“…….”
Wow. What a piece of trash.
I covered my mouth with a hand, desperate to mask my expression; without the restraint, a string of curses surely would have slipped out.
Right. This old man was far from a good person. Decent people don’t entangle others in webs of predatory debt. I suppose it was a small mercy that he seemed to care for his granddaughter, at least.
“Hmm. Regardless, you did well to rip out that young lady’s hair.”
*Cough!* I barely managed to stifle the sudden, violent fit of coughing. W-what? What did he just say?
I had clearly told him I didn’t pull her hair, and he hadn’t believed a word of it. I understood that, but still.
“Wait a minute….”
“Thanks to that, the interest will increase.”
“Pardon?”
I hesitated, but the old man didn’t seem to hear me; he merely stroked his chin, lost in thought.
“Even without that, I’ve been quite dissatisfied lately because he’s been paying his interest so punctually. I was wondering how I could raise it…. Then you provided a brilliant solution.”
“What is that supposed to mean….”
“Well, you threw yourself down by his hand on purpose, didn’t you?”
I gaped. What on earth is this old man talking about?
“Of course, it’s wicked of him to dare to push my precious granddaughter… but since he’s still a useful tool, I can’t let him pay his interest as he pleases. You must have had your own reasons, didn’t you?”
“…….”
“Because you want to possess him.”
I held my head in my hands. *Stay calm. Stay calm. Just give a coherent answer.*
Fortunately, I possessed the memories of Charlize, and the habits and mannerisms she left behind remained tethered to this body. I replied with a thin, practiced smile.
“……That’s right.”
At the same time, I thought: *We are in big trouble. This family… it’s even crazier than I imagined.*
Between the villainess Charlize and a grandfather who cherishes her but treats others as mere tools without a second thought, I felt like I was suffocating.
I certainly hadn’t been hoping for a broken engagement, but I had a sinking feeling that if I aligned myself with this grandfather, a dead end was unavoidable.
Above all else…. Askin Remut was not a person who could be possessed through oppression and confinement.
He had been holding back and enduring all this time, but the resentment he suppressed wouldn’t just vanish; it was stacking up, layer by layer. I had seen the truth of it in the Remut territory. The grandfather’s method wouldn’t just provoke that resentment—it would cause it to detonate.
This was by no means a path to survival.
*Excuse me, but my life is on the line here!*
The grandfather, oblivious to my panic, seemed to be in high spirits; he even let out a hearty laugh. I hummed along to keep him satisfied until I could finally slip out of his office.
Once out, I let out a jagged sigh, stroking my chest.
*‘It seems… I should consider that none of my family in this world are truly on my side.’*
The tyrant protagonist I thought I was on good terms with, and the grandfather who was known as a doting fool—they were all ticking time bombs.
As I stood there, sighing, the door creaked open.
“Charl.”
“……Grandfather?”
He was standing in the gap of the open door, his brow furrowed as he looked at me.
“……Is your cold still not cured?”
“Pardon?”
“I shall summon the high priest again.”
“…….”
My feelings grew complicated. Finding it strange, I shook my head, and soon after, I returned to my room.
* * *
The next day, my body felt light as a feather.
Revitalized, I began to prepare for the day.
“Let’s go to the Remut territory.”
The maids all wore worried expressions, but lacking the courage to contradict me, they faithfully followed my orders.
The road to the Remut territory wasn’t very far, but a new complication arose.
“Um, Duchess-to-be…. The knight says he would like to see you for a moment.”
“What’s the matter?”
The carriage lurched to a halt in the middle of the road. A heavy rainstorm days prior had triggered a landslide, leaving the path impassable. With locals frantically shoveling away the debris, our progress had come to an abrupt end.
I poked my head out to assess the situation.
*‘Oh, good heavens.’*
The townspeople were out in force, their faces etched with desperation as they labored to clear the mud. The commoners’ houses lining the road were a chaotic wreck, with roofs caved in and walls crumbling.
If this was the extent of the flooding, it would be a devastating blow to my fiancé’s finances. He was already stretched thin.
I gathered my skirts and stepped out of the carriage.
Instantly, my maids and knights scrambled after me, frantic.
“Duchess-to-be, you’ll ruin your dress!”
“It’s fine.”
“Eek! Your limited-edition shoes, Duchess-to-be!”
“I said it’s fine.”
I appreciated sparkling, beautiful things as much as anyone. But in Charlize’s walk-in closet, there were easily over a hundred pairs just as exquisite as these.
“Duchess-to-be, please, forgive our rudeness.”
“Hm? What are you—”
Before I could finish, a knight reached out. Instinctively, I grabbed his arm—a reflex hard-coded into Charlize’s body.
*‘Ah!’*
The world tilted as my feet left the ground. I blinked, looking up at my captor.
Ah, this man…
*‘Isn’t this the knight who carried me at the Remut mansion when it was raining?’*
It was him. The same man who had scooped me up the moment my grandfather appeared before the Duke of Remut.
His frame was hulking, yet he held me with a dispassionate grace, as if carting me around were as mundane as breathing. His features were sharp, undeniably handsome.
I felt nothing, of course. After looking at my fiancé’s face, no other man could stir so much as a flicker of interest. Still, he was striking enough to warrant a second glance.
“……I don’t recall giving the order to be carried.”
“……My apologies. My priority was ensuring not a single speck of dirt touched your dress or shoes. I apologize for the oversight.”
That wasn’t what I wanted an apology for.
I tapped the knight’s shoulder and signaled for him to put me down. He looked flustered for a heartbeat, his expression flickering into deep contemplation.
Moments later, he signaled to the rear.
“I have called for the transport.”
Before I could protest, I was deposited into a sedan chair pulled from the supply wagon, carried by four knights. My irritation flared. What on earth?
“You will be comfortable now.”
“No, no… forget it. Put me down, immediately.”
Right. I was beginning to fully grasp how this villainess functioned: she used people—knights, specifically—as human taxis for any distance longer than three paces.
I massaged my temples and forced myself back onto the muddy ground.
The knights watched me with varying degrees of unease. Most of them eyed me with thinly veiled terror, but the one who had lifted me first looked at me with the soulful, mournful expression of a discarded puppy.
What is his problem? I searched Charlize’s memories, but he was a total stranger. He wasn’t even a character from the original novel.
Regardless, that wasn’t the priority.
*‘I need to see my fiancé and clear up this misunderstanding.’*
I couldn’t afford to waste any more time.
Though my retinue cautiously suggested we turn back, I weighed my options and shook my head. I raised a hand, beckoning a nearby knight.
“Call the laborers.”
The knight startled. My escort was significantly larger than last time—a byproduct of my grandfather’s overzealous reaction to my previous outing. With dozens of servants and knights now at my disposal, I had the leverage I needed.
“Um, Duchess-to-be… if you intend to hire laborers to clear these logs and debris, the cost will be exorbitant. Few people will be willing to travel all the way out to the Remut territory.”
The Remut territory was not a wealthy one.
The lead knight attempted to persuade me with a gentle tone, explaining that workers had no reason to trek to this remote area when plenty of employment existed in the capital. He suggested it would be wiser to return another time.
I merely narrowed my eyes, and he clamped his mouth shut instantly.
“Say that again. Are you suggesting I can’t go over there?”
I kept my voice low, though it cut through the air, and pointed toward the Remut castle.
“My path is blocked. Do you really think a measly sum of money matters compared to that?”
The knights exchanged anxious glances and lowered their heads.
I swept my hair back. I had already made it clear—I needed to reach that castle today, regardless of the cost.
“W-we will summon the workers at once!”
Terrified, the servants and knights hurried off to fetch laborers.
Fortunately, the men arrived much faster than I had anticipated.
“And what are you knights doing?”
I commanded them to join in. Before my eyes, the laborers, knights, and servants scrambled to clear the debris.
‘Hmph… unfortunately, this doesn’t look like it will be resolved today.’
I didn’t know how it had come to this, but the road was a disaster. Even with everyone working feverishly, it seemed unlikely a carriage could pass through anytime soon.
Besides, Askin wasn’t the type of man who would come simply because I beckoned.
I toyed with the idea of walking, fueled by sheer frustration, but my attire was far from suitable for such a trek.
As I stood lost in thought, staring toward the castle, I felt a gaze resting upon me.
I turned my head and saw them—a group of children.
They appeared to be locals, standing quite close to where I was. They were huddled behind a cart, doing their best to hide, watching me with wide eyes.
As soon as they met my gaze, they flinched.