I Became the Heroine’s Stand-in - Chapter 99

When she finally came to, her head throbbed with a nauseating rhythm. The severe headache was accompanied by a strange phenomenon where her eyelids felt impossibly heavy. After a long struggle with the pain, she finally claimed victory over her senses. Opening her eyes with a pained grimace, Diana was met with the sight of a familiar ceiling.

It was the Duchy of Valencia, the place she had sought in her mind countless times while unconscious.

“Are you awake?”

A low voice drifted into Diana’s ears as she stared blankly at the ceiling. It was higher than Ersivan’s voice, and for someone speaking to her, the tone was remarkably devoid of warmth.

The sound of a strange man’s voice in a closed room sent a jolt of panic through her. Diana bolted upright as if having a fit.

“…Kardel?”

The figure sitting in the chair quietly reading a book was indeed Kardel.

“Looks like you’re finally up.”

He marked his page with a bookmark and set the book down on the desk. He also placed a pair of intellectual-looking oval glasses neatly on top of the book.

“Why are you here…?”

As she leaned against the headboard, a hand reached toward the upper part of her neck. While Diana’s attention was drawn to the movement, Kardel leaned forward, bringing his face close. By the time she turned her head back, the distance between them had narrowed significantly.

His elegant fingers touched her throat. As he brushed his hand down her neck, a tickling sensation followed by a chilling coldness spread through her throat. Diana frowned at the alien sensation; the cold energy still lingered around her Adam’s apple.

That suspicious look again.

This husband and wife were exactly alike—even when he went out of his way to do something helpful, all he got in return was a cold reaction. Kardel slumped back into his chair and crossed his legs. He rested his elbow on his knee and propped his chin in his hand.

He pouted slightly.

“It will be much easier to speak now.”

“…Pardon?”

“I took some measures. It’ll make our conversation smoother.”

Her violet eyes blinked several times, still not fully grasping his meaning. Once the realization of Kardel’s intention finally dawned on her, her eyes grew wide with surprise. She looked like someone who had just realized they’d made a mistake.

“You feel much better, don’t you?”

Whether he was intentionally being sarcastic or simply asserting his innocence, Kardel added another word. Diana nodded cautiously. Only then did she notice his sulky expression.

It might sound like an excuse, but Diana had her reasons. Having been beaten right before collapsing, the sensation of another person touching her without consent felt terrifying. However, she realized that from his perspective, her reaction must have been offensive.

Just as she was nervously wondering how to offer an apology, Kardel spoke first.

“So, do you have enough energy to talk?”

“What? Oh, yes. More than enough.”

“Then at least you tell me.”

“…Tell you what?”

Diana tilted her head, genuinely confused. She couldn’t feel it herself, but it had already been four days since she collapsed. It was also the fourth day since Ersivan had disappeared after leaving her in Kardel’s care.

‘Kardel, Kardel, Kardel.’

‘What is it? Calling so urgently at this ungodly hour?’

‘Can you come to my manor right now? No, you must come.’

‘Are you crazy? I have the end-of-month meeting today. Those old geezers will kill me.’

Contacting him out of the blue was one thing, but making such an absurd request to come to the manor immediately was quite another. It was so typical of Ersivan Valencia that Kardel hadn’t even been able to get angry.

If there had been a valid reason, it would be different. But Ersivan had simply delivered his requirement without any explanation and cut the communication. Kardel had thought about just ignoring it and getting back to work. After all, it was the crucial end-of-month meeting—a day full of elderly men whose tempers shouldn’t be tested.

But it was strange. That few seconds of communication had left Kardel feeling uneasy. Irritatingly so.

‘Ah, Lord Kardel. The meeting is about to start… Where are you going?’

‘I have somewhere I need to go for a moment.’

‘But the meeting is starting! How can you be so irresponsible!’

‘They’ll end up following my opinion anyway, so what does it matter? If it’s that bad, just submit the geezers’ opinions as the plan today. I don’t care.’

He was the type who couldn’t rest until he jumped into whatever was bothering him. He knew the old men would nag him to death later for his absence. But with the touching (if slightly impulsive) mindset that those things weren’t the priority, he had rushed over.

Yet, in the four days since arriving at the manor, he had heard nothing.

“What on earth happened before you returned here to make that guy act like that?”

“I’m not sure what you mean…”

“I mean Ersivan, that madman, has been absent from the manor for four days.”

Judging by the atmosphere that day, Kardel had expected Ersivan to take some time to return. But he hadn’t expected him not to show his face at all until his wife woke up. He thought there would be at least some minor contact. To think he went from running here while cradling a suffering wife to abandoning her to go about his own business.

“Four days?”

“Yes, four days without a word to me—”

“Wait, how long was I unconscious?”

Is cutting people off mid-sentence a Valencia family trait?

“Four days.”

“…Four days?”

“Yes. Your husband dropped you off in the middle of the night and vanished to who-knows-where, and he hasn’t been seen since.”

“Four whole days…”

Unlike the sarcastic Kardel, Diana’s voice was thick with worry. No matter how much he complained, the listener was only concerned about the man who wasn’t even there. It felt like he had done all the work while someone else took the credit.

“I get that you’re worried, but that’s not what’s important right now. I need a proper explanation.”

“…Ah.”

“What exactly happened to make that guy react that way?”

“That way?”

“He looked ready to wipe a whole territory off the map if he set his mind to it.”

Since Diana was an easier target for interrogation than Ersivan, Kardel kept pushing. Her small, fern-like hands gripped the blanket tightly. The white fabric bunched up, creating messy wrinkles.

I should probably tell him.

After a moment’s hesitation, Diana took a breath to speak. Honestly, it wasn’t a secret she couldn’t share. It was only right to explain the situation to the person who helped her, and she felt no great aversion to describing the events. If it had been the old her, she would have been trembling in fear from the trauma, but now it almost felt ridiculous.

She didn’t know whether to be happy that she had grown or bitter that she had become so accustomed to hardship.

“My father struck me, and His Grace witnessed it…”

Diana let her words trail off. She wanted to see how Kardel would react. Even if Lillian and the Count were known to be on good terms, he might think nothing of it. After all, there were plenty of parents who used violence under the guise of “discipline.”

However, contrary to her concern, Kardel’s face darkened. It meant he viewed the information negatively.

“By father, do you mean Count Mernard?”

“Yes. And… it was closer to an assault than a simple slap.”

“What?”

His voice came out hollow. It was a mix of a sigh and a click of his tongue. Finally, his eyebrows twitched.

“Then he deserves to be wiped out.”

“…Pardon?”

“I’m saying it’s a miracle that guy held back.”

“He looked ready to wipe a whole territory off the map.”

In context, the “territory” he was referring to was clearly the Mernard Countship. Kardel looked so solemn that Diana found herself confused. Is wiping out a territory really that easy? she wondered, struck by the absurdity of the thought.

“Is there anything else you’re curious about?”

Noticing Kardel seemed lost in thought, Diana prompted him to ask more. She was signaling that he shouldn’t hesitate to ask even potentially rude questions. After all, on the surface, they were a peaceful and harmonious father-daughter pair.

“Not really.”

“…You don’t have to hold back.”

“I’m just not curious. Asking would only make you remember it.”

He was showing her a subtle kindness. Still, she thought it was better for him to know. If he knew the details, wouldn’t it be easier for him to help shape public opinion later?

“It’s fine. I can explain things to those around us even without knowing the specifics.”

“Pardon?”

“I meant you should just worry about your own condition for now.”

Kardel reached out and ruffled Diana’s hair. Her hair spread out wildly, becoming a frizzy mess. It felt like static electricity was crackling through it. Embarrassed that her calculating side had been seen through, Diana quietly smoothed down her hair.

“Are you hungry?”

“My stomach feels a bit empty…”

“You’ve been fasting for four days; of course, you’re hungry. I’ll tell them to prepare some porridge.”

Just as he was about to ring the bell for a maid, a knock came from the door.

Knock, knock.

The timing was perfect. As soon as permission was given, the door opened to reveal Daisy and the butler. Even before Diana’s recovery had been officially announced, the key figures of the manor appeared as if by magic.

“His Grace has returned!”

And they announced the return of another key figure. At the unexpected news, a mix of joy and annoyance filled the room. A look of relief spread across Diana’s face, as she had been worrying about Ersivan, while Kardel’s face twisted in irritation.

<When are you coming back? I told you that you need to tell me when you’re returning to the Magic Tower. I can’t say anything right now because I don’t know the reason.>

<Ersivan Valencia. I’ve been confined here for two days now, you know?>

<…It’s been three days. What’s with reading the messages and not replying?>

<Your wife is awake, you jerk. Are you still not coming back?>

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