The Manor looked dark and deserted; not a single curtain was open, so no sunlight could penetrate inside.
Anna’s footsteps came to a halt, and she nearly jumped in surprise when she saw someone peeking out from behind a curtain.
“Oh my goodness! What are you doing there, Miss? I almost thought you were a ghost, standing there so still,” Anna said, patting her chest to calm herself down.
“Shhh!” Zinnia simply made a shushing gesture with her hand, signaling Anna to be quiet without turning to look at her at all.
Zinnia’s gaze remained fixed on the Manor’s front yard, which looked damp after a night of rain.
However, there was nothing unusual in the front yard; the atmosphere there seemed calm and peaceful.
Even the sound of crickets, which was often heard from the forest, wasn’t audible today, adding to the deep sense of tranquility.
Zinnia glanced toward the area outside the Manor’s gate and fell silent; she was certain that what she had seen the night before was absolutely real.
“There’s no way I could have seen it wrong…” Zinnia murmured softly, trying to convince herself.
“But… who was that person if what I saw was true?” Zinnia was truly confused this time.
Of course, she had her own suspicions, with various theories swirling in her head, but she had no concrete information at the moment, so she didn’t know what was actually happening.
The only thing Zinnia feared was that the figure she’d seen last night was the same person who’d attacked Cassian.
Seeing Zinnia lost in her thoughts, Anna left her be and chose to continue on her way.
“Huh? Are you leaving?” Zinnia snapped out of her reverie when she heard the door open.
“Of course. Aren’t you going to tend to the fields, Miss? It’s unusual for you to still be at the Manor at this hour,” Anna replied, looking a little surprised.
“Huh? Oh! It’s cold outside, so I decided to stay at the Manor for a bit,” Zinnia replied, shrugging indifferently.
Judging by Anna’s reaction, it seemed she hadn’t seen what Zinnia had seen that night, even though they’d both been standing in front of the door together.
Not wanting to panic Anna, Zinnia finally mustered the courage to leave the Manor with her.
“Ahh! How could I have forgotten about my beloved plants!” Zinnia hurriedly ran toward her plants.
With the heavy rain last night, Zinnia began to worry about the safety of her plants.
[Potato Plant: 21 Days]
[Growth Stage: Early Stage]
[Condition: 10% Damaged]
[Seed needs repair, click the help icon to see the tutorial!
Zinnia collapsed onto the ground next to her plants when she saw the information screen appear before her.
“No, they can still be saved! The damage is only 10%,” Zinnia muttered, shaking her head slowly.
“It turns out last night’s rain was really heavy; it even damaged your plants that much, Miss.” Anna, who had seen Zinnia sit down, approached her.
Crouching down beside Zinnia, Anna said, “Should I take a day off to help you take care of them, Miss?”
Zinnia shook her head gently.
“No need. I can take care of them until they’re back to normal,” she replied softly.
“Huh? Are you sure?” Anna hadn’t expected Zinnia to be that confident.
“Of course! Do you think I’d just let my little ones die like that?!” Zinnia glared at Anna, radiating a menacing aura.
Anna could only grimace softly.
“Well then, good luck, Miss. I’m going to the town square first.”
When she saw Anna get up, Zinnia stood up too and called out to her.
“Do you want to leave something with me?” Anna tilted her head when she heard Zinnia call her.
“Not exactly, I need your help with something.” Zinnia’s expression turned serious.
Seeing this, Anna said nothing and walked over to Zinnia.
“Can you stop by Old Bailey’s house to check on him? I’m a little worried about him after what happened to Cassian last night,” Zinnia said softly.
“Okay, I’ll stop by Old Bailey’s house later.” Anna understood what Zinnia meant.
“Also, don’t tell anyone what happened to Cassian last night. If anyone asks where he went, just say he was helping me at the Manor, you understand?” Zinnia gripped Anna’s arm, squeezing it gently without realizing it.
Although she was confused as to why Zinnia was telling her to do that, Anna nodded in understanding.
“In that case, go ahead. Be careful, stay as far away as possible from anyone who looks suspicious. We still don’t know what really happened to Cassian,” Zinnia continued, a faint smile playing on her lips.
“You don’t need to worry, Miss. I’ll take good care of myself,” Anna replied firmly.
Zinnia chuckled softly while shaking her head slightly.
Anna bowed her head before turning to leave the Manor.
After Anna left, Zinnia let out a soft sigh.
She hoped the villagers wouldn’t get hurt; this issue was weighing heavily on her mind.
“In that case, let’s take a look at the tutorial provided by the System first,” Zinnia continued as she sat down on the ground.
She watched the transparent screen that appeared before her.
After pressing the “Help” button as instructed by the System, a video appeared with a few lines of explanation.
“Ah! I have to make sure there’s no standing water,” Zinnia said, recalling the tutorial she was watching.
It turned out to be quite difficult to nurse damaged plants back to health; Zinnia had to check whether their stems and roots were rotting.
Noticing that the surrounding stems had become bent, Zinnia took careful note of them.
Finally, Zinnia had to cover up the exposed roots of her seedlings again; it seemed she’d have to check everything today and make sure they all survived this disaster.
“Huh… Looks like I’ll be busy today.” Zinnia let out a soft sigh, then stood up.
After finishing the tutorial, Zinnia got busy with her plants.
.
.
.
That day was fairly quiet for Zinnia; she spent the whole day tending to her plot and plants, since she had to be vigilant in looking for any damage to them.
Because Zinnia was so focused on what was right in front of her, she didn’t think much about anything else.
She even forgot that Cassian was still unconscious at the Manor.
“It feels like I’ve forgotten something… but what?” Zinnia began to wonder when something caught her attention.
The wind started blowing quite strongly, reminding Zinnia that it was already late afternoon.
The atmosphere around the Manor felt calm and relaxed as usual, until a commotion was heard from inside the Manor.
It sounded like breaking glass, and that was when Zinnia finally remembered what she had forgotten all day.
“No! Cassian!” Zinnia immediately left the Manor’s front yard.
She quickly ran into the Manor, searching for the source of the sound that had shattered the silence inside her home.
Zinnia’s steps halted, her eyes filled with horror, when she saw the door to Cassian’s room wide open.