Chapter 01
Hider stared blankly at the plate on the table.
The broken dish held rotten-smelling soup. It had been like this for three days now.
Then, a small, white hand pushed the plate aside.
“You shouldn’t eat that, Young Master Hider. I made this with carrots I grew myself and fish I caught myself. I even cooked it myself. Please, eat this instead.”
The rich scent of butter and soft herbs filled the air, making his empty stomach growl. Hider clutched his stomach.
He lifted his head, his wary, cat-like eyes staring at the maid.
The girl, who looked about fifteen, grinned.
“Hurry up. Oh, if you don’t trust me, I’ll eat first. I understand if you don’t believe me.”
She pulled out a fork from her apron, picked up a piece of carrot and fish, and ate it. Then, she smiled at him.
“Mmm, it’s delicious. Now, eat.”
Only then did Hider slowly move his fork.
Compared to the soup that made him vomit earlier, this seemed like the better choice—even if it made him sick later.
He still couldn’t trust the maid. It was just that the food she gave him was at least edible.
Not long ago, this maid was one of the people who bullied him the most.
She used to serve disgusting food and say things like:
“If you don’t eat, I’ll tell the Duchess. Or do you want to eat from the floor like an animal?”
Or:
“You smell dirty. The Duchess says it’s because of your filthy blood! A gypsy like you… ugh, I hope I don’t catch something.”
She used to humiliate him like that.
But about a month ago, she suddenly changed.
She stopped tormenting him and started taking care of him. At first, she secretly shared her own food with him.
“I’m sorry, this is all I have. Will you eat it?”
It was just hard bread or cheese, but still, she shared it.
And recently, she started bringing real meals.
“I got a new skill! This should taste good now!”
When he had an upset stomach, she even gave him medicine—not that he ever took it.
It had taken a long time for him to accept her food.
But just as she promised, it tasted good.
Hider glanced at her. She was still grinning, her cat-like eyes full of amusement.
Like she was just happy to see him eat.
‘…Strange. This is really strange.’
He stirred his food.
The strangest part was that after three days of eating her meals, he hadn’t gotten sick.
‘Why… am I still fine?’
This world was inside a novel called The Tragedy of the Cartieron Dukedom.
I had arrived here about a month ago. My life in the real world had already ended.
I wasn’t from a rich family. I was an illegitimate child in a dirt-poor home, forced to work as a maid.
By the time I turned five, the first thing I learned was how to press the rice cooker button.
Even while working as a housekeeper, I never got proper tuition fees, so I had to do part-time jobs, too.
Compared to that, this place was paradise. Here, I got a proper salary for my work.
The person I served was Hider.
The male lead of this story.
Hider was born as the illegitimate child of Duke Cartieron. He was neglected and abused as a child, but later, he met the female lead, a saint, on the battlefield. Together, they became the war heroes and returned victorious.
At first, I was confused when I possessed this body. But once I understood the situation, I immediately switched sides to support Hider.
If I didn’t, I’d end up dead along with the rest of the villains.
Lately, I had been focusing on improving Hider’s nutrition.
Good food leads to a generous heart. If I wanted to gain his favor, I had to start with good meals.
Looking at Hider’s empty plate, I felt proud.
For days, he barely touched his food.
I had been secretly throwing out the rotten meals. Ugh. How could they expect someone to eat that?
The people in this mansion were cruel.
Well, I used to be cruel, too.
The original owner of this body had been one of the maids who tormented Hider.
But after possessing this body, I stopped bullying him immediately.
Because the Duke was always away, the Duchess basically ruled the mansion.
She had a sickly son, so she despised Hider, the illegitimate child.
Honestly, I didn’t think her son was really sick. He seemed more like a spoiled brat who faked illness whenever something didn’t go his way.
The Duchess doted on him.
“It’s all that filthy rat’s fault. My son is sick because of him! It’s the Duke’s fault for bringing that lowborn blood into our house. Now our family is cursed!”
…What nonsense.
She should blame her husband, not an innocent child.
Because the Duchess hated Hider, the servants followed her.
They were practically begging to die.
Once Hider returned as a war hero, every last one of them would either be thrown out, imprisoned, or executed.
I didn’t want to die so meaninglessly.
It wouldn’t be easy to make Hider lower his guard, but…
“Phew.”
Just feeding him proper meals was already a challenge.
He still didn’t trust me.
But I had three years left before he left for war. That was enough time.
I would help Hider as much as I could and erase my past sins.
I didn’t want him to come back and think about killing me.
For the first week, he hadn’t even touched my food.
Only recently did he start eating—and his portions were increasing.
“Tch. Still won’t take the supplements.”
I had made a special nutritional supplement for Hider since his growth was stunted.
Even after a month, he refused to take it. Was it really that bad?
I sniffed it.
It had a bit of a strong smell, but it wasn’t that bad.
Healthy things always taste weird.
At least he was eating now.
He used to avoid me, but now, if he were a cat, he sits close to me.
That was serious progress.
I hid the clean dishes and carried the old, damaged ones back to the kitchen.
The nasty servants looked at me expectantly.
“He was so hungry he ate everything. Pathetic. No pride, that one.”
I played along, pretending to gossip while washing the dishes.
I made sure to hide the real plates so no one would notice.
Not that they paid much attention anyway, but it was better to be safe.
“The Duchess will be pleased.”
“If he’s eating that garbage and still alive, he must be trash, too.”
“Maybe we should just poison him. How is he not sick yet?”
Hearing their chatter, I held my hands behind my back and flipped them off.
Bullying a child just to please the Duchess?
They deserved what was coming.
I tapped my foot lightly.
No need to react to their nonsense.
This was all just a cover.
Hider had been eating better these days, and it showed in his appearance.
If the Duchess found out he was getting healthier, things would get bad.
I had to prevent that.
Hider must be protected at all costs.
