“Huh!”

As soon as I opened my eyes, I took a deep breath.

I couldn’t grasp the situation, suddenly opening my eyes in a bright place after being in complete darkness.

[You’re awake?]

I opened my eyes in the same position I had collapsed. Startled, I looked around and checked the time.

‘Only 5 minutes have passed.’

Fortunately, not much time had passed. Perhaps that’s why it didn’t seem like anyone had entered my room.

Since the day I called the duke and Clemens ‘father’ and ‘elder brother’, their attitudes had completely changed.

Now, if I got even slightly injured, or looked like I might get hurt, or if it seemed dangerous – by their standards – they would rush to take care of me without hesitation.

‘They’re both so worried.’

They were already worrisome enough, but if they suddenly found out I had fainted, the mansion might be in an uproar again.

‘By the way, why is my body like this again.’

It wasn’t just today.

At the auction house, I suddenly got a nosebleed, and before the silver snake ran away, I felt dizzy and collapsed on the floor.

I could understand if it happened when I was with Rebecca. Back then, I was lucky to eat one meal a day.

‘These days I’ve been eating well…’

Every day, the chef brings nutritious food, I even have snacks, and at night, I sleep soundly following Sophia’s strict management that children should sleep early. Yet I still fainted.

‘Am I really sick somewhere?’

At that moment, the silver snake gracefully climbed onto the sofa. It slithered closer and gently tapped my wrist with its nose.

[It’s not that, you lowly creature.]

“Huh?”

[What you just thought, it’s not that.]

I gasped. Can this divine beast even read others’ thoughts?

“You, can you actually read my thoughts?”

[What are you talking about? I’m not interested in the thoughts of an unconstrained lowly creature like you.]

“…Then?”

[Your thoughts are all over your face. You just thought you had a terminal illness, right?]

So that’s it, my thoughts are so clearly visible on my face.

Come to think of it, the duke always seemed to know what I was going to say before I even spoke.

As I was sheepishly scratching my cheek, the silver snake spoke again.

[While you were briefly unconscious, I was thinking.]

As I scratched my cheek, the silver snake raised its head and continued.

[Let’s make a contract.]

“Why does the conversation suddenly jump like that?”

[I think I know why you suddenly fainted.]

The silver snake hopped down from the sofa. Then it climbed up the leg of the table in front of the sofa.

On top of the table, meeting my gaze again, the silver snake spoke once more.

[Life that should have been scattered has stuck back to the ground. Things that should have been lost, you forcibly held onto and wouldn’t let go.]

Unlike our previous conversations, its voice resonated heavily in my head. Come to think of it, the silver snake’s overall size seemed to have grown a bit too.

“What do you mean by that?”

[It means humans who should have died didn’t die.]

Until now, the silver snake’s voice had been thin and youthful. But gradually, weight was added to that voice. My head tilted back more and more at the shadow cast before my eyes.

“You…, why did you suddenly get bigger?”

[I’m originally incredibly huge, you lowly creatures are so small you can’t even compare to my claws.]

I blinked my eyes. The silver snake that had been gradually growing was now enormous, filling the entire room.

The silver snake stopped enlarging its body only when its head touched the ceiling.

[This is why lowly creatures, still having the habit of lighting fires without knowing it might rain soon.]

For the first time, I felt its weighty presence.

It was an overwhelming aura that took my breath away. I could barely see the silver snake by tilting my head back until my neck was stiff.

Now that I looked, it wasn’t just the size that had changed. The silver snake’s face was different too.

If it was originally a round and cute snake, now the giant silver snake’s body was solid. Sharp scales protruded near its eyes, and its body, which was close to white before, had changed to a color close to blue moonlight.

The silver snake, with its head near the ceiling, slowly lowered it.

[To be surprised by just this much, won’t you faint if you see my true form?]

The silver snake boasted. At that sight, the pressure I had felt until just now instantly dissipated.

‘It would be better if it just kept its mouth shut.’

[Since you still look like you don’t understand, I’ll tell you again. Earlier when the magic exploded, that’s when humans who should have died didn’t die because of your intervention, you know?]

“By magic, you mean…”

[Children born on the same day, with the same fate. The magic unleashed by life divided into two branches. You saw it with your own eyes, didn’t you?]

The explosive spread of magic was due to the twins’ fight. At that time, some employees ran out of the mansion in surprise.

Other maids, including Delma, came out and watched the situation with concern. Even the knights in the distant training ground came running.

“Are you saying that all those people should have died?”

[That’s right.]

“Everyone who was out there at that time…?”

[Well, some of them weren’t. There were a few who had the ability to protect themselves. But most didn’t.]

‘They all almost died.’

Come to think of it, Daiban did recklessly charge at Michael regardless of the consequences.

Michael, perhaps due to his naturally calm temperament, wasn’t as excited as Daiban, but even he looked quite heated.

‘They both seemed like they couldn’t even hear people trying to stop them.’

Everyone else was anxious seeing me close to the twins.

Yet they couldn’t easily come to get me because the twins were using magic indiscriminately. One wrong move and not only could they not save me, but both their lives could be in danger too.

At the end, a large tree almost fell on the people. If it weren’t for the barrier that blocked the tree, people might have been crushed under it.

‘That was Michael’s doing.’

I could tell from the magic that came from Michael’s hand. When I shouted, Michael quickly assessed the situation and spread the barrier.

To think that all those people were in mortal danger. Just thinking about it made me dizzy.

“But what does that have to do with me fainting?”

[Because that’s the reason your energy suddenly drained, the fate of humans who should have died was twisted. You lowly creature.]

I closed my mouth tightly and thought.

The first time I suddenly felt dizzy was when Count Ripe was safely released from the underground prison and returned home.

The second time I got a nosebleed was after all the children escaped from the auction house.

The third time I fainted today was after the twins’ fight ended.

As the silver snake said, I had intervened in all three incidents, and as a result, unlike in the original story, no one lost their life in vain.

The families of those who died because of the twins were briefly mentioned in the original story.

‘You killed them! You! Treating us as less than passing ants!’

As we saw earlier, the twins, especially Daiban, charge at their opponent without thinking when excited. Regardless of who’s around.

Exceptionally, the only figures the twins care about might be the duke or Clemens. Even then, when overly excited, they sometimes act without listening.

Still, the duke and Clemens had the power to protect themselves. The duke could use Aura, and Clemens protected himself with his magical tools.

It wasn’t the same for the other employees of the mansion. Every time the twins fought, quite a few people were sacrificed.

However, unlike in the original story, no one had been sacrificed in the duke’s mansion yet. To the extent that no one could call it a villain family yet.

I thought about what I experienced each time changes occurred. First feeling dizzy, then getting a nosebleed the second time, and finally fainting today.

The common point of all three was that people who should have died in the original story survived. All because of my intervention.

[This is why I said we should make a contract, you fragile lowly creature.]

The silver snake slithered closer. Its face came so close I couldn’t avoid its gaze.

[Everything has its given time. That can never be changed or reversed. For lowly creatures who can’t escape time, the end is absolute, you know?]

“…”

[But you changed that, a weak lowly creature like you who falls helplessly when tripping over my tail. Everything that changes a predetermined end pays a price. It’s natural that your body, which received that price, is having problems.]

I was speechless. The divine beast continued speaking.

[Even if changing it wasn’t your intention, you can’t avoid the price. What do you think will happen if this continues? Do you think it will just be nosebleeds in the future? Do you think it will end with just fainting for a moment?]

The silver snake shook its head.

[No way, you’ll probably pay a price beyond your imagination. Your end will be shorter than anyone else’s.]

“…”

[But it’s different if you contract with me! I don’t sit by and watch my contractor suffer!]

I couldn’t say anything. The fact that the price comes directly to me, it was something I had never imagined until now.

[You know what I mean by ‘end’, right?]

The silver snake asked triumphantly. I immediately thought of one word.

“Death.”

[Yes, I’m glad you understand well!]

The silver snake, which had grown so large its head touched the ceiling, instantly returned to its original size.

[Now, I’ll ask again. Lowly creature, should you make a contract with me, or not?]

The voice that had been resonating heavily just now disappeared, and a clear voice was heard. Seeing it smirk as it asked, it seemed to think I only had one choice.

The divine beast’s thought was correct. After hearing all of the divine beast’s explanations, I had also made up my mind.

But before answering, there was something else I needed to confirm.

“What do you, a divine beast, gain from contracting with me?”

[Huh?]

‘Come to think of it, in the original story, the divine beast approached Elizer first and asked to make a contract.’

“I’m asking why a divine beast is so eager to contract with humans.”

[Well, think about it, I’m a divine beast, right? I need to embrace all lowly creatures.]

The silver snake shook its head, as if a bit bored or tired.

[And because I pity you. I’m specially bestowing mercy on you.]

“That’s a lie.”

I said clearly.

“I think I understand a bit why you’re so obsessed with contracting with humans.”