Chapter 14

So, it’s really Adriana. The one who dragged me here, the mastermind, Winter’s second daughter and the only daughter of the Magnolia family, the Grand Duchess Winter.

I lowered my head and looked at my feet. It was just an ordinary cloud. Just an ordinary… Yeah, standing on a cloud seemed more realistic than moving to a different dimension or into a novel.

“…Adriana?”

“Yeah, it’s me.”

Adriana de Winter, oddly beautiful as always. It was a smile that knew exactly which expression would appear most attractive to others. Yeah, Adriana had thrown me into this wretched place and was shamelessly curling up the corners of her mouth.

“Hey, come over here.”

“…Why?”

“Oh, come here. No, I’ll come to you.”

I stopped flicking my fingers and took a step closer to Adriana. This darn thing, there was no mirror, so I couldn’t see my face, but my hands and voice were clearly mine. It’s really me, not me wearing Adriana’s skin.

What’s that supposed to mean?

“Am I going to hit you?”

“Yeah. I’m seriously going to hit you.”

Adriana, who had never lifted anything heavier than a kitchen knife, was talking about throwing a punch. Do you know the pain of going up and down a 5-story office building without an elevator?

I grabbed Adriana’s retreating shoulder and shook it vigorously.

I wanted to slap her in frustration, but apart from fighting with my sister, I had never raised my hand, so I prepared myself to talk.

“Are you really going to hit me?”

Oh, seriously! I’m getting annoyed again.

I loosened my grip on her shoulder and prepared myself for a conversation. After all, I’m a law-abiding, upstanding citizen.

“Alright, explain it to me.”

“Well, um,”

“Usually, in situations like this, they wake up and go, ‘Oh, it’s a dream!’ and then continue the original owner’s life, saying, ‘Yeah, I’m the real one, not a fake! I don’t have to think about deceiving others anymore!’ and they triumph mentally. But I really have no intention of doing that. You didn’t come here to plead with me in a pitiful and sentimental voice, did you?”

“Uh, well, you see…”

“Why can’t you speak?”

Seriously, I’m fed up with such clichés!

Adriana blinked her eyelashes in a pitiful manner, as if I had spat on her face.

Her shadowed face at an oblique angle was indeed beautiful, but the face I had become accustomed to over the past year was Callian’s, followed by Adriana’s face.

Whether it’s a peony or a lily, a splendid rose, or whatever – it’s a story about a rice cake that doesn’t fit a beauty with countless adjectives attached to her appearance.

“Oh, well… Can you at least listen to what I have to say?”

“I’m looking at what you’re doing.”

I sat down on the ground, but the clouds didn’t dissipate. The sky was vast, and the sun was gentle. The clouds were fluffy and warm, as if they had been plucked from a picture book. Scientifically, they should have been damp, but it’s a dream anyway.

“Well, you see, I originally didn’t like my current life…”

“Usually, no one is satisfied with their own life. So?”

“But a lot of problems arise when I’m not around, so… that’s why I went to find Eselmond. I didn’t really know if it would work.”

“…Is that all there is?”

“Maybe?”

“Wouldn’t it be better if there were more?”

Once your excuses are done, I plan to pull out every hair on your head.

As I twisted my wrist, Adriana’s face turned pale.

She appeared younger and more fragile than I had imagined.

Did I think of her as a seductive Grand Duchess?

“Father and Elliot treat me almost like their own child, and my relationship with Callian is merely formal. So, I just thought that being like this was too meaningless. I didn’t have the courage to die, but I didn’t want to live like this. …Everyone thinks about living as someone else at least once, right?”

“Well, that’s true. Wait, are you in my body right now?”

“Not really. …I’m not anywhere. I just exist, that’s all.”

Adriana whispered softly, with a slightly pouty expression.

It was a heavy dress I would never wear. It was made of glossy purple fabric with layers of delicate lace.

“I understand your situation, but that’s not my concern, you know? And usually, in such situations, don’t people engage in conversation rather than forcibly transferring another person’s soul? Love and peace, conversation and communication.”

Well, those people don’t seem like the kind to do that. Besides, if they were originally wealthy Magnolia and Callian de Winter people, Adriana wouldn’t have shown interest in such whimsical magic.

“I’ve tried to talk many times. But what more can I say when they see me like that?”

“How do they see you?”

“At the very least, they don’t see me as family.”

It was a look of long-standing frustration. Even without asking Adriana further, one could guess the situation. It was information I had known for a while.

The wife who died while giving birth to their daughter and the daughter who eerily resembled the deceased wife.

But isn’t that damn husband to blame for planning a second child without considering the wife’s condition? What did the deceased wife or the newborn baby do wrong?

Instead, I tried to get angry but stopped myself. This was Adriana’s story, not mine. Besides, I suddenly found myself yanked out of my peaceful sleep and thrown into a romance novel world.

I should have used a condom; it’s not just Magnolia Duke’s appendage, but also my head.

“That may be true, but instead of that, have you tried talking to your husband to resolve the issue?”

It’s become × quite frankly.

“But Callian has already-“

Adriana pursed her lips a few times.

There are two ways to annoy people. One is to stop talking while speaking.

…I waited for the next words, then threaded the reason that came out of my body into a skipping rope and spoke.

It wasn’t really a reason. I didn’t even skip rope with it. …But if it were Adriana’s hair, it might have worked as a skipping rope.

“Return to your body.”

“I can’t do that.”

“What’s this asshole?”

“To return, certain conditions are needed. …Just, can’t you stay in my body? I’m a grand duchess, the daughter of a duke. We even have mines.”

“And what do you call someone who has all that and still entrusts their body to someone else?”

I thought the most shameless person in the world was the one who drank all night and asked their older sister for hangover soup, but true masters have a way of not easily revealing themselves.

I never thought I’d see someone more shameless than the deputy who presented my PowerPoint presentation under their own name. The world is truly full of surprises.

“Shut up and come up with a solution. I’m going home quickly to feed Minsu and have makgeolli and pajun.”

“But-“

My head throbbed as if it were ringing. I seemed to be saying something incoherent, but Adriana was getting further away, and I was falling beneath the clouds.

I spat out words while hearing nothing.

“Take responsibility for your own life, Adriana!”

Oh no, it’s a dream.

Ah, I knew this would happen. But in a strange romance novel world, dreams were like plot twists, essentially no different from breadcrumbs.

The good part is that there’s a way to go back, but the bad part is that I haven’t heard a single thing about it.

This is ××. I considered going back to sleep, hoping to continue the dream, and hugged the pillow, but the grease on my face only got thicker.

After splashing water on my face and applying cold cream, I looked a bit more alive. Yes, no matter how tired and worn out you are, you shouldn’t skip washing, eating, or moving.

“Madam, you look better today.”

“Really? Maybe it’s because I had a good dream.”

Now I don’t care about Adriana’s hair.

How can I return to my original body and feed Minsu?

Matapju said, “You must love.” At first, I thought it was like a fairy tale anthology, but upon careful consideration, it seemed plausible.

Anyway, this place is most likely a “novel.”

Especially in light romance fantasies, it was entirely possible for one person’s story to end in love.

Love.

Love.

Love…

“Madam?”

“Oh, yes.”

“You probably already know, but Madam’s birthday is approaching. It’s time to start preparing for the party,”

“Oh… Do I have to do that?”

As in most romance novels, domestic affairs were usually a woman’s responsibility.

The same applied to events like parties. But to think that the Grand Duchess would have to prepare for her own birthday party… it’s a bit much.

In that case, you could argue that even the Grand Duke’s birthday gift is paid for by the Grand Duchy.

But there’s a big difference between just providing the funds and personally compiling the guest list and arranging the venue.

“First, we need to fit the dress. We’ll go to the place where I used to get my dresses fitted -“

“Um, do I really have to get the dress fitted?”

“Well, of course -“

“First, let me see the dresses I already have. All of them.”

A person of immense wealth doesn’t wear the same dress twice, and Adriana was precisely that ‘person of immense wealth.’

The dresses brought by the maids under Catherine’s supervision were truly overwhelming.

Dresses neatly hung, categorized by color, fabric, and fashion, looked like they could change one every day and still not wear them all before the season changed.

There were enough summer dresses alone to last until the following spring.

“Oh, wow… What’s the price for this?”

“No, ma’am. Clothes that Madam hasn’t searched for are stored in another place, but should I bring those too?”

“No, no. This is enough. Thank you. I’d like to look around by myself, so could everyone leave? I’ll call you back when I’m ready to organize them.”

After Catherine and April left, I examined each dress closely one by one.

The embroidery was incredibly delicate, and even small gems were meticulously attached.

I didn’t know the exact price, but it seemed like you could buy a small house with just one of these dresses. … Or maybe even a big one?

“This one is quite to my taste as well…”

Whether it was Adriana’s preference or a trend that had swept through the Empire, the dresses were all made of luxurious fabrics. Some dresses were undoubtedly blue, but when they caught the light, they shimmered with a subtle shade of red. If they were meant for admiration rather than wearing, they would be perfect.

Whether they were originally tailored to fit Adriana’s waist or if they were designed with a corset-like waist, the waistline was excessively narrow.

“This is like a complete doll’s dress… A doll’s dress?” At first, looking at the dress made of soft fabric, I felt like playing a little prank. In Korea, due to a lack of funds, or rather, out of habit, I wanted to do what I usually did with colored paper.

“Ma’am, why all of a sudden—”

“Could you bring me some scissors? The sharp ones. They should be sturdy.”

“Ma’am, surely not—please?”

“Yes? What are you talking about? I just feel like doing something.”

I even sent Catherine, who insisted on staying and guarding the place, away, and had an enjoyable duchess’s time. Well, isn’t it just a word? What’s the importance of that? If I could, I would have played some “Quiet Café ASMR” in the background.

“There are three bears living in one house. Elder bear, younger bear, and cat bear.”

Perhaps it was because they were scissors from the Grand Duke’s household, but they cut very well.

“The cat bear is so cute. It’s really good at being adorable.”

The sound of scissors cutting and fabric being sewn, the rustling of cloth, enriched the heart immensely.

“Madam, what is needed— I mean, what is this?”

“Yes? A remake?”

“If you’re going to dispose of the dress, you should tell the children. Oh, no, not that— I mean, the dress needs to be remade—”

“The dress won’t be remade.”

“Yes? But for the banquet,”

“There won’t be a banquet either.”

To host a banquet or ball, you need to decide who to invite, make a guest list, choose the dishes to serve, and decide what dresses to wear. In short, it’s quite bothersome.

Even the meticulously prepared royal banquets were troublesome, so to have a banquet I prepare and receive congratulations myself? I politely declined. It’s not even my birthday, to begin with.

“You’re not having a banquet? What’s that,”

“I thought I’d receive congratulations only from the local people. So, I’m planning to hold a festival.”

“F-festival?”

“Well, since it’s my birthday, should I ask those who feel like it to bring a bottle of soju? I’ll give a reward to the person who brings their favorite liquor. Oh, and hang these clothes in the square.”

Tonight, the main character is none other than me!

“I have some grains I want to improve, so I’ll also give a reward to the person who improves them to my taste.”

Vote for your makgeolli, no, for rice!

Catherine couldn’t help but look at me holding the dismantled dress, unable to close her mouth. Oh dear, that can’t be good for the jaw joint.