The woman didn't seem to have regained her senses, her empty gaze fixed on the ceiling of her bedroom.
"Normally, by the second time, she should have succumbed to pleasure and started desiring me because of my Charm ability. But instead, she resisted. She experienced pleasure, yet she didn't desire me. Her mind is so strong that it broke instead?"
"What a waste. I'd love to see what you'll become, but I have to leave—I have business to attend to."
Chreíos stood up and opened the door to the bedroom. He saw a maid standing outside. At the sight of the hero, she fell to the ground—startled, fascinated, and terrified by the figure before her.
Chreíos smiled.
Acting as though he owned the house, he paid no attention to the maid and walked toward the bath, completely naked. He washed himself and returned to the bedroom. The woman on the bed, drenched in his seed, still had that vacant gaze. He dressed himself and left.
"Madam, are you all right?"
The maid approached Béatrice. The smell emanating from her was so overpowering it permeated the entire room.
"…"
The woman didn't respond. The maid felt conflicted; she didn't want to touch Béatrice, covered in fluids as she was. The best option, she decided, was to have her bathe herself.
After deciding what to do, she took action.
"I'll prepare your bath—please wait here!"
Once the preparations were complete, albeit reluctantly, she helped Béatrice up by the shoulder and led her to the bathroom, placing her in the tub.
"I'll set out your clothes and prepare something for you to eat. Call for me if you need assistance."
The maid returned to the bedroom to clean, opening the windows to let out the stench.
"How could anyone do such a thing?"
She looked at the mess: blood, fluids, and sweat all over. She wasn't sure where to begin.
After cleaning the room, deciding what to burn and what to wash, she went to the kitchen to prepare food. Her mind was unsettled.
"Madam is taking her time… She must be exhausted," she thought.
Then it hit her—a horrifying realization. A woman unable to walk, talk, or show any sign of awareness had been left alone in a bathtub?
She paled instantly and rushed to the bathroom.
"M-Madam, are you there?"
She opened the door and removed the curtain. What she feared was already happening—the woman was drowning.
"Madam!" she screamed and pulled Béatrice out of the tub. Béatrice's lungs were filled with water. Panicked, the maid began to cry before calming herself enough to administer artificial respiration. She worked tirelessly until Béatrice expelled the water from her lungs.
Afterward, she dressed Béatrice, put her to bed, and fed her.
The once cheerful Béatrice had vanished, replaced by a silent, lifeless doll. The maid, Ymina, foresaw a grim future after everything that had transpired.
This wasn't a situation she could handle alone, so she began drafting a letter addressed directly to Baron Maxwell, detailing everything that had happened.
Baron Maxwell was already in the capital due to the untimely death of his son. Ymina, the sole witness to the incident, was summoned.
"Ymina, you were taken in by my son."
"Yes, and I hold great loyalty to my late master. That's why I chose not to flee to save my life but instead to report what happened and continue caring for Madam."
Indeed, Ymina knew she could die at any moment in this situation. According to her testimony, the hero had spoken with Béatrice to console her, but things had escalated into assault. She hadn't realized the truth until the morning, and, facing the hero, she had been powerless.
"Don't lie. How dare you slander the hero? That woman must have willingly spread her legs for him!"
"How dare you? She's your daughter-in-law!"
"What do you know? This is the hero we're talking about. How could you even imagine him being so vile?"
Ymina was on the verge of tears. After a moment of reflection, she understood the baron's implication.
"You're right. That woman must have been willing!"
The baron clenched his fists so tightly that blood dripped from his palms.
"My son is dead, and his wife was assaulted? This is absurd. This matter must not get out. If it does, that woman will take the blame. She conspired to poison my son before his departure, leading to his death."
"Understood."
Ymina agreed, albeit reluctantly. She was quick-witted and understood the situation.
Ymina realized the baron had deduced that his son had been killed by the hero. To prevent the matter from spiraling out of control, he had created a scapegoat.
In the baron's heart, a deep hatred for the hero had taken root.
"Take care of that woman. I'll increase your salary. Bring a doctor for her as well."
"Yes, I'll watch over her. It's the only way to honor the memory of my late benefactor!"
Several days later, Béatrice awoke from her nightmare, screaming so loudly that Ymina rushed into her room.
"Madam, what's wrong?"
The woman had regained some semblance of awareness. Having resisted the charm ability, her fragmented memory remained intact. She cried, tearing at her hair.
"Please, calm yourself, Madam," Ymina pleaded, physically restraining her and holding her in an embrace. Béatrice cried even harder.
But the image of Chreíos holding her in his arms was so vivid in her mind that she shoved Ymina away violently.
"M-Madam?" Ymina fell but endured the pain, trying to approach Béatrice again. However, terrified, Béatrice recoiled into a corner of the room, now afraid of Ymina.
Ymina understood. Holding back her tears, she stepped back to give Béatrice some space.
Exhausted, the woman fainted.
Ymina struggled to lift her and placed her back on the bed, but the moment Béatrice's body touched the mattress, she had another fit and fled to a corner of the room.
Ymina realized that anything reminding Béatrice of that night made her terribly unstable. She decided that once Béatrice fell asleep, she would move her to a different room—a vacant one without a bed. Perhaps a chair would suffice, she thought.
For an entire week, Béatrice refused to eat voluntarily. Her fear was so overwhelming that her physician couldn't perform his duties.
Ymina and the doctor resorted to using magic and sedatives to feed and examine her whenever necessary.