You Said I Was a Persecuted, Terminally Ill Grand Duchess? - Chapter 7

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 7

As soon as the door opened, tremendous dust and a musty smell rushed toward us, engulfing us completely.

“Cough! Cough! What on earth…?”

I had been quite proud of building up immunity to dirty environments while sweeping and cleaning the cottage.

But this body is incredibly weak!

After waiting for the dust to settle a bit, I carefully stepped into the library one foot at a time.

Swoosh!

Betty, who had reached the window on the opposite side with faster steps than mine, immediately pulled back the thick curtains covering the largest central window.

The largest central window was made of beautiful stained glass.

Dust particles scattered among the variously colored lights, brightly illuminating the interior of the library.

“Wow.”

Snap! Snap! Snap!

After pulling back all the curtains, a completely different scene unfolded from before.

“I knew it would be spacious, but it’s bigger than I thought! Even a decent Temple library would pale in comparison.”

Betty, who had appeared beside me at some point, exclaimed with pure admiration.

I also nodded vigorously in complete agreement.

The interior of the library was about the size of a decent school playground by my previous life’s standards.

Arched ceilings beautifully connected between ornate columns.

In the center of the hall, what looked like well over a hundred bookshelves stood lined up in rows.

“This place is…”

In a word, it was a goldmine for a print addict!

My heart pounded with excitement as I broke into a broad smile, and Betty smiled along with me.

“Are you that happy?”

“Yes! With this much material, I could last 10 years in the cottage.”

“…That’s not exactly a good thing though.”

“Why not? It’s really great!”

Hahaha! 10 years, 20 years, it doesn’t matter.

Time is something I have in abundance anyway!

I’ll read through every single book here!

I was so excited that my body was unconsciously swaying with enthusiasm.

Then, Betty said something that poured cold water on the mood.

“First… you’ll need to clean, won’t you?”

“…Right, of course.”

“Come on, let’s do our best! Then we should be able to finish before spring comes.”

“That’s way too far away!”

But what could I do?

I let out a deep sigh, then pulled myself together again.

Everything is difficult at the start, after all.

‘Let’s just get started.’

My future self will figure it out somehow!

* * *

“Huff…”

Unfortunately, my future self couldn’t handle it either.

How many hours had passed?

The sun that had been shining brightly when we left the cottage was gradually growing dim.

Even with help from Betty, an experienced maid, all we had managed was cleaning the windows and clearing out a couple of bookshelves.

“Ugh, my back.”

“Your Highness, are you alright?”

“Yeah. But it seems like even if we two clean every day, finishing before spring is impossible.”

“…That’s true. Actually, spring was a very optimistic estimate. Please rest a bit. I can handle it.”

Betty’s eyes looked somewhat moist as she said this.

I quickly responded, worried that Betty might misunderstand again.

“What are you talking about, Betty. Since I said I’d do this, I need to see it through to the end. You’re the one who should rest a bit. I’ll go look around the books in the section we cleaned.”

“Your Highness… Yes. Be careful, there might be something on the floor!”

I planned to pick out at least one book from the cleaned bookshelf.

‘I’ll probably collapse from exhaustion today… Well, I can read it later when I’m bored.’

Still, there was a big psychological difference between having books and not having them.

As a modern person who lived in the 21st century overflowing with content, I desperately needed dopamine.

“Let’s see.”

I had noticed while cleaning that the bookshelves were generally quite tall.

Or… am I just short?

Fortunately, there were thoughtfully placed step stools here as well.

The wooden ones looked somewhat rotted and unstable, but they weren’t bad as a temporary solution.

I began slowly examining the books on the upper shelves.

Quite remarkably, the language here appeared to me as Korean, so there was no awkwardness in reading at all.

‘I guess this must be a domestic novel rather than a translation?’

Even better. What a K-romance patch this is.

I still couldn’t figure out the identity of this world I was in, but there was no need to be impatient either.

I’d naturally find out someday as I lived here.

Is that too complacent thinking? Still!

“Uhaha.”

Since there was no immediate danger, my body and mind naturally relaxed.

With my favorite books in front of me, I even started humming.

I began examining the titles of the lined-up books.

“This seems to be mainly history books.”

『History of the Rembrandt Empire』

『The Brilliant Life of First Emperor Albert Rembrandt』

『The Pact Between Rembrandt and the Dragons』

It seemed this empire’s name was Rembrandt.

Seeing mentions of dragons and pacts… is this a world with dragons?

But there was no way I, who couldn’t even memorize the long foreign-sounding names of novel characters and never even tried to, could figure out which novel this was from just the clue “Rembrandt Empire.”

‘Still, just in case, I should read some history books.’

I was about to take out 『History of the Rembrandt Empire』 and leave when.

“Huh?”

My casually scanning gaze stopped immediately.

There it was.

『The Empire’s Magically Strongest Super Awesome Invisible Dragon Roared』

What is that?

“Quite the attention-grabber…”

Invisible dragon? I can’t resist this.

The title alone smells like ‘fun stuff.’

‘Hehe. Two books.’

I also pulled out 『The Empire’s Magically Strongest Super Awesome Invisible Dragon~』 and held it preciously in my arms.

A history book for study, and what appeared to be a novel for entertainment.

Good composition.

Perfect for parallel reading.

‘Somehow I feel enriched…’

Coming around the bookshelf, I saw Betty still sprawled out.

Seeing her nodding off, it seemed like it had been an intense schedule even for Betty with her solid muscles.

I felt somewhat sorry.

I need to sleep comfortably.

“Betty, let’s call it a day and head back.”

“Oh! Yes….”

Betty, who had been embarrassed about dozing off, wiped around her mouth.

Having been in such a dusty pit, the more Betty wiped, the dirtier her mouth became.

I wiped the soot from Betty’s cheek and said.

“I should give you a bath today.”

“What?! That’s nonsense! How could you wash me with those small hands! I was actually planning to give you a full-course massage today since you worked so hard.”

It was just a joke.

She jumped up so much that I missed the timing to respond.

Betty, who had gathered the wooden bucket and rags we used earlier, chattered on as she headed toward the door.

“The cottage’s bathroom is too cold. There happens to be a guest bathroom nearby, so if it’s alright with you, how about using that place today?”

“Would that be okay?”

Well, true. The cottage was nice and all, but the only heating was the fireplace.

As for water, we had to boil it over the fireplace fire and then add cold water to adjust the temperature.

Every time I bathed, I missed Korea’s heating system.

Even the smallest studio apartment had heating coils under the bathroom floor, so it was always warm.

So honestly… my heart was swayed by the mention of a proper bathroom!

Betty, who witnessed my pupils shaking, giggled like a sly courtier and whispered.

“My lady, you are the Grand Duchess. Would there be any problem with the Grand Duchess using the Duke’s Castle’s bathroom?”

…Why is your tone suddenly like that?

But instead of objecting, I tilted my head pretending to ponder seriously.

“Hmm…. But I was told not to draw attention.”

“Do you mean His Grace the Grand Duke’s words? His Grace has stepped out for a while, so he probably won’t return today.”

“Really?”

And I was secretly pleased with Betty’s cunning tone.

She’s saying only what I want to hear. Pass!

Until now, I had foolishly followed whatever that man told me to do obediently.

But thinking about it, wasn’t I quite well-behaved for a romance novel character who just got possessed?

The Grand Duke was honestly ridiculous too.

Who is he to tell me whether to draw attention or not? I don’t particularly want to get involved with him either!

I also thought I had been too well-mannered until now.

More honestly speaking, right now I desperately wanted to soak my body lazily in hot water!

As my contemplation dragged on, Betty, who had exited sly courtier mode, delivered the final blow.

“If it really bothers you… shall we secretly use it? It’s in a corner where people rarely come and go.”

“What?”

Are you suggesting we sneak into a bathroom of all things?

“Great!”

What a delightful proposal!

“Haha!”

“Hehe!”

It was when Betty and I, having made the perfect plan, giggled as we threw open the library door.

“Huh?”

We found our path completely blocked by an unexpected group’s appearance.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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