Though this godforsaken land was uninhabitable for living creatures, it contained rare things not found elsewhere. Admittedly, they were a bit grotesque.

Fetus-shaped fruits, tree branches that looked like screaming humans…

As someone who had studied sorcery, I had gathered a few out of curiosity, wondering if they might be useful new materials. I didn’t expect to be taking them to the mansion so soon.

“Have you packed everything?”

With a soft knock, Zachary lightly tapped on my door. I answered him as he leaned against the doorframe, gazing at me languidly.

“Yes. If Mother isn’t unwell, I’ll probably be back soon. So take care of the house and… Huh?”

I trailed off with a slightly bewildered expression, blinking in confusion.

‘Why did he pack luggage?’

Unable to ask so bluntly, I stared blankly at the luggage Zachary was holding. No matter how I looked at it, it wasn’t luggage for me, but Zachary’s own.

“Aren’t you going?”

I looked up at Zachary as he wrapped an arm around my shoulders and asked as if it were obvious. Unlike my utter confusion, he calmly guided me towards the door with his arm still around me.

After carefully locking up, Zachary gently stroked my hair and headed for the carriage.

“Um… are both of you going?”

The coachman also seemed quite taken aback as we both moved to board the carriage as if it were natural.

“Is there some problem with that?”

Zachary responded coldly to the coachman’s words. At his icy, sharp tone, the coachman’s face instantly turned deathly pale.

“N-No, not at all!”

I inwardly sympathized with the flustered coachman. I was thinking the exact same thing.

‘Zachary’s coming too?’

Zachary carefully took the luggage from my hands and handed it to the coachman. Then he gently grasped my arm to help me into the carriage before naturally taking the seat beside me.

The whole process was so smooth and natural that I was lost in a daze, but…

‘Erhan and the Duke will be there too, won’t they?’

My mind was racing.

Erhan, whom Zachary had almost killed, would be there, as well as the Duke who had brainwashed Zachary. Was he really walking into that uncomfortable mansion of his own accord?

“It will be a long journey, so feel free to lean on me and sleep if you’re tired.”

But Zachary seemed far too nonchalant for me to ask if he was really okay with going or if it was alright.

With mixed feelings, I settled into the carriage with him as we headed towards the Serpentine mansion.

***

“What in the world…”

I was at a loss for words as soon as we arrived. My joy at seeing the mansion after nearly a year was short-lived as I gaped in astonishment at Mother, who greeted me at the door as if she’d been waiting.

The letter had gone on and on about how ill Mother was. That it seemed to be due to the changing seasons, that she’d been suffering from a cold for weeks because of the colder weather and could barely breathe, that her body felt constantly limp and weak…

But the Mother I now faced looked incredibly vibrant. She had let her long, lustrous golden hair flow free, adorned with various beautiful jewels.

Her always beautiful amber eyes gazed at me, still holding their usual sparkle.

“Oscar!”

Mother immediately rushed towards me, almost running, and embraced me tightly.

“Have you been well? Oh my, my baby, how gaunt your face has become! Goodness. Have you perhaps grown taller? Whose son are you, how could you be so…”

“Mother. Please, wait a moment.”

I barely managed to grasp Mother’s shoulders as she kept kissing my cheeks. Even as she did so, she was gently smoothing my disheveled hair. As happy and glad as I was to see her kind and gentle face…

“In your letter, you said you were ill…”

“Yes, I was very sick indeed.”

But your complexion looks far too good for that. Swallowing those words, I looked at Mother. She burst out laughing as if she had immediately read my mind.

“I was on the verge of lovesickness, missing you so terribly. How could that not be urgent?”

A very elegant way of saying it had all been a ruse.

“Then you could have just…”

If you had said you missed me and asked me to visit once, of course I would have come, wouldn’t I? The whole way to the Serpentine estate, my mind hadn’t had a moment’s rest imagining how poor Mother’s health must have become, fearing the worst. Such words rose to my throat.

“Let’s go inside quickly. I thought you might come around today, so I’ve prepared lots of delicious food.”

But faced with Mother’s evident joy as she tugged at my sleeve, I couldn’t say anything more. I should have visited at least once before Mother resorted to such trickery to contact me.

“Mother.”

However, I had to stop in my tracks and call out to her.

“The thing is, I didn’t come alone…”

As if asking what I meant, her gaze shifted behind me. There, Zachary was slowly walking towards us, having emerged a bit late from the carriage after unloading the luggage.

Mother’s eyes quivered slightly as she saw the tall man, then she quietly watched until Zachary came before her.

“…”

As soon as Zachary reached my side, he bowed his head to Mother in greeting. As she silently regarded his neatly bowed head, Mother’s lips parted as if to say something, but then she sighed deeply upon meeting Zachary’s blue eyes.

“Oh my…”

Mother’s expression was complex as she sighed, as if unsure where to begin with her criticisms. After a long moment of speechlessness, she looked at the two of us with an expression full of complicated emotions before finally addressing me.

“The Serpentine estate has become much more open than when you left. Quite a few people have been coming and going from the family lately.”

It was an oddly abrupt statement that made me tilt my head in confusion, but I quickly understood the meaning when she continued, speaking to Zachary:

“I’ll give you a status that can pass as a distant relative of the Serpentine family. You’ll need a proper identity if you’re to stay here for a while.”

She was concerned about the increased scrutiny, worried about the rumors that might spread. It would be troublesome if someone with unclear status was in the family, especially if someone as eye-catching as Zachary was seen around and became the subject of gossip.

“Mother, you don’t have to do that. We weren’t planning to…”

We had no intention of staying here if our presence would cause trouble for the family. If having Zachary and me here would be a burden, we could leave right away.

“How could I send you away so quickly? That would be too disappointing.”

But I understood Mother’s feelings as well. She clearly doesn’t like Zachary. Mother, famous in social circles, usually greets even people she dislikes with a smile to their face, but this time she didn’t even offer a perfunctory greeting.

“So I’m extending this courtesy. Understand?”

She’s tolerating it because she knows that if she sends Zachary away immediately, I would leave right away too.

I was worried about Zachary though. I glanced at him, but he merely bowed his head with a calm expression.

“I’m grateful for your kindness, Madam.”

It was an extremely polite and sincere greeting. Even Mother seemed somewhat surprised by his attitude of genuine respect, her eyes widening slightly.

“…Let’s go, the carefully prepared food will get cold.”

However, Mother said nothing more and simply turned on her heel to lead the way into the mansion. Plump-footed servants had quietly appeared by her side, following behind her. I watched her retreating back before taking in the Serpentine mansion anew.

Despite it being autumn, the mansion surrounded by evergreens looked exactly the same. Only I had changed.

“Come here.”

I grasped Zachary’s arm as he followed behind me and pulled him closer. Zachary, who had been trailing after me somewhat awkwardly as if he’d come to a place uninvited, fell into step beside me.

As I stepped through the wide-open doors with Zachary, I thought to myself:

This might be the first time we’re walking side by side in the mansion.

***

The room I had stayed in was extremely well-maintained. Even the belongings were left intact, making it feel as if I had just left the mansion yesterday. As soon as I entered the familiar room, I immediately flopped onto the bed.

“Ah, I’m so full.”

It had been a while since I’d eaten so much food.