chapter 3
“Are you truly saying you have no other motive besides that?”
“Of course not, Sister.”
Even though Desdemona could not see her expression, Fiorentia smiled brightly as she continued.
“I only gathered the courage to speak for your sake, Sister. How could I ever dare defy you? I’ve survived this long solely thanks to your mercy.”
For now, she needed to stay completely submissive.
At Fiorentia’s soft whisper, Desdemona finally relaxed her suspicion and looked satisfied.
“I’ve always wished that even someone as useless as me could at least lessen one of your worries, Sister.”
The moment she finished speaking, Fiorentia prayed.
Please… let that fickle Desdemona change her mind one more time.
That was the only thing she had to rely on.
Desdemona pondered briefly.
“Fine. You’ll treat him personally. For once, you’ve had a useful thought.”
With an arrogant jerk of her chin, Desdemona pointed at the collapsed man.
“You do nothing around this house except idle away your time anyway. The least you can do is make yourself worthwhile.”
Just as she turned to leave, Desdemona suddenly stopped as though something had occurred to her.
She turned back toward Fiorentia and quickly closed the distance between them.
Then she viciously grabbed the chin Fiorentia had kept modestly lowered the entire time and forced it upward.
Her sharp fingernails, like a crow’s talons, dug into the delicate skin, yet Fiorentia did not so much as frown.
Now finally able to look into the crimson eyes that resembled her own, Desdemona spoke in a low voice.
“You asked for this yourself, so you’d better heal him properly. Make him useful.”
Fiorentia’s scarlet eyes—clearer and more vivid than Desdemona’s—curved into crescent moons filled with smiling warmth.
Noticing the grip on her chin loosen slightly, Fiorentia gently tilted her head free and obediently nodded.
“Yes, Sister. I’ll remember that. I promise I won’t disappoint you.”
Fiorentia smiled sweetly.
At the sight, Desdemona’s eyes twisted faintly with displeasure.
But she immediately spun around with a sharp swish.
No longer bothering with Fiorentia, Desdemona issued an order directly to the butler.
“Before she heals this bastard, throw him into the breeding pit. Even if he’s getting treated, he still deserves proper punishment for biting my hand today.”
“Yes, my Lady.”
The butler, the head maid, and the two guards who had witnessed everything from the beginning all bowed respectfully toward Desdemona’s retreating back.
The clicking of her heels gradually faded into silence.
“Take him away.”
“Yes, Butler.”
At the butler’s signal, the guards hoisted the limp intruder up by his arms.
They began walking toward the breeding pit, and Fiorentia quietly followed behind them.
“Urgh! Ngh…!”
Only the man’s groans echoed inside the breeding pit.
Though he had briefly regained consciousness, the merciless attacks of the cursed dolls soon knocked him down again.
With restraints that continuously drained his strength and a curse seal embedded in his heart weakening him far beyond normal, fighting them all off was impossible.
The mask concealed all expressions.
Yet beneath it, the hidden face had already twisted like crumpled paper from witnessing the endless cruelty.
Watching silently, Fiorentia finally spoke as the man’s body collapsed.
“Isn’t this enough?”
Apparently deciding he had suffered sufficient punishment, the butler nodded.
“I’ll stop them.”
The butler pressed down on a control token Desdemona had entrusted to him, one capable of commanding the cursed dolls.
The token also functioned as a protective charm, which was why the butler and Fiorentia could remain unharmed within the poison-filled breeding pit unlike the man.
Once the grotesque creatures stopped moving all at once, Fiorentia was finally able to breathe easier.
She walked over to the fallen man and crouched in front of him.
Poke.
She pressed a finger against his forehead.
Apparently he could still feel it, because his thick, neatly shaped brows drew tightly together.
But his eyes did not open.
Whether he lacked consciousness or simply strength, she could not tell.
Truthfully, she didn’t care.
As long as the man remained alive, that was enough for her. There was no reason to concern herself further.
After confirming he was still breathing, Fiorentia rose to her feet again.
As she passed the butler, she could feel his puzzled gaze following her from behind.
Without offering any explanation, she walked straight to the breeding pit’s door and cracked it open slightly.
“Excuse me.”
“Ah! Shit! You scared me!”
“Gah— M-My Lady! S-Sorry, terribly sorry!”
The guards, startled by the sudden appearance of the white mask, cursed before hastily apologizing.
Though irritated, Fiorentia did not reprimand them and simply gave an order instead.
“You two. Come inside and move this man to the room beside mine.”
“Pardon? But…”
The guards trailed off uneasily.
They exchanged brief glances before the older-looking senior guard swallowed dryly and spoke.
“Didn’t the head of the family order him confined in the underground prison?”
In other words, they could not relocate the man without Desdemona’s permission.
At the unexpected refusal, Fiorentia let out a soft scoff.
Perhaps she had become a little too excited after successfully obtaining the man as planned.
“Well… none of the servants in this mansion have ever listened to me anyway.”
That was the pitiful standing of Fiorentia Marcella.
Though the mask hid her expression, she refused to lose in terms of presence, so she deliberately curled her lips upward.
“Do I look like I’m asking?”
Fiorentia pushed the door fully open.
Then step by step—
She approached the guards and jabbed a finger hard into the senior guard’s solar plexus.
Their distance became so close that his rough, heated breath brushed against her skin, yet Fiorentia did not stop walking.
Closer. Even closer.
At last, her nose nearly touched his chest, and she stepped onto the front of his shoe, pressing down firmly.
“Ugh…!”
The senior guard let out a low groan of pain.
The shoes Fiorentia wore resembled high heels, meaning all her weight was concentrated onto a narrow point. It had to be excruciating.
Instinctively, the guard tried to pull his foot away, but Fiorentia had already seized him by the collar, making escape impossible.
In a voice dripping with amusement at the situation, Fiorentia resumed speaking.
“Didn’t you hear what my sister said earlier? She ordered me to treat him.”
“Y-Yes, she did.”
“Where and how I treat him is my decision. So all you need to do is quietly obey. Understood?”
As if demanding a clear answer, she pressed down harder with her heel.
Unable to watch any longer, the butler stepped in.
“The young lady is correct. Do as she says.”
Only then did the senior guard finally give in, unable to endure the pain any longer.
“Yes! Yes, understood! Ngh!”
“Good.”
Seemingly satisfied with the response, Fiorentia nodded and lightly stepped off his foot before creating some distance.
At her casual tilt of the chin toward the inside of the breeding pit, the junior guard hurried in at once, thoroughly intimidated.
The man Desdemona had tormented still had not regained consciousness.
After briefly glancing at him, Fiorentia added another order.
“Oh, and don’t remove the chains. Even idiots should be capable of understanding that much, right?”
Returning to her room first, Fiorentia finally removed the mask concealing her face.
“Haa…”
Breathing instantly became easier, and it felt as though the poison saturating her entire body was finally dissipating.
With eyes full of disgust, Fiorentia stared down at the mask in her hand.
Her fingers tightened around its edge so hard they trembled.
If she could, she wanted nothing more than to throw the mask away immediately and crush it beneath her feet.
But she could not bring herself to destroy it.
‘Not yet… it’s not time yet.’