I Want To Die One Day Before You - Chapter 55
What Sarubia held out to Rufus was a wriggling earthworm, its body caked in dirt as if plucked right from the ground.
‘Why would something like this be in Sarubia’s room…?’
“I was planning to use this for my fishing trip soon. I’ve been raising it myself, but I’ll give it to you as a special gift.”
Sarubia smiled broadly and shook the earthworm towards the crow.
The sight of the worm writhing and twisting in front of his eyes made Rufus’s mind reel.
“……”
After pondering for a while, Rufus carefully lowered his head towards the cookie.
“You’re cute.”
Sarubia, looking down at the crow pecking at the cookie on the windowsill, let out a clear laugh.
You’re even cuter, Sarubia.
Munching down on the dry cookie crumbs, Rufus silently responded in his mind.
“But it’s strange that you aren’t fleeing even after seeing a person. Are you someone’s pet?”
Sarubia examined the crow’s feet.
In the palace, it was common for knights to keep crows, as they were adept at sniffing out the scent of corpses, useful for searching for missing persons.
A crow raised by a person would typically have a small knot tied to its leg, bearing the name and affiliation of its owner.
However, the crow perched on Sarubia’s window had no such markings.
“You don’t seem to have an owner, yet you’re so tame. You really are an unusual crow.”
Sarubia smiled softly and reached out her hand, intending to stroke the crow.
The moment Sarubia’s fingers touched its feathers, the crow’s body started to swell uncontrollably.
“W-what?”
Startled, Sarubia stepped back. Simultaneously, a massive shadow appeared at the window and then,
Crash!
Tumbled into the attic.
“Ouch…”
Sarubia, who hit the back of her head on the floor, teared up as she tried to get up. However, she was pinned down by someone on top of her.
“Ugh…”
Dark blue hair, sharp eyes, and a silver sword at his waist.
“Lo, Lord Rufus?”
Sarubia gasped as she realized the man who had fallen on top of her.
“Sa, Sarubia.”
Rufus looked down at Sarubia with a bemused expression.
The lightness of his body was gone. The fluffy feathers that had covered him were no longer there. Rufus was no longer a crow.
Why did the magic suddenly wear off?
Rufus was as baffled as Sarubia.
“B, But why are you here, Lord Rufus? Weren’t you supposed to join the demon subjugation army? Has the battle ended already? No, that can’t be! This is a dream! I’ve been thinking about Rufus too much, and now this happened! I must wake up!”
Sarubia, speaking rapidly, turned her head and started thumping it against the wooden floor.
Rufus quickly grabbed her.
“Stop it, you’ll get hurt!”
“Ow, owww…”
Sarubia winced in pain, holding her forehead in Rufus’s grasp.
“Shh, it’s okay.”
Rufus stroked her back and kissed her forehead. The red swelling from the bump seemed to fade away as if by magic.
Sarubia looked up at Rufus with tearful eyes.
“Is it really you, Rufus?”
“Yes, it’s me.”
“That’s impossible…”
Sarubia couldn’t close her gaping mouth.
“I, I just saw something really strange. There was a crow at the window, and suddenly, poof, it turned into you, Lord Rufus. Maybe I’m losing my mind. Please call the doctor. I need a day off.”
“That crow was me.”
“What? What do you mean? Rufus, you’re a crow?”
“No, I’m human but…”
How can I possibly explain this?
“…When I came to my senses, I had turned into a crow.”
It wasn’t entirely a lie, considering the Witch Odr had transformed him into a crow without a word of warning.
“What kind of…”
Just then,
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Loud knocking on the door startled them both, and they turned their heads.
“What’s going on here? It’s so noisy in the middle of the night!”
“You’re disturbing the people sleeping downstairs!”
It was the maids from the lower floor, awakened by the commotion in the attic and coming to complain.
“I, I’m sorry. A crow got into my room.”
“What? A crow? Get it out immediately! Why are you holding onto something you can’t even eat!”
The maids grumbled and went back downstairs, leaving Sarubia staring blankly at the door.
“Oh, what do I do.”
She covered her face with her hands.
“Why are you like this?”
“It’s my fault. It’s because I thought about Lord Rufus too much.”
“What are you talking about?”
Pressed by his questioning, Sarubia couldn’t even lift her head.
“Every day, I’ve been praying to see you, my lord, and I think the gods answered my prayers. It must be my fault that you turned into a crow.”
