Chapter 10
Chapter 2: An Unwelcome Guest
People had become kinder.
They said people from the North were blunt and slow to open their hearts, making it hard to get close. Yet everyone in Erel—even those living at the farthest edges of the North—was unusually warm toward me. Not just Emma, who stayed closest to me, but even the butler and the mansion’s servants, who had never glanced my way before, all greeted me with friendly smiles and bows whenever they saw me.
It was all thanks to Harry’s fire. After learning that I had personally delivered fire to the orphanage, the baron soon lifted the ban and distributed fire throughout the village—but carefully monitored it so none could be taken outside the territory. The surveillance area expanded from the mansion to cover the entire domain. As a result, the knights guarding the outskirts of the estate had double the work.
‘I still don’t understand why they need to watch it so closely.’
I could only guess that the fire from the black ironwood was considered strategically valuable and intended to be used only within Erel.
Thanks to the fire spreading through the domain, I was receiving unintentional kindness everywhere. Even remembering the long-stalled conversations with the butler made my head ache from embarrassment.
“-It’s been so long since smoke has risen from the chimneys. It’s all thanks to the young lady’s kindness, pitying Erel’s cold.”
“-Butler, I didn’t light the fire for Erel. I just… was cold myself.”
“-Yes, I’ve already heard that several times. Don’t worry. I understand your heart completely, young lady.”
“-…No, you don’t at all.”
“-What do you mean? I do know. The fire from black ironwood isn’t ordinary. It’s a fire that cannot be obtained by a petty heart concerned only with warming itself.”
“-No. I’m petty. All I care about is myself, really!”
“-Goodness… so humble to the end. It’s because of people like you that such a great fire can exist. Truly benevolent.”
The butler said this with an extremely wistful smile.
“-No… don’t smile so wistfully… it’s not like that…”
Despite several repeated conversations, changing the butler’s firmly held beliefs wasn’t easy. After countless attempts, I eventually gave up, and as a result, through the butler, the story of my non-existent “deep love for Erel” spread throughout the domain.
‘Thanks to that, everyone’s become much kinder. Life is way easier than when I first arrived.’
The misunderstanding had been strange, but what did it matter? Seeing me just taking care of myself would naturally erase the misunderstanding anyway. I had no energy to correct the rumors in high society that I was infamous for—it was easier to let it be.
‘I’ve done my part by telling the butler no several times.’
Later, if the misunderstanding was cleared up and someone asked why I hadn’t said anything properly, I could answer confidently: “I told you no back then, didn’t I?”
‘So for now, let’s just eat something delicious.’
In fact, the North wasn’t known for a developed food culture. People there valued practicality and simplicity. Balance, texture, color—who cared? Ordinary northerners thought food only needed to fill the stomach.
‘When I first saw the rough dishes at the Erel table, I was so frustrated.’
I hoped that at least the taste would be better than the look, but it was even worse. I forced myself to eat because I was hungry, but only just enough to survive.
Eating less made me lose weight. Dresses I brought to Erel were now slightly loose. The head chef, aware of this, didn’t care much. He probably didn’t want to bother pleasing a finicky lady from the capital who had been dumped into his domain like a burden.
But after I shared the fire, the head chef, eager to cater to a lady from a gastronomically advanced capital, put real effort into cooking. The result was the table before me.
I gazed at it in awe. The table was overflowing with dishes, all smelling wonderful. Glossy roasted turkey, freshly baked bread, salads made from fresh vegetables, and warm mushroom soup—just like the food I had eaten in the capital.
But before I could even touch it, some plates were already empty. Clearly, it was Harry, the “ghost that couldn’t wait to eat.”
“Harry, could you at least wait until I pick up my spoon?”
“You’re just staring blankly. Do you know how exhausting it is to stay in dog form? Shape-shifting isn’t my specialty, you know.”
Harry grumbled as he tore into the turkey. He had barely chewed, yet the bones were already scattered. I gawked at the spectacle—his speed and appetite were extraordinary.
“You don’t even eat the food the maids gave you.”
“Would you want to eat dog food? Consider the dignity of a demon, will you?”
“I get that, but still, you eat way too much!”
I didn’t know what a normal adult male could eat, but Harry’s appetite was clearly abnormal. If this were normal, all the food in the world would have run out by now.
And a glutton like him wasn’t satisfied with just stealing my meal. Whenever he got hungry, he sneaked into the kitchen to eat. Rumor had it that the kitchen staff now whispered of a ghost devouring food.
‘Why do you eat so much and still want my food?’
Because Harry stole my meal, I couldn’t have a maid serve me. Anyone seeing a dog-shaped Harry slicing steak would faint. So I ate alone, sending all the maids away.
On top of that, I earned the ridiculous misunderstanding that I was a glutton. I’ll never forget the maids’ shocked faces when they saw my clean plates and wondered aloud if it was five portions.
‘They definitely looked like they were staring at a monster.’
“Couldn’t you just quietly watch me eat?”
“You always leave food anyway. It’s not wasted.”
“Then I’ll eat when I’m done.”
“Eating alone will be lonely.”
“Don’t make excuses to seem considerate. You just want to eat.”
“Tch, not working.”
Harry grumbled, putting down the utensils, took my napkin like his own, wiped his hands, and draped a hand over my shoulder.
“This is all because I’m pent up. Since I can’t release my desires, I try to satisfy them through eating.”
He played with my long hair, dangling under his hand.
“Do you want me to express all my desires freely?”
I was baffled by the subtle suggestion in his touch.
“I’m already doing what I want. What desires do you even have?”
Harry was inherently selfish. He said whatever he wanted and did whatever he pleased. Was this how all demons were? He was uncontrollable unless I said “It’s my wish.”
‘It’s like watching a disobedient dog.’
Harry’s soul count had a reason. The only consolation was that I had the leash in my hand to control him in the final moment.
“Don’t you get it? I want to see blood! Seeing blood is a demon’s basic need. It’s like human appetite.”
“Like appetite? Could you die if you go too long without it?”
I asked, alarmed. After all, he had been summoned because of me, and I’d feel guilty if he died from unmet needs.
Shaken, Harry shook his head.
“Not death, but it’s miserable. Extremely stressful.”
“Eh, well, that’s fine then.”
“Just because it doesn’t kill me, does that make it okay? You complained about bad food being the worst. Same here. Without blood, life feels meaningless.”
“Hm.”
Thinking that way, I understood Harry’s feelings.
‘Yeah, surviving on bad food made life so boring and irritating.’
“But you can’t kill people. That’s a crime.”
“Since you said that, I try other ways to satisfy my desires. And not being able to kill humans is frustrating enough—why take my eating away too?”
“Isn’t there another way? The kitchen staff already panics when food disappears, and I end up eating five portions alone, looking like a monstrous glutton.”
“You satisfy pleasure in any way possible. So it’s not impossible…”
Harry crossed his arms, scanning me up and down. After a while, he said:
“Someone like you isn’t enough.”
“Why not? I can do anything. Even if it’s hard, it’s better than being misunderstood as a five-portion glutton.”
Seeing the maids’ shocked faces whenever I finished a meal was mortifying.
“So tell me, what method satisfies the pleasures and desires you’re talking about?”
I looked up at Harry, ready to do anything if there was another way. His face flushed.
“Ah, forget it. You really can’t do it. I’ll just eat the turkey.”
“Why? What other method? Fine, we’ll do that.”
I grabbed Harry’s clothes, and he yelped as if burned, shaking my hand off.
“Do you even know what you’re doing? Forget it. I won’t do it with you.”
“What is it then?”
“You don’t need to know, not even eighteen yet!”
“Lucky you’re over 2,000 years old. You can use age as an excuse.”
“I’m not a grandfather!”
At that moment, Emma’s voice called from outside.
“Miss, it’s Emma.”
“Emma?”
Clearing the table was the job of the younger children.
‘So she didn’t come to clear the table.’
I let her in while calming Harry, who had already transformed into a dog at her presence.
“Come in. What’s the matter?”
Emma entered with a deep bow, looking a little troubled.
“A guest has come looking for you, Miss.”
“A guest?”
Ebria, being the Duke’s daughter, had a wide network. She had many followers.
‘But…’
“No guest would come all this way to see me. There was no prior notice.”
“Yes. They came secretly, saying it would be troublesome if anyone outside found out.”
“Secretly? Who is it?”
“It’s… His Royal Highness, the Crown Prince.”
The crown prince? That was unexpected.
‘Has there ever been a story of the crown prince coming to Erel to see Ebria?’
No need to dredge memories. All original narratives centered on Catherine, and Ebria only appeared as an obstacle to her. Naturally, the story of the villain’s life after being sent to rural Erel was never depicted.
‘I hope it’s not troublesome.’
I even declared an engagement break to avoid trouble. After doing that, why would he come all the way to Erel?
“Where did you seat him?”
“For now, in the reception room. He emphasized secrecy, so I dismissed the surrounding staff.”
How important was this story if he emphasized secrecy like this? I sighed and stood.
“Alright. Let’s go there.”
