Instead of the Heroine, I Married the Male Lead

After sniffing and wiping her tears, Nadia got up from her seat.

She entered the dressing room, stood in front of the large full-length mirror, and examined her body and face from various angles.

Her hair, falling straight without any waves, was still thick and shimmered golden under the light. Her moist eyes looked even bluer and more beautiful than usual.

After a few days of mental distress and not eating properly, she had lost weight, emphasizing her slender figure.

“Thank goodness. I’m still prettier than Philome.”

Although Philome had brown hair close to blonde and green eyes, they weren’t very attractive.

Nadia, with her blonde hair and blue eyes, had the typical noble appearance that made her more beautiful.

“Duke Wintbell will surely prefer me over Philome now, but should I still take better care of myself a little more?”

Just like Emon did, Kaien would surely come to love her.

No, he would definitely love her more than Emon did. After all, she and Kaien were destined for each other.

Feeling uplifted, Nadia hummed a tune and soon left the dressing room.

 

☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓

 

When Nadia finished her preparations, she looked in the mirror.

In the mirror, a radiant and clear beauty blinked back at her.

She smiled brightly and looked past the mirror at her maid. When the maid remained silent despite their eyes meeting, Nadia became puzzled.

“Huh?”

“Yes?”

“Don’t you have anything to say?”

The maids blinked quietly for a moment before raising their voices.

“Oh my, you look so beautiful today! With your skin as pale as snow, the pearls look absolutely perfect on you.”

“Indeed, Lady Nadia, do you have any special skincare routine? Your skin looks like milk.”

Nadia burst into a delighted laugh at the awaited compliment.

“I don’t do anything special. It’s just how I was born.”

Unaware of the maids’ uneasy expressions, Nadia stood up and twirled around.

The pure white dress, reminiscent of a mini wedding dress, spread out like clouds before settling down. It was a thin dress, so it was a little cold for this weather, but it was a dress that Nadia loved because it gave off a delicate vibe.

“Lady Nadia, aren’t you cold? I can get you a shawl. The weather is getting colder.”

As the maid said, the dress was not suited for the deepening autumn season.

However, Nadia stubbornly shook her head.

“I’m fine. I rarely catch a cold. By the way, the Duke is supposed to be staying at the mansion today, right?”

“Yes, I asked the butler.”

“Great, can you show me to the garden?”

Nadia took the maid’s hand and moved forward.

They passed through a warm corridor lined with heated stones and exited the mansion.

“Whoa!”

Nadia was startled by the cold wind that seeped through her dress.

‘Is it really this cold?’

Since arriving at the mansion yesterday, she hadn’t been outside. The mansion’s warmth had made her forget the outside temperature, so the cold felt even more intense.

“Lady Nadia, should I bring a shawl now?”

“N-no, I’m fine.”

Nadia stubbornly shook her head.

Then she lowered her voice.

“By the way, did you bring what I asked for?”

“Oh, yes.”

During her stay at the Duke’s residence, Nadia immediately captivated the girl who became her personal maid with her beauty.

Nadia was aware of the influence her appearance had. With just a bit of praise and kindness, she could easily win over the servants.

Therefore, she quickly realized that the maid, who couldn’t take her eyes off Nadia’s face right after their introduction, had become her person.

The first task she assigned to that maid was to gather information about Philome.

“The young miss is currently learning the duties of a mistress from the head maid.”

“No, I’m not interested in that. Not that.”

“Uh? Not that…?”

“Yes, I want to know what she did yesterday.”

The maid momentarily twisted her face in confusion before quickly managing her expression.

“So, you mean you want to know her every move?”

Nadia shyly smiled and nodded.

“Yeah, it’s really important. You can do that much, right? My previous maid did.”

Nadia glanced around to ensure no one was around and then whispered in the maid’s ear.

“I’ll make sure to keep you as my personal maid even when I become the Duchess later.”

“…Yes, understood.”

As the confusion faded from the maid’s face, Nadia smiled with satisfaction.

“So, what did Philome do yesterday? Did she get angry or anything?”

“No… I didn’t hear anything like that. She probably had dinner with the Duke.”

“What? Really? Why didn’t they invite me?”

Nadia gasped and covered her mouth.

“I see. Philome already sees me as a rival.”

“Yes…?”

“Otherwise, there’s no way he wouldn’t invite me to dinner. Maybe she’s wary of me because I still look so beautiful even after a long time. Besides, it’s not every day that they get to spend time together as a couple, so if I were to join them, the Duke would probably only have eyes for me…”

Normally, even if you’re close friends, you don’t often see each other if you’re engaged. Nadia didn’t think that their relationship was particularly good, so she assumed that they must have had dinner together for the first time in a while.

“I understand, but…”

Why does my heart ache so much?

Nadia fluttered her eyelashes and turned her head. Tears were welling up, so she quickly blinked to hold them back.

‘It’s just that the Duke still doesn’t know his feelings yet. When he sees me again, he’ll definitely invite me to dinner.’

Ah, but if they fell in love at first sight, is it too soon to be invited to dinner on our second meeting?

Starting to indulge in happy thoughts, Nadia felt her mood lift as she made her way to the garden with light steps.

The garden of the Duke Wintbell’s residence was as beautiful as the mansion itself. Rare flowers bloomed in the greenhouse despite the cold weather, creating a delightful scene.

‘Ah, I should make a bouquet out of these!’

She can present it to the Duke and subtly convey her feelings. That way, he won’t hesitate to approach her.

Having come up with a good idea, Nadia had the maid fetch garden shears.

The maid silently screamed as she watched Nadia cut the yellow roses without hesitation.

“L-Lady Nadia…”

The maid had been with the Duke Wintbell’s household for quite some time. Having dealt with numerous guests and gained various experiences, she took pride in never being flustered, no matter what happened.

However, everything Nadia did was nothing short of shocking from start to finish.

Had the head maid, Madonna, not given her a heads-up, she might have rushed to report this to Sebastian or Madonna.

‘So it was true.’

“Listen carefully. The young lady you will be attending to for a few days has some mental issues, so don’t be surprised if she behaves or speaks strangely, and you don’t need to come looking for me. Just come to me before you leave work and let me know what happened.”

Although she hadn’t quite believed it due to Nadia’s seemingly normal appearance, spending a day with her made the maid realize that Madonna’s words were true.

Nadia hummed a little tune as she cut the beautifully blooming flowers.

Before long, holding a bouquet of flowers cut to uneven lengths, Nadia turned to the maid with a satisfied smile.

“What do you think? Pretty, right?”

“Y-yes….”

“I hope the Duke likes them too. Oh, do you know what colors the Duke likes?”

The maid, just a servant attending to guests, had no way of knowing that.

When the maid shook her head, Nadia clicked her tongue.

“Ugh, you’re really useless, aren’t you? It’s okay, I won’t discard you.”

“Ah, yes….”

Just as Nadia completed the bouquet and stepped out of the greenhouse, she heard a voice.

“Nadia?”

“Philome? Oh, Duke!”

Turning her head at Philome’s voice, Nadia couldn’t hide her joy upon seeing Kaien standing next to her.

“Nadia, what are you doing?”

“Oh, this? It’s nothing special.”

“…It seems pretty special to me.”

Under Philome’s persistent questioning, Nadia reluctantly offered the bouquet to Kaien.

“It’s a gift, Duke.”

“…For me?”

Kaien looked around, realizing he was the only one there, and pointed to himself with his index finger.

Nadia smiled shyly.

“Yes.”

“…You cut flowers from my garden to give to me?”

“Oh, yes, that’s right.”

“I don’t need—uh, I mean… I’ll accept them.”

Nadia beamed with joy.

Kaien, treating the bouquet as though it were trash, handed it over to Gio.

Nadia, absorbed in the joy that Kaien had accepted her gift, didn’t notice this slight.

‘Oh, right! Philome is here!’

Nadia quickly turned her gaze to Philome.

Philome had her hand over her mouth, turning her head away. Her face, barely visible, was distorted, and her hands and shoulders were trembling slightly.

‘What should I do? The Duke has been too obvious in front of Philome. She’s going to feel uncomfortable.’

Nadia bit her lip anxiously.

Just then, a breeze blew by.

“Ugh!”

Nadia shivered.

“Cough, cough!”

As she started coughing, the maid hurried over.

“Lady Nadia, let me get you a shawl.”

“No, it’s okay.”

Nadia glanced at Kaien’s outer garment. She felt tense, worried that he might lose control of his feelings and offer her his jacket.

“Are you cold?”

At Kaien’s words, Nadia jumped in surprise.

‘Oh no. If you do that in front of Philome…’

Seeing Kaien start to take off his jacket, Nadia finally squeezed her eyes shut.