IPTD 07

Chapter 07

The moment the door opened, a huge cloud of dust and a musty smell rushed in and hit us.
“Cough! Cough! What on earth….”
I had been proud of myself for being fairly immune to filthy environments, having swept and cleaned the cabin many times before.
Turns out… I’m still really weak!

After waiting for the dust to settle a little, I cautiously stepped into the library, one careful step at a time.

Swish!
Betty, who had reached the opposite window faster than I had, wasted no time pulling aside the thick curtains covering the largest central window.

The central window was made of beautiful stained glass.
Dust scattered through the colorful rays of light, illuminating the library inside brilliantly.

“Wow.”
Swish! Swish! Swish!
As she pulled back all the curtains, the scene inside was completely transformed.

“It’s bigger than I expected! This could rival most temple libraries.”
Betty, standing beside me, exclaimed with pure admiration.

I nodded vigorously in agreement.

By past-life standards, the library was about the size of a decent school playground.
Arched ceilings connected beautifully between the grand columns.
In the center of the hall, over a hundred bookshelves were lined up in neat rows.

“This place…”
In short, it was a goldmine for any book addict!

My heart raced, and I couldn’t help but grin, which made Betty laugh along with me.

“You like it that much?”
“Yes! With this much, I could survive ten years in the cabin.”
“…That might not be a good thing.”
“Why? It’s really amazing!”

Ha ha ha! Ten years, twenty years—who cares?
Time is overflowing anyway!
I’ll read every single book here!

I was so excited that my body began bouncing unconsciously.

Then Betty said something to dampen the mood.
“Well… we should probably start with cleaning first, right?”
“…Of course.”
“Come on, let’s give it our all! Then maybe we can finish before spring comes.”
“That’s way too far off!”

But what else could I do?
I sighed deeply and then steadied my resolve.
Starting anything is always the hardest part.
“Let’s just get going.”
The future me would handle the rest.

“Huff…”
Unfortunately, even future me wouldn’t be able to handle this.

How many hours had passed?
The sun, which had been bright when we left the cabin, was slowly dimming.

Even with the help of the skilled maid, Betty, we had barely managed to clean the windows and a couple of bookshelves.

“Ugh, my back…”
“Your Highness, are you okay?”
“Yeah… looks like even if we cleaned every day, it’d be impossible to finish before spring.”
“…That’s true. Honestly, spring is too optimistic. Take a little break. I can handle it.”

There was something moist in Betty’s eyes as she said this, and I quickly waved it off to prevent misunderstanding.

“What are you talking about, Betty? This is my responsibility since I said I’d do it. You should rest a little. I’ll just check out a few of the shelves I cleaned.”
“Your Highness… okay. Be careful, we don’t know what might be on the floor!”

I was planning to pick at least one book from the cleaned shelves.
‘I’m exhausted today… I’ll probably crash soon, but I can read it later when I’m bored.’

Even so, there was a huge psychological difference between having books and having none.
A modern person living in the 21st century craved dopamine constantly.

“Let’s see.”

Even while cleaning, I noticed that the bookshelves were fairly tall.
Or… maybe I’m just short?

Thankfully, there were wooden footrests provided.
They looked a bit worn and unstable, but they were fine as a temporary solution.

I slowly began examining the books from the upper shelves.

Strangely, the text in this language appeared to me in Korean, so I had no problem reading it.
‘Looks like these aren’t translations but domestic novels?’

Even better—this is like a K-romance patch.
I still had no idea about the identity of this world, but there was no need to rush.
I’d figure it out naturally in time.

Am I being too careless? Maybe, but still!

“Uhahaha.”

Without any immediate danger, my mind and body relaxed.
Having my favorite books right in front of me even made me hum a little tune.

I started scanning the titles of the books.

“Looks like these are mostly history books.”

• History of the Rembrandt Empire

• The Glorious Life of the First Emperor Albert Rembrandt

• The Pact of Rembrandt and the Dragon

So this empire seems to be called Rembrandt.
Since dragons and pacts are mentioned… maybe this is a world with dragons?

But I could never remember all the long foreign-sounding character names in novels, so there was no way I could know what kind of story it was just from the clue “Rembrandt Empire.”

‘Still, it’s probably wise to at least read the history book.’

I picked up History of the Rembrandt Empire to take with me.

“Huh?”

My eyes stopped on a single title that caught my attention.

• The Empire’s Strongest Magic Transparent Dragon Roared

What is that?
“That’s pretty attention-grabbing…”

A transparent dragon? I can’t pass this up.
The title already smelled like fun.

“Hehe. Two books.”

I grabbed the dragon book as well, tucking it safely under my arm.
A history book for studying, and a novel—presumably for entertainment.
Perfect. Parallel reading at its finest.

‘No wonder I feel so fulfilled…’

When I looked back, I saw Betty still collapsed from exhaustion.
Even a muscular maid like her had clearly been overwhelmed by the schedule.
I felt a little guilty. She should be resting properly.

“Betty, let’s call it a day and head back.”
“Ah! Yes…”

Betty, embarrassed after dozing off, wiped her face.
Being in a pit of dust all day had only made her face dirtier as she tried to clean it.

I wiped the soot off her cheeks and said,
“I guess I’ll have to wash you properly today.”
“What?! That’s impossible! How could you wash me with those tiny hands! You’ve already worked so hard today, I was planning to give you a full-course massage myself!”

It was a joke, but she jumped so much I missed my chance to respond.

Betty brought over the wooden bucket and mop we had used earlier, and chattered on her way to the door.

“The cabin’s bathroom is too cold. There’s a guest bathroom nearby—would you like to use that instead today?”
“Is that okay?”

Well, the cabin was nice, but the only heating came from the fireplace.
Even the water had to be boiled over the fire and mixed with cold water to get the right temperature.
I missed Korea’s heating system every time I washed.
Even in a small studio, the bathroom floor would be heated and always warm.
So honestly… hearing there’s a proper bathroom nearby was tempting!

Betty, noticing my pupils dilate, giggled like a schemer.
“Madam, you are the Duchess. Is it really a problem for a Duchess to use the castle’s bathroom?”
…Why the sudden tone?

I pretended to ponder seriously instead of teasing her.
“Hmm… I was told not to be noticed.”
“His Highness the Duke? He’s away for now, so he probably won’t return today.”
“Really?”

I secretly liked Betty’s sly tone. Very convincing. Approved!

Until now, I had obediently followed whatever the man told me, but thinking back, I hadn’t exactly been a reckless protagonist after all.

Honestly, the Duke was ridiculous. Who does he think he is, ordering me to hide? I didn’t want to get involved anyway!
I realized I’d been too proper all this time.
To be honest, I just wanted to soak in hot water and relax!

Seeing my hesitation, Betty snapped back into schemer mode.
“If it really bothers you… we could use it secretly? It’s a corner, so not many people come by.”
“What?”

She’s suggesting we secretly use the bathroom?
“Perfect!”

I loved the plan!

“Ha ha!”
“Hehe!”

Betty and I giggled as we opened the library door—only to be blocked by an unexpected group.

“Uh?”