Chapter 4

▶ The maid Camila brought dessert. ◀

[ 1. Come in. ]

[ 2. (Raging) What dessert?! Don’t try any tricks and get lost! ]

[ 3. Cover myself with the blanket and pretend to be asleep. ]

[ 4. (Open the door and rush out) Eat that trash yourself! ]

The choices came as if announcing the start of the first episode.

Yeah, it really happened. After the tutorial scene was skipped briefly, it immediately started with Carsein in his room for the first episode.

From the maid’s announcement about bringing dessert.

With a status ailment of having a cold and hunger, there was no way I could eat anything. But still, the correct answer was number 1. Saying it plainly, “Come in.”

First… the test can’t go on because of my body.

“Come in.”

Covered by the bed sheets, I said that, and the maid entered cautiously.

“Pardon me, Mr. Carsein.”

Since choosing the option, my head felt dizzy. I couldn’t hold it anymore.

‘Crap, dizziness is blurring my vision. I need to lean against the wall.’

As I slumped towards the bed’s direction, leaning against the wall, the sound of sliding could be heard as the tray with the dessert approached me.

On the table in front of me were two puddings and one beverage. That was the dessert given to me.

“I’ll leave you now. Please call me when you’re done eating.”

Maid Camila replied and left with the tray.

With two puddings and a beverage on the table and Carsein enduring the cold with forced strength. It seemed like a scene from a game.

Here, a simple mini-game took place, but pretending to be fine while feeling sick was tough. Hardly thinking about how easy it was to find clothes in the morning.

▶ Timer has ended. ◀

▶ Since you held out until Camila left, the penalty is gone. ◀

From the moment Camila brought in the tray, a timer appeared in front of my eyes, and I had to hide being sick during that time. And I succeeded.

The problem is what comes next.

Carsein collapses due to the cold, ending this episode.

So, in reality, I’m just about to collapse too.

But. A glowing fork caught my eye.

“Memorial… right?”

Logically, how could a fork glow unless it’s some kind of light-emitting object? In this game, there are occasionally glowing items. An item called Memorial that shows scenes from the past when clicked.

This would be a clue to help players choose the correct options in this frustrating game filled with bad endings.

Though this episode ends with this, it doesn’t seem significant…

‘But it’s better to check.’

My body, which felt like burning, moved more stiffly and slowly than walking to the dining hall. Despite that, I managed to move enough to grab the fork, and the Memorial brightly glowed, showing a scene like a film reel.

What I saw was the empty room of the Duke’s house. There, the Head Maid brought in a maid.

The Head Maid tried to hand over a bag containing something but then snatched it back, not giving it.

“This time, there won’t be any money.”

“What? What do you mean by that…”

“You handled the matter so carelessly and now brazenly say you did your job?”

Camila, surprised at the sudden refusal of money she thought she would receive, asked back.

“What do you mean? I did everything as instructed.”

“Tell me what your job was.”

“Took a bath with cold water instead of hot, and sprinkled plenty of salt on the meal. Right?”

The inside story of today’s events became clear. The meal with salt sprinkled by Carsein and the water he used to wash. All were acts of Camila.

“Then why was the youngest young lady upset?! Carsein casually drank half of the soup. Not only that, he washed with cold water and didn’t say a word. Isn’t it natural to suspect you?!”

“What? B, but I…”

-Thunk.

“…”

“One more chance. It’s a potion of the Rigemos series, an awakening agent and stimulant. Take this dessert made with these potions. If you fail again, it will be truly over.”

The Head Maid threatened Camila by placing two vials in her hand.

That was the end of the scene shown by the Memorial.

Once again, my body felt like burning. With a blurry vision, I regained consciousness.

The scene I saw in the game was quite different. Well, the scene from the Memorial in the game wasn’t much different, but there were additional details.

In the game, it was just the scene where the Head Maid placed the vials in Camila’s hand, and as a player, I focused on the information that Camila was the culprit.

I didn’t know that the pudding and drink contained stimulants that would make nerves tense if taken together. Nor did I know she did it for money.

Probably, the game would proceed as usual unless I touched those foods. But.

‘This can be exploited.’

I am Kim Min-hyuk, not Carsein.

If there’s even a slight hint of a possibility to escape or clear the game, I won’t refuse it.

Gulp. Gulp.

I grabbed the fork and stabbed the center of one pudding. Then I forced it into my mouth, chewed, and swallowed as much of the drink as possible.

Awakening agent and stimulant. One of the items in the game, a consumable item.

Eating just one would be used as medicine, but consuming both at once would stimulate nerves and make them sensitive. I remembered Carsein getting angry and seeing a bad ending after taking them.

Well, it doesn’t matter either way.

Because of the cold, my nerves were already sensitive. Naturally, I wouldn’t be angry in this condition.

So, even if there was endless malice in the seemingly harmless pudding and drink, it wouldn’t affect me.

-Gulp. Gulp.

I drank about a third of the drink and swallowed one pudding. This should be enough.

‘Ugh… No more…’

Now I’ve reached my limit. Watching the fork fall to the floor, my body followed suit.

I don’t feel pain much when I’m sick. Only regretting not seeing the contents of the status window in front of my eyes.

▶ CHAPTER 1 – Episode I cleared! ◀

▶ Successfully triggered results beyond the choice. ◀

***

At breakfast, there was plenty of dissatisfaction.

Something was definitely wrong.

The cold bath ordered through the maid, the indifferent reaction to not tattling to mother, and the meal with a lot of salt. Carsein didn’t react to anything.

Because he didn’t react to anything. It felt like a golden opportunity slipped away.

So, I was dissatisfied. I even suspected that the maid wasn’t doing her job properly.

Emma, who had been acting as a nanny since childhood, said she would make sure to produce proper results.

How much time passed since then? Emma smiled and said preparations were complete, telling me to go up to Carsein’s room as usual. She even firmly stated that I couldn’t help but get angry if I didn’t.

‘As expected, it’s Emma!’

Thanks to that, Flora’s steps, which were heavy with dissatisfaction during meals, became infinitely lighter.

Excited, she was jumping and skipping until she arrived at Carsein’s room.

“Let’s see… She said she prepared dessert, right? Yeah!”

Recalling what Emma told her, Flora opened the door with a big grin.

“Did you enjoy the dessert I prepared~?”

It was a truly annoying voice.

Since it was obvious what was in the prepared dessert, the taunt was full of sarcasm as if asking how she could remain calm after eating it.

Surely, she would get angry and raise her voice, flaring up.

She threw a sentence without a doubt, believing it would happen.

“What? Why isn’t it there?”

Carsein’s figure wasn’t seen in the room. He wasn’t on the bed, nor sitting at the table. The Carsein who usually suppressed his expression wasn’t visible at all.

There’s no way. Unlike Carsein’s maid, Emma wouldn’t lie.

I wondered what was going on. Upon closer inspection, a foot sticking out from under the table could be seen.

“Fufu, what’s that? Are you hiding because of me?”

It’s not a game of hide-and-seek. Given that it’s so obvious, I wanted to tease her even more.

Flora pondered how to use this as she moved toward the side of the table.

However.

“Uh, uh…”

The excited expression of the little girl, ready to pounce, instantly hardened.

Her neatly folded eyes trembled in panic, and her grinning lips drooped.

She neither got angry asking “Why?” nor raised her voice in anger.

She didn’t try to hold back with a strained expression.

Carsein, lying on the floor between the bed and table, was in a state where he couldn’t make any expression or sound.

Carsein had collapsed.

“I, I don’t know… I, I don’t know!”

The frightened girl backed away. One step, another step. Soon, she turned her back and left the room.

-Knock!

Carsein’s door closed heavily with a loud noise.

***

“Looks like dinner is over. I should get up now.”

“Mom? Already getting up?”

“I have a bit more work to do. I want to finish what I started.”

“But Mom. You’ve just returned. You should rest a bit longer.”

Isabella shook her head.

With Carsein and Flora gone, there was no reason for the two of them to stay.

Despite saying they had work to do, Isabella’s pace of eating slowed down gradually after Carsein left. Her gaze became distant, and her responses became shorter.

Because of that brat who left the seat. That’s why Mom had to leave.

Claire, unable to contain her dissatisfaction, immediately headed off as soon as she left the dining room. Ariana, watching Claire, called out to her.

“Claire.”

“Don’t stop me, sis. Mom finally returned from the territory. It’s not like we can’t even sit here for a bit.”

Even if they had stayed until they finished eating, the dinner wouldn’t have ended so awkwardly.

“So, I have to speak up. Don’t stop me.”

“It’s not about stopping you. I’m saying let’s go together.”

“Huh?”

“I think the same thing. You have to know how to maintain at least basic manners.”

Siblings with the same thoughts walked side by side toward Carsein’s room.

“Carsein─”

“Hey, Carsein. Are you in? I’m coming in!”

Ariana tried to knock on the firmly closed door, but Claire couldn’t wait and burst in.

“What’s this? Where did you go? You can’t be washing up now.”

“There’s no way Carsein has any schedule. Looks like he was eating dessert.”

“Well, yeah. So, where is he… Eh?”

Suddenly, Claire noticed something protruding from under the table. It was Carsein’s shoes.

“I’m fed up. What is he doing on the floor while eating dessert?”

“Hey. What are you doing on the floor?”

The two sisters, walking briskly, widened their eyes like spectators.

“Carsein!”

“Is anyone outside? Go and fetch Sheiden!”