Dorothea woke up on a soft bed and realized that the ceiling she was looking up at was different from usual.
'This was Colin's house.'
As she stood up and looked back on her memories, she remembered that she had performed a greeting ritual for him.
“I guess it was still a bit too much.”
Her arms and legs were numb from singing ‘Welcome Song’ for hours. The ritual seemed to have been successful, as the mud filling the room was cleared.
Dorothea got off the bed and looked around for Colin.
"Col...”
Just as I was about to shout out his name, the door opened.
Colin, holding a simple snack in his hand, saw Dorothea wake up before he knew it, came in, and closed the door.
“Do you think you’re feeling okay now?”
“Yes, the pain has decreased, and most of all, the narrow ‘road’ has widened, making it more comfortable than before.”
It is bound to be overwhelming for a human body to handle the soul power of a reaper.
Dorothea held out her hand with a proud face, having opened the way for the body to easily accept the soul.
Then she took the bread and milk that Colin was holding and ate them like a crab.
“What on earth are you?”
Dorothea shrugged her shoulders in response to Colin's question, who was looking at her with his mouth closed.
“I am a magician who manipulates the soul by crossing the bridge between this world and the afterlife.”
“It is the border between this world and the next world...”
Colin, who had been repeating this as if to convince himself, changed his words as if he finally remembered something.
“How did we get here? There’s no way they would have sent you away alone in that mansion.”
Dorothea, who had been eating her food cleanly and wiping her mouth, looked up.
She forgot.
“You’ve inherited most of Colin’s memories now, right?”
"Maybe."
“Then do you know who the child who almost entered the mansion as a foster granddaughter instead of me?”
Colin, who paused for a moment at the unexpected question, thought deeply about his memory and nodded.
“She is probably distantly related to the Marquis. Since the Marquis had been missing his dead youngest daughter more and more since last year, Colin Highclare became anxious and began looking for a replacement. If there are children in the mansion, people tend to get distracted.”
"Hmm."
“Why is that?”
“She brought me here. Let’s meet my uncle and clear things up.”
Thanks to this, she was able to enter this mansion easily.
“That’s worth knowing.”
Colin mumbled indifferently and took the empty bowl and cup from Dorothea and placed them on the table.
“So you came here?”
“There are rats peeking around the mansion right now.”
Anyway, this was a human society.
What witchcraft can do is infinite, but at the same time, it is limited to some extent.
If you stand out too much, negative emotions, such as fear or hatred, will also accumulate.
“I got my hands on it, so I hope it doesn’t get damaged as much as possible.”
All the disturbing news that came through the wall was created from outside.
At this point, it was clear that if she didn't filter it out properly, it would become more and more annoying.
“You shouldn’t have returned to the imperial capital in the first place and revealed your friendship with the 7th Prince in a street full of people.”
Dorothea shrugged her shoulders at Colin's scolding with an expression of resentment.
The fake adoptive daughter couldn't have planned this on her own, so there must be a bigger mastermind in the imperial palace.
“What is her name?”
“Hertia. Hertia Ten.”
“Did you know about her abilities?”
Colin asked Dorothea's question back with a puzzled look.
“What ability?”
“I heard she is dealing with a spirit body that contains the energy of water. A spirit or something.”
His brows narrowed at her words.
“You mean she was a spiritist?”
“You didn’t know.”
If a child is that conniving, she might be hiding at least one of her secret weapons.
No matter how low she was, Dorothea could see where her confidence came from as she, who was only from a collateral background, took the step to become a Marquis granddaughter without hesitation.
“Amazing. Certainly, spirit masters are rare. In the first place, the spirits that receive the energy of nature are not close to humans.”
“If it is known that you are a spiritist, you will be treated quite well, right?”
"Of course. At the very least, it is something that will make your name known within the empire. Of course, it will vary slightly depending on which spirit you can handle and how skillfully you can handle it.”
“I see~.”
Dorothea hummed and rolled over on the bed.
Colin, who was looking at this disapprovingly, opened his mouth again with a sigh.
“I’m not sure, but the Marquis must be in an uproar by now. Because you suddenly disappeared.”
“Grandma is sick. The people in the mansion must have been so distracted that they realized I was gone too late.”
“I will send you back.”
"No."
Colin, who had been holding the doorknob, turned around at the sound of a calm refusal.
“I’m thinking of staying here one more night.”
“Things are going to get bigger.”
“I guess that’s what I’m hoping for.”
When Colin, who had a completely incomprehensible expression on his face, gave her a bored look, Dorothea rested her chin and asked.
“Where I used to live, there was something called a vaccine.”
"Vaccine?"
“Yes, so that you don’t have to suffer from a serious illness later, you inject toxins into your body in advance and create antibodies that your body can sufficiently resist.”
As for the rats in the mansion, Dorothea could have caught them all on her own.
However, it is not possible to trap all the external toxins that come in through the walls of the mansion.
In the end, once everyone suffers, they become stronger and stronger.
“When tomorrow morning comes, let people know that I am here. And call Hertia here.”
Colin nodded and opened his mouth as he looked at Dorothea rolling around on the bed.
“I will give you a room. This is my room, so let’s go to the guest room..."
“You go. I will be here.”
“...”
Dorothea, who came to her uncle's mansion and committed the atrocity of stealing his bed from his bedroom, enjoyed a deeper and more comfortable sleep than anyone else that night.
***
When it was time for breakfast, there was a knock on the door.
"Come on in."
The other person, who was silent for a while due to the young voice, carefully opened the door.
The pale and slender woman she saw yesterday stuck her head out with a frightened look on her face, looked around the room, and opened her eyes wide.
“My uncle slept in the guest room last night. I said I liked this bed.”
She hurriedly entered the room and looked at Dorothea.
Dorothea opened her mouth to the woman who was carefully examining her limbs as if she were looking for traces of something.
“Is it mealtime?”
“Yes, yes.”
“Then go down.”
When she jumped off the bed and stumbled, the woman reflexively caught the child.
Instead of saying thank you, Dorothea smiled, took her hand, and headed towards the restaurant.
Murmurs of workers could be heard here and there.
Everyone seemed surprised to see Dorothea looking fine.
“Dorothea.”
When she turned her head at the familiar call, she saw Colin with puffy eyes under his eyes, as if he had trouble sleeping the night before.
The 'wife' who was holding the girl's hand stiffened as if embarrassed, but Colin pretended not to notice her presence and fixed his gaze on Dorothea.
“Early in the morning, the Marquis sent a messenger asking if you were here.”
“They will come soon. What about Hertia?”
The eyes of the woman next to her widened at Dorothea’s informal words.
Not only she but also the employees around her began to notice Colin.
However, Colin, who had heard the informal language from his young niece, answered her question quite kindly with a nonchalant face.
“It will be in the parlor.”
“Yes, I’ll go there.”
When he pulled out the hand she was holding, Colin opened his mouth to his wife, who had a confused look on her face and rolled her eyes.
“Go and eat first. I’ll call you later when I get the chance.”
Her eyes widened at the polite, if not sweet, words.
As the hesitant wife soon disappeared down the hallway, Colin began to take the lead with a light sigh.
***
When Colin entered the living room, Hertia, who had been leisurely moistening her lips with tea, stood up and greeted gracefully.
“See you, Viscount Colin.”
"Hmm...”
Colin's eyes sank as he looked at her with a smile.
Although it was her first time meeting 'Current Colin', Hertia's eyes were very friendly.
Colin, who was looking at the face that had no doubt that she was on the same side, got to the point.
“They say you know how to control water spirits.”
Although the hidden truth was revealed, the smile on Hertia's face grew even deeper.
“I received such a blessing thanks to the spirit god’s protection.”
“Why did you hide the truth?”
“Even if a girl from a humble family becomes a spiritist, she can still be swayed by those who covet her abilities.”
“How many people know about this?”
“I don’t even know my parents or siblings, so the only people who look after me are my teacher, the Viscount, and the Young Lady.”
“What about registration?”
“Not yet. I was planning to inform the Marquis after I officially registered.”
What she meant was that from the beginning, she had planned to cut ties with her parents and siblings in order to join the Marquis.
If it weren't for that, she would have shown her abilities a long time ago.
Hertia opened her mouth with anticipation.
“So when did I...”
“Did you hear?”
Colin, who had his arms crossed with a calm face the whole time, interrupted her and asked someone leaning behind the door.
The moment the door opened and she saw the little girl entering the room, the smile on Hertia's face disappeared.
She looked at Colin with a confused look on her face, as if she couldn't believe it.
“Why is that child still in this mansion...”
"Why? You brought me here. So it makes sense to be here.”
The look in Dorothea's eyes when she looked at her today was strange.
The innocence of a child was gone and greed was shining everywhere.
The moment she saw Dorothea gulping down her appetite like a carnivore looking at delicious food in front of her, she remembered what she said when she first saw the water spirit.
"Looks delicious."
At the time, Hertia believed it was just naivety.
There was no way a child with eyes like that could be just innocent.
Goosebumps appeared behind Hertia.
“Colin!”
In response to the panicked cry, Colin just leaned against the wall without saying a word and looked at the situation with a bored look on his face.
“I am very happy now.”
Hertia, whose complexion turned pale at Dorothea's grinning words, took a step back.
Her back hit the wall and she was overcome with fear.
“If only a few people knew you had ‘it.’”
Dorothea's eyes were beautifully curved like half moons.
Even in her past life, she was very lucky.
If there's something she needs or wants, it's always given right in front of her.
“It won’t be that hard for me to take it away.”
Even so, that fish is treated as something quite special here.
To be honest, she didn't like the fishy smell, but it was worth the risk.
If it weren't for that, she wouldn't have had to go through such a difficult ritual with her small body to retrieve Colin's soul power.
Dorothea stretched out her hands, which were empty due to lack of weapons.
She spun around, stretched out her hand into the distance, and recited the existence of the Dragon God.
I bow to the Dragon God with all my body and soul.
Please open the door to the Dragon King’s Hall.
The spreading soul power tightly bound the terrified Hertia.
Dorothea's eyes reflected on the 'door' that had been clumsily closed near her heart.
'This is it.'
For today, she was just happy that she could use her soul power as much as she wanted without the risk of depleting it.
The spirit power that pried open the small door quickly opened it wide.
As Hertia screamed in horror, a spirit in the shape of a small fish jumped out of her arms.
Next was the order of imprisonment.
By the mercy of the Dragon King Xinjiang
Receive it like the sea with utmost sincerity.
Please give enlightenment to sentient beings.
The fish, which was looking around in confusion, headed towards the girl as if attracted to a magnet.
Dorothea, looking down at the fish fluttering in her hands, grinned.
The only thing that echoed in the mansion was Hertia's screams as her spirit was taken away.
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