"Why? You shouldn't befriend her. You must show her that this place belongs to you. You can't afford to be soft-hearted with her."
Henry listened to Mira's rambling in silence, deliberately ignoring her. Her words only confirmed his suspicions that he had been right all along. She must have played a role in the process that led to Henry's blackening.
What Henry couldn't understand was the depth of her hostility toward Ricarda. Even more unsettling was Mira's obvious cockiness while insulting the daughter of the person she was working for.
It was both ungrateful and crazy.
"Let's go."
Henry opened the door and stepped into the hallway, heading toward Ricarda's room. Mira followed closely behind, her posture proud and smug, as though she were parading her new status as the personal maid of the young master of Bryxton Mansion.
She was seriously getting on his nerves now.
As they approached Ricarda's door, Henry felt his nerves tighten again. For whatever the reason, he feared he would fail to ignore that image of that unhinged Ricarda, though he had convinced himself a lot to think it was just a dream.
Well, it was a dream where he got killed, brutally and painfully.
He honestly couldn't feel normal about it.
'Huh… She is just a child. I was just dreaming weird.'
Taking a deep breath, Henry raised his hand and knocked on the door to Ricarda's room.
"Ricarda, it's Henry."
No response for a while.
"…Is anyone there?"
The silence was awkward. Thankfully, Martha opened the door a moment later and saved him from the feeling of being embarrassed about getting ignored.
"Ah! Young Master, please come in," she said apologetically. "Ricarda just woke up."
Before Henry could respond, Mira scoffed loudly.
"Sleeping this late? Is she really a lady? She should know better. Does she think she's some kind of princess, making our young master wait for her?"
The words were sharp, far too sharp for a maid.
And annoying.
"She is indeed a princess. She is the princess in this mansion," a furious voice thundered. "And who do you think you are to judge her?"
A chill ran down everyone's spine.
The duke stood behind them.
'When did he come here? I didn't even notice.'
Henry watched the mean guy's glare, basically piercing through Mira, who was now at the verge of tears.
'Yeah, now cry when you get consequen-?!'
"Forgive me, Master!" Mira collapsed to her knees instantly. "It- it was the young master! He told me to say those things! I would never dare speak so rudely! Please forgive this lowly servant!"
Her body trembled as she cried on her knees, pointing at Henry, which made Henry freeze.
That… he definitely didn't expect.
But he should have...
'D-damn… This bitch!'
Henry barely had time to react, and a sudden scream pierced the air, startling him and the other maids who gathered around.
'Mira? What's going on?'
Henry watched Mira cry out in agony, clutching herself as she looked up at Henry with tear-filled eyes. She looked like she was in pain, but… why? No one even touched her.
"It was you! Why do I have to die?!"
Henry's blood ran cold as, even now, she was trying to drag him down with her. It seemed like she was dead set on making Henry the villain no matter what.
"Merlin," the duke said coldly. "Throw her into the dungeon. Torture her until she learns how to keep her mouth shut."
The guards seized Mira and dragged her away as she screamed curses and accusations at Henry again.
'The fuck you are staring at me now?'
The hallway fell silent, and the duke's glare was now on Henry, still furious.
"Henry," the duke called. "Do you have anything to say?"
Henry remained calm, though he wasn't prepared for this. He took a second and acted calm and kept his composure, since confidence was always the key.
'C-confidence. Fuck confidence. I just don't want to die this early. Not by this guy.'
"If I truly wanted to be foolish and cause trouble," Henry said calmly, meeting the duke's piercing gaze, "why would I choose such an unloyal servant? I am not that foolish. I came here to speak with Ricarda, not to cause trouble."
Henry did not flinch. But every minute of silence that passed made him doubt the words he said.
"Mmh," the duke muttered after a moment. "Make sure nothing like this happens again."
With that, he walked away.
'Oh...That easily?'
Henry immediately relaxed, wiping away the invisible sweat forming on his forehead.
And that was also when he noticed Martha, who was trembling in the corner, shaken by the whole thing.
"Martha," Henry said gently, "can you take me to her?"
She hesitated, then nodded, slowly recovering to help her young master.
When they entered the room, though, Henry frowned seeing the empty room because Ricarda was nowhere to be seen.
Henry glanced at Martha in confusion. She also looked just as confused, as Ricarda had actually been here only moments ago.
As they were about to search for her in the room, though there weren't many places to look for a child, Henry noticed a strange bulge beneath the blanket on the bed.
And it moved.
'Oh… was she scared by the commotion outside?'
"…There."
He pointed it out to Martha and stepped back. Martha rushed to remove the blanket and reassure the child who must have gotten scared by the sound outside.
Martha lifted the blanket and obviously-
Ricarda lay beneath it.
She was curled up tightly, her hands covering her face, her body trembling.
It was just a scared child.
To Martha…
For the first few seconds, it was to Henry too.
But then… he froze.
Blood-red.
Those eyes…
He was sure.
The same eyes he saw for a split second in that dream.
They were staring right back at him.
At this moment.
'F-fuck… I am not dreaming now.'
Henry's face immediately drained of color as the dream replayed in his head, confirming his doubt.
They were the same eyes.
He didn't see them wrong.
Not now, not in that dream…
"Martha," he said quietly, "call Father. Tell him she isn't feeling well."
Henry said cautiously as Ricarda suddenly looked completely normal, her eyes back to the gorgeous blue. But, Henry knew he didn't see it wrong. There is something weird about her.
But she was now sobbing and seemingly having a panic attack or something, so to be safe, he thought it was best to inform the mean guy.
With his order, Martha rushed out immediately, as she also agreed it was what was best to do right now.
As the two were now left alone, Henry's curiosity got the better of him.
What's happening?
Why is she… why did she look like that?
Also… could she really kill him like in the dream?
'Did I perhaps get a hint of the events that might happen in the future? But… it's new. I ended up making the dead Henry wake up again but was later killed by Ricarda… But what's the point? This is so confusing. What's real even? Am I dreaming now too?'
Henry frowned, talking to himself as he then turned back to Ricarda, hearing the sound of the bed sheet moving.
"Ricarda…?"
Henry called, getting back into acting, but got no response.
'Is she deaf or what now?'
Henry rolled his eyes, mostly annoyed because he couldn't help but feel scared of her a little now.
"Are you okay?"
Henry asked again and slowly stepped closer as Ricarda got out of the blanket, now staring at him, her trembling slowly dying down.
'Good. She is calming down.'
Carefully, Henry took another step closer and gently touched her shoulder.
Which he shouldn't have done.
Only god knows how he was so dumb…
Ricarda flinched violently, recoiling as though his touch burned her, and Henry immediately stepped back, blaming himself for having made things worse now and questioning himself why he even wanted to touch her after wanting to step as far as away from her.
"I- I'm sorry," Henry said quickly. "I didn't mean to scare you. I- "
His words died in his throat when he watched her eyes literally turn crimson, cold, and… terrifying. Again.
Henry's breath hitched as he took a lot more steps back, but unable to break eye contact, as if he wanted to make sure he was seeing it wrong while trying to convince himself the horrible dream might never come true.
'No, no. Henry, calm down. She seems triggered by something. I should forget I saw that for a moment. Henry, Henry. Get back into your senses. She is normal, normal. Normal. She is just a scared girl. Worry about the other things later!'
"I wanted to have breakfast with you," Henry said, trying to keep his tone casual despite his racing heart. "Actually, I didn't expect Mira to act like that. I never asked her to. I don't think of you the way she does. I just wanted to talk… I'm sorry if that scared you…"
Henry watched in real time again as the eyes, still watching him, turned back into blue.
The beautiful, breathtakingly beautiful color.
It was very obvious.
Her eyes were definitely not like that before.
'This world has magic. She… kind of has something in her too.'
Henry thought to himself as he watched her, who with just that change, started looking so soft, fragile, doll-like.
It was ridiculous.
"...Henry?"
She talked, hesitant, and Henry forced a smile, but not so calm yet.
"Yeah?"
Henry answered.
Ricarda stared at him for a few more minutes and then got up, sliding off the bed, lips pursed as she carefully stood next to the bed now.
"I…"
Ricarda opened her mouth to say something. But she suddenly paused as Henry tilted his head in confusion.
But a second later, he rushed over toward her when he saw her eyes lose focus and her whole body going limp.
'Shoot! Did she fai-'
Just as Henry grabbed her, he suddenly yelped when he felt himself getting dragged back aggressively, Ricarda falling from his hold.
"What are you doing, Henry?! You better give me a reasonable excuse this time."
'Shoot. Will it be enough if I swear she just fainted and I didn't-?'
Unfortunately…
No.
It won't....