Chapter 9: The Beginning of a Full-Blown Disaster (5)

“Hiiieek!”

I set the cup down with a clatter. My head was spinning.

W-Wait. Think this through. Is this… silver?

It was shiny and finely crafted, definitely a fancy silver spoon, probably given as a gift. Then… did it tarnish because of poison?

No, no, that can’t be. I hurried to calm myself, trying to talk myself down from this terrifying theory that would shatter my cushy gold-spoon freeloader life. I remembered reading somewhere that egg yolks can also discolor silver. Maybe the pill contains egg yolk or something!

…Okay, even I could tell that was pushing it.

I-I need to test this again.

I rummaged through a drawer and took out another pill I’d stashed last night instead of taking it. Carefully, I dissolved it in water and touched it to the untouched part of the silver spoon…

“…No reaction?”

Could it be the tea itself? But when I stirred just the tea earlier, nothing happened.

Gasp. Don’t tell me, mixing the two creates poison?!

I poured some of the tea from the teapot into the glass where the pill had dissolved. The silver spoon darkened even more. Eeek!

“P-Poisoning… This is an attempted poisoning.”

That’s the only explanation. It only reacts when the pill and tea are combined. That level of caution, someone is clearly after this body’s inheritance! My face went pale as I put down the cup.

I-I should call a servant and show them this, explain the situation, and… 

Wait. I don’t even know who’s involved in this. My stepmother isn’t here, and the only one around is my hostile and uncooperative stepbrother. If I go public with this now, they might just cover up the evidence.

…And in the worst-case scenario, if everything is erased and the suspects keep their mouths shut, when my stepmother hears about it, she might finally decide I’ve gone from forgetful to full-blown delusional (because of my erratic memories) and send me off to a ‘rest facility’ that’s actually just a psychiatric hospital.

No way! Even if the original owner of this body returns later, this mess will be beyond fixing!

C-Calm down… Maybe the best plan is to grab anything valuable and skip town tonight? That’s my best bet?

Not a calm plan at all, but I started pacing my room in circles. By the time I’d made more than twenty laps, someone knocked on the door.

It was Sunset’s voice.

“Young Lady?”

Gasp. Is she checking if I’ve died? That warning earlier about not drinking too much… was that her conscience speaking?

Preserve the evidence, quick! I yanked the tarnished silver spoon out of the cup and tossed it into the desk drawer, the same one I’d used to hide the pills. Then I hurried to pour out the remaining tea in the bathroom. I managed to do it all in five seconds, fueled by sheer panic, then cleared my throat and answered as calmly as possible.

“Yes? What is it?”

“…Lord Moore requests a meeting with you.”

Oh, right. My fiancé is still in the mansion. I’d forgotten thanks to this early-morning chaos. Maybe I can tell him. At the very least, he has nothing to gain from my death, so he might help me. Maybe even get me a carriage if I need to run.

I swallowed hard and pulled the silver spoon out of the drawer, slipping it into my pocket.

“Alright. Let’s go.”

* * *

I thought I’d be led to the drawing room again, but to my surprise, I was taken straight to the front entrance. Honestly, I’d been worried they might try to lure me into some secluded part of the mansion and attack me, but thankfully, that didn’t happen. Then again, someone who planned such meticulous poisoning wouldn’t make such an amateurish move.

With half-lidded eyes, I stared at the girl my age who topped the list of suspects.

Even if she didn’t bear a personal grudge, people sometimes commit frightening acts for all sorts of reasons. She could’ve been threatened, or maybe she needed money!

If it’s the latter, maybe we could negotiate a settlement, but if it’s the former, I have no idea what to do. D**n it. If I knew things would turn out like this, I should’ve majored in Political Science or International Relations. Why did I go into Russian Literature just because my grades lined up? There’s not a single trace of Mother Russia around here!

Regardless of what I was thinking, Sunset dutifully led me to the entrance, and that’s where I encountered the first person to drive me up the wall today.

“…You?”

“I’m here to see my fiancé. Don’t get the wrong idea.”

I quickly answered upon seeing my half-brother. He seemed to be trying to sneak out through the front entrance, completely bundled up from head to toe. I didn’t see any signs of cross-dressing this time, but he was so thoroughly wrapped up, it was hard to tell. He bit his lip, clearly flustered at being caught by me.

Wait a second. Was he trying to make a quick exit to create an alibi after ordering my poisoning? I eyed him suspiciously, scanning him from head to toe.

“Rose.”

“Oh… Lord Moore.”

At the sound of that soft, low voice, I turned my head and there it was again, that breathtaking face I could never get used to. Even in a situation like this, I still noticed his looks. Unbelievable.

My fiancé smiled faintly and said to me,

“I have good news. My affairs are settled, so I’ll be staying in this mansion for the foreseeable future.”

“Oh…”

Perhaps interpreting my reaction as lukewarm, he lowered his lashes and added gently, “If it would be a burden, I can purchase a nearby residence instead.”

“No, not at all. That sounds great.”

D**n, listen to this guy. Just casually throwing out that he’ll buy a house. Honestly, if he’s staying here, that works perfectly for me. We can finally have a real discussion about things. I nodded.

“Ah.”

Then, as if only now noticing my half-brother, my fiancé turned to him with a warm smile. With long, confident strides, he approached and spoke in a gentle voice.

“You must be Madame Zauer’s eldest daughter. I believe this is the first time we’re meeting one-on-one. I look forward to getting along.”

“…”

My half-brother stared at him without a word, then brushed past without responding and bolted up the stairs.

“Oh dear, she must be very shy.”

“…”

No, I’m pretty sure he just panicked because his cover was about to be blown… Did he give up on going out altogether? I watched him go with a blank expression, but then flinched as I glanced sideways.

Sunset was grinning as she stared up after my half-brother.

I hadn’t known her long, but I was pretty sure I’d never seen her smile so broadly. It was like she was a different person. I was startled by the sudden change but then, something clicked in my mind, and I slapped a hand over my mouth.

Wait a minute. Could it be that Sunset’s in love with my half-brother, and she’s trying to kill me to make sure the inheritance goes to him?!

No. No way. That’s ridiculous… right? I mean, that’s way too dramatic, even for this mess. But… hold on a second.

Haven’t all the things that have happened to me since I got here been overly dramatic and emotionally charged?

“Hrk.”

“…Rose?”

That’s when it finally hit me.

The truth behind this whole situation!

A sickly protagonist from a wealthy, broken home… A drop-dead gorgeous fiancé with every desirable trope attached… A beautiful, traumatized stepmother… A crossdressing half-brother with a terrible sibling relationship… Poison, betrayal, and tangled love affairs!

And to top it all off, possession!?

That’s right. This isn’t just some ordinary mess. I’ve been possessed! What else could you even call this!?

The addictive taste of melodrama that grabs your nerves and won’t let go! You rage, you cry, you scream ‘Why!?’ and keep clicking ‘Next Episode’ for that sweet, sweet revenge payoff!

This is K-Romance Fantasy!

I’ve been thrown into a romance-fantasy novel!