Sherry suppressed the churning in her stomach and the urge to vomit as she forked the last bit of carrot to Anis’s lips.
She expected to see a distorted face, full of pain and helplessness, eventually forcing down the retch and eating it with tears in her eyes. Instead, Anis’s next move left Sherry completely stunned.
“Thank you.”
The pained expression on Anis’s face vanished instantly. She opened her lips with a light laugh and ate the last of the carrot with a look of enjoyment.
“Mmm… delicious. You have great taste, Sister Sherry.”
“You, you — “
Sherry covered her mouth, forcibly suppressing the discomfort. Her eyes widened as she questioned Anis, “Were you faking it just now?!”
“That is right. I have already overcome my bad habit of hating carrots, so you should keep working hard too, Sister.”
She forked a piece of green pepper and brought it to Sherry’s lips again. “Come, have another bite. A strong person cannot have weaknesses.”
“Ugh — “
Sherry finally reached her limit. The urge to vomit forced her to sprint out of the dining room.
“Hahaha — “
Anis clutched her stomach and laughed. This was so satisfying!
After being imprisoned for so long, this was the first time she had been this happy!
“Meow — “
The cat, having finished its diced vegetables, crawled out from under the chair. It jumped onto Anis’s lap and looked up, asking for affection.
“Are you full?” Anis picked it up and gently rubbed her chin against its nose.
“Meow.”
Mimi licked her lips twice in response, but when she saw the remaining green peppers on the table, she could not sit still.
“Go ahead. We cannot waste food like those extravagant nobles.”
Anis naturally saw through the little greedy cat’s thoughts. She gave Mimi’s back a light push, and the latter understood perfectly, leaping onto the table to feast.
No one was here now, so letting the cat on the table should not be a problem. Besides, Mimi might even be a cat-girl.
Soon, Mimi cleared away all the remaining green peppers. Both person and cat, full and satisfied, retreated back to their room.
They were very happy tonight, but someone else was not.
“Blegh — “
Sherry leaned over the sink, vomiting a rainbow.
The reason she did not eat green peppers was not that she was a picky eater, but because of a food allergy. She had kept this secret hidden in her heart, and no one knew except for her father.
However, this meal of green peppers was not in vain. She had risked her life to obtain crucial information.
Anis clearly knew about this weakness of hers, and she even uncharacteristically did not hate carrots at all!
This was no longer information that a reincarnated person could obtain. ‘Could her body have been taken over by someone else?’
The stomach cramps prevented her from thinking further. Sherry raised her hand and signaled the maid beside her to help her out.
The personal maid, Cybel, had a complicated expression. She had just returned when she ran into this scene. Seeing her mistress in such pain, she also felt terrible.
“Have some water, My Lady.”
Cybel helped Sherry sit down in a chair and poured a glass of warm water for her. The latter was too weak to pick up the glass and could only lean her head toward it, sipping like a small animal.
“It is all my fault. If I had returned sooner, Lady Sherry would not have suffered like this.”
“No, you are not at fault, Cybel. In fact, you returned at the right time.”
Sherry looked up slightly. “How is it over there? Is she okay?”
“Um…” Cybel bit her lip, her eyes wandering.
Sherry frowned slightly, her expression becoming much more serious. “Looking at you, is the situation not optimistic?”
“Thanks to Lady Anis’s potion, her condition has stabilized for now. However, it is only a matter of time before it worsens again. I do not know how much longer she can hold on…”
She took a bag of seeds from her pocket and handed them over. “Lady Sherry, can you find a way to plant these?”
“These are…?”
“Frost Lily of the Valley seeds. They are an essential material for brewing magic potions. Lady Anis has no more in stock, so we have to find another way.”
Sherry had heard that the Frost Lily of the Valley could only grow in extremely cold environments. There was no place more suitable in the entire country than this Far North.
There was also a contrasting prerequisite for its growth: it had to be planted in a temperate zone with a suitable climate before it sprouted. Simply put, the most suitable planting season was late autumn.
That was the problem.
Early winter had already passed in the territory, and the ground was frozen. If they wanted to sow seeds, they would have to wait until next year.
Not to mention the growth cycle and the time needed for harvesting and brewing — 1 year would not be enough.
In more than 1 year, the grass on that girl’s grave would probably be 3 feet high.
Sherry spoke her conclusion to the maid gloomily, “You mean these seeds must be planted now, and we also have to find a way to accelerate their growth, then seamlessly find a potion master who can refine them into the highest purity magic potion?”
“…”
Hearing her mistress’s conclusion, Cybel’s heart turned cold. Only the Goddess in the heavens could satisfy such harsh conditions at the same time.
Sherry stood up and looked at Cybel with a serious expression. “How much longer can she last?”
“The beginning of next spring.”
After saying this, Cybel’s eyes welled up with tears. No matter how strong she was, facing the current situation, she could do nothing but cry. The time she had with her was entering a countdown.
“Sigh…”
Sherry let out a sigh. “It seems I have to bow my head and beg her.”
Cybel wiped her nose, her voice becoming choked with emotion. “Maybe we should just forget about it. The ending is already decided. To have you condescend yourself is… Wait, what did you just say?”
In her daze, Cybel subconsciously missed the key information. But she definitely had not misheard — Lady Sherry said someone had a way to deal with it!
“Sigh, I just had a mouthful of green peppers shoved into me by that villain, and now I have to bow my head and ask for her help. I can already see how wide the mouths of that person and that cat will be grinning when they find out.”
“May I ask who you are talking about!”
Cybel followed up urgently, like a drowning person catching a straw, even forgetting her etiquette as a maid!
“Anis Frenst. Who else could it be but that girl?”
Hearing Anis’s name, Cybel’s pupils shook. Her again!
Wait…
Cybel remembered that note, and then, as if she had made some kind of decision, she took a step forward and looked at Sherry with a determined face. “Lady Sherry, let me handle the negotiation.”
“You? Are you sure?” Sherry looked at her in surprise.
“80% sure.”
“80%, huh? Then let me add another 20% for you.”
Sherry also seemed to have made a decision. She looped her thumbs through the silver chain around her neck and lifted it slightly. An exquisitely crafted ruby necklace was pulled up.
The ruby’s luster remained brilliant under the light.