Welcome to the Rose Mansion - Chapter 84
His face, framed by disheveled ash blonde hair, looked weary. He seemed to have grown noticeably thinner over the past two weeks. However, perhaps because of that, his overall lines looked sharper.
Alan, who had been quietly looking down at Richelle, sighed and spoke.
“I can’t tell if you’re being obedient or not. Why did you come here today?”
“I came to give you this.”
It was time to reveal what she had prepared. Richelle carefully held out the item with both hands. Alan’s eyebrow twitched as he identified it.
“What is this?”
“It’s an ointment.”
It was quite a large container of ointment. The boy’s delicate features crumpled in frustration.
“Who doesn’t know that? Why are you giving it to me?”
“You hurt your arm while helping us. It’s been bothering me that I couldn’t do anything for you at the time.”
“…”
Alan rubbed his left arm. Fortunately, there was no longer any bandage.
After a long silence, he spoke in a slightly softened tone.
“It’s already healed. I don’t need it, so take it back.”
Though softened, his tone was still gruff.
Alan began to retreat into his study. Of course, letting him go like this was not an option.
“Young Master Otis, please wait a moment!”
Richelle hurriedly grabbed Alan’s hand and placed the ointment container on top of it. The boy’s ears turned bright red.
“Hey! Why do you keep grabbing an unfamiliar man…!”
Alan Otis, who had been fuming like he’d been stung by a bee, suddenly froze. He glared at Richelle, then cautiously wriggled his fingers. There was a rustling sound of paper beneath the ointment container.
“You…”
Alan, who was looking down at the ointment, lifted his head. Their eyes met.
Richelle raised the corners of her mouth gently.
“It’s a good salve for removing scars.”
“…”
“I really wanted to give it to you, Young Master Otis. Please read the instructions carefully and use it.”
Alan Otis stiffened his lips. His eyes trembled with uncertainty.
Soon, he pulled the ointment container from her.
He held it securely from the bottom.
“Fine. I’ll read it carefully and use it.”
The boy turned and went back into the study. This time, Richelle did not stop him.
The door closed firmly. Richelle traced the pattern on the door with her eyes and let out a long sigh.
‘I’ve done all I can.’
Now, all that was left was to wait.
She tore her gaze from the firmly closed door and turned around. Her steps quickened gradually. It felt like her heart was pounding in her feet.
‘No matter how I think about it, this is the only way to uncover the truth about the mansion.’
Alan Otis didn’t carry the scent of roses.
Alan Otis was the only one who warned her to be wary of Rogéros.
Alan Otis was the firstborn responsible for continuing the curse of the Otis family and Bertrand.
Thus, Richelle was convinced. He must know everything. He must be the one she could reason with.
So, Alan Otis.
Please give me the answers I seek.
***
Despite her earnest hope, Alan showed no response for nearly five days.
‘I suppose it’s a rejection.’
Her feelings of distress overflowed, almost spilling from her throat. But she bore no resentment. She could guess that Alan Otis had his own circumstances.
Richelle clasped her hands together. If the relatively easy path through Alan Otis had failed…
She would have to find a more complicated and difficult path.
Today, too, after being chased away by the twins, she wandered slowly through the corridors. She deliberately slowed her pace as much as possible. Based on her experiences so far, she always encountered the mansion’s strange phenomena during such times.
“Hello?”
Ah, as expected.
She turned around. A maid with brown hair and a bright smile was beaming at her.
“Do you have a moment? If you do, could you go to the fourth floor?”
The fourth floor?
She had never heard such a request before. Richelle quickly searched her mind. There was a rule in Bertrand’s rules that flashed through her mind.
[Despite what the structure might suggest, this mansion has only three floors; a fourth floor does not exist. Should you find stairs leading up from the third floor, consider them merely decorative.
If anyone speaks to you of a fourth floor, respond with, “I must now go to make flowers blossom upon unadorned branches,” and leave the vicinity immediately. All problems will vanish, and the naughty child will be punished.]
The maid’s glossy eyes were staring intently at her. Richelle was about to follow the rule’s advice, but she glanced out the window.
The fourth floor.
From the outside, the mansion clearly had a four-story structure. And besides…
‘When I first arrived at the mansion… I definitely saw a human silhouette from the fourth-floor window.’
Bertrand’s rules advised ignoring any nonsensical talk from the servants. But strangely, they specifically warned about the fourth floor.
Why?
Could there be some significant secret hidden on the fourth floor of the mansion?
Thinking that not responding might prompt further discussion, Richelle bit her lip. The maid took a step closer, fixing her gaze on Richelle.
“The fourth floor, on the fourth floor…”
“Hey.”
