I Hate You Too
"Shh! Have you lost your mind? We'll be in serious trouble. Lower your voice."
"Ahem! No, I have a nephew, so I know. He used to pull tricks like this whenever it worked to his advantage."
"But Lady Jiana said this time it's not like that."
"She's just too kind. Even when Lady Jiana got hit by Lady Idel last time, she said the same thing."
Before anyone realized it, the story had morphed into Idel striking Jiana, which only made the atmosphere more sinister.
"And honestly, the way Lady Idel usually behaves is pretty..."
"...Yeah, it is, isn't it? And even if she really is in pain..."
One of the servants lowered his voice and cast a quick glance toward the door.
After confirming it was shut tight enough to let in not even a breath of air, he gave a small shrug and whispered.
"Who told her to wander around freely while being punished?"
It's all her own fault, isn't it?
That servant's short, scornful laugh set off a subtle shift in the mood along the corridor.
It was the result of the repeated disturbances, Idel's meticulously cultivated misdeeds, and Melissa's words.
If Idel had seen it herself, she would have welcomed the development with both hands raised in triumph. But at that very moment, rough breathing echoed up from the bottom of the stairs.
The servants who sensed the newcomer elbowed the person beside them.
"Hey."
"Yeah, I know."
As if nothing had happened, the servants clamped their mouths shut. An older-looking man hurried through them with quick, almost running steps.
It was Aiman, the Clementine family physician, who had rushed over in a panic at the sudden summons.
"Hoo, hoo! Right. Is this the room?"
"Yes, Sir Aiman. His Grace and the Duchess have been waiting for some time. You may go in right away."
"Understood. Is Lady Idel's condition quite serious?"
"...I may have judged wrongly out of ignorance, but it didn't seem that grave. It appears she had been outside for a long while."
"Really? His Grace urged me several times, so I assumed it was something dire. How strange."
At the puzzled look in Aiman's eyes, the servant bowed his head a little deeper.
Unaware of the subtly altered tone, Aiman simply straightened his clothes and entered the room.
Once the door had closed firmly again, the servants exchanged quick glances.
Then they spoke to Diane, who stood rigidly nearby, their voices unexpectedly kind.
"Hey, Diane."
"Y-yes?"
"If Lady Idel bothers you again, tell us anytime. We'll help you this time."
The look in her colleagues' eyes was so different from the grumbling they had shared earlier that Diane unconsciously held her breath and darted her gaze around.
The head maid, Melissa, and now even her fellow servants.
...Should I quit?
At the ominous atmosphere spreading through the air, Diane pressed a hand firmly to her chest.
Her heart pounded so violently she feared it might burst.
From the servants all the way up to the Duke and Duchess, Idel had dropped a bomb on the entire duchy. It was only the next morning that she finally opened her eyes in bed.
A ceiling both familiar and foreign.
Idel moved her hand experimentally and realized her body felt perfectly fine, as if it had never been ill. She let out a long sigh.
Through her still-hazy mind, the commotion from yesterday resurfaced.
She remembered obeying Melissa's order and pulling her into an embrace, but after that...
...This isn't completely ruined, is it?
With one variable after another interlocking, she had no idea what the final outcome had been.
From the start, the risk she had been forced to shoulder because of Jiana's intervention had left her uneasy.
She had cursed Jiana, thrown a tantrum, and cried in front of everyone, but even that wasn't enough to reassure her. Why?
Because I suddenly collapsed!
Idel buried her face in both hands, flopped forward, and kicked her legs in frustration.
Just recalling the expressions on the faces of the Clementine household when she had collapsed still made her vision go dark.
A child who, unable to adjust to her unfamiliar surroundings, had tried to flee the duchy, failed, and collapsed while sobbing from sorrow and resentment.
Summarizing it in one line makes it even bleaker.
First of all, she was a child. No matter how badly children behaved, seeing one cry bitterly in front of them tended to soften hearts easily.
With her face still pressed into the pillow, Idel prayed fervently.
Please let people's attitudes remain unchanged. No, I can handle the image myself somehow... At the very least, I hope no one said anything like "It turns out she's actually a kind and fragile child" in front of Melissa after I collapsed!
The mere thought of a twisted Melissa casting an even harsher curse sent shivers down her spine. Her heart raced; she was about to bolt upright when the door opened with a creak.
The timing was so abrupt that Idel couldn't even think to move. Still half-risen from the bed, her eyes met the visitor's.
"...You're awake."
Vincent Clementine.
Idel inwardly spoke the name and squeezed her eyes shut.
From the bushes and now, she didn't understand why he always appeared at such unexpected moments.
Watching the Duke walk steadily toward her, Idel slowly sat up in bed.
She then rolled her lowered eyes slightly to study his expression.
He was the type who hid his feelings well, so it wasn't easy to read him, but he didn't seem very different from usual.
Vincent approached the side of the bed, sat in the examination chair, and asked.
"How do you feel?"
"...I'm fine."
"And the fever?"
Instead of answering, Idel shook her head. Silence settled over them once more.
In the suffocating quiet, Idel and Vincent were each lost in different thoughts.
Idel was carefully gauging whether the Duke's attitude had remained unchanged, while Vincent...
So, what is it?
The fever was quite high. However...
Vincent Clementine was recalling the diagnosis Aiman had given after examining Idel yesterday.
To begin with the conclusion, Dr. Aiman had said the reason for Idel's collapse was "mental pressure."
"Considering all the symptoms, it doesn't appear to be a cold or any other illness. The fact that she suddenly developed a fever and collapsed can only be explained by overwhelming mental strain burdening her body."
...Burden, he said.
"She is still very young, after all. And when you consider the various disturbances the young lady has caused recently... it is possible her mental instability has manifested as a physical illness. I believe it would be best to observe her a little longer."
Recalling Aiman's words, Vincent gazed at Idel with sunken eyes.
Despite claiming she was fine, the child still looked pale and somehow unsteady.
Especially the way her eyes kept darting toward him, as if watching his reaction.
"...Ha."
Unconsciously letting out a sigh, Vincent clenched his fist for a moment.
Aiman's diagnosis and Melissa's words were tightening around his heart more and more.
No matter how innocent the child might be, he could not give Idel love.
He simply lacked the confidence to do so.
Yet leaving a child who collapsed from pressure like this...
Unable to decide how he should behave toward her, Vincent could not bring himself to say anything to Idel.
Besides, I hadn't even expected her to be awake.
Meanwhile, Idel—who had been meticulously observing Vincent's every move—easily caught the "guilt" in his behavior and realized something new.
What? Don't tell me the Duke is the same type as Jiana?
Her eyes trembled at the unexpected insight.
No, I did think the novel was acting strangely rational for a makjang story, but I assumed that was because of the Duchess...
Even after searching her memories again, the Duke's eyes and tone had been utterly cold.
It seems his education is lacking.
Idel, stop throwing tantrums and stand up properly.
Anyone could see this was the typical makjang-novel father who would hand over money but tell you not to expect love.
Ignoring her throbbing headache, Idel continued her thoughts until she remembered one fact she had overlooked.
The Duke died at Idel's birthday party.
Setting the party aside, how had Idel managed to kill someone as powerful as the Duke?
The answer is obvious.
Even after experiencing the series of events in the original story, the Duke had eventually opened his heart to Idel.
The moment she realized it, and the moment she detected a fragment of emotion from him, she felt as if cold water had been poured over her.
It would do neither of them any good to grow close.
The sooner the Duke opens his heart to me, the more chances Melissa will have to use me.
Saving the Duke would only become harder.
With a completely different mindset than before, Idel suddenly spoke.
"You hate me, don't you, Your Grace?"
"What?"
"I hate you too."