Miss, It’s Just a Cold

Chapter 61: Present

At that moment, I grew tired, stumbled, and collapsed on the spot.

I considered asking for help, but Ernst seemed to be dealing with his own complex feelings, so I decided to leave him be for now.

I coughed. Blood poured out.

It didn’t hurt much.

My head felt slightly dizzy.

And yet, for some reason, I felt strangely happy.

Was it the effect of the medication?

Or perhaps it was simply because the person in front of me was worried about me.

Ernst was.

He picked me up, carried me to the mansion, and screamed at the butler to bring a doctor immediately.

In the Reichten household, I was not considered a person.

I was more like an expensive pet kept locked away.

Here, though, it felt like I had become someone worth saving, and that made me genuinely happy.

Ernst laid me down on the bed and gently stroked my cheek.

He seemed to be crying.

My vision blurred slightly, and that was all I could think of.

“Just a moment ago, you were moving around just fine! Why are you suddenly like this?!”

I tried to answer.

My lips moved, and my tongue tried to form words, but the critical issue was that no breath escaped my lungs.

I tried desperately to inhale and exhale, but blood spilled out instead.

Regrettably, I dirtied Ernst’s face with it.

Someone I didn’t recognize came in and started examining my body.

Before long, my mind began to fade.

It felt as though everything in the world around me was trying to steal everything I had, as if my relatives, who called themselves my family, were desperate to kill me. And so, I dreamed of escaping this place.

Just a happy dream.

The name of Emily’s dream was me.

By now, I couldn’t remember my own name, what I liked, or how I ended up in this world.

Emily brought me here because she had no knowledge and wanted someone who did.

Emily longed for freedom, but having never experienced it, she brought me, who had a faint understanding of what it might be.

Emily desired happiness, but having never felt it, she brought me, who had lived a happy life.

Emily yearned for love but had neither received it nor given it to anyone, so she brought me, someone who had loved and hated others in turn.

And eventually, I became Emily.

A person who is neither free, nor happy, nor loved, nor capable of giving love.

The master had passed on the burden, after all.

Still, I granted some of Emily’s wishes.

Even if the outcome wasn’t exactly what she wanted, it wasn’t malicious, like something from the Monkey’s Paw.

I simply lacked the ability.

I couldn’t grant her wish for her family to love her, so I killed the family members who could never love her.

I couldn’t grant her wish for her mother to love her, to look back at her, so I killed her mother.

Though, in a way, I think I fulfilled her desire to love her mother.

After all, a parent not loving their child is unthinkable. Surely, everything her mother did to her was an act of love.

So, I merely returned it in kind.

And with that, I was free.

Free from all shackles.

A faint sense of euphoria washed over me as my vision cleared.

I must have dozed off for a moment.

When I opened my eyes, I saw Ernst standing with his arms crossed, a man with a stern expression and an irritable air sitting with one leg crossed in a coat, and Ariana nervously biting her nails.

I turned my head to look for the window and glanced outside.

It was still night.

“Ernst, how much time has passed?”

“Since you fell asleep?”

“Yeah.”

“Three days.”

At those words, I scratched my head.

To think that just floating in nothingness and then waking up meant three days had passed.

“No wonder I’m hungry. Could you bring me something to eat?”

“Miss, isn’t there something you should address first?”

I ignored the man’s words and spoke to Ernst.

“Ernst, could you send Ariana out for a moment?”

Ariana hesitated and mumbled something about not wanting to leave, but when I smiled and waved, she stared at me for a long time before slowly walking out of the room.

She truly had a beautiful mind, enough to be angry at seeing me like this.

Once Ariana had left, I slowly began to speak.

“First, you should state your name. Not everyone is going to notice the badge you lowly, uneducated folk wear so proudly.”

“Do you even understand your current situation, to speak like that?”

“My situation? Who knows.”

When I glanced at Ernst, he didn’t seem inclined to stop me.

It should be fine to act as I said I would.

“And it’s particularly unpleasant when a rootless commoner without even the courtesy of a crest dares to speak to me unbidden. Apologize, will you?”

The man looked at me in stunned disbelief, unable to respond, when a servant knocked on the door and entered, bringing me something to eat.

It was nothing more than a piece of bread with butter and syrup on top, along with a glass of milk.

It wasn’t exactly the ideal meal for a stomach empty for three days, but it tasted fine.

I felt a bit repulsed looking at the powdered medicine next to it, though.

I hoped I wouldn’t have to be the sick person anymore.

I didn’t want to slowly die of illness, nor did I want to find comfort in the thought that someone might mourn me when I was gone.

With all obstacles cleared away, I wanted to start living a happy life.

So, I simply swallowed the medicine.

It was slightly bitter, but bearable.

The man with the mustache, sitting in front of me, had surely come to either imprison me or separate my body from my head.

“So, what brings you here, Inspector?”

Despite the mustache, the man looked quite young, probably in his mid-20s at most.

He’s probably some fool who inherited a decent position from his father, drunk on power, and meddling wherever he pleases.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have come to me.

If he came, it would have to be as an inspector.

If time passed, he’d likely settle into a superintendent role, taking bribes and living comfortably, but luck wasn’t on his side.

Anyway, this country is pathetic.

It feels like a patchwork quilt hastily stitched together to make nonsensical things appear logical, even now as I think about it.

Come to think of it, in the place I originally lived, there was a similar country a long time ago.

I consciously erased the memories that came to mind and gave a faint smile.

“They say you woke up after three days, and yet suddenly acting like this is problematic.”

There are police officers, but among those arrested as criminals, the only ones who receive proper punishment are commoners without money to bribe or those arrested simply because they happened to be nearby when a crime occurred or were loitering on the streets.

If they claim they’re not criminals, I wouldn’t have much to say, but commoners walking around outside should be prepared to accept such injustices.

Judges are typically impoverished or unlucky nobles.

People like that wouldn’t do their jobs properly.

If you don’t like it, just grab a gun and kill everyone in charge.

“No evidence, no power, and nothing you can do about it, right?”

“The firearm found at the scene…”

It’s not something an ordinary person could acquire.

Not my fingerprints, though. They don’t check fingerprints yet, do they?

“That wasn’t me who fired it.”

The man flared up, ready to snap at my words.

Has he never dealt with nobles before?

“Ernst, where’s that gun?”

“It’s probably with the man standing right in front of you.”

“Why is this guy even here? You could’ve just kicked him out or buried him at night.”

At that, Ernst shrugged his shoulders and replied.

“Isn’t that too pitiful?”

“Just return my gun already.”

“What nonsense are you spouting now…”

When the man began yelling at me, Ernst lowered his voice and spoke in an uncharacteristically threatening tone.

“Return it. If you’d like to return to your family.”

The man’s face showed a flustered expression.

Perhaps he was stiff with fear, or maybe his stubbornness kept him from moving.

Ernst approached the man, reached into his inner pocket, and pulled out a gun wrapped in a white cloth.

Then he handed it to me.

The man looked like he wanted to protest but seemed to realize none of the people around him were on his side.

It wasn’t a pretty sight, and it seemed Ernst had ensured no servants were present to witness this scene, likely to prevent loyalty from evaporating on the spot.

In any case, I reclaimed the gun that had helped me find my freedom.

Opening the chamber, I saw there was one bullet left.

I had thought I’d emptied it when I shot my mother, but maybe I lacked the strength to fire the last round.

I set it into position so it would fire with the pull of the trigger, then cocked the hammer.

“Excuse me. Why did you kill my beloved family and try to pin it on me?”

No response came.

He was trembling, paralyzed with fear.

The mustache didn’t suit him at all.

“Ahaha, don’t be so scared. I’m not cruel enough to torment someone who can’t do anything.”

But you should know your place. The only people you can wield power over are commoners like you.

Pfft.

“And certainly not someone like me, who is of a higher station than you.”

How disgusting.

People like me are just…