The Devil Who Breaks My Neck

Miguel lowered his head deeper to look at Erzen’s blue eyes, which sincerely pitied him. Erzen opened his eyes wide at the sudden close distance. However, the innocent face still held only good feelings, and there was no vigilance or fear. Miguel asked with a chilly smile.

“…Erzen, do you feel sorry for me? Really?”

“Yeah. It’s pitiful that Brother can’t eat cake on his birthday. But don’t worry, Brother Miguel. I’ll share the cake with you tomorrow. I like you, so I’ll give you half the red fruit.”

The smile on Miguel’s face deepened in Erzen’s answer. The child spoke slowly, staring into his brother’s eyes.

“You don’t have to give me cake or roseberry fruit, Erzen. Instead, can you give me something else?”

A chilly wind blew when Erzen was about to nod. Erzen turned to the window in the sudden chilly wind. Contrary to expectations, the curtain of the window did not move at all. Instead, a strange shadow with sharp teeth formed on the light made by the moon and disappeared in an instant.

Erzen shrank his neck seeing the shadow that disappeared while he just blinked once. Even though he thought he saw it wrong, he thought it looked like the monster of the fairy tale book that Miguel read a while ago. Miguel narrowed his eyes as he watched Erzen shivering.

“You only have to give one of the things you have…….”

Frightened, Erzen nodded his head at Miguel’s urging voice. What if he can’t give it to him?

“Wait Brother……. Can I give it to you tomorrow?”

Miguel’s face looked a little surprised. But he soon got out of bed with a quick look on his face. And before he left, he asked Erzen for the last time.

“Really? Then I’ll tell you next time, Erzen. The Roseberry……, Do you like the red fruits?”

***

The castle has been busy since dawn for the first time in a long time. The maids were busy cleaning and decorating the small banquet hall, and the chef’s hands were not resting in the kitchen because they were making colorful desserts and various foods that children would like.

However, despite the busyness, the maids’ mouths moved as fast as their hands and feet. Bella and Jean, who were in charge of kitchen chores, were one of them. They did not stop chatting while cleaning the dishes hard. Mrs. Mary, the chef’s wife and the one in charge of the kitchen, glared at them from time to time, but it was not easy to block the mouths of curious young maids.

“Is this something to be changed at once? Of course, the name of a country can change overnight. But even so, how could it change like this…….”

Bella, who was wiping a fork, whispered to Jean as soon as Mrs. Mary passed by.

She had no doubt that Miguel would be Ezekiel’s successor so far. Miguel, who resembled his father’s appearance, was treated more highly than Erzen from birth. And although his mother’s origin was humble, he was smart enough to be respected by everyone.

Recently, however, rumors have spread throughout the castle that Miguel’s mother, Charlotte, will soon be kicked out. And as proof of it, Charlotte’s room was moved from the third floor of the castle to the first floor. And on the same day Erzen moved from the corner of the castle to the Duchess’ room.

Location of the changed room and birthday banquet for Erzen only. It was obvious where the owner’s heart was tilted. Jean put down the plate she just wiped and snorted as if she were satisfied.

“Hmph! I’ve endured it for a long time. I was so angry when she told me that I was a dirtbag that wiped the floor from the moment I was born!”

“That’s right. I’m glad she’s kicked out now. What if she really became a Duchess? When Master Miguel was born, she was flaunting a lot.”

“That time, too. It only takes a moment for a man to change his mind. It’s not our business that Master is abandoning the mistress he had cherished so much. I think Master Miguel is going to be kicked out, too……. I wonder why Master Erzen is staying in the Duchess’ room.”

“Oh, no way……Even so, doesn’t he (Miguel) resemble the Master most?”

Despite the sudden whims of the owner, most of the maids, like Bella and Jean, welcomed and ridiculed Charlotte’s fall, rather than sympathizing with her. They didn’t forget that Charlotte bullied them, insulting them for being vulgar.

“His Majesty the late Emperor sliced his mistress’ neck the moment his son was born, but he kept his son by his side. Right! His son is guilty of treason…….”

“Quiet! The Duchess’ family is also involved in it……. Can’t you see how Master treats Young Master Erzen? Do you think if you say anything that hurts the Duchess’ reputation, your situation won’t be as bad as before?”

When Jean spoke of the rebellion of the Marquis Pegato, who had caused a bloodbath, Bella freaked out and blocked her friend’s mouth. Their Master, Ezekiel, had an obvious mind, so it was better not to say anything disparaging about Herace. Jean also realized her mistake at the reaction of her friend and lowered her voice.

“Oh! That’s right. This mouth of mine is lousy.”

“Be careful. Or we’ll be kicked out for talking like this.”

“All right. All right. If things go on like that, Ben won’t be able to sleep with her. Don’t you think so?”

Jean, who gave Bella an apologetic look, turned around. Bella glanced at her friend for a moment, wiped the dishes again, and opened her mouth as if she couldn’t help it.

“They keep saying that the Duchess is a daughter of a sinner and ought to be kicked out… It seems like Ben hasn’t come to his senses as he keeps making a racket about how she doesn’t deserve the treatment in the annex, but he’ll get into big trouble like that.” 

“My investigation isn’t going smoothly because of what happened with Amy. I don’t understand why Ben was head over heels for Amy.” 

“What’s so good about a rude girl that sneaked into the bathroom and tried to seduce the Duke… If he liked Amy that much, he should have left with her when she was kicked out with a broken arm.”

“It’s funny that Master hates his wife for nothing. He’s the one who made her run away. Why is he blaming his wife now? She can’t even raise her head in front of the Duke…… Tsk!”

“Never mind. That should be the end of it. I’m satisfied that the dirty woman got kicked out. So will Ben. But Jean, what will you do after Lily leaves the castle?”

“We’ll all go out together and teach Lily, that bitch a lesson. We’ll see if she can raise her head high after she’s kicked out. I’m gonna rip that head off.”

The conversation between the two, who imagined Charlotte being kicked out, gradually became rough. They gnashed their teeth thinking of Lily, the same as Charlotte, who bullied them while being Charlotte’s dog.

“Do you think I’m only going to rip her head? I’m going to use this hand to…….”

“Jean! Bella! Can’t you stop talking and move fast? You both need to be scolded from time to time to get your work done faster!”

But their chatter didn’t go any further. It was because Mrs. Mary, who returned to the kitchen, shouted behind the two.

Jean and Bella moved their hands faster while bowing their heads to their chests. Mrs. Mary was standing behind them with her arms crossed, as if they were not trusted, so she instructed them to not make any more noise.

“Be careful you two there! You’ll be in big trouble if someone else hears it!”

“The ribbon is tilted to the left. Put it back again. Quick!”

Thus, Erzen’s birthday preparations proceeded step by step. Before they knew it, the well-decorated hall was filled with cakes filled with precious roseberries, and the surroundings were filled with delicious food one after another.

The maids finally put the tableware on the table with excited expression. Today’s banquet was to be attended by the knights of the castle and them as guests instead of the distinguished guests.

“Is everything ready?”

Finally, all the preparations were completed, and the door to the banquet hall opened. Ezekiel entered the hall, on his right was Erzen, the main character of today’s banquet.

“Yes, everything is ready, My Lord.”

The old butler’s face was full of laughter after a long time. He made a look of anticipation toward Erzen, proudly displaying the cutely decorated hall. It was a pure intention that he wanted the child to like it.

Despite the unusual old butler’s pleasant voice, Ezekiel looked at the inside of the hall with grave eyes. The hall was too colorful in his eyes, perhaps because he ordered the maids to decorate it according to the child’s taste.

However, Erzen, the main character, seemed to be as quiet as the hall. Because the child was busy looking around the hall with his mouth open.

‘……if you like it, that’s all.’

Ezekiel, who was very happy by Erzen’s expression, bowed down and hugged Erzen, who was in the middle of looking at the hall. And then he headed right in front of the cake in the center.

“It looks good.”

A triple cake full of roseberries was sitting on top of a cutely decorated table. Roseberry boasted a refreshing surface, and the thick cream evoked a desire to dip a finger in it at any moment.

The small compliment made the chef look thrilled. Ezekiel recalled Charlize’s birthday banquet, which he saw while hiding in the garden as a child and peeped through the window, leaving the chef’s expression behind. The current cake was as shiny as the cake that caught his eye at that time. At that time, he remembered the bitter taste that was hovering in his mouth. Ezekiel fixed Erzen and looked at the child’s expression.

Contrary to his expectations, Erzen’s face was pale and looked scared. In addition, his body was shaking. The tremor was conveyed not only to Ezekiel’s hands holding the child, but also to his arms and body.

It was not the behavior that a child should show on his birthday. Ezekiel was thinking about what the problem was, narrowing his brows, he noticed Erzen glancing down. The child was frightened by the height. Thinking of it, Ezekiel sat Erzen in the chair prepared for the main character right in front of the cake.

But Erzen’s expression was still dark, and he looked terrified. The child, whose shoulders were sharply shaking, closed his eyes tightly as if he would not look at the cake. Not only Ezekiel but also people around him noticed that the child was reluctant to eat the cake and decided to speak.

“What’s wrong? You don’t like the cake?”

When Ezekiel asked Erzen, the chef’s face turned white as if he was about to cry. It was a cake that he conceived and baked with all his might while reducing sleep day and night.

“He said I shouldn’t eat it.”

Erzen answered in a shaking voice with his eyes open.

The child’s answer was difficult to understand. They couldn’t understand why he shouldn’t eat it. Surely this means that someone threatened Erzen not to eat the cake. Ezekiel’s expression hardened at Erzen’s blue eyes shaking in all directions.

***