Chapter 5
Episode 5
I'd only meant to make her drop and shatter the bowl in her hand, but I misjudged the force, and the maid ended up falling flat with a clatter.
"Kyaaak!"
Unable to hide my dismay, I looked at the maid.
My conscience pricked at me sharply.
"Oh no! What do I do?!"
The maid fidgeted anxiously upon seeing the broken bowl.
"I'm sorry. Are you okay?"
I feigned an apologetic expression, pretending it wasn't intentional.
In the sense that I hadn't planned for her to fall this badly, it technically wasn't intentional.
The maid looked at me reproachfully but soon lowered her head.
There was a hierarchy among the maids. Those assigned the dirtiest jobs generally ranked low.
Especially her—she was a low-ranking maid handling the tough work in the kitchen.
And I held a fairly decent position among the maids.
"I'm really sorry."
"I'm fine......"
She brushed off my arm as if it were nothing and tried to stand, but her body wobbled.
"......Did you twist your ankle?"
"......"
"You can't work like this."
I helped her up with a sympathetic gaze.
"I saw you carrying bowls, so you work in the kitchen, right?"
"Y-Yes! Yes!"
"I'll help you out."
She turned to me with a bewildered expression. I flashed her a reassuring grin.
* * *
"Why'd you come?"
The Head Chef eyed me displeased, but I smiled ingratiatingly.
"The maid who was supposed to come got hurt, so I offered to cover for her."
"Why?"
"She got injured because she bumped into me. I felt bad, so I decided to help."
The Head Chef stared at me like a sucker in response to my brazen answer.
He probably thought I was weird, but I ignored it and started on the dishes.
One of the humiliations Rihart suffered in the Marquis's household was his "meals."
The dog bowl demeaned his dignity, and the food contained the "fruit."
In the original story, a kitchen maid, under "someone's" instructions, mixed powder made from dried fruit into Rihart's food.
The fruit was called Plaret.
It looked like an ordinary fruit on the outside, but it was different for Transcendents.
It reacted with a Transcendent's blood, containing ingredients that drove them to extreme excitement.
The problem was that no one knew how that excitement would manifest in a Transcendent.
It could be appetite, lust, or murderous impulse—one of the three. In Rihart's case, it was obvious.
Why else would he be the mad gong?
Of course, it would be the murderous impulse.
At first glance, it might sound like everyone in the household was in danger, but that wasn't the case.
With Mana Shackles on, he couldn't do anything, and due to their properties, any physical attacks he attempted were reflected back at him.
Thus, Rihart suffered alone continuously.
In the original story, those who ordered the fruit added to Rihart's meals are revealed later.
The Devil Worshippers.
They were a group that despised Transcendents to the extreme and hunted them down.
'You should thank me, Rihart.'
I saved you.
Of course, I'd hindered his escape......
Seeing Rihart's leg made my conscience ache, so I decided to make some accommodations during the time I attended his meals.
By the time I finished the massive pile of dishes, it was time to bring Rihart his meal.
It had taken quite a while.
'Never again.'
From next time, I needed to come early when the Head Chef started cooking and monitor if the chore maid added the drug.
Actually, that wasn't the only reason I'd volunteered for the dishes.
"Good work."
The Head Chef tossed the words casually after I finished the last plate.
He had prepared Rihart's meal by then.
But today, there was dessert in addition to Rihart's meal.
It was unexpected from the Head Chef, who usually focused only on nutrition without much care for taste.
"Ahem. This is for you to eat."
"For me?"
"Yeah. It's 'cause I've never seen a maid as dumb as you. Eat it if you want."
It sounded like an insult, but giving me dessert suggested otherwise.
I accepted the dessert he offered in bewilderment.
"Thank you. I'll enjoy it."
I smiled brightly and carefully picked up the tray.
It was time to head to Rihart.
On the way, I didn't forget to grab ice and a thin towel as Emily had advised.
Gathering these things, I made my way to Rihart's room.
* * *
Rihart was trapped in darkness as always. The underground room, with no gaps for light to seep in, was perpetually dim.
He leaned against the wall with his eyes closed. That was all he could do in his current state.
Limp like the dead, yet a faint, alluring scent wafted to his nose.
Ah. 'That maid' is coming.
Without Mana Suppressant, his senses were heightened.
His sharpened hearing picked up the light footsteps unique to a maid from afar.
He thought, entranced.
He wanted to leave the room and greet her.
It was a thought he would never have had normally, as if he'd been bewitched by the alluring scent.
Rihart was a promising talent. A rare Transcendent hard to find even searching the entire continent, possessing unparalleled power among them.
A Transcendent worthy of everyone's attention.
......At the same time, prime prey for the "Devil Worshippers."
Heresy groups had long taken deep root in the empire.
Especially the Devil Worshippers. They were a group that had sown chaos in the empire for a long time.
The Devil Worshippers committed all sorts of crimes, like offering ordinary people as sacrifices.
That insane group had one primary obsession: "Transcendents."
Beings blessed by god.
More precisely, beings blessed by the god opposing the one the Devil Worshippers served.
The Devil Worshippers hated Transcendents to the extreme and hunted them relentlessly.
Rihart, not wanting to get dragged into the hassle, had hidden his identity, but occasionally Devil Worshippers discovered he was a Transcendent.
From his perspective, it was utterly tedious and exhausting.
Rihart killed every Devil Worshipper who approached him.
It was one such day.
The Devil Worshippers had laid a meticulous trap for Rihart with elaborate schemes.
Annoyed, Rihart unleashed his mana recklessly, intending to wipe them out.
As a result, his blood boiled throughout his body, forcing him to writhe in excruciating, burning pain.
That day was when Rihart was captured.
However, Rihart had no intention of staying imprisoned obediently.
Since being confined here, his sole goal was escape—nothing else.
He planned to use anything at his disposal to break out.
Objects, people, situations—anything.
Thus, he didn't hesitate to seduce those attending him.
They might prove useful someday, so he always left room for exploitation.
In truth, Rihart hadn't done much to the servants. Just greet them in a soft voice and flash a gentle smile.
That was it.
Yet that alone enchanted those who attended him.
This maid was just another passing servant to Rihart. That's what he'd thought.
Until he caught the "scent" wafting from her.
Unlike the other servants, an intense aroma emanated from her body.
The intoxicatingly alluring scent made his brain feel like it would melt.
Strangely, even without Mana Suppressant, smelling that scent eased his pain.
So he'd impulsively asked. What perfume she was wearing.
Thinking back now, it wasn't even a funny question.
He didn't know the maid's name. She would change soon anyway, not worth remembering.
If anything, he'd remember her as "the maid with the intense scent."
"You've arrived, miss maid."
Rihart habitually wore a bright smile.
As expected today, it was the damned dog bowl.
Every time he ate from it, it chipped away at his pride. But now wasn't the time to show his teeth.
Spotting him, the maid didn't deliver the meal right away as usual and stood blankly by the door.
"Miss maid?"
"Ah, wait a moment."
The maid carefully unfolded a towel. And from within appeared something Rihart had never expected.
