IPPCB 11

Chapter 11

Judith had never once thought of the Master as a man.

How could she feel romantic attraction toward someone whose face and voice she didn’t even know? Whatever magical item he used, the sound of his voice always faded from her memory after some time. He didn’t even carry the faint scent of cologne.

In other words, there was not a single piece of information she could gather about him through sight, touch, smell, taste, or hearing.

And yet…

His body’s nice?

Now that they were pressed so close together in the darkness, she could clearly feel his warmth and the firm muscles beneath his clothes.

Judith swallowed dryly.

…Really nice?

She had known he was tall, but she hadn’t expected him to be built like this.

Normally he was hidden beneath that black, shapeless hooded outfit.

He must work out a lot…

Thank goodness it was dark. Otherwise, she wasn’t sure she could have kept her expression under control.

Standing together in the darkness made her suddenly aware that she was alone with a man.

Judith had spent her entire life too busy earning money to grow close to any man, and her heart pounded heavily in her chest.

And apparently, the Master was no different.

She could hear the tension in the way he carefully suppressed his breathing.

Wow. I’m actually conscious of his breathing. Maybe I should try not to breathe at all.

She didn’t know when things had become so awkward, but they continued walking in silence, holding onto each other.

The path twisted and turned unpredictably. There was no light whatsoever.

Judith was certain that even if someone brought her here again, she would never be able to find the route on her own.

The fact that the Master remembered all of it was impressive.

“Here.”

When her legs were beginning to ache, the Master whispered in a hoarse voice.

“We’ll arrive at Young Master Karl’s wardrobe in a moment.”

Good heavens—they were already inside the ducal estate?

Judith’s eyes widened in surprise.

She hadn’t even noticed when they entered the mansion. She never imagined there would be a secret passage connected directly to the outside.

As they continued walking hand in hand, the Master suddenly asked,

“Are you truly fine with having a marriage record with Ekian Mayus?”

“Hm?”

“You’re a noble. Nobles are still far less accepting of remarriage than commoners. Once you’ve been married and divorced…”

His voice lowered.

“It won’t be easy to find another respectable noble husband.”

He had already asked several times before, yet he sounded unable to believe the situation.

Judith answered slowly in the darkness.

“Well… I’m not sure whether this will make sense to you, but…”

She had spent countless hours alone with the Master.

Yet this felt different.

It felt as though they were speaking as one person to another.

“People always say nobles are different, that nobles must protect their dignity… but I was never taught any of that. Normally parents teach those things when their children are young, right? My parents weren’t very interested in me.”

“…”

“Especially my father, who should have told me about the history of House Ailan and our family traditions… He barely came home. I only saw him a handful of times.”

Her voice remained calm and composed as she spoke of her past.

“Maybe that’s why. When people talk about finding a good noble husband, I honestly don’t understand what they mean. Both my parents were nobles, but they certainly didn’t have a marriage worth admiring. In the end, my mother ran away with a servant.”

Judith thought of her mother.

In her memories, her mother was always with a handsome brown-haired servant.

Whenever she was with him, she looked genuinely happy.

So Judith had watched her from afar, like a stranger observing someone else’s life.

She had approached because she hated being alone and missed her mother.

But instinctively, she knew there was no place for her between those two people.

Watching them from a distance, she had often thought:

If Mother had been a commoner and married that servant instead, she would have been happier.

If that was how she felt, she should have gathered her courage and run away with him before marrying Father.

In the end, it was only after her noble husband died and left behind crushing debt that her mother finally found the courage to leave.

Because she had spent her life observing her mother’s happiness and unhappiness from afar, Judith had long ago decided she would never live that way.

“I don’t mind if he’s a commoner. As long as he’s responsible, takes care of his family, and is handsome.”

“…You’d be willing to marry a commoner?”

“Of course. Honestly, my father was a noble too, and if that’s what nobles are like, I’d rather not bother. The only things I inherited from him were debt and a title. If I’d been given a choice before birth, I wouldn’t have wanted either.”

Of course, if she could marry into a wealthy and powerful noble family, that would be wonderful.

But a title like that of House Ailan—an empty shell with nothing behind it—was completely worthless to her.

Most nobles treasured family honor and the continuation of their bloodline above all else.

Judith was the sole heir to the Ailan barony, yet whenever she thought about it, she felt strangely detached.

As though she herself should never have existed.

After remembering the events of the original story, that feeling had only grown stronger.

Among commoners, having been divorced was not such a terrible stain.

So Judith genuinely didn’t care if she ended up with a divorce on her record.

She thought the conversation might continue, but suddenly the Master stopped walking.

“We’re here.”

In the pitch-black darkness, he carefully guided her hand.

He knocked twice on something.

Knock. Knock.

Then—

Click.

A door opened.

A faint light spilled into the passage.

“It’s the wardrobe.”

Above them hung a row of children’s clothes swaying gently.

“From here, you should be able to get a rough view of what’s happening inside.”

He pointed toward a narrow gap in the wardrobe door.

Without discussing it, Judith and the Master both crowded against the opening.

Through the crack, they saw a little boy.

A golden-haired, blue-eyed child of eight sat hugging a teddy bear.

Judith’s eyes widened.

Oh my goodness, how is he this adorable?

The future villain looked so cute that it was impossible to imagine him tormenting the heroine and becoming obsessively attached to her.

His chubby cheeks, shining blond hair, and crystal-blue eyes made him look like a prince straight out of a fairy tale.

“He’s cute.”

The words slipped out before she could stop them.

Beside her, the Master nodded.

“Isn’t he?”

“Very. He’s unbelievably cute.”

Now she understood why Ekian doted on him so much.

Karl sat reading a book while clutching his teddy bear.

The two of them quietly watched the child together.

But naturally, there was only one viewing gap.

Which meant their bodies remained pressed together.

Judith cleared her throat and whispered,

“Master, nothing’s happening right now. Why don’t you take a break?”

“A break?”

“You could sit comfortably in that corner of the wardrobe and wait. We don’t both need to be standing here watching.”

“I’m fine. If anyone should rest, it’s you.”

“But if I move away, I won’t be able to see Young Master Karl.”

“…So when you told me to rest, what you really meant was that I should move because I’m in your way?”

“Caught me.”

“…”

The Master let out a disbelieving snort.

Judith answered proudly,

“You’re way too big. From my perspective, it’s incredibly uncomfortable.”

“I could say exactly the same thing. I’m extremely uncomfortable too.”

“What are you talking about? I’m much smaller than you. I can move around and there’s still plenty of space—”

“Ah, would you stop squirming? I’m telling you, it’s uncomfortable.”

“You say that, but you’re so huge you can’t even squirm.”

“There’s a perfectly good word called well-built. Why do you insist on calling me huge? And seriously—stop moving around.”

Even as they whispered and bickered, neither of them gave up their spot.

Once the argument started, Judith became stubborn too.

“I’m barely moving!”

“But when we’re standing this close—almost like you’re in my arms—and you keep moving…”

Suddenly, the Master cut himself off.

She heard a rough, unfiltered breath escape him.

The abrupt silence left Judith flustered as well.

W-We really are close…

At some point, the Master’s arm had effectively caged her in.

The veins on his forearm stood out.

As the atmosphere suddenly shifted, she became acutely aware of the sound of her own heartbeat.

“Hah.”

The Master let out a quiet sigh.