I didn’t know the truth, but for me, it was an opportunity to enjoy a variety of seasoned meals every day.
What a treat!
“Treat him as my guest,” Letia had told her servants on the day she took custody of me.
It was an ironic situation—treating a prisoner of the empire as a guest, when torturing me wouldn’t be enough.
But her absolute command left the servants no choice but to obey.
“She must be insane! Treating an imperial dog like a guest? I’d rather die!”
Everyone grumbled—except for Alma, who was assigned to bring me my meals.
Alma had harbored deep hatred ever since he lost his family to the empire’s invasion.
However, being physically weak, he couldn’t fight directly and instead served Letia as her servant, finding satisfaction by proxy.
But then, out of nowhere, his trusted master brought in an imperial prisoner and ordered them to treat him well.
It was infuriating, almost enough to make him explode, but Alma didn’t voice his complaints.
As a mere servant, he couldn’t oppose the hero who had saved their nation.
Instead, Alma acted cunningly.
Since Letia’s busy schedule rarely allowed her to return to the mansion, Alma planned to torment Siyoon in her absence.
As his first step, he altered Siyoon’s assigned meals.
He stole the luxurious food meant for the prisoner and replaced it with leftover scraps boiled into a slop.
Expecting disgust, Alma was surprised when Siyoon accepted the meal without complaint, even seeming oddly pleased.
“This isn’t the reaction I wanted!”
Seeing Siyoon finish the revolting meal confirmed to Alma that his opponent was tougher than expected.
To handle a stubborn opponent, one had to be even more ruthless.
Alma escalated his plan by adding poisonous herbs to Siyoon’s meals.
“Let’s see if you can handle this poison!”
But things didn’t go Alma’s way.
Siyoon’s unprecedentedly resilient stomach rendered the poison completely ineffective.
Each time Alma tried a new poison, Siyoon ate it with gusto, even shoveling the food into his mouth.
Frustrated, Alma sourced every possible poison within the estate, determined to kill him.
But three days later, an unexpected complication arose.
“How is the prisoner’s condition?”
“Well, that is…”
Letia, who Alma thought wouldn’t return for at least ten days, came back early.
As soon as she arrived, she asked about Siyoon’s condition before even resting.
“Why are you hesitating? Is there something wrong with his health?”
“No, he’s perfectly healthy. It’s just…”
“Stop stalling and speak.”
“We’ve noticed… strange occurrences with the dishes he returns.”
This was the testimony of the maid responsible for collecting the dishes from Siyoon’s cell, who had once fled in terror upon seeing him licking the plates.
“What sort of strange occurrences?”
“Unfamiliar plants, purple residue stuck to the plates, and just yesterday, a spoon was partially corroded.”
Suspicious, Letia turned her sharp gaze to Alma, who trembled under her piercing stare.
Perhaps deciding it was too early for conclusions, Letia looked away and ordered the chef.
“Prepare a meal immediately. Make your finest dish.”
“Yes, my lady.”
Alarm bells rang in Alma’s mind.
He needed to destroy any evidence of his tampering with the meals.
But when he returned to his quarters, someone was already there, holding the poisonous herbs he had used.
At the same time, Siyoon, too, had an unexpected visitor.
“Letia Heter?”
“You seem unusually well…”
“What, were you hoping I’d be dead?”
“If I did, I wouldn’t have brought you this meal.”
“I thought I smelled something good. So that’s what it is.”
Siyoon was certain the meal Letia had brought was a trap.
It must be food ordinary people couldn’t eat, intended to lure him with its appeal.
Convinced of this misunderstanding, he grinned.
His smile seemed to say he wouldn’t fall for such a cheap trick.
Meanwhile, Letia, seeing his smile, momentarily flinched.
She quickly masked her emotions, acting calmly as she placed the meal before him.
“Eat.”
“No need. Just bring me the slop from before.”
When Siyoon didn’t even glance at the food, Letia cut a piece of steak, ate it, and swallowed it in front of him.
She set down her fork and pushed the plate toward him.
“As you can see, there’s nothing wrong with it. Eat.”
“Oh, so after feeding me poison, now you’re trying to act all nice?”
Letia didn’t deny that the meals had been poisoned.
She remained silent, exuding a heavy tension, like the calm before a storm.
“If I accept your kindness, you must want something in return, right?”
“I want nothing from you.”
“Yeah, like I’ll believe that.”
Siyoon raised an eyebrow.
He had always thought Letia was emotionless, but for a brief moment, she looked a little annoyed.
While he was still doubting his eyes, Letia suddenly picked up her utensils again, taking another bite of steak.
Then, without warning, she leaned in and stole a kiss from him.
Letia forced her way past Siyoon’s slightly parted lips, pushing her tongue in.
She passed him a piece of meat mixed with juices and saliva before withdrawing, a thin string of saliva trailing between them.
“This is how I truly feel. Can you trust me?”
“Huh? Uh… yeah…”
“Thank you. Please enjoy your meal.”
Despite her audacious act, Letia spoke calmly and left.
Meanwhile, Siyoon, usually unshaken even when consuming poison, was left utterly stunned, his eyes following her retreating figure.
‘Ahhh! I really did it! I actually went through with it!’
Contrary to her composed exterior, Letia’s inner thoughts were in chaos.
If her feelings were visible, it would’ve been like an earthquake shaking her to the core.
Her attempts to hide her excitement faltered as a faint blush rose on her cheeks.
‘Did I come on too strong? What if he thinks I’m some vulgar woman?’
Despite her outward confidence, her inner turmoil was almost laughably endearing.
Of course, the servants, unaware of her true feelings, simply bowed their heads in respect.
‘I couldn’t hold back my overwhelming emotions again. But I don’t want to hide my feelings anymore.’
Their adversarial relationship restricted her ability to express herself.
Letia was lost in thought, wrestling with her emotions, when the sound of footsteps behind her made her stiffen.
“Master, I’ve brought the servant as you instructed, along with solid evidence.”
It was Zenith, Letia’s long-serving maid and trusted confidante.
She dragged Alma by the scruff of his neck, forcing him to kneel before Letia.
Holding him firmly by the shoulders, she ensured he couldn’t move or resist.
Alma, now cornered, tried desperately to defend himself.
“Lady Letia, please listen! That prisoner is an imperial! His blood carries the mark of demons! How can you spare him when he should be executed? I beg you to reconsider his treatment—”
Alma couldn’t finish his plea.
A faint wheeze escaped his severed neck as his head toppled to the floor.
Unaware of his death, his body twitched pitifully.
“Not even worth listening to.”
Letia, who had always maintained her composure, was seething with fury.
Though her face remained calm, she had been pushed to her limits.
His feeble excuses only fueled her anger further, and now her blood-stained sword showed no trace of hesitation or regret.
“I’ll make this clear right now. I despise anyone touching what’s mine. I hope nothing like this ever happens again. Understood?”
The other servants, who had gathered to witness Alma’s punishment, were paralyzed with fear at the gruesome sight.
When Letia glared at them, they frantically nodded and scattered in all directions.
Only Zenith remained, awaiting further instructions.
“Zenith, please take care of the filth.”
“Leave it to me.”
Zenith swiftly carried away the body, vanishing in moments.
Left alone, Letia sheathed her sword and retrieved a pendant from her chest.
The pendant, blackened and worn, held no ornamental value.
Yet Letia cradled it as though it were her most precious treasure.
“My one and only treasure…”
She smiled, her expression softened with pure affection, even as blood still stained her cheek.