he hadn't thought of it.

The knight thought well of the cat maid who had rushed over upon hearing that the Count was ill. Arad had talked so much about her skills that everyone knew her medicine worked wonders. The knight had even watched his own Captain fall fast asleep after one dose of her sleeping draught.

For those reasons, he had hurried to guide the cat maid to the room.

He swore he never expected to see such a sight. The Crown Prince and the Countess stood close together, even holding hands.

[Roserikta] "......"

The knight heard the cat maid gasp.

Wait. Before the Countess, the cat maid had that kind of relationship with the Prince......

Embarrassment flooded the knight, turning his face red.

The Prince had lived like a block of wood for twenty-eight years, yet now he seemed to be handling two women at once.

I guess the late bloomer is the most dangerous. No, what a blasphemous thought.

[Guard] "I, uh...... since Count Gibero's condition is grave, the cat maid...... no, I mean, the Lady here...... she is a pharmacist."

His words tangled. He felt humiliated by his own stuttering.

[Kalart] "Are you saying she wants to examine the Count?"

Thankfully, the Prince straightened out the mess.

[Guard] "Ah, yes. Exactly, Your Highness."

[Kalart] "I allow it."

The knight felt relieved that the Prince didn't punish them for entering without a formal request.

[Guard] "Your...... Your Highness."

But why are they still holding hands?

[Guard] "Perhaps...... you should let go......"

The knight tried to signal the Prince with his eyes. He knew he had no right to judge the Prince's romantic choices. Yet, he couldn't help but worry about the cat maid, whose face had turned ghostly pale.

If I may say so, Your Highness, this is wrong. We all saw you insist that a tiny scratch was a burn just so she would put medicine on it. Moving on to another woman so fast is just cruel.

Look at the cat maid. She's pale and biting her lip. Imagine her shock. Even in a world where rank is everything, there are rules of human decency.

[Kalart] "I know."

The Prince's answer shocked the knight.

[Guard] "Ah, you knew? Then why......"

He didn't understand why the Prince wouldn't let go. He also didn't understand why the Prince kept his gaze fixed on the cat maid's trembling, pale lips.

[Kalart] "I wonder."

Kalart muttered to himself. Then, slowly—very slowly—he released the Countess' hand.

[Kalart] "The Countess says there is no hope, but examine the patient if you wish."

She exhaled a deep, quiet breath.

[Roserikta] "Thank you for the permission, Your Highness."

[Kalart] "Don't thank me. The Countess is the one who should be grateful."

The Countess' gaze swept over Roserikta. The knight felt more nervous than the people involved.

What is this? Why does it feel so lethal?

Ah, so this is a love triangle. If Count Gibero wakes up, this will get even uglier. I am definitely staying single.

With those random thoughts, the knight quietly left the bedroom. This time, he didn't forget to close the door.

---

Strictly speaking, it wasn't a love triangle, but the situation was deadly enough to look like one.

[Countess] "What is this, Your Highness?"

She pointed a lazy chin at Roserikta.

Facing the Black Witch up close for the first time, Roserikta felt a storm of emotions. The strongest were humiliation and awe.

Without a single curse word, the witch left a deep sting of insult just by using the word 'this.' Her eyes and expression said it all.

To the Black Witch, humans were pathetic, worthless things. Humans without a use were not worth a second thought.

The phrase 'evil in physical form' suited her perfectly. So this was a Black Witch.

Kalart's expression hardened with displeasure.

[Kalart] "I don't know what you mean by 'this'."

[Countess] "You know exactly what I mean. I don't see why such a distraction must be present while we are together."

[Kalart] "Don't refer to my person as 'this.' Especially not in front of me."

His words felt cold for someone who had just been holding hands and standing close enough to embrace.

[Countess] "So stiff...... Fine. If that's what you want."

[Kalart] "She is my pharmacist. She is skilled and may help the Count."

[Countess] "She looks like a child."

She looked Roserikta up and down. Roserikta realized for the first time that a mere look could be an insult.

[Countess] "I hope her clumsy hands don't bring his death sooner. The man only has a few days left as it is."

She added a provocation to her insult.

[Countess] "What then? If a clumsy pharmacist's clumsy medicine kills a man, how will you take responsibility?"