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Chapter 18
‘Hmm.’
Honestly, thinking about what he did to me on the first day and the cold attitude he showed toward the previous Sylvia, I wanted to play dumb.
‘But…’
Seeing someone suffer from poison was uncomfortable.
My past self who died from illness came to mind, and Sylvia’s last memory was of swallowing poison and shedding tears.
‘The poison on the butterfly’s wings is also poison, after all.’
I hesitated briefly before speaking, but then I proceeded to open my mouth.
“You shouldn’t touch that butterfly.
It’s poisonous.”
“…
Poisonous?”
Kedrick’s eyes widened.
I nodded at him and added a brief explanation.
“It’s not serious.
But for a while, you’ll suffer from itching all over your body.”
‘You’ll be fine if you believe me, if not, then you’ll suffer for some time.’
I quietly watched what Kedrick would do.
Given his previous behavior of ignoring and hating Sylvia, I had a feeling he would brush off my words this time as well.
‘He could also think that I’m lying on purpose to prevent Eileen from getting what she likes.’
I had done something similar when I was young.
After a fleeting moment, Kedrick made a decision.
“…”
Kedrick lowered his hand that had been reaching for the butterfly.
‘Did he believe me?’
Surprising.
While I looked at Kedrick with newfound curiosity, Eileen, beside me, patted her chest as if she had narrowly averted a disaster.
“I’m so glad you knew that, Sylvia!”
The walk that followed came to an early end.
Kedrick had some business, and Eileen also had an afternoon tea party she had to attend or so.
“I’m the only one without an appointment.”
The negative emotions I often felt in my previous life crept up on me.
Somehow, I felt like an unnecessary person in the world.
“No.”
I shook my head, trying to push away those negative feelings that were approaching.
“I have things to do, too.”
As I walked toward the west wing, I thought about the tasks I had planned for the day.
‘I’ve met Tev, so now I might just process the sorghum herbs.’
My mana gathering speed was already quite fast, but if I were to smoke the processed sorghum herbs, which would provide a double boost to my speed, then…
‘It won’t be long before I awaken.’
I smiled contentedly and rubbed the area around my stomach where mana was stored.
Then I entered the room, and for some reason, Belle was waiting for me.
“My lady!
Mr.
Butler came by earlier!”
“Butler Bent?”
‘Is she talking about when the butler came to take me to the Duke’s office this morning?’
As I tilted my head, Belle continued with a bright smile.
“Mr.
Butler conveyed that your room in the main building has been regularly cleaned and is ready for your return at any time!”
“…
The main building?”
“Yes!
As your confinement has ended, there is no need for you to stay in the west wing any longer.”
Well, since I came to the west wing for my confinement, it would be appropriate to return to my original room once it ended.
‘The main building, hmm.’
I recalled the room where I first woke up in Sylvia’s body.
It was more luxurious and spacious than my current room, with many adjoining rooms.
‘But…’
I shook my head and said, “Just tell Butler Bent I’ll continue to stay here.”
“…Here?”
“Uh-huh.
I’m used to it here, and it’s comfortable.”
Belle seemed unable to accept my firm words right away and hesitated.
She appeared puzzled by the idea of me staying in the west wing, which almost seemed like evidence of losing the Duke’s trust, rather than the main building where the Duke’s direct descendants resided.
“I’ve grown quite fond of this place over the past month.
It turns out that the west wing life suits me.”
‘Besides, the other place is uncomfortable in many ways.’
As I shrugged my shoulders and added more explanation, Belle nodded and said she would convey my message to the butler.
“I’ll do as you wish, my lady…”
Looking at the sullen Belle, I slipped in a question.
“Belle, are the medicinal herbs we bought yesterday in the storeroom?”
“Yes, my lady.
They are stored carefully to ensure that they don’t get damaged.”
“Can you bring them here?
The sorghum herbs and…”
I listed the ingredients I needed to process the sorghum herbs.
Belle listened attentively and nodded, promising to bring them back quickly before leaving the room.
“Phew.”
I was strangely tired even though the sun hadn’t reached its peak yet.
I closed my eyes and rested until Belle returned.
Knock, knock.
“My lady, I have brought the things you requested!”
“You did?”
Belle and I piled the materials on the table, and as soon as we finished preparing, I began to mix the medicinal herbs according to the processing method in my memory.
Belle watched me from the side and cautiously asked, “May I assist you?”
“Huh?”
“I want to be of service to you, my lady.”
‘Want to be of service.’
I stopped my busy hands and turned my head toward Belle.
She was looking at me with a nervous expression.
“I won’t be a bother, my lady.
I just… want to assist you in any way I can…”
It seemed like Belle genuinely wanted to help me, not out of fear or any ulterior motives, but because she truly wanted to lend a helping hand.
Belle had changed completely since the days she would tremble just looking at me a month ago.
Somehow, the fact made me feel ticklish around my stomach, so I told the sullen Belle, “I would be grateful if you would help.”
My words brightened Belle’s expression.
“Let me show you how.
First, stretch out the sorghum herbs longways…”
Belle listened to my explanation with a serious face.
“…
Do you understand now?”
“Yes, my lady!
Would you permit me to give it a try?”
I made room for the enthusiastic Belle, who rolled up her sleeves.
She began to work with the medicinal herbs as I had instructed.
“You’re good at this.”
“Hehe.”
Belle continued to fiddle with the medicinal herbs while showing a shy smile.
Before long, she successfully made processed sorghum herbs.
“Is this the correct way to do it, my lady?”
“Yes.
You have a good understanding and skill.
It seems like you did even better than me.”
“N… No, my lady, I’m not.”
Despite saying that, Belle seemed to enjoy my praise as she started making a new herb next to the finished one.
With Belle’s assistance, we finished much faster than expected.
‘Of course, there are still plenty of sorghum herbs left in the storeroom, though…’
It wasn’t an amount we could finish in a day at all.
Thinking that I would have to make some little by little whenever I had free time, I placed the medicinal herbs by the window so they could dry properly.
“But, my lady, may I ask what these medicinal herbs are for?
Are you feeling unwell in any way?”
At her worried question, I shook my head.
“It’s not that, but I need it right now.”
“I’m glad to hear that you’re not feeling unwell, my lady.”
“But Belle, can you promise not to tell anyone else about how to make this?”
Despite my seemingly random request to keep it a secret without explaining properly, Belle nodded without hesitation.
“Of course, my lady.
I never discuss anything that occurred while I was attending to you.
I have learned that the most crucial aspect of being a personally dedicated maid is to maintain strict confidentiality.”
“Thanks.
Actually, I learned how to make this from someone else, and they asked me to keep it a secret.”
I made an excuse with a reasonable lie.
‘I can’t let the effect of processed sorghum herbs be revealed four years earlier.’
Using it secretly on my own and telling other people were completely different matters.
‘If other people find out, the achievement of the person who originally discovered this method will disappear.’
I was about to use the knowledge of the future appropriately, but I didn’t want to take away the glory that others deserved. This chapter was copied from g.com without permission.
‘That’s why I don’t plan on selling it either.’
In fact, if I decided to sell the processed sorghum herbs, my financial problems for independence would be simply solved.
Even in the future, it was an incredible item that would turn the world upside down.
So, what if I, four years earlier than that, monopolized and sold it now?
‘I would become incredibly wealthy.’
But I set my own standards for using my memories of the future, and gaining profit from the processed sorghum herbs was beyond those standards.
‘So, I have to make money with something other than the processed sorghum herbs.’
It was time to start worrying about my independence funds.
‘Once I finish handling things about Tev, I’ll have to think about ways to make money.’
***
A week had passed since I went to the Fortrum Street.
Meanwhile, I had been immersed in two things.
One was processing the large amount of sorghum herbs I bought from the herb shop.
And the other was…
“Is it delicious?
Want more?”
“I’m good!
… My lady.
If I eat more, my stomach will burst…
my lady.”
“Oh, you want more?
Alright.
Belle!
Can you bring another plate of cake?”
Bulking up the stray cat, no, Tev whom I picked up on the street was the other thing.
“Don’t hold back, eat as much as you like.
Feast heartily so you can grow bigger and stronger.”
Tev, who was so skinny that his bones were visible, gained a considerable amount of weight in the past week.
The balanced meals provided by the cook and Tev’s incredible appetite contributed to this result.
He would clear at least five plates every meal, and in the afternoon, he would have a high-calorie snack with me during teatime.
And at night, he would eat spicy meat dishes for a late-night snack, so it would be rather strange if he didn’t gain weight.
As I looked at Tev, who now had a similar physique to ordinary boys his age, with satisfaction, he frowned and asked me a question.
“Why aren’t you eating…
my lady?”
His clumsy use of formal speech was the result of Belle’s etiquette training, which started the day he entered the mansion.
Belle, who had five siblings, was an expert at teaching children, and Tev’s cheeky way of speaking had become half-tamed in a week, making me wonder how harshly she had been training him in the meantime.
Tev still had the habit of blurting out informal speech, so he would awkwardly add ‘my lady’ at the end, but it was a world of difference compared to the beginning.
“I was so busy watching you eat that I forgot.”
“Why… Why are you watching other people eat?!”
As if he was surprised by my words, Tev blushed and yelled, forgetting to attach ‘my lady’ at the end of his sentence.
I smiled and replied, “Maybe because you eat so happily and heartily?
If you filmed a mukbang, you would have been famous.”
“Mukbang?”
“Yeah.
Mukbang is when you show other people how deliciously you eat.”
“Why would I show others how I eat?”
I couldn’t answer, ‘There’s something like that.
It’s incredibly popular in another world, but it’s hard to explain.’ So, I just kept my mouth shut and grinned.
Tev looked at me strangely, but I pretended not to notice.
“Here you are, my lady.”
As Belle placed the large cake on the table, she scowled at Tev.
It was undoubtedly possible that Belle had heard the conversation between Tev and me just now.
When Belle’s eyes shouted, ‘You should use polite language when speaking to her ladyship!’, Tev’s awkward speech returned.
“Don’t just watch others eat and have this…
my lady.”
Tev sliced a piece of cake from the one Belle had just brought and placed it on a fresh plate, then pushed the plate toward me.
The way he talked and behaved were very different.
‘While he grumbles with his mouth, his facial expressions and actions are the complete opposite.’
Was he thinking it wasn’t noticeable?