The next day.
For some reason, the sky looked ominous.
“It looks like it’s going to rain, Duchess-To-Be.”
“Hmm, I suppose you’re right. Or maybe it’s just overcast?”
The maids exchanged glances before offering their opinions with practiced caution.
I thought so too, but wouldn’t it rain regardless?
Surprisingly, they had become far more talkative than when I first opened my eyes in this world. Looking back, the shift began when the maids, shocked to hear I was essentially homeless, had scrambled to bring me a mobile carriage.
Honestly, I hadn’t expected them to actually follow through.
Thinking back to that moment, it was quite a surprise. I hadn’t realized it at the time, but apparently, that was the reputation I held among them.
Regardless, their evaluation of me seemed to shift the day after I ruined the gathering of those scoundrels. It must have left an impression that instead of blaming the maid who gave me the hangover cure that day, I had chosen to offer her a gift.
I don’t know if they were impressed by my generosity after they had interrupted me, or if they were simply interested in the gift itself.
Either way, having people assist me while I struggle in isolation is hardly a disadvantage.
Furthermore, even when night fell, the maids took turns in shifts to attend to me. I had ordered them to return to the mansion several times, but they insisted it was their duty, so I eventually let it be.
At first, they would tremble like rabbits before a snake if I so much as glanced at them. Now, even if they still walked on eggshells, they had reached the point of chattering away comfortably. Thanks to that, I had even memorized the names of the maids who brought the carriage.
“Um, my grandmother always says that on days like this, it actually doesn’t rain. Don’t worry, Duchess-To-Be!”
The maid who spoke was Susan. She was the same one who had provided the hangover cure. Since she seemed to know how to concoct simple medicines, she was someone I had been keeping an eye on.
Unfortunately, with all due respect to Susan’s grandmother, her prediction was dead wrong.
Whoosh!
Whirr—
The rain hammered against the window like a deluge.
But I couldn’t keep my gaze on the window for long. The ceiling was shuddering.
Oh, the carriage isn’t going to collapse, is it?
Sharing tea and chatting with the maids today had been fine. Unexpectedly, they were quite interested in fashion, so hearing their stories about current trends in the capital was rather entertaining. When the time came, everyone except for those on shift departed.
I could still feel the knights and servants of the Remut family looking at me as if I were a madwoman, but…
I’m sorry. I’m in a difficult position myself. I won’t cause any more trouble than this.
With that thought, I stared back at them, shameless.
The strange thing was that after a few days had passed, something other than pure malice and hostility began to flicker in the eyes of the Remut servants and knights. If I had to interpret it, perhaps it was curiosity—they were wondering what on earth that woman wanted.
Anyway, despite their hostile gazes, night came, and I went to bed…
And I woke to a cacophony of noise.
“Du, Duchess-To-Be, what should we do?”
Outside the window, a severe storm was raging.
If it were just rain, or just wind—if it were only one of the two, it would have been manageable.
I fell into thought. This is my mistake.
When I saw the clouds earlier, I should have prepared for the worst. I had been far too complacent.
“Duchess-To-Be…! This won’t do. I’ve already contacted Lumi and Carol at the mansion. They’ve gone to call the mages, so please just wait a little longer! I’m sorry…”
The sight of the maid—more anxious than I was—struck me. Today’s shift was none other than Susan. She was bowing her head, begging with a tearful expression, claiming it was her fault.
Well, it’s fine. And if you think about it, since I make the final decisions, it’s my fault as well.
“Susan, can you hear me? I’m fine.”
“Duchess-To-Be, I’m sorry… even if I were to be punished…”
“Don’t apologize for things you aren’t responsible for. It’s a bad habit.”
Watching Susan beg, I was reminded of my own image back at the company, shedding tears. Back then, I took the fall for every mistake—even those made by my superiors. Everything had been their decision, yet I was the one left to shoulder the blame.
“The world is full of bad people. If someone as kind as you gets caught by them, you’ll end up taking the blame for things that aren’t your fault. Keep your head held high.”
Susan stopped crying, staring at me blankly. I smiled brightly.
“I’m telling you to practice for when you meet bad people like me.”
Apologies shouldn’t be second nature. Though, in truth, even if I said this, it was Charlize’s own fault that Susan had made apologizing a habit in the first place.
“Duchess-To-Be…”
Susan, who had been staring at me in surprise, saw her expression cloud over again in an instant.
“Duchess-To-Be, you’re shivering.”
“Ah.”
It was, indeed, freezing.
For some reason, this place had been warm even at night, but according to Susan, the temperature control device had broken. Regrettably, Charlize’s wardrobe consisted mostly of thin fabrics, and since it had always been warm here, the blankets and duvets were paper-thin. To make matters worse, water began to drip steadily from the ceiling.
*Oh, this is the most pathetic I’ve felt since coming here.*
I shivered, but kept a smile fixed on my face as if I were perfectly fine. It wasn’t the first time in my life I’d faced such a situation, and honestly, it wasn’t the worst experience since arriving in this world. I gently ignored Susan’s pleas to wrap myself in more blankets, tossing them toward her instead and telling her to cover herself.
*Tsk. She’s shivering, yet she’s worried about me. People should take care of themselves first.*
*At this rate, won’t my fiancé eventually find me and take pity on me?*
That was when it happened.
Knock, knock, knock.
A knock, at this hour?
I exchanged a look with Susan. I nodded, and Susan opened the door.
Could it be a knight from Remut? If possible, I’d prefer it to be someone sent by my fiancé… though it wouldn’t matter much if it were just a mage from Alzbeit coming to drag me back.
“Ah…”
My eyes locked directly with the person at the door.
Huh? My eyes widened. It was only natural.
“A, a, are you all right?”
The person standing before me was Aria. My fiancé’s younger sister. She stood there holding an umbrella in her slender hands.
In this rain? Why on earth did she come all the way here?
Seeing her shivering violently as she looked at me, my stomach churned with anxiety. *Won’t she collapse again? It would be an even bigger problem if she fainted out here in the rain. Plus, if that happens, my fiancé might actually kill me.*
“Come in for now.”
“Ye, yes?!”
“It’s raining.”
I didn’t know why she had come, but leaving such a fragile girl out in the downpour was cruel. I didn’t want to be murdered by my fiancé.
At my firm tone, Aria hesitated, then squeezed her eyes shut and stepped inside the carriage. But unfortunately, the temperature in here was beyond control. There was enough space for Aria to sit, but just as I feared, her slender shoulders began to tremble violently.
*If Aria collapses here, it’ll be even more troublesome!*
I hurriedly grabbed the blanket Susan had tried to give me and wrapped it around Aria. She looked at me with wide eyes. With that pure, snow-white complexion, she looked exactly like a little white snow bunny. She was cute, but my life depended on her health.
I ignored her confusion and bundled the blanket tighter around her.
“What brings you here?”
“S, sp, speak…”
“Just listen. You can think of this as my apology for making you collapse.”
She seemed poised to ask why I was using such formal language, but the encroaching cold made the prospect of explaining herself grating.
“You seem to seize up every time I speak, so don’t bother answering if it’s too much trouble.”
To ward off the chill, I crossed my legs and hugged my arms to my chest. Susan kept trying to offer me her blanket, so I finally snatched it away, wrapped it around her shoulders instead, and warned her that if she dared to take it off, I would have her transferred to a different post immediately.
“Just try it.”
“Duchess-To-Be……!”
“I’m fairly certain I’ve already caught a cold, and since I’m rich, it hardly matters if I fall ill. Worry about yourself first.”
“B, but still…….”
“Look, if you can prove you’re richer than me, then you can have that blanket back.”
This sharp tone was the result of me unintentionally adapting to the way Charlize spoke; whenever I attempted to sound gentler, the maids only seemed more terrified.
And so, this dynamic had solidified over the past few days.
It was inevitable, really; possessing Charlize’s memories meant her manner of speech would naturally bleed into my own.
To use a metaphor, it felt as though Charlize’s memories and my own consciousness were sharing the same bed—this body.
“Pfft…….”
As I bickered with Susan, a small laugh cut between us.
I turned my head to see Aria secretly clasping her hands, struggling to suppress a giggle. When our eyes met, she jumped, trembling in surprise.
……Honestly, if she’s going to be that terrified, why on earth did she come here? And if she’s going to be startled by her own shadow, why laugh in the first place?
“I, I, I’m sorry. You two just looked so close.”
“Am I going to scold you for laughing? Is that really something to be sorry for?”
“Yes?”
Aria stared at me intently. For some reason, her expression was unreadable, flicking between emotions I couldn’t quite place.