episode_0014

“…Huh?”

I blinked. It felt like I had been getting comfortable sleep at the Viscount’s residence for the past few days, but today, it seemed like I had hardly slept at all.

After a sleepless night, I rubbed my bleary eyes and took a deep breath.

“Sigh.”

It seems like I have a lot on my mind.

Naturally, the main concern was how to get through Claire’s coming-of-age ceremony, which was approaching soon.

Still, I thought there might be at least one plausible solution.

‘How is it that not even one is coming to mind?’

I thought I could probably pass it off as a minor illness. I was confident I could handle something as simple as catching a cold from taking a cold shower.

But the problem was that yesterday, just when I went to see Claire, the issue arose from drinking the sweet water. I confirmed that I was perfectly fine, and yet, I received an ultimatum to stay away under the pretense of being unwell.

I can guarantee that such excuses won’t work now.

Thanks to this, I am now facing a situation where I must participate in Claire’s coming-of-age ceremony without any room for argument.

‘This is probably the most reasonable course of action.’

-Creak.

As I opened the wardrobe, the clothes belonging to Carsein, which were there even before I possessed this body, appeared. The clothes looked quite expensive, not to mention the fact that they didn’t pale in comparison to the word “noble.”

It was the coming-of-age ceremony of the Viscount’s beloved daughter. It was obvious that it would be a significant event in noble society.

If someone were to attend such a momentous event wearing shabby clothes, naturally, they would be disliked.

Therefore, I planned to insist that I didn’t have suitable clothes to wear, claiming that I wouldn’t participate in the coming-of-age ceremony so as not to ruin it. It would inevitably invite criticism, but it would serve as a fairly decent excuse.

“I should at least freshen up first.”

Thinking about how to handle those clothes, I headed towards the bathroom.

“Lord Carsein, it’s Camilla. May I come in?”

Camilla arrived at this timing. Naturally, she must have come to clean or do something else due to her anxiety.

“Um.”

I grudgingly allowed her to enter.

However, contrary to expectations, when the door opened, it wasn’t just one face that appeared.

“…What are you guys doing here? I didn’t call for you, did I?”

“Well… Claire asked us to come.”

“Huh?”

Claire sent for me.

No way.

I glare at Camilla, trying to pressure her into saying something.

Come on, say something! Just like you did to me, those maids might do something to me. Isn’t that right?!

Looking uncomfortable, Camilla replied.

“Lord Karsein has instructed that if there’s any chance you might catch a cold again, you must bathe in hot water. If you fail to present yourself to the lady as she desires, we should prepare ourselves to receive a hundred lashes each…”

Damn. At that moment, I was certain.

There’s no way out.

It’s not like I could have done anything even if she said something. They have no other way but to present a well-bathed Karsein in front of Claire.

Even if those maids hate me, with Claire putting so much pressure on them, they wouldn’t dare do anything to me.

The scene before me made my head spin, and I rubbed my forehead.

“Ah, that crazy woman. She shouldn’t have said such things for no reason.”

I should have realized from yesterday.

I should have prepared for the cunning plan to prevent any whining about coming to the adult ceremony.

-Ding!

▶ The attendants who will assist with Claire’s bath have arrived. How will you respond?

[ 1. Whether you’re right or wrong, I don’t care. Just leave. (Recognition -200, Claire’s Affection -30%) ]

[ 2. Alright. I’ll bathe. ]

Wow. The choices really show your true colors.

The moment you refuse, your recognition plummets, and Claire’s affection takes a huge hit. This is just telling you to die.

Still, just in case.

Maybe there’s a chance to escape, so I tried to speak…

“Um… Can’t I bathe alone?”

Camilla sighed deeply and replied.

“I’m sorry. If you catch a cold, we will be scolded by Lady Claire.”

Oh, come on! That can’t be!

“Sigh… Alright.”

***

The maids, feeling the pressure from Claire, seemed to have no room for even the slightest rebellion.

“It’s a tragedy up close, but a comedy from afar,” isn’t just an empty saying.

If I had the eyes of someone who also played games, would I have looked like that?

Literally, it seemed as though I should be leading a well-washed nobleman, but the maidservants moved as if they were dripping with sweat, looking as though they were trying to survive somehow.

Before I knew it, the fierce determination in the maidservants’ eyes, which had been dyed with the desire to survive, returned to normal. Judging that it was enough by now, my bath was completely finished.

Having smelled dozens of scents in the bath, my sense of smell felt as if it had been paralyzed.

“Is it over now? Then I’ll go back to Claire and—”

“No, sir. It’s only the bath that’s finished. There’s still the dressing part left.”

“…What?”

“I told you. Miss Claire has ordered you to lead her in a way that will satisfy her.”

“No, wait. Leading her in a way that will satisfy her means…?”

“It means to prepare and present yourself in the way you would at an adult ceremony.”

Feeling dizzy, I once again rested my forehead on my hand.

In the meantime, into my room, the sound of a cart rolling in faintly echoed.

As I turned my head in unease, the cart that came in making a wheeling sound had a splendid outfit that looked like men’s clothing prepared on it.

“T-That, is that the outfit I’m supposed to wear…?”

Nod.

“I heard they directly invited a famous designer as a duke.”

Ah… damn it.

If it turned out like this, there was no use in shouting that I didn’t have clothes.

Even after I finished my bath, I still had to receive the touch of the stunned maidservants.

After a while, the murmuring of “this should be enough” went back and forth among the maidservants.

Since the maidservants who hadn’t particularly liked Carcyn before were leaving the room at a speed faster than ever, Camilla and I were left alone in the room.

Now I could finally ask.

“Why did you do that, Camilla?”

It seemed that Camilla was conscious too, as she flinched at my question.

***

Except for Carcyn, the other four people would already have their outfits prepared as a basic necessity for the coming-of-age ceremony.

Claire, the protagonist of this event, would be putting in the most effort, and the rest of the two sisters, including Mother Isabella, being family, wouldn’t have prepared carelessly.

Therefore, there was no need to call a designer. If the clothes of the four people who had already visited the dressing room were prepared according to the occasion, there was only one reason for the duchess to call a designer directly.

“The clothes here are inappropriate for attending the reception. But I don’t think I was asked to report this fact.”

It’s my clothes.

Even if stories related to the coming-of-age ceremony have spread, no one knows that the clothes crammed in my closet either don’t fit, are outdated, or are in such a state that they are difficult to wear.

In other words, there was no reason for a designer to come unless she directly conveyed it to her superior.

Camilla did not deny this.

“As the personal maid… I judged that the attire Miss Claire will wear at Lord’s coming-of-age ceremony is inappropriate.”

“So, it’s your unilateral decision, is that it?”

“…Yes.”

When I pinpointed that the crux was the unilateral decision, Camilla’s eyes widened significantly.

“Why did you make such a unilateral decision?”

“Since you are the lord and the heir of the Viscount of Bagrand, it is appropriate─”

“No. Besides such formal reasons. I never said I would participate in a coming-of-age ceremony, did I?”

I haven’t even mentioned the coming-of-age ceremony. Frankly, whether Karsein participates in the coming-of-age ceremony at the ducal estate or not, I might not even care and just let the day pass.

This means that Camilla’s unilateral decision has another reason attached to it.

“Speak. Is it because you thought you might be driven away just because of Claire, so you thought you should do something?”

When I cut off the formal reasons and pressed her for an answer, Camilla hesitated for a short while and then grabbed her skirt. If she was trying to choose her words, I was willing to wait. Unless it was a lie.

She clutched her skirt tightly, pursed her lips twice, and then spoke.

“I hoped… you wouldn’t hear that it’s not Bagrand.”

“…?”

It was an answer far beyond my expectations. I wondered if she should have prepared more excuses. I thought that by including formal reasons, I might show some resistance to the one holding the leash, unless it was false.

However, I hope to hear that it’s not Bagrand, but Karsain.

I almost chuckled, but swallowed those words. With the appearance of Camilla, I have to be careful not to trigger any dead triggers.

“Master. I…”

“Enough. Forget about anything else and explain the process of your arbitrary decision.”

With a much relieved expression, Camilla began to explain.

“I checked the wardrobe when you were in the bathroom, and as soon as the adult ceremony story spread among the maids, I quickly went to find Heron.”

“That crazy pink…”

Damn it. My true feelings almost slipped out.

“No. Did you report that there were no clothes for Claire’s adult ceremony?”

“Yes. Then Heron said he would inform the Duchess, and the report that the designer would come was received that morning.”

So that’s how things got tangled up.

No, even if it wasn’t Camilla, there was a high possibility that my plan would have gone awry.

Even if it wasn’t Camilla, if Claire behaved as she does now, she could have checked the clothes herself, or Ariana could have stepped in for inspection. There was also the possibility that Heron leaned in to deliver amidst Flora’s commotion. Anyway, if it reached Isabella’s ears, there was no way around it. If clothes were prepared for a healthy body, I had nothing to remove anymore.

Even if Karsain ruined Ariana’s coming-of-age ceremony three years ago, there was nothing to be done.

“There’s no choice. I have to hide like a dead mouse.”

At the reception, unexpected situations come without discrimination. Regardless of whether it’s a nobleman or not, wherever Karsain steps, he will create an unforeseen situation.

Just hide for a while and take the opportunity to go out. In the process, I can create a reasonable reason for the emerging options.

“Alright. Just leave. It’s almost breakfast time, isn’t it?”

Nevertheless, Camilla hesitated.

“Um…”

“Do you still have something to say?”

“Well, this morning, the Duchess wanted to have breakfast with her family.”

…Damn it?

***

No matter how much I think about it, it feels eerily creepy.

Morning breakfast. Calling together the three siblings, including the illegitimate child Karsein, and the three born of their mother’s womb to eat at the same table?

“No way. This must be because of Claire.”

It wasn’t a forced command to lead in the future, but rather a check-in at mealtime. Seriously, there’s no privacy here.

“Young master, over here.”

I regret wearing comfortable clothes as if I were going out for breakfast.

This kind of scene didn’t exist in the game originally.

But it was created. Because it was a game, I had to fully accept the skipped scene as reality.

If I’m late, they’ll say something again. Especially the second one, who always picks on everything, will be even more so.

I hurried my steps and arrived at the restaurant following Camilla’s guidance.

Ugh. I thought I was late, but it seemed like I’d be the only one eating this. Everyone else was already seated in their places.

“…”

“…”

“…”

“…”

But why do all their expressions look like that?