Chapter 14
— Just trust me and wait, Aria! Do you know who your uncle is? Even the stiffest nobles will lose their minds when they see this!
— We’ll pay off the debt in no time, and then you won’t have to suffer like a dog anymore!
After boasting endlessly about how brilliantly he’d sell the jewelry, Xavier finally left the room.
But even then, his arrogance was unbearable. Acting as though he now held the upper hand, he strutted out with his chin lifted high — completely convinced that he was in control, simply because he had a box of jewels in hand.
‘When in fact, it’s the exact opposite.’
I crossed my legs, staring at the now-empty chair across from me.
One week from today — next Thursday — that was D-day.
‘How foolish.’
He thought he’d just grabbed a golden goose, when in truth he’d just locked a shackle around his own ankle.
‘Still, it’s too soon to relax.’
As idiotic as he looked, Xavier was still someone who’d crawled through the underworld. Who knew what schemes he might still have?
‘I’ll have to stay cautious.’
Until everything was over, I couldn’t afford to do anything reckless.
And…
‘I should recheck the people still working in the mansion.’
For as much greed as Xavier had, he was just as suspicious.
Even though he’d accepted my plan without much question, he might’ve left someone here to keep an eye on me.
‘Thankfully, there aren’t many servants left right now.’
The Renesti estate had two smaller annexes besides the main mansion where I stayed.
In the main building, excluding the kitchen staff, fewer than ten people remained. Even if I counted everyone stationed in both annexes, there were only about ten more.
That was exactly why I’d been able to hide Matthias in secret.
But I still needed to check — to make sure none of them were connected to Xavier.
After all, enemies often hid the closest.
‘Tonight I should ask Sofia to prepare writing paper.’
For something this important, a face-to-face meeting was better than a letter.
If Lady Odilon heard that there was something incriminating about her husband, she would surely agree to meet.
As I carefully went over my plans—
The tightly closed door suddenly burst open.
“Aria!”
A huge figure stormed in before I could react.
“?!”
Startled, I barely caught the weight that crashed into me — Matthias wrapped his arms tightly around my body.
My eyes went wide as saucers.
He held me so firmly that I could feel his heartbeat pounding against mine.
Then, realizing what he’d done, Matthias froze with a panicked look and quickly checked me over.
“Are you okay? I didn’t hurt you, did I?!”
“Wait— what are you— huh?!”
Behind him, Sofia came running, gasping for breath.
She froze in shock at the sight of us tangled together.
Moments later, after finally catching my breath, I looked up — first at the stunned Sofia, then at the man still clinging to me.
“Explain. Now.”
“…Yes, ma’am.”
Contrary to what I expected, Matthias’s sudden intrusion into the parlor had a rather simple reason.
“You came because you were worried about me?”
“…Yeah.”
He muttered it quietly, shoulders slumped. At least he seemed aware that barging in was wrong, because he added a small, guilty, “I’m sorry.”
Still — what could I say when he came out of concern for me?
“Did anyone see you on the way here?”
Before he could answer, Sofia cleared her throat.
“As soon as he heard that Lord Persha passed away, he ran straight here. Fortunately, the other servants were busy calling for the carriage driver, so no one saw him.”
I nodded. Good. As long as he hadn’t been seen, there was no real problem.
“Even so, you need to be careful for now. Xavier might try to keep an eye on me.”
“I can kill him if you want.”
…Why does his mind always go straight to that?
“That’s not what I meant!” I said quickly. “If you act recklessly, you could be in danger.”
His eyes widened in surprise.
“Me?”
“Yes, you.”
Matthias was someone who had escaped from Xavier’s slave ring.
If Xavier found out he was here — under my protection — he’d use force to take him back without hesitation.
He was probably already searching for him.
If things went the same as in the original story, Matthias would be dragged away, exploited again, and eventually discarded like trash.
‘That can never happen.’
A cold shiver ran down my back. No matter what it took, I would stop that.
“You just need to stay hidden until he’s caught.”
“When… will that be?”
“Hmm— about seven nights from now?”
“Seven nights?”
Matthias frowned, clearly thinking that was too long.
But after a short moment, he nodded reluctantly, deciding not to argue.
Watching him quietly agree made me smile. I reached up and brushed his still-messy hair.
“Good boy.”
“—!”
His eyes widened, pupils dilating slightly as if he couldn’t process what just happened.
The tips of his ears turned faintly red — maybe no one had ever praised him before.
I chuckled softly, my hand still resting on his head.
‘He really is like a puppy.’
Maybe it was rude to think that, but I couldn’t help it. Seeing him sit obediently and let me pat his head like that… it was honestly adorable.
After a while, I glanced up at Sofia, who was still standing nearby.
“Sofia, could you bring me some writing paper and my seal later?”
“…”
“…What is it?”
“Huh? Oh! N-nothing, my lady! I’m sorry, I just— what did you say again?”
“I asked for writing paper and my seal.”
I needed to write to Lady Odilon soon.
“But what were you thinking about just now?”
“Ah, that’s— it’s nothing, really.”
Sofia fidgeted a little before finally speaking.
“It’s just… it’s been a long time since I’ve seen you act so comfortably around someone.”
“Hmm.”
“I—I didn’t mean anything by it! It’s just… it’s nice seeing you relaxed again, that’s all—”
“I know.”
I smiled, amused by how flustered she was.
“I understand what you mean. You don’t need to explain.”
A year ago, when I first realized I’d taken over Aria Renesti’s body, the first thing I did was gather information — including about the original Aria herself.
‘They said she was shy and introverted.’
That’s why Xavier found her so easy to manipulate.
Apparently, she used to be nervous even around her maids — never truly at ease unless she was alone.
So Sofia’s reaction made sense. Of course she’d notice the difference now that someone else was behind the same face.
‘But honestly,’ I thought, glancing at Matthias.
Maybe because I was sure he’d never hurt me…
“I feel kind of relaxed.”
He was huge, sure, but in his own way — kind of cute.
“Tell me if someone bothers you,” Matthias said suddenly, eyes serious. “I’ll kill them all.”
‘…And how on earth do I fix that habit?’
