Masera frowned as he looked down at Cynthia, who had fainted yet again.
"Annoying human."
Getting up from his seat, he tossed a blanket over Cynthia's body, then simply left.
* * *
After the engagement ceremony, it took me a full two days to finally come back to my senses.
The dream of my past life had been so absurdly vivid that even now, the rising and falling wails of sirens and the blaring air raid announcements still seemed to buzz right in my ears.
But this was a place where the war had already ended. This life was set to a relatively easy difficulty!
I snapped my eyes open with determination.
"Eek."
With a startled little gasp, Eugene, who'd been peering right down at me, scrambled away like a cat that had just shattered a flowerpot.
I blinked up at the ceiling.
"Are you awake? I should have remembered how fragile you are and protected you better. As someone who serves you, My Lady, I have no excuse. I'm truly sorry."
It must have been Dahlia who'd been nursing me all this time, because she apologized while pressing a cold wet cloth to my forehead.
I gave her a bright smile.
"There's nothing to apologize for. I'm not that weak. Even if I seem like one of those fainting goats that just collapse at loud noises."
"Fainting goats? Are those real?"
"Yup. I've even heard that some people use them as decoys for wolves so that sheep can escape."
Through the slightly open door, I could see Eugene peeking in. His face looked ridiculously intrigued by my story. But the moment our eyes met, he darted off again.
Dahlia began speaking,
"Since you're awake, someone has probably already informed Brigadier General Masera, so he should be here soon."
"Huh, no way. He's your classic workaholic dad type who obviously values his job more than his family…"
The door creaked open, and I immediately shut my mouth the second a tall man stepped inside.
It was Masera, dressed in a combat uniform, like he'd just come straight from training.
He got here this fast? I was planning to get in a little trash talk while I could—guess it's true what they say, talk about the devil and he really does show up.
Masera strode over, looked down at me, then gave a tiny nod with that same blank expression.
"Looks like you're finally done being unconscious."
"That combat uniform looks great on you. I hope you weren't worried abo—"
"No."
He cut me off firmly, then spun right around and left before I could even get any small talk started.
That man… seriously has zero warmth.
"Brigadier General Masera must have been worried. He's just… not someone who's good at showing it…"
Dahlia desperately tried to sugarcoat things.
But please. That was so obviously him just putting on a show so he could pat himself on the back.
From what I roughly remembered of the novel, the male lead only learned about the fake bride's real identity after he'd gotten completely ensnared by her.
That's also why he so desperately pretended not to notice the female lead's lies.
How was I supposed to drag out a genuine, burning love from that glacial man? Just thinking about the long road ahead of me made me unbelievably hungry.
"Dahlia, I'm starving."
"Of course you are. I'll bring you some porridge."
"I want a grand feast."
"But with your stomach empty like this, it would be too harsh on you."
"Then bring me a grand feast with some porridge, that'll be too harsh on me…"
I gave her my saddest puppy eyes, but Dahlia was merciless.
In the end, I had to choke down bland, tasteless gruel.
* * *
Masera walked back toward the training grounds, replaying what had happened that day in his head.
"The air raid siren still hasn't been lifted yet."
"Don't leave me here all alone, please."
Cynthia had lived in the rural outskirts in order to stay hidden from the revolutionary army, it was a place almost entirely untouched by the war.
There's no way she'd ever have heard an actual 'air raid warning' before.
'She only ever read about war in the newspaper, so why is she acting like she's lived through it herself?'
"Brigadier General. Are most of the people working here former military?"
"And why do you want to know that?"
"So I can understand them better and get along. I mean, they're probably still carrying trauma from the war…"
"Don't bother trying."
"Pardon?"
"How could someone who's lived so comfortably, never knowing war, possibly understand?"
Even then, she'd put on that same breezy act like it was nothing, but there'd been a trace of bitterness there. Almost as if she was hiding a deep wound.
'So which side of her is the real one?'
Masera roughly raked a hand through his platinum hair in irritation.
Just then, a tiny fern-like hand tugged at his sleeve.
"Uncle."
It was Eugene.
Eugene was looking up at him with strangely worried eyes.
"What is it?"
"Do you get whipped if you do something wrong around nobles?"
"No. Who told you something like that?"
"One of Cynthia's maids, Rose."
Rose was a maid from House Queensguard who'd come with Cynthia.
Masera had already seen how things went down at the engagement ceremony, and he had a pretty good sense of that fox Count Queensguard's intentions—so he was just observing for now.
"Have you done something wrong to someone?"
Eugene fidgeted with his little fingers, hesitating, then finally confessed what he'd done.
"I gave Big Sis Cynthia a frog that was hibernating for the winter. I wanted to startle her. But she didn't even flinch—she just said thank you. Even said she'd take good care of it. Then she told me since frogs have to sleep when it's cold, we wouldn't meet it again until spring."
Masera suddenly recalled the glass bowl sitting on the windowsill in her room.
It had been decorated with pinecones and dried leaves, with a bizarre little tag on it that said 'Froggie's Bedroom.'
'So that's what that was. A frog house.'
"Even after hearing all that, I still can't think of a single reason you should be whipped. Did someone hit you?"
Masera's eyes turned icy. Eugene had looked scared from the very start.
"Actually… after dinner last night, when it was time to light the lamps…"
It seemed hard for Eugene to even talk about the shocking thing he'd seen. He struggled for words.
"One of the maids who came with Big Sis Cynthia, she hit Mary and Ginny. Said it was because they didn't clean the tub right. Said Big Sis ordered her to do it."
Mary and Ginny were still just young apprentice servants.
As Eugene spoke, Masera's eyes gradually narrowed.
* * *
Thanks to Dahlia's harsh food restrictions, I was stuck in the depths of gnawing hunger. I was so hungry, I couldn't even sleep.
"There were a lot of war orphans who ended up sick because they ate rich food on empty stomachs. I experienced it myself."
Dahlia spoke with a sorrowful look as she handed me yet another bowl of thin rice porridge.
That shut down any stubbornness I might've had. But by now, it felt like I'd moved past the 'empty stomach' stage.
So in the end, I quietly, sneakily slipped out of my room. I was planning to head to the kitchen and snag just a little something to eat.
"Huh? The kitchen staff should've clocked out ages ago."
I blinked wide-eyed when I saw light spilling out from the kitchen.
Just as I was cautiously approaching, I heard someone inside scolding in a harsh voice.
Jeez, was the chef here a real crank? Must be, if he was chewing someone out this late.
"Are you planning to upset Lady Cynthia?!"
"But… that would mess up the rations…"
Smack-!
That was definitely the sound of someone getting hit. Okay, this was way beyond a simple scolding.
"Upset me, how?"
I strode straight into the kitchen and asked.
What I saw was Rose holding a switch, and a bunch of young apprentice servants standing there on the verge of tears.
"Ah, My Lady. I-I'm sorry."
The kids, who looked maybe around thirteen or fourteen at most, immediately started pleading the moment they saw me.
"Rose, what on earth is going on?"
Back when I'd worked as a maid, it wasn't uncommon to see violence disguised as 'training' for the staff.
But that was usually under direct supervision of the master of the house—there was absolutely no way you could punish other servants without explicit permission.
"I never told you to lay a hand on the servants."
"No, My Lady. Of course not."
At my words, Rose bowed her head in this prim, submissive way.
"My Lady is truly gracious and magnanimous, and as she is not the mistress of the house yet, she has no such authority to do so. It would also be difficult if your future husband, the Brigadier General, ended up disliking you because of it."
She sounded exactly like someone trying to imply I'd given the orders and was just pretending otherwise.
"You did this on purpose, didn't you?"
Trying to paint me as the villain here in the residence.
That way, when I ended up dead later, nobody would bother looking into it.
I was already racking my brain over how to get rid of the spies who held my weakness—this just made it even clearer.
Rose lowered her switch and said,
"My Lady, shall I stop the punishment here?"
"Why do you keep talking like I ordered you to do this?"
"Oh, is that so? I'm sorry."
Right then, just as Rose curled her lips in a nasty smile, I suddenly felt a chill run down my spine.
When I turned around, there was Masera standing there with a frigid look on his face.
"Abuse of servants within government quarters is strictly prohibited."
At Masera's chilly voice, a shiver ran down my spine for no good reason.
'Typical regretful male lead. Doesn't even bother to hear the whole story and just jumps to conclusions based on what's right in front of him.'
Falling into the classic cliché of being unfairly misunderstood by the male lead, I let out a sigh.
From where he was standing, I probably looked exactly like the evil hypocrite who acts sweet on the surface and then beats her servants behind closed doors.
Still, I decided I might as well explain the truth.
"I never ordered anyone to be beaten. I was hungry, came to the kitchen, and walked in on this—I was trying to stop it."
Regretful male lead trait number two. Doesn't believe a word I say.
Sure enough, Masera just kept staring at me with those cold, frozen eyes.
It was about time for him to unleash a barrage of sharp remarks about me.
Probably things like, 'You're truly awful,' 'You somehow still manage to disappoint when I didn't expect anything,' or 'With your lies and violence, you're a disgrace to humanity.'
But even if he suspected me now, there was nothing I could do. I'd just have to prove everything later, get Rose kicked out, and wipe that smug look off Masera's face.
"My Lady is absolutely not that sort of person. Please punish me instead."
Rose spoke up with this pitiful look, like she was nobly taking the fall for the noble she served.
Masera looked back and forth between Rose and me, then nodded.
"Alright."
That unexpected response put matching question marks on both my face and Rose's.
Masera added,
"I'll have you brought before a military tribunal."
It was beyond unexpected—it was downright shocking. Rose blurted out, eyes wide.
"Wh-what? You're saying you're apply military law?"
"Once you're inside these quarters, you're under military jurisdiction."
Maybe she'd thought this would just be treated as some minor servant matter and earn her a light slap on the wrist, because Rose's face went white as a sheet.
"You lot may leave."
At a small tilt of Masera's head, the young apprentice servants bowed low, sniffling.
Word must've spread from someone tending the lamps, because before I knew it, the other servants were crowding outside the kitchen. Their eyes on me were as sharp as needles.
"I mean, I always found Rose irritating, but it's still kind of sad seeing her take the fall for her master."
"So Lady Cynthia was actually the one behind everything after all?"
I heard someone whisper.
I immediately turned my head and gave them a warm, sweet smile.
"Everyone. I know you probably don't have the best impression of me, but whispering behind my back before there is even any clarity on the matter—that's a form of violence, too. If you're curious, why not come ask me openly and fairly?"
A few of the servants quickly looked away, like they hadn't expected me to push back so directly.
Masera stood there with his arms crossed, silently staring down at Rose.
Just meeting his harsh gaze made me feel like I'd confess secrets I didn't even have.
"I-I only did it under my lady's orders…"
Even though it was the dead of winter, sweat was dripping down Rose's face as she stammered.
Masera asked,
"So last night, you beat the apprentice servants because they didn't clean the tub properly?"
"That…"
Maybe she realized she'd be punished either way, because Rose finally opened her mouth.
But before she could throw me under the bus, I cut in fast.
"I was on death's door at that time. Not exactly in a position to be giving orders."
"That's a bit of an exaggeration, but yes—I was under the same impression."
Masera only half-agreed, but at least he acknowledged it.
Right then, Rose, her face ghostly pale, started sputtering excuses.
"Well, the thing is, My Lady did wake up in the middle of all that…"
"Funny. Because this is exactly what Eugene told me: 'I visited every day, but Big Sis Cynthia was always asleep. So she hadn't bathed up until today.'"
Masera's words somehow felt like he was publicly executing me on the spot.
At the same time, the servants standing near me slowly inched away.
I mean—I'd scrubbed down thoroughly the moment I woke up! This was so unfair.
But that wasn't the important thing right now.
"I heard from Dahlia, who's been nursing me this whole time, that you never once came into my room. So how would you know whether my tub was clean or not? And just how exactly did you hear these so-called orders from me?"
I stepped up close to Rose and asked in a calm tone.
She floundered, mouth opening and closing with nothing to say.
Not giving her any chance to recover, I went straight for the kill.
"And also—you've been threatening the apprentice servants under my name to sneak away ingredients from the kitchen, haven't you? Planning to pin it all on them if you ever got caught."
Well, more likely she was planning to pin it all on me.
I'd been saving that as future ammo to drive her out, but thanks to Masera not behaving exactly like a typical regretful male lead, I got to use it right now.
"What? My Lady! Even if you were just going to use me up and toss me aside, how could you slap such a terrible false charge on me—!"
I breezily ignored Rose's screeching.
"Brigadier General Masera, would it be alright if I personally checked the purchase records for food supplies to this residence?"
Masera nodded without hesitation, readily agreeing to my request.
What was his deal? I mean, I appreciated it, but still—this was gonna take some getting used to.
* * *
Thanks to my professional experience in kitchen work, I could tell that while the paperwork showed no discrepancies, there was definitely a difference in the actual inventory.
So she'd been pretty meticulous, huh.
"Rose. You might fool everyone else, but you can't fool me. You've been skimming ingredients to sell on the side, haven't you?"
Rose clenched her fists tight and glared daggers at me.
"My Lady."
She still had that look in her eyes like she was somehow the one in control. Stepping close, she leaned in and whispered in this dark, sinister voice.
"You're staking your life on this, aren't you? Considering you're just a fake."
"Yeah. I am."
It wouldn't be long before they tried to kill me on Count Queensguard's orders anyway. I'd been racking my brain over how to handle it, so thank goodness Masera stepped in.
I cast a leisurely smile at Rose, then glanced at Masera standing a little ways off, along with the aide and the steward who were cross-checking the records.
"Go ahead. Tell them I'm a fake. You're already a proven liar and a serious criminal who stole military supplies."
This wasn't just any noble estate—it was a military facility.
Embezzling military provisions could count as treason, colluding with the enemy, which was punishable by death.
"Your fatal mistake was getting caught before the marriage. The Count and Brigadier General Masera have their eyes set on the wedding as their top priority—they'll protect me. Meanwhile, you'll end up shouldering all the charges and getting executed."
Apparently she hadn't thought it could go that far, because Rose went pale as a ghost.
"E-executed? How do you even know that?"
"Didn't you sign a confidentiality agreement and get the security briefing when you came here? Guess you didn't pay much attention."
I shrugged my shoulders and lowered my voice.
"Not that it matters. Even if you'd completed your little mission, you wouldn't have gotten any reward. You'd just be killed off too. That's how Count Queensguard operates."
Rose's face twisted more and more, panic creeping in as she finally grasped the danger she was in.
Then, once it all clicked, she dropped right to her knees and started begging.
"My Lady, I'm truly sorry. Please, for the sake of all the time we've spent together, forgive me. My younger siblings are starving—I had no choice!"
She sounded like she was pleading with me, but from the volume, it was obvious she was really trying to wring some pity out of Masera.
The servants who'd come with me from the Count's household didn't have family, including Rose. But I played along, pretending to buy it.
"I knew about your situation. That's why I overlooked what you did back at the County. But pulling the same stunt here? And using my name to do it?"
I gently helped Rose to her feet and spoke in a warm voice, then leaned in to whisper so only she could hear.
"Cooperate with me and I'll get you out of this. I need information on Count Queensguard."
"Y-yes. I'll keep my mouth shut and do whatever you want."
Once I heard her answer, I put my mask back on and resumed the performance.
"Rose, I don't believe you acted alone. There must be accomplices among the servants who came with us from the County, isn't that right?"
She seemed to catch on that this was her cue to frame someone else, because she nodded with a very serious look.
"Jessie and Peregrine."
"Alright."
And with that, Rose was led away by the soldiers, a tiny spark of hope still on her face.
I watched her retreating back for a moment, then turned to Masera with a downcast, apologetic expression.
"I'm sorry. This is all because I failed to properly manage my servants."
"Are you saying you want me to consider their circumstances, forgive them, and send them back to the County?"
At Masera's question, I lowered my eyes and slowly shook my head.
"No, I don't intend to forgive them. Please handle it according to the law. Jessie and Peregrine too—they're accomplices."
Honestly, that promise I whispered to Rose was nothing but false hope.
'No point getting help from a traitor.'
That was something I'd learned through two painfully intense lives.
I let my eyes slide over to Charles, who was standing at a distance watching all this unfold.
I shot him a playful little wink—basically telling him to just stick to being my docile little watcher.