So I Was the Persecuted Grand Duchess Destined to Die? Chapter 7

Chapter 7

The moment the doors opened, a massive cloud of dust and a musty stench surged forward, swallowing us whole.

“Cough—! Cough! What is this…?!”

I’d thought I’d built up a decent resistance to filthy environments after scrubbing the cabin from top to bottom.

Turns out—

this body was far more fragile than I’d given it credit for.

After waiting for the dust to settle a little, I cautiously stepped inside, one careful step at a time.

Shhhaak!

Moving faster than me, Betty reached the far end of the room and yanked back the thick curtains covering the largest window.

The central window was made of beautiful stained glass.

Light poured through the multicolored panes, dust motes dancing in the air as the library was suddenly bathed in color.

“Wow…”

Shhk! Shhk! Shhk!

Once all the curtains were drawn aside, the entire atmosphere changed.

“I knew it would be big, but this is way larger than I imagined! It puts most temple libraries to shame!”

Betty, now standing beside me, stared around in genuine awe.

I nodded vigorously.

By my previous-life standards, the library was about the size of a school athletic field.

Between ornate pillars, a graceful arched ceiling stretched overhead.

In the center of the hall stood well over a hundred bookshelves, lined up in neat rows.

“This is…”

In short—

a gold mine for a text addict.

My heart raced as a wide grin spread across my face. Betty smiled at the sight.

“Are you that happy?”

“Yeah! With this many books, I could survive ten years in the cabin.”

“…That doesn’t sound like a good thing.”

“Why not? It’s amazing!”

Ten years, twenty years—I don’t care!

I’ve got nothing but time anyway!

I’ll read every single book here!

I was practically bouncing when—

“Well… we should probably start with cleaning.”

“…Right. I knew it.”

“Come on, let’s do our best! If we work hard, we might finish before spring.”

“That’s way too far away!”

But what choice did I have?

I let out a deep sigh, then steeled myself.

Everything’s hard at the beginning.

Let’s just start.
Future me can worry about the rest.

✦ ✦ ✦

“…Huff…”

Unfortunately, future me was also failing.

How many hours had passed?

When we’d left the cabin, the sun had been blazing—but now it was already sinking toward dusk.

Even with Betty’s help, all we’d managed was cleaning the windows and a handful of shelves.

“Ugh… my back…”

“Your Grace, are you all right?”

“Yeah… but honestly, even if the two of us clean every day, there’s no way we’ll finish before spring.”

“…That’s true. Even spring might be optimistic. Please rest for a bit—I’ll take over.”

Betty’s eyes looked suspiciously moist as she said that.

Afraid she’d misunderstand, I quickly shook my head.

“What are you talking about? I said I’d do this, so I’ll see it through. You should rest too. I’ll just look through the cleaned shelves for a moment.”

“…All right. Please be careful. There might still be things on the floor.”

I planned to grab at least one book before leaving.

I’d probably collapse the moment I got back anyway—but I could read later.

The psychological difference between having books and not having books was enormous.

As someone raised on the dopamine-saturated 21st century, I needed content to survive.

“Let’s see…”

The shelves were tall.

Or maybe—

I was just short.

Thankfully, a small wooden footstool sat nearby. It looked a little rotted and unstable, but it would do.

I started with the upper shelves.

Strangely enough, the language appeared as Korean to me, so reading felt completely natural.

So this wasn’t a translated novel—
it must be a domestic one?

Even better.

A K–romance-fantasy patch.

I still didn’t know exactly what world I was in, but there was no need to rush.

I’d figure it out naturally.

“Hehehe.”

With no immediate danger in sight and my favorite thing—books—right in front of me, my shoulders relaxed.

I even started humming as I scanned the spines.

“Looks like this section’s mostly history.”

The History of the Rembrandt Empire
The Glorious Life of Albert Rembrandt, First Emperor
The Covenant Between Rembrandt and the Dragon

So the empire’s name was Rembrandt.

And dragons? Covenants?

…That meant dragons actually existed in this world?

Still, let’s be honest—

someone like me, who couldn’t even remember character names, had zero chance of identifying the story from Rembrandt Empire alone.

But reading history never hurt anyone.

I pulled out The History of the Rembrandt Empire and turned—

“Huh?”

My wandering gaze froze.

There, unmistakably—

The Empire’s Ultimate Overpowered Invisible Dragon Let Out a Roar

“…What is that?”

That title had some serious bait.

An invisible dragon?

Yeah, no way I was passing that up.

“Hehe. Two books.”

I pulled out The Empire’s Ultimate Overpowered Invisible Dragon… as well and hugged both to my chest.

A history book for studying—

and what was clearly a fun read for entertainment.

Perfect balance.

It was perfect for parallel reading.

For some reason, my heart felt… full.

When I stepped away from the shelves, I noticed Betty still slumped where she was.

Judging by the way her head bobbed, even someone as sturdily built as her must’ve found today exhausting.

That made me feel a little guilty.

Sleep should be comfortable—not stolen in a dusty library.

“Betty, let’s call it a day and head back.”

“Huh—? Oh! Y-yes…!”

She hurriedly wiped at her mouth, embarrassed, clearly having nodded off.

Maybe because we’d been buried in dust all day, the more she wiped, the dirtier the area around her mouth became.

I reached out and brushed the soot from her cheek.

“Looks like I should be the one washing you today.”

“W-What?! Absolutely not!”
She recoiled in shock. “How would you wash me with those tiny hands?! If anything, after how hard you worked today, I was planning to give you a full massage course!”

I—I was joking.

She reacted so strongly I never even got the chance to explain.

Picking up the wooden bucket and rags we’d used earlier, Betty headed for the door, chattering as she went.

“The bathroom in the cabin is freezing. But there’s a guest bath nearby—if you don’t mind, how about using that today?”

“Is that… allowed?”

Honestly, the cabin was wonderful in most ways—but heating was limited to the fireplace.

Even the water had to be boiled, then mixed with cold water until it was usable.

Every time I washed up, I found myself missing Korea’s heating systems.

Even my tiny studio apartment back then had heated bathroom floors.

So, yes—

the moment she mentioned a proper bath, my resolve wavered.

Noticing the way my pupils shook, Betty leaned in and whispered with the sly grin of a seasoned conspirator.

“Milady, you are the Grand Duchess. Would it really be a problem for you to use the Grand Ducal baths?”

…Why did her way of speaking suddenly change?

Still, instead of arguing, I tilted my head and pretended to think deeply.

“Hm… he did say not to draw attention.”

“You mean His Grace?” she replied smoothly. “He stepped out earlier—he won’t be back today.”

“Really?”

And honestly?

I kind of liked her underhanded tone.

She was only saying things I wanted to hear.

Approved.

Up until now, I’d obediently followed everything that man said without question.

But thinking about it—

for a freshly transmigrated romance-fantasy heroine, hadn’t I been unusually well-behaved?

The Grand Duke was ridiculous anyway.

Who was he to tell me not to stand out? I didn’t want to get tangled up with him either.

If I were being honest, I’d probably been too polite so far.

And more honestly than that—

I desperately wanted to soak in hot water and melt.

When my hesitation dragged on, Betty dropped her schemer act and delivered the finishing blow.

“If it still bothers you… we could use it secretly,” she whispered.
“It’s tucked away. Hardly anyone passes through.”

“…What?”

Are you suggesting we sneak into a bathroom?

“I’m in.”

That was an excellent suggestion.

“Hahaha!”

“Hehe!”

Just as Betty and I giggled over our perfect plan and pushed open the library doors—

“Huh?”

An unexpected group stood there, completely blocking our path.