Chapter 10
The news that Lilia had been rude to Odelite spread through the theater company quite quickly.
Those who’d never thought well of Lilia’s usual behavior secretly felt satisfied, but Odelite had no particular interest in their thoughts.
What dominated her mind these past few days was solely one thing—the question of whether Cherdian had also traveled back in time. But no matter how much she questioned it, there was no way to prove that hypothesis.
Eventually, after entering the theater company, she spent three days alone in contemplation.
This was possible because the director had sent word for her to familiarize herself with the company during this time
But after three days passed, she was introduced to other theater company members along with the message that she needed to formally begin studying and working.
“The director asked you to come to the conference room. You’ve already memorized the company’s layout these past few days, right?”
The moment Marien, who’d come to deliver the message with a prim face, left the room, Odelite emerged from her thoughts. She temporarily set aside the thoughts that had been tormenting her these past days and slowly went to the conference room as Marien had instructed.
And the moment she entered the room, various gazes poured down on her.
Odelite maintained a calm attitude, seemingly having expected this.
That made sense—cases of women working at theater companies were almost nonexistent except for actresses, and even if they did work at companies, most did menial work or at best served in supporting roles if they were lucky.
She greeted those in the room politely. Then someone stood up.
“Lady Seidwin, it’s an honor to meet you like this. I’ve heard rumors that the lady of House Seidwin has outstanding artistic talent, and I’ve wanted to meet you someday.”
At his quite blatant goodwill, Odelite also smiled brightly. The young man pulled out a chair for Odelite. She nodded lightly.
“Thank you.”
Odelite sat in the chair with a calm smile. The gazes of the remaining two men fixed on her. One was someone who received the king’s greatest favor even at the Royal Theater Company.
She’d heard that counting just the plays he’d presented before the king in his youth was already difficult with two hands. He stared at her with a quite disapproving gaze.
Gently dismissing that gaze and turning her eyes to the man beside him, he turned his head with an uninterested face.
Then the director, who’d been watching all this, spoke indifferently.
“Doesn’t seem like you’re very welcome. Well, you expected this much, right?”
Odelite smiled calmly. She’d expected this level of treatment, so it wasn’t surprising. Then the director continued.
“So, Seidwin, you said you’ve never properly learned to write before?”
“All I did was read scripts by playwrights at the theater district. And if I had questions, I asked them.”
“No wonder the script was terrible.”
At Odelite’s answer, a middle-aged man sitting diagonally clicked his tongue. It was clear he didn’t think well of Odelite.
But then, the young man sitting next to Odelite spoke with a bright smile.
“Lord Haviton, there’s no need to embarrass her like that. Besides, in my opinion, that script was much better than my first one.”
“That’s because your first one sucked so much, Delis.”
“My, you say hurtful things without batting an eye. Ah, Lady Seidwin, don’t worry too much. Lord Haviton has worked at this company for so long that he has stubborn aspects like an old man. In my opinion, your script was quite excellent.”
The young man smiled brightly. But instead of thanking him, Odelite asked Lord Haviton.
“Could you point out the problems with my script? In your view, what was the biggest issue?”
“The entire script was a mess. Especially the introduction that starts all the events was the biggest problem. The protagonist, a playboy of high society who lived dissolutely, suddenly decides on revenge because his usually disdained, unsophisticated lover is r*ped and commits s*icide? Can’t you start a story without someone getting r*ped and dying?”
Odelite laughed despite knowing she shouldn’t.
At his blatant words, Delis touched his forehead like he’d expected this, but Odelite actually quite agreed with what he said. She’d written this script when she was seventeen.
Since she’d traveled back in time, it was actually a script written just over a year ago, but her current mental age was ten years after writing this script.
Seeing her first script from ten years ago was novel. Especially the part where the protagonist, who’d ignored his lover calling her unsophisticated, held her corpse and shed tears was embarrassing even for her to watch.
The protagonist even spent the entire four-hour revenge play telling his female colleague how perfect his lover had been. And after the revenge play ended, he married his colleague and went to his dead lover to pour out an earnest monologue. That she was the most perfect woman in his life.
Seventeen-year-old Odelite had wept with emotion while watching her script. However, twenty-seven-year-old Odelite found her protagonist utterly detestable.
In the end, sincerity that failed to reach its intended audience was worse than nothing, and those final tears amounted to nothing more than self-pity.
Of course, regretting was preferable to feeling nothing at all; even so, wasn’t the other person already in shambles?
‘Besides, for someone repenting, he marries his colleague and lives well…’
Thinking that, her expression shifted in an odd way. Whatever he made of it, Delis appeared slightly uneasy. Just then, the director, who had been observing them, broke the silence and spoke.
“Do you understand now, Seidwin?”
“Ah, yes. Actually, I was thinking the same thing.”
“It’s too late to say that now. Now do you understand how terrible you are?”
“Yes. Thank you.”
“Good that you understand. Then learn properly now. Lord Haviton, I’ll leave her to you from now on. Seidwin, not just anyone can have Lord Haviton as a teacher, so do it properly.”
Odelite, who had been smiling faintly, was startled by the director’s words. Lord Haviton was undoubtedly an exceptional playwright, yet she had never imagined he would become her teacher.
The capital’s theater companies were notoriously conservative, and until now, the only playwright to take on a female disciple was Lord Imburier, who had trained Georgia Ner—a woman who had disguised herself as a man to conceal her identity.
While a few others had accepted female disciples, those arrangements were more akin to employment than a true master-disciple relationship.
Contrary to Odelite’s assumptions, however, Lord Haviton simply wore an unpleasant expression and refrained from voicing any objections to the director’s suggestion.
Then suddenly Delis spoke with a bright smile.
“Lady Seidwin, as a colleague, as a fellow disciple, I look forward to working with you.”
She was stunned by the unexpected stroke of good fortune.
Soon after, she broke into a wide smile and took Delis’s hand. It was certainly surprising, yet good fortune was still good fortune, no matter how sudden.
Three days after entering the theater company, she enrolled as Lord Haviton’s student.
* * *
‘And not long after, Odelite became a renowned playwright in the capital.’
…How nice would it be if things flowed that way?
Odelite let out a hollow laugh as she stared at the paper covered in red marks. Had the past ten years done nothing for her?
The short script she had written over the past few days was met with the scathing critique of “Still utterly shallow!”
What frustrated her even more was that, deep down, she couldn’t deny the truth in his words.
She had grown somewhat conceited, believing that a decade of experience had made her better, only to have even that confidence shattered.
Then again, if life experience alone guaranteed great writing, wouldn’t every elderly person in the world have become a playwright by now?
“Haah.”
Just because she’d regressed didn’t mean she suddenly became a national hero.
Nevertheless, she liked this current time better than when she’d roamed high society receiving everyone’s praise in the past.
‘Is this also that man’s grace?’
Odelite’s tongue tasted bitter, so she closed her mouth tightly.
After days of agonizing, she’d eventually considered the possibility that perhaps he’d also traveled back in time with her to the past.
And the conclusion was that every single one of his strange behaviors finally made quite a bit of sense.
Eventually, she thought she must make time someday to definitely ask him about the whole story. At least that way, it seemed she could find some stability.
As a day passed like that and evening approached, Odelite went out for the first time in a while.
After coming to the capital, she’d been so busy and even agonized over Cherdian’s matter, so she realized that she’d never enjoyed herself alone in the capital.
As befitting the capital’s central street, Central Street was extremely splendid.
In step with Central Street’s nightlife that had begun in earnest, the theater was packed with people today too.
Walking slowly between people performing tricks on the street and brilliant lights sparkling, she suddenly realized she was unconsciously heading toward the end of the theater district.
Unlike the theater company belonging to Adelgart, the place lined with mostly modest buildings was somewhere Odelite had once quite liked.
‘Did I miss this place without knowing it?’
Though this theater wasn’t so unfamiliar to her eighteen-year-old self, her current self hadn’t set foot here in quite a while. Especially after that ‘scandal,’ she’d been too scared to walk this small theater street anymore.
Remembering that, she smiled bitterly.
Soon Odelite slowly walked. She wondered what would have happened if her previous self had continued to stay here, but that was actually impossible. These scattered footsteps she’d left were always traces of her best efforts.
Thinking that and continuing to walk leisurely through the alley, it happened.
Suddenly, a voice calling her came from behind.
“Odelite?”
Odelite turned her head.
Was there someone she knew in the capital? Murmuring inwardly, she was shocked at the sight of the man who entered her vision. The fair, neat man was exactly as she remembered.
Unlike Cherdian’s intimidating atmosphere that pressed down on people, the man was tall and well-built but gave off a quite gentle atmosphere.
Odelite hesitated for a moment, not knowing how to react, then smiled.
“Wiston.”
Wiston Javerne, the man who’d almost become Odelite’s colleague when she was unmarried, then had a scandal after she married.
Whether by coincidence or not, Odelite had met him again in the theater district.
The moment Odelite saw him, past memories came to mind and she unconsciously tensed. But after looking back at his innocent appearance and her own situation, she relaxed.
The present was clearly different from the past. Moreover, he’d done nothing wrong. He’d merely shown friendliness toward her—what crime was that?
When Odelite recognized him, Wiston approached her with an innocent smile.
“It’s been a while. Have you been well?”
“Yeah. How about you?”
“Me? Well, all I do is roam the theater district like an idle gentleman. I came to see a play today. They’re doing ‘Charmant’s Lover’ at the Fiegar Theater.”
“Ah—”
Odelite knew that play. It was a masterpiece that even those who didn’t know theater would have heard the title of.
She’d wanted to see it at least once, but the timing never worked out and she’d missed the opportunity. After marriage, there were even fewer opportunities since Cherdian wouldn’t have been pleased with her going to small theaters.
“I see. You came to see that?”
Though somewhat awkward, Odelite eventually smiled.
