It took four days for Beth to finally snap. Their stay at our manor hadn’t particularly been a great one, as every evening, they cleaned the western courtyard with an undead watching over them and trained the rest of the night, my lady checking upon them regularly for the following two nights after the spider mischief. Even though youngest, she was the most ruthless among them.

For the past two days, though, my lady hadn’t been adamant about keeping tabs on them, so when I opened the door of Casey’s room on the fifth morning, I witnessed two pairs of clothes sprawled in the room, and two figures under the sheets, sleeping in each other’s embrace.

It wouldn’t take an undead to know what had happened here. I sighed, placed the fresh clothes in my hands inside the wardrobe, and picked up the clothes on the ground with my gloved hands. At least they were wearing their inner garments. If you thought these noble ladies washed their own clothes, then I suggest you start playing Otome games. At least the heroine would teach you what not to become.

Beth’s eyes fluttered open at my silhouette in the room, and she didn’t shout. No yelps, no utensils, no curses. Just a grin that was undoubtedly taunting me. Their bodies were under the covers, but I noticed Casey scuttle under the sheets, hiding her face in Beth’s embrace when she perceived my presence.

“My lady would kill both of you,” I said, dumping the clothes in the new laundry bin my lady had bought using my bread money.

“She would kill you before us, Ruddy,” Beth laughed, her voice still slurry.

My lady entered the room almost at the same time, and her first response was dragging me out of the room instead of reprimanding them.

“What the hell were you doing there, mongrel?!” My lady shouted once we were inside her room.

“My lady?” I was surprised that I was getting yelled at instead of those brats.

“How much did you see?” She gritted her teeth. “I would gouge out those eyes if you did see anything underneath the sheets.”

No doubt about it, because she had already cast [Ice Shards] right before my eyes. And two at that.

“Nothing, my lady, except for lady Beth’s face,” I replied, honestly.

I am not horny like my male counterparts, so seeing them in their undergarments is no different from staring at a tree for me. It’s not erectile dysfunction, I repeat, but just how undead work.

“You scoundrel! How dare you lie to me?” one of the ice sickles grazed my cheek while the second shuddered violently. Blood trailed down my cheeks, and I cast [Heal] before it could stain my white shirt. You have no clue how hard it is to get rid of those stains. Dry cleaning is not a luxury I enjoy.

“I didn’t, my lady. And I would never.”

The ice sickle became mana and disappeared instantly. Unlike internal casting, external castors were free to cancel their spells, and my lady had mastered the art in the last four days.

“You are allowed to only look at me,” she finally said after a brief silence and pulled me closer to her by my collar. “If you want to touch anyone, it should be me. I’ll ask you to cut your arms otherwise.”

“How about you kill who touches me?” I smiled, resuming my machinations. Her possessiveness can become quite the tool for her blackening.

“That I will do, and your hands too,” she deadpanned and walked around the door, probably to reprimand the two girls.

My lady didn’t talk with the two girls all the way to the Academy. She was furious, and I thought it was because they had ignored her orders. Little did I know about her true reason for being sore.

“Didn’t you tell her you saw nothing?!” Beth asked, almost in a whisper.

“What now, lady Beth?” I sighed. “Didn’t I tell you my lady would be furious at you?”

“How old are you, Ruddy?” Beth asked, seriously.

Over two millenniums. Obviously, I didn’t say that out loud.

“Twenty-six, lady Beth,” I said.

“I feel so bad for Leti,” she sighed, and Casey nodded in acknowledgment.

You see, we undead hate it when we don’t understand what mortals are talking about. It is because our pride, which has been honed after accumulating myriads of knowledge, wouldn’t let us bow down. But they just shook their heads at me before rushing to my lady, one on either side.

The usual jubilance of the market plaza didn’t depend on my mood. To be honest, it’s surprising how expressive I have become after transmigrating over different worlds. You see, experiences make an undead, and I am a living example to support that claim.

We reached the Academy’s gate, usual commuters more wary of us than before, after having stolen money from Garlan for the past few days. The heroine had stopped her kindness yesterday, and so had our earnings stopped. Shameless we are, but ones with quirks. People run out of kindness after a while, so I was least surprised to see the heroine stop her donations.

Crown prince had revisited the Academy, for the royal guards had barred our entry to the campus. We stopped by the booth, inside which not many packs of bread lingered since Garlan was forced on a diet after losing his source of income. His mood was downcast, and I thought it was due to the diet.

“Yo, Rudolf!” he called out, and my lady and her friends stood beside the gates, eyes at the crown prince who was just coming out of the Academy amidst the cheers. Hateful eyes, if I may correct.

“Sup, Garlan?” I used the modern variant of greeting, which earned me a confused look. “What’s up with your mood, bread lad? Diet problem?”

“That is one, but,” he hurriedly walked out of the room and said, “Ask lady Casey to get into the booth. The crown prince is here for her.”

The difference between undead and mortals is we do the job first and then talk. Even while torturing or slaughtering, so we often end up doing the job first before asking for secrets. So, if you ever hire an undead for your dirty deeds, don’t let them enter the torture chamber. Or let them do the negotiations. The losses incurred will be hefty and irredeemable.

I cast [Ward] around the booth immediately and almost threw Casey inside before closing the door. I bet she collapsed on the floor pitifully, but had I been any slower, the crown prince would have recognized the girl instantly. After all, he did recognize me.

Beth’s glare couldn’t be any sharper, but my lady was calm and stepped closer to me when the crown prince walked in our direction.

“Letitia,” he said her name through his gritted teeth.

“It’s lady Letitia, your highness,” my lady corrected him politely, curtsying fluently in public. Even though she rarely acted like one, she was a noble lady, and all the etiquettes were ingrained in her blood.

Crown prince’s expression flickered, but he maintained his enraged face. “Do you know where the youngest daughter of Hesroeder is hiding? I heard you are quite familiar with her.”

“I don’t know, your highness. I had seen lady Casey in the morning, but she parted ways with me right after we left my manor.”

Thankfully, none among the ignorant folks had seen Casey, or even if they did, no one dared to divulge. Beth’s glare alone was enough for them to shy away from the conversation.

“So, she was staying at the Marquis residence these past days,” he affirmed to the things he had heard. “Her family is the traitor of the kingdom, so I wouldn’t hide her if I was you. We have imprisoned the entire Hesroeder family, so she has no way out of the predicament.”

“You cannot be me, your highness,” my lady replied, and I nudged her, asking her to lower her glare. She did but only after stamping my foot.

“I don’t want to be a vile person like you, lady Letitia,” he turned around and walked in the direction of a fine white horse, who was very scared of me. Remember what I told you about horses? This one would desert the battlefield first should an arrow strike him. Don’t judge bread by its packing.

The crowd from the entrance disappeared, and we stayed close to the booth in a strange silence. My lady would probably lose her perfect attendance, but we had more important matters at hand. Garlan was acting weird, probably scared to go against the royal family; nevertheless, he didn’t betray his comrades. Even though the girls constantly bullied him.

I am a good judge of character. I know whom I can exploit with ease and who I cannot after a brief peep at their antics.

Once the coast was clear, all of us entered the booth, despite the fact that it was too cramped. Garlan took his usual seat at the front, veiling the hole and the transparent glass with embroidered curtains. Beth hugged Casey, who was sitting with her knees stacked against her chest and crying. My lady leaned on my arms, gripping my tailcoat tightly.

It was time to save my villainess’s aide, and perhaps, an excellent chance to slaughter some more ignorant mortals. If my lady asks me to, and we didn’t have a better choice, that is.