chapter 3
Ever since Marquis Frazier abandoned Tullia and left for the borderlands, rumors had been circulating in high society about the “abandoned young lady.” Incidentally, that was the phrase Tullia hated the most.
And honestly, I was furious too.
It was already a restless situation, and being told that I had been “abandoned by my family” only made my mood plummet further.
As I silently reached for the fork beside me, Tedrick flinched slightly.
The former Tullia had once actually stabbed the back of his hand with it.
Thanks to that, his father—Viscount Lilius—had even placed Tullia under confinement.
For a moment, I considered going all-in and stabbing him again anyway…
‘But Tullia is already on the verge of starving to death. That wouldn’t be a wise choice.’
Tedrick was already overflowing with inferiority toward Tullia.
Tullia, despite her current poverty, was still the acknowledged daughter of a marquis family under imperial law. Meanwhile, he was merely the son of a viscount.
Unless one achieved great merit or married into a higher noble house, it was extremely rare for one’s title to rise dramatically.
‘And this guy has no hope of either.’
That was why Tedrick came around periodically just to torment Tullia, trying to relieve that inferiority complex.
Of course, being a coward, he never came alone. Even now, it was likely that his backup—Viscount Lilius, who constantly lent money to Tullia—would arrive soon.
As I simply held the fork in silence, Tedrick, who had been nervous until now, finally let out a scoff.
He must have thought I was hesitating, because he suddenly grew arrogant.
“You know everyone says your mother cheated on your father with a barbarian priest and had you, right? So a girl like you being above me doesn’t make any sense—”
“TEDRICK FRAZIER!”
A furious shout rang out from the doorway at that moment.
“What did you just say to your cousin?!”
Startled, Tedrick turned around—then immediately regained confidence.
“Father!”
Viscount Lilius Frazier.
Tedrick’s father, Tullia’s uncle, and one of the men effectively controlling half the internal affairs of the ducal house, strode forward angrily.
‘Just as expected.’
“But Father! She was about to stab me again with that fork! After everything Mother did to raise me so well, how can that girl—Ack! F-Father?!”
Smack!
Tedrick froze in shock after being struck across the mouth by Viscount Lilius.
‘Oh. That’s unexpected.’
For a pampered young lord who had never even been scolded, let alone hit by his father, it must have been a huge shock.
Unlike usual, Lilius looked tense and furious.
“Tedrick Frazier!”
“Y-Yes?!”
“In a moment, His Grace the Grand Duke Frazier—your grandfather—is coming! If even a whisper of this nonsense reaches his ears, all of us—your mother, you, and I—will be dead! So watch your mouth!”
“Grandfather is coming to this… run-down warehouse, no, this castle?! W-Why all of a sudden?!”
Tedrick, who had been so loud toward me earlier, began trembling like a leaf at the mention of the “Grand Duke Frazier.”
I was also puzzled. Even Tullia’s memories contained no record of the Grand Duke ever visiting this place.
“D-Don’t tell me he’s coming for this year’s Frazier banquet… to this disgusting warehouse?!”
“Yes! So keep your mouth shut, understand?!”
“But I was told the Frazier banquet wouldn’t be held for a while…”
Terrified, Tedrick fled in panic.
Viscount Lilius then turned to me with a gentler expression.
“Tullia. I also only just heard that His Grace is coming. My, you don’t seem too frightened… or am I mistaken?”
I quickly lowered my head in a proper, subdued manner.
According to Tullia’s memories, she used to tremble even more than Tedrick at the mention of the Grand Duke—but that was the past.
Right now, I still didn’t quite feel it. The “Grand Duke” didn’t feel real to me yet.
Still, I pretended to be frightened, and Lilius soon relaxed and patted me reassuringly.
“Here. This is a gift from your uncle. Butler.”
At his clap, the waiting butler outside quickly entered.
Incidentally, despite being the mistress of this castle and the daughter of the Marquis Frazier, I was someone they barely even acknowledged.
‘Well, servants are always quicker to read the room.’
Tullia had no income except for a small allowance sent from the main estate each quarter—and even that was gone in a day due to her extravagance.
Because of that, all the servants’ wages were recorded as “debt.”
And the one who had been covering that debt until now was Tullia’s uncle, Lilius.
“Please accept it, Lady Tullia.”
“This is…”
“I heard Viscount Lilius personally commissioned it from Madame Risella’s atelier as a gift for you.”
The box handed to me contained a beautiful rose-pink dress.
Beads shimmered on the chest, and ribbons flowed delicately. It was clearly expensive at a glance.
Perhaps thinking my silence meant I was moved, Lilius smiled in satisfaction.
“His Grace dislikes shabby appearances. Change into this and attend the banquet. Don’t feel too pressured. Your father will pay it all back later anyway.”
The old Tullia would have believed those words.
Because she wanted easy money. Because she wanted to indulge in luxury. Because she wanted to avoid a life of poverty.
And honestly… because she wanted to believe her father still cared about her.
That he still thought of her as his daughter.
But I now knew that wasn’t true.
And Lilius likely knew it too.
‘The Marquis Frazier has no interest in Tullia whatsoever.’
If he doesn’t outright hate her enough to kill her, that’s already fortunate.
Lilius cleared his throat.
“However, things aren’t exactly easy for me either, as you know. The collateral… let’s see, you still have the land deed for Elreon, correct? With that, I can lend you two more years of budget, Tullia.”
‘This thief.’
The butler beside him quickly rubbed his hands together.
“That’s wonderful news, my lady. We’ve completely run out of flour—there’s no bread or cake for breakfast anymore. Who else but Viscount Lilius would care for you like this?”
‘This sycophant.’
The old Tullia would never have realized it.
That the land deeds Lilius had taken as “collateral” could have been sold at an imperial pawnshop for dozens of times more.
‘I only know because I’ve played this damn game so many times.’
It was something I had once overheard when a family advisor was worried about Tullia’s excessive spending.
—“It’s fortunate we secured Tullia Frazier’s land deeds in advance. Otherwise, I dread to think how much worse her behavior would have become with that money.”
At the time, I thought nothing of it. I simply assumed Lilius was being prudent.
‘But in reality, he was just stripping money from a clueless child.’
And pretending to be kind while doing it!
Lilius continued speaking gently, like a benevolent uncle, but he was nothing more than a man bleeding Tullia dry.
Maybe even Tedrick already knew that—and still treated me like a shameless, incompetent freeloader who kept borrowing money…
‘You’re dead.’
“Ahem. Tullia, don’t say anything unnecessary to His Grace the Grand Duke. You know his temper is quite… fiery. And you are still under indefinite confinement ordered by your grandfather. You understand what I mean, don’t you, Tullia?”
But I simply lowered my head politely without responding.
I still hadn’t turned off the status window, and the quest window remained faintly visible before my eyes.
Main Objective: Repaying Karma
You are trash!
No money, hated by everyone!
(Except one person) Nobody loves you!
Goal: Reach A-rank before the “real one” appears!
Failure: Death
‘If there’s one thing you need most to survive in this world…’
It’s still money.