So I Was the Persecuted Grand Duchess Destined to Die? Chapter 47

“Eek!”

Katharina recoiled like she’d seen something horrifying when she looked at what I was holding out.

Naturally, the more she flinched, the more wickedly I grinned as I shoved it closer.

“Why are you dodging? Come on, take it.”

“I made that outfit specifically at Your Grace’s request. Are you saying you don’t like it?”

Garnet, standing behind her, stepped forward with a stern, solemn face.

Arms crossed, her impressive triceps bulged with intimidating authority. To make it worse, she was backlit, her face half drowned in shadow.

Thank goodness she’s on my side…

The thought hit me again, fresh.

…Still. She’s a good kid.

While I was privately basking in petty relief,

“Eek! No! No! But this is the ugliest thing I’ve ever seen! How can something this grotesque even exist?!”

Katharina cried out, genuinely terrified.

But under Garnet’s icy glare, she reluctantly took the garment.

Like she didn’t even want to touch it, she pinched it up between her thumb and index finger like a pair of tongs.

What she was holding was a pair of waders.

Also known as chest waders, they were waterproof suspenders that came all the way up to the chest.

People usually associated them with mudflats, but honestly, they were unbeatable for farm work too.

And the best part?

The boots were attached, one piece, so they protected you from everything: weeds, bugs, whatever was lurking out there.

Aha. I’d asked Garnet to custom make these for farming, and now they’re getting used like this.

And sure enough, my instincts had been right. Fishermen and farmers wore them for a reason.

They were so convenient.

Seeing Katharina react that violently was… kind of surprising.

“Why? Aren’t suspenders cute? I’m going to wear them too.”

Anyway, I had a lot to do today. No time to waste.

Before we really got started, I wanted to check the condition of the garden beds, so I tucked the waders under one arm and stepped out of the hut.

But seriously, how far had the rumor spread?

The yard was absolutely packed with onlookers.

Startled, I walked up to them and made eye contact with Ginny, the maid standing at the very front.

“My lady! What punishment are you going to give Lady Katharina?”

“Uh… you’ll see soon. But are you all here to watch?”

“How could we miss something this rare? And look over there.”

Ginny nodded subtly behind me.

There, pretending not to care under their parasols, were three familiar young ladies.

“Lilian, Julie, Serena! Didn’t you go back to your estates?”

“As if we could,” one of them said. “We actually wanted to see you and speak with you, Lady Renée, but it’s been so hard to meet you that we were miserable.”

“And then we heard you were in the annex, so we came right away.”

“Also… we heard you were punishing Lady Katharina. Is it true?”

One after another, they spoke, then raised their fans, trying to look nonchalant.

They were doing a terrible job. Their faces screamed, We’re dying of curiosity.

I hadn’t realized it between nearly dying and then waking up, but they’d been staying at the castle this whole time.

And they’d come to watch?

Well, from their perspective, I guess it was entertainment.

But what did they think I was going to do that had them so excited?

With everyone’s attention piling on, I felt weirdly pressured.

I’m a performer who thrives in small venues, okay? The more eyes on me, the more I malfunction!

With courage the size of a bean, “ordinary citizen” really was my true calling.

I was silently swearing to never do anything that drew this kind of attention again when

Creeeak.

The hut door opened behind me.

“Pfft, hahaha!”

“Oh my god, look at her!”

“The noble lady who only ever wore silk is actually wearing that?!”

I didn’t even need to turn around.

Katharina shuffled up beside me with her head bowed, cheeks flaming red, ears and the back of her neck included.

“I’ve never worn something this ugly in my life,” she whispered like it was a disgrace.

“It’s that weird?”

That was honestly the most shocking part to me.

And the funniest thing?

This outfit wasn’t even the punishment I’d prepared.

I was about to develop an existential crisis about my own aesthetic sense, but Katharina kept sniffing like she was about to cry, and I couldn’t hold back anymore.

“Pfft, haha! Yeah, it’s a terrifying punishment, right? And we’re only getting started.”

Humming to myself, I led her to the backyard.

A small vegetable patch greeted us, neat rows already tilled and ready.

“Alright! A proper punishment is hard labor. Katharina, take this.”

“Huh?”

Katharina accepted a hand hoe like she’d never seen one in her entire life, blinking those huge eyes.

To demonstrate, I ducked back into the hut, quickly changed into my own waders, then rushed out.

The people who’d been mocking her outfit shut their mouths the moment they saw me wearing the same thing.

Okay. Let’s begin for real.

I strode into the garden and planted a seedling the maids had prepared.

Then I turned, flashed Katharina a menacing grin, and said,

“Now, Katharina. Hard labor begins. Do exactly what I do.”

“T-that’s insane!”

Her deliciously dramatic reaction was perfect.

And so began our cheerful “garden tending time,” disguised as forced labor.

“Eek! There’s a bug!”

“Wow, that earthworm is huge. This soil must be great.”

“Don’t touch it! Oh my god!”

“Why? It won’t bite.”

“Waaah!”

Katharina, who’d managed to plant only two seedlings, was already teary eyed again and poking at the dirt like it had personally wronged her.

I chuckled and adjusted the straw hat Nina had put on me.

Among the onlookers, who still hadn’t left, confused reactions bubbled up.

“Is… this really a punishment?”

“This isn’t what I imagined at all…”

“But she does look genuinely miserable.”

Mmph.

At their visibly conflicted expressions, I tried not to smile.

Well, it was embarrassing enough to count as a “punishment,” I figured.

And the function Katharina wanted punishment to serve, public humiliation, was definitely being fulfilled.

Meanwhile, I get a two for one deal. Punishment and farming.

We were planting assorted vegetable seedlings.

Later I’m seriously going to try making kimchi.

I was floating along on my hopeful little dream when

“L-Lady Renée!”

A thin voice cut in sharply.

I looked up. It was Ginny again.

“Surely this isn’t the end of her punishment, is it? She’s a criminal who tried to harm you!”

Her face brimmed with indignation.

“Yes! Exactly, are you really letting her off that easily?”

“Your Grace’s authority will be undermined!”

“If you punish her so lightly, she’ll get arrogant and try to hurt you again!”

After Ginny, murmurs of discontent rose through the crowd.

I brushed the dirt off my hands and stood.

In an instant, the mood shifted. Everyone started watching me, clearly wanting something harsher.

Right. This girl is the one who testified that Katharina pushed me.

I hadn’t known, but apparently Katharina was pretty widely disliked.

That made her being so cowed make a little more sense.

But no matter what, I wasn’t going to change my decision.

So I spoke firmly.

“Yeah, I heard that. But I’m the victim, and I remember. Katharina didn’t push me.”

“…What?”

Ginny’s face darkened immediately.

It made sense. I’d just contradicted what she believed.

Worried Ginny might jump to the wrong conclusion, I softened my tone.

“Ginny, I’m not blaming you. But we need to set the truth straight.”

A ripple went through the gathered crowd.

“Wait, so Ginny saw it wrong?”

“But everyone there said…”

“B-but I saw it clearly! Not just me, everyone there did! And more than anything, Lady Katharina hated Lady Renée!”

Ginny shouted, shaking her head like she couldn’t accept it.

This was getting bigger than I’d expected.

Mmph. I was trying to figure out what to say next when

“I didn’t push the Grand Duchess.”

Katharina stood, setting down her hoe, and spoke in a steady voice.

But her hands were trembling.

I understood what she was doing.

So I simply waited.

And when Katharina continued,

everyone’s eyes went wide.