At the time Rosie shouted, “That’s a poisonous strawberry!”, Roxana finished preparing to go out on Aclato Island.
“Where shall I take you, Your Highness?”
The coachman who had been waiting in front of the main building of the Duke’s castle politely asked, taking off his hat as Roxana came out.
“Let’s go to the tower.”
Roxana got into the carriage with Nancy.
When Roxana arrived at the tower and looked up at the tall oval tower, Nancy grabbed the doorknob on the tower’s iron door and knocked. As soon as the doorknob touched the iron door, the sound of the doorknob being knocked resonated throughout the tower without much force.
The tower’s iron door opened faster than expected, and Logan himself came out.
“How did you come? No, aren’t you Your Highness?”
“I have business to attend to.”
Roxana was surprised to see Logan, perhaps not knowing that he would open the door himself, but her voice was calm as she answered.
“The Lord of the Tower is currently out. You’ll come back later...”
“I have business for you. May I come in?”
It wasn’t a request for permission.
Roxana entered the Tower before hearing Logan’s answer, and Logan stepped aside to the side of the door with a puzzled expression.
“What business does Your Highness have with me? First, please come up.”
A person with no connection to him had suddenly come.
In his experience, this usually meant bad things.
If it had been someone else, he would have heard the reason before letting them in, but since she was a Princess of the Principality of Aklatto, she had to be treated politely first and then hear her business.
Logan guided Roxana to the space where tea was served to guests visiting the Tower.
“Please wait a moment, and I’ll bring you tea.”
“No, tea is fine.”
Roxana took off her gloves and sat down on a wooden chair that looked like it had been used for at least 200 years.
Logan stood in front of the Princess and waited for her to state her business.
“You sit down too. I have a favor to ask of you.”
“Yes, go ahead.”
Logan thought about what she might ask for when she came to the Magic Tower.
A potion that makes skin smooth, or a potion that makes you lose weight? He doesn’t know the details, but he thought it would be something related to beauty.
However, what Roxana said was far beyond Logan’s expectations.
“I want the power of fire.”
“...Huh?”
The request was so absurd that Logan couldn’t help but laugh.
“I heard that you’ve been developing a potion to summon an incarnation of the Magic Tower Lord for a long time. You failed to summon an incarnation, but you can artificially inject the power of fire, right?”
“Damn old man. Are you losing your mind? How dare you go around saying such things?”
Logan made an awkward expression.
The only person who could tell Roxana such a thing on this island was the witch Kaline.
“Princess, the power of fire has many side effects. Our Lord of the Magic Tower has enough magic power to control the side effects, so it doesn’t matter, but you, Princess...”
“As you know, our family’s body temperature is higher than that of ordinary people. That’s why our ancestors established a principality on this island of Aklatto, which has a volcano.”
Logan also knew about the Roxana family’s special trait. However, he had heard that it was only that their body temperature was higher than that of an average person and that they were resistant to heat, but that they had never displayed any abilities due to this.
“That’s why our family possessed five special wyvern eggs that were born in this volcano 300 years ago and were buried in the lava.”
Logan nodded obediently at Roxana’s words.
“One of the five was kept by Bellos’s father and former Lord of the Magic Tower, and was given to Bellos.”
“However, I heard that the rest of the wyvern eggs failed to hatch and broke on their own and disappeared.”
Logan said calmly.
“But fortunately, the remaining one didn’t break. I have it now.”
“Yes, I know. Do you want the energy of fire to hatch that wyvern egg?”
“If you don’t know, I heard that you can make a red potion with the power of fire. Don’t you think that’s greedy?”
Roxana maintained her composure and led the conversation.
“I’m sorry, but I can’t make that red potion so carelessly.”
“I know, you’re trying to say that you need Bellos’ permission.”
Roxana raised a hand to cut Logan off.
“Logan, do you have something you need to protect?”
“...I think everyone has at least one thing they want to protect.”
Logan answered her unexpected question vaguely.
His instincts felt bad.
“I see. But I don’t have any. A life without pain is enough. Well, if I’m lucky, I’d be lucky if the person I like likes me back?”
A person flashed through Roxana’s mind.
At that moment, a smile crossed her lips.
“How could the Princess, who lives the most comfortable life here, want to live without pain? I don’t quite understand.”
“Logan, you make healing water here every month and send it to the Duke’s castle, right?”
“Yes, that’s right. It was made by me and the Magic Tower Lord.”
“Do you even know who the healing water is used for?”
Logan’s question made him wonder if that would be possible, but his mouth fell open at her sad eyes.
“By any chance... the Duke...”
“It must have been when I was five. When I first got whipped on the back.”
Roxana smiled faintly and pretended not to see Logan’s surprised expression.
“...For what reason?”
“Everything was for a reason. When I did something wrong, of course, as encouragement, and even when I did something well, to tell me to do better.”
“That’s impossible!”
Logan heard Roxana’s words, and his own daughter, Bonis, who was about the same age as her, became even more indignant.
Duke Haymitch, who was trusted and respected by the people of the Duchy of Aklatto, was a cruel man who swung his whip at his own daughter.
“I experienced that impossible thing not long ago. When I was ordered to seduce Hetor of Tanya Island, he struck me with all his might for the first time in a while. What power do I have? I had no choice but to follow. Think of the peace this island has now as my own.”
“Where shall I take you, Your Highness?”
The coachman who had been waiting in front of the main building of the Duke’s castle politely asked, taking off his hat as Roxana came out.
“Let’s go to the tower.”
Roxana got into the carriage with Nancy.
When Roxana arrived at the tower and looked up at the tall oval tower, Nancy grabbed the doorknob on the tower’s iron door and knocked. As soon as the doorknob touched the iron door, the sound of the doorknob being knocked resonated throughout the tower without much force.
The tower’s iron door opened faster than expected, and Logan himself came out.
“How did you come? No, aren’t you Your Highness?”
“I have business to attend to.”
Roxana was surprised to see Logan, perhaps not knowing that he would open the door himself, but her voice was calm as she answered.
“The Lord of the Tower is currently out. You’ll come back later...”
“I have business for you. May I come in?”
It wasn’t a request for permission.
Roxana entered the Tower before hearing Logan’s answer, and Logan stepped aside to the side of the door with a puzzled expression.
“What business does Your Highness have with me? First, please come up.”
A person with no connection to him had suddenly come.
In his experience, this usually meant bad things.
If it had been someone else, he would have heard the reason before letting them in, but since she was a Princess of the Principality of Aklatto, she had to be treated politely first and then hear her business.
Logan guided Roxana to the space where tea was served to guests visiting the Tower.
“Please wait a moment, and I’ll bring you tea.”
“No, tea is fine.”
Roxana took off her gloves and sat down on a wooden chair that looked like it had been used for at least 200 years.
Logan stood in front of the Princess and waited for her to state her business.
“You sit down too. I have a favor to ask of you.”
“Yes, go ahead.”
Logan thought about what she might ask for when she came to the Magic Tower.
A potion that makes skin smooth, or a potion that makes you lose weight? He doesn’t know the details, but he thought it would be something related to beauty.
However, what Roxana said was far beyond Logan’s expectations.
“I want the power of fire.”
“...Huh?”
The request was so absurd that Logan couldn’t help but laugh.
“I heard that you’ve been developing a potion to summon an incarnation of the Magic Tower Lord for a long time. You failed to summon an incarnation, but you can artificially inject the power of fire, right?”
“Damn old man. Are you losing your mind? How dare you go around saying such things?”
Logan made an awkward expression.
The only person who could tell Roxana such a thing on this island was the witch Kaline.
“Princess, the power of fire has many side effects. Our Lord of the Magic Tower has enough magic power to control the side effects, so it doesn’t matter, but you, Princess...”
“As you know, our family’s body temperature is higher than that of ordinary people. That’s why our ancestors established a principality on this island of Aklatto, which has a volcano.”
Logan also knew about the Roxana family’s special trait. However, he had heard that it was only that their body temperature was higher than that of an average person and that they were resistant to heat, but that they had never displayed any abilities due to this.
“That’s why our family possessed five special wyvern eggs that were born in this volcano 300 years ago and were buried in the lava.”
Logan nodded obediently at Roxana’s words.
“One of the five was kept by Bellos’s father and former Lord of the Magic Tower, and was given to Bellos.”
“However, I heard that the rest of the wyvern eggs failed to hatch and broke on their own and disappeared.”
Logan said calmly.
“But fortunately, the remaining one didn’t break. I have it now.”
“Yes, I know. Do you want the energy of fire to hatch that wyvern egg?”
“If you don’t know, I heard that you can make a red potion with the power of fire. Don’t you think that’s greedy?”
Roxana maintained her composure and led the conversation.
“I’m sorry, but I can’t make that red potion so carelessly.”
“I know, you’re trying to say that you need Bellos’ permission.”
Roxana raised a hand to cut Logan off.
“Logan, do you have something you need to protect?”
“...I think everyone has at least one thing they want to protect.”
Logan answered her unexpected question vaguely.
His instincts felt bad.
“I see. But I don’t have any. A life without pain is enough. Well, if I’m lucky, I’d be lucky if the person I like likes me back?”
A person flashed through Roxana’s mind.
At that moment, a smile crossed her lips.
“How could the Princess, who lives the most comfortable life here, want to live without pain? I don’t quite understand.”
“Logan, you make healing water here every month and send it to the Duke’s castle, right?”
“Yes, that’s right. It was made by me and the Magic Tower Lord.”
“Do you even know who the healing water is used for?”
Logan’s question made him wonder if that would be possible, but his mouth fell open at her sad eyes.
“By any chance... the Duke...”
“It must have been when I was five. When I first got whipped on the back.”
Roxana smiled faintly and pretended not to see Logan’s surprised expression.
“...For what reason?”
“Everything was for a reason. When I did something wrong, of course, as encouragement, and even when I did something well, to tell me to do better.”
“That’s impossible!”
Logan heard Roxana’s words, and his own daughter, Bonis, who was about the same age as her, became even more indignant.
Duke Haymitch, who was trusted and respected by the people of the Duchy of Aklatto, was a cruel man who swung his whip at his own daughter.
“I experienced that impossible thing not long ago. When I was ordered to seduce Hetor of Tanya Island, he struck me with all his might for the first time in a while. What power do I have? I had no choice but to follow. Think of the peace this island has now as my own.”
Roxana, who had been speaking calmly, smiled weakly.
She looked even more pitiful than when she was crying, but Logan didn’t know what to say to comfort her.
“Princess...”
“What would you do if I were your daughter? I heard her name was Bonis.”
“!”
The witch told the Princess Bonis’ name.
Logan’s wrinkled brow furrowed.
“Are you threatening me over my daughter?”
“Yes, I was so happy to have something to threaten?”
Roxana didn’t deny it.
Her words of pleasure were genuine.
“To help you decide, yesterday, Hetor’s soldier got his head blown off by his own axe. I made him do it. He overheard me talking about Hetor.”
Roxana stroked her neck and pointed to Nancy’s arms.
“Do you know what I did then?”
Logan found Roxana creepy.
She elegantly pulled two daggers from her robe pockets.
“I used a longer one to cut Nancy’s arms and tore my dress across the chest. I had to make it look like the soldier was trying to rape me. Luckily, my acting was pretty good, so it worked.”
A cold sweat ran down Logan’s spine.
“So I want you to stay strong and follow my orders.”
“I’m sorry. I can’t.”
“Ha, my father just whipped me without any explanation and explained what I had to do. At least I don’t want to be like him. That’s why I’m warning you in advance... Don’t you understand?”
Roxana denied it herself, but Logan saw her face overlap with Duke Haymitch’s.
“What are you trying to say? If I don’t make the red potion, you’re going to frame me like that soldier and kill me?”
Roxana shook her head with a frown.
“No, not you.”
Your daughter is dead.
She didn’t need to listen to the rest of the story.
Roxana’s eyes were telling her.
“I think that’s enough of an explanation. Make the red potion.”
“No.”
Roxana nodded at Logan’s firm words.
“I knew you wouldn’t make it easily. But I guarantee it. If you refuse my offer, Miss Bonis will not be whole.”
“Your Ladyship!”
“Do you doubt what I’m saying?”
Roxana muttered quietly,
“Yes, then. You first.”
“Ugh!!”
She mercilessly stabbed the daggers she was holding in both hands into Logan’s thighs.
As soon as I heard Rosie say ‘poisonous strawberries,’ I threw the strawberries I was holding on the floor, and Melanie...
“Uwueeek!”
She spat out the strawberries she had been savoring.
“Ugh, am I going to die?!”
Melanie glared and grabbed Rosie’s arm.
“No, that’s not it...”
Rosie tried to answer while patting Melanie’s back, who kept vomiting, but she couldn’t continue speaking because of Melanie’s resentful complaints.
“If I had known this would happen, I would have just closed my eyes and spent the night with one of the knights I saw in the valley yesterday! It’s so unfair... Oh my! What do I do? I don’t want to die!”
Melanie cried.
“Oh my, listen to me first. You won’t die if you eat one poisoned strawberry.”
“Really? Really?”
“Yes, and besides, Your Highness Melanie didn’t swallow it and just spat it out. You can eat two or three of these poisoned strawberries without any problems.”
“Ha... Thank goodness.”
Melanie’s legs gave out, and she collapsed on the floor.
“However, if you eat several, your body will gradually become paralyzed. It varies from person to person, but if you eat a lot, you can suffer for a few days and then die.”
“Then I won’t die... Thank you, please save me.”
Melanie sat up and sniffled.
“That’s right, if you dry these poisonous strawberries and eat them, the toxicity increases so much that you can die if you eat just one or two. But Your Highness Melanie ate them raw, so it’s okay. And it was only one, so there’s no need to worry.”
Rosie shrugged and comforted Melanie as if it were nothing serious.
“I almost got into big trouble, thank goodness. But how does Your Highness Rosie know all that?”
Princess Jasper asked Rosie curiously.
“I saw it in a plant guide when I was little. And I thought it would be good to read a book about the forest before the hunting competition, so I started reading, but I regret that I only read about ten books because I didn’t have enough time.”
Rosie scratched her head and laughed.
“My goodness, you read ten books? You must have had nothing to do...”
Princess Resilia sneered, and Rosie moved her lips noisily without saying a word.
Rosie was probably swearing at Princess Resilia.
'I was taking care of the Rams you gave birth to?'
At first glance, she seemed to be saying something with that nuance.
"Your Highness Rosie, I suddenly feel like my stomach hurts."
Even though she was told that two or three poisonous strawberries would not cause any harm to the body, Melanie gently touched her stomach and made a face like a seriously ill patient.
"Then let's go to the attending magician Big together. There was a passage that said that sometimes, eating even a single strawberry that is highly poisonous can lead to death."
"Huh?! Why are you telling me that now? Oh my, I'm dying..."
Melanie suddenly bent down and waved her arms weakly, asking Rosie to support her.
Rosie smiled broadly and supported Melanie as they walked out of the grass.
"We should go now, Princess."
Princess Jasper walked ahead, saying to Princess Resilia.
"Yes, yes, this is a dangerous place."
Princess Resilia responded to her, pretending to follow her, then slightly stretched her arm back and picked a handful of poisonous strawberries and put them in the cloth bag she had brought.
“Why are you putting those in?”
I felt goosebumps on my arms as I watched Princess Resilia secretly put in the poisonous strawberries and smiling bitterly.
After Princess Resilia disappeared, I sat down again.
I stared blankly at the poisonous strawberries I had thrown on the floor and thought deeply about why Princess Resilia had picked the poisonous strawberries.
“She’s definitely trying to feed someone.”
But who does she want to hurt?
Prince Norton? No. There was no reason to do that now.
“Are you the only one?”
The incarnation inside me suddenly spoke.
Why does it seem like he only shows up at times like this?
“Because I’m the only one who can awaken your ignorance.”
The incarnation must have sensed my inner thoughts because it said something I didn’t even ask.
Was Princess Resilia targeting me as the incarnation said?
I felt like I had become Princess Resilia’s prey.
Should I pretend to die after eating poisoned strawberries on purpose and then suddenly stand up and wring Princess Resilia’s neck?
I kicked the poisoned strawberries with my feet and dusted myself off. I took a handkerchief out of my uniform pocket, put about thirty poisoned strawberries in it, and tied the ends of the handkerchief together.
I thought it might be helpful for hunting.
I glanced into the grass again, absentmindedly, and quickly sat down.
‘Why are you back here?’
Following Princess Resilia earlier, this time Prince Jasper was quickly putting poisoned strawberries in a handkerchief like me.
She probably wouldn’t use it for hunting like me...
I calmed down my startled heart and carefully pulled my head out again to look into the grass.
Prince Jasper was already going back out the way I came.
“What are you doing here?”
Oh, I almost lost my shit!
It was Linel’s voice.
I looked back at him, sweeping my chest.
Linel’s left palm was covered in poison strawberries, who knew when.
For some reason... I had a feeling...
that he was going to take a bite of them all.
His left hand went up toward his mouth.
No.
“Don’t eat that!”
Maybe it was because my legs were longer than my arms, but my feet moved out before I knew it.
The tip of my foot hit the back of his hand.
Linel was startled as if he was competing at my sudden kicked.
His head fell back, and his mouth opened wide at the same time.
The poisoned strawberries that had been flying into the air fell into his mouth with a thud.
What the heck!
She looked even more pitiful than when she was crying, but Logan didn’t know what to say to comfort her.
“Princess...”
“What would you do if I were your daughter? I heard her name was Bonis.”
“!”
The witch told the Princess Bonis’ name.
Logan’s wrinkled brow furrowed.
“Are you threatening me over my daughter?”
“Yes, I was so happy to have something to threaten?”
Roxana didn’t deny it.
Her words of pleasure were genuine.
“To help you decide, yesterday, Hetor’s soldier got his head blown off by his own axe. I made him do it. He overheard me talking about Hetor.”
Roxana stroked her neck and pointed to Nancy’s arms.
“Do you know what I did then?”
Logan found Roxana creepy.
She elegantly pulled two daggers from her robe pockets.
“I used a longer one to cut Nancy’s arms and tore my dress across the chest. I had to make it look like the soldier was trying to rape me. Luckily, my acting was pretty good, so it worked.”
A cold sweat ran down Logan’s spine.
“So I want you to stay strong and follow my orders.”
“I’m sorry. I can’t.”
“Ha, my father just whipped me without any explanation and explained what I had to do. At least I don’t want to be like him. That’s why I’m warning you in advance... Don’t you understand?”
Roxana denied it herself, but Logan saw her face overlap with Duke Haymitch’s.
“What are you trying to say? If I don’t make the red potion, you’re going to frame me like that soldier and kill me?”
Roxana shook her head with a frown.
“No, not you.”
Your daughter is dead.
She didn’t need to listen to the rest of the story.
Roxana’s eyes were telling her.
“I think that’s enough of an explanation. Make the red potion.”
“No.”
Roxana nodded at Logan’s firm words.
“I knew you wouldn’t make it easily. But I guarantee it. If you refuse my offer, Miss Bonis will not be whole.”
“Your Ladyship!”
“Do you doubt what I’m saying?”
Roxana muttered quietly,
“Yes, then. You first.”
“Ugh!!”
She mercilessly stabbed the daggers she was holding in both hands into Logan’s thighs.
***
As soon as I heard Rosie say ‘poisonous strawberries,’ I threw the strawberries I was holding on the floor, and Melanie...
“Uwueeek!”
She spat out the strawberries she had been savoring.
“Ugh, am I going to die?!”
Melanie glared and grabbed Rosie’s arm.
“No, that’s not it...”
Rosie tried to answer while patting Melanie’s back, who kept vomiting, but she couldn’t continue speaking because of Melanie’s resentful complaints.
“If I had known this would happen, I would have just closed my eyes and spent the night with one of the knights I saw in the valley yesterday! It’s so unfair... Oh my! What do I do? I don’t want to die!”
Melanie cried.
“Oh my, listen to me first. You won’t die if you eat one poisoned strawberry.”
“Really? Really?”
“Yes, and besides, Your Highness Melanie didn’t swallow it and just spat it out. You can eat two or three of these poisoned strawberries without any problems.”
“Ha... Thank goodness.”
Melanie’s legs gave out, and she collapsed on the floor.
“However, if you eat several, your body will gradually become paralyzed. It varies from person to person, but if you eat a lot, you can suffer for a few days and then die.”
“Then I won’t die... Thank you, please save me.”
Melanie sat up and sniffled.
“That’s right, if you dry these poisonous strawberries and eat them, the toxicity increases so much that you can die if you eat just one or two. But Your Highness Melanie ate them raw, so it’s okay. And it was only one, so there’s no need to worry.”
Rosie shrugged and comforted Melanie as if it were nothing serious.
“I almost got into big trouble, thank goodness. But how does Your Highness Rosie know all that?”
Princess Jasper asked Rosie curiously.
“I saw it in a plant guide when I was little. And I thought it would be good to read a book about the forest before the hunting competition, so I started reading, but I regret that I only read about ten books because I didn’t have enough time.”
Rosie scratched her head and laughed.
“My goodness, you read ten books? You must have had nothing to do...”
Princess Resilia sneered, and Rosie moved her lips noisily without saying a word.
Rosie was probably swearing at Princess Resilia.
'I was taking care of the Rams you gave birth to?'
At first glance, she seemed to be saying something with that nuance.
"Your Highness Rosie, I suddenly feel like my stomach hurts."
Even though she was told that two or three poisonous strawberries would not cause any harm to the body, Melanie gently touched her stomach and made a face like a seriously ill patient.
"Then let's go to the attending magician Big together. There was a passage that said that sometimes, eating even a single strawberry that is highly poisonous can lead to death."
"Huh?! Why are you telling me that now? Oh my, I'm dying..."
Melanie suddenly bent down and waved her arms weakly, asking Rosie to support her.
Rosie smiled broadly and supported Melanie as they walked out of the grass.
"We should go now, Princess."
Princess Jasper walked ahead, saying to Princess Resilia.
"Yes, yes, this is a dangerous place."
Princess Resilia responded to her, pretending to follow her, then slightly stretched her arm back and picked a handful of poisonous strawberries and put them in the cloth bag she had brought.
“Why are you putting those in?”
I felt goosebumps on my arms as I watched Princess Resilia secretly put in the poisonous strawberries and smiling bitterly.
After Princess Resilia disappeared, I sat down again.
I stared blankly at the poisonous strawberries I had thrown on the floor and thought deeply about why Princess Resilia had picked the poisonous strawberries.
“She’s definitely trying to feed someone.”
But who does she want to hurt?
Prince Norton? No. There was no reason to do that now.
“Are you the only one?”
The incarnation inside me suddenly spoke.
Why does it seem like he only shows up at times like this?
“Because I’m the only one who can awaken your ignorance.”
The incarnation must have sensed my inner thoughts because it said something I didn’t even ask.
Was Princess Resilia targeting me as the incarnation said?
I felt like I had become Princess Resilia’s prey.
Should I pretend to die after eating poisoned strawberries on purpose and then suddenly stand up and wring Princess Resilia’s neck?
I kicked the poisoned strawberries with my feet and dusted myself off. I took a handkerchief out of my uniform pocket, put about thirty poisoned strawberries in it, and tied the ends of the handkerchief together.
I thought it might be helpful for hunting.
I glanced into the grass again, absentmindedly, and quickly sat down.
‘Why are you back here?’
Following Princess Resilia earlier, this time Prince Jasper was quickly putting poisoned strawberries in a handkerchief like me.
She probably wouldn’t use it for hunting like me...
I calmed down my startled heart and carefully pulled my head out again to look into the grass.
Prince Jasper was already going back out the way I came.
“What are you doing here?”
Oh, I almost lost my shit!
It was Linel’s voice.
I looked back at him, sweeping my chest.
Linel’s left palm was covered in poison strawberries, who knew when.
For some reason... I had a feeling...
that he was going to take a bite of them all.
His left hand went up toward his mouth.
No.
“Don’t eat that!”
Maybe it was because my legs were longer than my arms, but my feet moved out before I knew it.
The tip of my foot hit the back of his hand.
Linel was startled as if he was competing at my sudden kicked.
His head fell back, and his mouth opened wide at the same time.
The poisoned strawberries that had been flying into the air fell into his mouth with a thud.
What the heck!
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