Florin's POV
It had been four days since those wretched guests arrived here, disturbing my alone time with My Lord.
I already had to compete for his attention with Athena, but now, three more women joined the fray.
They're nothing but leeches who only knew how to suck blood yet still dare to complain! I cursed them in my mind as I repeatedly stabbed the soil with my small shovel to soften it.
As usual, I was in the greenhouse, tending the plants. It felt peaceful here, and this was where I spent most of my time ever since the house was loaded by those bitches.
Hmm . . . , should I kill them?
Having thought of that, I shook my head, hoping to get the idea off my mind. If My Lord found out about my thoughts, he might despise me.
But why was he letting them take advantage of him? Was it so that he could lure them into killing later? He did the same thing to that Jayson guy back at Roselake Town, after all.
Was he trying to enjoy the hunt? In the end, it was fun to see the face of those bitches once My Lord revealed his true character.
I liked My Lord's nice guy persona all in all since I would often receive head pats, but now that things had reached this point, I wanted his other persona now.
It also made me sad that I wasn't the one cooking for him. When that thought crossed my mind, I savagely stabbed the soil again and again, wanting to vent my frustration on it.
Couldn't he see that Florin enjoyed cooking for him? Why did he like that big-breasted woman so much?
We already had a cow named Dementia, and yet another Moo entered the picture.
At this rate, it would be reasonable to put up a sign in here that says 'Milk Farm' for the hell of it.
"What are you doing?" asked a voice from behind.
When I turned around, I found Ford standing by the door. He was dripping wet from the rain, and the look on his face told me that he was up to no good.
This was the first time that he had come here.
The way he looked at me with his filthy eyes whenever he had the chance never escaped my notice.
Hmm . . .
Through layers of lies and practices mannerisms I recognized fiendishness and know that someone was going to die –– and it was not me.
"Just digging," I replied. "Did you get the fish?"
Ford walked over to me and sat down next to me. "No. There's no fish in the net. I guess the Blood Rain did something to them."
Lies. My Lord said that the Blood Rain didn't affect animals, and the only one I believe was My Lord.
"Is that so?" I ended the talk.
Ford wet his lips and asked after a while, "You've come here before us, right?"
Will My Lord get angry at me if I kill him? I thought. And when my mind whispered 'yes,' I abandoned the idea.
. . . Well, not thoroughly.
'Count your fortune,' I told him in my mind.
"Yeah."
"Then, shouldn't you be the Lord here?"
". . ." I paused and then beamed at him. "Why is that?"
Ford shrugged. "Because you're stronger than all of us," he said with a matter-of-fact tone.
I looked him in the eyes, and he looked away. Can't you even fucking look at me straight?
"Well, you see . . ." I looked around, checking my surroundings. "Can I tell you a secret?"
Ford's eyes shone. "Of course! You can count on me!"
"Shh!" I pressed my finger over his lips, and his expression looked like he was going to melt. "Someone might hear us."
"Don't worry. I came here without anyone knowing if that is what you're concerned with."
I peeked at him under my lashes. "Are you sure?"
Ford nodded his head like a chicken pecking grains. "Yes. I'm sure. After I checked the fish, I went straight here. As you can see, I'm still wet."
I sweetly smiled at him. "Good."
Ford opened his mouth, and his eyes bulged when vines suddenly constricted around his lips. He yelped and tried to pull away from them, scratching the vines, but it was no use. He couldn't get them off.
"You okay? What happened? Are those . . . vines?" I asked, eyes bulging.
I stepped closer to Ford and looked down at the vines wrapped around his body. They were thin and long with a greenish-yellow hue to them.
The vines parted for me to let me get a better look. The vines had tiny hairs all over them. It reminded me of a snake or something similar.
They weren't dangerous, though.
At least not yet.
I took a step back and looked down at him with constricting pupils.
"I don't know if you're an idiot or an absolute idiot for letting me know that you came here alone and without anyone knowing." I giggled. "That makes things sooooo much easier."
I walked toward the tools and had a hard time choosing among the rake, the hedge shear, the fork, and the pruners.
Finding a hard time choosing, I decided to ask him, "How would you like to die?" I was really confused and needed a serious answer from him.
"Oh, right. You can't talk." I laughed, and the vines parted from his lips.
"HeEeEl–!"
I rolled my eyes, and the vines quickly covered his mouth.
"Is that your final word? What a shame. It's the pruners, then." My eyes glowed when I thought of something.
"Wait . . . I know. I'll make you a fertilizer instead! It'll be a waste if you just die and turn into particles," I said. "At least by one with the soil, you'll have a use."
I laughed in bliss, eyes squinting upward. "You'll be a delicious Lemon Tree! Get it? It's because your hair is yellow! Ahahaha!"
Ford could only groan, and tears pooled beneath his eyes as he quickly backed away from me.
My vines quickly crawled toward his hands and feet, wrapping around him and constricting him in place. I sat on his stomach, brushing the blade along his face.
"All you had to do was do your job and keep this little mouth shut. In that way, maybe you could have lived longer."
I chuckled, and my smile stretched to the limits. "For the price of even suggesting that I usurp My Lord's position, I'll have your tongue. A small price if you ask me. Am I nice or what?"
My vines parted Ford's mouth wide enough for me to have a good angle to cut his tongue.
"Now, now. Stop squirming, or I might accidentally cut something else — like your gums or your inner cheeks."
Ford wiggled, gurgling with his saliva and blood as I slowly cut his tongue one flesh at a time. No need to cut the whole thing right away. Otherwise, where's the fun in that?!
"Florin."
". . ." I rolled my eyes and released a sigh, but I didn't stray my eyes away from what I was doing.
"What do you want, Athena?" I asked.
Ford's eyes bulged, pleading for the newcomer to help him.
"Don't tell me that you're going to stop me?" I asked as I looked over at her.
Athena's beautiful face didn't change from its neutral expression. "I'm sorry to ruin your fun, but My Lord is returning. You might want to hurry."
"My Lord?!" Out of excitement, I cut Ford's tongue. "Ah . . ."
I pouted and glared at Athena. "Now, you've ruined my fun."
My mood plummeted even more when Ford lost consciousness from shock. Tortured by the prolonged intensity of the insufferable pain, I think he yearned for release.
Lucky him.
"Great . . ." I rose to my feet and faced Athena. "Where did you even come from anyway?
( . . . continuation on NOTES)