12 O'Clock Marionette-Chapter 53

The day after the tea party, Nigellia arrived at the estate.

I had expected powerful figures to be slow-moving, yet here she was, wasting no time.

"Did you enjoy the tea party?"

It was a simple question, yet I struggled to keep my expression composed.

My heart pounded—I could only hope it sounded like nervousness over the exam and nothing more.

Surely, she hadn’t found out about Cruello’s involvement… right?

"I heard you nearly ran away with some viscount’s daughter."

"What?"

"Am I wrong? They say that during your escape, Cruello found you, overwhelmed you with gifts, and finally won you back."

"People sure love writing fiction."

I meant that wholeheartedly.

The moment I had returned home, Minuet had scolded me so severely that I ended up crying while writing letters of apology—one for every attendee at the tea party.

The message was simple: I deeply regret leaving so abruptly. Circumstances regarding my fiancé left me no choice.

The person who suggested blaming Cruello for it? Cruello himself.

He had said it would stop people from asking too many questions.

And yet, the rumor still spread like this.

It was so ridiculous that I decided to let it go—because it was entertaining.

"Anyway, it doesn’t matter, does it? Attending the tea party wasn’t part of the exam."

"That’s obvious."

We sat across from each other on the sofas in the reception room.

"Do you remember what tea you drank there?"

"Black tea."

Wait—was that too vague of an answer?

I quickly tried to salvage it, pulling every bit of knowledge I had.

"The aroma was sharp, and the bitterness was mild, suggesting it came from the Memerik region—"

"Did you enjoy it?"

"Uh… yes, I did."

The cookies that came with it, at least.

For me, tea fell into two categories: bearable and unbearable.

Nigellia merely gave a bored nod and lowered her gaze to the table.

There were four teacups and four teapots, each filled with a different liquid.

She picked up a teapot and began pouring, filling each cup one by one.

The liquid in each was slightly different in color.

Was this… a test to identify the tea?

"Your first trial is to drink one of these."

Wow. I was right!

"By the way, only one of them is not poisoned."

Never mind. Damn it.

"Don’t worry too much. At worst, you’ll only suffer some stomach pain."

After finishing, Nigellia set the teapot aside.

"When you drank tea at the party, what were you thinking?"

"Are you asking if I considered the possibility of poisoned tea?"

"If not this time, then in the future. A hostess of White Desert must be just smart enough to survive."

My thoughts drifted to the poisoned wine at Bonetti’s party.

That night, the Elder Council had orchestrated the entire event.

And now she was telling me to be just smart enough to stay alive?

Hadn’t I already passed that test?

"So, are you too afraid of poison to take this exam?"

"Of course not."

There was no way she would openly poison and kill me.

Nigellia was too powerful for such a wasteful method.

And even if, by some absurd chance, she had put something lethal in one of the cups, I wouldn’t die.

Back when I was Amy Royalsand, I had died to poison—but only because I let it happen.

And besides, divine power and poison were natural opposites.

But since I couldn’t reveal that, I had to at least pretend I was trying to figure it out.

"Hmm."

Most noble houses used silverware with detection magic to test for poison.

But among the four cups, none had changed color.

Obviously—it was a test.

Even back at Bonetti’s party, they had switched out the wine glasses to avoid suspicion. There was nothing to protest.

Identifying poisoned tea was difficult.

Monster poison had a distinct aura that I could detect if I focused, but this wasn’t that.

From what I knew, poison was usually mixed into liquids that were darker and more bitter.

So logically, the safest choice should be the lightest-colored tea.

But instead of following logic—

I picked the darkest one.

Then, without looking at Nigellia, I tilted the cup and drank.

The liquid slid down my throat.

A deep, overpowering bitterness spread across my tongue.

"Ugh!"

My eyes snapped open.

My hands trembled slightly as I set the cup down.

This taste…!

"Is Baeders tea really that popular? It’s way too bitter. I hate this tea."

"It wasn’t a question about the tea type, but yes, you are correct."

"So I passed?"

"You already drank it. Do you need to ask?"

Nigellia chuckled and pulled out four small silver pills.

She dropped one into each remaining cup.

Three of them immediately turned black.

The only safe one… was the tea I drank.

"How did you guess?"

"Just intuition."

"Intuition?"

"It didn’t really matter, did it? The real test wasn’t choosing the right cup—it was simply drinking."

"Your first trial is to drink one of these."

There had never been a need to overthink it.

Whether or not it was poisoned, I only had to drink it.

Now that I thought about it, Nigellia’s first two trials had high success rates.

Twelve people had passed the first one.

I didn’t know how many had taken the test, but it likely wasn’t in the hundreds—meaning the pass rate might have been 100%.

Nigellia didn’t seem particularly impressed or disappointed.

"Yes. You pass. Congratulations."

Whew. At least that was over.

Either she hadn’t found out about Cruello’s presence at the tea party, or she didn’t care.

But then, she casually added—

"By the way, that boy’s first fiancée died from drinking poisoned tea."

A meaningless comment, spoken as if in passing.

And with that, I knew she had already figured everything out.

Because the tea that killed Amy Royalsand had been Baeders tea.

And the first time I remembered that fact had been yesterday at the tea party.

Without changing my expression, I simply answered—

"I know."

That was why I had chosen this tea.

Nigellia’s lips curled into a faint smile.

"The final reward is important, but motivation along the way is just as crucial."

At her gesture, one of her attendants stepped forward, carrying a black box.

The servant placed it on the table, and Nigellia rose from her seat.

"A gift. Even if you think you won’t need it, keep it. The day will come when it will prove useful."

She left without waiting for an answer.

She didn't need to be escorted out, and I had no intention of doing so anyway.

The moment the door shut, I immediately opened the box.

Inside, there was a neatly folded piece of black fabric, matching the color of the box itself.

Lifting it up, I could clearly see its shape.

"A robe? And… something that looks like… priestly garments?"

Why would she give me something like this?

As I raised the fabric, a small, round badge slipped out and fell onto the table.

I picked it up and examined it closely.

Then, I immediately recognized what it was.

"Wow, don’t tell me this is…."

Engraved onto the surface was a snake biting its own tail—forming a circle.

Ouroboros—the symbol of the Black Serpent Church.

***

"It's the attire of the Church."

Cruello stated it without hesitation.

Since today, he had entered the estate properly, we were speaking in the reception room rather than meeting in secret.

"They said I’ll need this at some point."

So the next mission involves infiltrating the Church?

If Nigellia were even remotely an ally, or at least neutral, I would have considered it.

But she was unquestionably on the Church’s side.

If I walked in wearing this, the only reaction I’d get would be 'Enemy! Get her!'

"Does the Elder Council usually set up such obvious traps?"

"No. That’s more of the Tenth Elder’s style."

Ah—Ares.

I nodded, recalling what happened in Whistle.

"They must want to insert you into the Church’s purification process."

"Huh?"

"Do you remember what I told you before? That I agreed to clean up their factions?"

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I vaguely recalled him saying something like that in the carriage.

He had promised to explain later, but at the time, I hadn't paid it much attention.

Just as I didn't tell Cruello everything, I assumed he wouldn’t tell me everything either.

But since he was bringing it up now, I had no reason to refuse to listen.

"To put it simply, the Second Elder is a determinist. He believes that whatever is meant to happen will happen. He’s convinced that Morion’s emergence is inevitable."

"Hmm."

"So he doesn’t bother getting worked up over small matters."

"Is handing over the key considered a small matter?"

"He already knows I have the other key."

Cruello’s eyes met mine, and he corrected himself.

"To be exact—we have it."

"Hah."

"The only reason he offered that deal is simple: he’s curious about you. He’s always complaining about how boring everything is."

"So I’m just a form of entertainment? That’s even worse. And while he’s at it, he’s making you clean up the factions?"

Cruello looked far too relaxed about this.

It wasn’t necessarily a bad thing for me, but it was still annoying.

I really wanted to knock him down a peg.

"Wait a minute. So does that mean the third exam will involve cleaning up the Church’s factions?"

"Most likely."

"And you’re saying that so casually?"

Was he out of his mind?

I knew absolutely nothing about the factions, and I sure as hell didn’t have the ability to handle the entire Church alone.

If I really wanted to, I could burn through my divine power recklessly and barely manage it.

But this body isn’t disposable.

"There’s no need for you to worry about that part. If you take the exam, I’ll handle it."

"They specifically said I have to do it alone. Are you that confident you won’t get caught?"

"Of course."

"I hope it’s not the same level of confidence you had when you disguised yourself as Dory Wund."

"That was just for fun. This is work."

I narrowed my eyes at him and let out a sigh.

To be honest, I didn’t want to help them at all.

But weakening their power wasn’t necessarily a bad thing.

And if I could drive a wedge between the Grand Elder and the Second Elder, it would be even better.

"So, where exactly is the Church located—"

"That’s probably the next reward."

"Fine. I just have to pass, right?"

If they even dare to withhold that key…

Well, the Church will give them a warm welcome.

***

The second exam arrived in the form of a letter.

Summarized in a single line, it read:

"Deliver a donation to the Grand Temple and return. Then, you’ll receive the next test."

A donation?

I had no idea what they were thinking this time.

It seemed too harmless, which only made me more suspicious.

But regardless of the exam, I needed to visit the temple anyway.

After all, Mamic had promised to send records—

And yet, I had heard nothing from her.