Lillian had originally been the daughter of a low-ranking baron. To support her family, she had become a knight at an early age. She had once been a member of the Royal Guard, but at some point, she was reassigned to a new duty—protecting the oh-so-noble protagonist, Aleina.
Aleina, a princess from the Kingdom of Trill, had gained fame due to her dazzling beauty. That was precisely why she had been sold off to this distant land, the Legonian Kingdom. And from there, the dramatic saga of Princess Aleina had begun.
As for Lillian? Her role in that grand tale was insignificant at best.
While Aleina fluttered about, basking in the attention of countless suitors and playing tug-of-war with their affections, Lillian was meant to remain in the background, silently and dutifully protecting her.
"Even just hearing about it is boring as hell."
But in the original story, Lillian performed that miserable role flawlessly.
Then, one day, she fell into a trap set by those who sought to harm Aleina. Faced with overwhelming danger, Lillian had no choice but to defend Aleina alone.
Of course, she fought with everything she had. She battled until her entire body was covered in blood, until she lost sight in her right eye, until her shoulder was shattered beyond repair. But there was a limit to how much one person could handle.
In the end, Aleina was kidnapped.
Upon hearing the news, the male lead was furious. Instead of recognizing Lillian’s desperate struggle, he dragged her before him and mercilessly berated her.
"How dare a bodyguard still be alive when her master has been taken?"
With a cold smile, he uttered those words. Then, he personally swung his sword and severed Lillian’s head from her body.
And that was the end of her.
A mere knight, a worthless side character—Lillian Rosetti’s insignificant death was brushed aside without a second thought.
Meanwhile, the male lead heroically rescued Aleina, shared a deep, passionate kiss with her, whispered sweet vows of eternal love, and swore that he would never let her go again.
Aleina, with tears glistening on her delicate cheeks, responded with equal affection.
They went on to marry, have children, and live happily ever after.
And not a single person ever mentioned poor Lillian Rosetti again.
As if she had never existed in the first place.
That was exactly why Chae Soyeon, now trapped in Lillian’s body, was seething with rage.
"The male lead was garbage from the start, but at the very least, Aleina should have been better. Don’t you think?"
After all, Lillian’s death wasn’t even meant to be tragic.
It wasn’t there to mourn her sacrifice, nor to make anyone reflect on her struggles.
It was purely a tool—a narrative device to highlight just how much the male lead loved Aleina and how enraged he had been over her kidnapping.
That was all Lillian Rosetti’s death was worth.
Thinking about it made Chae Soyeon grind her teeth so hard that her jaw ached.
A deep fury boiled inside her.
"What? You’re telling me I’m fated to die like that? And for whose sake?!"
"Like hell I will!"
If she had to, she’d kill the male lead and Aleina herself and live a happy life on her own.
That was her murderous thought as she ate, gripping her fork a little too tightly.
Then—
CRACK.
The silver fork bent in her grasp with a sharp snap.
The maid, Seth, who had just entered the room carrying a tray of desserts, let out a shocked scream.
"Oh my goodness, my lady!!"
Eyes wide, Seth rushed toward her in a panic.
Her gaze darted to Lillian’s trembling hands, still holding the ruined fork. Despite being nothing more than a maid, she was clearly worried that Lillian might have hurt herself.
"You’ve been acting normal for a while, but now you’re doing this again?! My lady, you’re seriously unbelievable sometimes!"
As Seth fussed over her, Lillian felt a strange warmth in her chest.
It was... oddly comforting.
Chae Soyeon’s own family had never worried about her, but here was Seth, fretting over her like a concerned older sister.
Of course, she wasn’t really concerned about Chae Soyeon, but rather Lillian Rosetti—but still.
For someone who had been starved of affection her entire life, even this small bit of concern felt precious.
So, borrowing Lillian’s voice, she answered Seth’s worry.
"Sorry. I didn’t mean to... I wasn’t hurt, so don’t worry."
"That’s not the issue! You crushed the fork! Do you even know how expensive this is?! Our budget is already tight, and now this?!"
Ah.
So she wasn’t worried about her, but about the fork.
Silently, Lillian withdrew into herself.
Apparently, being an afterthought was her fate no matter what world she was in.
Seth, however, remained preoccupied with the damaged utensil.
"Do you even realize how much craftsmanship went into this? This is fine silver, hand-forged by a master smith!"
With a blank expression, Lillian glanced down at the fork she had crushed with her bare hands.
It wasn’t pure silver, but it was still beautifully crafted and sturdy.
And yet...
She had bent it effortlessly.
A realization struck her.
"Huh. My grip strength is actually pretty damn good."
Yes—Lillian Rosetti might have been a side character, but she had been a knight.
Despite her delicate appearance, she had been skilled and disciplined.
That was why, even as a powerless princess, Aleina had chosen her as a personal bodyguard.
As that thought settled in, Lillian’s expression suddenly paled.
Wait.
Wait, wait, wait.
"Shit! Now that I think about it—
I’ve never learned swordsmanship before!!
What the hell am I supposed to do now?!"
She had been so busy adapting to her new life that she had completely forgotten.
A knight who didn’t know swordsmanship? What kind of absurdity was that?
Chae Soyeon's hands trembled as the terrifying realization sank in.
Back in Korea, there had been a time when martial arts academies were all the rage. Because of that, most kids—including Chae Soyeon—had, at some point, been sent to learn taekwondo, hapkido, or kendo.
Unfortunately for her, the one she had attended was a taekwondo academy.
Why?
Because her older brother was already going there, and enrolling his younger sibling meant a 50% discount on tuition.
So, when it came to swordsmanship—she was utterly clueless.
What was the point of possessing the body of an Olympic swimmer if she couldn’t even swim?
Her face went pale as she realized just how screwed she was.
No, this can’t be happening!
Lillian barely touched her food before jumping to her feet.
Seth, who had been tending to her meal, widened her eyes in surprise.
"My lady, where are you going? You haven’t even finished eating! You can’t just leave like that!"
Seth’s voice rang out desperately as she called after her.
She truly was unbelievably dense for a servant—so much so that she hadn’t even noticed that Lillian was no longer Lillian.
That was fortunate in its own way. But right now, that wasn’t the issue.
Lillian rushed up to her room, grabbed one of her training uniforms, and hurried outside.
The estate of a lowly baron wasn’t very large, so the training grounds were immediately visible.
But somehow, that short distance felt like a thousand miles.
Luckily, no one else was in the training area.
Lillian checked multiple times to make sure there were no onlookers before grabbing one of the practice swords.
And then, she desperately tried to convince herself.
Even if my brain doesn’t know, maybe my body remembers? If I just swing the sword a bit, some instinct might kick in! Yes! That makes sense!
Trying to calm her nerves, she started with some stretches.
Since she had no idea how warm-ups worked in this world, she decided to go with basic Korean calisthenics.
Thankfully, Lillian’s well-trained body followed along perfectly.
That gave her a tiny sliver of hope.
But the moment she actually unsheathed the sword, that hope shattered.
Srrrng!
The dull sheen of the blade reflected back at her.
She tightened her grip on the well-worn hilt, took a clumsy stance, and—
"Hiiyaah!"
…It was a disaster.
Lillian’s face twisted as she forced herself to keep going, swinging the sword a few more times.
But no matter how many times she tried, she couldn’t recall a single sword technique.
Refusing to accept reality, she kept swinging—over and over, again and again.
Her grip was solid.
Her stance felt natural.
The weight of the sword was just right for her.
But that was all.
No matter how well the sword fit in her hands, she had no idea how to actually wield it.
She only realized the full depth of her incompetence once her breathing turned ragged.
"Hah… Huff…"
Sweat dripped down from her temple, falling onto the dirt floor.
But that wasn’t the only thing she was shedding.
Tears streamed down her face.
Being thrown into a foreign world was already terrifying enough.
She had been reborn as a side character—one who was destined to die.
As if that wasn’t bad enough, now even Lillian Rosetti’s only strength—her swordsmanship—was gone.
At that moment, Chae Soyeon’s soul sank into deep despair.
"Why the hell do I have to live like this?"
She clenched her teeth.
In every transmigration novel she had ever read, the protagonist would end up in the body of some stunning noble—blessed with wealth, status, and beauty.
Their biggest struggle was usually “How do I make sure the heroine gets all the attention?”
Meanwhile, she had gone through an actual miracle—a literal reincarnation—and she was still struggling like this.
Even the things everyone else got effortlessly, she had to fight for tooth and nail.
And even then, she still failed more often than not.
No one but her could truly understand what it was like to live such a shitty, unlucky life.
Maybe that was why…
She had let herself hope—just a little.
She hadn’t asked for this, but since she had been given a new life, she thought—maybe, just maybe—things would be different.
Maybe this time, things would finally go her way.
So she had clung to that fragile hope, doing her best to adjust to her new reality.
"At least I’m beautiful now."
"At least I’m a noble lady."
She had tried so hard to console herself.
But now, this was the final straw.
Her cruel fate had followed her even here, sinking its fangs deep into her soul.
Her already exhausted heart finally broke.
Tears fell freely, one after another.
CLANG!
She flung the sword to the ground with all her strength.
What use was a weapon she couldn’t even wield?
The blade hit the dirt floor and bounced away, sparks flashing blue as it rolled off into the distance.
And there she stood.
Alone. Helpless.
Sobbing like a fool.
It was over.
If even Seth—as dense as she was—didn’t notice, someone else would.
Anyone with even a little swordsmanship experience would soon realize the truth.
That Lillian Rosetti… was a fraud.