At that moment, Elena suddenly assumed the air of a mistress, her tone brook no argument.
She applied a slight pressure to Ai’er’s shoulders with both hands, pinning her in place. Ai’er could do nothing but sit obediently on the sofa, her earlobes unconsciously flushing a faint crimson.
“Just as I told Uncle Sirius, Ai’er, you are my friend. When a friend comes to my room… should they be the one to get the snacks? Does that make any sense?”
‘Does—does it make sense for the mistress to get snacks for her maid?!’
Ai’er tried to struggle, but with a little more force, Elena pressed her back down even more firmly.
“You are my maid… be good, okay?”
‘Waaaah… why is she suddenly like this…’
Ai’er could hear her own heartbeat.
The strands of hair falling from Elena’s temple, those ink-blue eyes—
‘Can a girl really be this… aggressive?’
Ai’er didn’t know; she only knew her heart was racing.
The throbbing in her chest made it impossible to look Elena in the eye, and she no longer had the strength to resist. Thus, Ai’er’s body gradually lost its tension and went limp.
There was nothing she could do. This young lady was her mistress now, and after all, it made no sense for a maid to disobey her mistress…
Seeing that Ai’er had given up her resistance, Elena released her hands.
Noticing the redness on Ai’er’s ears and her flickering gaze, Elena felt something strange—
‘Why does seeing Ai’er like this make me… feel a bit—excited?’
‘It must be an illusion.’
“Then wait for me, Ai’er. I’ll be back soon.”
With those words, Elena gave a slight smile and walked out of the room.
Once Elena had left the room, Ai’er slapped her increasingly reddening cheeks hard.
‘Ugh! Next time I’m definitely going to do this to Elena too, meow QAQ!’
Calming her emotions, Ai’er took a deep breath.
However, this was also an opportunity.
**[Host, please find the Magic Stone that was deliberately placed in the room to disrupt Mana Control.]**
As soon as Elena left, the System’s voice popped up.
“But how am I supposed to find it? I don’t know any magic for finding things. Even if I get this Magic Stone or whatever, I won’t know if it’s actually disrupting mana…”
**[The Host can activate the previously exchanged Beginner Fire Magic. The closer you get to the Magic Stone, the more the flame will flicker.]**
“Oh, right! Since it’s meant to disrupt mana control, my magic is still magic!”
“That makes sense! As expected of the System~ Then let’s activate Beginner Fire Magic!”
A ball of fire immediately floated in front of Ai’er. But unlike the flame back in the cave, this one flickered constantly, as if a wind were blowing or it were about to go out at any moment.
“Is the effect of this Magic Stone really that powerful? Whatever, finding it is more important.”
But a “deliberately placed” Magic Stone… things like that were usually hidden in discreet locations.
‘For example—is it tucked under the mattress?’
Ai’er crawled onto Elena’s bed and rolled around.
A girl’s body was a precision instrument; if there was even the slightest discomfort, she would feel it with her back.
“Um… I don’t seem to feel anything hard? But Elena’s bed smells so good (^﹃^), and it’s so soft~”
**[.]**
“Wh-what’s with the period! It’s the truth!”
Ai’er reluctantly climbed off Elena’s bed and looked at the floating flame—though it was flickering, it was still at the same intensity as before.
‘If it’s not on the bed… would it be in the wardrobe or somewhere like that?’
She pulled the wardrobe open abruptly, but she only saw a few dark dresses. It was completely different from the noble’s wardrobe Ai’er had imagined.
After examining it for a moment, Ai’er didn’t see anything resembling a stone.
Even the flame maintained nearly the same level of flickering.
There was no Magic Stone in the wardrobe, only a faint fragrance somewhat similar to the one on Elena’s bed.
‘Could it be hidden in a drawer? For instance—the desk? The nightstand?’
After making a full circuit of Elena’s room, Ai’er still couldn’t find the Magic Stone that was supposed to be disrupting mana.
“This won’t work! I can’t find it at all! If I waste any more time, Elena will be back!”
‘System, since you know the Magic Stone exists, why can’t you just tell me where it is! What do you gain from making me struggle like this?’
The System did not respond to Ai’er.
Sighing, Ai’er sat back down on the sofa.
“Forget it… even if I can’t find it now, I still have two System Points. If push comes to shove, I’ll just look for it slowly over the next four days.”
With that plan in mind, Ai’er relaxed. She let her gaze wander freely around Elena’s room—a noble lady’s room, something she had only seen in novels, was now right before her eyes.
It was just… Elena’s room was far more simple than she had imagined.
Setting aside the pitifully few dark gowns in the wardrobe, there were no luxurious decorations, no exquisite vases or blooming bouquets. Even the vanity table looked somewhat empty.
“If Elena dressed up, she’d probably be even more beautiful, wouldn’t she? Speaking of which—what’s that box on the vanity?”
Ai’er’s gaze finally settled on the vanity.
It was an exquisite box that seemed out of place with its surroundings. However, it must be said that the box better matched the impression people had of a “Grand Duke’s Mansion.”
“Come to think of it… Elena’s mother has already passed away. Could that box be a memento of her mother or something?”
Driven by curiosity, Ai’er walked toward the vanity. Just as she picked up the box to examine it—
At the very edge of Ai’er’s vision, the floating flame flickered violently and instantly dissipated.
In the next moment—
*Clatter! Crash!*
“Eek! Wh-what happened?!”
Ai’er’s whole body jolted. The sound of a plate shattering on the floor made her nearly drop the box in her hands!
The silver-haired girl turned around and looked toward the doorway.
Elena was standing there. She just stood there.
Her hands were fixed in mid-air, maintaining the gesture of holding a tray, yet she was as stiff as a wax statue.
Ai’er saw it:
There was no light in Elena’s eyes.
They were an ink-blue like an abyss, like stagnant water…
The girl’s gaze was dead.
“… Put it down.”
The end of the girl’s sentence was the final silence before a storm.
A brief silence fell, but everything around them seemed to freeze—including time itself.
In Ai’er’s mind—this silence was deafening.
“Put that box down!!”
Cold air suddenly exploded outward with Elena as the center, covering everything nearby in frost in an instant!
The chill transformed into invisible arrows, instantly piercing Ai’er’s heart as if to freeze her soul—
The intense pain threw Ai’er’s mind into chaos.
What was happening?
She didn’t know.
She only knew—
It hurt so much… so cold…
That extreme cold seemed to instantly turn her blood into crimson ice shards, spreading through her body starting from her heart…
Was she… going to die?
…
**[Warning!]**
**[Detection of Mana erosion from the Witch of Time, Elena. The Host’s current physical lifespan is decreasing rapidly! It is recommended that the Host leaves the room immediately!]**
**[Warning! Remaining lifespan: 4 years, 3 years…]**