Translator: Nox

Chapter 24

Eden looked at me with an expression that said, “Here we go again.”

“What kind of bizarre stunt are you planning this time…?”

His voice trailed off as he shook his head with a sudden sigh. Flustered, I checked our surroundings and nudged him in the ribs.

“That’s a strange way to put it. If anyone heard you, they’d think I’m actually a weirdo.”

“Not weird. Just… eccentric.”

“…What’s the difference?”

“The former sounds like someone who actually has a problem, while the latter sounds like someone who’s entertaining to watch.”

Eden replied nonchalantly, his expression remaining perfectly still. He seemed to genuinely believe that.

‘I think you’re the weirder one.’

Just then, the man turned toward me and asked, “By the way, you look like a noble lady. What on earth do you need chickens for?”

Now, even Eden looked at me with curiosity. Without batting an eye, I looked back at them and answered.

“What do you mean? To raise them, of course. It’s a dream of mine. Pet chickens—isn’t that just wonderful?”

A moment of silence followed. The man and Eden stared at me, seemingly lost for words.

Eden’s eyes were screaming, ‘See? You are weird.’ Lately, it felt as though he was doing a lot of talking with his eyes.

Regardless of what he thought, I waved to him as I stepped out of the restaurant.

“Anyway, I don’t need your help, Sir Eden. I’m strong.”

Neither the farmer nor Eden believed me, of course. Not until they saw it with their own eyes.

---

Eden was sitting unceremoniously on the dirt ground of the Happy House garden, watching me move my luggage.

I lifted a portable wooden coop containing five chickens with one hand.

A moment later, I realized my mistake. I was supposed to be hiding my super strength from Eden. I couldn’t afford to have him associate this with the incident at Notium Street No. 61.

‘But come to think of it, this isn’t the first time I’ve shown off my strength.’

Perhaps he wouldn’t link me to the Notium Street case just because of some physical power.

It also meant that my image was firmly established in Eden’s mind. Though, of course, it wasn’t likely to be a positive one.

Then, as if reading my inner thoughts, Eden glanced at the farmer and approached me. With a very serious face, he lowered his voice and asked.

“Are you perhaps impersonating Cherry Sinclair? Or are you being blackmailed by her to act as her double?”

The farmer was busy hammering away at a chicken coop in one corner of the garden. I set the portable coop down and turned to Eden.

“Listen to yourself. Does that even make sense?”

“Does Lady Cherry raising chickens make sense?”

“Please respect my hobbies.”

“Then what’s with that strength? I heard for a fact that Cherry Sinclair was fragile.”

“Super strength isn’t exactly a virtue for a high-society lady. Naturally, I hid it.”

Eden accepted that explanation immediately.

“I suppose. You were always desperate to be the perfect noble lady.”

My pounding heart calmed down a little. As expected, Eden didn’t even consider the possibility that I was the woman he had met that day.

“Yes, yes. So stop asking.”

I gave a dismissive reply and opened the front door of the mansion. There was an unpacked suitcase sitting by the entrance.

Thinking I might as well unpack while the man finished the coop, I opened the bag, only to hear Eden’s voice behind me.

“You must have really loved cricket.”

He was commenting on what I was taking out of the bag. Why was this man sticking to me like glue?

Just as he said, there was a steel cricket bat inside the bag. Susanna must have packed it.

And right next to the cricket bat was an axe.

…Oh, damn it. It was the very axe I had used to slaughter the monster at Notium Street No. 61.

“W-Why is this in here?”

Keeping a wary eye on Eden, I quickly shoved the axe back deep into the bag.

Suddenly, a scream erupted from the garden.

“A-Aaaagh!”

Specifically, the commotion was coming from the front gate.

Eden and I locked eyes for a split second before racing outside simultaneously.

“Wait.”

Realizing I needed a weapon, I started to turn back for the axe but hesitated.

“No, not that.”

The moment I used that axe, Eden might remember the Notium Street incident! Instead, I grabbed the cricket bat and ran back out.

CRASH!

The farmer had fallen near the gate, and beyond him stood a massive monster.

The beast was well over two meters tall, its body covered in thick fur. At a glance, it looked like a bear, but its head was human.

My mind went blank. Fuck, I should have just brought the axe!

“Dammit, what is that thing?”

I heard Eden mutter a curse beside me.

Having virus antibodies didn’t mean I was immortal. If that was the case, I had to move before Eden did. I was the stronger one, after all.

I lunged past Eden toward the monster. The creature was slowly closing in on the fallen man.

“Wait, Lady Cherry!”

Ignoring Eden’s shout, I charged into the fray. Aiming for the monster as it opened its maw toward the man, I swung the bat with all my might.

THWACK!

With a dull thud, the monster was sent flying, crashing into the mansion’s perimeter wall.

I frowned as I watched the monster twitch on the ground. Thank goodness the cricket bat Susanna packed was made of steel and not wood.

As I thought this, I turned my head to see Eden staring at me with a look of pure shock. His face demanded an explanation for the current situation.

Keeping an eye on his reaction, I tried to answer casually.

“I was a cricket player back in the day, but even I’ve never seen a steel bat before.”

“Steel or not, did you just swing that club and send that thing flying?”

Eden asked, voice laced with disbelief. I caught the suspicion lurking in his deep blue eyes. A cold sweat ran down my spine. Is he actually going to figure it out this time?

“Why so surprised? You already knew I was strong. Hahahaha.”

I scratched the back of my head, laughing awkwardly. Damn it, even I thought I sounded suspicious.

But I couldn’t exactly provide a plausible explanation for my super strength. Even I didn’t fully understand the power Cherry Sinclair possessed.

“At this rate, you seem stronger than I am.”

Eden crossed his arms and looked me up and down. It wasn’t that his gaze was unpleasant, but the tension made me break into a cold sweat.

Surprisingly, however, Eden said nothing more. Though the look in his eyes remained somewhat unsettling.

I’d definitely made the right choice bringing the cricket bat instead of the axe.

Taking the opportunity to change the subject, I looked down at the bat in my hand and muttered to myself.

“Now that I think about it, why isn’t this bat made of wood?”

Match or practice bats were usually wooden. But the one Susanna had brought was a solid steel bat.

<Benton Championship Victory Commemorative>

My brow furrowed as I read the inscription on the flat side of the bat.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake. It was my trophy.”

No wonder it looked familiar. How did I not realize? Am I an idiot?

This wasn’t a piece of equipment; it was a trophy. My team back then had so many talented players that we won even with a benchwarmer like me on the roster.

‘It was my first and last match, so I’d cherished it in my own way…!’

ROAR!

While I was momentarily distracted, the fallen monster scrambled back up and lunged at us again.

Dammit!

Just as I was about to swing the bat again in alarm—

BANG!

This time, a bullet flew from somewhere and took the monster down. It wasn’t Eden who fired.

‘Where did that shot come from?’

Click. Eden quickly loaded his pistol and took a defensive stance, scanning the area.

That’s when we spotted Vanilla peeking over the wall. The former owner of my Happy House and the (presumably) impoverished noblewoman working part-time at the restaurant—Vanilla Eddie Ruskin.

She was holding a shotgun.

“Ms. Ruskin? What are you doing there?”

At my bewildered voice, Vanilla lowered the shotgun and stared at the fallen monster. For some reason, there was a faint glint of madness in her eyes as she looked at the carcass.

“Is that a wild animal? Do you think it’ll fetch a good price?”

……Do you really think it would?

I stared at Vanilla, who was hanging off the wall, with an incredulous expression. I had no idea how long she’d been there. And that wall was quite high—how did she even climb up?

I hadn’t installed the barbed wire yet; I needed to finish the renovations quickly.

Regardless, thanks to Vanilla, the monster was dealt with faster than expected.

Meanwhile, Eden approached the farmer, who was shivering on the ground, and reached out a hand.

“Are you all right?”

Fortunately, the man didn’t appear to be injured. Eden helped him slowly to his feet.

I stood before the dead monster with Vanilla. Seeing the creature up close, Vanilla gasped and covered her mouth.

“Dammit, what is this thing…!”

Terrified by the gruesome corpse, she gagged and eventually ended up retching off to the side.

The massive beast lying on the ground looked like a bear at a glance, with sharp teeth lining its gaping maw.

Seeing that there was no blood around its mouth, it seemed it hadn’t eaten anything yet.

‘That’s a relief. If it had bitten someone, the virus would have spread in an instant.’