The Villainess and I, her Zombie

"..."

Carambola turned around, took a handkerchief out of his pocket, and wiped his hands, throwing the bloodied cloth away before kneeling at the body of his former master.

He wasn't the only one there.

Although Mary, Arion, and Roan, got away the first chance they got, Cranberry stayed behind and watched Fillia's corpse while everyone else was too busy watching the Crambola deal with the sigil monster.

"...why are you doing this, it's too late..."

The silver-haired man asked weakly, not even looking at the red-haired girl while she was finishing using her magic to close the horrible wounds dealt on the body of the pale thin girl.

"...she saved me... leaving her like this would be a disgrace..."

Cranberry shrugged her shoulders, similarly not looking at the old man.

Once she finished, she looked at him and pointed her hand at the gaping wound in his chest, and began healing it too.

"Give it a rest, there's no need to heal me."

The silver-haired gentleman scoffed and made a bitter expression.

"...you can hate me, you know? Fig... Or rather, Fillia, died because she wanted to help me."

The red-haired girl spoke calmly, although her hands trembled as she was finishing her sentence.

"...no. She didn't know about that potion that would drive the werewolves mad, she didn't know about this whole Eternal bullshit..."

Carambola shook his head and clenched his fists.

"...say, mister... do you want to get revenge...?"

Cranberry asked.

"I already did. Now I guess I let myself be killed by either, Envys, Prides, or Gluttonys. I don't care who will finish me."

The old man shrugged his shoulders and breathed out.

"Do you think that the sigil on that monster's head was just a random mark? You might have killed the ones who were directly responsible for Fillia's death, but what about the one who gave them the strength?"

"..."

Cranberry said slowly, making the old man raise his head and look directly at her for the first time after approaching Fillia's body.

"The monster is known as Eternal – in the ancient elven archives, there is a very special book. In that book, a wiseman of old wrote down a prophecy about the monster that one day will threaten the world, and destroy it unless someone will stop it. The elves call it a prophecy of the Eternal, the beast that will purge the world."

Cranberry said and looked at the silent old man.

"That beast is sealed away but their vile power is sipping out and turning monsters into the sigil monsters, just like the one you killed. The Eternal is the one responsible for Fillia's death. Are you telling me that you want to die before she is properly avenged...?"

The red-haired girl frowned and glared furiously at the expressionless old man.

"Are you saying that you want to fight against this whole world-ending monster?"

Carambola scoffed mockingly, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Ths isn't the first sigil monster I encountered. Up until now my familiar was the one who wanted to kill the Eternal, and I simply wanted to help him because I like this world... but now I have a personal reason for that..."

The red-haired girl looked down at the lifeless body of the girl who protected her and – willingly or not – sacrificed her life for her.

The smile sickly-looking girl gave her before dying at the jaws of the werewolf wasn't an expression of hatred – Fillia was genuinely happy to see Cranberry safe on the other side of the barrier.

"..."

Carambola observed the red-haired girl in silence.

During his life, he learned to recognize when people were lying to him and he could not sense any falsehood in the red-haired girl's words.

He looked down at the body of his former master and touched the scar left by the wound dealt with him by the sigil werewolf.

Deep inside his chest – far deeper than the monster's claws ever managed to reach, he felt the soft pulse of the loyalty skill, acting up on its own.

He experienced loyalty being rowdy many times before he was forced to join the Envy family, but it never felt quite like this...

...before it felt impatient, angry even, but now...

...as odd as it sounds, while Carambola was looking at the red-haired girl in front of him, loyalty felt as if it was happy – as if it has found its long-lost friend, and was jumping from joy, happily anticipating the connection...

"..."

The old man looked to the side and sighed.

The young lady of the Pride house could be lying to him, he knew that, honestly, he wasn't even convinced about that whole prophecy of the Eternal...

...but the red-haired girl was the one that Fillia wanted to protect, she also desperately tried to break into the barrier to help Fillia while she was getting attacked, and finally, she was respectful and healed Fillia's body...

"...I am an old sentimental fool..."

Carambola breathed out shaking his head at himself over the decision he had already made.

"Miss Cranberry Pride. My name is Carambola Loyalty. I offer you my service."

The silver-haired gentleman began glowing with white light that had a bit of a violet shine to it and bowed his head to the red-haired girl.

"..."

Cranberry faced him and blinked a few times.

She knew his surname – she read in the books in the mansion's library that in the past the Loyalty family was the most trustworthy ally of the Pride family – but their paths split apart in the past.

She instinctively felt that both the light surrounding the old man and his choice of words were not coincidental...

But that would mean that the unique skill of the Loyalty family reappeared after many years...

"I accept your service, sir Carambola."

She nodded and the slightly violet white light momentarily enveloped her body connecting her with Carambola before disappearing.

"I am at your service now, my lady."

The old man spoke and bowed his head even deeper.

"Good. Oh, but you are mistaken about one thing."

Cranberry nodded briefly before flinching and raising her left hand.

"It's Mrs, not Miss. I am married to my familiar, Zombie. You better remember that if you want to be my servant."

She explained wiggling her ring finger, showing off the ancient wedding ring.

"Monty... I asked you to leave a weapon for the prince-boy to use, but not really that strong one - he was almost able to fight off those weaklings."

The humanoid blade, Kopia, furrowed her brows and complained, poking at the head of a long golden snake wrapped around her ear posing as an extravagant earring, while watching the backstory event wrapping up from the top of the roof of the Prides mansion.

"...Sorry, I got a little bit too lucky while creating it..."

The golden snake answered clearly - thanks to the bigger body which was in fact an outer shell capable of producing human speech created by Monty after begrudgingly accepting the advice given by the half-plant centipede, George.

"Apology not accepted! As a punishment you will have to create a weapon that's will be ten times as strong as that big sword for my snack!"

The crimson-haired humanoid sword pouted her cheeks and looked away - though that action was kind of pointless because the golden snake was on her ear and as she moved her head, it moved together with her - but the message remained the same.

"Wha...?! Ten times?! Cut me some slack, please...!"

Monty gasped and untangled itself from Kopia's ear enough so that it could enter her field of vision.

"...you said you like me but you don't want to make a snack that's better than the one you gave the prince-boy...?"

The humanoid sword pouted even more but this time her shoulders slumped and she sounded actually sad this time.

"Ah! I'll make it! I'll make you a sword that is ten times better! No, eleven times better!"

Monty flinched and hurriedly promised.

"Te-he~! Thank you, Monty, I love you!"

After she heard that, Kopia instantly brightened up and giggled, gently pushing the golden snake's head to her cheek and nuzzling against it.