Chapter 01 …

1. I’m the Daughter of a Scoundrel?

Marquis Leonardo Shablin was the anomaly and the troublemaker of the Shablin Ducal House.

His skin was as white and radiant as fresh snow, his eyes a dazzling gold like molten sunlight, and his body so long and beautifully sculpted it looked as if the greatest sculptor of the Empire had shaped him purely for temptation.

And then there were his silver flowing long locks and striking features that could supposedly blind anyone at first glance…

As he grew older, rumors about his beauty spread throughout the Empire.

So many marriage proposals arrived—written by people who claimed they fell in love at first sight—that they could fill an entire mansion.

However, despite all the attention, Marquis Leo remained indifferent and devoted himself solely to academics.

He avoided drinking, dancing, gambling, and women. Instead, he actively pursued moral causes, enjoyed clean sports, and donated generously. In short, he lived a model life of noblesse oblige.

At that point, everyone had the same question:

Would there ever be a woman worthy of that perfect cold-hearted beauty?

Then, at twenty-two, he finally took a wife. But their marriage remained distant and cold.

And then something unbelievable happened.

After his wife gave birth and died, Leonardo Shablin changed completely.

Into an absolute scoundrel beyond imagination.

“Am I seriously insane?”

In the mirror, a young girl and I stared directly at each other.

Eyes as clear and pure as flowing aurora light, and hair a deeper violet version of that same mysterious glow.

A face so adorable it made you instinctively wonder—whose daughter is this?

I lifted my hands and stretched my cheeks.

The girl in the mirror copied me exactly.

Then she even slapped her own cheeks with her tiny hands.

Smack!

“Ah! It huuurts…”

I clutched my soft, rice-cake-like cheeks in confusion.

Did I really become EruSha Shablin?

Even after sleeping and waking again and again, I was still EruSha Shablin.

Who is EruSha Shablin?

She was an extra in the romance fantasy novel “Who Is the Heir?”—the daughter of a scoundrel father who was eventually exiled from his family and died meaninglessly.

Luckily, the last book I had read before dying was that very novel, so I remembered it clearly.

Although EruSha never even had a single line of dialogue, her father played a significant role in the early story.

The original heir of the main family.

Leonardo Shablin.

“Who Is the Heir?” was a tragic story about a succession battle within the Shablin Ducal House.

There wasn’t a single happy character. Most died. I had unknowingly read a depressing tragedy and suffered trauma afterward.

Leonardo was the eldest son of the Shablin Ducal House and the rightful heir. Yet he drowned himself in alcohol and completely ignored both family affairs and even his only daughter.

Every time he went outside, he got into fights, and the Duke—Shurman Shablin—was constantly holding his head in frustration.

He also wasted the family’s wealth like it was nothing.

After enduring his eldest son’s disgrace for five years, the Duke finally exiled him.

And the moment Leonardo crossed the estate gate, he was hit by a rushing carriage and died instantly.

EruSha, who was with him, also died at just five years old.

And now I’ve become that scoundrel’s daughter?

This is insane!

I screamed internally, clutching my cheeks.

Reincarnation was fine. Even possession was fine.

But why did I become this kind of character?

Why not the daughter of some powerful hidden mastermind? Or a feared tyrant emperor’s child?

Why the daughter of a certified disgrace?!

“Ah, Lady EruSha! There you are!”

The door opened, and Evote, EruSha’s personal maid, walked in.

She was the only maid who had stayed by EruSha’s side.

Five years ago, Leonardo Shablin had assigned a maid to EruSha, and Evote had volunteered.

Because she adored EruSha.

She considered EruSha the only blessing in the ducal house. That was why she had stayed by her side all this time.

After EruSha was left alone in the empty mansion with Evote, Leonardo stopped visiting her entirely and even ordered that she not be brought to his attention.

As a year passed, then five, EruSha slowly became someone who didn’t exist in the household.

“What were you doing? Ah, looking in the mirror? Of course, even you must think you’re incredibly cute. If I were you, I’d probably live inside a mirror too. Hohoho.”

“……”

Yeah, no.

Even though my soul had suddenly taken over this adorable child, her appearance truly was angelic.

But what was the point? She was going to die at five years old anyway.

“So, my lady, shall we go for another walk? Or maybe we can start going together once a week?”

“Who’s Evote again?”

“Pardon?”

My voice came out cutely distorted due to the child’s small mouth.

At that moment, I felt an intense survival instinct.

If I do nothing, I’ll die in three months.

According to the original story, there were less than three months before EruSha and her father were exiled.

And just as expected, Evote’s reaction was suspicious.

This maid has been secretly taking money using EruSha.

In the original story, this was eventually exposed to the Duke, leading to EruSha and her father’s exile.

But that wasn’t the only reason.

Leonardo Shablin had committed countless other atrocities, ruining the family’s honor and wasting its fortune.

Eventually, Duke Shurman had no choice but to cast them out.

“I know everything. You’re taking… back money and using me to meet those women, right?”

“H-Huh?! H-How did you know?!”

Evote’s face turned pale with shock.

“Every woman I meet only talks about Dad. How could I not know?”

In the original story, EruSha thought those meetings were coincidences.

Her father, despite his scoundrel reputation, was extremely attractive and constantly pursued by women.

They were basically obsessive fans of Leonardo Shablin.

Since they couldn’t approach him directly, they used EruSha and the maid to get close to the Shablin household and catch glimpses of him.

When the Duke eventually found out, it caused a massive scandal.

Evote had even been tortured and expelled during the crackdown on the servants.

Losing Evote right now was not an option.

“Do you want to see me die? If my grandfather finds out, it’ll be a disaster!”

Would it work?

EruSha had no presence in the family. Even the Duke treated her like she didn’t exist. No one would fear a child her father didn’t even care about.

But maybe… Evote would care about my life?

Suddenly, Evote collapsed in panic and knelt down.

“I-I’m sorry! Young lady! I won’t do it again! Please forgive me!”

Oh?

It worked?

As expected, no one in the Shablin household dared to ignore the Duke.

“Please, I beg you! I only did it because I needed money for my grandmother’s medical bills… I never wanted to be separated from you…”

A soft sigh escaped me as I looked down at her tearful face.

As expected, Evote had her reasons. In the original story too, she only did this to support her sick grandmother.

“…Is what you said true?”

“Yes! I swear it! I won’t ever take money again or arrange meetings!”

Fine.

She had taken care of me for five years.

I’ll trust her, at least for now.

“Then… help me, and I’ll keep it a secret. I might even help you get the money you need.”

Her tears stopped.

She tilted her head in confusion.

“Lady… when did you start speaking so well?”

“Huh?”

Maybe my pronunciation was too clear for a five-year-old?

I rolled my eyes slightly and spoke more clumsily.

“S-so can you help me? I don’t wanna get kicked out by Grandpa…”

“Yes! Of course! I’ll help you with anything!”

Really?

When I still looked skeptical, Evote nodded firmly again and again.

“Really! I promise!”

Phew, thank goodness.

Only then did I feel slightly relieved.

If I wanted to survive here…

I need to fix my scoundrel father first.

And just like that, I had found my first ally.