That Villainess Is A Man

The main quarters at the western end of the estate felt cold and serious like a funeral hall, I was brought there and I wasn’t able to rid myself of the stiff expression on my face that mimicked a robot’s.

It was the most magnificent and splendidly decorated place I’ve ever seen on the large grounds of the already amazing estate.

“Lord, I have brought Becky Harvina the slave.”

“Well, bring her in.”

After we were given permission, I went inside quietly. Just like when I was in the office of the head maid, the room had a stiff atmosphere. Sitting behind the desk, there was a woman in her thirties. Perhaps this is the current Grand Duke, Altess May Bernum. For generations, the Bernum family was led by women, because of their special position as guardians of the Divine Spirit.

Since Bernum, the guardian and saintess who first tamed the spirit’s life, women are the only ones who are granted the positions as guardians. The Great Saintess is regarded as a very important woman historically.

‘I’ve read a lot of Romance Fantasies in my past life with this kind of setting.’

It was one of the few joys of my past life because there were many novels that I could read for free. I laughed because I must have been reborn into this fantasy world because I read about them so much.

‘And now, I have become a real Romance Fantasy character!

There was a time when I was excited about coming here to this world to start over alone, but unfortunately, there was no novel that I could think of from my memory that matches this world.

Since I was in an ambiguous position as the daughter of a fallen baron, there would have been nothing to earn from the novel world even if I brought knowledge of the future over anyway. But back to the matter at hand, the current Grand Duke, Duke Altess, is a very beautiful woman which makes sense since she is Liande’s mother.

Her blond hair and purple eyes, which were slightly darker than that of Liande, were also very attractive.

“It’s very nice to meet you. I’m Becky Harvina.”

“Good to see you. Did you meet with my daughter already?”

“Yes, madam.”

“Yes, she is a picky child, so it’s going to be hard to cope with her at times, but I look forward to your kind cooperation.”

“Yes, yes!”

I was rather confused when Liande referred to me as a toy, but the Duke Altess has been treating me as though I was brought in as her Daughter’s maid.

“Now you belong to the Bernum family. Don’t forget about it.”

She returned to her work as soon as she was satisfied with my understanding of the topic.

I get it!

“… yes, I will obey her unconditionally. I won’t forget my place.”

If I’m honest, even if what I said is embarrassing, I’ll say it willingly so they don’t plan to get rid of me right away, I don’t really care for my pride. Conservation of my life is my top priority, I plan to protect myself by accurately reading the mood. But she laughed when she heard my submissive pledge of allegiance rather than accepting it seriously.

“Well, I appreciate your enthusiasm. You just need to keep her healthy and happy until she becomes an adult.”

“….?”

“You can go now.”

I bowed my head and went out of the room because it was not the kind of situation where I could ask the Duke, my superior, any questions.

The maid who was waiting outside guided me to my place of residence for the foreseeable future.

“……… you are rather polite and calm, considering she brought you in as a toy.”

In the first place, it’s rather unusual that I even met the Grand Duke, she doesn’t have to meet a child who is being brought in as a maid personally.

And even now, this maid’s attitude toward me is rather refreshing. It’s like she is treating me as a guest rather than a slave.

I’m not sure, but in this family, the status of toys that the princess plays with must be high.

My residence was on the other side of the Grand Duke’s residence.

When I opened the door, there was a large drawing room where the sun shone very brightly and lit up the interior, and there were two rooms on opposite sides, symmetrically identical entrances were joined together by the drawing room.

“The room on the right is the space used by the princess. Don’t enter her room recklessly.”

“Yes, I understand. Then, should I use the left room?”

“That’s right.”

The maid opened the door for me. Beyond it, there was a bedroom, a dressing room, a tea room, there was also a connected bathroom and two spare rooms. The layout was well designed and very large.

I opened my mouth wide. It was too luxurious of a space for a young girl who had been bought with money.

The shabby baggage I brought was carried and arranged by the maid. However, I couldn’t see the point of unloading my luggage because the room is already full of various expensive items and high-end dresses.

“Then make yourself at home.”

The maid politely left the room after completing her tasks. I held in my excitement until after she left.

“I’m glad it is all done!”

The princess doesn’t seem to care for this kind of thing, but if she is treated so luxuriously and I receive similar care, then it wouldn’t be a bad idea to let her put a leash on me.

I skipped loudly and ran around the wide tea room, after that, I opened the window for no reason. Next, I closed it, took out a pretty dress, and put it on.

Finally, after throwing myself onto the fluffy bed, I was worried that this was not actually reality, but a dream instead.

“……my parent’s house doesn’t even remotely compare.”

I wonder if my parents are living happily with the money they received when they sold me. It would be nice if they were. I’m sorry that I’m the only one enjoying this kind of lavish treatment.

My parents dressed me in the best clothes we had before sending me away, hugged me tightly, kissed me on the cheeks, and cried. Although it may have been crocodile tears, they must have been at least a little sad. Tears started to flow for some reason, but it must be because of my tired yawning. Perhaps because I was very comfortable, soon I slowly drifted to sleep.

I suddenly felt a tinge of discomfort as I woke up rubbing my eyes. It seems like someone is next to me. I searched the side of the bed where I could feel the movement coming from with my bleary eyes, still tired from sleep. Through the blurriness, the shape of a blonde girl came into my view.

While thinking about whether it was a dream, my vision became clearer and clearer. A girl with a huge smile on her face was playing with and twisting some of my hair between her fingers.

“Are you awake now?”

Only then did I remember my suddenly changed circumstances. I was sold as a toy for the princess of the Grand Duchy, and I immediately fell asleep without a care upon seeing all of the luxurious things in my room and forgetting my responsibilities.

But as soon as I woke up, the princess with a gorgeous appearance was looking down at me. It’s bad for my heart! I tried to get up quickly, but I ended up screaming quite loudly.

The hair that Liande had been holding onto was pulled out and it hurt a lot. More than that, I think about ten strands of hair have been pulled out.

“What a waste of hair!”

Liande burst into laughter at the look on my face. While I shouted out my dismay absentmindedly.

“I’m sorry for sleeping like a log! I don’t know what I was thinking, but since I made you laugh, was it still an acceptable action as your toy? Forgive me for letting you see me in such a state!”

Liande smiled more and twirled her finger in my hair.

“It’s okay. It was fun watching you sleep. With all of the snoring and grinding your teeth.”

“Gee, really?”

“I’m just kidding.”

Seeing that the princess enjoys teasing me, I think my role as a toy has been decided.

“Oh, anyway. I’m sorry I fell asleep without waiting.”

“…I don’t really want to control a person’s basic needs. Or do you prefer being treated as less than a person?”

“No, I don’t!”

I smacked the bed out of frustration and indignation. Liande let go of my hair with a mischievous expression.

‘You already know my answer. You’re about the same age as me, but you treat me like a kid!’

“Let’s have dinner. Aren’t you hungry?

“Ah…”

Looking outside, the sun was slowly sinking below the horizon. I quickly got out of bed.

“I’m hungry!”

“I couldn’t give you anything because you were sleeping. Are there any foods you can’t eat?”

“There’s none! I could probably even eat the plate right now.”

My actions around Liande during this conversation have not been very ladylike but she hasn’t corrected me yet, instead, she just laughed like she thought they were all very funny.

At night after dinner, the maids gave me another bath.

After drying my hair, I wore some silk pajamas that looked more expensive than the dresses I had worn when I was in the barondom.

When I went to the drawing room, Liande was looking out the window with the lights turned off. I rushed to her side, wondering if there was anything interesting she was looking at.

“Are you not sleeping?”

“It’s time for kids like you to go to sleep. Good night.”

She spoke as if she were not a child. Anyway, she’s strangely precocious.

At first, I thought she had a terrible personality because she called me a toy, but except for that incident, she has acted fine. Her personality is rather indescribable and difficult to figure out.

I followed her gaze that was directed outside. The view is kinda boring because of the cloudy weather, but I could see the sparkles of red lights shining in the distance.

“Uh, what’s that? Is that a lightning bug?”

“Well, it’s a punishment, and it’s not a bug.”

Her answer was ambiguous, so I tilted my head.

“Do you like stars? Is that why you’re looking outside?”

“No. I don’t like them.”

“Why do you hate stars?”

When I looked at her as if she was strange, she raised the corners of her lips.

“Why, do you like them?”

“I’ve never thought about whether I like it or not.”

“It’s good to be so simple.”

Obviously, it wasn’t a compliment, but I showed off my characteristics that suit servitude.

“Thank you for the compliment!”

“……I’m being sarcastic.”

“I know!”

“What a twit.”

Liande turned away from the window and headed to her bedroom.

“Good night. Oh…right.”

She stopped in her tracks as if she had forgotten something, in a stern tone she told me.

“If you hear something strange outside your room when you sleep, ignore it. Also, you should never look outside.”

“Strange sound?”

“It happens in a mansion this old.”

I could only see her back from my perspective, so I couldn’t tell what kind of expression she was making. But…

“A ghost will come out.”

Her voice was very serious.

‘You’re just messing with me, aren’t you?’

That’s what I thought at first, but I couldn’t sleep even when I was lying on the bed.

It’s hard to fall asleep, one reason is probably because I took a nap earlier. It doesn’t help that I’m nervous about my current unfamiliar environment too, and now I can feel a chill running down my back because I heard about the ghost.

I didn’t really believe in ghosts in my first life, but this is a fantasy world with magic and divinity so it seems possible.

My fears grew bigger and bigger as I kept thinking about what to do if there is a ghost in my room. I was shivering under the covers and eventually fell asleep at some point. Though, before I could completely fall asleep I could hear a strange sound.

There was a groaning that seemed to be holding something in. It sounded like a quiet scream, but rather than letting it out, it felt like it was suppressed. It sounded like someone crying when I listened closely to it.

‘……who is it, are you a ghost?’

I got chills even though I was losing my battle with my sleepiness.

Never look outside

Liande’s words came to mind.

Eventually, I went back to sleep again with a blanket over my head.