Chapter 156 Angelina's Tea Party 24

Therefore, upon learning she hadn't been chosen, her world suffered a collapse of apocalyptic proportions.

Watching her best friend—who, in her eyes, was no different from herself—happily walk toward a future she could never reach, a twisted and bizarre thought formed in her mind—

Why was she the one chosen? She isn't as beautiful as me, her horsemanship isn't as good as mine, she hasn't read as many books as me, and her etiquette isn't as perfect as mine. She falls short of me in every single way, so why is she the one who gets to sit in the position of the Marchioness?

Why?

Is it because of her status? Because she is a Count's daughter while I am only a Baron's daughter?

What if I were the Count's daughter? The position of Marchioness would surely be mine, wouldn't it?

One cannot stuff themselves back into their mother's womb, and it was too late to be reincarnated and try the lottery of birth again. Thus, Nancy chose the fastest and most feasible method.

She flayed Angelina's skin and wore it over her own body.

At this point, it was hard to say whether she craved the status of Marchioness or simply wanted to become Angelina, because when she made her move, she sent the Marquis away as well.

That was why, despite this clearly being the "Marquiss Mansion," not even a shadow of the Marquis had ever been seen.

Hearing this, Lin Xiangjun actually wanted to introduce Nancy to someone; she would surely have a lot in common with An Lingrong.

“While this was certainly due to Nancy's wicked heart... the parasite in the basement is also to blame.”

“Parasite?” Lin Xiangjun frowned.

The Butler nodded.

“You must have seen that thing that looks like a camellia, right? That isn't a camellia tree; it's just a parasite. I saw it a long time ago—or rather, I watched it being born with my own eyes—back when Miss Angelina first brought Nancy home.”

“Nancy came from the countryside, her family was poor, and she had no jewelry. The Count had only one son and one daughter; usually, the Count would agree to whatever the young lady wanted and would gift her jewelry for no reason. Nancy saw this and looked very envious. The young lady, being soft-hearted, gave her a string of pearl necklaces.”

“The moment she took the pearl necklace, the parasite was born from the hand she used to grab it.”

Nancy wanted to learn embroidery, horsemanship, and music—all of which were expensive. Her father had six children, and since she hadn't grown up by his side, she wasn't close to her parents. The Baron couldn't possibly shell out that much money for her.

If she wanted to learn, where would the money come from?

It came from Angelina.

The fine food she ate, the silks and satins she wore, and the jewelry she used were all gifts from the kind Angelina.

She clung to Angelina like a leech, greedily feeding herself with Angelina's wealth and kindness, attempting to use Angelina as a springboard to achieve her dream of social mobility.

She was a "parasite."

“I could always see that thing, but no one else could. I thought it was a hallucination and didn't dare speak of it for fear people would think I was mad, so I could only secretly tell Miss Angelina to be more cautious.”

“But the young lady didn't believe me and even told me not to look at people through biased eyes. She said Nancy was a highly motivated person who yearned for change and should be treated with kindness and fairness.”

At this point, the Butler sighed, and Lin Xiangjun saw tears glistening in the corners of his eyes.

“That thing grew bit by bit—the size of a palm, the length of a calf, the height of a person... It was just a thought. Nothing else seemed unusual, so I let down my guard and even began to wonder how big it could grow.”

“Until the day of Miss Angelina's wedding, when that thing came to life...”

The Butler could never forget that day.

A maggot as thick as a water bucket reared itself up, its body pulsing and churning, spitting out long, thin strings of pearls from its mouth.

Nancy, standing before it with a smile that looked like a sincere blessing, was wrapped round and round by those pearl strings. Like a mummy being swaddled, from her ankles to her knees, waist, shoulders, mouth, nose, and the top of her head... until she was completely swallowed whole.

Then, the upright worm stopped moving.

Its body expanded in circles, as if someone were pumping water into it. It grew thicker and thicker until even three adults holding hands couldn't encircle it. Finally, the thing reached its breaking point.

The Butler watched helplessly as the parasite exploded.

Disgusting slime splashed everywhere in the living room, but except for him, the other Servants, Miss Nancy, and Miss Angelina all acted as if they couldn't see it, continuing their conversation while covered in dark green slime.

At the epicenter of the explosion, a person-sized camellia took the worm's place, standing there quietly.

...

Having heard this much, Lin Xiangjun more or less understood.

Neither Angelina nor Nancy was the source of pollution for this instance; the source was the "parasite," which was the camellia in the study's basement.

In the portrait hanging on the wall, the figure on the left was the real Angelina, and the friend on the right with the obscured face was the real "Nancy."

Nancy wasn't the mastermind; at most, she was a scapegoat who had been manipulated. The parasite had enticed her to take over Angelina's identity just so she could be in a high position to procure nutrients for it.

Nancy became the Marchioness, but she had to hold a tea party every week to get food for the parasite. After it finished eating, she had to smooth over the signs of the Guests' disappearances. No sooner had she settled things than the parasite needed to eat again.

She was a pure laborer, the kind who worked 365 days a year without a break.

“This story is indeed lamentable, but what do you want me to do for you?”

The Butler took off his glasses.

“These glasses have a special ability that allows me to see things others cannot.”

“I have looked after Miss Angelina since I was young. I watched her grow up and considered her like a daughter. She was murdered, yet the culprit still lives using her face and her identity, enjoying the benefits of her status while her soul cannot rest in peace.”

“I have no other request. As long as you can kill both that parasite and Nancy, I will give this to you.”

Lin Xiangjun did not rashly take the glasses, nor did she rashly accept the request.

This was not a simple task—killing Nancy was indeed not difficult, as she was still essentially human; it was just a matter of whether it took one stab or two. But that source of pollution was another story.

Clearing the pollution source of an instance was no easy feat. According to the experiences of the protagonists in books, she not only had to find the cause and weaknesses of the pollution source but also find key items.

Furthermore, the requirements for resolving a pollution source varied wildly. Even if the causes were similar, a slight difference could lead to completely different solutions, meaning the successful experiences of others offered no reference value at all.