Episode 5. First Encounter
“What did you ask me to call you?”
Eric, who had just finished a big job, wiggled his eyebrows in his gown, his hair disheveled. A tutor, out of the blue?
“There’s so much to memorize.”
Rose sighed, wondering if she'd done something wrong. The butler had arranged for her to start class the very next day, having said she wanted to get to class as soon as possible. The first class was so difficult... A sense of pressure crept over her, as if she were studying for the CSAT all over again.
“So, our family fell into ruin because they stood in the wrong line...”
Rose's family, the Counts of Serbiat, were pushed out of the imperial power struggle. A thorn in the side of the nobles, the Rose family barely managed to escape with their lives, but their lands were taken away, and they were on the path to ruin. It's said that their survival was possible only thanks to the support of the Crown Prince, whom her parents supported.
“You must have thought I was really pathetic…?”
What could he possibly have thought of me, who knew nothing about her family?
'The former Emperor and his wife passed away early due to illness, and the young Crown Prince succeeded to the throne after his uncle.'
Rose remembered what her teacher had said. He had taught her with an open political ideology.
"It's a good thing. The young Crown Prince was a troublemaker in the royal family, nothing more, nothing less. He was a cruel man with a heartless and ruthless nature, and everyone avoided him. Well, Madam won't necessarily run into him, but please be careful. You absolutely must not get involved with him."
The teacher urged Rose so earnestly that her mouth was about to spit. "Grand Duke Artaeum." The former Crown Prince, now the Grand Duke. Rose marked the name Grand Duke Artaeum with a large X and muttered.
“Yeah. It can’t hurt to be careful.”
Although he was a minor character, she remembered him clearly. Even in the novel, he wasn't portrayed in a particularly favorable light. He wielded power arbitrarily and was ultimately executed by the imperialists, wasn't he? The execution scene was depicted so brutally that she remembered it clearly. How could she forget such a cruel punishment, unimaginable in the original world?
“Ugh... It just came to mind again.”
Rose shook her head, horrified by the scene, which was so vividly depicted that it felt as if she were actually seeing it. Then, she blacked out the name of the Grand Duke of Artaeum, completely obscuring it. At the time, Rose had no idea that she would soon meet the person she had desperately sought to avoid.
And it was the heroine, Rose, who went there first despite her illness.
“I...ma’am?”
As Rose stood there blankly, the maid cautiously called out to her.
“...Do I really have to go?”
"Yes?"
The maid opened her eyes wide and asked back, as if she had heard Rose mutter something with a sigh.
"This is the auction you've been waiting for days. If you can get 'Luna's Tears,' the Count will be so happy! His love for Madam will blossom."
When Rose looked at the maid without saying anything, the maid smiled awkwardly and muttered.
“Haha... That doesn’t mean the Count doesn’t love Madam now...”
"This isn't the kind of attitude one should have toward someone they love," Rose thought to herself, her voice trailing off as she watched the maid carefully observe her. The maid smiled awkwardly, forcibly shoved Rose's back, and finally forced her out of the room.
'This is your chance to change the Count's mind...!'
The maid clenched her fists as if she had some great mission, and pointed at the man who was standing there with an inexperienced look.
“Sir Seren will be with you as an escort.”
“My name is Seren. Madam!”
He greeted Rose with a rather nervous expression. He was a young-looking man, perhaps just over twenty years old.
“Please take care of me.”
Seren's face flushed as Rose greeted him. Seren escorted Rose into the carriage. Rose gazed out the window of the moving carriage, lost in thought.
“What should I buy...”
I went to the auction, but I couldn't come back empty-handed... and I didn't feel like buying a fake either.
Seren's voice, a pensive one, called out to Rose, telling her not to go that way, but Rose seemed oblivious to him. She was simply wondering why the area around her was so empty.
'Isn't it true that seats are assigned on a first-come, first-served basis?'
Rose, who walked over with her head tilted, tapped the shoulder of the man sitting alone.
“Excuse me, but this seat is for me.”
Rose said, showing the man her license plate. The man sitting in Rose's seat frowned and turned his head. He stared intently at Rose with his piercing blue eyes.
“What did you ask me to call you?”
Eric, who had just finished a big job, wiggled his eyebrows in his gown, his hair disheveled. A tutor, out of the blue?
When he told her to stay put and do something, she'd done nothing. Eric felt strangely unfamiliar with Rose. The woman he'd known only for himself had rejected him, and she no longer looked at him with the same longing gaze she always had. But he didn't pay much attention to Rose's changes. "Rose" wasn't a significant part of him. In short, Eric didn't care what Rose did.
“Let her do whatever I want.”
Eric gestured toward the butler, seemingly annoyed. At Eric's words, the butler sighed in relief, hurriedly pulled out some papers, and handed them to Eric.
"Then what kind of teacher should I call you? I've made a rough list..."
“Do as you wish. Don’t ask me anything.”
“Ah... I understand.”
The butler neatly organized the papers he'd laid out and bowed to Eric. Eric didn't even look at him, but gestured for him to leave quickly. The reason Eric was so eager to get him out so quickly was probably because of the woman sleeping next to him.
'That kid...Doana?'
The butler momentarily doubted his eyes. Doana was lying in Eric's bedroom. And naked at that.
“What are you looking at?”
The butler flinched in embarrassment at Eric's words. He was embarrassed that he had so obviously seen the woman. Eric gently covered Doana's sleeping body with a white sheet and spoke nervously.
“I don’t have any hobbies about sharing my stuff.”
“Wh, what are you talking about? There’s a misunderstanding.”
The butler hurried out of Eric's room, unable to hide his flushed face.
“Hmm... Eric?”
Doana, perhaps awakened by the sound of their voices, rubbed her eyes and called out to Eric. Eric grabbed Doana's wrist, her eyes still barely open, and pulled her toward him.
“What? Is it still not enough?”
Doana flirted and entered Eric's arms.
“That was good. You fell asleep like you were fainting.”
Doana almost burst out laughing at Eric's confident voice.
'They say there's no such thing as a perfect person...'
In fact, Doana was incredibly disappointed. For a romantic lead, he was so unsatisfactory at night. But since Eric was her lifeline, Doana had to please him.
“It was so good.”
She murmured something she didn't mean, and snuggled deeper into Eric's embrace. In truth, she'd simply fallen asleep from sheer boredom, but how could he have mistaken it like this?
“Come here.”
He hugged Doana once more. Doana unleashed her honed acting skills. She looked happier than anyone else, and she praised Eric.
“Let her do whatever I want.”
Eric gestured toward the butler, seemingly annoyed. At Eric's words, the butler sighed in relief, hurriedly pulled out some papers, and handed them to Eric.
"Then what kind of teacher should I call you? I've made a rough list..."
“Do as you wish. Don’t ask me anything.”
“Ah... I understand.”
The butler neatly organized the papers he'd laid out and bowed to Eric. Eric didn't even look at him, but gestured for him to leave quickly. The reason Eric was so eager to get him out so quickly was probably because of the woman sleeping next to him.
'That kid...Doana?'
The butler momentarily doubted his eyes. Doana was lying in Eric's bedroom. And naked at that.
“What are you looking at?”
The butler flinched in embarrassment at Eric's words. He was embarrassed that he had so obviously seen the woman. Eric gently covered Doana's sleeping body with a white sheet and spoke nervously.
“I don’t have any hobbies about sharing my stuff.”
“Wh, what are you talking about? There’s a misunderstanding.”
The butler hurried out of Eric's room, unable to hide his flushed face.
“Hmm... Eric?”
Doana, perhaps awakened by the sound of their voices, rubbed her eyes and called out to Eric. Eric grabbed Doana's wrist, her eyes still barely open, and pulled her toward him.
“What? Is it still not enough?”
Doana flirted and entered Eric's arms.
“That was good. You fell asleep like you were fainting.”
Doana almost burst out laughing at Eric's confident voice.
'They say there's no such thing as a perfect person...'
In fact, Doana was incredibly disappointed. For a romantic lead, he was so unsatisfactory at night. But since Eric was her lifeline, Doana had to please him.
“It was so good.”
She murmured something she didn't mean, and snuggled deeper into Eric's embrace. In truth, she'd simply fallen asleep from sheer boredom, but how could he have mistaken it like this?
“Come here.”
He hugged Doana once more. Doana unleashed her honed acting skills. She looked happier than anyone else, and she praised Eric.
***
“There’s so much to memorize.”
Rose sighed, wondering if she'd done something wrong. The butler had arranged for her to start class the very next day, having said she wanted to get to class as soon as possible. The first class was so difficult... A sense of pressure crept over her, as if she were studying for the CSAT all over again.
“So, our family fell into ruin because they stood in the wrong line...”
Rose's family, the Counts of Serbiat, were pushed out of the imperial power struggle. A thorn in the side of the nobles, the Rose family barely managed to escape with their lives, but their lands were taken away, and they were on the path to ruin. It's said that their survival was possible only thanks to the support of the Crown Prince, whom her parents supported.
“You must have thought I was really pathetic…?”
What could he possibly have thought of me, who knew nothing about her family?
Rose's face flushed brightly. Truthfully, the tutor wasn't even surprised to see Rose's lack of knowledge. He figured it was only natural for a woman who had fallen in love with and married the man who had ruined her family to know nothing. Rose tapped her cheek and refocused. She'd appeared dazed during the first lesson, but she didn't want to give off the same impression in the second.
'The former Emperor and his wife passed away early due to illness, and the young Crown Prince succeeded to the throne after his uncle.'
Rose remembered what her teacher had said. He had taught her with an open political ideology.
"It's a good thing. The young Crown Prince was a troublemaker in the royal family, nothing more, nothing less. He was a cruel man with a heartless and ruthless nature, and everyone avoided him. Well, Madam won't necessarily run into him, but please be careful. You absolutely must not get involved with him."
The teacher urged Rose so earnestly that her mouth was about to spit. "Grand Duke Artaeum." The former Crown Prince, now the Grand Duke. Rose marked the name Grand Duke Artaeum with a large X and muttered.
“Yeah. It can’t hurt to be careful.”
Although he was a minor character, she remembered him clearly. Even in the novel, he wasn't portrayed in a particularly favorable light. He wielded power arbitrarily and was ultimately executed by the imperialists, wasn't he? The execution scene was depicted so brutally that she remembered it clearly. How could she forget such a cruel punishment, unimaginable in the original world?
“Ugh... It just came to mind again.”
Rose shook her head, horrified by the scene, which was so vividly depicted that it felt as if she were actually seeing it. Then, she blacked out the name of the Grand Duke of Artaeum, completely obscuring it. At the time, Rose had no idea that she would soon meet the person she had desperately sought to avoid.
Rose groaned for a long time, reciting over and over what the teacher had told her. After some time, Rose, who had been sitting at her desk without moving, finally put down her fountain pen. Looking out the window, she saw that the sun was already slowly setting.
“It hurts.”
She shifted her heavy body here and there, then slowly rose from her seat. Then she walked slowly toward the terrace. Rose draped her arms over the railing, admiring the crimson sky. It had been so long since she'd looked up at the sky like this.
“It hurts.”
She shifted her heavy body here and there, then slowly rose from her seat. Then she walked slowly toward the terrace. Rose draped her arms over the railing, admiring the crimson sky. It had been so long since she'd looked up at the sky like this.
A cool breeze blew pleasantly over her body. Rose grabbed her fluttering hair and slowly braided it. It was a sloppy job. In her previous life, Rose had always kept her hair short. Long hair took longer to dry, and she didn't have the confidence to maintain it every day.
“Hmm... It’s harder than it looks.”
When the maid did her hair, she thought it would be easy, as she could do it in an instant. Rose played with her hair and gave an awkward laugh. Then, someone knocked on Rose's door.
“Madam, I have prepared a carriage.”
A maid came into Rose's room.
"Carriage?"
“Yes. You asked me to have a carriage ready at nine o’clock, as you had to go see the Count’s present the other day.”
“Ah... Did I do that?”
Rose smiled awkwardly and spoke to the maid. That was because Rose, possessed, had never asked a maid to do something like that. Perhaps the heroine had asked the maid.
'I guess the rumors that she suffered from short-term memory loss due to the shock are true...'
The maid looked at Rose with pity in her eyes.
'Poor Countess... It seems the Count is now completely openly cheating.'
Rumors were already rife among the maids. The fact that Doana had been staying in the Count's bedroom late into the night spread like wildfire. Even Doana, who had been in charge of Rose, had been transferred to the Count's care at his request.
“I’ll help you get ready to go out.”
Before Rose could even say "Yes," the maid untied Rose's hair and expertly braided it back down. It was a stark contrast to what Rose had done. She gazed at Rose in the mirror with a satisfied expression, then adorned her hair with a fresh flower.
“You are so beautiful.”
The maid tended to Rose's hair more carefully than usual, because, as a woman herself, she felt sorry for Rose.
“But 9 PM seems too late. Are the stores still open at this hour?”
“You said you were attending the auction today.”
“...That’s right. I’ve been out of my mind lately.”
Rose gave a vague nod to the maid's words and smiled awkwardly.
“Yes. I have kept the invitation separately, ma’am.”
The maid held out a palm-sized invitation to Rose. The black invitation contained a simple description of the location, time, and auction items. The glossy paper hinted at the quality of the material. As Rose scanned the auction list, a familiar object caught her eye.
'Luna's tears...!'
Rose clung to a vague memory. Eric, a keen craftsman, had long coveted "Luna's Tears." Rose, hoping to score points with Eric, had managed to obtain information and won the auction. Unfortunately, however, she failed to score points with Eric.
'Because...it turned out to be a fake.'
Eric sent "Luna's Tears" as a gift to the Empress, but it was discovered to be a fake. Eric flew into a rage, saying he couldn't show his face because of Rose. She clung to his trouser leg as an apology, only to tumble down the stairs.
‘... That night too, Rose spent the night with Eric without any speed.’
“Hmm... It’s harder than it looks.”
When the maid did her hair, she thought it would be easy, as she could do it in an instant. Rose played with her hair and gave an awkward laugh. Then, someone knocked on Rose's door.
“Madam, I have prepared a carriage.”
A maid came into Rose's room.
"Carriage?"
“Yes. You asked me to have a carriage ready at nine o’clock, as you had to go see the Count’s present the other day.”
“Ah... Did I do that?”
Rose smiled awkwardly and spoke to the maid. That was because Rose, possessed, had never asked a maid to do something like that. Perhaps the heroine had asked the maid.
'I guess the rumors that she suffered from short-term memory loss due to the shock are true...'
The maid looked at Rose with pity in her eyes.
'Poor Countess... It seems the Count is now completely openly cheating.'
Rumors were already rife among the maids. The fact that Doana had been staying in the Count's bedroom late into the night spread like wildfire. Even Doana, who had been in charge of Rose, had been transferred to the Count's care at his request.
“I’ll help you get ready to go out.”
Before Rose could even say "Yes," the maid untied Rose's hair and expertly braided it back down. It was a stark contrast to what Rose had done. She gazed at Rose in the mirror with a satisfied expression, then adorned her hair with a fresh flower.
“You are so beautiful.”
The maid tended to Rose's hair more carefully than usual, because, as a woman herself, she felt sorry for Rose.
“But 9 PM seems too late. Are the stores still open at this hour?”
“You said you were attending the auction today.”
“...That’s right. I’ve been out of my mind lately.”
Rose gave a vague nod to the maid's words and smiled awkwardly.
“Yes. I have kept the invitation separately, ma’am.”
The maid held out a palm-sized invitation to Rose. The black invitation contained a simple description of the location, time, and auction items. The glossy paper hinted at the quality of the material. As Rose scanned the auction list, a familiar object caught her eye.
'Luna's tears...!'
Rose clung to a vague memory. Eric, a keen craftsman, had long coveted "Luna's Tears." Rose, hoping to score points with Eric, had managed to obtain information and won the auction. Unfortunately, however, she failed to score points with Eric.
'Because...it turned out to be a fake.'
Eric sent "Luna's Tears" as a gift to the Empress, but it was discovered to be a fake. Eric flew into a rage, saying he couldn't show his face because of Rose. She clung to his trouser leg as an apology, only to tumble down the stairs.
‘... That night too, Rose spent the night with Eric without any speed.’
And it was the heroine, Rose, who went there first despite her illness.
“I...ma’am?”
As Rose stood there blankly, the maid cautiously called out to her.
“...Do I really have to go?”
"Yes?"
The maid opened her eyes wide and asked back, as if she had heard Rose mutter something with a sigh.
"This is the auction you've been waiting for days. If you can get 'Luna's Tears,' the Count will be so happy! His love for Madam will blossom."
When Rose looked at the maid without saying anything, the maid smiled awkwardly and muttered.
“Haha... That doesn’t mean the Count doesn’t love Madam now...”
"This isn't the kind of attitude one should have toward someone they love," Rose thought to herself, her voice trailing off as she watched the maid carefully observe her. The maid smiled awkwardly, forcibly shoved Rose's back, and finally forced her out of the room.
'This is your chance to change the Count's mind...!'
The maid clenched her fists as if she had some great mission, and pointed at the man who was standing there with an inexperienced look.
“Sir Seren will be with you as an escort.”
“My name is Seren. Madam!”
He greeted Rose with a rather nervous expression. He was a young-looking man, perhaps just over twenty years old.
“Please take care of me.”
Seren's face flushed as Rose greeted him. Seren escorted Rose into the carriage. Rose gazed out the window of the moving carriage, lost in thought.
“What should I buy...”
I went to the auction, but I couldn't come back empty-handed... and I didn't feel like buying a fake either.
While she was pondering this, the speeding carriage slowed to a halt. The coachman's voice announced his arrival from outside, and Seren opened the carriage door and extended a hand toward Rose.
“We have arrived, ma’am.”
Rose took Seren's hand and slowly descended the carriage steps. Rose looked around the auction house. It didn't seem like a particularly secretive auction. Rose showed the invitation to the man standing at the entrance, and he handed her a round number plate. The number on it was '38.'
'Is that a seat number?'
Rose, who entered the auction house, started looking around for her seat.
'Huh? Someone's already sitting there.'
Wasn't there another man sitting in the seat marked 'Number 38'? Rose slowly approached him.
“Oh, ma’am? Why are you going that way?”
“We have arrived, ma’am.”
Rose took Seren's hand and slowly descended the carriage steps. Rose looked around the auction house. It didn't seem like a particularly secretive auction. Rose showed the invitation to the man standing at the entrance, and he handed her a round number plate. The number on it was '38.'
'Is that a seat number?'
Rose, who entered the auction house, started looking around for her seat.
'Huh? Someone's already sitting there.'
Wasn't there another man sitting in the seat marked 'Number 38'? Rose slowly approached him.
“Oh, ma’am? Why are you going that way?”
Seren's voice, a pensive one, called out to Rose, telling her not to go that way, but Rose seemed oblivious to him. She was simply wondering why the area around her was so empty.
'Isn't it true that seats are assigned on a first-come, first-served basis?'
Rose, who walked over with her head tilted, tapped the shoulder of the man sitting alone.
“Excuse me, but this seat is for me.”
Rose said, showing the man her license plate. The man sitting in Rose's seat frowned and turned his head. He stared intently at Rose with his piercing blue eyes.
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