Cinderella is... the Male Lead? - Chapter 31
“Uhh, what have you been up to lately?”
“Oh, just had a lot of things to do here and there.”
Cinderella answered Rona’s question with a calm expression. Her straightforward response suggested she hadn’t done anything suspicious. Besides, if she disliked Rona, she wouldn’t resort to petty methods like hallucinations—she’d enact fiery revenge like in the novel.
‘No, that must never happen. So, it can’t be Cinderella.’
Recalling the terrifying revenge process in the novel, Rona shut her eyes tightly in fear. Someone with that kind of power wouldn’t use such petty tricks. Moreover, there was no episode involving hallucinations in the novel. Rona recalled her memories again and dismissed her doubts.
Soon, there was the sound of a door opening, and a servant entered, pushing a trolley to serve food on the table. Despite the sweet and savory aroma wafting in the air, Rona had no appetite due to her restless nights. Was she being punished for tormenting Susan? That had all been to save Susan.
‘Will I hear those hallucinations again tonight? I wish I could just get some sleep…’
Rona unknowingly let out a deep sigh that seemed to make the dining table creak. Cinderella, who was cutting ‘her’ steak, looked up and stared at her.
Meeting the silent gaze of those blue eyes, Rona hesitated but then opened her mouth. Since Susan heard the wailing and now she did too, maybe Cinderella had heard it as well. It was a desperate hope.
“Um, Cinderella. Have you heard any wailing sounds at night?”
“Wailing… you say? Well, I sleep very deeply once I fall asleep, so no.”
“Oh… I see.”
Cinderella’s response darkened Rona’s expression. The fact that she was the only one hearing the strange wailing made her feel like she was losing her mind. Perhaps she had become as mentally weak as Susan. Or maybe the mansion really was cursed as she had falsely told Susan.
‘No, that’s impossible. Wait, there is someone here who will soon become a powerful mage. In this world, anything could happen.’
Sweat beaded on the hand holding her fork. When Susan was struggling, Rona had thought it was because she was mentally fragile due to the prank Rona had played on her. But now that she too was hearing the hallucinations, the situation was different.
Maybe improving her relationship with Cinderella wouldn’t erase the path to ruin but would instead lead to another form of retribution. The hallucinations could be just the beginning.
With her mind weakened, all kinds of negative thoughts began to swirl. Unconsciously, Rona’s leg started trembling.
At that moment, Cinderella asked in a low voice,
“Is something wrong?”
“It’s just… never mind.”
As Rona started and then stopped speaking, Cinderella’s expression became awkward. It was only natural since she was the one behind the hallucination magic.
In reality, Cinderella had been secretly observing Rona’s suspicious behavior towards Susan. He had been watching through the eyes of the cat statues placed in the corridor, much like how he watched through the one in the attic.
After Rona had stopped playing her pranks, Cinderella had continued to torment Susan, whose constant petty harassment had become annoying. This led to Susan’s unexpected departure to a villa for recuperation.
But this current hallucination was deliberate. Ever since the incident by the lake, Cinderella had been feeling an intense desire to touch Rona and get closer to her. It was a desire that self-pleasuring could no longer fulfill.
‘Yes. This isn’t even a bad thing.’
Rona, after all, had tormented him almost as much as Susan had. So, it was justified to torment her back. Cinderella rationalized his actions as he cast the hallucination spell on Rona.
While his real motive was more devious, he wasn’t going to reveal that just yet. If Rona asked for help, he would pretend to reluctantly oblige.
With these dark thoughts, Cinderella felt anxious as Rona hesitated.
“Why? What’s bothering you?”
“Well, it’s hard to believe, but just hear me out…”
After hesitating, Rona swallowed hard and began to talk about the strange wailing sounds she had been hearing for the past few days, which would mysteriously stop whenever she opened the door.
Hearing Rona’s story, Cinderella blinked his eyes dramatically and feigned surprise.
“Oh, that’s a serious problem.”
“That’s why I haven’t been able to sleep for days, and I’m exhausted even during the day.”
“Hmm… why could that be?”
Cinderella poked at his salad and then looked at Rona intently. He repeated her words for emphasis.
“It’s really curious. Why could that be?”
“If I knew, I wouldn’t be in this state.”
“I’ve never heard anything like that… it must be a sound only near your room.”
Cinderella’s lips curled into a gentle smile. Seeing things go as planned, a sincere smile emerged.
Rona, seeing Cinderella’s smile, felt her mind go blank. Had she ever seen such a smile before? Cinderella’s gentle smile had an enchanting charm. Maybe that was why Rona impulsively spoke up.
“Cinderella. So, um, I was thinking, would you mind sleeping together with me in my room for a few nights?”
