Welcome to the Rose Mansion - Chapter 36
Alan Otis stood up, his face like a piece of ice, shadowed so his expression was unreadable.
“What did you expect? That I’d behave like a gentleman? That wouldn’t be difficult.”
The young man then bowed deeply, incongruously elegant and dignified compared to his previous thuggish demeanor.
“Welcome to the most fragrant tomb in the world, Miss Richelle Howard. Let’s be good, amicable corpses together.”
He offered what amounted to a curse in greeting.
***
In the dim room, only the sound of labored breathing could be heard.
“Hiic, ah. Uh, sorry…”
Between irregular breaths, groans and pleas mixed in. The young man’s face contorted in pain.
It was clearly not a restful sleep. Especially since he was curled up on a bed large enough for five adult men, like a shrimp.
Then, silently, the door opened. An unexpected visitor quietly listened to the young man’s confessions before slowly approaching the bed.
And then, he harshly grabbed the boy’s shoulder.
“Huuk!”
Startled awake, the young man trembled. The visitor, unfazed, shoved two fingers into the young man’s open mouth.
“Cough! Cough!”
The intruding fingers groped around the young man’s throat, meticulously searching and rubbing.
The young man, shaking, reached up to grasp the assailant’s wrist, trying desperately to pull the hand away, but the solid arm didn’t budge.
“Ugh, guuh.”
Groans, retching, and saliva overflowed. The young man barely lifted his water-soaked eyelids to see his attacker. In the darkness, the gleaming, intense red eyes observed him.
“Rogé, ros…!”
At the menacing call, Rogéros grinned. He withdrew his fingers from the young man’s throat and pulled out his tongue.
“Cute little Alan. All the cold medicine has disappeared, hasn’t it?”
Alan coughed violently, and tears that had gathered in his eyes started to stream down his face.
Not receiving an answer from his charge, Rogéros applied more force to the fingers holding the tongue.
“Feeling like playing your drug suicide games again? It was quite fun when you collapsed after swallowing all the sleeping pills brought by the third governess in one go.”
“Let go, you bastard…!”
His speech was slurred because his tongue was held. Perhaps that made it difficult to respond. Rogéros quietly let Alan go.
“It doesn’t seem like you’ve taken anything… Where did you put it?”
“Cough, what do you care?”
“You’ve been quite petulant lately, Alan. Do you want to be tied to the bedpost again? I have a lovely pink dog collar prepared just for you.”
“Go die.”
“Besides, there’s still plenty of your favorite meat left in the kitchen. How about it? I’ll feed you until you’re satisfied.”
“I’d gladly bite off your neck.”
Alan’s menacing demeanor didn’t subside. Rogéros sighed as if he was bored.
“Alright, I understand.”
Then, he took a handkerchief from his pocket and meticulously cleaned his hands.
“I see you’ve handed it all over to Miss Howard.”
“What?”
“Miss Howard seemed to have caught a cold, but her fever seemed to subside faster than I thought. You gave her the medicine, didn’t you?”
Alan’s foggy mind slowly processed Rogéros’ words. Eventually, Alan’s face flushed with rage.
“Knowing that, you crazy…”
“Did you like this new method of waking up, Alan?”
The used handkerchief landed on Alan’s head. Watching Alan toss the handkerchief away irritably, Rogéros laughed.
“I’ll commend you for being kind to Miss Howard. Keep up the good work.”
“Eat sh-t.”
“Why? It’s something you’re good at, Alan. Pretending to be indifferent on the outside, but secretly helping the new servants behind the scenes.”
Alan’s eyes wavered like a ship caught in a storm. As if finding his appearance unbearably adorable, Rogéros reached out to stroke Alan’s cheek.
“You thought I didn’t know.”
“…”
“Cute and kind Alan. No matter how hard you try, it ends up being utterly useless. You couldn’t protect anyone, nor were you truly helpful to anyone.”
The gentle touch soon grasped the young man’s throat. The soft pulse under the palm fluttered.
“But it’s okay… Your worth lies with your ability to continue the Otis lineage. That has been your sole purpose ever since you were born.”
Alan’s tightly closed lips quivered. Rogéros, with a sunny disposition, squeezed his hand around the young man’s throat.
“So, you worthless cur, just crouch down quietly and do as I say.”
