'Something you instructed me to do some time ago. ' Aila couldn't figure out what it was, but when she heard that the target was Aila herself, she felt thirsty with curiosity.
“You’re not going to spit on me right now, are you, Cloud?”
“...”
Moreover, Cloud, who absolutely obeys Byron, is against it because Aila is still young.
Because the flow of events had already changed slightly from her past life, Aila, who couldn't predict how things would flow, looked at Cloud's face with anxious eyes.
But Cloud seemed completely oblivious to her earnest gaze.
“Cloud.”
“...Yes, Master.”
Cloud, who seemed to be hesitating due to Byron's repeated pressure, eventually gave in and answered that he understood.
“Yes, then let’s have a meal.”
Byron sent Aila back to her seat with a pleased expression and started eating, but Aila couldn't concentrate on the food at all.
What on earth was the story? What on earth did he tell Cloud to do? And it was about her.
Because of this, she had to finish her meal without being able to tell whether the food was going into her nose or her mouth.
Her curiosity was satisfied in just a few days. Cloud had given her the answer.
Even though Byron had returned to his daily life, Aila, who had spent several days quietly feeling uneasy because it was dangerous to move right away, couldn't help but feel flustered.
"...What's this?"
She followed Laura's instructions and entered the unfamiliar room where Cloud was waiting. She asked in a surprised voice.
Of course, she wasn't asking because she didn't really know what it was. She was just asking because she didn't know why it was here, but the things in front of her were so familiar.
A glass cage containing live poisonous snakes and insects, and various dried poisonous plants.
“...Starting today, you're going to study how to handle poison.”
Cloud opened his mouth ominously.
"...poison?"
Like this, all of a sudden?
She began learning how to handle poison when she was fifteen, just before she entered the Duke's household.
Only after she had mastered most of the other techniques did Cloud begin teaching her how to handle poison.
Because handling poison was such a dangerous task for a child to learn.
But what on earth is the reason for it being brought forward by three years?
“Yes. It is the master’s order.”
Byron, who had been locked in his room for several days, was alone with his thoughts when he gave her the instructions. It turned out that he was telling Cloud to teach her how to poison.
'To a twelve-year-old...?'
In reality, it was okay since she had already learned how to handle poison, but if she were really a twelve-year-old child, it would have been very dangerous.
If she touches live poisonous insects and snakes, how can she avoid being poisoned by them?
“It’s dangerous. You must never come into this room alone. You must train under my supervision at all times. Do you understand?”
Cloud seemed to be thinking the same thing, as he spoke in a solemn voice. Aila nodded halfheartedly.
‘...Was Byron anxious because of my mother’s illness? It couldn’t be otherwise.’
Aila was deep in thought.
If he was really anxious, it was because he was worried whether it would be good or bad for her.
'Maybe I can return to the Duke's house a little earlier.'
If she could just show that she was the perfect fit for the great assassin Byron wanted... maybe she could just enter the Duke’s household.
Then this tightrope walk would end. She would be able to return to the arms of her parents, whom she missed so much.
'The problem is that I don't yet fully understand Byron's plans.'
At this rate, even if she went into the Duke's house and told them that Byron was planning to assassinate Roderick, she wouldn't be able to stop what would happen next.
In addition, from what she heard from Cloud and Byron's conversation, it seemed like there was an informant in the Duke's household. This meant that there was someone else to watch out for besides Laura, who was to enter the Duke's household as Aila's maid.
Besides, Byron was planning to join forces with many others. Shouldn't she find out who they are and who they are trying to attack?
So, until then, Aila had to keep it completely hidden.
'...Until I know everything about you, I will never become the excellent assassin you want me to be.'
With that determination, Aila clenched her fists.
Her first toxicology class was simple: just memorizing the names of poisonous plants and their effects.
While the purpose of regular toxicology is to prevent and treat poisoning, the toxicology that Aila is learning is very different in that it aims to harm people with poison.
Cloud didn't seem to have high expectations to begin with, and didn't criticize her for confusing the names of the poisons or not being able to remember their effects.
Of course, Aila already knew all this, but every time she made a mistake, she pretended to blame herself so much that Cloud ended up comforting her.
And then night came again.
Locked in the attic, Aila decided to get moving tonight.
‘...It would be dangerous if Byron suddenly came, but I can’t waste time any longer.’
Since it was a one-time exception, she couldn't be 100% at ease, but that didn't mean she could do nothing.
She has no choice but to take a risk and risk being caught.
If Byron was in a hurry and in a hurry, she had to move quickly too.
'If I keep a close eye on Byron's movements, I might be able to deal with any emergency that comes my way.'
Anyway, Laura was the only one who had the key to open the lock on her room, and it would take some time for Byron to get Laura to open the door. In the meantime, Aila could just return to her room.
With her mind made up, she opened the safe, changed her clothes, and left the room.
The night was quiet, and the night air she hadn't smelled in a long time felt really sweet.
Aila moved silently under the cover of darkness and, as always, took her place on a tree overlooking Byron's room window.
Byron was drinking alone in his room with the lights on, as if he were completely back to normal.
'Go to sleep, please.'
Aila continued to look anxiously through the window and thought.
If she had known this would happen, she would have waited a little longer in her attic and come out later when it got deeper into the night. She regrets it so much.
Still, the view of the night sky as she looked up while feeling the cool night breeze was beautiful.
There was no leisure in her life.
Even when she was deceived by Byron, and lived only for his revenge.
And even now, she has returned to the past and lives only for her own revenge.
This kind of blindness, sometimes, might not be so bad.
It was while Aila was looking at the twinkling stars and moonlight that she thought that.
The lights went out in Byron's room, and he lay down on his bed.
Her chance had finally come.
After Byron fell asleep, Aila watched him closely for a while and then sneaked into the room, judging that he was completely asleep.
'I hope I can find some new clues.'
Not something like a letter written in some mysterious code.
Hoping to get some solid information, Aila looked at Byron's desk. But while it had clearly been filled with letters and papers before, today it was strangely neat and tidy.
‘...Did you clean it? What a pity.’
She tried opening the desk drawer just in case, but it was locked with a key and wouldn't open.
'Should I go back like this without getting anything?'
That's too bad. Aila bit her lip nervously and looked around. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, the scenery in the room began to appear a little clearer.
And as Aila was looking around, she noticed something she had never seen hanging on the wall next to the desk.
She glanced at Byron to see if he would wake up, then moved closer to the wall.
'Is this... a map?'
Aila studied the map on the wall closely, relying on the moonlight.
Since she was young, she had been wandering around without knowing where she was, so she didn't know geography very well, but this was clearly a map of the Peles Empire. It was because she saw familiar place names.
Places like Venator, the capital of the empire, where she returned to live as a Duke's daughter, or the Weishaffen fiefdom at the northern tip.
Aila glanced at Byron again and looked at the map more closely. X's were marked here and there on the map, faintly visible in the moonlight.
It seemed like the journey from the capital city in the center of the empire to the westernmost part of the empire was marked with arrows.
'The date is written on it.'
Next to each X was a date. The date of the first stop after leaving the capital was about three days away.
What does this map mean?
She followed the arrows with her fingers, careful not to touch the map with her hands. Then she heard a rustling sound behind her. It seemed that Byron had moved.
'Shit.'
Aila couldn't understand why a person who never woke up once he fell asleep suddenly woke up.
Aila panicked, but quickly hid under the desk. It would have been a disaster if Byron had found her.
The rustling sound didn't stop. It wasn't just a brief moment of tossing and turning, but then, thud. She could hear someone getting out of bed and stepping onto the floor.
Thump, thump. Her heart started beating so hard that it felt like it was going to burst out of her rib cage, startled by the sudden situation. She was afraid that her heartbeat would reveal her location.
'Please, please...!'
She closed her eyes tightly and prayed, hoping that Byron would lie back down in bed and fall asleep, breathing evenly.
But her wish was not granted. Slowly, slowly. The sound of footsteps was getting closer and closer to the desk where she was hiding.
'No. Please don't come...!'
Because of her keen hearing, the sound of those small footsteps felt like nails were being dug into her skull.
The sound of Byron's footsteps, which had been getting closer and closer, finally reached her immediate vicinity.
“You’re not going to spit on me right now, are you, Cloud?”
“...”
Moreover, Cloud, who absolutely obeys Byron, is against it because Aila is still young.
Because the flow of events had already changed slightly from her past life, Aila, who couldn't predict how things would flow, looked at Cloud's face with anxious eyes.
But Cloud seemed completely oblivious to her earnest gaze.
“Cloud.”
“...Yes, Master.”
Cloud, who seemed to be hesitating due to Byron's repeated pressure, eventually gave in and answered that he understood.
“Yes, then let’s have a meal.”
Byron sent Aila back to her seat with a pleased expression and started eating, but Aila couldn't concentrate on the food at all.
What on earth was the story? What on earth did he tell Cloud to do? And it was about her.
Because of this, she had to finish her meal without being able to tell whether the food was going into her nose or her mouth.
***
Her curiosity was satisfied in just a few days. Cloud had given her the answer.
Even though Byron had returned to his daily life, Aila, who had spent several days quietly feeling uneasy because it was dangerous to move right away, couldn't help but feel flustered.
"...What's this?"
She followed Laura's instructions and entered the unfamiliar room where Cloud was waiting. She asked in a surprised voice.
Of course, she wasn't asking because she didn't really know what it was. She was just asking because she didn't know why it was here, but the things in front of her were so familiar.
A glass cage containing live poisonous snakes and insects, and various dried poisonous plants.
“...Starting today, you're going to study how to handle poison.”
Cloud opened his mouth ominously.
"...poison?"
Like this, all of a sudden?
She began learning how to handle poison when she was fifteen, just before she entered the Duke's household.
Only after she had mastered most of the other techniques did Cloud begin teaching her how to handle poison.
Because handling poison was such a dangerous task for a child to learn.
But what on earth is the reason for it being brought forward by three years?
“Yes. It is the master’s order.”
Byron, who had been locked in his room for several days, was alone with his thoughts when he gave her the instructions. It turned out that he was telling Cloud to teach her how to poison.
'To a twelve-year-old...?'
In reality, it was okay since she had already learned how to handle poison, but if she were really a twelve-year-old child, it would have been very dangerous.
If she touches live poisonous insects and snakes, how can she avoid being poisoned by them?
“It’s dangerous. You must never come into this room alone. You must train under my supervision at all times. Do you understand?”
Cloud seemed to be thinking the same thing, as he spoke in a solemn voice. Aila nodded halfheartedly.
‘...Was Byron anxious because of my mother’s illness? It couldn’t be otherwise.’
Aila was deep in thought.
If he was really anxious, it was because he was worried whether it would be good or bad for her.
'Maybe I can return to the Duke's house a little earlier.'
If she could just show that she was the perfect fit for the great assassin Byron wanted... maybe she could just enter the Duke’s household.
Then this tightrope walk would end. She would be able to return to the arms of her parents, whom she missed so much.
'The problem is that I don't yet fully understand Byron's plans.'
At this rate, even if she went into the Duke's house and told them that Byron was planning to assassinate Roderick, she wouldn't be able to stop what would happen next.
In addition, from what she heard from Cloud and Byron's conversation, it seemed like there was an informant in the Duke's household. This meant that there was someone else to watch out for besides Laura, who was to enter the Duke's household as Aila's maid.
Besides, Byron was planning to join forces with many others. Shouldn't she find out who they are and who they are trying to attack?
So, until then, Aila had to keep it completely hidden.
'...Until I know everything about you, I will never become the excellent assassin you want me to be.'
With that determination, Aila clenched her fists.
***
Her first toxicology class was simple: just memorizing the names of poisonous plants and their effects.
While the purpose of regular toxicology is to prevent and treat poisoning, the toxicology that Aila is learning is very different in that it aims to harm people with poison.
Cloud didn't seem to have high expectations to begin with, and didn't criticize her for confusing the names of the poisons or not being able to remember their effects.
Of course, Aila already knew all this, but every time she made a mistake, she pretended to blame herself so much that Cloud ended up comforting her.
And then night came again.
Locked in the attic, Aila decided to get moving tonight.
‘...It would be dangerous if Byron suddenly came, but I can’t waste time any longer.’
Since it was a one-time exception, she couldn't be 100% at ease, but that didn't mean she could do nothing.
She has no choice but to take a risk and risk being caught.
If Byron was in a hurry and in a hurry, she had to move quickly too.
'If I keep a close eye on Byron's movements, I might be able to deal with any emergency that comes my way.'
Anyway, Laura was the only one who had the key to open the lock on her room, and it would take some time for Byron to get Laura to open the door. In the meantime, Aila could just return to her room.
With her mind made up, she opened the safe, changed her clothes, and left the room.
The night was quiet, and the night air she hadn't smelled in a long time felt really sweet.
Aila moved silently under the cover of darkness and, as always, took her place on a tree overlooking Byron's room window.
Byron was drinking alone in his room with the lights on, as if he were completely back to normal.
'Go to sleep, please.'
Aila continued to look anxiously through the window and thought.
If she had known this would happen, she would have waited a little longer in her attic and come out later when it got deeper into the night. She regrets it so much.
Still, the view of the night sky as she looked up while feeling the cool night breeze was beautiful.
There was no leisure in her life.
Even when she was deceived by Byron, and lived only for his revenge.
And even now, she has returned to the past and lives only for her own revenge.
This kind of blindness, sometimes, might not be so bad.
It was while Aila was looking at the twinkling stars and moonlight that she thought that.
The lights went out in Byron's room, and he lay down on his bed.
Her chance had finally come.
After Byron fell asleep, Aila watched him closely for a while and then sneaked into the room, judging that he was completely asleep.
'I hope I can find some new clues.'
Not something like a letter written in some mysterious code.
Hoping to get some solid information, Aila looked at Byron's desk. But while it had clearly been filled with letters and papers before, today it was strangely neat and tidy.
‘...Did you clean it? What a pity.’
She tried opening the desk drawer just in case, but it was locked with a key and wouldn't open.
'Should I go back like this without getting anything?'
That's too bad. Aila bit her lip nervously and looked around. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, the scenery in the room began to appear a little clearer.
And as Aila was looking around, she noticed something she had never seen hanging on the wall next to the desk.
She glanced at Byron to see if he would wake up, then moved closer to the wall.
'Is this... a map?'
Aila studied the map on the wall closely, relying on the moonlight.
Since she was young, she had been wandering around without knowing where she was, so she didn't know geography very well, but this was clearly a map of the Peles Empire. It was because she saw familiar place names.
Places like Venator, the capital of the empire, where she returned to live as a Duke's daughter, or the Weishaffen fiefdom at the northern tip.
Aila glanced at Byron again and looked at the map more closely. X's were marked here and there on the map, faintly visible in the moonlight.
It seemed like the journey from the capital city in the center of the empire to the westernmost part of the empire was marked with arrows.
'The date is written on it.'
Next to each X was a date. The date of the first stop after leaving the capital was about three days away.
What does this map mean?
She followed the arrows with her fingers, careful not to touch the map with her hands. Then she heard a rustling sound behind her. It seemed that Byron had moved.
'Shit.'
Aila couldn't understand why a person who never woke up once he fell asleep suddenly woke up.
Aila panicked, but quickly hid under the desk. It would have been a disaster if Byron had found her.
The rustling sound didn't stop. It wasn't just a brief moment of tossing and turning, but then, thud. She could hear someone getting out of bed and stepping onto the floor.
Thump, thump. Her heart started beating so hard that it felt like it was going to burst out of her rib cage, startled by the sudden situation. She was afraid that her heartbeat would reveal her location.
'Please, please...!'
She closed her eyes tightly and prayed, hoping that Byron would lie back down in bed and fall asleep, breathing evenly.
But her wish was not granted. Slowly, slowly. The sound of footsteps was getting closer and closer to the desk where she was hiding.
'No. Please don't come...!'
Because of her keen hearing, the sound of those small footsteps felt like nails were being dug into her skull.
The sound of Byron's footsteps, which had been getting closer and closer, finally reached her immediate vicinity.
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