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It had been over a month since I arrived here.
The deadline to claim the prize money was one year.
I must return before then.
No, more importantly, I must return before marrying off Solea in this place.
I gritted my teeth as I held a plank position.
“This… this is definitely… a full-body workout… I saw it on YouTube… just passing by…”
I couldn’t tell exactly how many seconds had passed, but it was clear that my arms and legs started trembling as if they were being electrocuted in less than five seconds.
“Huff!”
In the end, I collapsed.
Gray had said that the key difference in any exercise was whether or not you engaged your core, so I had tightened my abs as much as I could.
It felt like my stomach was on fire.
When I did lower-body exercises, it felt like my thighs were burning from the inside out, and when I did core exercises, it felt like my stomach was being scorched with flames.
Solea must have been quite the weakling because, even after exercising for an entire month, I only ended up with muscle soreness in different areas every day, without feeling any healthier.
“This is too hard.”
Feeling anxious, I tried doing planks like this when Gray wasn’t around, but without a stopwatch, I couldn’t tell how long I was holding it.
Dragging my exhausted body, I stumbled into the bathroom, washed up again, and came out.
How many times a day do I shower?
My muscles aren’t growing, damn it.
After changing into another set of workout clothes, Anne entered the room.
But Anne’s face looked utterly wilted.
Her usual bright and lively demeanor was nowhere to be found.
Carefully parting her small, delicate lips, Anne said something I could never have imagined.
“…My Lady, if it’s not too rude, may I ask why you bought a slave?”
“I bought a slave?”
I’ve never even stepped outside this mansion, so how could I have bought a slave?
If I had that kind of money, I’d save it up, buy some jewels, and take them back to Korea when I return.
Why would I buy a slave?
A whirlwind of thoughts swirled in my head, but the words that came out of my mouth were as simple as could be, perhaps because the question was so absurd.
“It wasn’t me.”
But Anne’s eyes drooped downward, as if certain that someone had bought a slave under the name Solea.
“…I caused a lot of trouble and broke many dishes. When I was about to be fired from the kitchen—no, when I was fired. That’s when you rehired me, my Lady.”
“…I see.”
Well, I wouldn’t know about that.
“When I was crying at the back door, you took pity on me, sniff, and you rehired me… even convinced everyone else when they were against it, saying I could do better… That’s why I’ve been trying so hard to serve you well, my Lady, so you wouldn’t feel any lacking.”
“Yes, you’ve worked very hard. More than enough.”
Who else would go to a bookstore to buy erotic novels for their master?
And even read them aloud.
I saw your loyalty right there.
Anne, with tears welling up in her eyes, eventually spoke as if giving up.
“It’s okay. Since they’re a slave, they won’t be able to serve you properly anyway. I’m the only maid by your side.”
“Ah. Is this slave you say I bought a woman?”
“No. A man.”
“Hm? If he’s a man, why are you sniffling? It’s not like I’d keep him as a maid by my side.”
I don’t understand.
“But they say he’s incredibly beautiful!”
Now I understand completely.
“Let’s go see. Has the slave arrived?”
“Yes, he came on his own feet along with the slave trader.”
“…Do I have to pay for him?”
I don’t have any money.
I’m someone who only owns a few sets of workout clothes.
“No. They said you’ve already paid.”
“I really didn’t do it. I don’t buy slaves.”
As I opened the door and went down the stairs, true to Anne’s words, there was indeed a man standing at the bottom of the steps outside the wide-open main gate.
The slave’s wrists and ankles were bound, making it look uncomfortable for him to walk.
The man standing next to the slave, glancing into the mansion, was dressed relatively neatly, so he was likely the slave trader Anne had mentioned.
His sunburned, deep brown face and yellowish eyes, as if soaked in alcohol, reminded me of someone.
Ah, damn.
Breathe. Calm down. This isn’t that house. I am Solea.
That man won’t dare lay a hand on me.
“…Why are they standing outside? Tell them to come in.”
Anne tilted her head and asked back.
“You’re letting the slave into the mansion?”
“…Well, I can’t exactly stand here shouting at them from the doorway, can I?”
Anne blinked rapidly.
“You don’t need to speak directly with the slave trader or the slave, my Lady! Just tell me what you want done, and I’ll handle the rest.”
I glanced at the slave standing outside.
I should’ve realized it when one of those three friends who visited the mansion last time—whose names I can’t even remember—mentioned they were heavily involved in the slave trade.
Never mind the normalization of slavery, the way they treated slaves said it all.
The slave standing far away, unable to even look inside, was dressed in rags, the very picture of destitution.
The relatively well-dressed man next to the slave took a step up the stairs.
“You need to sign the slave contract for me to leave. The payment has already been made, but I need your signature to confirm the date you received this one, Lady Bergo.”
“Who dares to address my daughter so casually?”
A low, resonant voice came from behind.
Descending the wide staircase in the center of the mansion’s wall was the silver-haired Duke Diego von Bergo, walking slowly.
Behind him were Heyman and Gray, both glaring sharply at the slave trader.
Looks like the Duke didn’t go to work today.
“Good morning,” I greeted indifferently.
Duke Diego smiled faintly and replied.
“Good morning, Solea. I waited to have breakfast with you today.”
“…Ah. If you’d told me in advance, I would’ve woken up earlier. I thought you’d already left.”
“It’s fine. I decided on my own, so it’s only right that I waited.”
If it was a self-made appointment, why are those two waiting along with him?
Heyman looked down at me with his usual indifferent face, while Gray smirked silently.
‘I’m starving to death.’
While smiling at Duke Diego, I secretly flashed my middle finger toward Gray.
‘Eat this.’
Gray, who had seen the middle finger for the first time a few days ago, was a genius in the art of cursing—understanding it was an insult purely from context, even without knowing its meaning.
Amused by my antics, Gray pretended to rub his eye while flipping me off in return.
This guy.
Diego smiled, completely oblivious to his adopted son and fake daughter having a fierce silent battle.
“I see you’re wearing workout clothes. Planning to exercise after breakfast?”
“Yes, I should.”
“Don’t move around right after eating—it’ll be hard on you. Have some tea first.”
Duke Diego gave a gentle smile before walking toward the slave trader.
“That aside… there’s no way my daughter would have bought a slave.”
“…G-Good morning, Your Grace. My name is Bolton.”
Before Bolton could finish his introduction, Gray took a threatening step forward.
“His Grace didn’t ask for your name.”
Bolton, who looked like a failed chocolate chip cookie with needle-poked holes for eyes, widened his small eyes as much as he could and spoke in apparent confusion.
“But, but surely! Someone from this household! Lady Solea purchased a slave! The payment was made that very day!”
Bolton’s strange chocolate chip cookie face crumpled like it was lying on summer asphalt.
“What’s the slave’s name?”
When Heyman cut in, the slave trader quickly answered.
“Don! His name is Don!”
What the?
“That’s right, Father. I bought him.”
And what’s with you?
“…Heyman. Why did you buy that slave under Solea’s name?”
“Because he’s someone Solea is looking for.”
Duke Diego, Heyman, and Gray all turned around simultaneously to look at me.
“Whatever you’re thinking, that’s not it!”
My desperate voice seemed not to reach them as Duke Diego’s expression darkened.
He walked a few steps outside the main gate and spoke to the slave Don.
“Raise your head.”
How are you going to tell if this is the Don I’m looking for just by looking at his face?
The Don I’m looking for is 1.7 billion won, not a slave named Don!
I was about to burst from frustration, unable to tell the truth.
Don, wearing rags, slowly raised his head.
“Hmm.”
A worried sigh escaped Diego’s lips.
“Your Grace! There must be a misunderstanding. The ‘don’ I’m looking for isn’t like this, it’s just, you know, money! Like pocket money…”
I tried to explain, but Heyman approached the Duke and whispered something in his ear, cutting off my words.
Then the Duke spoke to the slave trader again.
“Remove those shackles. I need to see his feet.”
Feet.
…Oh shit.
The failed chocolate chip cookie slave trader Bolton undid the bindings around the slave’s ankles.
Unable to just watch from behind, I stepped forward too.
Though his long navy-blue hair covering his nape was tangled and matted into a mess, his features were distinct.
His frightened eyes and tightly closed lips had a power that stirred something primitive.
…Thank you, Brother Heyman.
No. What am I saying right now?
I barely managed to regain my senses.
By then, Duke Diego seemed to have finished his assessment and extended his hand toward Bolton.
“I’ll sign it, so stop making a fuss and leave.”
“Oh, as long as you sign, I’ll leave right away. Thank you!”
Duke Diego signed the slave contract Bolton handed over without hesitation, then turned around like a painting and approached me.
“…Your Grace, please don’t misunderstand.”
Before I could say more, a somber light filled Duke Diego’s eyes.
“You told me it wasn’t true that day.”
“Sorry? What?”
Duke Diego slumped his shoulders and trudged up the stairs.
“Your Grace! There’s really some kind of misunderstanding. I don’t need that Don!”
Heyman interjected.
“Unlike other slaves, this one has no missing toenails, and his feet are perfectly shaped. There’s no need to hide him from the family, Solea.”
Feet. Feet. Damn feet.
Damn it, Heyman, stop butting in!
The Duke’s aide, who had come halfway down the stairs, leaned in and whispered something to him.
As soon as the aide finished speaking, Duke Diego let out a deep sigh and waved his hand dismissively.
“You can leave early today.”
The aide, who had been watching Duke Diego’s slumped back for a moment, gave a short nod and quickly descended the stairs.
“I’ll be going now.”
“Wait, sir. You’re just leaving like this?”
Feeling a sudden sense of urgency, I tried to stop him, but the aide was firm.
“I’ve been by His Grace’s side for 16 years. On days like this, he can’t work. Goodbye.”
You’ve been acting like a ghost possessed by overwork for the entire month I’ve been here, but in reality, you’re just someone who values work-life balance and made the Duke work hard so you could leave on time.
A loud thud echoed as the Duke’s door closed, signaling he had gone into his room.
Only then did Gray speak up irritably.
“Do you look at people’s faces when you meet them?”
“…What are you even talking about now?”
“No, Solea looks at feet.”
“Shut up.”
The poor slave, clueless about what was happening, stood there trembling in his rags.
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