‘What? Why did the original work change there yesterday?’
So far, she had tried to change the outcome of the episode, but even if the middle process was slightly different, the result hadn’t changed. However, the episode where Edith tried to seduce Killian changed completely last night. Edith, who tried to seduce him with her body, became a flow that Killian embraced, so Killian was no longer a virgin for Lise. Besides, Killian’s first kiss should be Lise, but even that went wrong.
‘Of course, Lise’s first kiss was Cliff. Anyway, Killian’s position as a sub male lead will be shaken. What will happen to this?’
It was complicated in her head, but for some reason, laughter leaked out. She kept thinking of Killian, who called her name and hugged her, his kisses, and his hot gestures. He seemed to believe that she was trying to seduce him with her body…
“Oh, I don’t know. Let it be.”
Anna’s mouth was strictly controlled, so no one in the mansion would probably know that they had become a ‘real couple’. But she knew. Because of that fact, her smile kept coming out, but she was embarrassed to show it to Anna, so she pulled the blanket over her.
‘A real couple… Oooh, what should I do, what should I do!’
It seemed that she fell asleep while chewing on the incident with him, kicking the blanket, and laughing nonchalantly. Again, the voice of the announcer system came.
[Step 1 exception conditions met. Exceptions have been made and the author’s rights have been reduced. Stage 1 exception conditions will expire.]
‘What?’
It was a strange explanation. Phase 1 Exception Conditions? Was that enough? And what were the rights of the original author? She didn’t think it would answer her question, but he still asked the voice with all her might.
‘What is the first stage exception condition?’
Surprisingly, the voice answered.
[Step 1 exception condition: follow the original Edith method that failed.]
She had goosebumps all over her body. First of all, that voice knew that this world was in a novel and that she was possessing a character. Knowing that the original Edith and the current her were different people. In addition, the term ‘exception condition’ seemed to be a condition that had to be met in order to create an ‘exception’ that could twist the original work in this situation where it was being dragged along with the flow of the original work. The last time the voice talked about the 3rd stage, and this time it was the 1st stage, so it seemed that there were several stages. It felt like someone was looking down at her who was possessing a character in a novel and mocking her.
‘I’ve been trying so hard not to follow the path that Edith in the original story failed in the meantime, but in the end, that’s what strangled me?’
She didn’t know who set the conditions, but that person had a very bad taste.
She had to follow the failed method to create an ‘exception situation’. But it wasn’t a very hopeless situation. She still didn’t understand everything the voice was saying, but she was certain of one hopeful thing.
‘The original story could have been different!’
The voices in the dream were never to be ignored. Like the voice told her the other day, she couldn’t tell anyone about her situation. So she could believe that she was lucky enough to meet the first stage exception conditions like that pervert and change the original. She could change the ending where her throat is cut by Killian and she dies miserably.
‘It’s still too early to give up. You can do it, Choi Suna! You can do it, Edith!’
A glimmer of hope was visible.
* * *
She took two more days off. For those two days, she locked herself in her room and embroidered while thinking about the future. After organizing her thoughts, a few questions came to her mind. First of all, who was the “original author” that the voice said?
‘Who was the author of this book? It was a pen name that started with K…’
The voice said that an exception occurred because she had met the first-level exception conditions, and that the “authority of the original author” was reduced. What did it mean when the author’s authority was reduced when it is a novel that has already been completed? At first, she wondered if it was the will of this world to follow the original, but something seemed different.
Authority. The scope of a person’s rights or powers… This meant that the range had been reduced. And it meant that there was a subject wielding that right or power.
‘Is this the god of this world?’
Because the original author was like a god in his work. Regardless of the identity, if the authority of the subject as the original author was reduced, where and by how much did it decrease? Did it decrease in all parts or did it decrease in one part? And how is the original author moving this world? Was the will of the original author being reflected in real time, or was the will of the original original being reflected? Even if the authority of the original author was reduced, the incident continues, so did a power greater than the original author maintain this world?
‘It’s too vague. The information is sorely lacking.’
Somehow she felt like she was playing an unfavorable game. And also, because she created an exceptional situation by meeting the first-level exception conditions, the setting of the character Killian changed significantly. Still, would Killian try to follow the original story? So, was there a lack of probability? Even if there was not enough probability, would they be forcibly fitted? If not, could she keep changing the story as she create probabilities? However, seeing that there are at least three ‘conditions’, she thought that she wouldn’t be able to change everything right now.
‘My head hurts… Anyway, I’ll have to keep an eye on Killian for the time being.’
She had to see what choices Killian made when a new episode took place. If he followed her intentions, her future would be even brighter.
‘Otherwise… I’m going to die like the original.’
She sighed, but she had to do what she could for now.
And on the third day, when she was about to get out of bed and wake up, the Duchess called her.
“Edith. Are you okay?”
“Sorry to startle you. It’s okay now. It’s been a while since I’ve been okay, but mother was out of town, so I’m late to say hello.”
She had been to the imperial palace with the Duke for the past few days. Perhaps she had discussed the dynamics of Grand Duke Langston and the Rigelhoffs and prepared defenses without their knowledge.
“The Duke was also very worried. And he’s all over the place that he thinks he’s pushing you too hard. He is a man who has lived on the battlefield for a long time, so his tone is hard.”
For that matter, Lise’s voice was quite soft. But she couldn’t say anything like that.
“It’s strange that you speak softly when questioning important issues within the mansion. I’m fine, so please tell me not to worry too much.”
“Thank you for understanding, Edith.”
She didn’t want to worry about the Duchess, so she smiled as brightly as she could.
“What do you want me to do in the future? You don’t have to help me with my work if you want, but I think… I think it would rather solidify the view of misunderstanding you.”
“As long as my mother is okay, I want to continue helping her. But at this rate, the person who framed me might do the same thing again.”
Although she was quite suspicious that it might be Lise.
“So, I want to work under the direct supervision of someone my mother trusts.”
“Edith, honey, surveillance…”
“Ah, was the expression like that? So what I want to say is…”
“No, I know. You want a place where you can work without being misunderstood.”
“Yes, that’s right.”
The Duchess thought for a moment in silence. She wondered what to do when asked to help Lise, but the person she pointed out was her aide, Renan Filch.
“Renan is the one who inspects the tax-related documents sent from each territory and prepares the documents to be sent to the imperial palace. She is a person who deals with money matters, so she can be a bit strict and ruthless, but she is never one to be swayed by emotions or be partial.”
“He is exactly what I want.”
She sincerely hoped that he wasn’t a soft person who was swayed by emotions.
Even when she was working at the company, she emphasized ‘Jeong’, and she hated her boss the most, who liked company dinners and friendship. People like her, who have vague pride and can’t speak out loud, have always been branded as ‘a person who can’t live in society’ and even disparaged her work ability.
And she met Renan Filch, who seemed more stern and unfeeling than she had hoped, the next day. Besides, he was much younger than she thought. Late 20’s to early 30’s?
“Nice to see you. This is Renan Filch. Feel free to call me Renan.”
A blunt voice with little tonality flowed from the gray-pale man’s mouth.
“Nice to meet you, Renan. This is Edith Ludwig. I want to help Renan starting today, what can I do?”
“First… Please sort all receipts here by year. I will have to classify it by case later, but for now, only by year.”
What he handed over was a large box full of randomly jumbled receipts.
There were wet and dry marks here and there, and some had footprints.
“This… how come… ”
“It’s the stupid worker I worked for last time. He said he was offended by me and ran away, scattering several years worth of receipts on the floor.”
“He messed up the Duke’s papers and ran away? Was he caught?”
“Sure. It was the son of the author Nam, but thanks to the father emptying his hands to become his feet, I could barely end up with reparations.”
“Oh my god…”
I shook my head, but Renan continued with his glum face.
How do you feel?
