“Ugh. It breaks my heart.”

Crouching in front of the empty garden patch, my heart was torn to pieces.

No matter how much I scraped together the leftovers to make cookies and cakes, a waste is still a waste.

These were all my babies, my children.

“Sigh. But what can I do? I have to start over.”

I decided to become a ruthless mother.

I’ll have to do it while shedding tears to achieve my future dreams.

I put on gloves determinedly and picked up a shovel. This time, I decided to use a regular shovel instead of a trowel.

The trowel was too small and cute for turning over the soil.

As I was thrusting the large shovel into the ground and kicking it with my foot, I saw a muscular figure running from the distance.

“My lady! Please leave such tasks to me!”

It was Markops, his eyes sparkling as if he had spotted a great opportunity.

“Hi, Markops.”

“Haha. Good afternoon, my lady. More importantly, please leave this to me. I, the strong and vigorous Markops, will do it.”

He certainly looked strong and vigorous.

I looked back and forth between the shovel, my small precious garden, and Markops.

Seeing my hesitation, Markops hastily spoke up.

“You can plant the seeds and seedlings, my lady! I’ll just turn over the soil for you! How about that?”

I wondered why he was so eager to help. It’s not like I was giving him any extra bonus.

No matter how I thought about it, the cause was Siena.

The maid and the gardener were definitely competing over my garden.

Well, it’s convenient and good for me.

“Alright. Then I’ll leave it to you.”

As I handed over the shovel, Markops took it with a grin.

“Shall I make furrows too?”

“Yes. Do that.”

“Understood. Trust in Markops, the gardening expert.”

With an energetic response, Markops began vigorously turning over the soil.

That was the beginning of Herb Garden version 2.

My herb garden was progressing successfully towards completion.

Thanks to Siena, who belatedly discovered Markops’s passionate shoveling and joined the full-scale battle.

Thanks to the two people’s inexplicable fighting spirit, my herb garden was completed with amazing quality.

I just had to go in between them, pouring love, attention, and affection while planting new seedlings and seeds.

“It seems about time for sprouts to come up.”

Siena moistened the soil with a watering can filled with water, checking the condition of the babies.

I scrutinized carefully, wondering if someone had cutely poked their head out first, but it was still quiet.

“Well. They’ll come out soon.”

I turned towards the library with disappointment.

There was a small study cum library in the Richter mansion.

It was a library where even the staff could freely borrow books to read, and despite its small size, it was filled with a diverse range of books.

My new hobby these days was studying about ‘herbs’ and ‘baking’.

Of course, it’s not that I lack confidence even now, but it would be better to study more if I want to open my own shop someday.

“Let’s see. The book I’ll borrow today is……”

As I was slowly choosing a book, a title caught my eye.

‘Are you sick? Want to try getting better with herbs?’

Wow. That’s somehow appealing?

I liked the title that seemed to be speaking to me.

I’ll take this one.

After carefully picking up the book, I wrote my name and the book title in the guest book, then left the library.

As I was heading back to my room like that…

“…Huh?”

It was purely by chance that I discovered it.

While returning to my room, I spotted small red berries among the trees lining the corner of the garden.

“What’s this, what’s this. This cutie.”

Having recently developed a love for plants, I approached closely to examine the adorable red berries.

But when seen up close, the shape was quite unique.

The berries were shaped like miniature pomegranates just the size of a fingernail, with an orange tint towards the bottom.

“What kind of berry is this?”

It was clearly a berry I had never seen before, but strangely, it felt vaguely familiar.

That is.

Not unfamiliar, but familiar!

How could that be? It’s as if I hadn’t seen it with my eyes, but only heard about it…

“Ah. There. I saw it there.”

The original work of this world.

I saw it in ‘Please Water the Second Blooming Flower’!

I wracked my brains with all my might.

“Ho, ho… ho… Hosan berry!”

Wow. Incredible. I remembered this.

Moreover, what I remembered wasn’t just the name of the berry.

“This was kind of a panacea-like berry.”

What was it again.

Good for stomach aches, good for indigestion, good for headaches, helps you sleep well when eaten, clears the mind, improves eyesight, warms the body, and so on and so forth.

It had a ton of effects that a quack doctor would rattle off.

The female lead, who learned about the ‘Hosan berry’ through an ancient book she read by chance, discovers this berry in the mansion garden by another chance and feeds it to the male lead, Dante.

It was because she was worried about Dante, whose body temperature was lower than others.

“…Should I pick some too?”

As I pondered over the original work, I thought it might not be bad to feed it to Dante in advance.

Actually, I’m not sure if Dante’s body temperature is that low right now…

At least in the original work, Dante’s body temperature was clearly lower than others.

Dante was also bothered by it, always avoiding holding the female lead’s hand properly.

Every time that happened, the female lead would become dejected, and Dante would become dejected too.

Even I, as a reader, became dejected.

“Yes. I should pick some. I should feed him.”

It seems I need to feed him the berries in advance to prevent future Dante’s cold hands and feet.

Just as I was about to reach for the berries with firm resolve.

“But, was this effective?”

Wait a moment.

I can’t remember that part?

I pondered for a long time with my arms crossed, but this alone didn’t come to mind.

…I guess the effectiveness must have been mentioned in the latter part.

In fact, I couldn’t remember the latter part of ‘Please Water the Second Blooming Flower’.

No. I think it might not have been completed?

Anyway. I can recall the general story and some parts that were frustrating, but I don’t know how the latter part progressed.

I know up to the point where they stopped beating around the bush and confirmed their feelings for each other, but…

“What happened after that…?”

What happened to Dante?

Suddenly, a question arose.

Wasn’t the Richter family originally famous for dying young?

I knew the reason.

‘A curse.’

While there’s a lot of talk in public about whether it’s real or just a rumor, I knew it was the truth.

Because Dante mentioned the ‘curse’ of the Richter family in the novel.

However, what kind of curse it was…

“Ugh.”

I’m not sure if I can’t remember or if it wasn’t in the novel.

Anyway, the important thing is this.

A cursed male protagonist.

A naive and lovable female protagonist.

Was the ending for these two ‘They lived happily ever after’, or ‘The male lead died young, and the female lead became a widow’.

I hope it was the former.

The latter is too hopeless and dreamless.

After pondering for a moment, I shook my head.

“Sigh. What’s the use of me worrying about this? I’m someone who has to leave.”

A supporting character should just do their part.

But, even after the divorce, I should cheer for Dante’s health and their happiness from afar!

My goal is Hollywood!

I chanted my dream and moved my hand that had stopped.

Rather than thinking about the future I can’t change, the future I can change.

That is, to focus on preventing Dante’s cold hands and feet.

Go, go! Fighting!

However, by the time I picked the sixth Hosan berry, I realized I had no hands left.

Because I was holding the book ‘Are you sick? Want to try getting better with herbs?’ which was as thick as a dictionary, I didn’t have enough hands.

Can’t be helped.

I’ll just go for now, and come back later with a basket or something.

Then, the ones I’ve already picked…

“Nom.”

Thinking I might as well eat them myself, I popped them into my mouth.

Oh. They’re harder than I thought?

I chewed the berries with their unique texture diligently.

Both the texture and taste were really unique.

How should I put it.

Hard yet surprisingly juicy, sour and bitter while also sweet and even spicy…

“Cough, cough! Cough! Cough!”

I couldn’t help but cough due to the excessively unique taste and texture.

Once started, the coughing didn’t stop easily.

Cough, cough!

Ack! I think it went up my nose.

Tears streamed down as the sour, sweet, and spicy flavors mercilessly hit my nostrils and throat.

After suffering like that for a while, I finally managed to calm down.

When I removed my hands that had been covering my mouth, red juice was smeared all over my palms.

Oh, my goodness.

I glanced around quietly.

“…Fortunately, there’s no one around.”

It would have been quite embarrassing if someone had caught me shedding tears, snot, and even saliva.

I shook my head while quickly wiping my palms, stained red with juice, with a handkerchief.

Wow, these Hosan berries…

They’re quite dangerous, aren’t they?

Thinking I should research more about how to eat them, I slowly left the spot.

Wow. My waist hurts too from coughing so much.

And so, after Serpina left.

Rustle.

Soon after, a presence was heard from behind where she had been standing.

The owner of the sound was leaning against the mansion wall, both hands tightly covering her mouth.

The woman, whose eyes were trembling beneath widely opened eyelids, slid down the wall and sat down.

“…I-it can’t be.”

A voice filled with shock stuttered out.

The shocking scene she had just witnessed kept replaying endlessly in her mind.

The sight of the lady coughing as if something was wrong.

And the red blood smeared on her hands and mouth.

Even the image of her muttering with relief in a bitter voice, as if self-deprecating.

“This really can’t be…”

Finally, a tear rolled down Mari’s cheek.

This was the beginning of a tremendous misunderstanding that would strike the mansion.