Episode 2

“Hello? So, did you sleep well?”

Selenia awkwardly smiled and waved her hand toward Louis.

Louis, who had arrived at the restaurant first and was sitting at the table, flinched when he saw her.

Noticing the fearful expression on his face, Selenia sighed.

“I’m sorry for my actions last night… I am late, but I apologize.”

Seeing Louis stare at her with a confused expression, Selenia spoke again.

“I’m really sorry. I won’t do that again.”

Louis still said nothing. After a while, the food began to arrive, and the meal started, but Louis didn’t pick up his utensils and simply sat still.

“Won’t you eat? You haven’t been eating properly lately, right? Go ahead and eat.”

She scooped some food onto an empty plate and placed it in front of him. She urged him again to eat, but he still didn’t move.

After several attempts, Selenia couldn’t hold back her frustration and slammed her palm onto the table.

“Ah… sorry, I’m not mad at you.”

However, Louis flinched and trembled at her action, his eyes wide with fear, as he picked up a fork and awkwardly started eating.

Sheesh, this is driving me crazy.

Watching Louis glance at her out of the corner of his eye while eating, Selenia felt despair.

After they finally finished eating, Selenia suggested they take a walk.

“How about we take a walk to help with digestion?”

He probably had no choice but to follow her. Without a word, he followed her out.

“I’m sorry for forcing you to come here. I’ll send you back home. I’ll compensate you properly for any harm done.”

Louis, who had been silently following her, suddenly stopped in his tracks.

“Am I… no longer needed?”

“What?”

“You said you needed me.”

What on earth did that woman say to him? Selenia touched her forehead and let out a frustrated sound.

“You must have family. They must be worried about you. So, if you want, I can send you back now…”

“I have no family.”

“Huh?”

Louis looked at her with eyes full of resentment, and for a moment, his eyes seemed to cloud over with bitterness.

“I have no family. The day you brought me here… you killed my only family, my father.”

Gasp!

Selenia inhaled sharply. She had killed his father? Of all people, it was his father? This woman had already done something irreversible.

She’s a woman who deserves to die, but because of her, I’m about to die…

She thought to herself.

It would be hard to end things on a good note with him, so…

I have to run. It’s faster for me to run first!

Without wasting time, Selenia rushed back to her room, quickly gathered everything of value from the closet, and stuffed it into a large bag.

“Miss, did you call for me?”

As she was rummaging through her room, the maid knocked on the door.

“From now on, treat that boy I brought here as a guest. Let him move around freely wherever he wants.”

She hoped that even after she escaped, Louis wouldn’t hold any grudge against her.

“And do you know where I usually keep my money, or where I stash it? I can’t seem to remember.”

She thought the question might seem too obvious, but to her surprise, the maid, Selma, answered without suspicion.

“Money? You spend your allowance as soon as you receive it, so there shouldn’t be any cash on hand… But you always have bills sent to the Marquis. Is there something you need money for?”

What is it about this evil woman? Everything she’s done so far doesn’t sit right with me!

She buys things and charges them to the Marquis’s account, but that only works in places where people know who she is. In the capital, everyone knows that game.

I’m going to run as far as I can.

Selenia thought she’d have to sell the jewelry. After sending the maid away, she started packing again.

Even while hurriedly throwing expensive-looking ornaments into the bag, Selenia paused with a deep sigh, halting her hands mid-motion.

But if I run without thinking, what comes next? I don’t know this place well enough yet…

Even though she had decided to run, she couldn’t shake the feeling of uncertainty and fear.

She sat on the bed, pulling at her hair, lost in thought. Outside, the sky was growing darker, and it was already nearing dinner time.

“Let’s eat first and think about it!”

At dinner, she called Louis again to eat with her.

“If you have a favorite dish, let me know. I’ll ask the chef to prepare it.”

She spoke much more cautiously than at lunch, carefully watching his reaction, but Louis quietly shook his head.

“This is enough. Most of what I ate today was new to me.”

Selenia couldn’t tell if his lack of expression meant he liked it or not.

“If there’s anything you want to try or places you want to go, feel free to tell me. As you’ve probably heard, you can move freely within the mansion. If you want to go outside, that’s fine too.”

Please, just disappear from here. she thought silently.

“Why… why are you being so kind to me?”

Louis was looking at her with a complex, mixed expression.

“It’s not like that. I just feel really sorry for you… I know it’s too late, but I want to apologize. Of course, you might not forgive me…”

Selenia tried to be as humble as possible, wanting to please him by crawling before him if necessary.

“…”

But Louis just continued to look at her, his face full of distrust.

After dinner, Selenia returned to her room and paced back and forth, conflicted.

“Should I run now? Or should I stay for a few more days and learn more about this place…? I guess staying might be a better choice?”

She hesitated, but finally decided. She hid her bag carefully in a corner of the room. Then, she took out a white dress from the closet that looked like a nightgown and changed into it.

The day before, she had been shocked by the fact that she was possessed, and yesterday, she had been anxious about being in a life-threatening situation. She hadn’t been able to sleep.

She slumped onto the bed, and before long, she started to doze off.

Creek—

The door slowly creaked open, but Selenia was completely unaware, deep in sleep.

The person opening the door was none other than Louis. Quietly, he entered the room without making a sound and gazed at the sleeping Selenia.

Louis recalled what she had said in the garden earlier that day.

“You must have family. They must be worried about you.”

What was this crazy woman up to now? His eyes narrowed as he stared at Selenia.

After some time, as if lost in thought, he reached out, seemingly to adjust Selenia’s position on the bed.

“Ah! I… I must’ve fallen asleep. Louis? What are you doing here?”

As soon as his hand touched her, Selenia jolted awake in panic. Instead of answering, Louis began unbuttoning his shirt one by one.

“Lu—Louis? Wh-what are you doing?”

Selenia’s eyes widened in shock as she saw him unbuttoning his shirt.

But without a word, Louis fully removed his shirt and threw it carelessly onto the floor.

“W-what are you doing?!”

“I’m here to serve you, master. You always said that whenever I enter this room, I undress.”

He blinked his large eyes innocently, tilting his head as if confused.

“No! You don’t have to do that anymore! Go back to your room right now!”

“Does that mean… I’m no longer needed?”

Louis gazed at her with a sorrowful expression, his eyes reddened as if he might cry.

Wait a minute, why is he sad? Why is he sad!?

Selenia was utterly baffled by his actions and stared at him in complete disbelief.

“It’s not that you’re not needed… I just want to treat you properly…”

“So, does this mean I can sleep next to you like usual?”

What? They slept together before?

Startled, Selenia blinked rapidly, as Louis climbed onto her bed. He settled down beside her without hesitation.

“You can touch me, but… please don’t eat me…”

Louis whispered shyly, looking up at her.

Selenia grew more and more confused.

Did these two already cross the line? But then again, the fact that he said “don’t eat me” makes it seem like they haven’t… Does he think I’m a cannibal or something?

She couldn’t hide her confusion and rolled her eyes in disbelief.

But more importantly, why is he acting like this when he clearly hates me?

Nothing made sense, and she was overwhelmed with confusion.

“It’s cold.”

“Ah? Oh…”

Seeing Louis curl up, complaining of the cold, Selenia absent-mindedly pulled the blanket over him.

“The cold air is coming in. You should lie down quickly, master.”

His voice sounded so pitiful that Selenia unconsciously lay next to him, pulling the blanket tightly to prevent any cold air from getting in.

How much time passed? Eventually, she heard Louis’s steady breathing, indicating that he had fallen asleep.

However, Selenia found the situation so uncomfortable that she couldn’t get a proper night’s sleep.

Sigh… I should go sleep on the sofa, she thought.

Just as she tried to get out of bed—

“Gasp!”

Louis suddenly wrapped his arms tightly around her waist. It seemed like an unconscious act in his sleep, but the strength with which he pulled her close was quite firm.

A moment later, as if hugging her tightly wasn’t enough, Louis began nuzzling his head against her chest.

For a brief moment, Selenia forgot how to breathe in response to Louis’s actions.