YOU ARE QUITE TROUBLESOME.
WHAT...?
THERE'S SOMETHING THAT I NEED TO ASK.
WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO YOU...
...AFTER I ESCAPE?
IS HE...
...SERIOUSLY WORRYING ABOUT ME?
I'M NOT AN IDIOT.
THE ONLY REASON WHY IT TOOK ME SO LONG TO COME UP WITH THE ESCAPE PLAN IN THE FIRST PLACE...
...WAS TO MAKE SURE THAT I WON'T DIE.
DID HE REALLY THINK I'D SACRIFICE MY LIFE FOR HIM OR SOMETHING?
JUST SO YOU KNOW...
...I'M NOT YOUR SISTER, EITHER.
HE SHOULD BE WORRYING ABOUT HIS OWN SISTER.
THAT LOOK IN HIS EYE MAKES ME UNCOMFORTABLE.
AM I NOT ALLOWED TO BE WORRIED ABOUT YOU?
MY MISTAKE.
HIS EYES AREN'T THE ONLY THINGS I SHOULD HAVE AVOIDED.
I HAVE A PLAN OF MY OWN
ALL THIS TIME, I THOUGHT I HAD HIM WRAPPED AROUND MY FINGER.
OH, HOW THE TABLES HAVE TURNED.
NOW THAT YOU MENTION IT, I HAVEN'T TOLD YOU MY PLAN YET, HAVE I?
I'LL TELL YOU IN THE MORNING.
I DIRECTED THE PEDELIAN MEN TO A SAFE PLACE.
YOU JUST HAVE TO JOIN THEM WHEN THE TIME COMES.
I'LL EXPLAIN, SO LISTEN CAREFULLY.
IN ORDER TO REASSURE CASSIS,
I TOLD HIM THAT THE PEDELIAN MEN WERE SOMEWHERE SAFE.
BUT...
ACTUALLY,
...IT WAS A LIE.
I'LL BE DIRECTING THEM TO THE NORTHERN BORDER.
THAT'S NEAR THE SWAMP IN THE DARK FOREST, WHERE THE MOST DANGEROUS CREATURES LIVE.
EVERYONE WHO HAS EVER ENTERED THAT PLACE...
...FAILED TO RETURN ALIVE.
I FINALLY UNDERSTAND WHY...
...THE AGRECES SO BRUTALLY TORMENTED CASSIS IN THE NOVEL.
CASSIS IS SO NEW AND DIFFERENT TO THEM.
HE'S LIKE A CIRCLE...
...IN A WORLD FULL OF TRIANGLES AND RECTANGLES.
I SHOULD'VE PUSHED HIS HAND AWAY WHEN HE WIPED MY TEARS...
THIS IS BAD...
I HAVE TO GET CASSIS OUT OF HERE...
...AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.
IT'S SO HOT TODAY... GO GET ME SOMETHING REFRESHING TO DRINK.
UGH...!
WHAT IS TAKING YOU SO LONG?
IF YOU DON'T QUENCH THEIR THIRST QUICKLY ENOUGH,
THEY'LL TRY TO FIND SOMETHING ELSE TO DRINK.
I SUGGEST YOU GET MOVING.
Y-YES, MY LADY!!!
HAVE YOU NOTICED...?
SOMETHING SEEMS DIFFERENT ABOUT LADY ROXANA.
WHAT DO YOU MEAN?
I MEAN, SHE'S ALWAYS BEEN UNAPPROACHABLE,
BUT THERE'S SOMETHING CREEPIER ABOUT HER NOW.
JUST LIKE THOSE POISON BUTTERFLIES...
OH--
WHAT DO WE DO?!
SHE MUST'VE HEARD US!
I MAY BE MISTAKEN,
BUT I BELIEVE CASSIS IS ABLE TO ESCAPE ON HIS OWN AT ANY TIME.
HE'S JUST CHOOSING NOT TO.
IF THAT'S REALLY THE CASE,
HE'S ONLY STAYING OUT OF CONCERN FOR ME.
HE SHOULD BE WORRYING ABOUT HIMSELF.
HOW ARE THE POISON BUTTERFLIES DOING?
FATHER.
THEY'RE GROWING STRONG, LIKE YOU WANTED.
HOWEVER, I THINK THEY CAN BE EVEN BETTER.
HM... IF THERE'S ANYTHING YOU NEED,
LET ME KNOW.
IN THAT CASE,
I'D LIKE THEM TO FEED ON THE FLESH AND BLOOD OF SOMETHING BIG AND STRONG.
I BELIEVE THEY'LL BECOME EVEN MORE POWERFUL THAT WAY.
THE MONTHLY EVALUATION IS ONLY THREE DAYS AWAY.
BY THEN...
...DEON WILL RETURN FROM THE CARANTULS' HABITAT.
THAT'S GOOD.
FINALLY,
EVERYTHING IS COMING TOGETHER.
In Roxana Chapter Draft 24, Roxana and Cassis grow tense over the escape plan and the real conflict turns into trust and fear of sacrifice. When Cassis asks what will happen to Roxana after he escapes, Roxana is surprised that he worries about her and turns harsh. She tells him she won't die, that she has her own plan, and promises to explain it in the morning. Inwardly, she thinks Cassis could escape if he wanted to but is staying for her, and decides to get him out as soon as possible. While the maids compare Roxana to poisonous butterflies, she tells her father she wants to feed the butterflies with the flesh of something big and strong. It is learned that three days remain until the monthly evaluation and that Deon will return.
