"My lady, what’s wrong with you these days? Please, just take one spoonful of soup, I beg you!"
Seth held out a steaming spoonful of corn soup, her voice filled with desperate pleading. But Lillian simply turned away in response. Her mind was too troubled for anything to go down.
The Rosetti barony was a humble noble family whose members had traditionally pursued knighthood as their livelihood. Because of that, they couldn’t even afford to provide her with a proper dowry, which meant that Lillian had no choice but to become a knight herself—simply to survive.
Naturally, she worked at the palace as a fully employed knight, drawing a salary to sustain herself. She belonged to the Fourth Order of Knights, a unit comprised solely of knights from powerless, insignificant families. But even the weakest knights were properly trained in swordsmanship. There was no way they wouldn’t notice how strange her swordplay was.
And I have to go back to work tomorrow.
Lillian thought blankly as she refused to eat.
The original story began when Aleina arrived in this foreign kingdom as a princess from another land. Right now, Aleina had yet to arrive, which meant that Lillian was still just a knight working her way through daily life in the order. And that daily life would resume tomorrow.
When she first possessed this body, she had been lucky enough to have some vacation days left. That had given her time to stay hidden, minimize exposure, and adapt.
But that time was up.
Tomorrow, she would return to the palace and rejoin her fellow knights in the Fourth Order.
The thing was—those people had never even been mentioned in the original story. The author had likely deemed even listing their names a waste of ink.
That meant Lillian had no idea who they were—their names, their faces, their personalities. Yet she would have to pretend she did.
And, worst of all, she would have to train alongside them.
There was no need to even calculate it.
She was 100% going to get caught.
Should I just run away right now?
Lillian seriously considered it.
No matter how poor the Rosetti family was, there had to be at least one valuable item lying around. If she pawned it, she could get a starting fund.
Then what?
Maybe she could get into loan sharking?
Or maybe she could start producing and distributing drugs—rise through the underworld and become a drug lord?
She didn’t have to become a noblewoman living in the glittering high society to be the protagonist.
Perhaps ruling the backstreets as a criminal overlord would be a far more interesting fate.
Just as she was contemplating even the most ridiculous of options—
"My lady, just wait a moment!"
Seth, who had dramatically set the corn soup aside, suddenly ran out of the room.
Moments later, she returned with a plate piled high with steaming steak, shoving it under Lillian’s nose.
Lillian, stunned by the overwhelming smell of meat, turned to stare at her in disbelief.
Seth, meanwhile, flashed her signature "No-Seth" grin, baring her gums proudly.
"Hehe! My apologies, my lady! I should have known you wouldn’t be satisfied with mere corn soup! Ta-da! A lamb steak that melts in your mouth!"
Lillian stared at the plate.
Then she smiled kindly.
And took a deep breath.
Moments later, her furious scream shook the entire mansion.
"GET OUT RIGHT NOW!!!"
I swear, one day, I’m going to die of stress because of her!
Grinding her teeth, Lillian shoved Seth out and slammed the door behind her.
Then, acting purely on impulse, she jumped to her feet and rummaged through her wardrobe.
She picked out the best training outfit she could find and stormed out of her room.
Sure, Seth’s face was pissing her off right now, but that wasn’t the only reason she was leaving.
At this point, her true identity was bound to be exposed. If the worst-case scenario happened, she had to be prepared.
She needed to gather information—figure out how this world worked, how people lived, and what opportunities might exist for survival.
Tying her hair up in a messy ponytail, Lillian dragged her feet outside.
The Rosetti barony was nothing special.
So, of course, their land was small.
Honestly, even calling this place a "mansion" was a bit of a stretch—it was just a large three-story house.
With only a handful of servants, it was laughably easy to slip out unnoticed.
She followed the road leading from the mansion, walking for about an hour before she spotted a town in the distance.
What she saw was a completely different world from Korea.
Stone-paved streets.
Colorful houses with vividly painted walls and rooftops.
People bustling through the roads in foreign clothing and distinctive features.
Elegant noble carriages rolling down the main street.
The town was alive, pulsing with energy and vibrance.
"Freshly baked bread for just 5 bronze! Come, have a taste!"
"Fresh fish, caught this very morning! 7 bronze per fish, or a special deal—three for 17 bronze!"
Lillian pretended to look around casually, but her eyes darted around with curiosity.
The place was far livelier than she had expected.
She hadn’t realized that the mansion was so close to such a bustling marketplace.
No wonder Lillian had been able to commute to the palace on horseback every day.
It felt like Europe, yet also like a scene from a fairy tale.
Chae Soyeon had never once traveled abroad in her life.
So, of course, everything here seemed exotic to her.
Ah. This isn’t the time to be sightseeing.
Lillian shook off her awe and snapped to attention.
She needed to scope out potential ways to survive.
But no matter how hard she looked, she couldn’t find anything promising.
Her mood plummeted further.
In every other transmigration novel, the protagonist lived a comfortable life.
Their biggest problem was always something stupid, like, "Why is the male lead obsessed with me instead of the heroine?"
But what about her?
If she stayed in the knights’ order, she would die as the heroine’s bodyguard.
If she left, she would starve to death in the streets.
This truly was a shitty life.
Lillian sighed and collapsed onto the steps by a flowerbed in the plaza.
Having eaten nothing for an entire day, she was starting to feel dizzy.
The warm scent of freshly baked bread wafting from a nearby bakery felt like a personal attack.
"Even now, I’m still hungry."
Lillian clutched her growling stomach and laughed bitterly.
By tomorrow, she would probably be exposed and kicked out of the knights.
If she was really unlucky, she could even be accused of being a witch and burned at the stake.
That meant she would die before even seeing Aleina’s ridiculously beautiful face in person.
"No matter what I do, I’m doomed. It’s over."
Yet even in the face of her impending death, her body still craved food.
She should have just eaten that damn lamb steak.
It wasn’t the meat’s fault.
Lillian lowered her head to suppress the dizziness.
At that moment, someone suddenly crashed into her, throwing their arms around her as if seeking refuge.
No—not embraced, but collided.
"Kyaaa!!"
The impact sent the figure tumbling backward onto the ground.
A young girl, likely in her late teens, sat there stunned.
Lillian instinctively patted her own body to check for anything missing.
Her mind immediately jumped to a conclusion.
Is this one of those classic fantasy novel clichés? A pickpocket event?
"Get that brat!"
"There she is! Don’t let her escape!"
Obviously not.
From the alley the girl had emerged from, two men burst out, charging after her.
Their fierce, unmistakable glares were locked onto the girl.
Lillian felt a wave of foreboding wash over her.
Damn it. This is the “Save the Innocent Girl” event, isn’t it?
Fantasy novels really were painfully predictable.
It was like they all followed the same cheap mass-produced template.
Annoyed, Lillian took a step back.
She wanted no part in whatever was happening.
She didn’t know why this girl was being chased, but it had nothing to do with her.
Chae Soyeon had come from a world where random crimes happened all the time.
Her instincts had long been honed in ruthless self-preservation.
However—unfortunately—the girl wasn’t planning to let Lillian go so easily.
Her desperate gaze darted across Lillian’s body, then suddenly lit up.
She was staring at Lillian’s shoulder.
Right where a strange emblem resembling a spiral shell was embroidered.
"A knight! You’re a knight, aren’t you? Please, help me, Sir Knight! They’re trying to take me away!!"
The girl clung to Lillian’s waist, begging frantically.
Stay calm.
Lillian plastered on a flawlessly innocent smile and attempted to deny everything.
"Sorry, but you’ve got the wrong person. I’m just passing through."
"Liar! You have a crest on your shoulder! That’s a knight’s insignia! Only knights can wear those!"
Shit.
Nothing ever went right for her.
She had picked out the best-looking training uniform, but it just happened to be her knight’s attire.
Apparently, this spiral-shaped symbol was the crest of House Rosetti.
Her luck truly was cursed.
The girl had successfully shackled her in place.
Lillian frowned as she turned her attention back to the two men—who had now closed the distance considerably.
They had clearly been about to attack, but upon seeing her insignia, they hesitated.
They exchanged whispers, glancing at her cautiously.
They’re debating whether it’s worth attacking a knight or not.
Lillian prayed they’d just leave.
She gritted her teeth, irritated at how tightly the girl was clinging to her.
Apparently, a knight’s emblem was a widely recognized authority symbol in this world.
But of course, the original novel never mentioned this detail—since it had always focused solely on Aleina.
This was one of the limitations of written stories.
Unfortunately, the men’s conclusion didn’t seem to be in her favor.
They clenched their fists and began advancing again, step by step.
They had likely decided that since Lillian was unarmed and a female knight, she would be easy prey.