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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 4
Chapter Title: An Unexpected Ally
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“Young Lady, Young Lady.”
Someone's voice pulled me from my sleep. Before me was an impossibly handsome face.
The face spoke.
“You're finally awake. I'm sorry to wake you from such a sound sleep, but I felt it was only right to thank you before I left.”
Hearing the man's voice, I recalled the events of last night.
So it wasn't a dream after all. I'd secretly been hoping I'd wake up and find it had all been just a dream.
“Thank you for last night. I should be on my way.”
The Crown Prince was already dressed in his outdoor attire, not his nightclothes, from before I had even woken up.
“I am only glad I could be of assistance to Your Highness.”
I asked a question for propriety's sake, though I could already see the answer.
“Did you rest well last night?”
“I did.”
The Crown Prince looked refreshed, yet somehow reluctant.
“To a surprising degree.”
It made sense. The Crown Prince had lived his entire life on high alert, even from a young age. The novel described him as only finding peace of mind later, at the heroine's side.
‘And yet, he's found that precious peace now!’
What an absurd turn of events. My bed has just stolen the heroine's future accomplishment.
*Sigh*... Oh, well. As a devoted reader of , it's a bit of a shame, but there was something else that was truly important to me.
“Um, in that case... you don't hear that voice anymore?”
“That's right. I was sick of hearing it up until yesterday, but now it's quiet.”
I knew it! Sleeping in my bed broke the curse. I'd been on pins and needles before falling asleep, worried that nothing would change.
I absolutely refuse to go through such a frightening and uncomfortable night again.
I spent nearly the entire night wide awake next to the soundly sleeping Raynerd. If I so much as touched him, my life wouldn't be guaranteed. The only silver lining was getting to admire his handsome face to my heart's content...
‘Whoops, that's not the point.’
In any case, I had stayed awake like that until I finally drifted off without realizing it around dawn. That was about an hour ago. Since nothing seems to have happened, I must have slept peacefully, thank goodness.
“It's fine, just stay in bed.”
The Crown Prince said so, but I couldn't just stay put, so I saw him off as he prepared to leave through the window.
“Ah.”
A question suddenly occurred to me, and I voiced it.
“By any chance, was it you, Your Highness, who sent me the invitation to His Majesty the Emperor's birthday banquet?”
“That's right.”
So it was you!
“How else was I supposed to meet a young lady who was grounded at home? It would have been strange to suddenly invite you to the Imperial Palace when we have no connection, and it wouldn't have been right for me to visit the marquis's estate, would it?”
Of course. Just imagining the gossip that would cause is enough to give me a headache.
“Then, you approaching me at the banquet yesterday...?”
“When you were actually standing in front of me, it felt a bit awkward to bring it up right then and there. Asking to sleep in your bed, of all things.”
He had a point. Saying something like that to someone who isn't even your lover would make you sound like a simple pervert.
“Since I heard you were unoccupied, I decided it was best to just show up in the middle of the night and explain things properly.”
*Yes, yes, of course you would.* His way of thinking was certainly unique, just as you'd expect from the second male lead of .
But then he suddenly changed the subject.
“Young Lady, you lied to me.”
“What?!”
Raynerd's eyes narrowed, as if teasing me.
“You said you were a quiet sleeper, didn't you?”
“D-Did I do something...?”
“Well, it was nothing serious, so I'll let it slide this once. But don't lie to me again.”
After making my heart pound, Raynerd vaulted over the terrace railing and leaped down below.
“So what was it that I did?!”
I only managed to timidly shout after the man's figure, skillfully weaving past the marquis's guards, had completely vanished from sight.
Did I touch him? But if I had, there's no way I'd still be in one piece.
Maybe I snored or ground my teeth. Ugh, just the thought is mortifying.
“Ah, forget it! He said it was nothing serious, so it must be!”
Shaking off the thought, I lay back down on the bed. Having only slept for an hour, my drowsiness outweighed my worries. After all, for a person, eating well and sleeping well are the most important things in life.
I screwed up. I overslept.
“How can you be so lazy?”
With my first meal of the day—lunch—set before me, I hung my head low.
“If I hadn't woken you, you would have slept right through the afternoon.”
The person nagging me from the seat beside me at the table was Charlotte's mother, Marchioness Lindsi. A beauty with the same orange-blonde hair as her daughter, her fine brow was deeply furrowed.
“And yesterday, after I went to all the trouble of sending you to His Majesty's birthday banquet, you came home reeking of alcohol.”
She was stricter with her own daughter than the Marquis, to whom she wasn't related by blood. Part of it was because Charlotte caused so much trouble, but...
“What will people think of me, your mother?”
This was the main reason: what other people thought.
After his first wife passed away, Marquis Lindsi married the current Marchioness—a commoner who already had a child—despite the opposition of those around him. As if that weren't enough, he officially adopted Charlotte, making her a noble.
The Marchioness, deeply moved by her husband's love, had reportedly vowed to become a lady worthy of the marquis's household. For someone like her, a daughter who failed to adapt to her new environment and only caused trouble must have been a significant nuisance.
‘People would whisper even if she behaved perfectly, yet she went around giving them plenty to talk about.’
Guilt toward her husband, the judging eyes of those who believed blood will always tell, and disappointment in her daughter—all these things seemed to have shaped the Marchioness into the woman she was today.
Back when I was just a reader, I'd found Charlotte pathetic for throwing away the good fortune that had fallen into her lap. She could have lived a life of luxury as a marquis's daughter if she'd just stayed quiet, so why was she so obsessed with a man who clearly despised her?
“Clearly, being grounded isn't enough. You're going to a distant convent, and don't even think about coming back until you've learned to act like a proper human being.”
But this was no time to be calmly judging Charlotte. Charlotte was me, and I was Charlotte!
‘A convent is out of the question!’
A convent wasn't a villa; I'd have to live like a pious nun. Waking before sunrise, working and praying all day, and eating nothing but meager bread and vegetables! And they didn't even give you much of that.
Eating well and sleeping well—both would be impossible. I couldn't imagine living without those two things.
“...I'm truly sorry, Mother.”
I put on my most pathetic expression and let my shoulders slump, furtively glancing at Marquis Lindsi.
The Marquis, who had been cautiously watching his wife's expression, carefully spoke up.
“My dear, I think you've scolded her enough. Charlotte is reflecting on her actions...”
“You're too soft on her! She's not a child who will listen to reason!”
Contrary to my hopes that he would say something more, the Marquis whimpered and fell silent.
He was the type to feel sympathy for Charlotte whenever his wife was twice as harsh as he was, but at his core, he was a devoted husband.
Unbelievable! The Marquis was my only hope. At this rate, I'm really going to end up in a convent, eating grass.
“Mother.”
Just then, a lifeline appeared from an unexpected quarter.
“Sending her to a convent seems a bit excessive.”
The young man who had been silently eating his meal until now finally spoke.
“Sister has been behaving herself lately, has she not?”
It was Jayden Lindsi, the Marquis's eldest son and the legitimate heir to the house. With his red hair combed back neatly, Jayden regarded the Marchioness with a calm gaze.
“W-well, yes. Now that you mention it, I suppose that's true.”
Flustered, she found herself agreeing.
She was bound to be surprised. Jayden, who usually ignored his sister completely, was taking Charlotte's side. Even I was shocked.
Jayden was the son of the late former Marchioness. While he never treated his stepmother disrespectfully, the Marchioness was intimidated by her eldest son, who was the very model of a nobleman.
That's right. If I had to describe Jayden Lindsi in a single phrase, it would be that he was more of a nobleman than any nobleman. Elegant and polite, yet arrogant. It might sound contradictory, but it was the truth.
A man like that had every reason to dislike Charlotte, who went around shattering the family's reputation. Fortunately, he merely ignored her rather than bullying or provoking her.
Half a year had passed since I'd arrived in this world, but I couldn't recall ever having a proper conversation with Jayden. We would occasionally pass each other in the house and exchange simple greetings, and that was it.
The way he always addressed me formally and called me 'Sister', despite clearly disliking me, was so very noble of him.
‘So why the sudden change? Did he eat something strange?’
Not only the Marquis, but the servants attending the meal also stared with wide eyes. The Marquis, quickly recovering his wits, seized the opportunity.
“Jayden is right, my dear. Charlotte is trying. We should praise her when she does well.”
The Marquis suggested, looking back and forth between me and the Marchioness.
“On that note, why don't you two go shopping together, mother and daughter? Buy Charlotte whatever she desires.”
“This child is supposed to be grounded.”
“What's the problem if she's with you, my dear? Besides, everyone needs to get some fresh air now and then.”
*Ugh, but I'd much rather laze around at home.*
But frankly, it was better to go out quietly than to provoke the Marchioness's anger. Anything was better than a convent.
