He let go of me and scratched his arm, covered in goosebumps.
“A, a monster…!”
Oops.
I’d totally forgotten about the monster. I quickly turned around.
The sole servant of the baron’s household had spotted the monster outside and screamed.
Daniel was the first to react.
“Lady! Quickly, to the carriage!”
Rose scooped me up with one arm.
He handled me roughly, but at least he made sure I was okay, which was baffling.
“Why do you keep helping me? If that monster kills me, I’ll naturally be out of your way at the duke’s estate.”
“Because it’s gross if you start bleeding.”
“…”
I swear.
I wasn’t scared of this inhuman creature at all.
With me in his arms, Rose ran toward the door.
The man by the door, Dewey, got shoved aside by Rose and still couldn’t come to his senses.
“A, a monster? That can’t be…?”
In that brief moment, I managed to sneak a peek at the creature Dewey was holding.
It looked like a rabbit with unusually colored fur. Honestly, it didn’t seem like much of a monster to me.
The moment Rose shoved me into the carriage, we took off.
Wait, what?!
“Is it really okay for us to just leave?”
“They said it’s a low-tier monster. Three regular knights could handle it.”
Rose casually crossed his legs.
True. That’s probably why Dewey caught it in the first place.
“But doesn’t the baron’s household not even have three knights?”
Daniel Dawson was dirt poor. His coat, his shoes—everything was worn out. He even walked to the duke’s estate every day for work.
The salary he made as a tutor seemed to go straight to Nina’s food expenses.
And Dewey looked like he had rushed there all by himself.
Yeah, this isn’t going to work.
I signaled the driver to turn the carriage around.
Rose twisted his lips.
“What are you doing?”
“Then you go deal with that monster!”
“…What?”
I grabbed Rose’s arm.
“I’ll be out of your hair at the duke’s estate for, like, a day. You heard the baron say the young duke would make a great head of the household, right? He seemed to like the baron. You wouldn’t want the duke to lose someone important to him, would you?”
“As his guardian?”
“Yeah, as his guardian.”
That question about me getting divorced so (s)he could remarry must’ve really thrown him off.
It’s not like I was seriously considering it, even if he was an inhuman creature who people saw as female.
Rose clicked his tongue.
The carriage stopped in front of the baron’s mansion again, and Rose opened the window.
Dewey was desperately running away from the rabbit-like monster that kept bouncing after him.
Meanwhile, Nina yawned loudly from her cage.
If you didn’t know the situation, it would’ve looked ridiculous.
Without even getting out of the carriage, Rose snapped his fingers.
The monster that had been chasing Dewey suddenly evaporated with a poof, scattering like flower petals.
“Huh?”
Where did it go?
As if he knew exactly what I was wondering, Rose explained.
“I just sent it far away. Did you want me to kill it? Seeing blood isn’t exactly great for a ten-year-old.”
Oh. My. God.
I was blown away by how neatly the situation got resolved.
“You…you’re actually kind of nice, even if you talk all snarky!”
I grabbed Rose’s hand and shook it enthusiastically.
Rose cleared his throat.
“Ahem, well, yeah, I guess I’m pretty great.”
“Thanks for the help. You were a real lifesaver today!”
With all my praise, Rose got a little full of himself.
He even gave me a bit of credit.
“You’ve got guts, I’ll give you that. You don’t need to be gone for a whole day.”
Honestly, dealing with him is easier than I thought.
Kivrin was right. He’s not a bad ‘kid.’
* * *
As the girl stepped out of the carriage, all the servants’ eyes were on her.
Every one of them looked at her with warm feelings.
And it was no wonder.
Rose had to admit it grudgingly.
The girl had rescued Kiverin from the snake pit and earned the respect of both Winter and Menelik.
Despite what the temple said, many families were vying for her hand as the future duchess.
But no other lady had ever managed to face Menelik without fainting or standing her ground against Kiverin.
That alone was enough to make her likable, not to mention her delicate, innocent appearance that stirred up everyone’s protective instincts.
Her pale, fragile skin that would easily burn in the sun, her big doe eyes, her gentle downward gaze. And her hair, tinted with the light of dawn.
She always smiled freely, lighting up the otherwise grim atmosphere of the duke’s estate, earning constant praise.
With her looks and her actions, she was constantly emphasizing her harmlessness.
…Which was exactly why Rose found her suspicious.
Back in the wild, it was creatures like this that were the most dangerous.
That delicate, beautiful exterior was nothing but camouflage.
‘For now, she seems harmless,’ Rose thought, his brow twitching.
But even if she was completely ordinary, that was a problem too.
If the seal were to break, even Menelik wouldn’t be able to handle Kiverin, and that girl named Cheria would be the first to die.
Without knowing what Rose was thinking, Cheria came closer to his side.
She darted her eyes around, scanning the surroundings, before suddenly jerking her head up.
“I found the young duke!”
With that, Cheria dashed off toward the garden.
She was like a kid having fun on a rare outing.
“…”
Rose sighed, watching Cheria’s figure disappear into the distance.
A year ago, Rose had confirmed that Kiverin was sealed away in the snake pit before leaving.
If Kiverin had been a normal child, it would’ve been an incredibly cruel punishment.
But knowing what Kiverin was keeping sealed, Rose actually saw it as a decent solution.
The sealing technique wasn’t perfect, and the seal could break any day—even tonight.
The temple, completely unaware of this fact, kept calling Kiverin a monster.
‘A monster is an understatement.’
Behind that thin glass of the sealing spell lay that snake.
The apex predator.
During its active periods, it was referred to as the serpent god, a demon, or the fallen morning star—always tied to tales of calamities.
Kiverin and that snake were inseparable.
To be precise, they were one and the same.
It was almost pitiful how the priests kept stacking up karma, thinking they were under the protection of the gods.
“Baroness Rose.”
Cheria’s favorite maid called out to Rose.
Deciding the maid wasn’t worth remembering, Rose gave a slight nod.
The maid bowed in gratitude.
“Thank you so much for accompanying the young lady.”
“I simply did what was required.”
Rose’s voice was cold.
Sensing the strange tension, the maid flinched.
Despite feeling a bit drained, Rose suppressed the energy trying to surface from within him. He politely maintained his distance.
The maid, not understanding why, felt relieved.
Before Rose had arrived, even the servants had feared Kiverin.
They acted just like outsiders.
It was only after Rose used his magic to dilute their fear that people began to see Kiverin for who he was, and some even became loyal to him.
Looking back, Rose regretted that decision.
It would’ve been better to leave them with no fond memories so Kiverin would think both the snake pit and here were equally terrible.
Rose clicked his tongue.
It was too late for what-ifs.
Rose looked out at the garden, where the two children were chatting happily.
He acknowledged that the “current” Kiverin was a quiet child.
But still…
Rose found herself watching Cheria a little more closely, and a headache started to form.
“I really told her to leave because I was worried…”
Even Rose couldn’t predict what would happen if Kiverin regained the memories of his past life as the snake.
* * *
The incident at the baron’s mansion ended as a mere mishap.
Daniel ended up confessing everything to Winter, even though it wasn’t his fault, and Rose had safely brought me back.
Winter checked my condition first, then ordered that Dewey be apprehended.
Since Dewey had brought the monster without permission, he would be dealt with after the investigation.
On the other hand, Daniel, who had faithfully reported on Nina as promised, received a scolding rather than punishment.
“Are you still living in the slums with that monster?”
“It’s not a monster; her name is Nina…”
Shouldn’t someone be protesting the fact that the baron’s mansion was basically called a slum…?
Winter cut him off.
“Bring her here.”
“Pardon?”
“Kiverin said he wanted to see her. It’d be better for you and the creature.”
“…I’d be grateful if the duke’s estate would take care of her. Can I visit every day?”
Winter clicked her tongue.
“You haven’t changed. Do as you like.”
A wide grin spread across Daniel’s face.
“Thank you, O’ Master of Crescent Moon Castle and the Dark Moon Forest.”
The titles “Master of Crescent Moon Castle and the Dark Moon Forest” were honorary titles used to address Winter.
They were mentioned only once in The Villainess Only Wants The Money Path.
Since Winter owned the actual land, the titles weren’t exactly wrong.
Menelik had a habit of showering Winter with gifts, after all.
