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Chapter 14
—Just trust me and wait. Who do you think this uncle is? Even the stiff-necked nobles will all lose their minds the moment they see this!
—Then you can pay off all your other debts with something else. You won’t have to suffer like a dog anymore, Aria!
Xavier, whose eyes had completely lit up at the sight of the jewel, went on at length about how well he could sell it before finally excusing himself.
Even during that process, he behaved with astonishing arrogance. Mistaking himself for someone who had just gotten his hands on an incredible gem, Xavier kept his chin lifted to the very end, acting as if he were the one holding the upper hand.
‘In reality, it’s the other way around.’
I crossed my legs, staring at the now-empty seat across from me.
One week from today would be next Thursday. That would be D-day.
‘Foolish.’
Blinded by greed, he thought he was holding a golden egg, when in fact he’d just shackled his own ankle.
‘No… still, it’s too early to relax.’
He might look stupid, but he’s someone who’s scraped by in the back alleys. There was no telling what kind of scheme he might be hiding.
‘I need to stay on guard.’
Until everything was completely finished, it seemed best to keep flashy behavior to a minimum.
And…
‘I should re-investigate the people still left in the mansion.’
As greedy as Xavier was, he was just as suspicious.
He had accepted my proposal readily enough, but he might still be keeping watch, wondering if I would try something foolish.
‘At least there aren’t many people left in the mansion right now.’
The Renesty estate had two small annexes in addition to the main building where I stayed.
Excluding the kitchen staff, there weren’t even ten people staying in the main building. Even those who had gone to the annexes totaled only around ten.
That was also why I had been able to hide Matthias in secret.
First, I needed to check whether any of those people had any connection to Xavier.
Just looking at my own family was enough to prove the point—enemies were always closer than you thought.
‘Tonight, I should ask Sophia to prepare some stationery.’
For something this important, talking face-to-face was far more effective than writing it down.
If I said there was something she could hold over her husband, Lady Odilon would surely want to hear it at least once.
Just as I was carefully laying out my plans—
The door, which had been tightly shut until now, suddenly flew open.
“Aria!”
A massive figure came rushing in like a flood.
“?!”
I barely managed to catch the huge body, my eyes going wide as saucers in an instant.
Matthias barreled straight toward the sofa and pulled me tightly into his arms without hesitation.
Startled, he immediately looked me over with a pale face, asking if I was okay.
“N-No, there—! Huh?!”
Meanwhile, Sophia came running in a moment later, out of breath, and gasped the instant she saw the two of us.
A moment later, after I finally managed to steady my ragged breathing, I lifted my head.
Seeing Sophia standing there stiffly in shock, I shot a sideways glance at the man who was still holding me.
“Explain. Right now.”
“…Yes.”
Contrary to what I had expected, the reason Matthias had rushed into the sitting room was fairly ordinary.
“You came because you were worried about me?”
“…Yeah.”
Matthias muttered as his broad shoulders slumped. Perhaps knowing he was in the wrong, he added a small apology.
But if he came because he was worried about me, what was I supposed to say to that?
“Still, no one else saw you, right?”
At my question, Sophia cleared her throat awkwardly.
“The moment he heard that Lord Fersher had left, he came out right away. The other servants had gone to call the coachman, so thankfully there was no one around.”
I nodded at her explanation. That was enough. As long as we weren’t caught, it didn’t really matter how we moved around.
“But be careful for a while. Xavier might be keeping an eye on me.”
“Want me to kill him?”
…No, why did that escalate so fast?
“N-No, that’s not what I mean. If things go wrong, you could end up in danger.”
At that, Matthias asked back with a genuinely startled expression.
“Me?”
“Yes. You.”
Matthias was someone who had escaped from his former slave trader.
If Xavier found out that he was here while he himself was still freely walking around—what would happen?
He was already looking for Matthias. He would surely use force if necessary to tear him away from me.
Then things would proceed just like in the original story. He would continue to be exploited according to Xavier’s plans, only to be discarded in the end.
‘That can’t happen.’
A chill ran through my body, making me shudder. No matter what it took, I had to stop that.
“You just need to be careful until he gets caught.”
“When will that be?”
“Hmm—after about seven nights of sleep?”
Seven nights.
Thinking that was far too long, Matthias frowned.
But perhaps he also thought it would be wrong to make things difficult for me. Before long, he reluctantly nodded in agreement.
I smiled with satisfaction at the sight of Matthias obediently following my words and reached out to stroke his still-messy hair.
“Good boy.”
“—!”
The pupils that were fixed squarely on me slowly widened.
His cheeks, being praised for the first time in his life, flushed faintly.
Meanwhile, having grown fond of patting his head, I let out a small chuckle.
‘So cute.’
Looking at him like this, he really was like a big puppy… though maybe that was a bit rude?
Still, watching him quietly accept my touch, he was honestly kind of adorable.
After stroking his hair for a while, I turned my gaze to Sophia standing across from us.
“Sophia, later could you bring me some stationery and a seal…?”
“……”
“…What’s wrong?”
“Y-Yes? Ah, no, Miss! I’m sorry. What did you say?”
“I said to bring me some stationery and a seal.”
It looked like I’d need to write a letter to Lady Odilon now.
“But what were you thinking about? You were spacing out.”
“Ah, well—it’s nothing in particular.”
Sophia hesitated for a moment, then finally spoke.
“It’s just… it’s been a long time since I’ve seen you treat someone so casually, Miss.”
“Hm.”
“I-I don’t mean anything by it! I was just glad to see that you seem relaxed for the first time in a while—”
“I know.”
I lifted the corner of my mouth, finding Sophia’s hurried explanation endearing.
“I understand what you mean, so you don’t have to explain it so much.”
A year ago, the very first thing I did after realizing I’d possessed this body was gather information. And that information included this body—‘Aria Renesty’ herself.
‘They said she was usually very shy and introverted.’
That was probably why Xavier treated her so lightly.
Anyway, it was said that her original personality was naturally timid. Even when she wasn’t alone, she was always tense around the maids.
So it wasn’t strange for Sophia to feel that way. After all, the owner of this body had changed.
‘Still…’
Maybe because I was certain Matthias would never harm me—
“I feel comfortable.”
His build might be overwhelming, but in his own way, he was kind of cute.
“If there’s someone bothering you, tell me. I’ll… kill them all.”
…But how am I supposed to fix that habit of his?
