TOSWB 25

Chapter  : 25

I thought the original story had ended… Chapter 25

At this point, I felt like I could safely say I had undergone a complete transformation.

But knowing my past life, I was aware that this wasn’t the final evolutionary form. I couldn’t be complacent!

Back in my previous life, I had finished my diet around the age of seventeen, so seeing my body slimmed down at this age was a new experience—and a little exciting.

Eighteen-year-old Tina Valentine was a beauty who could hold her own even next to the heroine, Evelyn, so surely my childhood self would shine brightly as well.

Steeling my resolve, I turned my attention to the maid diligently mending my clothes behind me and asked casually:

“…Do I look different?”

“Yes! Miss, you look as if you could ascend to the heavens at any moment.”

A few months ago, they would’ve said I looked fine. Now that I had lost a little weight, they said I looked like I could ascend to the heavens? Do our maids not believe in moderation?

Lost in that thought, the maid assisting me from behind stood up and said:

“Phew… It’s done, Miss Tina. Would you like to get up and take a look?”

“Yes!”

At her words, I sprang up and twirled.

The upper part of my dress was decorated with a large ribbon, while the lower part—a yellow daily dress reaching my knees adorned with white frills—flared out dramatically and then shrank back in.

The once-loose dress now fit my body perfectly. With my constantly changing size, it seemed the house maids’ sewing skills were improving day by day.

At the Valet House, there were no prying eyes like in the imperial palace, so I could wear daily dresses freely.

“Miss! You’re so beautiful! I feel blinded!”

“Look over here too! Kyaaa!!!”

Playing along with the maids as they showered me with compliments, time flew by like light.

I was so absorbed that I didn’t even hear someone knocking at the door.

“Miss Tina!”

While I was modeling my outfit, someone urgently called out to me.

Curious, I turned around to see the nanny with a worried expression. She caught her breath and spoke:

“Miss, a guest has arrived.”

“Already?”

I glanced at the clock, puzzled. It was still noon. Our appointment was two hours away.

Who could have arrived so early? Leopold? Maybe he was too excited to come to the Valet House and came early… though that seemed unlikely.

As the nanny bowed and stepped aside, the person behind her came into view. Simultaneously, the maids I had been playing with bowed deeply.

“……”

I froze, forgetting even to greet, as I locked eyes with a pair of piercing sapphire-blue eyes.

A wave of dizziness hit me. Why was he here? Since when had he been watching me? If the carriage had arrived, surely someone would have noticed.

It seemed Asad had been leaning against the wall with his arms crossed for some time, observing my every move.

Around Asad, there were no attendants or guards—he must have come without them, and without a carriage.

…He had only been adopted into the duke’s household for about a month. Clearly, he still lacked the awareness of being a noble himself.

“…You came early.”

I managed to speak. By then, the maids had quietly moved aside—an unnecessary courtesy.

…Being alone in the room with him felt like a nightmare. Ha.

Being alone with him brought back memories I shouldn’t have recalled.

It was the first time since our wedding night that I was alone in a room with him. That night had been the worst night of my life—truly horrific.

The first night with Asad.

To put it bluntly, nothing happened. But the process itself was the problem.

After a simplified wedding ceremony, I had gone straight to the duke’s house that night. With the help of the maids there, I prepared for the first night.

“Miss Tina, you must be the most beautiful lady in the entire empire.”

“You’re a lucky young master, indeed.”

The duke’s maids, assisting me with my bath, gushed endless compliments.

They probably just wanted to make a good impression on me, the new lady of the house.

But what could I do? I was just a puppet lady, and Asad would pay no attention to me until he died. After all, he had not been able to forget Evelyn until then.

So all of it was pointless. I sank into the hot water, looking too gloomy to be considered a bride.

That night, soft candlelight filled the duke’s bedroom, and a sweet fragrance lingered in the air. My body was even more doused in the sweet scent of perfume.

I waited on the bed in the empire’s traditional clothing—completely nonfunctional and designed to come apart with a tug.

“Tonight, all guards on this floor will be removed. Please rest comfortably, my lady.”

“…Thank you.”

The last maid to prepare for the first night bowed deeply and left.

All the guards would be removed… which wasn’t really necessary. Nothing was supposed to happen tonight anyway.

Yet, I let the maid go without a word.

Click.

The door closed, leaving me alone in the overly spacious room.

This would probably become our shared room. I’d call it the marital bedroom, but it would likely remain my private room.

Asad had never set foot in the marital bedroom until his death. This would be the first and last time.

Because it was the day of the wedding, I had to pretend to walk for appearances. Evelyn probably requested it too.

“Haaah…”

Alone, I let go of all tension and flopped onto the bed. My freshly washed light brown hair spread across the sheets.

By custom in the empire, the bride and groom meet again late at night in their most proper attire after the wedding.

Asad was late, which either meant he took a long time to prepare, or he was dragging his feet because he didn’t want to come. Either way was fine.

“Fhhhaaah—”

While the duke’s maids waited with bated breath, I was calmly yawning on the large bed.

Even with my two lifetimes, it was my first night alone with my husband, but I wasn’t nervous.

I knew that in the original story, nothing had happened that night between Asad and Tina. That’s why I could stay so relaxed.

Yet, even as night deepened, Asad showed no sign of arriving.

The candle wick burned down, the incense faded, and still he hadn’t appeared. That’s when I felt something was off.

Could it be… he wouldn’t come?

I had assumed he would arrive as in the original story… but there was a possibility he wouldn’t. After all, small differences had occurred since I possessed this body.

I sat up, trying to resist the drowsiness, but it was a losing battle.

“!”

Clack.

Just as I was nodding off, I heard someone open the door. I sprang up, groggy, and glanced toward the sound.

There, standing frozen as he had opened the door, was a solidly built, handsome man with red hair and blue eyes.

Wherever he had been, he was still in his knight’s uniform, a sword at his waist—likely straight from the imperial palace.

“….”

Halfway through entering, Asad froze at the sight of me on the bed.

His dumbfounded expression made him look like a boy before his memory loss.

Seeing his reaction slightly lifted my mood, which had been dreadful throughout the wedding.

“…Damn it.”

Once he regained his composure, Asad’s expression turned noticeably unpleasant.

“Pointless…”

He muttered irritably, seemingly to no one, though in our private room, I could hear him clearly.

Since his memory loss, Asad had rarely spoken to anyone. I had hardly seen him converse with others.

Evelyn had been the only one he interacted with, as if she were his entire world.

“……”

“……”

For a moment, silence filled the room. After standing frozen near the door for some time, Asad slowly closed it behind him, as if making a decision.

Thud.

The sound of the door closing somehow felt loud, startling me. I looked up at him, trying to appear unafraid.

He approached me slowly.

“…You know you’re a victim of this marriage too. But…”

Asad spoke in a low voice, taking slow steps toward me.