[wake up already shithead]

wow...that's a nice way to greet someone you just tried to kill. Seeing that the herbalist cum assassin had easily seen through my fake sleep, I still tried to act my best and woke up like I had the most immense nausea feeling in the world. Supporting my forehead with my hand I groan out loud in order to make the other person at the very least feel a little bad for what she had done

Seemingly my sickly play didn't pan out as I expected in front of her, she pulls out her knife again and wipes it across the bed frame, hearing a sharp screech I immediately spring out of the bed and touch my head to the floor in front of her.

My first impression of this person was completely off the mark, I thought the rule was that a cute face should behave and act the part but that was all just an act. Though her face and fashion were still bubbly, her personality was far removed from that reality. Like hearing a cute face like that speak words like "shithead" didn't sit well with me but that of course didn't mean that my heart didn't flutter. At the end of the day, a hopeless romantic is still just that, an idiot.

Seeing my grovel and rub my face against the floor must have raised some sympathy inside her vicious heart as she sits down on the bed and begins her interrogation

[Speak your name again] she yells in her original high-pitched soft voice

 *thump*

[Rosa, a born and true commoner, MAM!] my heart starts beating

[I really should have slit your throat earlier and be done with it you summer ant]

*thump* *thump*

[Yes, thank you, MAM!]

[What I can't figure out is if you had the brains to figure out my scheme then why did you come to me so directly and unprepared?]

*thump* *thump* *thump*

[I thought I could smart talk my way around, I didn't think you could fight so well, MAM!] honesty was the best route here

[Are you a pervert?]

*thump!* *thump!* *thump!* *thump!*

I couldn't see her face but I had this feeling that she was not looking at me with a face of delight

[N-no, MAM!]

[Then why is your heart beating so fast? Also, clear that blush off your face, it's disgusting]

[Yes MAM!]

alright, alright...calm down me, calm down...

*thump* *thump* *thump*

You already have a perfectly fine woman back at the inn to chase after and win the heart of, there's no need to open your heart to another one

*thump* *thump*

Anabelle is so much sweeter and kind than this reincarnation of toxicity. You will not be happy chasing after her, let her go...let her go...let her go...

*thump*

[all done, MAM!]

[chk! what a filthy woman, you should be ashamed acting like that at your age]

[of course, MAM! I am very much ashamed]

[mm...so what was your plan? How much do you know of my scheme?]

[Commoners want medicine, they can't get it for cheap from the nobles so Mam came to exploit that area. Give the commoners cheap medicine for basic issues and promise them of greater potential your medicine will have in the future but that future will never come. After a bit of suspicion starts forming in your practices, you leave town and go to another place to start over again. I wanted to make you join me so that I could also start earning some good gold and leave the life of poverty behind, that's all, MAM!]

After a brief moment of silence, the bed creaks, and I feel a heavy shadow towering over me, still not daring to lift my face I pray that she's not pissed. A minute or two passes and she crouches down, her slender fingers reach for my hair and she pulls a handful of them, jerking my face to rush upward and rest in front of her own. The roots of my hair start to hurt, and though I don't speak complaint, the pain should have been clearly visible on my face.

Unexpectedly she opens her mouth and spits on my face. Her spit landing on my left eye moves down to my chin and finally falls on the wooden floor below.

Now that, I didn't like. Verbal abuse was one thing but physical abuse was something I detested. Any shred of likeness I had for this person at that moment instantly disappeared to nothingness. Though I still didn't start to fester feelings of hate towards her now I simply didn't feel any sort of way for her.

[That was uncalled for]

[hmm, much better. See? is it that hard to fucking speak like a normal human being? constant "MAM" "MAM" "MAM", like shit girl, kill yourself now if you are going to continue talking like that]

[I will keep it in mind, can you let go of my hair now?]

[Of course, "MAM". Like damn, we are both commoners here, no need to show artificial respect. If I wanted that do you think I would have conversed with these commoners]

[Yes...sorry, I misjudged you again]

Finally, she let go of my hair and my head smacks the floor with a bang.

 [Leave now. Come back tomorrow and we shall work together. I think your people skills are a matter of joke but it seems like we have a similar brain when it comes to trickery, seeing how you told my entire scheme to me word by word]

With those parting words, she opened the door and heard the creaks of a staircase, it seemed like she went downstairs to the living room area.

Left alone in silence, I turn my body around and lay flat on my back, staring at the rusty wooden ceiling with my arms supporting my neck.

It has become glaringly aware that I had overestimated my abilities a lot.

I thought I was an expert at telling someone's personality at glance and knowing what exactly to say in order to please them but it seems like the ego that got inflated to space after tricking those depressed college kids was indeed very bad. 

Now I realize, Saying words that a depressed college kid wants to hear is not exactly the best indicator of a person's sharpness in human reading skills.

Seeing how utterly badly I failed here, and how close to death I was because of my elated sense of self, makes my heart feel unease and my body heavy. This feeling is something I don't really appreciate or like, this notion of zero self-worth after a major failure...a feeling I'm all too familiar with but still despise with my entire being.

Well...can't do anything about it now I guess. In the end it still somehow, sorta worked out... she did say to come back tomorrow so that we can start working together...so I guess it was not a total 100% failure.

Now I had to go back to the inn and heal my heart by pouring all this trauma on my one and only Anabelle. Though I say "my" she's the only one who I know in this unknown world and not sharing my sadness with someone will just make me even sadder.

I needed to make someone sadder with me, someone to tell me "it's okay" "you did well", these false assurances are what I wanted to hear right now. Imagining Anabelle soothing me with her kindness fills me up with the energy I needed to get up from the floor and leave the room to go downstairs.

As I approach the exit door, I take a quick peek at the living room from the hallway and see Emily peacefully sleeping on the sofa with her two cats also sleeping on her belly.

In her sleep, she looked at peace.

[You only look cute in your sleep...]

I remark with a heavy sigh and quietly leave the deadly house.