CH 22.5

After being shown to her room, Charlotte frowned. She wanted to sneak out of the room without Heinrich noticing.

But he didn’t budge. He sat by her side, holding her wrist tightly.

“I need to rest for a while. Can I see you later for dinner?”

Heinrich stared at Charlotte for a moment as she asked in a low voice, and then he couldn’t help but nod.

“Of course, you can rest in your room.”

Heinrich smiled weakly as he led her to the bedroom, which was a combination bedroom and living room.

With a kiss on the forehead, he left the room, and Charlotte, finally able to breathe properly, headed for the terrace.

“Thank goodness we’re on the first floor.”

If she went upstairs, she knew it would be hopeless. She knew Heinrich would be standing beside her and wouldn’t fall.

Charlotte looked around cautiously, then placed her foot on the railing. Her dress was uncomfortable, but she had no trouble leaping over the railing.

“First, I need to see the Duke of Montefeltra. No, I need to see Lila first. I need to see her and hold her accountable. Yes, Jin Yura. You can do it.

Biting her lip so tightly she thought it would bleed, Charlotte hurried off the terrace.

The sun hadn’t set yet, and she couldn’t hide, so she strode through the ducal grounds with her head held high.

As if she’d been waiting for the day, guests were trickling in.

As Charlotte watched from afar, she hurried.

She had to prevent their wedding. For fear of Lucas, she had to find Lila first.

Entering the mansion through another door, Charlotte marveled at the exquisite decorations and paintings.

Add to that a ceiling studded with tools and jewelry she’d never seen before, and she had a real sense of the Montefeltras’ wealth.

“This is why I didn’t want to fall.”

Charlotte could see why Lila had freaked out. The old her wouldn’t have done that to Charlotte. She would have trusted her, and she wouldn’t have wanted to give away the sweetness once she’d tasted it.

“All I have to do is be the center of attention. All I have to do is be the center of attention.”

How do I do that?

Imprisoned by Alfonso and Heinrich, Charlotte was beautifully dressed, but she had nothing.

In the past, she might have bought a magical device and schemed a plan to approach him, but now she was annoyed that she didn’t have the mental or physical ability to do so.

Charlotte felt very pleased as she received greetings from the staff. She even had the mistaken belief that she was enjoying this place as a Duchess.

As she walked out into the courtyard, she saw a strange sight that her eyes couldn’t resist. She couldn’t turn her gaze away from the sight before her. The white roof sparkled as the sunlight shone through it.

She couldn’t look away. The pure white roof glistened with sunlight.

“What in the world is the Duke’s wealth…….”

Muttering, Charlotte opened her eyes, only to collide violently with something, sending her sprawling to the ground.

“Who is it!”

She shouted, nervous to be on the grass.

“Who are you.”

A calm voice answered her hysterical screams. Calm, but the small voice was not an adult’s.

“Who…….”

Charlotte’s eyes widened as she looked at the child. Michael, who had fallen to the floor just as she had, shot her an annoyed glare.

“Someone said something stupid, and it’s you again.”

He snapped at Charlotte, who didn’t immediately recognize him.

He’d been looking for Lila, and seeing her made him feel bad. He didn’t like the fact that she was using impolite words without checking to see who it was.

Remembering what Charlotte had done to Lila and him, he stood up and brushed off his pants in a gesture of displeasure.

“This place is not open to guests, so don’t trespass.”

Charlotte watched Michael’s back as he quickly left the room to find Lila, and she blushed.

She realized too late that she had met Lucas’s nephew before.

Sinking to the floor, Charlotte shuddered. Shame washed over her.

“This isn’t my fault. It’s their fault.”

Feeling like a fool, she cursed Alfonso and Heinrich, and even worse, Lila.

“If only you had shown up sooner, none of this would have happened!”

It was as if all the misfortune that was happening to her was coming from Lila. Charlotte clawed at the grass in frustration.

Then she noticed something lying on the ground. She picked it up, a barrel that glistened in the light. At a glance, she could tell it was made of jewelry.

“Why make something like this out of a cosmetics case? How rich are they?”

Once she calmed down, Charlotte lifted the lid out of curiosity. Assuming it to be a beauty cream, she was stunned to see what was inside.

She stared at the vial full of familiar-looking pills as if they were frozen, then popped one into her mouth.

Charlotte shuddered as if she had been electrocuted by a familiar flavor. And then she sat there, dumbfounded.

“What the hell is this…… and why…….”

Clutching the vitamin pills she had seen and ate before coming here, Charlotte looked around.

It seemed like they had blocked off the guests.

In a place where no one was around, Charlotte quickly hid the case and then stealthily made her way towards the inside of the courtyard.

“Is this really it? How did it get here? I mean, why does the Duke of Montefeltra have this?”

Charlotte’s brisk footsteps suddenly came to a halt. As she breathed heavily, she thought of one hypothesis.

‘What if I’m not the only one who crossed over? With all the people who died, I was a fool to think it was just me.’

Charlotte couldn’t control her trembling eyes. If someone else became the protagonist instead of her, she would be imprisoned by Heinrich and forced to live without a way out.

“No, no.”

She had to act before the other reincarnated person as the protagonist. Charlotte tightly gripped the case and decided to start with Lila, who had the most likely candidaate.

That’s when she caught sight of mauve hair. Hiding behind a tree, Charlotte could only see a few strands, but she started running towards it.

If another person turns out to be the protagonist, I must stop this marriage at all costs.’

Charlotte’s face was almost demonic as she gritted her teeth and ran. She lunged forward and grabbed Lila by the hair.

“Kyaaah”

Lost in her own thoughts, Lila screamed at the pain of having her hair ripped out.

“Who are you!”

Charlotte’s voice was harsh. Grabbing her by the hair and shaking her, she spoke again.

“You sneaky bitch, you’ve been hiding your face and waiting for the right time, you’ve been wearing makeup on purpose, just so you can be the center of attention!”

Eyes rolling back in her head, Charlotte let out a scream, not knowing what she was saying.

“Do you know who I am? How dare you criticize me! Do you think someone like you can be compared to me? I’m Jin Yura! A top actress! How dare you even think you can compare yourself to me?”

Lila froze at the words Jin Yura as if she was being tricked. Her bewildered expression turned fierce as she realized what was going on.

“What?”

Lila grabbed the wrist that held her hair. Nevertheless, Charlotte went on like a madwoman.

“The protagonist’s position has always been mine! Do you know how hard I worked for it?”

“Get off me!”

Lila twisted Charlotte’s wrist and stood up, glaring at Charlotte, who let out a short scream.

“Everyone is the protagonist of their own story. What right do you have to try to be the protagonist in someone else’s life?”

Charlotte glared at Lila, who spoke with a sullen expression.

Lila was stunned. The fact that the person who had gotten her killed still haunted her.

In the original, she’d thought it was the evil woman who tormented her, but now it was Jin Yura.

Although she was shocked by this unexpected realization, she felt calm. The tension in her heart evaporated.

“I have always been the protagonist. So, of course, I should be the protagonist here too. If you don’t know your place, then you should quietly step aside.”

Charlotte shot back fiercely. If only Lila would go away, everything would be fine.

Charlotte scanned her surroundings in anticipation. She wanted to kill her, and she wasn’t going to rely on tricks.

She would kill her with her own two hands and take her place.

Turning to Charlotte, who was slowly approaching, Lila sneered.

“Yes, you own this place. You take it, ruler of this world.”

Charlotte’s lack of knowledge of what this place was like made Lila want to hand over her place as the heroine of this stupid novel.

She never wanted to be the heroine in the first place. She just wanted to live happily ever after with Lucas and Michael.

So…….

“I want you to be the main character.”

Lila smiled darkly at Charlotte, who looked at her in disbelief.

It was somehow comforting. Lila chuckled softly at the feeling of being unlocked.

Charlotte’s expression turned bizarre at her demeanor. She clenched her hands together in humiliation, feeling like she’d been mocked.

I wanted to wring that thin neck right now.

As she turned to walk away, a hand stopped her.

“Oh, there you are.”

A pair of clear sky-blue eyes swept across Charlotte’s face. The sound of Alfonso’s voice froze Charlotte in place. He wrapped a loving arm around her shoulders, unable to speak, and greeted Lila.

“Duchess, I see you are here, and there are many guests coming in. Don’t you think you should go?”

Lila was no longer afraid of Alfonso. Nor did she care about the three original male leads.

There was only one person she wanted to see, right now, in this moment.

“Very well, then, I shall go.”

Lila moved to leave, but Alfonso spoke up.

“The wedding…”

Alfonso, about to offer his congratulations, was momentarily stumped by lips that closed against his will, but he managed to get the words out.

“Congratulations, Lady Este.”

Lila’s eyes widened for a moment in surprise at the greeting, something she would never have done in the original, but then she smiled broadly.

Alfonso responded with a sincere smile to the radiant smile of the new bride, which suited her well.