This Won’t Do. Focus on the Monsters and the Fiefdom.
“If the monsters are real, it’s only a matter of ti before they can no longer be hidden. Is the lord just using a foolish stopgap asure? Or does he have so other ulterior motive? And why was she so flustered over her shoulders showing? Is she planning to keep herself wrapped up even in sumr? Not that it matters!”
Tristan shook his head, but thoughts of Doris refused to leave his mind.
What kind of dress had she worn tonight?
What might she look like beneath that heavy shawl…?
Several tis, he stopped on the roadside, staring at walls to calm himself before resuming his walk. By the ti he returned to the palace, he was exhausted.
The sight of the neatly arranged docunts on his desk brought a faint sense of relief.
“Not that the solution to Blue Atrium’s problems will magically appear on paper.”
For now, he decided to sleep. Lack of rest was clearly what was letting these unnecessary thoughts plague his mind.
“Sotis, solutions co to you after a good sleep.”
After a quick wash with a damp towel, Tristan lay on the sofa. If he used the bed, he might sleep too deeply, which wouldn’t do.
Extinguishing the lamp, he closed his eyes…
Four hours of sleep later.
As he had anticipated, the previous night’s thoughts had coalesced into a semblance of a solution.
“If I gift her a dress, she’ll wear it, and then I’ll get to see…”
“No! Not that kind of solution!”
Tristan hurled his pillow, which landed with an unusually loud thud.
Before he could even process the incongruity, more thuds followed—thud, thud, thud—coming from the other side of the door.
“At this hour?”
He instinctively reached for the hilt of the sword hanging on the wall and called out, “Who’s there?”
An all-too-familiar voice answered, though it was laced with urgency.
“Your Highness! Sir Dyne, your trusted knight, has returned suddenly in the dead of night.”
The servant, panting heavily, added in a voice edged with dread, “He’s gravely injured… as if he’s been attacked by a monster.”
***
Four Months Into Reincarnation
After four months of being reincarnated here, I decided to assess the current situation, which aligned with the "introduction" phase of the original plot.
Maria yer, the story’s heroine: She has developed feelings for Arthur, sowhere between friendship and romance. She’s also grown close to .
Arthur Albion, the male lead: He harbors romantic feelings for Maria and even cos to for advice.
So far, so good.
“At least I’ve avoided the classic reincarnation trope of, ‘Why is the male lead interested in instead of the heroine?’”
Rick Ray, the second male lead: Seems to have been secretly in love with Maria all along. Finds irritating.
“Up to this point, the characters from the protagonist's side are on track!”
The problem lies with the villains.
First, there’s the pathetic supporting character, Tristan.
His actions—ignoring Maria’s dance invitation to approach , showing up with snacks for a get-well visit—are all strange.
“Does a conscience suddenly sprout like that? Even if redemption is a reincarnation cliché, doesn’t it usually require drastic asures, like, ‘We’re breaking up!’ to kick-start? I haven’t done anything to trigger this!”
Tristan is supposed to hang around Maria, stoking Arthur’s jealousy. At least his sharp tongue hasn’t changed. Small rcies.
The biggest divergence from the original, however, is Natalie.
In the original story, Natalie is driven by a single, shallow desire to marry the handso young duke, Arthur. She chases him to every ball he’s invited to, lavished with the Redfield couple’s financial support for extravagant dresses and jewelry.
But now? Natalie seems to want to pair with the young duke instead. Not for herself, but out of genuine care for , her younger sister.
“There’s no way anyone could call her a villainess like this!”
Still, as long as she’s trying to disrupt the Maria-Arthur pairing, the outco should stay the sa.
Even after considering this, I couldn’t reach a definitive answer.
Despite Natalie no longer fulfilling the role of a villainess, the world continues to follow the original plotline.
The maids were gossiping about a new rumor that had the capital abuzz.
I was hiding in the wardrobe to avoid another of Mother’s lectures, so I overheard the conversation clearly.
“You know the bloodstains left on the main street the other day? My friend said they were from a knight who ca back injured after patrol. The wounds were massive, like he’d been bitten by a monster.”
“Good heavens! Do you think it was a monster?”
“Oh, stop worrying. Monsters are only in the north. He probably got caught by a bear or sothing while hunting bandits.”
Still, soone tried to reassure the anxious maid.
“And we’ve got the young duke of Frost Hill in the capital right now. If a monster appears, he’ll take care of it!”
“That’s true. Speaking of which, didn’t the young duke visit the count’s estate recently? Did anyone see him? How handso is he?”
Their gossip quickly shifted to Arthur, but I realized this marked a new developnt in the story.
The rumors about the monsters in Blue Atrium had finally surfaced.
Blue Atrium.
A prosperous northeastern fiefdom, originally destined to belong to Tristan.
In the original story, it’s revealed early on that monsters have started appearing there.
A territory plagued by monsters isn’t sothing just anyone can govern. The lord must raise and command anti-monster forces.
Hearing about the monsters, the king assigns Blue Atrium to the young duke, conveniently present in the capital at the ti.
Tristan feigns indifference, claiming he doesn’t need land plagued by monsters. But later, a mana stone mine is discovered there, turning him into the proverbial sour grapes fox.
Arthur and Maria live happily in the now-wealthy Blue Atrium, eventually inheriting Frost Hill as well. The end.
What happens to Tristan afterward isn’t ntioned.
“Who cares about a villain’s assets, anyway? The author gave him a single sentence of redemption—‘He reflected on his wrongdoings and married his fiancée’—and that’s enough.”
Worrying about the royal family’s land is like commoners fretting over a billionaire’s wallet.
The maids had left, and the room fell quiet.
I decided it was ti to erge and grab a snack. As I stepped out of the wardrobe—
“I’ll prepare the vanity! You go find Lady Doris—oh, my!”
I ca face to face with a maid who had just rushed in.
Her expression was one of shock, as if she’d seen a ghost.
“Milady? You’ve… been here the whole ti? But earlier…”
Unable to admit I’d been enjoying so childish fun hiding in the wardrobe, I made a quick excuse.
“I just got back. What’s going on? Why ntion the vanity?”
“Oh, right! It’s urgent—Prince Tristan is here! He’s invited you to join him for tea!”
What?!
Even if he’d just wanted tea, I’d be surprised. But inviting out as well?
“This is so sudden! What if I already had plans?”
“We ntioned that, milady, but he said, ‘Doris doesn’t have any plans to speak of,’ with complete certainty…”
“….”
He’s not wrong, but still, how infuriating!
“This isn’t the ti to dwell on that, milady. Let’s get you ready. What dress should we choose? Perhaps one of Lady Natalie’s?”
“No. Skip the makeup and accessories, too.”
“Pardon?”
“I’ll just change into my outdoor attire. Prepare that for .”
“Understood!”
Why did Tristan suddenly decide to show up?
If he was here to spout his usual garbage, that would be fine. But his recent attempts to act like a decent person were unsettling.
Go see Maria instead of bothering !
As the maid helped into my dress, she hesitated before speaking.
“Milady, I’ll follow your instructions, but… you should at least tidy your hair.”
She held up mirrors to show my reflection, revealing the ss my hair had beco after rolling around in the wardrobe.
Walking out like this would be tantamount to declaring a breakup.
“…Fine. Fix my hair, please.”
“Right away!”
The maid sighed in relief and fetched a brush and pins.
Once I looked presentable, I headed to the parlor.
As soon as I saw Tristan, I regretted skipping makeup.
“He’s too well put together!”
Tristan looked like he was ready for a formal engagent eting, his hair neatly styled. I averted my gaze to avoid being swayed by his appearance and approached him.
“Your Highness, you’re here.”
“…Yes.”
He gave a once-over, then abruptly turned his head.
“Let’s go. I’ve reserved a small tea spot.”
“Your Highness, may I ask what this is about?”
“Must I have a reason to spend ti with my fiancée?”
Did he do sothing wrong?
Afraid to press further, I let him lead out.
The carriage waiting outside the estate was an unnecessarily luxurious four-horse coach, its destination…
“Wow…”
It was like stepping into a Monet painting.
A small tea house by a lake, where water lilies danced in the sumr breeze.
This setting could make even poison taste good.
The food served to us, however, was far from poison.
“These are ricotta cheese pancakes.”
Topped with caralized pecans, cranberry jam, and fresh cream, the pancakes were fluffy, rich with ricotta, and lted in my mouth.
Delicious!
I could forgive anything Tristan said after this.
“This is… absolutely delicious, Your Highness.”
“I’m glad to hear that.”
Tristan, chin resting on his hand as he gazed out the window, replied nonchalantly. Yet his lips seed to curl slightly upward.
“You’ve put in enough effort today to deserve so praise.”
“…What?”
“Why are you surprised? I’m simply acknowledging your effort.”
The way he delivered the complint was annoying, but what effort was he even talking about?
After I finished my pancakes, Tristan finally shifted from his lazy posture and looked in the eye.
“Doris Redfield. I have sothing important to tell you.”
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