Chapter 25

“Other people say they’re disgusting and tell me to throw them out….”

His slumped shoulders and pouting lips oddly overlapped with Piote in my mind. I gave a small laugh and called his name for a proper introduction.

“You’re Mr. Pat, right?”

“Just call me Pat. But how did you come here?”

“I heard you managed to get an Alosi Poison Herb, so I came to find you.”

“Huh?”

“I mean, you got the Alosi—”

Before I could finish, Pat—who had been sitting close to me—snatched up Belian, and like all that friendly behavior had been a lie, bolted backward in a panic. His trembling voice cracked.

“You—you tricked me!! You broke down my guard so you could steal my Alosi Poison Herb?!”

‘Right, he said Count Blanc stole his Alosi before…’

From our talk so far, I could tell just how much he adored poison herbs.

“No. I came because I need your help.”

I couldn’t help admiring the sight around me. You couldn’t grow this many poisonous plants unless you truly loved them. And Pat wasn’t afraid of handling them at all—despite the fact that some of them could kill you instantly if you slipped.

“Will you tell me your story?”

I assured him I wasn’t scary, that I wouldn’t hurt him, speaking gently to the man who feared me far too much. After a long effort, Pat finally lowered his guard and began to speak.

“I am from Zeiran.”

Just as I’d thought—he really was from Zeiran Empire. He said he’d been sold as a slave when he was very young.

“And then?”

“I did odd jobs. Whatever they told me to do. Still, I was one of the lucky ones. I saved up money on construction sites and bought my freedom. But… I didn’t think ahead. I spent everything I had the moment I got out.”

“That must’ve been tough. How did you cross over into our empire?”

It was nearly impossible alone. And Zeiran and Alterun didn’t have trade routes between them. Meaning there was no legitimate way to travel.

“Hm? Ah… The sun was too hot. I thought I’d die if I stayed. So I snuck onto a ship. Got lucky and didn’t get caught. Stole food here and there… then one day the ship sank. I grabbed onto a barrel of alcohol and floated until I washed up here.”

‘What a life…’

Pat shrugged like it was nothing, but I found it remarkable.

“It hasn’t been long. Maybe… three years? And this place had forests! Zeiran was all desert. So I settled in the woods. Built a little hut, lived off fruit… and one day I noticed them.”

“The poison herbs?”

“Yeah. They look delicate, but they’re not. I thought that was amazing. And they’re pretty, right? So I started collecting them. But then…”

He suddenly ground his teeth.

He must’ve been tricked by Count Blanc. I kept my expression neutral and urged him to continue.

“This weird noble came saying he needed my help, that it’d be good for me too. I was low on money, so I fell for it.”

Pat scratched his head, embarrassed. He simply didn’t know better and had been toyed with. They must’ve realized his talent for cultivating poisonous plants and planned to use them for poisonings.

Pat, of course, had no idea his beloved plants would be used to kill people. They convinced him by saying poisonous plants could be medicinal when used correctly.

A job at a merchant guild, money, a place to stay, a greenhouse—they gave him everything, so he trusted them completely. And when they wanted a poison immune to silver, Pat carelessly mentioned his homeland.

The nobleman exploited Pat’s desire to return to his homeland and let his family know he was doing well, and at the same time, made him search for the Alosi poisonous herb.

It was a dangerous mission—practically illegal. After a hard journey, he found it and returned, only for the Alosi to be taken from him, and then he was arrested for embezzlement.

I sympathized, got angry with him, comforted him. But as I watched how casually he lived among poisonous plants, something struck me.

“But Pat, doesn’t it affect you?”

I took extreme precautions around poisons. He wore shabby clothes. The temperature in the greenhouse was warm, so he was in short sleeves.

“Oh, I’ve handled my kids so long that poison barely affects me. I’ve always been like this, so maybe it’s just my constitution.”

A body immune to poison? Or maybe he’d built resistance from constant exposure.

“But still, you found the Alosi? People say it’s nearly impossible to locate.”

“It was hard… but scents don’t lie.”

“Scents?”

I blinked. Scents? He’d never seen an Alosi Poison Herb before; how could he know its scent?

“Do you know another reason I love poison herbs?”

His sudden enthusiasm made me uneasy. His eyes sparkled as he fondly swept his gaze across the plants.

“They all smell like death.”

“…What?”

That was such a ridiculous, baffling statement that my old way of speaking slipped out.

‘Smell of death? What is he, a god of death?’

He didn’t care about my reaction and kept going.

“You don’t know how fragrant it is, do you? I fell in love at first sight. All poisonous plants give off the scent of death. People don’t understand their value, but I do. I’m basically their interpreter!”

I couldn’t stop myself from muttering *lunatic*.

‘They say there’s only a thin line between geniuses and madmen…’

His odd behavior from the start now made perfect sense—Pat was a madman. Whatever warmth I’d felt toward him fizzled out.

Then a thought suddenly flashed across my mind.

‘What if I use his ability?’

I recalled what the Duke had said. If the Duke knew I’d been reading books on poisonous plants—well, I read them openly in his house that were full of eyes— it was highly probable that he had heard about Perio speaking about the lily of the valley that blooms under the full moon.

‘So that’s why.’

My lips quirked up. The Duke enjoyed testing people. I probably wasn’t much different. With a smile, I asked: “Then do you know the lily of the valley that blooms under a full moon?”

I watched Pat closely. He tilted his head.

“What do you mean? Lilies of the valley don’t need a full moon to bloom.”

If it were an ordinary lily, he’d be right. I grinned—Ah, you don’t know that one, do you?

His personality was simple. He guarded himself against people but was easily fooled. When I said I knew about poisonous plants, he immediately let his guard down—that was probably because of his simplicity too.

“Oh? So Pat doesn’t know after all.”

He immediately bit the bait.

“What do you mean! I know all my kids!”

“Then can you find it for me?”

“Of course!”

I smiled. A lively fish had just taken the hook without realizing it.

As Pat puffed up in indignation, I extended my hand. Only then did he realize what he had said, staring at my hand blankly.

“Then we’re partners.”

“Partners?”

“Yes. ‘Use poison to cure poison.’ I intend to do that. Pat, you don’t want your precious kids taking people’s lives, right?”

“Well…”

He hesitated, trying to read my intentions, but I blocked him with a serene, almost painterly smile.

“There’s someone important to me. But he’s fighting alone after ingesting an Alosi Poison Herb.”

I closed my eyes. I could still see him spitting blood.

“And I’m going to make the antidote. I need your help.”

“H-how can I trust you?”

“I’m not asking you to. Let’s just form a win–win relationship. You can grow the plants you love. I’ll support you. And honestly… I know more about poisonous plants than you.”

“Guh…”

Well, he hadn’t known about the full-moon lily.

“Don’t you want to cultivate Alosi?”

His eyes sparkled. As I expected…

“You don’t know where Alosi grows, do you?”

He jumped like a freshly caught fish. I narrowed my eyes.

‘Knew it…’

He said he found it by scent—meaning he probably didn’t know where it naturally bloomed.

“But I do.”

I gave a sly smile.

“T-tell me right now…!”

He grabbed my shoulders and shook me, begging. My head wobbled left and right, but rather than annoyed, I found myself amused.

“That’s why you should take my hand. You can stay here if you want. No—I’d actually prefer it. Conditions aren’t great here, right? Should we move your place? Build you a facility in the forest? I’ll give you an entire mountain—would you like to cultivate there?”

“……”

The outrageous offer left him speechless.

“Why me…?”

“I told you. I need you.”

His face flushed red. With his warm brown complexion, the blush was unmistakable. So innocent.

I chuckled. He fiddled with his fingers nervously.

“I… can only take care of my kids…”

“Yes. That’s exactly what I want.”

His face brightened—until he froze again, suddenly suspicious.

“O-okay, thanks and all, but… you’re not after my kids, right?”

Pat’s suspicious gaze stayed locked on me.