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Chapter 2
“Hmm? Where am I?”
Out of nowhere, Odette found herself standing on a terrace railing.
How she got there, or what was happening, she couldn’t understand at all.
Her hair and clothes were soaked as she looked around. Raindrops kept falling without pause from the heavily overcast night sky.
‘Did they throw me out here in the rain to die?’
But strangely, her body felt light. It was hard to believe she had been beaten by the count and strangled into unconsciousness—there was no pain anywhere.
“…This is really strange.”
A cold night wind made her shiver.
Just as she decided she should get out of the freezing rain and go inside—
Through the glass window, she saw Count Anderson and Jovern talking.
‘Those bastards…!’
Curious about what they were plotting, she perked her ears and soon heard the count’s voice.
“I hear Caesar has arrived in the capital. If he attends the victory celebration and gets entangled in scandals with noble ladies, I could demand a divorce… but he said he would return straight to his territory instead! Damn it.”
Count Anderson’s daughter, Amelia, was married to Caesar.
She had run away after cheating while still technically married.
Even if it had been a formal marriage and they had lived apart for seven years, this was still an insane act.
Especially now that Caesar, who had gone to war, was returning!
‘Putting everything aside, she should’ve at least told me before running away. I would’ve run first.’
Odette strained her ears again.
“This is bad. Caesar Myse’s army is famous for its speed. He’ll arrive in the territory soon. Quickly, kill the maid and arrange a funeral.”
“Would that be best? Killing a maid isn’t difficult, but…”
The count took a sip of alcohol and frowned deeply.
“Rumors will eventually spread that Amelia is pregnant.”
What? Pregnant?
Amelia was pregnant?
‘So that’s why the count wasn’t actively searching for Amelia and instead was tormenting me.’
In the end, even if they brought Amelia back, she wouldn’t be able to continue a married life with Caesar.
Once Amelia’s pregnancy became obvious, her affair would be exposed.
Caesar would likely file for divorce and demand enormous alimony.
And if that happened, the family’s honor would collapse—so they were planning to kill Odette, who had the same blonde hair and green eyes as Amelia, and hold a funeral in her place.
And they were hesitating because rumors might spread that Amelia had run away after an affair.
‘Go ahead and agonize all you want. I’m escaping at lightning speed.’
Odette quietly moved toward the terrace railing.
“Maybe instead of killing the maid, it would be better to disguise her as Amelia and send her to Caesar?”
At the count’s words behind her, Odette froze.
What did he just say?
They were going to deceive Caesar, the war hero returning from the battlefield?
‘They’re insane.’
If she were used in something like that and her identity was discovered, she would die an even more horrific death.
Her hands trembled as she hurriedly climbed down the tree toward the ground.
“Ah!”
Her rain-soaked hand slipped.
She was falling!
“Odette, are you awake?”
Emma’s brown eyes were looking at her.
“E-Emma?”
Emma was a maid in the count’s household who shared a room with Odette.
Emma teared up with worry.
“Yes, it’s me. Good heavens! Look at your swollen face.”
Odette blinked, her vision unfocused, and looked around.
Only the area around Emma’s candle was bright; beyond that was total darkness. But she could roughly guess where she was.
Through the iron bars and visible torture tools, it was clearly the underground prison of the count’s estate, where serious criminals were held.
‘So I guess the terrace in the rain was a dream.’
But could it really be called a dream?
Even the raindrops on her hair, the cold wind—it all felt too real, as if she had actually experienced it.
Or maybe her soul had left her body, wandered onto the terrace, and overheard the count and the butler talking?
‘It sounds ridiculous… but I need to confirm it.’
Odette lifted her head and looked at Emma.
“Emma, you’re Lady Amelia’s personal maid, right?”
“Yeah, why?”
“You probably know something. Was Lady Amelia’s disappearance because she was pregnant?”
At Odette’s question, Emma looked shocked.
“H-how did you know? I only found out after discovering the letter she left behind.”
So it wasn’t just a dream after all.
Odette moistened her dry lips and stepped closer.
“What did the letter say?”
“She said never to look for her. That she would never return for the sake of the baby.”
“……”
“We investigated, and the mistress thinks the young lady went to the Kingdom of Deccan. The baby’s father must be someone from there.”
The Kingdom of Deccan.
A land of mages made up of many islands in the southern Empire.
Odette remembered Amelia chatting about how flowers bloomed all year round there.
Yet she had no memory of actually talking about it herself, as if she had experienced it before.
‘What is this? Did I see that in the dream too?’
While Odette was lost in thought, Emma suddenly burst into tears.
“Poor Odette, what are we going to do? If they try to kill you and hold a funeral in Lady Amelia’s place, I’ll report everything to Caesar Myse! Then the master will be in serious trouble.”
“Emma, don’t cry.”
Odette wiped Emma’s tears with a handkerchief she was holding.
“Odette, where did you even get the butler’s handkerchief?”
“The butler’s handkerchief? Ah! Gross!”
When the count had been choking her, she must have unconsciously grabbed the handkerchief from Jovern’s chest pocket while he was helping him.
She threw it away immediately.
At that moment—
Clank.
The heavy lock of the underground prison was opened, and footsteps echoed from the end of the corridor.
“Someone’s coming. Emma, hide.”
“Okay.”
Emma quickly extinguished the candle and hid outside the iron bars.
Another light approached, and Jovern stopped in front of the cell.
“Damn lucky, Odette. The master has decided to send you to Count Myse in place of Lady Amelia.”
Those were exactly the same words the count had muttered in her dream.
Even Jovern’s clothing—and the missing handkerchief from his vest pocket—were identical.
‘This is creepy.’
Could she have gained some strange ability?
If so, that would be great.
“Get that girl out!”
At Jovern’s command, knights grabbed Odette’s arms. She was immediately taken to Amelia’s room.
The head maid bathed her, dressed her in a gown, and taught her basic noble etiquette.
Several days passed.
One early morning, unusually, the head maid worked diligently on her appearance.
Then Count Anderson entered the room with a grim expression.
“Caesar Myse is a monster. They say he tore apart beasts and foreigners alive. If he learns you’re an impostor, he’ll kill you in the most horrific way possible. The only way you can survive is to act as my daughter Amelia.”
Odette was forcibly loaded into a carriage.
“Mary?”
Inside the carriage was her old friend Mary. Odette almost cried in relief.
“Mary, please help me. When the carriage slows down, I’ll jump out—just close the door.”
“Oh dear, you foolish girl. Just go.”
Mary tied Odette’s wrist to her own with a rope.
“You think just anyone can act as a stand-in? If it were me, I’d jump at the chance.”
“Caesar Myse can’t be fooled. I’ll be exposed immediately.”
“Then don’t get caught. That’s all there is to it. Then both you and I survive.”
So much for the saying that people you know are the scariest.
Mary became a strict guard, never letting her out of sight for even a moment.
‘What do I do… I can’t even dream of escaping.’
Realizing she was being dragged straight to Caesar Myse, Odette trembled, clutching her skirt for hours.
After a long ride, the carriage entered a narrow canyon road.
“Rockfall!”
Startled horses reared violently, shaking the carriage so hard that luggage from the shelf fell directly toward Odette’s head.
