Chapter 3: Reincarnated as a Supporting Character in a Tragic Novel (2)
‘Is there no such thing as an afterlife?’
Why did she, right after dying, have to possess a body that was already destined to die?
Eliana didn’t want to acknowledge her situation.
It was only fair that she be given a real chance to live, since, after all, she had been granted a second life.
She had been unjustly killed in the spring of her youth, but she couldn’t believe she would die young again.
It was maddening to know that she had become Eliana.
Eliana Museau.
She was the only daughter of Count Museau and a minor villainess under the command of the Empress Dowager Hera.
In short, she was a negligible addition.
And to top it off, she was an extra character destined to be brutally killed by the cunning mastermind Verkley.
Muttering as she buried herself under her blanket, Eliana said, “This is driving me insane.”
The woman she met yesterday was Eliana’s personal maid, Finn, who had been with Eliana since she was a child and had guided her toward Hera.
That was because her older brother was Hera’s servant.
As a result of pestering Finn for details yesterday, she was able to confirm that Eliana was currently twenty years old and had been promised in marriage to Marquis Valkyrie.
Of all things, her fiancé was a man twice her age, and this wasn’t even his first marriage.
‘No matter how powerful the Marquis is compared to the Count, isn’t this too much? I’ve never even been in a relationship before, and now they want me to live with an old man?’
Eliana fiercely punched her pillow.
Finn also said that these days, Eliana often mentioned wanting to die.
Well, it wasn’t surprising that she felt that way. Who in their right mind would willingly want to marry a miserable grave-robbing lecher?
On top of that, the novel stated that Eliana grew up unloved by her father. He was an alcoholic brute who abused Eliana whenever he pleased.
No wonder Eliana’s mental state became twisted, growing up in such an environment.
There was no one by her side except Finn.
Everyone thought she was no better than a worthless burden.
This was the miserable reality of Eliana.
After her father beat her and threw her out into the cold yesterday, Finn was the only one who cared enough to visit her.
‘I need to find a way to avoid being sold to this old man.’
Eliana agonized over the novel’s plot.
The Owen Empire, the setting of this novel, had a horrific social hierarchy.
A person’s status in society was determined at birth, and the nobility, in particular, had limited access to the outside world.
In this rigid society, Eliana was born without any abilities.
If she had a normal father who raised her with love, her life would have been much better. But alas, her father was Count Museau.
He isolated and completely neglected Eliana.
The only time Eliana went outside was on a specific day when she could no longer endure her father’s abuse.
The only good thing in all of this was that Eliana would be able to use her abilities at the age of twenty, abilities that weren’t innate but acquired.
In the novel, Eliana was overjoyed because she had finally gained the ‘power’ to stand tall and proud before others.
She was so thrilled to know this that she ran straight to her father to tell him.
“Your daughter has become a sorceress! And what’s more, a sorceress who acquired her powers naturally!”
She wanted to know if her father would care about her now.
It was unfortunate.
Her father, who despised her for not having any abilities since birth, didn’t start loving her just because she gained some power.
Yet, all Eliana wanted was a little praise or even just a bit of attention from him, as she was desperately in need of any affection after being confined for so long.
It wouldn’t be hard to empathize with her or understand her feelings.
But when she visited the Count with a wide smile on her face, Eliana heard something. It was like a bolt of lightning striking from a clear blue sky—she heard of her father’s plans to sell her to Marquis Valkyrie.
Eliana’s heart shattered into a million pieces that day.
No matter how many times she was beaten and bruised black and blue, she always believed her father would still care for her because she was his only daughter. But from the way he spoke, it was as if she were merely some livestock he was selling for easy money.
And after that incident, she lost her will to live. At first, she only stared at the wall, but at some point, Finn found Eliana holding something sharp to her throat, saying she wanted to leave this world.
‘I won’t die in vain like Eliana in the novel.’
She had no desire to remain a foolish woman who built her life according to the whims of her abusive father, who never once looked at her with love in his eyes.
Moreover, she didn’t want to become a woman who could be easily manipulated by Hera due to her thirst for affection.
She wasn’t desperate for love like the original Eliana. In the first place, she had already given up on that.
And no one would love her anyway.
Betrayal.
Death.
Those were the only two things she would get if she opened her heart again.
As she clutched her bruised stomach, she recalled her previous life.
‘Back then, I died because of a psychopath. There’s no way in hell I’ll sink to my death a second time.’
With a dark expression on her face, she tightened her fists.
First, she needed to talk to Finn again.
If Eliana was to be killed by Verkley because she was Hera’s pawn, there was only one solution.
She had to go to him first.
That was the only way to overcome this ordeal.
And as she tried to find a way out of this hopeless maze, the blanket covering her head was suddenly yanked away.
“Let go of me! Don’t touch me!”
Eliana screamed, protesting against the maids who stripped her clothes and dressed her in a new gown.
Despite her struggles, the three maids who came under Count Museau’s orders didn’t bat an eye, no matter how hard Eliana tried. They said he was looking for her.
Not only did the Count mistreat her, but even the maids didn’t treat her with respect.
The reason she resisted so fiercely was that she heard Marquis Valkyrie was here, waiting to meet her.
One of the maids expressed her disapproval.
“My lady, we don’t have time for this. You mustn’t keep the Marquis waiting.”
“I don’t want to! I don’t want to meet him!”
Eliana screamed, clinging to anything around her so the maids couldn’t drag her out of the room.
At that moment, a shadow loomed over her.
Eliana looked up.
Standing before her was an arrogant woman, her chin raised and arms crossed.
“The Count said to bring you there, by force if necessary. If you keep resisting, I have permission to punish you.”
With one smooth motion, the woman flicked the whip in her hand, striking the air. Because her clothes were different from the other maids, Eliana realized this woman was the head maid.
She was the one who lashed Eliana on her back during etiquette lessons under the guise of ‘education.’
Eliana looked at her with a conflicted expression, staring only at the maid who confidently said she would punish her.
‘Come to think of it, the hierarchy even within the Count’s mansion was dysfunctional in the novel.’
Since there was no Countess, the head maid deluded herself into thinking she was the lady of the house, and thus took it upon herself to discipline everyone.
Worse yet, the Count would believe the head maid’s words over Eliana’s.
Since the Count trusted the head maid so much, it was as if they were practically married.
Eliana quickly grew tired of struggling and gave in to the maids. She wouldn’t be able to avoid the meeting anyway, even if she kept fighting them.
The maids grabbed her arms and lifted a bright dress over her, adorning her with shiny accessories.
Well, even if she wasn’t wearing extravagant clothes, she would still look pristine. The woman in the mirror had a stiff expression, but she was still very beautiful.
“Hurry up.”
At a curt order from the head maid, Eliana was dragged toward the drawing room where the Count was waiting.
This wasn’t how you treated a lady, or anyone really, who had just regained consciousness the day before.
Not a single maid even asked if she was feeling alright.
Every servant she passed spared no concern for her well-being.
They didn’t even greet her properly, despite her rank in this household being directly below the Count.
Had she been treated like this her entire life?
Did Eliana have to endure all of this since she was young?
After realizing the extent of her pitiful circumstances, she could only scoff in indignation. What she experienced in less than an hour was harsher than she expected.
‘It hasn’t even been a full day yet, but I’m already so frustrated. How did Eliana endure all of this?’
At that moment, she thought she had to escape this place as soon as possible.
For that to happen, she needed to endure a little more and act as she was told so she could escape successfully.
‘Let’s endure it just this once.’
The next time she saw Finn, Eliana would reveal what she was capable to do. That way, it would be easier to meet Hera.
She had no other choice. If she wanted to go to Verkley, she had to go through Hera.
For now, Verkley was an emperor in name only. It would be safer to meet him through Hera because if Eliana went to him directly, it would be a surefire way to get killed by the Empress Dowager.
And given her current situation, there was no other way to approach him.
“Count Museau, the young lady has arrived.”
The butler announced after knocking on the door.
From behind the wall, the loud laughter stopped, and a cheerful voice beckoned Eliana.
“Come in.”
When the butler opened the door, two men appeared: a middle-aged blonde man and an old man with gray hair.
Since the blonde man’s hair was similar to Eliana’s, she immediately recognized him as Count Museau.
And as she noticed, the Count had already had a drink or two. His eyes were blue, and his face was flushed.
‘How excited are you to sell your daughter?’
Eliana stood with a stiff back, not wanting to take a step further, but a maid behind her pushed her inside.
The door closed behind her with a soft thud.
Eliana had decided to do as she was told this time, to endure it just one last time because it would be easier.
But the moment she faced these wretched men, her resolve wavered.
