CH 5

Hopefully, at Your Mercy – Chapter 5

Having been watching the duke’s residence for a while, he threw the stone with his hand and turned around, not wanting to linger.

[Please spare me. I’ll be good. I didn’t see a thing. I’m only a passerby.]

A servile sentence uttered with such confidence. Delinda’s voice echoed in his head.

A slight wrinkle appeared between the man’s forehead as if something was troubling him.

The woman was clearly a wizard, seeing that the magic amplification ring shone during their encounter. Judging by the ring’s color concentration, she has quite strong mana.

And if she was able to get past the space distortion magic that Calot’s power had created, it meant her mana exceeded Calot’s figure.

By nature, wizards are people united with pride and self-esteem.

The man knew from experience that they preferred to stick out their necks** and die rather than beg for their lives.

[ T/N: an idiom meaning you take risk by saying or doing something that other people might not like. ]

However, this wizard disguised herself as a maid and pleaded for her life. He thought it was some foolish trick.

So he kept her alive, for now. He trailed her footsteps while trying to identify her and her background.

She spent a significant amount of time wandering the alleyways as if to hide her tracks before entering the aristocratic home.

Duke Schultz’s residence, to be exact. One of the five dukes of the Bakhyan Empire.

Magic barriers are always in operation outside the royal palace and the residences of the dukes. This explains why two knights are formally guarding the entrance to the duke’s mansion.

It is possible to exit from the inside, but difficult to re-enter without approval.

However, this so-called wizard thoughtlessly launched herself at the barrier. Ignorantly using her body to try and break through the barrier instead of using magic.

‘I’ll be able to confirm her identity soon enough.’

The man disappeared into the darkness, recalling the last appearance of Delinda.

* * *

Meanwhile, Rose, the maid, arrived at someone’s quarters, shouting as she removed her cloak.

“How could you bring a fake one? What if they caught me!”

It was Lord Kabila’s room. He visited the duke’s estate to discuss the development of the Spirit Stone Mine.

“What do you mean, a ’fake’?”

“That idiot girl held it and the flame. I heard ordinary people can’t even touch a spirit stone. You had to seal the contract today… I’m very disappointed after this accident!”

“No, it was… It was real! Didn’t you see the flame successfully ignite? But if there were any variables or defects… Nonetheless, not everything is known about the Spirit Stone yet.”

Lord Kabila, the man who had earlier proposed the investment at Duke Schultz’s residence, gave an excuse with a face that showed he was being wrongly accused.

Rose sighed angrily and sat down in her chair.

When she let down her hair, the hairpin she tucked in between the strands fell out. It was Delinda’s.

‘Stupid Delinda won’t even notice that her hair accessory is missing.’

Even if she did, she’d probably think that she lost it like the fool she was.

Stupid Delinda did not deserve expensive gifts or noble status.

She was lucky to be born a duke’s daughter.

“If you wish to scam someone, do it properly. Regardless of how stupid the duke’s family is, you shouldn’t carry out a sloppy scheme.”

Lord Kabila kept his mouth shut with a face of discomfort.

It was clear that this Rose woman before him was dismissing him as a fraud. Of course, not everything he said was true, but it wasn’t entirely false either.

She was being unfair, but he put up with it. He’s about to strike a good deal with the duke, isn’t he? Until then, he intended to obey the woman who connected him to the duke.

“Very well. Next time, prepare a proper spirit stone. That’s why I’m here today. The duke cares for his daughter very much, so be sure to prepare a gift for him.”

“No, today’s stone was definitely a spirit stone. I’m certain in my mine—“

“I’m leaving.”

Rose abruptly stood up, cutting off Lord Kabila’s words.

Lord Kabila muttered behind her back. Pretending not to hear, she slammed the door shut. Soon, her surroundings turned quiet.

“There are idiots surrounding me everywhere.”

She chewed on her lip and put up her hood.

If everything had gone as planned, the contract should’ve been signed today. Had that happened, she would’ve received a prepayment from Lord Kabila and felt more at peace.

Duke Schultz was supposed to receive a referral fee if he delivered the money to Lord Kabila in return for the mansion as collateral.

Rose passed the lodging street and entered the central square. Passing the jubilant drunks and out of the marketplace, she spotted Duke Schultz’s estate in the distance.

Duke Schultz. And her own family, Baron Rocher, were only servants of the Schultz family.

‘What can’t I do better than Delinda, who was born a princess?’

Rose felt wronged. No matter how hard she struggled, it was impossible to climb higher than the Schultz family’s princess.

So if she can’t reach a higher position than Delinda, she’ll have no choice but to cut her down.

It was clear that the duke would sink even further into the abyss if his family and the family mansion—his last source of pride—collapsed.

It would bring shame to the princess if her family background disappeared.

Rose imagined Delinda grieving in a raggy dress. She felt much better.

<2. Iskan Anagroke>

Delinda wandered around the mansion.

From the east section of the 2nd floor where my room is located to the west corridor. I just walked, scouring around, and quite a bit of time has passed.

I look around the corridor to catch my breath. Beautiful masterpieces hung like old legacies.

White dust accumulated on the frames. They weren’t dirty, but they didn’t seem well-maintained either.

‘I really do think this place is going to crumble. What should I do…?’

Delinda clicked her tongue and resumed walking. As she reached the east end of the corridor, she saw a large entrance leading somewhere. She took a peek inside.

“It’s a library.”

Not interested, Delinda turned to leave, but then she spun back around. There was a bundle of papers on the desk near the door.

“Isn’t that a newspaper?!”

I scurried up to it.

“Since when do newspapers exist? Looks like it happened while I was away.”

Delinda happily picked up the bundle of papers.

Why didn’t I think of this before?

Information about this world could be fully obtained from books and newspapers.

I might be able to retrieve the memories I lost from my 1st life or learn what events happened while I was away.

With a hum, Delinda flipped open the newspaper. Yellow paper filled with letters appeared in front of her.

“What’s this?”

But soon enough, Delinda’s face began to harden with shock.

“What? Why can’t I read the letters?”

The newspaper was full of strange text. All cursive and crooked. There was not a single letter she could understand.

“Haha… I don’t know how to read… A princess that doesn’t know how to read…”

It seemed that Delinda’s “body” hadn’t learned to read. Oh, how ridiculous.

‘No way—I know she’s kind of stupid, but how on earth did the duke raise his precious daughter this way? Is beauty everything in life, or does a happy, smiling girl matter that much to you?’

Delinda wanted to cry.

The duke’s family is dying, and it won’t be long before the swindler comes back. I don’t recognize the alphabet and can’t remember the past. I tried to read something, but I couldn’t understand anything.

Even yesterday, when I went out to look for information on the spirit stone, I faced a crazy psycho who threatened my life.

“Ah. There’s so much to do.”

This time, I thought I’d be able to live a peaceful aristocratic life as a duke’s daughter… At this rate, I’ll return to reality after much suffering.

I was in a real-life crisis.

However, my appetite was fine compared to the daunting reality of this crisis. Dinner was very delicious.

Delinda ate every last bit of food on her plate.

The duke apologized for drastically cutting food costs, but the menu was full of meat. Salad was more expensive than meat because of the protein-based diet.

“Did you enjoy your meal, Princess?”

Chamberlain Philip Renschler asked affectionately.

“Yes, I ate nicely.”

Delinda eyed him with suspicion.

She feared this person might also attack her. The same way Rose did while pretending to be friendly.

But despite her concerns, his attitude remained the same. After finishing the meal, he lingered by her side and nagged her all the way back to her room.

“I had no vegetables that my lady preferred, but you should’ve eaten everything on that plate.”

“All right, Philip.” 

“And if you eat your meat in a rush, it’ll upset your stomach. Last time, you ate lamb in a hurry, and you threw up.”

“…Did I really?”

“Also, drinking excessive amounts of water is bad for your digestion, and the other day…”

With her eyes blank, Delinda pretended to listen to his nagging.

He seemed to be only slightly older than her, but his level of nagging was comparable to a grandfather’s. A grandfather who admonishes his beloved granddaughter.

He wouldn’t nag me like this unless he was simply being affectionate. Philip hurriedly closed the door, thinking I was on his side.

“Okay, Philip! Next time, I’ll make sure to chew my meat, eat my vegetables, and drink less water during meals!”

I went into my room and decided to lay on the sofa for a little, but the sun was setting.

The garden outside the window looked calm as the sun began to disappear, and the wind blew cold air. The outside world appeared unfamiliar as if I were staring at a landscape painting.

Delinda closed her eyes.

When will I return to reality?

If I do, I’ll wake up lonely in a small room again.

Curling up into a ball, Delinda felt empty inside. But she didn’t know why.

* * *

Someone screamed overhead.

“Princess! Wake up!”

“Mmm…” 

Ugh, it’s loud.

Delinda rolled over, covering her ears. But then her arm was dragged out of bed.

“Hurry and wash up. A guest will be arriving soon.”

It was Rose, the maid. Delinda struggled to wake up, rubbing her eyes and teetering over. Her body was moving frantically with Rose’s control.

“I told you you have to be up by noon!”

Rose rudely pushed Delinda into a chair and began to help her get dressed. She used a comb made of horsehair, roughly tearing through Delinda’s hair.

“Hurry and wash up. A guest will be arriving soon.”

“Who’s the guest?”

When Delinda asked, dazed, like a fool, Rose crossed her arms and answered.

“The Grand Duke, Iskan Anagroke!”

Delinda couldn’t say any words.

Iskan Anagroke.

Because the moment she heard that name, her heart sank.