The Reason The Villain Covets Me

‌⁠♡⁩ TL: Khadija SK

 

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While Theodore was handling all the matters in Lydar, Annette had only one task…

 

To stay alive.

 

Annette followed Lisa’s treatment without a word and slowly came back to life.

 

She ate and vomited, but she ate again afterward, then walked while gasping for breath.

 

Gradually, her health improved.

 

This didn’t mean she could move as freely as before, but at least she no longer fainted immediately after getting up from her chair.

 

She began to eat a little more each time and vomited less over time. She also gained some weight, so her body started to look like that of an extremely skinny young woman rather than that of a skeletal figure suffering from starvation.

 

For others, this was a minor change in her appearance, but for Annette, it was a significant development.

 

She had been confined to a small hospital room where she couldn’t even walk ten steps, but now she walked more than eleven meters.

 

Annette would walk in the vineyards every day, breathing in the fresh air.

 

When she went out for her walks, a black dog always followed her.

 

It was a lame dog, walking on three legs, that had grown up in the villa’s yard.

 

The dog’s usual pace matched Annette’s maximum speed.

 

Annette spoke to the dog that followed her today as well.

 

“Why doesn’t anyone know your name? I want to call you by your name.”

 

The black dog didn’t have a name.

 

Annette was the only one curious about such trivial matters.

 

When Annette asked Emma about the dog’s name, the maid only looked at her awkwardly and said:

 

“He’s the dog the master brought, but he didn’t give him a name.”

 

It was unexpected that Theodore had brought the dog himself.

 

‘I didn’t think that man was the type to treat a dog with love and affection.’

 

Annette never imagined Theodore to be the kind of person who would show pity for a lame dog, so she decided to ignore it.

 

He wasn’t the only lame dog in the world, and his owner was so indifferent that he didn’t even notice the dog’s existence here.

 

Even the way he treated Annette was the same as how he treated this dog. The season had changed, and the time for harvesting grapes was approaching, yet Annette was still neglected.

 

Theodore never came here, and all he did was send his aide Hans to check on her condition.

 

Sometimes, Annette felt like she was wine aging in the wine cellar.

 

When Hans asked Lisa about her health, Annette felt as though he was inspecting wine to see if it had spoiled and to gauge its sweetness.

 

Of course, she would have hated it even more if Theodore had shown direct interest in her, but the neglect was equally frustrating.

 

So the presence of the dog was questionable.

 

Why would someone who is indifferent to everything in the world, except becoming emperor, bring a dog that couldn’t even run to his villa?

 

If that man loved animals, it would be the end of the world.

 

Annette shook her head, banishing these frightening thoughts.

 

She decided to stop asking questions that had no answers and instead asked the creature that was listening to her.

 

“What’s your name, dog?”

 

“Silver.”

 

Annette suddenly heard an answer from behind her, and she stiffened in place.

 

The voice of the man behind her was unfamiliar, but it was one she had heard before.

 

She slowly turned her tense body and saw the person she had guessed from the tone of his voice.

 

It was Theodore.

 

Annette checked to see if the person standing in front of her was real or just a mirage, but instead of feeling relief, the strangeness of the situation only increased.

 

Theodore was the type of person who was more cautious around strangers.

 

So it was absurd for him to answer her question naturally as if they were walking together, talking about an ordinary topic, especially when he hadn’t set foot in this place since the season changed.

 

But Annette struggled to remain indifferent, putting considerable effort into not showing hostility toward him.

 

“The dog’s name is Silver.”

 

“Why would you name a black dog ‘Silver’?”

 

The dog recognized its owner, who had appeared after a long time, and quickly ran into his arms, wagging its tail.

 

Only then did Annette realize that the dog really belonged to Theodore.

 

The thought that the only friend she had in this world, whom she genuinely liked, belonged to Theodore made her feel slightly betrayed when she saw the dog happily leave her arms to go to its owner without a second thought.

 

“He’s a black dog, so why name him Silver?”

 

“I just came up with the name, so I don’t know why it occurred to me.”

 

“Didn’t you give him a name when you brought him here to be raised?”

 

“If I give him a name, I’ll have to take responsibility and care for him seriously.”

 

Annette clicked her tongue in irritation at this seemingly contextless conversation.

 

However, Theodore’s stance of not naming his dog made her feel relieved. It was comforting to realize that he was a man without emotions or conscience.

 

It was unfortunate to see the dog so happy to meet its owner because it seemed to genuinely love him.

 

“If you want to name him, name him whatever you like.”

 

“No, I don’t want to. If I name him, I’ll have to stay by his side always.”

 

Annette blamed Theodore, but in reality, she felt the same way.

 

This wasn’t necessarily a story about dogs.

 

When you give a name to a relationship, spend time with someone, and create memories together, it becomes meaningful. And once it has meaning, it’s hard to let go.

 

For Annette, the world in the book was a place to escape from, a world that should remain meaningless, so she didn’t want one dog to tie her to this place.

 

That’s why Annette didn’t want to create a bond and give a name to a dog that its owner hadn’t named.

 

It seemed that Theodore had read her thoughts.

 

“It’s okay to give him a name. If you don’t like people, at least give your heart to the dog because that will give you the courage to move forward and not give up.”

 

“I don’t want to. I’m not even the owner, so why should I name him? I’m the one who’s going to leave this place anyway.”

 

It seemed that Annette had discovered her true feelings, so she lowered herself and scratched the dog’s chin.

 

The dog closed his eyes and enjoyed Annette’s touch.

 

Theodore watched them quietly, then asked an unexpected question.

 

“What’s your name?”

 

“Annette Cheringen. Have you lost your memory or what?”

 

“No, not that. I mean your name in the other world.”

 

“My name is—I don’t know. I forgot.”

 

Annette’s hand stopped stroking the dog’s head.

 

The dog opened his eyes and began waving his stubbed paw, then, as if asking for more petting, began to nuzzle his face between Annette’s arms, but her hands remained still.

 

Annette was visibly embarrassed.

 

“While I’m here, I’m just Annette. So don’t be curious about me, and don’t ask me anything personal.”

 

“What if I said it wasn’t just curiosity but genuine interest?”

 

“Don’t lie to me.”

 

“Don’t believe it if you don’t want to.”

 

Annette looked extremely embarrassed, but Theodore’s expression remained unchanged.

 

In the first place, it was impossible for Theodore to be interested in the person inhabiting Annette’s body.

 

What mattered to Theodore wasn’t the feelings in Annette’s heart but the future she knew in her mind. The knowledge that would pave the way for him to become emperor.

 

Annette, who had been crouching next to the dog, stood up. Even when she stood, the height difference between her and Theodore wasn’t much different from when she had been crouching next to the dog.

 

That was because Theodore was tall, and Annette was underweight.

 

The appearance of the two characters was only similar in their beauty.

 

“Does the fact that Your Highness came personally to see me mean it’s time for me to go to Lyder?”

 

“The time has almost come, but there are still some things I need to resolve. Unfortunately, there are challenges we need to face first.”

 

“Challenges?”

 

“You need to study.”

 

“Study?”

 

“I heard from Hans that you don’t know how to read or write letters. A girl who was about to get the title of marquise shouldn’t be unable to write her family name.”

 

Annette’s face turned red as if it would burst in an instant.

 

Life in this villa was so boring. Since Annette didn’t have to meet people and couldn’t go out, she needed a hobby she could do alone.

 

Looking at the number of books in the library, it seemed there was a way to pass the time, but the moment Annette picked up a book with a cover she liked and opened it, she realized something very serious…

 

She couldn’t read the letters of this world.

 

Unlike her ability to speak and understand, she didn’t know how to write or read.

 

That was natural because she had never learned this language, but the fact that she didn’t know a single letter was extremely embarrassing.

 

Ignorance is considered ignorance, so Annette was more embarrassed by this fact than she would have been if she stood naked in a marketplace.

 

It was unfortunate to realize again that she had fallen into a world different from her own.

 

Her face became as red as a tomato and wouldn’t return to its original color no matter how hard she tried, due to the embarrassment.

 

She didn’t care if it seemed illogical, but she didn’t want to admit that her intellectual incompetence had been revealed.

 

“… I can read now.”

 

Annette tried to cool her flushed face.

 

“But Hans said you couldn’t even sign papers because you couldn’t write your name? Honestly, I was a little surprised that you know the future but don’t know how to write.”

 

“It’s not my language, so it’s impossible for me to know the letters without studying them.”

 

“But you’re very good at speaking?”

 

“I don’t know how I can understand or speak with you, but the letters are different. Now, I can sign books and read them.”

 

“How?”

 

“I learned how to read since Mr. Hans last came.”

 

“Are you saying you studied alone?”

 

Annette nodded.

 

When Hans came to the villa, Annette asked him to teach her how to read.

 

Fortunately, the letters weren’t difficult. The symbols were different, but reading and writing were similar to the Roman alphabet.

 

After converting the letters Hans gave her into Korean, learning how to pronounce them, and creating a chart to organize and sort them, Annette was able to read the book within a few days.

 

However, Annette’s ignorance of reading and writing left Hans in great shock.

 

Originally, Hans was tasked with teaching Annette to imitate the marquise’s daughter’s signature and making her practice it to mimic the original Annette’s handwriting, but he never imagined that she wouldn’t know the letters themselves.

 

At the same time, this became an opportunity for Annette to become highly suspicious in his eyes.

 

“Mr. Hans must have noticed that I’m not the real Annette. Because he’s a very smart man.”

 

“I don’t care if Hans knows. I’ve been thinking of telling him sooner or later.”

 

“Do you trust Mr. Hans that much?”

 

“He has a reason not to abandon me.”

 

Annette stared frankly at Theodore, as if asking him the reason, but Theodore looked away from her, as if he didn’t want to say anything more.

 

“Shall we test whether Hans taught you to read correctly?”

 

Theodore nodded for Annette to follow him and then walked away.

 

His long legs moved far ahead in a moment, followed by Annette and Silver.

 

Theodore moved forward a bit, then stopped and turned around with a slight frown.

 

He could hear the dog panting, but Annette’s footsteps were not nearly as close, as she was much slower than the dog.

 

Annette was panting hard from trying to keep up, but her pride kept her from asking him to wait.

 

Theodore noticed this and slightly lifted the corners of his mouth.

 

While he could hear the stubborn woman breathing behind him, he kept a short distance ahead to avoid her seeing his smiling face.

 

Then he proceeded without turning back.

 

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