Chapter 3

Sob sob.
“To think Lady Cillia has finally come to her senses… This is all thanks to Young Master Aksion… Ohhh…”

After I kicked Elstern—the mage who recited my entire dark history—back to the Magic Tower, and finally soothed crying Aksion…

Now another person was crying.

Our family butler, Grandpa Carl.

“Hoooh… For Lady Cillia, who refused to inherit the family headship and instead spent every day praising the beauty of farming… to welcome a guest like this! Unbelievable!”

“……”

“When you adopted Young Master Aksion, this old butler even wondered… ‘Could it be… she needed new labor for the fields?!’”

…Really?
Ugh.

Just how hardcore a farming maniac was this body?! Even I was getting scared of her reputation.

“I—I’m going to focus all my energy on raising Aksion now. So let’s adjust my farming schedule for a while.”

If not, I might really die in seven years.

“Good heavens… This old man can die without regrets now. To think those words would come from your mouth—reducing farming time!”

Every time Carl opened his mouth, he called out to the heavens so loudly that I was starting to develop a headache.

I ignored him and sank into thought.

How I raised Aksion would determine my fate.

If I raised him badly, it’s the instant death route.
If I raised him happy and healthy → happy ending.

So my goal was clear: raise Aksion WELL. Perfectly. Heroically.

With firm determination, I clenched my fist.

“Anyway! Aksion comes first! Grandpa Carl, got it?”

“Yes!”

That was yesterday.
All full of confidence.

By the next day, I hit my first wall.

“WAAAAAH!”

“There, there, baby, don’t cry—”

“UWAAAAAH!”

“H-huuh… Aksiooon… sniff… sob…”

Raising a baby was no joke.

Aksion wouldn’t sleep, just cried endlessly, and by that point even the sky looked yellow to me.

Was I worried he might die?
Honestly… no.

‘He has a dragon’s protection. He’s not dying from crying.’

What I did fear was…

‘Is he building up resentment toward me with every cry? Am I stacking points on my Bad Ending Route…?’

After wrestling with Aksion forever, I collapsed beside him like a tragic drama heroine.

“Aga-sshi, that’s why we should hire a wet nurse.”

“No.”

About a week in, Carl cautiously suggested we hire one.

And I firmly rejected the idea.

In this world, wet nurses were considered essential for noble families.
Even the memories of this body said so.

But I!
I was a Korean who used to freak out whenever an American TV show showed newborns sleeping alone in another room.

And this novel’s author was Korean too!
Meaning: our cultural instincts match.

That meant hiring a wet nurse was extremely likely to add points toward Aksion’s trauma and murder route.

‘In a K-roman, a wet nurse is basically…’

Someone who—

■ abuses the male lead as a child
■ brainwashes him
■ makes him loyal only to her
■ sabotages his relationship with the heroine

YEAH.
A professional villain slot.

Knowing that, how could I dare hire one?

“Waaaah!”

“Sniff… Look here, peekaboo-buhuhu… sniff…”

“Agaaaassshiiiii… please don’t cry… if you cry, then this old man will… sniff…”

Aksion cried, I cried while rocking him, and Carl cried watching me cry.

My bedroom—now half nursery—echoed with nonstop wailing.

After another week of this, I became homesick.

‘Uuugh. If I were in Korea right now, I’d join a mom-cafe online and ask everything…’

Wait.

Mom, cafe?

Why didn’t I think of that earlier?

***

Carl gathered every childcare book he could find, but they were just theoretical manuals—not the lived wisdom I needed.

What I needed was real mothers. Actual advice. Veteran moms.

So one early morning, after Aksion finally slept, I put on my shabby farmer clothes, worn straw hat, and slung a sickle over my shoulder, and headed to the fields behind the estate.

“Damn it.”

As soon as I stepped into the fields—with a towel around my neck—I felt it.

That surge of life.
Energy coursing through my veins.
Like I’d downed two coffees.
My heart racing, my body trembling with joy—

The farming maniac’s bliss.

This feeling made swear words automatically slip out of my mouth.

‘A noble lady corrupted by the joy of farming… what kind of person is this?’

The place I headed was land owned by the Viscountcy but maintained by the residents.

The deal:
The people could use the fields freely, and in return, they’d lend labor to the viscountcy when needed.

Thankfully, there was no current work demand, so people were here tending their crops for themselves.

Even at dawn, the field was busy.
Everyone wore shabby work clothes and straw hats—just like me.

I approached a group of women.

“Hello.”

“Oh? Haven’t seen you before, newbie?”

A group of women around their 40s lifted their heads from pulling weeds.

“Yes. I moved to the Evanroir territory not long ago, so it’s probably your first time seeing me.”

“Oh my, I see. Such a young thing being so diligent at dawn! Are you married?”

They were definitely commoners—no noble would ask so directly.

But as someone raised among Korean aunties who ask about your salary and number of spoons at home, this was nostalgic.

And useful for my plan.

“Haha, yes. I even have a child.”

“Oh my! Boy or girl?”

“A boy.”

Kyaaa—
The aunties swarmed around me instantly.

“Wow, the newbie’s got skills! Look at her weed-pulling speed!”

I already knew this body’s farming stat was maxed out.

So I put on a show—yanking root vegetables out with one graceful tug.
The women cheered like I was performing magic.

Then, when the mood was warm, I casually dropped my real topic.

“So um… actually…”

“Yes, yes, pretty newbie, go on.”

“The thing is, I’m raising the baby alone.”

“Oh dear! Really? That must be hard.”

“Yes… It’s my first child, and as I said, I just moved here, so I have no acquaintances.”

The aunties immediately stopped working and gathered around again, faces full of sympathy.

“He keeps crying and crying… He won’t sleep, and even when I soothe him, he cries more… And I’m not even sure if I’m changing his diaper the right way…”

They all nodded vigorously in empathy.

“Oh yes, that happens. You’re a beginner mom. My first child was exactly like that—I struggled a lot.”

“Right, right. When the baby cried, I cried with her!”

One woman patted my shoulder gently, eyes misty with shared trauma.

“If you’re not sure, ask us anytime. We gather here around this time every day. It’s hard not knowing anything, especially when you can’t afford a wet nurse like nobles. Everyone goes through it.”

“That’s right. Why don’t you join us from now on? We like you already!”

“R-really?”

“Outwardly,” I asked shyly.
Inside?

Hoohoohoo. They’ve accepted me.

I secretly made a victory sign with my fingers.

“Of course! By the way, newbie mom, what’s your name?”

“M-my… name?”

“Yes! Tell us. We’ll introduce ourselves too.”

Their sparkly expectant eyes stared at me.

I gulped.

My name—oh no, I didn’t prepare one!

“Uh… um… my name is…”

“Yes?”

“Uh… Aksion-mom.”

“…Hm?”

“Call me Aksion-mom.”

The women blinked.

“Aksion-mom? That’s… unique.”

“Ahaha… yes, I came from the eastern region… haha…”

And thus, with the birth of my alter ego “Aksion-mom,”

Aksion grew up healthily with the aunties’ collective wisdom.

And my affection for him grew right alongside.