Chapter 03
The Duke of Clasta was absolutely ruthless.
The moment he received the adoption certificate with my name on it—
“Since you’re my daughter now, I suppose a congratulatory gift is in order.”
—he sent the orphanage director straight to prison that very day.
I watched in disbelief as the director was dragged away in handcuffs and turned my gaze toward the Duke of Clasta.
Whatever he saw in my expression, he put a hand on my head and said,
“Daring to lay hands on the future Lady Clasta? She must be punished. Sure, all she did to you was beatings, but I’ll tack on tax evasion and embezzlement so she serves at least 50 years.”
As I continued to stare at him, he suddenly looked as if something had just occurred to him.
“Ah, the execution date for that Brown fellow who tried to adopt you is the day after tomorrow. If you’d like, we can go see it together.”
…That’s not what I meant.
Then the Duke paused, as if considering something, and said,
“Would you prefer quartering over beheading?”
It seemed the Duke of Clasta didn’t quite have a grasp on social cues.
After the orphanage director was taken to prison, someone from House Clasta took over the orphanage’s management.
Thanks to the Duke’s support, the children could now eat soft, fluffy white bread instead of bug-ridden scraps.
That same day, I was moved to the Clasta estate.
The Duke’s estate was surrounded by massive cliffs. The only way in was by lowering a bridge from the fortress.
Even craning my neck, I couldn’t see the top of the walls.
Upon arrival, the Duke immediately handed me off to a neatly dressed maid and vanished.
“He really meant it when he said he wouldn’t bother with me.”
I hadn’t expected him to be caring in the first place, so I wasn’t disappointed.
“Hello, my lady. I’ll be serving you from today. My name is Mary.”
“Hello.”
I bowed my head politely.
It never hurt to make a good impression on someone I’d be living with.
Mary smiled gently and said, “There’s no need to bow to me. You’re my lady now.”
“Okay.”
“You must be tired from the long journey. It’s best you get washed and rest.”
“Sounds good.”
I followed Mary into the bathroom.
After undressing and stepping into the tub, she turned on the warm water.
That alone was surprising—but then she dropped a round ball into the bath. It dissolved quickly, releasing pink bubbles that foamed up and sparkled.
“Woooow.”
I had never seen anything so pretty and magical.
Back when I lived with the Evil Dragon, bathing itself was a luxury. Under Regan’s care, even getting warm water felt like heaven.
“Do you like it?”
“It’s so pretty!”
As I stirred the water, a sweet fragrance wafted up.
“Aww, how adorable. Would you like to see more?”
Mary didn’t seem annoyed at all, just amused.
I nodded, and she fetched a basket from the bathroom cabinet.
It was filled with colorful balls—some round, others shaped like stars, hearts, or flowers.
“These are called bath bombs. They smell nice when you bathe and can have various effects. The one I gave you has healing properties.”
I’d heard of them, but it was my first time seeing one up close.
Thanks to the bath bomb, my bath ended on a delightful note.
After I got out, Mary dressed me in a soft, yellow nightgown.
I had never worn something so comfortable.
She also applied lotion all over my body, which smelled so nice I kept sniffing my arm.
“Becoming the Duke’s daughter was the right choice.”
All this luxury made my head spin.
Next, Mary brought over a first aid kit.
She needed to treat the lingering injuries on my arms and legs.
I still had bruises, and one elbow had a large scab from being scraped.
“This might sting a little. Please bear with it.”
“Okay.”
“You’re so brave. But it’s okay to say if it hurts.”
Mary dabbed ointment on my wounds with a cotton swab like I was a fragile baby.
It tickled a bit, and I flinched.
“Does it hurt?” she asked quickly.
“Nope.”
I’d nearly died once when my stomach was torn open while fighting a monster. This was nothing.
When the treatment was done, she handed me a piece of candy wrapped in shiny paper.
“This is a reward for being so brave.”
I tucked the candy safely into my pocket.
Who knows when I’d get another one—I’d save it for a time when I really couldn’t resist.
Then I gave her a deep bow and said, “Thank you.”
“How polite you are! But feel free to speak casually with me. I’m your maid, after all.”
I knew that, but it wasn’t easy.
Now that I thought about it, I had hardly ever spoken informally to anyone in my life.
There had never been anyone I could talk casually with.
As I hesitated, Mary looked at me expectantly.
“Please call me Mary, my lady.”
“Umm…”
“Just Mary.”
Calling her just “Mary,” without honorifics?
I glanced up at her nervously.
But I was a noble lady now—it would be weird to keep speaking formally to a maid.
“M-Mary…”
Mary beamed at me.
“Wonderful! Your voice is so sweet, too. You’ll keep calling me Mary, right?”
“Y-yeah… I mean, mm-hmm.”
Just the bath bomb and pajamas were enough to overwhelm me, but it wasn’t over yet.
“Here, say ah—”
I could’ve eaten on my own, but I decided to listen to the kind-hearted Mary.
I obediently opened my mouth, and she gently blew on the hot porridge before feeding me.
“…Delicious!”
It wasn’t fishy, nor was it gritty with sand.
“Is this what porridge is supposed to taste like? What on earth had I been eating before?”
“It’s just porridge, so it might not be very tasty. But it’s your first day, and you’re still recovering. Once you’re better, I’ll prepare something delicious. Do you like steak?”
If porridge tasted this good, I couldn’t imagine how amazing meat would be.
Becoming the Duke’s daughter had definitely been the right call.
“They said I might die, but this isn’t so bad after all.”
If possible, I wanted to live like this forever.
But how long I could stay in this estate depended entirely on the Duke.
“I need to get stronger—fast.”
The Duke was being kind now, but he could change his mind and throw me out at any moment.
Even Regan, who had once treated me well, betrayed me in the end.
I needed power—to protect myself and to kill Regan.
The next day, I woke up with a jolt at 4 a.m.
Maybe it was because I’d spent all day in the carriage yesterday or because my wounds hadn’t healed yet, but my body still felt heavy, and I wanted to go back to sleep.
“No. If I sleep in, they’ll think I’m lazy.”
I shook my head hard and rubbed my sleepy eyes with both fists.
Leaving the warm blankets was a real struggle.
It felt like something was dragging me back into bed, but I forced myself up with determination.
“No slacking. Everyone’s suffering because of the Evil Dragon—don’t you think you should train harder to defeat him?”
I recalled Regan’s usual lectures as I made my bed.
“Now what should I do?”
I had woken up at my usual time, but no one had assigned me anything.
When I lived with Regan, I always got up at 4 a.m., started with cleaning the training grounds, then trained with swords, hunted monsters, ran errands… and only slept at midnight.
“Maybe I’ll check out the training yard.”
I left the room.
The castle was still dark at 4 a.m., before sunrise.
I walked for what felt like forever, but the castle was so big I couldn’t find the training yard.
“Should’ve asked Mary yesterday… What if they kick me out for doing nothing?”
I hurried my steps—only to see a man with midnight-blue hair, like the dawn sky, walking toward me.
The Duke of Clasta.
His shirt was looser than usual, and his hair was down—he must’ve just woken up.
“Good morning, Your Grace.”
I stepped aside and bowed to avoid getting in his way.
“Calling me ‘Your Grace’ when we’re family—isn’t that a bit stiff?”
The Duke asked playfully.
I blinked at him, not understanding what he meant. He waved a hand dismissively.
“Never mind. So why are you up at this hour?”
“I was going to clean the training yard.”
“Cleaning? Ah, orphanage habits, huh. No need. The servants will take care of that. You’re still recovering—what do you think you’re doing?”
“But I can move now. If there’s nothing to clean, I can help with something else.”
I clenched my tiny fists with determination.
The Duke poked my shoulder with one finger.
It wasn’t even hard, but I collapsed on the spot.
“Seeing you drop like that, I’d say you need more rest.”
I looked up at him with an indignant glare.
“You used magic, didn’t you?!”
Even a strong adult man wouldn’t have withstood that.
“Then this little kid should go back to bed,” he muttered, waving his hand dismissively as he walked past me.
I figured he didn’t like seeing me wandering around, so I turned to head back—but my knees throbbed.
I must’ve banged them on the floor when I fell.
When I lifted my skirt to check, both knees were scraped and bleeding.
If I walked now, I’d definitely limp.
“He might get annoyed if he sees me limping. I’ll wait until he’s gone.”
But then, a shadow fell over me.
When I looked up, the Duke had returned and was bending down, staring at me.
“So that’s why you weren’t moving…”
He frowned, staring at my knees.
I quickly pulled my skirt down to hide the wounds and looked up anxiously.
The Evil Dragon would’ve beaten me to test how long I could endure, and Regan would’ve scolded me for being careless.
“I wonder which one the Duke will be… If he hits me, it’s definitely going to hurt. Maybe just yelling would be better…”
As I nervously studied him, the Duke raised both hands.
“He’s gonna hit me!”
I squeezed my eyes shut and braced myself.
