Hopefully, at Your Mercy - Chapter 9
Chapter 5.2
<Arc 2. Iskan Anagrok>
Delinda wandered around the mansion.
She had walked from the east wing of the second floor, where her room was, all the way to the west corridor. A lot of time had passed without her realizing it as she strolled around, just taking in the sights.
Pausing to catch her breath, she glanced around the hallway. Beautiful paintings adorned the walls like aged relics of the past.
Dust had settled lightly on the frames, and while it wasn’t filthy, it didn’t look like the place was being well-maintained either.
‘This place really is falling apart. What am I going to do…?’
Clicking her tongue, Delinda continued walking. As she reached the end of the eastern corridor, she noticed a large entrance leading somewhere. She peeked inside.
“A library.”
Delinda was about to leave when she found nothing of interest, but then she spotted a stack of papers on a desk near the entrance and turned back.
“A newspaper!”
She scurried over to it.
“When did they start making newspapers? It must’ve happened while I was gone.”
Excited, Delinda picked up the stack of papers.
Why hadn’t she thought of this sooner?
She could gather plenty of information about this world from books and newspapers.
By carefully reading, she might be able to recall the memories from her first possession or learn about what happened during the time she was away.
Humming to herself, Delinda unfolded the newspaper. Yellowed paper filled with text appeared before her eyes.
“What is this?”
Delinda’s face froze in shock.
“What? Why can’t I read this?”
The newspaper was full of unintelligible characters. They were squiggly and strange, so not a single letter was readable.
“Haha… I can’t read… I’m the daughter of a duke, and I can’t even read…”
Apparently, Delinda’s “body” had never been taught how to read. It was unbelievable.
‘I know she’s a fool, but c’mon, really? Your Grace, how could you raise your precious daughter like this? Is a pretty face all that matters? Did you think it was enough for her to just grow up elegantly and cheerfully…?’
Delinda felt like crying.
The duke’s family was on the brink of ruin, and soon enough, that con-artist would be back. At that moment, she couldn’t even read or remember her past. She tried to read something, but there wasn’t a single thing she could understand.
Like yesterday, when she had gone out to gather information about the spirit stone, she had nearly been killed by some lunatic in an alley.
“Ugh, there’s just too much I need to do.”
She thought becoming the daughter of a duke would mean living a comfortable noble life… but now it looked like she was headed for nothing but hardship before returning to the real world.
What a real crisis this was.
Oddly enough, despite the crushing reality of this crisis, her appetite remained intact. Dinner had been absolutely delicious.
Delinda finished every last bite of food on her plate.
Though the duke had apologized for cutting down on food expenses, the menu still consisted of plenty of meat. The protein-heavy meals were due to the fact that salad was more expensive than meat.
“Did you enjoy your meal, my lady?” asked Philip Renschler, the chief steward, kindly.
“Yeah, I did.”
Delinda eyed him suspiciously.
She wondered if, like Rose, he was only pretending to be kind while secretly harboring ill will.
But despite her concerns, his demeanor remained the same. He continued to fuss over her all the way back to her room after the meal.
“I know your favorite vegetables weren’t there, but you should have finished what was served, my lady.”
“I know, Philip.”
“And eating meat too quickly will upset your stomach. Remember last time, when you ate lamb too fast and threw up?”
“…Did I really do that?”
“Also, drinking too much water during a meal isn’t good for digestion. As I told you last time…”
Delinda tuned out his scolding, and her eyes glazed over.
He seemed a little older than her, but his level of nagging was like that of an old grandfather lecturing his beloved granddaughter.
No one would nag her like this unless they harbored genuine affection. Convinced that Philip was on her side, Delinda quickly shut the door behind her.
“Alright, Philip! Next time, I’ll chew the meat properly, eat my vegetables, and drink less water during meals!”
She laid down on the sofa for a while, and before she knew it, the sun had already begun to set.
The garden outside the window looked peaceful as dusk approached, and the breeze that blew in felt cool. The outside world seemed unfamiliar, as though she were looking at a scene framed within a painting.
Delinda closed her eyes.
When will I return to the real world?
And if I do, I’ll probably wake up in that small, lonely room again.
For some reason, a hollow feeling settled in her chest, and she curled up into a small ball.
* * *
Someone was yelling above her.
“My lady! You need to get up!”
“Mmm…”
Ugh, so noisy.
Delinda covered her ears and rolled over, only to have her arm pulled off the bed.
“You need to hurry and wash up. A guest will be arriving soon.”
It was Rose, the maid, urging her on. Still groggy and not fully awake, Delinda rubbed her eyes and stumbled. Her body moved in chaotic response to Rose’s persistence.
“I told you that you needed to be up by noon!”
Rose roughly sat Delinda in a chair and began helping her get dressed. A brush made of horsehair aggressively tugged through Delinda’s hair.
“You need to hurry and wash up. A guest will be arriving soon.”
“Who is it?”
Delinda asked, still dazed with her voice full of confusion. Rose crossed her arms.
“Grand Duke Iskan Anagrok!”
Delinda couldn’t utter a single word.
Iskan Anagrok.
Her heart sank the moment she heard his name.
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