TOML CH 03

“I’m repenting, Sister Lucy.”

“Repenting?”

“I feel like I need to apologize to those people I criticized for being obsessed with money. I’m s-sorry, b-but… getting only one epic item out of a hundred pulls was still your fault!”

After years of painstaking effort, the trading company gradually stabilized without having to walk the fine line between legality and illegality like it had under the former Viscount Felice.

I had struggled and persevered, doing everything I could to adapt and survive in this world.

Before I knew it, seven years had passed.

I had finally paid off all the debts sometime last year.

At first, I had worked simply because I needed to make a living.

But as sales gradually increased and I grew more attached to the trading company, I began to enjoy the work too.

People did whisper behind my back, calling me a solitary spider who had devoured her husband and stolen his title.

But whatever.

What was I supposed to do about it?

Rebecca—the real Rebecca, the one whose body I had possessed—had clearly tried to stop the former Viscount Felice from setting sail.

He was the one who ignored her warnings.

And it wasn’t like I had possessed Rebecca’s body because I wanted to.

I was a victim too.

The day I decided to live as Rebecca Felice, I made a resolution:

If working hard enough to survive counts as a crime, then I’ll work even harder and hope the judge takes that into consideration.

Though these days, whenever I work overtime like this every single day, I want to sell the whole trading company, buy a villa in some peaceful resort, and spend the rest of my life doing absolutely nothing.

Following the flow of my thoughts, I calculated how much I could reasonably get if I sold the trading company and how much money I would need for retirement.

“How much was that two-story villa in Haran, the famous resort town? I think I saw one listed for sale before.”

I absentmindedly scribbled a few numbers with the hand that wasn’t holding my quill.

Then I picked up a sheet of paper lying on my desk.

Just as I was about to grab my quill properly, take some notes, and get completely absorbed in my retirement plans, the writing on the document caught my eye.

“Gasp! This is a settlement report!”

I nearly panicked like an office worker who was about to enter incorrect data into an important company document with no backup copy and accidentally hit save.

I immediately put down my quill.

Thanks to that, I woke up completely, as if someone had thrown a bucket of cold water over me.

They say spilling coffee on yourself is more effective at waking you up than actually drinking it.

“Ugh. I need to focus, finish my work, and then rest. This won’t do.”

Perhaps because I was exhausted, random thoughts kept creeping into my head.

I shook my head vigorously, trying to drive them away.

“Wow. It’s finally over.”

This was a victory for humanity.

I finished signing the last document and dramatically collapsed.

Even though I had drunk several cups of strongly brewed tea, sleep was still overwhelming me.

I used to sleep at least five hours a day even when I was a senior in high school.

If I added up all the hours I had slept throughout this entire week, I doubt it would even exceed twenty.

I collapsed face-first onto the desk, which I had barely cleared of the documents.

“Ooof. I’m dying.”

Even though I had done nothing but sit and process paperwork, my entire body ached as though I had participated in a sports festival the day before.

It was the aftermath of borrowing energy from my future self through caffeine.

The moment I briefly closed my stiff, dry eyes, sleep came rushing in as though it had been waiting for its chance.

If I let my guard down even slightly, I felt like I would pass out right there.

I gathered the last scraps of my energy and forced my eyelids open enough to look outside the window.

It was still dark.

It must be several hours before sunrise.

My appointment was around lunchtime, so I still had some time.

If I assume it’s around five in the morning, I can sleep for about four hours after accounting for getting ready.

After calculating how much time remained before my appointment, I decided to close my eyes for just a little while.

Just a little…

A few hours later.

I had fallen asleep in an uncomfortable position while completely exhausted, but when I opened my eyes, I felt incredibly refreshed.

As if I had gotten the deepest, most satisfying sleep in ages.

…Something was definitely wrong.

According to the accumulated big data of the human body over several decades, this situation could only mean one thing.

I was late.

And of all things, I was late for an extremely important appointment.

My eyes flew open.

“DATE!”

“Bill, a little faster.”

The scenery flashing past the carriage window told me that the coachman, Bill, was doing his absolute best to hurry.

But I was still impatient.

“Yes, yes.”

After I urged him to hurry several times, even Bill’s replies gradually became less enthusiastic.

Sorry, Bill.

I’ll make it up to you later with some proper financial compensation.

I apologized to him internally while cheering on his speeding.

Thank goodness this country has neither traffic lights nor traffic laws!

My nagging must have paid off because we covered a distance that normally took thirty minutes in less than twenty.

I jumped out before the carriage had even come to a complete stop.

I heard Bill’s startled voice behind me.

“Whoa, Madam—!”

But I ignored him.

I had gotten the highest grade in physical education for all twelve years of school.

Perfect landing.

“Phew.”

I had arrived at the townhouse on the outskirts of the capital, where Theo and I usually went on our dates.

Today, too, we were supposed to meet at the townhouse before going to the opera together.

I quickly scanned the stables as I ran inside.

Fortunately, Theo hadn’t already left.

His carriage was still there.

“Theo, are you here?”

I deliberately called out in a loud voice, breaking the silence of the quiet building.

When I stepped inside, the place was dark.

Theo, who normally would have come out to greet me after hearing my footsteps, was nowhere to be seen.

He must have been thoroughly upset.

And honestly, he had every right to be.

Lately, I had been late to our dates several times because of work, and I had even canceled on him altogether on occasion.

The fact that he had let all of that slide without a single complaint was actually pretty amazing.

That was why I had been determined not to be late today.

If I had known I was going to oversleep like this, I should have just come to the townhouse and slept here.

No, wait.

I can sleep when I’m dead!

I headed toward the small drawing room where Theo spent most of his time, turning on the magical lights along the hallway one by one.

Fortunately, he wasn’t angry enough to make me feel like I wasn’t even allowed to look at him.

The door to the drawing room was slightly open, almost as if inviting me inside.

I entered as quietly as possible, making sure not to make a sound.

And there he was.

Theo was sitting on the sofa with his arms crossed.

He must have heard me come in, but instead of greeting me, he merely glanced at me once before turning his head away.

His attitude clearly said that he wasn’t going to let me off easily this time.

I approached him first, putting as much remorse as possible into my voice.

“You waited a long time, didn’t you? I’m sorry. I accidentally fell asleep.”

While apologizing profusely with my words, I quickly moved closer to Theo, sat beside him, and wrapped my arms around him.

I cautiously checked his reaction.

It wasn’t bad.

Encouraged by that, I gently stroked his soft, silky golden hair and caressed his cheek whenever my hand happened to reach it.

Theo loved exactly this kind of ticklish, adorable physical affection.

Whenever I stroked his hair like this, his eyes would narrow like a contented cat, and he would make the most pleased expression.

But today, Theo still looked downcast.

Time to change strategies.

I immediately bowed my head and began begging for forgiveness.

“I really was wrong.”

After apologizing and trying to comfort him for quite a while, he finally looked me in the eyes.

But he still hadn’t completely calmed down.

His lips, which usually curved into a smile whenever he looked at me, were pressed into a straight line.

Theo gazed at me for a moment with sorrowful eyes, as if he had a lot to say but was holding it all back.

Then he finally opened his mouth.

“That’s too much.”

His tone was filled with resentment, as though he were finally letting out words he had been desperately suppressing.

After throwing out those few words, Theo turned his head away again.

I stopped stroking his hair and froze like a cartoon character hit by a sudden thunderbolt.

My sweet little kitty, who always had nothing but kind and beautiful words to say, had just told me, “That’s too much.”

I really am a terrible person.

I was drowning in guilt like a butler who had come home late after a company dinner and then accidentally stepped on the tail of his master, who had been meowing at him in complaint.

“I’m sorry. I really am sorry. Let’s go to the opera we were planning to see today next time. When should we go? Tomorrow? The day after?”

For the moment, I shoved the piles of paperwork that were undoubtedly continuing to grow on my office desk into a distant corner of my mind.

Theo says he’s upset with me. What could possibly be more important than the company?!

“Rebecca, you’re busy.”

Theo spoke in an extremely dejected voice, clearly unconvinced by my bravado.

He must have been very hurt because tears welled up in his warm blue eyes, which reminded me of the sea at a resort.

Theo widened his eyes for a moment, trying to hold back his tears.

Then he lightly bit his plump, reddish lips before meeting my gaze with moist eyes, as if waiting for my answer.

I could almost hear a voice in my ears asking,

“Is it work? Or me?”

I had made my cute, pretty, lovely little kitty cry.

Damn this awful company.

Damn me.

I felt like I should immediately spread a mat on the ground and perform a formal apology ceremony.

For a moment, I even considered shutting down the trading company altogether.

After all, I had enough wealth by now to spend the rest of my life living comfortably without working.

What am I trying to gain by chasing wealth and status anyway?

Becoming unemployed and spending all day with my master was every butler’s(?) dream.

No. I need to earn more if I want to buy delicious food for our Theo and dress him in pretty clothes.

But I wasn’t rich enough to give Theo everything he wanted without ever having to worry about money.

So my impulse to quit quickly faded.

Looking at Theo, who had come wearing a tunic shirt made from luxurious-quality fabric with a pattern that was already about four years out of fashion, I made a solemn decision to bury my bones in the trading company.

Instead, I engraved a shopping schedule for Theo in bold red calligraphy inside one corner of my brain.

Then I put even more sincerity into comforting him.

“No, I’m not busy. I always have time to see our Theo.”

“……”

“I missed you so much during those ten days.”

“How much?”

“As much as the sky and the earth. I almost cried because I missed you so much.”

Perhaps my efforts worked because Theo finally leaned into my arms and murmured,

“I missed you too.”

I patted Theo’s back and stroked his hair as his large body burrowed into my relatively small embrace.

His weight was a little—or actually, quite frankly, very—heavy as he leaned against me.

But I couldn’t ruin the mood now that he was finally starting to forgive me, so I endured it while pretending I was doing weight training.