IPAMB 22

Chapter: 22

Honestly, it wasn’t something I hadn’t expected.

‘Neither the Duke nor Kain is the warm and friendly type.’

If anything, it would’ve been stranger to assume things would go well from the start.

Even if I’d made up my mind, if everything flowed smoothly and easily, then anyone could’ve stepped in as a mediator in the first place.

‘So let’s prepare for the next step! I’ll think of another way!’

Just as I was steadying my resolve, some unexpectedly good news reached me.

“The Duke says he’d like to dine together again tomorrow. The young master has agreed as well!”

Silven came to tell me after the meal.

‘Really!?’

I had no idea why anyone would want to repeat such a suffocating dining experience, but what mattered was that I still had another chance.

‘This time, I’ll really put in the effort and make it a pleasant time!’

But determination alone wasn’t enough. If tomorrow went the same way as today, that would be a disaster.

I opened the book lying on my desk.

[101 Ways to Skillfully Lead a Conversation]

It was a book I had asked Silven to borrow from the duke’s library.

“When you don’t know something, books are the answer!”

At the temple, I practically lived buried in books.

Partly because there was no one to talk to, but also because my older brother had told me that reading made you smarter, so I studied diligently.

‘Though he himself barely read.’

Even at the orphanage, I only ever saw him read when he read to me. I wonder if he reads now…

‘Books, my foot. I don’t even know what he’s doing these days…’

My mood started to sink for no reason, so I shook my head hard.

“Focus on what I need to do right now!”

Forcing myself, I began to read.

“Hm, so not just words, but gestures matter too. Smiling and things like that.”

Now that I thought about it, I couldn’t even remember whether I’d smiled while eating and talking.

I spent a long time reading, learning various techniques.

“All right, I can do well tomorrow!”

Closing the book, I carefully organized my plan for the next day.

And then, the next day arrived.

“Wow, I’m so happy we can eat together again! Yesterday’s food was really delicious, and today’s is amazing too!”

Smiling brightly, I tried to lead the conversation.

“I see.”

“Mm.”

“……”

And just like that, smiling, I failed miserably.

***

“Ugh, I’m exhausted…”

I flopped onto my bed.

“How many days has it been already…”

What had started as an effort to mend the relationship between the Duke and Kain had resulted in daily meals stuck in the exact same stagnant state—for an entire week.

‘Why won’t they talk to each other!? They only talk to me!’

The strange thing was, despite that, breakfast still took place every single morning without fail.

Thanks to that, I was constantly walking on eggshells.

“It still tastes good, though…”

Since I’d rarely eaten much of anything growing up, even awkward meals tasted good to me. That was something to be grateful for.

“Could there be some other reason they won’t talk?”

But nothing came to mind.

“…Well, something must be improving. Otherwise, they wouldn’t keep eating together.”

It was far better than not trying at all, so I decided to stay positive.

Standing up, I turned my attention to something else that needed doing.

‘I should go see Rain!’

Since my name had been cleared, I’d been checking on Rain whenever I had time.

She had already been treated with purification stones, but since the contamination came from a demonic beast, purification by a saint candidate was far more effective.

‘No matter how holy those stones are, they can’t compare to the divine power of a saint candidate.’

That was obvious.

Besides, since many servants had been dismissed and even the personal physician was gone, no one stopped me from tending to Rain.

“Come to think of it, I heard a doctor arrived from the North.”

I’d seen someone pass by from afar, but never properly met them.

‘Well, I don’t really need to greet them. As long as I can look after Rain.’

Shrugging, I entered Rain’s room.

Knock, knock.

“Rain. It’s Winiel.”

There was no answer, so I opened the door as usual.

“Still unconscious today, I guess…”

Though much of the contamination had been purified, she still hadn’t regained consciousness.

‘All I can do is cleanse the corruption. Waking up is up to her.’

Still, seeing her physical condition gradually improve made me hopeful that she’d wake up soon.

Ssshh—

Divine power gathered in my hand and gently flowed into the remaining corruption.

The faint gray tint grew even lighter.

“Whew.”

That should be enough for today.

I pulled my hand away, exhaling deeply.

Pouring in too much divine power at once could shock her system.

Unless it was urgent, slow and frequent treatment was best.

And even so, it was far faster than relying solely on purification stones.

“Then I’ll be going now.”

I placed the purification stone back into Rain’s hand and quietly left the room.

Just as I closed the door—

“Lady Winiel?”

A shadow fell over me. Turning around, I saw two maids standing there.

That startled me!

“Ah, hello…!”

I quickly bowed.

I recognized them—maids the Duke had brought from the North. I saw them every mealtime, so their faces were familiar.

Though I’d never spoken to them before.

‘Did they come to see Rain too? Maybe they know her.’

Thinking that, I stepped aside.

But the maids exchanged glances and moved toward me.

“…?!”

What? Why me?

Before I could understand what was happening, they surrounded me, looking down at me, and fear surged up inside me.

But one of the maids simply smiled brightly.

“Lady Winiel, if you have time, would you like to do something fun with us?”

…Am I being targeted?!

I didn’t know what it was, but my instincts screamed danger. Don’t go. Something bad will happen!

“W-What? Ah, no! I’m busy—”

“It’ll only take a moment. We’re not scary people.”

As I backed away, the maid smiled and suddenly grabbed my hand.

“Eh—?”

“Let’s go, let’s go.”

“Come on, off we go!”

The other maid pushed my back, and before I could resist, I was dragged along.

‘Where are they taking me!?’

My head spun.

Even at the temple, I’d been suddenly dragged away like this without explanation.

And what always happened afterward was—

Being locked alone in a room, or taken to some secluded corner and scolded by a group.

“!”

My body began to tremble.

“Oh my!”

“Lady Winiel!”

When we reached the kitchen, I yanked my hand free with all my strength and collapsed into a crouch on the floor.

The startled maids gathered around me.

“Are you all right?”

“Breathe, please—breathe!”

Just then, another maid emerged from the kitchen.

“Why aren’t you coming in—Lady Winiel!? What happened?!”

“I don’t know. We were going to invite her to eat cake and have fun, but she suddenly collapsed! Does her stomach hurt?”

“Bring medicine, quick!”

…Cake?

‘Then could it be…’

I slowly lifted my head. The maids rushed to my side.

“Are you okay? Someone went to fetch medicine, so please wait a moment!”

“Would you like to sit in a chair?”

I obediently stood and went inside, sitting down.

“Are you in a lot of pain? Should we take you to your bed?”

“I’m fine. I just got startled. You suddenly dragged me without explaining…”

“We brought the medicine! Huh? You’re okay?”

At that moment, the maid who’d gone for the medicine returned—and then—

“You dragged her without explaining?!”

She shouted.

“Of course she got scared! You should’ve explained properly!”

“I said we were going to have fun!”

“Just saying that isn’t enough! I told you to invite her for cake!”

“I forgot!”

“That’s nothing to brag about!”

As their voices grew louder, my head started spinning again.

“Stop! Lady Winiel is going to faint!”

“That’s because you’re so loud! Be quiet!”

“You be quiet!”

Seeing me grow dizzy, the maids glared at each other before finally falling silent, though they continued to fume.

I steadied my spinning vision.

From what they were saying—and from the enormous cake sitting on the kitchen table—I finally understood what was going on.

‘I thought they were about to do something awful to me…’

I let out a small sigh of relief, then suddenly froze.

‘But… why cake for me?’