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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: An Unexpected Encounter
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I knew this would happen.
“Oh, he's so adorable. Don't you think?”
“Absolutely. He looks like a little angel sent from heaven!”
“He may be our son, but he's just so lovely. Shall we try on something else?”
“I'll bring it right away.”
The boutique clerks quickly began to bring out every piece of boys' clothing they had. Marchioness Lindsi tried each one on her young son, a blissful smile spreading across her face.
“Who does Carrie take after to be so pretty!”
Carrie was the nickname for Carrion Lindsi, the second son of the Marquis Lindsi family. Of the three children, he was the only one born to the Marquis and the current Marchioness, a late-in-life child.
Now six years old, Carrie was the darling of the household, monopolizing everyone's affection. That's why I knew this would happen.
“Charlotte, Charlotte! What do you think? Which outfit looks best on Carrie?”
At the Marchioness's question, I slowly rose from my chair and answered.
“They all look good on him.”
My soulless reply made the Marchioness raise an eyebrow.
“Aren't you interested in your own brother's affairs?”
“Mother, didn't we come out for me today?”
The Marchioness flinched and then had a maid bring her handbag. She took out a silk pouch and held it out to me.
“It seems you're not interested in clothes for once, so go look around some other shops. If you find something you want, buy it with this.”
The inside of the luxurious silk pouch was filled with glittering gold coins. What a windfall.
“I'll stay and finish looking at clothes for Carrie.”
“Yes! I'll keep that in mind.”
“I'm sending Sir George with you, so don't even think about leaving this street.”
Of the three knights who had accompanied us as escorts, the one named George fell in behind me.
“See you later, then!”
Finally freed from the boredom of someone else's shopping trip, I stepped outside with vigor.
*Hehehe.* I may have walked out looking like I was about to splurge, but I had no intention of spending this money. I had to add every last coin to my emergency fund.
Of course, my primary goal for the future was to live in a villa with financial support from the Marquis's family. But I couldn't neglect to prepare for the worst-case scenario.
‘If I get thrown out of the house with nothing but the clothes on my back like the original Charlotte, I'll end up a beggar.’
Therefore, I had been saving up an emergency fund whenever I could since I was transmigrated. It might sound easy, but it was anything but.
Charlotte didn't receive an allowance; instead, she indulged in luxuries on credit, and the Marquis's family would settle the bill later.
Suddenly asking for cash would only arouse suspicion. For example, they might think I was plotting some sinister scheme.
‘In fact, Charlotte did bribe someone to get Aila into trouble…’
She paid a maid from the Grand Duke's household to rip the dress Aila was supposed to wear to her debutante ball.
Naturally, the heroine, Aila, used her wits to find an even more splendid new dress and caught the culprit. It ended with the Lindsi family having to bow their heads and apologize to Aila and Grand Duke Hiklrid.
Because of that, I had to secretly sell off Charlotte's accessories and clothes to raise money. I sold them off little by little so it wouldn't be noticeable, so the money didn't pile up quickly.
Still, after half a year of pinching pennies, my purse had grown quite heavy, even if it wasn't a mountain of gold. If I were kicked out tomorrow, I could survive for a while.
‘After that, I'll make a living through business!’
For the record, it's not me who'll be running the business, but Aila. In the novel, she succeeds in business later on, just like other heroines in romance fantasy stories.
All I have to do is invest all my emergency funds, minus minimal living expenses, and reap the sweet profits. Aila will continue to succeed with her protagonist buff and Cedric's help, so my dream of living a life of leisure on unearned income isn't just a fantasy.
Perfect. It's a truly perfect life plan.
“Haa.”
But a dispirited sigh from somewhere grated on my ears. The source of that sigh was Sir George, who was behind me.
George sighed repeatedly, as if to make sure I heard him—no, with the clear intention of being heard.
I ignored him and headed for a shop that sold obviously luxurious goods. I had no intention of spending money, but I had to at least pretend to be shopping.
“I'll stand guard outside.”
George said that, but when I browsed the shop for a bit and looked outside, he was nowhere to be seen.
‘This guy is blatantly slacking off.’
It meant he was very displeased about being stuck escorting someone like me.
The reason was obvious. Most of the people working for the Lindsi family, from the knights down to the common servants, disliked Charlotte.
Those who serve a prestigious noble family usually take pride in it. To them, a superior who tarnishes the family's honor would not be a welcome sight.
Moreover, Charlotte would throw tantrums at her subordinates at the drop of a hat. It would be stranger if anyone actually liked her.
‘But that's not the only reason.’
Was Charlotte the only noble with a bad personality and improper conduct? Not all servants who waited on them acted like George was now.
It was all a calculated attitude. Who would the Marquis and Marchioness Lindsi believe? The troublemaker who had just caused problems yesterday, or the knight who had faithfully served the family for years?
If I went home and complained about George's negligence, there was a 100% chance they'd just think I was finding fault with a subordinate for no reason again.
*Sigh...*
Charlotte's reflection in the shop window caught my eye. A melancholic face, as if she had given up long ago.
‘I can kind of understand why Charlotte became so twisted.’
This wasn't something that had started just yesterday. From the moment she first set foot in the Lindsi household, Charlotte must have been an unwelcome guest.
A child brought in by the commoner-born Marchioness, with not a single drop of Lindsi blood. A girl with a rotten disposition who had luckily obtained the status of a noble.
They might serve the Marchioness, who had wisely managed the household and even borne a Lindsi heir, but Charlotte was not someone they considered their superior.
She had probably been subjected to this blatant disrespect for a very long time. As a result, Charlotte's personality soured, and when she threw her tantrums, the employees disliked and ignored her even more...
It was a truly vicious cycle.
On top of that, looking at the faint memories of Charlotte that occasionally surfaced, they were always polite in front of the other family members. So, it usually ended with only Charlotte suffering in silence.
I wound up a music box, one of the items on display. I tried to lift my sagging spirits by listening to the cute music that flowed out.
‘Well, what can you do.’
The servants' insolence was a bit annoying, but not enough to seriously disrupt my life. There were also a few who treated me normally, even if they were a minority.
‘Just ignore it! It's not like we'll be seeing each other for long.’
Judging by Marquis Lindsi's attitude this morning, the day he would send me to the villa didn't seem far off.
I left the shop, leaving the dejected-looking manager behind. He must have expected the famous Charlotte Lindsi to throw her money around.
*Sorry. I'm on a tight budget trying to save up my emergency fund. I thought about buying the music box, but it was too expensive. Honestly, it was a rip-off.*
“You didn't buy anything, for a change.”
George, who was outside, spoke to me. Acting as if he'd been faithfully standing guard the whole time, when he'd clearly been off gallivanting.
“It just happened that way. I'm done shopping, so let's go back to Mother…”
*Bump.* Just then, I lightly bumped into a passerby going in the opposite direction. At a glance, it seemed like a common occurrence on a busy street.
‘Huh? This familiar feeling?’
A memory from before my transmigration surfaced—the time I went to an overseas tourist spot with money I'd earned through blood, sweat, and tears from part-time jobs, only to have it all stolen by a pickpocket on the first day.
I reflexively checked my bosom and realized. It was gone. My silk pouch filled with gold coins.
“That bastard is a thief! My pouch!”
At that moment, I heard what sounded like a click of the tongue, and the pickpocket ahead of me started to run. He was too fast for me to catch up with.
“George!”
“Yes, yes!”
George scrambled after him.
This thief picked the wrong person. No matter how fast he was, he was no match for a proper knight. He'd be caught in no time… *Huh?*
George, who had been chasing the pickpocket, suddenly turned around and started running back toward me.
“What are you doing? Go catch him!”
“I'm sorry. I cannot follow that order.”
“Why not!”
“My most important duty is to protect you, Young Lady. If I move any further away from you, I will be unable to carry out my mission.”
“No, I'm fine, so just go.”
“I apologize. Your safety is a hundred times more important than money. Let's return for now and report the pickpocket to the city guard.”
Since when were you so concerned about my safety? You were slacking off instead of working just a moment ago!
Oh no, my precious money. If I'd known this would happen, I would have just spent it all at the shop earlier.
‘Wait, back then, he definitely…’
A thread of suspicion flashed through my mind.
“Aaaargh!”
A desperate scream, one that could rival a death cry, came from somewhere.
Then, *thud!* With a loud noise, a person fell in front of us. Dust rose from the ground.
“W-what was that?!”
I thought a fight might have broken out nearby, but looking at the clothes of the person who had fallen, I saw it was the pickpocket.
*Thump, thump.* Following the unusually loud footsteps, a man emerged through the scattering dust.
A black helmet, black armor, a black cape, and finally, a black-hilted sword. Everything was black.
The man, perfectly geared up for battle in the middle of a bustling street and not a battlefield, drew everyone's gazes as he approached until he was right in front of me.
“W-who are you?!”
Then, he cleanly ignored George, who was reacting belatedly.
“…Yours.”
He held out his hand to me. On top of the black gauntlet was my lost silk pouch.
His voice was surprisingly melodious, a stark contrast to his menacing appearance. My thoughts, unfitting for the situation, drifted as I looked up at Margrave Mont.
