TVDML 12

Chapter 12

Boom!

“W-What was that sound?!”

“No idea… Did something collapse?”

The maids sleeping on the first floor jolted awake in surprise.

With sleepy eyes, they lit their oil lamps.

It was just the break of dawn.

“We have to check it out.”

“I’m scared, though!”

“Let’s ask the knights on duty to look around.”

“Yeah… there should be guards on shift.”

The maids mustered their courage, wrapped shawls around themselves, and stepped outside.

They walked cautiously, swallowing nervously.

Fortunately, the knights on patrol had heard the noise too and were already on their way.

Thus, an early morning expedition team of four was formed to find the cause of the disturbance.

And what they discovered was…

“W-What is that?!”

“Isn’t that a wild boar?”

“A wild boar? Someone caught it—it has a stab wound on its neck!”

“Senior, this thing’s big enough to feed us all for dinner…”

“What on earth is going on?!”

“Good heavens. We need to report this to His Grace, the Duke.”

The culprit behind the chaos was none other than a wild boar dropped off by the grateful tiger.

Of course, the people of the duke’s household had no idea.

Only Baldwin…

‘Hmm.’

…let out a soft hum.

*

Since the novel didn’t go into detail about the past, even I couldn’t figure out what was going on at first.

Once a day, someone—like a mysterious Hong Gil-dong—would leave strange items in the ducal garden.

The items varied—sometimes flour, sometimes a wild boar.

Other times it was silk, or leather.

When my parents heard the news, they warned the servants not to spread any rumors.

Thankfully, they had only hired people they deemed loyal and tight-lipped, especially because of us.

Oh, and our nanny passed away a year ago from a chronic illness.

She had been a kind person…

Baldwin and I cried together when she died.

It was heartbreaking to lose someone precious, but her death also buried Baldwin’s secret deep within.

Anyway, back to the point.

“Didi.”

“Yeah?”

Baldwin tilted his head as I pulled him out into the garden.

His black hair shimmered under the early light, swaying above his sky-blue dress.

Oh my. Our little kitten is just dazzling today.

His hair had grown long over the past two years—perhaps thanks to magic—and he didn’t look like a boy at all.

Nope.

Even in the novel, it was written that—

‘He was prettier than the heroine.’

Which made all of this possible.

“Ahem.”

Focus! Stop getting distracted by his face.

“I’ve got a theory.”

I was beginning to suspect that this novel had a genie-like being that granted wishes.

A more realistic guess was that some people were still loyal to Winchester.

Mom and Dad must’ve guessed the same and kept things quiet for that reason.

If so…

I needed to explain it in a way Baldwin could understand.

As mature as he was, he was still only nine, and a child’s comprehension worked differently.

“I think there’s a fairy who grants wishes.”

“A fairy that grants wishes…?”

Baldwin looked at me with skeptical eyes.

But hey, he’s only nine.

Still young enough to believe in Santa.

I was confident he’d buy it.

“…Maybe there is.”

Baldwin nodded seriously.

See? Told you so.

“So, now we’re going to make a wish.”

“…A wish?”

“Yup!”

Honestly, I’d never made a wish before, but if someone was really listening, I hoped they’d grant this one.

I clasped my hands together.

“Didi, you do it too!”

“Me too?”

“The more sincere the wish, the more likely it is to come true.”

Exactly!

Channel your inner magical girl and pray sweetly.

“Dear fairy who grants wishes, I have a wish.”

“I have a wish.”

Baldwin echoed softly.

“I want to eat chocolate cake tomorrow.”

“…I want to eat chocolate cake.”

This was a very important wish.

Our mom strictly limited the amount of sweets Baldwin and I could eat.

But for those who’ve tried it even once, sweet chocolate is irresistible!

This was a survival issue.

In my past life, I used chocolate to get through stress.

Well, I hadn’t faced that kind of stress here yet…

Still…

“Please let us eat chocolate cake!”

I want what I want!

“…Please let us eat it.”

Perfect. That should do it.

If anyone’s out there, they should’ve heard it.

*

Chocolate cake?

The Caliburn agents guarding the walls of Lorovante tilted their heads.

“…Does the young master want chocolate cake?”

“It sounded like a girl’s voice though.”

“So what? We know for sure the young master is here. He’s about nine—of course he’d like sweets.”

“Y-You think so?”

The two agents exchanged glances and nodded.

Where’s a good place to get chocolate cake again?

When you’re on wall duty, you overhear all kinds of things.

The maids, in particular, often gossiped about delicious food sold in the city.

“I’ll go today.”

One of them stood up.

Since all Caliburn agents couldn’t stay here permanently, most were based at the main headquarters.

Lorovante was guarded in two-person shifts.

Anyway, that’s how Lila’s wish was received.

*

Tonight, I planned to stay up.

I had done this with 90% certainty.

Even in the novel, Winchester’s followers were described as extremely loyal.

Even after Winchester fell, none of the vassal families left them.

They stayed to protect the lands and preserve Winchester’s legacy.

If one of them had found Baldwin, I was sure they’d never leave him completely unattended.

I rubbed my sleepy eyes, struggling to stay awake.

“Let’s just go to bed, Lala.”

Having cake at night wasn’t something I could pull off alone.

One of us had to be on lookout while the other grabbed the chocolate cake.

We also needed forks and drinks from the kitchen.

That’s why I persuaded Baldwin to sleep in my room.

Since we occasionally did this during thunderstorms, our mom didn’t think anything of it.

“Didi, the fairies will be here soon. Just wait a bit longer.”

I insisted, eyes wide with excitement.

It felt like waiting for a late-night snack.

Baldwin sat beside me, both of us crouched under the blanket in front of the balcony door.

Just like I said, the sky was beginning to brighten.

Baldwin yawned and rested his head on my shoulder.

“…Sleepy. I think I’ve been drowsy all day.”

“Oh no… You have to stay awake. Camilla’s coming to study today.”

This was an important time for Baldwin and Camilla to grow closer.

A nap during such a key moment?

“Is it that important that Camilla comes?”

“Of course!”

Especially for you!

You’re the male lead, and Camilla’s the female lead.

If I mess things up and wedge myself between the two, I’d end up dying a dog’s death.

And I hated the idea of taking someone else’s place.

Baldwin and Ains, the two male leads, were supposed to fall in love with the heroine, Camilla.

I didn’t want to destroy their happiness—I wanted to help and protect it.

I didn’t want to be some foreign object stuck between other people, like in my past life.

My adoptive mother always said—

“You stole everything my children were supposed to have. A girl like you is nothing but a thief.”

So Baldwin’s side belonged to Camilla. I didn’t want to steal that.

I just wanted to live Lila’s life—the one given to me.

Looking back, Lila had so much, but didn’t realize it. She was foolish and coveted what wasn’t hers.

Just like I had been in my previous life.

But now, as Lila, I wanted to stray from the original story and find my own happiness.

…Ah, come to think of it.

I did steal Lila’s life, didn’t I?

Maybe I am a thief.

Anyway… this is different.

But my words seemed to be interpreted a little differently by young Baldwin.

“…Is she more important than me?”

“Huh?”

What did this cute kitten just say?

“Is Camilla more important than me?”

Hold up.

Before answering this, I really had to think deeply.

If I had to choose between Camilla and Baldwin…

If we were just talking about emotions, then of course Baldwin was more important.

We had shared nine years together.

Besides, I’d always liked Baldwin best out of the two sub-male leads in the original.

Even if Baldwin didn’t know.

And also—I’m a sucker for a pretty face.

If I didn’t fall for Baldwin’s looks, that would be the real shocker.