Chapter 4: The Breeze in the Palace

“Hmm-hmm~~”

The elf, humming a tune while watering useless vines, looked utterly delighted.

Her joy aside, those worthless vines needed to be cleared from the garden.

To do that, I needed the permission of the hero’s party’s elf archer, Siana.

“Miss Siana, have you been well?”

“What… what’s with you, human man…?”

She seemed taken aback by my polite tone. I’d used the utmost respect to gain her approval, but elves were indeed tricky.

“I’ve come with a request.”

“A request…? Speak, and I’ll decide whether to listen after hearing you out.”

I wasn’t sure if this approach would work, but for the sake of the mansion’s appearance, I had to try.

“Those flowers are pitiful, Miss Siana.”

Empathy for plants—that was the name of my strategy to persuade her.

“Don’t you feel sorry for how the vines are suffocating the flowers?”

Flowers sprout from tiny seeds, enduring long periods to bloom and show their colors. But after all that time, their existence is erased by the darkness of the vines.

“Hmm…”

She began to think. The conflict between vines and flowers. As an elf, deeply connected to nature, she likely understood this better than anyone.

“Look at that. Don’t those menacing vines torment the fragile flowers?”

The aggressive vines were bullying the delicate flowers. I framed the flowers as victims.

Sure, the vines were just trying to survive, but when there’s a victim, the story changes entirely. It becomes a cruel tale of aggressor and prey.

“Vines are living things too, human man. It’s surprising you understand nature, but my opinion won’t change.”

“Even if the vines are stealing the flowers’ lives?”

I infused my argument with emotion—sadness. Even a stoic elf couldn’t help but be swayed by emotion.

“That… that’s…!”

Siana couldn’t say more.

‘I’m more in tune with nature.’

My victory. Her defeat came from her lack of empathy for the plants.

“Let’s remove those vines and make the garden beautiful.”

In the end, we decided to hire a gardener to turn the mansion’s garden into a proper flower garden.

‘Am I working too hard…?’

Leni, who had forgotten his goal of escaping, was now fully immersed in his butler duties.

“Princess Aria! Please come out and at least eat something!”

The voice of a maid shouting from outside was just noise to me.

‘So noisy.’

The attendants calling for me day and night didn’t know what I truly wanted, beyond meals.

“I’ll leave the newspaper here… Your meal is at the door, so please eat!”

After hearing the maid’s voice and her footsteps fading, I felt relief that the noisy presence was gone. But realizing the void left behind, I sank back into gloom.

“Leni…”

There was no one left to praise my actions.

“Well done, Princess.”

His warm hand always praised me and never scolded me, even when I caused trouble.

“You mustn’t do that next time, okay?”

He’d only gently chide me in that kind tone. So different from those so-called family members.

Without him now, I’d lost my drive to live.

‘Boring and dull.’

What was Leni doing now? Was the hero’s party mistreating him?

My thoughts were consumed with him, wondering what he was up to.

‘Maybe it’s in the newspaper?’

Since he was with the wildly popular hero, perhaps the newspaper held traces of Leni. I cracked the door open, grabbed the paper, and brought it inside.

– Saintess Leisha volunteers for children!

– Hero’s party elf Siana declares slavery the vilest law! What’s her intent?

– Mage Sera. Where is she now?

As expected, the newspaper was flooded with stories about the hero’s party, and I found one mention of Leni.

– A grand transformation at the haunted mansion! The hero’s chosen butler, Leni, is behind it…

– Rip!

The newspaper was torn to shreds by magic.

‘What is this…?’

I should’ve been happy to see Leni thriving elsewhere. I could boast that my butler was so capable.

But hearing about Leni, no longer my butler, made my chest tight, my breath short.

This was jealousy. I knew this feeling better than anyone, but I couldn’t control it.

‘What was taken can be taken back.’

I hated myself for being powerless while the hero took Leni.

But now…

‘I hate the hero who stole Leni even more.’

I would rescue Leni from the hero. And then I’d lock him away where no one could see him.

It was Leni’s fault for being so charming.

And so, a wind of change began to blow in the imperial palace. A small breeze named Aria.

“Ugh… what’s that?”

A sudden chill ran through my body. Was someone talking about me?

Probably just the newspaper mentioning me again. I brushed it off and kept moving. The mansion had undergone a major transformation recently, and with so much to do, I was exhausted.

‘I’ve hired a chef, maids, and a gardener.’

There were more staff to hire, but that wasn’t my task right now.

I was on my way to meet the hero, who had summoned me.

Gotta listen to the big boss, right?

– Knock, knock.

“May I come in?”

“Yes, come in.”

The hero was sitting primly on the drawing room sofa. Her jet-black hair, cascading to her waist, exuded elegance.

I placed a cup of tea in front of her, sat across, and waited for her to speak.

“First, I want to thank you.”

Eren expressed her gratitude, saying she enjoyed seeing the mansion come alive, changing day by day.

“As expected of my teacher…”

“What?”

“Oh, nothing.”

Eren covered her mouth, smiling with her eyes. A cold sweat broke out when she called me teacher.

‘She hasn’t figured it out, has she?’

If she had, she’d have confronted me already. Leni forgot the hero had the holy sword.

“How are the others?”

“We get along fine.”

Leisha sometimes glared at me, probably thinking of her jewels, but her saintly kindness shone through—as long as money wasn’t involved.

Siana seemed to have softened toward me since the garden incident. Maybe because she saw my nature-loving side.

As for the mage, Sera…

“I haven’t had a single conversation with her.”

She only came out for meals, and I had no idea what she did otherwise.

So, I hadn’t even had a casual chat with her.

“She’s a good kid. Just not great at expressing herself.”

I knew Sera had a troubled past, so I believed she was kind at heart.

But knowing that made her harder to approach, though I couldn’t say why.

‘If I get caught, I’m in big trouble…’

Eren and I had exchanged letters for a long time.

Three years ago, I noticed something off about her.

‘I want to see your face.’

Her letters, usually formal reports of events, started including questions about me.

I replied, “You can’t.” That’s when it began.

“Can I call you Teacher?”

She asked if she could call me Teacher since I guided her on what to do. She must’ve seen me that way. After that, her questions veered off track.

“How old are you, Teacher?”

“Do you have a lover?”

Her questions grew personal, and since she was going through tough times, I answered them all, thinking I was guiding her on the right path.

Seeing her now, so well-grown, was moving.

Her personality, her looks—she was perfect in every way, as expected of a hero.

“Let’s end the meeting here. You worked hard today. Go rest.”

How kind. Leni felt like a proud father watching his child grow. Did he know? It was all part of her plan. Leni was clueless.

Back in my room, I decided to enjoy some rest for once. The method? Sleep. Deep, satisfying sleep.

‘Time to use that.’

Hidden deep in a drawer was a bottle with white petals.

White roses from the north. They were the key to tonight.

I lit a candle and burned the petals. A fragrance filled the room, and my body grew languid.

‘This is happiness…’

I fell into a deep sleep in no time.

– Creak…

Too deep to notice someone entering my room.