"Holy saints!"
I covered my mouth with my hands in shock when I realized that I had just stumbled upon someone's body.
In the darkness of the forest, I could make out a girl about my age or a little older, whom I almost stepped on. Realizing this, I hurriedly jumped aside.
She had a beautiful face with chiseled features, pale skin and dark brown hair. Deep down, I thought she was very beautiful for a commoner. At first glance, it was not difficult for me to guess her origin.
Despite her attractive, upper-class face, her clothes were very poor. If you count it, it was clearly worth no more than a pair of silver ones.
However, she was covered in blood now.
I actually found a corpse in the woods, not far from my estate!
Considering that this was my "first time", I was shaking with fear for a while. Then she took a deep breath and tried to bring herself to her senses.
After all, this is an R-19 rated novel. Death and violence should be taken for granted here, just like elves and dragons in fantasy. No wonder sooner or later I discovered someone's lifeless body.
But most of all, of course, I was shocked that it happened very close to my house! Moreover, I almost tripped over her...
How could this commoner be here in such a terrible state? There was only one possible scenario spinning in my head.
The poor girl must have had the misfortune to run into bandits. A Dark Army was constantly combing the area nearby. Of course, these criminals didn't care about human lives.
I looked at this girl with pity. So young and beautiful, and she left this world so early... I have to be especially vigilant so that the same thing doesn't happen to me.
After mentally praying for the repose of her soul, I was about to step over her body and move on. But... The next moment, I almost had a second heart attack.
A cold hand, as if from the depths of hell, suddenly grabbed my leg.
I turned around in shock.
Just as I was about to step over her, the girl I thought was a corpse suddenly grabbed me. She was still unconscious. Apparently, it was her internal reflexes that triggered it.
I was discouraged by this turn of events.
"This can't be happening! Is she still alive...?!"
Despite the fact that she wasn't even breathing a second ago, her icy fingers held me surprisingly tightly. With difficulty, but I managed to free myself. As soon as I did, her last strength ran out and her arm went limp.
Forgetting about the purpose for which I originally went to this forest, I rushed to her.
Despite the fact that I care about my own skin more than anything else in the world, I am still not a heartless creature.
— Hey, how are you?!
It's a strange question, considering she's covered in blood. Oh well.
After the expected lack of response, I leaned my head against her chest. And how else can you check if a person is alive or not? Through her clothes, I could see her heart beating very faintly. And her breathing was as absent as a dead man's.
I realized that even if she wasn't dead yet, it was about to happen.
As it turned out, I was screaming quite loudly. Less than five minutes later, Elisha caught up with me, worried that I was facing some kind of danger.
— M-my lady! What happened...
The maid froze when she saw me bending over someone's body. At the same moment, her pupils dilated.
— Uh-that...
For a few seconds, I was tormented by remorse. I thought if I just left her here, I'd feel guilty for the rest of my life. After all, even if it was unfamiliar, it was a human life.
I believed that one day my action today would come back to me like a boomerang.
— Hurry up!
I threw one of her arms over me, but it turned out that I could not do without help. Surprisingly, despite her slim build, she turned out to be quite heavy. The maid was stunned, not quite understanding what I was going to do.
I looked at her expectantly.
— Elisha, hurry up! Take her other hand.
She froze in a daze.
— B-but... My Lady... Who is this anyway? What do you want to do?
— I'll explain everything later!
My tone of defiance finally brought her out of her stupor. As a result, the girl had to obey and drag this "burden" with me to the estate. Fortunately, there weren't many servants outside, as most of them were preparing for the Duke's arrival.
Almost imperceptibly, we carried the commoner through the back door directly to my room. I asked Elisha to call our family doctor, Xavier.
My request did not take long to wait, and after fifteen minutes the right person appeared. All this time, I was nervously glancing at my watch, because every second counted.
The commoner was lying serenely on my bed and showed no signs of life. I was afraid that eventually she would die right here in my room.
When an elderly man who looked like a professor entered the room, I immediately locked the door behind him. The healer was somewhat surprised by this turn of events, and soon asked uncertainly:
— My Lady, you summoned me without warning... Is it something urgent? Are you unwell?
— Not for me.
— what?
— Can you examine her?
When I stepped aside and the doctor saw the girl lying on my bed, his eyes bulged out of their sockets. Probably because she was really in a terrible state.
— Uh-uh... Let me ask you a question.
Realizing that he was going to ask me the same question as the maid, I interrupted him.
— Please, I'll explain everything later! But do something right now!
Xavier stared at me in surprise for a while, probably because it was the first time he had seen me so determined. As a child, Camilla was a sickly child, and the doctor often had to visit her. He remembered the duke's youngest daughter as a weak and rather insecure lady.
This was the first time Camille had called him to her on her own, and even set some conditions. For obvious reasons, the man was puzzled. But then, overcoming his inner embarrassment, he began to perform his duties directly.
"I'll do my best."
No more than ten minutes had passed while we were waiting outside the door. I was surprised that the healer invited us in so soon. This meant that everything was either very good or very bad.
As it turned out, the latter.
"I'm afraid I can't help you."
Xavier spread his hands helplessly.
— How so? Didn't my father hire you because you're one of the best doctors in the empire?
Xavier shrugged guiltily. There was a note of doom in his voice:
— I'm afraid that apart from God himself, even the most talented doctors on the planet are not able to help this girl.
— Why?! Is it really that serious?
I was shocked. At first glance, it seemed to me that this was just a knife wound received during some kind of fight. Can't he just be operated on and patched up?
But when I told the doctor about it, he shook his head.
— There is indeed a knife wound, but this is not the worst thing. The fact is, judging by all the symptoms, this girl is poisoned.
I couldn't believe my ears.
Who would want to waste poison, which was considered very valuable in the empire, on some commoner? Is this definitely not a mistake?
But the doctor dispelled my doubts:
— I assure you, I could not be mistaken in such a question. It is indeed a poison, and a very rare drug. It contains complex and dangerous components. So much so that it is almost impossible to survive after such poisoning.
— ...
I couldn't even find the words.
"Since I have never come across such a recipe, I do not know the antidote to it," he continued, "I'm afraid what I have with me will not help in any way.
I bit my lip nervously.
Is this how it's going to end?
I looked at the commoner who was lying unconscious on my bed and was in the prime of her life. I couldn't believe that her life would end so unfairly and cruelly.
How can anyone deserve such an end for themselves?
With the exception of the main villain, I probably didn't wish this fate on anyone. Even that scumbag, my older brother, wasn't bad enough to deserve such a painful death.
Taking a deep breath, I made a firm and irrevocable decision in my life. Even if I might regret it later.
— Elisha.
I called my maid softly.
The girl immediately appeared next to me and asked me what I needed from her.
— How many frosty mushrooms did you manage to collect?
After Elisha called the doctor, the presence of a second person was unnecessary, and in order not to waste time, I sent her back to the forest. After all, this was indeed a valuable opportunity.
— Uh... — The maid hesitated.
— what?
— My Lady, I could only find one frosty mushroom... — the girl confessed, — Everyone else needs at least another ten years to fully mature... I assure you, I have examined everything thoroughly!
Elisha took a mushroom out of the basket and showed it to me. It was very similar to the champignonette, familiar to me from my world.
That's just it... When I tried to touch it with my bare hand, my finger went numb, as if I had touched a block of ice. Well, at least the mushroom lived up to its name.
I smiled mirthlessly.
So, in these fifty years, only one has been able to grow up? Not so much. In any case, I would not be able to build a business with such a small amount of "goods".
Thus, my entrepreneurial career collapsed before it even started.
Well, then, it remains only to apply it for its intended purpose.
I took the basket with a single frosty mushroom from Elisha's hands and turned to the doctor. He watched in surprise what I was going to do.
— Xavier, can you make a decoction of this mushroom? I want to save this girl.
The Empress, Valencia Gross de Ronan, gulped down a glass of red wine. A bottle of this wine cost so much that you could buy an entire house with this money. Then she suddenly burst into loud laughter. The maids lined up near Her Majesty's resting place froze.
It was not often that they had seen the Empress in such a good mood. Therefore, the fact that the woman did not stop smiling in the morning clearly put them in a stupor.
Serving the Empress was not an ungrateful task, because she was the most respected woman in the empire. That's just because of the constant variability of her mood, it was very difficult to please such a lady.
Being the daughter of an influential and noble family, Valencia has been spoiled since childhood.
When she lost her temper, she started screaming and often insulted others. Often the Empress raised her hand against her maids.
When she broke an expensive cup or tore carefully sewn clothes, the maids who served her felt extremely anxious.
They all expected that one day the same thing would happen to them as with these items.
No one talked about it out loud, but they were thinking the same thing. How could such an arrogant and cruel woman have a daughter like Jerica? As a child, the second princess was pampered no less than her mother, but she grew up to be her complete opposite.
Her kind heart could conquer even those who were dissatisfied with the current imperial power.
This is truly a miracle.
Every time her mother went too far, Jerica would appear out of nowhere and come to their rescue. Like a brave knight on a white horse. Unsurprisingly, despite the conservatism of society, many of the maids in the palace felt sympathy for her.
However, today, even the help of the second princess was not needed. For some unknown reason, the Empress was in such a good mood that the maids were afraid to inadvertently anger her and spoil everything.
Trying her best not to annoy the Empress, the head maid spoke cautiously:
"Your Majesty, can we help you change?"
Valencia lazily waved them away like flies.
— You don't need to. Just leave me alone.
Upon hearing this, the entire queue felt deeply relieved. It looks like they won't be executed today.
Trying to figure out what made the Empress so happy that she never even raised her hand to them, everyone left.
As they did so, another shadow flashed across the room.
An assassin dressed in closed clothes landed unnoticed on her knees in front of her. A beautiful woman who looked like a rose with thorns finally looked up from contemplating her glass.
— Do you want to give me good news?
The mercenary was so nervous that he swallowed his saliva.
— Y-Your Majesty...
— What is it? — She asked, tossing back her long luxurious hair, which was blond with a bronze tinge, — I need her head to personally show to the imperial court. I want to see how arrogant she can be when that's all that's left of her.
The man's lips twitched after the woman's words.
The mercenary said it carefully as sapphire-like sparkling eyes turned to him. He swallowed again in excitement.
— Your Majesty, I don't have her body...
After these words, the smile disappeared from the Empress's face.
The mercenary turned pale as a sheet from fear. An experienced warrior, who had killed countless people in his life, froze in the presence of his mistress.
And then a terrifyingly calm voice sounded above his head.
— What do you mean?
Cold sweat broke out on his neck. The feeling of fear did not allow the mercenary to even raise his head. Watching his expression, he stammered out:
— After yesterday's incident, we were unable to find Her Highness's body... But all our people, including her, are dead.
The Empress jumped up from her chair.
— Is it true?!
— Your Majesty, we don't know what happened to the body, but rest assured that the mission has been successfully completed! We found a knife smeared with poison in the place where the fight took place. There was also blood on it. Without a doubt, this is Her Highness's blood!
Valencia Gross de Ronan, who had not expected such a turn of events, nervously pursed her lips. In an instant, her good mood changed to the point that she was ready to throw a knife at the same mercenary.
But...
— Is there any news from the Heilos residence? — she asked immediately.
The mercenary shook his head negatively.
"I'm sure the princess definitely didn't return to her manor tonight!"
The Empress exhaled tensely. She was disappointed that people who had served her for so many years could have made such a mistake.
Does it make sense to continue to support this organization?
From the intention to carry out her plans and execute all these losers to hell, the woman was stopped by a hasty action on the part of the servant. The killer pulled out a slightly bloody token from under his clothes.
A gold plate on which the coat of arms in the form of a crown and a lion's head was engraved. The badge of a member of the imperial family.
It was a special token that allowed a member of the Ronan family to confirm his identity outside the palace. It also served as an automatic pass to any city of the empire or military unit. A relic that was available in extremely limited quantities, which every member of the family carried with them from birth, especially when they left the palace.
The Empress pursed her lips, twirling the token in her hands. Kaena's name was engraved on the back. Given its value, the woman knew in advance that the princess could not lose it just like that.
Initially, the Empress intended to put the body of the crown Princess on public display in order to personally demonstrate to her subjects that the main threat to the security of the empire had been eliminated. It would also make the transfer of the heiress's title fully justified.
But... The circumstances were somewhat different.
If the poison was really used, then by this morning, Kaena should already be dead. The chances of healing, except for a miracle, in such a situation were zero. Then what could have happened to the body?
Except that...
— I've heard that the number of demonic beasts in the western outskirts has increased recently! — the mercenary quickly realized, — They often attack people as well.
— That is...?
The servant confirmed her guess.
— Most likely, Her Highness was eaten alive.
Hearing this, the Empress couldn't help but burst out laughing.
Such a fate... Even better than she imagined!
Just think. The invincible Kaena Hessen de Ronan, who was feared by the entire empire, was torn apart like some kind of carcass! Just imagining this picture, the woman was incredibly delighted.
It's possible that karma really worked for all her misdeeds.
— Great! It's just great!
The Empress clapped her hands like a little child.
For the first time, the mercenary felt relieved and exhaled. Thank the gods, the Empress was satisfied. Deep down, he hoped that everything was as he said.
It's different...
While the assassin was thinking about it, the Empress had already begun to plan the upcoming celebration with might and main. The long-awaited death of the monstrous crown Princess must certainly be celebrated on a grand scale.
— Send someone for the First Minister immediately! — She shouted to the servants in the corridor, — We must begin preparations for the coronation ceremony of the second princess as soon as possible.
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