* * *

“I heard from Klen that your body is frail… but I didn’t expect it to be this bad.”

For a brief moment, I had forgotten where I was due to the shock of regaining my memories.

This is the Count’s castle.

Naturally, Count Valuncio is the master of this place, and since I married his son, it was proper to pay my respects.

Now, here I was, seated across from the Count and Countess in their parlor.

The gazes directed at me, who had spent two full days confined to bed, were far from kind.

There was no need for me to deliberately act weak.

‘Have you ever survived on nothing but soup all day?’

The day after collapsing on an empty stomach, the only thing the maid served me was soup.

Different kinds of soup, sure, but still only soup.

Thanks to that, my head spun, and my steps naturally staggered.

To make matters worse, in an effort to appear even more delicate, I hadn’t finished even the little that was served to me.

What I desperately needed now was a proper meal.

‘I’m starving…’

Yet all I could do was press down on my lower stomach to suppress the growls.

Ironically, this effort seemed to make my expression all the more pitiful.

“Count Valuncio, isn’t that a bit…?”

“Father, please don’t be so harsh. She is my spouse, after all.”

At Klen’s words, all eyes shifted toward him.

The Count and Countess, as well as the servants attending them, widened their eyes and blinked slowly.

“You dare to call her your ‘spouse’ so easily,” Count Valuncio remarked with disbelief.

Clen lowered his eyebrows and forced an awkward smile, looking as though he had shrunk back from his father’s scolding.

The Count furrowed his brows, clearly displeased with this demeanor.

This expression was a far cry from the Klen Valuncio I knew—the one who had coldly rebuked the protagonist, leaving him trembling.

I stared blankly at the scene before me.

‘One of these personas is fake.’

I had already made my conclusion about which one it was.

It’s hard for someone incompetent to pretend to be competent, but the opposite is surprisingly easy.

And in the novel, Klen Valuncio had always been a highly capable individual.

But could a discrepancy this stark even be possible?

Regardless, it irritated me when Count Valuncio had earlier grumbled about my father.

‘Ah, if only I weren’t so dizzy…’

If I could drop the act, I’d have said something by now.

It was true that my father hadn’t sent his best, but the Count wasn’t blameless either—after all, he’d also chosen this son of his to represent the family.

If anything, they were both equally at fault.

As I mulled this over, the Count’s expression shifted into a visible scowl as he stared at me.

It wasn’t because he could read my inner complaints.

‘Wait, is he gauging my reaction?’

Perhaps my silence about his parents’ flaws had struck a nerve.

‘No, how about feeding me properly first before you start judging!’

Inviting someone over and serving them only tea?

Sure, the tea was nice—fragrant, with a slightly bitter aftertaste followed by a hint of sweetness.

But wouldn’t it be proper etiquette to at least offer cookies, bread, or cake along with it?

All I could do was carefully sip the tea on an empty stomach.

“There is a reason I summoned you two here,” the Countess said calmly, breaking the frigid silence.

She sipped her tea leisurely, eyes lowered.

Apparently, this wasn’t a scolding for failing to pay respects after the marriage.

“The two of you…”

She began cautiously, hesitating as if uncomfortable, covering her mouth mid-sentence.

Her narrowed eyes exuded a solemn air.

What was she trying to say, pausing like this?

I swallowed nervously, watching her closely.

Her gaze shifted subtly to the side, signaling something.

The servants, who caught the faint crease in her expression, quickly bowed and exited the room.

Click.

The door closed softly behind them.

Only then did the Countess speak again.

“You’re still not sharing a room, are you?”

“…What?”

The unexpected question left me dumbfounded.

‘Oh no.’

I had grown too used to sprawling out alone on that vast bed, forgetting that we were, in fact, a married couple.

Normally, couples shared not only a room but also a bed.

The Countess gently traced her teacup with a finger—a signal that what she was about to say was even more important and delicate.

I braced myself, waiting for her next words.

‘Cake would really help right about now.’

Suddenly, I craved something sweet to fill my mouth, likely because I was starving.

“And the consummation of your marriage… hasn’t happened yet, has it?”

“Cough, cough, cough!”

I choked, my throat catching as I tried to swallow.

It must’ve gone down the wrong way, and I erupted into a fit of violent coughing.

Though I couldn’t see their faces, their silence suggested they were quite startled.

Perhaps this spectacle solidified the image of me as fragile in their minds.

As I struggled to recover, a hand—already familiar with the motion—gently patted my back.

Who spread this rumor?

No, I already knew.

Every servant here acted as the Count and Countess’s eyes and ears.

It was inevitable that all information would flow to them.

Thankfully, my coughing subsided quickly.

After a few clearing coughs, I finally spoke.

“Um, well…”

The only excuse I could think of was my poor health.

But unless it was a contagious disease, that didn’t justify sleeping separately.

If the Count misunderstood and thought my father had sent a son-in-law too weak to even share a bed, he might lodge a complaint.

‘And then my feigned frailty would be exposed.’

On the other hand, admitting that I slept just fine while Klen chose to leave the room felt unfair—like I was shifting all the blame onto him.

And then there was the matter of the consummation…

“Apologies, Mother,” Klen interjected before I could finish fumbling for a response.

“On the first night, I accidentally spilled milk… and—”

“I’m aware of that. You nearly cost him his life and made a mess breaking cups, too.”

“And didn’t he trip and fall right in front of you?”

The Countess’s next words came softly, as if carried by a breeze.

The joke I’d entertained as a fleeting thought had become a reality.

Was the rumor that Klen had nearly killed me while trying to feed me milk actually circulating?

Clen’s face flushed faintly as he scratched his head awkwardly.

If I had been sipping tea at that moment, it would’ve undoubtedly spilled from my mouth.

‘That’s fake. That personality is definitely an act.’

The unsettling certainty bubbled up from the depths of my mind. If not, it had to be.

There was no other explanation.

And if he was acting, then the only conclusion was that Klen, like me, was performing a role.

‘But how can he blush so naturally on cue?’

As a novice just stepping into the world of acting, everything seemed fascinating to me.

“I couldn’t approach because I felt guilty. I couldn’t risk making things harder for you again.”

It was a more plausible excuse than the countless ones I had come up with.

“But avoiding each other because of that… would that really be right?”

“There are eyes watching. From today onward, share a room.”

“… Yes.”

“Understood.”

But unfortunately, that wouldn’t serve as a lasting excuse to avoid each other.

And as of today, my comfortable sleeping arrangements had officially come to an end.

To soothe the bitterness lingering in my mouth, I took a sip of tea.

Yet even that wasn’t enough to calm my unsettled thoughts.

“And as for… the consummation…”

“…!”

“…”

“It may be difficult, but do your best.”

* * *