Stepmothers Are Not Always Evil

Chapter 91 “What do you mean by artificially unleashing monsters, Sir Peterson?”“I’m saying that it’s possible that someone targeting His Majesty has placed the creature in the hunting grounds.”Sirius looked around the crowd with sharp eyes as if it could have been someone here.The Marquis Kensington opened his mouth cautiously.“Even if that’s possible, don’t the monsters have the intelligence to choose a target and attack it? It would be extremely inefficient… to do something like that to your Majesty.”“There is a way, though I can’t tell you about it here.”Count Tilburn let out a moan, as if he had something to point out.Sirius spoke with a light expression.“But as I said now, if the purpose is to assassinate, it is a very cumbersome method. The second guess is more likely that.”“Second guess?”“As the number of monsters increased, they were driven out of their packs and made their way to the capital.”The Emperor’s face was worried about the speculation of his cousin, who knew the ecology of monsters better than anyone else.“If it’s really because the number of monsters has increased, isn’t it a big deal? So what should we do?”“Instruct the investigation into how the monsters appeared, and issue a monster warning order throughout the empire.”“Then the public will become anxious…”“It’s better than holding hands and waiting for things to happen.”Sirius replied sternly.The Emperor, who had been trying to keep things quiet because of Frederick’s crowning, nodded reluctantly.“Then, as Sir Peterson said, everyone should contact the estate to see if there are any suspicious moves and report it immediately.”“Understood Your Majesty.” ***** “So why don’t you contact the Duke’s estate?”“…… And you came all the way down here to tell me that?”“Well, sort of.”Sirius whistled and looked around the drawing room.“The manor must be lovely, and the tea is delicious.”“If you wanted a tour of the house, shouldn’t you have sent a letter first?”“Don’t you often get complaints about your hospitality, Duke Anthemion?”“This is the first time I have ever heard such a thing because it is the first time that a guest who has not been invited has come to visit me recklessly. Sir Peterson.”Helios clenched his teeth and sarcastically.Ugh, how childish of them.He scratched his forehead and shook his head impatiently, just as Sirius stood up from his seat and headed for the back of the couch where Helios was sitting. Then,“Ouch!”He pressed the wounded area of Helios without mercy.Surprised, looking at him, Sirius spoke softly.“I see you’re not quite healed yet, I knew it, and I brought you something that works well against monster venom.”Sirius took the ointment bottle out of his inner pocket and hurriedly picked up the robe that was on Helios’ shoulder and threw it away.“Take that bandage off, Duke.”“… Get your hands off me, I’ll take care of it.”“It’s a shame you refuse a favor like this. No one knows more about monster than I do.”“That’s enough, shut up and get lost…”“The pills, are you sure it’s effective?”Sirius cut off Helios and asked. He smiled mischievously.“Of course. Lady Evelyn.”“Teach me how to apply it.”“Lena, you don’t need that…”“Stay still. You were up all night last night grunting.”“…….”Without hesitation, I removed Helios’ bandages.“You’re hurt worse than I thought.”Tsk, Sirius clicked his tongue and opened the ointment container. The pungent smell of peppermint wafted through the drawing room.“It’s easy, I just put a generous amount of this ointment on it and-”“Ugh…!”“Two times a day, apply evenly to the wound.”… Should I say that he put it on or should I say that it was shoved in?Helios gripped the handle of the couch with a shattering grip as he probed at the wound.Sirius, who’d doused the wound with the ointment and kindly re-bandaged it, sat back down.“You’re very patient, that medicine must have stung.”I gently grabbed Helios’ thigh, which was grinding his teeth, and deliberately spoke more, pretending to be more grateful.“Thank you so much for bringing the medicine, Sir Peterson.”“You’re welcome. Lady Evelyn. Actually, I’m more worried about Lady Evelyn than the Duke….”“Are you going to keep call my wife Lady Evelyn?”“Oh, I keep forgetting that she is your wife.”Sirius nodded politely.No matter how you look at it, it looks like he came to turn Helios’ insides upside down.They wanted to fight again, so I quickly turned around.“By the way, I heard in the meeting that you can control magical creatures to attack specific targets?”“Is that what you want to know?”“Yes.”“I hear too much curiosity is poison.”Sirius smirked at the joking tone and answered obediently.“Cannabis.”“Cannabis?”“It is a grass that has a calming effect, and you use that grass to capture monsters, then put them on a wagon or something and move them to the destination. Then all you have to do is release it to the hunting grounds.”“But the monster doesn’t know how to find the target, right?”“Well, there’s a way to do that.”“… That’s the magic stone.”“Correct.”Sirius nodded slightly.“Your Majesty’s bow and arrow heads are made of magic stones. It’s light and sharp, but it doesn’t scratch the leather too much.”“So that’s why you were able to escape into a crowded place even though you were wounded….”“They must have sensed the magic stone the Empress was carrying and went there.”“It was planned.”Helios licked his lips as if he understood now. Sirius shrugged his shoulders and lowered it.“There is a way, but that doesn’t mean it’s the right answer. I also told His Majesty, but it is more persuasive to think that the one who was kicked out of the group came up to the capital rather than a human act.”“Well, if it’s still a little bit, it’s time to subdue monsters….”“Hm?”Sirius looked at me with a puzzled face.“Ah, no, if that happens, the monster subjugation will start soon.”I would have been almost at a loss for words.He waved it off.“We’ll have to wait and see, but based on monster outbreak cycles, there’s a good chance we’ll have an outbreak within five years, so it could happen.”Helios, who had always been dissatisfied, nodded as if in agreement with his words.It’s not the first time the Empire has been troubled by monsters. Everyone seemed to take it more seriously than expected.“Anyway, that’s why I came to ask the Duke, do you remember the appearance of that monster?”Helios raised his eyebrows.“It would be easier to describe what the sparrow I saw yesterday morning looked like, aren’t all monster the same?”“They may look the same to someone who doesn’t see them often, but they have slightly different characteristics depending on their habitat.”Hm. I guess experts are different.But in the heat of the moment, there should have been time to examine the appearance of the monster.“Wouldn’t it be better for Sir Peterson to examine the corpse of the monster himself rather than hear it through words?”“It’s hard to find out when it is dead. Corruption begins as soon as they die.”“Ah…”He looked at Helios, nodding his head at the new facts, and he briefly explained.“The only thing I know is that the fluid was blue and the fangs were long.”“Hmm.”“And the reaction was slow. Maybe it’s inaccurate.”“Yeah, and when Escal confronted him, he hesitated a bit instead of lunging straight at it.”The corners of Sirius’s lips slowly raised as he pondered what we had said.“Do you have anything to point out?”“I’ll tell you later, when I’m sure.”As if he had found a useful clue, Sirius emptied the remaining tea at once and got up.“I should probably get going.”Sirius kissed the back of my hand as he stood up to see him off.“It was really nice to meet you. I don’t know when I’ll see you again, but I’ll definitely see you again.”“You’re leaving?”“I should probably get going, given the monster appearance.”Helios picked up his robe from the floor and stood up from the couch.“Where are you going?”“If I tell you, will the Duke come with me?”“Yes… I’ll attach my knights if you need help.”“I am grateful for that, but I refuse.”Seeing Helios’ expression distorted, Sirius did not stop his sarcastic tone.“You’d better make sure you have enough dragon blood to worry about me.”Sirius’s gaze shifted to me.“To prevent the same thing from happening again.”