OIPM 4

Chapter 4

It was still vivid in my mind. The man’s voice shouting, “Anything is fine as long as it’s Ena’s touch!”

Was his name Hershel Themis?

I had heard before that some people feel pleasure from proper punishment or correction.

But I never thought I would actually meet someone like that.

Honestly, the shock I felt back then was…

It was enough for me to remember the name of a man I had only heard once.

What’s more, Hershel Themis turned out to be an imperial knight working in the palace!

That shocked me even more.

The “knight” I had imagined was someone loyal to chivalry, kind to children and ladies, and honest.

That expectation was largely influenced by Caleb Egon, the male protagonist of this world. That was how he was portrayed in “The Flower of Elpida.”

So I had only been thinking of knights like Caleb, and meeting someone so strange who was also called a knight was a shock.

That day, without question, the image of knights I had in my mind was completely shattered.

After that, whenever Hershel Themis came to visit, I would flee in utter disgust.

By the time it became part of daily life for Veloca to laugh loudly and tease me after witnessing my reaction, I had a dream. Or rather, it would be more accurate to say I glimpsed someone else’s memories under the guise of a dream.

It was Ena’s memories—the Ena I had possessed.

Through that dream, I was able to see the original life of Ena.

And I learned a few unexpected things.

For example…

So she was actually a noble.

More precisely, she was originally a commoner, but was adopted by a noble family and became one.

Abandoned as a newborn and raised in an orphanage, Ena had been a beautiful child since she was young.

Because of that, many people wanted to adopt her, but the ones who succeeded in competing for her were Baron Or and his wife.

Having no children of their own, they gave Ena their family name.

And to help her adjust quickly to her new name, they slightly modified the name she had been called in the orphanage and named her “Iena.”

Ena also came to love them, as they were kind and caring.

She lived as “Iena Or,” and when she turned eighteen, tragedy struck. Baron Or and his wife died in an unexpected accident.

It was a carriage collision. In an instant, Ena became an orphan once again.

Still, she did not despair. She believed she could manage well by inheriting their estate and living carefully.

That belief lasted until she discovered that the baron couple had generously lent money to people around them and even acted as guarantors for a close acquaintance.

After their deaths, that acquaintance fled, leaving all the debt behind for her.

And it wasn’t even that she inherited the title and estate.

To inherit a title, one had to be a direct blood relative or be named in a will.

Although the baron couple had once treated Ena as their successor and educated her accordingly, they had never written a will. Perhaps they never expected to die so early.

In the end, Ena could not inherit the title or estate because she was not blood-related.

The abandoned title and lands were naturally returned to the imperial family.

All that remained for Ena was an empty noble name as the adopted daughter of Baron Or, and a massive debt.

“Are you kidding me?”

I was furious after learning Ena’s situation through the dream. No matter how I looked at it, it was unfair.

“She didn’t even inherit the title because she’s not blood-related, but she still has to pay the debt? That’s too much!”

But unfortunately, that was how the law worked here.

Ena, in order to survive and repay her debt, began searching for work while pretending to be a commoner. Even if she was technically a noble, no one would hire her if they knew.

Fortunately, Ena was intelligent and had been educated as the heir of a baron family, making her skilled in paperwork.

She was able to easily join a merchant company and began working diligently.

The merchant guild leader was also a kind person and paid her regularly.

The problem was that her salary was based on “commoner” standards, while her debt was enormous.

No matter how hard she worked, the debt never decreased. Her life was filled only with shadows.

Then, by chance, Rael’s mother—the troupe leader—discovered Ena and offered to pay more than the merchant company, and Ena became an actress.

It would have been good if that had made her happy, but her life as an actress was not easy.

Ena was terrible at acting. During practice she was fine, but once she stepped onto the stage, her expression would strangely disappear.

She eventually realized acting was not her talent, but she could not quit because of her damn debt.

The result of forcing herself onto the stage was stage fright, which destroyed her self-esteem.

Ena slowly realized her personality was becoming more irritable, but she could not fix it.

Even so, the reason she continued to receive lead roles was because of wealthy nobles who were captivated by her beauty, figure, and gentle voice, and continuously sponsored her.

Maintaining a troupe required a lot of money.

If she had been invited to the imperial palace like in the previous emperor’s era and supported generously, things might have been different. But after the current emperor ascended the throne, things changed.

For some reason, the current emperor banned theatrical performances in the palace and cut all support.

The theater industry quickly declined, many troupes shut down, and actors disappeared.

Those who remained had no choice but to rely on wealthy nobles.

But there were few nobles willing to sponsor banned performances for no reason.

Troupes began hiring visually appealing actors, and nobles who sought pleasure and amusement eagerly became sponsors.

Gradually, appearance became more important than acting skill, and an actor’s value depended on how many sponsors they had.

Because of this, some actors did not hesitate to form secret relationships with sponsors in order to receive better treatment.

As a result, the profession of “actor” in this world had long since degraded into the image of a noble’s secret lover or mistress.

“Fortunately, the Chloe Troupe I’m in isn’t like that.”

That was thanks to Rael’s mother, who disliked that trend.

She did not stop at simple sponsorship and expelled anyone caught going further.

Of course, it must have been difficult to enforce strictly, so she seemed to turn a blind eye to some extent…

That was also why she allowed me to dismiss men like Viscount Casaro and others without interfering.

But that only applied to the Chloe Troupe.

In provincial troupes, it was common for actors to have deep relationships with sponsors, and actors were often treated poorly.

“I don’t like this kind of perception… but at least I’m glad I’m working in the Chloe Troupe.”

Now I had to live Ena’s life in her place.

“When I think about the debt, it feels suffocating, but it’s not as hopeless as I expected.”

Ena had already repaid a considerable amount while working as an actress.

If she kept working for a few more years without needing sponsorship, she could pay it all off.

“So, I just need to hang in there a little longer!”

…That was what I told myself, but only a few minutes passed before I frowned in pain from a sudden headache. Soon, Ena’s original knowledge began flooding into me.

Not memories from dreams, but knowledge she had learned as a noble—etiquette, document handling, everything she had been trained in as Iena Or.

Of course, the price was severe.

“Ugh, my head…”

The more knowledge I gained, the worse the pain became.

I had been suffering from a splitting headache for hours.

I even took medicine, but it didn’t help.

“I need to be fine before the performance…”

But it seemed fate was not on my side. Even right before the performance, the headache remained.

I tried my best not to show it so I wouldn’t burden anyone, but it wasn’t something I could control.

“Are you sick?”

At Veloca’s question, I nodded instead of hiding it. I was too exhausted to pretend anymore.

Anyone could see I was unwell—my face was pale and I was sweating.

“Yes… my head hurts a bit…”

Even as I spoke, more memories surged in with the pain.

As the headache returned, I grimaced, and Veloca’s expression turned serious.

“Did you take medicine?”

“Yes. But it doesn’t seem to help.”

“You don’t look like you can perform… should I fill in for you? I can take your role.”

“It’s okay, Veloca. I appreciate the thought.”

There were only about ten minutes left until the performance started.

If Veloca replaced me, the performance would end safely, but we would face complaints and refunds from the audience. They came to see the lead I was supposed to play.

Thinking of the already-sold tickets, I shook my head.

“I can do it. Don’t worry, Veloca.”

No—I had to do it.

No matter what.

At the end of the performance, I was breathing heavily as I lowered my head.

Normally I would have felt regret when the curtain fell, but today I felt nothing but relief. The memories had kept flooding in during the performance, making it unbearable.

Still, it was over. I could go back and rest.

But despite my thoughts, my exhausted body staggered with every step.

It’s fine. There’s no way I’ll collapse from this…

“Ah!”

My heel slipped on the floor with a harsh sound.

“Ena!”

Veloca’s shocked voice rang out.

Ah. I’m going to fall.

I squeezed my eyes shut in anticipation of the pain, but instead there was a heavy thud and impact against my body.

Huh? Why doesn’t it hurt? Why is the ground so soft?

I pressed my hands against what I was lying on and opened my eyes.

Rael was underneath me.

Why is he under me…?

As I blinked in confusion, Veloca and others rushed toward us.

“Oh my god, Ena!”

“Ena! Rael! Are you both okay?”

“I’m fine… ugh.”

I quickly got off him once I understood the situation.

“I’m sorry, Rael. Are you okay?”

“Ah… yeah. I’m fine.”

“Fine? You’re bleeding from your arm, you idiot!”

Veloca shouted loudly, and only then did I see his arm.

Oh no, he really is bleeding.

“It looks like it needs treatment right away! Do you have disinfectant?”

“I’ll get it!”

Veloca ran off quickly.

After a moment, she returned with a small glass bottle, opened it, and poured its contents onto Rael’s arm.

“Ah! That stings…”

“Bear with it. You’re injured, what can we do? Holy water is too expensive.”

She carefully applied ointment until she was done.

Seeing the dried blood mixed with ointment made me feel guilty. He got hurt because of me.

“I’m really sorry… because of me…”

“It’s fine.”

“Ena, are you hurt anywhere? If so, tell me. You should get treated too.”

“I’m okay.”

The area where I collided with Rael stung a little, but there was no bleeding or serious pain.

“Good… but seriously, why are both you and Rael so careless with your bodies?”

From there, Veloca scolded both of us.

“Ena, your face has looked pale since earlier! And Rael! Don’t throw your body around like that—it’s precious too!”

We both stayed silent, knowing she was only worried about us.

After finishing her scolding, Veloca placed her hands on her hips and shook her head.

“Sigh. I’ll handle the cleanup. Both of you go rest.”

“Thank you, Veloca.”

“Thanks.”

“Don’t thank me! Go rest already!”

She pushed us away, and we ended up leaving earlier than everyone else.

On the way back to my room, I kept apologizing to Rael, and he just smiled kindly, telling me not to worry.

Honestly, they really were good people.