Charlotte continued speaking in a rhythmic voice, as if performing a monologue in a one-person play.

Meanwhile, the rat poison to completely eradicate the rats swarming in Mr. Treiker’s basement was being smoothly prepared.

“So I…”

Charlotte, who was continuing to speak, suddenly realized belatedly that at some point, she had stopped hearing responses from Matiel.

She quickly raised her head as if burned, and Matiel came into her view.

He was sitting on a small stool placed for customers who came to buy medicine, with his arms folded, leaning his head against the wall, fast asleep.

He looked as if he had fallen asleep, unable to bear the overwhelming fatigue.

His head, severely tilted towards the wall, never nodded or twitched even once, and his breathing had become deep and slow.

Charlotte stopped talking and focused solely on making the rat poison.

Once everything was mixed, it was time to boil it once more.

It would then turn into a sticky, jelly-like form. After cooling the boiled mixture and cutting it into pieces like taffy, it would be done.

She looked at the pendulum clock and, reassured that there was still plenty of time, hung the pot.

A foul smell began to waft, but Charlotte only tilted her head slightly, skillfully stirring the melting ingredients with a ladle.

However, the smell seemed unfamiliar to Matiel, as his body twitched slightly.

“…Brother.”

Matiel made a mumbling sound. Charlotte turned her head. But he was still asleep.

“What did you say?”

She asked again, just in case, but Matiel did not wake up.

He only frowned and lowered his head a bit more forward.

Was he sleep-talking?

As Charlotte was about to turn back towards the pot, another low murmur flowed from Matiel.

“…I’m sorry, brother. Sorry…”

This time, she could hear it clearly. Charlotte stared at him for a moment, then put down the ladle she was stirring the pot with and walked around the counter.

Even as she approached, Matiel did not open his eyes.

Charlotte would have been surprised to know that he was usually a person sensitive enough to wake up at the mere sound of a feather brushing in the wind.

But leaning against the wall asleep, he was only wandering in deep unconsciousness.

Charlotte’s hand rose, almost touching Matiel’s shoulder. She was about to shake him awake but stopped.

Then, with her arms folded, she took a step back and gazed blankly at Matiel’s face.

“You’re carrying something too, aren’t you?”

She murmured softly. The sound of the medicine bubbling and boiling over in the pot could be heard.

Charlotte turned her head and went back behind the counter to pick up the ladle.

“I’m sorry.”

Matiel’s voice, as if whispering, brushed past Charlotte’s ear once more.

* * *

It was just past six in the afternoon when Charlotte completed the special rat poison.

Matiel, who had woken up, looked momentarily perplexed seeing her cutting something she had stretched out long like taffy.

However, seeing the dark purple color and the gloves on Charlotte’s hands, he quickly realized that this was not caramel or candy to enjoy when bored.

On the contrary, it was a vicious poison that would prevent one from ever opening their eyes again if ingested.

“It’s done now.”

Charlotte said, wrapping the cut rat poison in thin paper.

She wrapped it tightly using several sheets of paper, and later tied it with hemp string, making a knot.

“Packaged like that, it looks like a rather nice gift.”

Matiel said.

She did not mention that Matiel had talked in his sleep.

Although she knew a little about the various rumors surrounding the Elinak ducal family, the current Duke Matiel, and his deceased brother, she did not feel the need to confirm them.

His voice, mumbling “I’m sorry” as he wandered through his dreams, sounded sad.

It was neither arrogant as usual nor even mature…

It was as if a young boy, having accidentally broken something his brother cherished, was continually apologizing while completely cowed.

This changed Charlotte’s thoughts about Matiel slightly.

Although Charlotte herself did not realize this fact.

Charlotte got into the carriage with a puzzled feeling at Matiel’s words that he didn’t need to change clothes.

They first headed to Treiker’s house.

It was a so-called poor neighborhood with complicated roads and poorly paved streets.

But to Charlotte, this place felt more comfortable than the nobles’ banquet halls.

“Wait here for a bit.”

The carriage stopped right in front of Treiker’s front door.

Charlotte got out alone, and Matiel watched from inside the carriage as she knocked on the door.

He tensed his entire body, ready to jump out immediately if anything happened.

“Who is it?”

A man with unkempt hair and shabby clothes, looking haggard, opened the door and flinched upon seeing Charlotte.

As if suddenly embarrassed by his appearance, he rubbed his face and made a futile gesture to tidy his unruly, sticking-out hair.

“Are you Mr. Bloz Treiker?”

“Yes, I am…”

Charlotte, smiling gently, handed over the package she was holding to him.

Treiker, bewildered, took the package, and from his hands wafted the smell of dust, stale wine, and something like a sewer.

“I’m the owner of Charlotte’s Pharmacy. Your son came to request rat poison. Didn’t you know?”

“Son? You mean my Derry? Ah… right. Yes, that’s right. Damn, I’m out of it from just waking up. That’s right. I sent him on an errand.”

After saying that, he rubbed his face again with his empty hand not holding the package.

Charlotte noticed that the area under his eyes was darkened and deeply sunken. He looked like someone who hadn’t slept a wink for at least three days.

Treiker said,

“I don’t know where those damn rats are coming from in such numbers. It got to the point where I had no choice but to evacuate my wife and children to my sister-in-law’s house in the next neighborhood. Until just thirty minutes ago, my brother and I were in an uproar, beating those crazy rats with brooms and sweeping them out.”

“Did you chase them all away?”

“For now, yes. But they’ll come back in. It’s been like this for days.”

Charlotte once again thought something was strange.

Rats could appear in a house where people live.

Even in the cleanest noble mansion, there might be a rat or two in places like the kitchen or the wine cellar in the basement.

Needless to say for a shabby house like this.

It’s common enough to hear the footsteps of rats running between the roof and ceiling boards when trying to sleep.

‘But it doesn’t make sense for swarms of rats to keep coming in for days on end. Unless there’s something in the basement… Something that would attract them.’

Charlotte said,

“Mr. Treiker, you’re not using the basement as a food storage, are you?”

At this, Bloz Treiker’s eyes widened.

If he had had more energy, he might have made a gesture of jumping up and waving his hands, but unfortunately, he was too exhausted.

So all he could do was shake his head slowly.

“If that were the case, I wouldn’t be trying so frantically to drive out these rats. I would have moved the food elsewhere. The basement is empty. There’s nothing there. Our parents used to use it as a storage room in the old days. But it’s too damp, causing things to keep rotting and getting moldy, so we don’t use it now. It’s been empty since long before Derry was born, and there had been no problems until now. There are holes where rats might come and go, but when the first few appeared, we blocked them off securely… but they broke through and appeared again! It was the same no matter how many times we blocked it again. No matter how solidly we built the wall…”

Treiker’s body trembled. It was clear this wasn’t just the aftermath of a hangover.

He was terrified.

Charlotte didn’t like the peculiar scent that emanated from people feeling fear, so she wanted to wrap up this conversation quickly.

“I understand, Mr. Treiker. This rat poison contains marsh beetles. It’s completely different from the rat poison commonly sold. I’ve cut it into sizes just right for rats to eat… Sprinkle this in the basement and close the door tightly. Even eating just one piece will make them foam at the mouth and keel over quickly.”

“Will it really work like that?”

Treiker asked anxiously.

He had been so troubled that he seemed skeptical even of Charlotte’s words.

Charlotte nodded.

“It will. Don’t worry. If it’s not enough, I can make more for you. It’s fortunate that there are no children at home. It would be terrible if children mistook this for candy and ate it.”

“Such a horrible thing won’t happen.”

Treiker’s voice gained strength. He seemed to have found some courage.

After he disappeared into the house, Charlotte got back into Matiel’s carriage.

She felt uneasy about something… but unable to express what it was, she decided to shake her head and forget about it.

It wasn’t ghosts or monsters, so wouldn’t it be stranger not to feel unsettled after seeing a man nearly reduced to a corpse because of mere rats?

“What are you going to do now?”

Charlotte asked. Matiel looked at her as if she was asking a strange question.

“Didn’t I say we’re going to see an opera?”

“You did. But look at my state.”