Jacqueline sat across from the child with a gentle smile. The head seat remained empty. She glanced briefly at the vacant spot before turning her gaze to Benjamin.
“I’m looking forward to our first meal at Preston Manor.”
“……”
The child still said nothing. He simply stared ahead with a tense expression.
Before long, the dining room door opened once again. Jacqueline glanced at the clock on the wall and her eyes widened as she saw the hands pointing exactly to 7 o’clock.
Windsor, who appeared with the butler, stopped at the doorway. His gaze moved between Jacqueline and Benjamin in turn.
“Um, since Miss Somerset is here, we thought we’d have dinner together……”
The child mumbled as if making an excuse. Benjamin, who had sat down at the table later than usual, gradually lowered his head as if he had committed a grave mistake.
Windsor pointed out in an indifferent voice:
“When you speak, use a clear tone and never trail off at the end.”
“Yes, sir!”
At those words, Benjamin straightened his shoulders with a very tense expression. Then he lifted his head and looked straight ahead.
“I thought we would dine together since Miss Somerset has arrived.”
“I’ll eat later.”
Windsor left the dining room just like that.
Benjamin’s shoulders slumped, and his expression turned gloomy. Even without words, it was clear how disappointed the child was.
William began to serve the two of them as if nothing had happened. The dishes were brought out one by one.
Jacqueline unrolled her napkin and placed it on her lap. She whispered softly, as if offering comfort:
“It seems Lord Preston doesn’t want to dine with me. We had a minor disagreement earlier.”
In other words, Windsor had turned and left not because of the child, but because of her.
Jacqueline made a comical expression behind the butler’s back, but Benjamin didn’t laugh this time either. She awkwardly erased her expression and reached for the bread.
At that moment.
“Uncle… doesn’t dine with anyone.”
Benjamin’s gloomy voice carried across the table. Jacqueline, understanding the hidden meaning, whispered more kindly:
“Is that so? Then from now on, you’ll be dining with me, Benjamin.”
The child nodded, his expression unreadable as to whether he liked it or not. Jacqueline thought that life in the Preston household might not be as smooth as she had anticipated, as she chewed on her bread.
The one saving grace was that the cook’s skills were outstanding. Holding her spoon, she elegantly, yet more quickly than ever before, emptied her plate.
Belatedly, she realized that this meal was her first proper one of the day.
[This is the timeline separator]Five hundred and fifty-two sheep, five hundred and fifty-three sheep, five hundred and fifty-four sheep……
Jacqueline, who had been staring at the darkness-soaked ceiling, finally let out a deep sigh. She had counted up to five hundred and fifty-four sheep, but her eyes were still wide awake.
It had been a day that passed like a storm. Though she hadn’t been conscious of it, she must have been quite tense. Judging by her inability to fall asleep at this hour.
“Well, it would be strange not to be tense. It’s a strange place with strange people.”
Jacqueline comforted herself with kind self-talk. She added a little, “For a first time, this is excellent.”
“Hmm, I think a cup of tea would be good.”
Having given up on sleep, she finally threw off the blanket and got up. She knew from experience that at times like these, it was better to move her body.
While the late spring days were as warm as a mother’s embrace, the nights still carried a chilly air. After briefly considering the bell pull, she shook her head.
It was a late hour. Most of the maids would be resting in their quarters, and only a few servants on night duty would remain in the mansion.
They were probably sleeping lightly, curled up on narrow beds, not knowing when the bell might ring.
“It would be a shame to wake them.”
Wearing a robe, she paused as she opened the door.
Jacqueline had been a child with a vivid imagination since she was young. This could be an advantage or a disadvantage depending on the situation, and unfortunately, today it acted as a disadvantage.
The dark corridor looked like a monster opening its mouth wide. As she stepped forward, feeling as if she were putting her head into the monster’s maw, Jacqueline slowly turned her head.
“What’s that, Colin? You’re scared to be alone? You’re still such a child. Well, can’t be helped, let’s go together.”
Returning to the bed, she tightly hugged the teddy bear that had been at her pillow. Then she bravely took a step into the dark corridor.
Even a small warmth can be reassuring when walking through a long tunnel with no end in sight. And Jacqueline was still in the middle of a long tunnel.
Somewhere along the path that the ‘poor lady’ had to walk.
She didn’t know how far she had come, nor how far she had left to go. She just hoped she wouldn’t get tired along the way. If she did, she could neither go back nor move forward.
Fortunately, she didn’t lose her way to the kitchen. Not only had Benjamin introduced her to it, but it was also emanating a particularly warm glow.
Even in an age of steamships and trains crossing continents, the highest duty of a housekeeper was still to keep the kitchen fire burning.
Having safely reached her destination, Jacqueline lit an oil lamp with the remaining embers. Though it only brightened a mere inch in front of her, it was enough for someone who had been plunged into deep darkness.
The monster that had been baring its fangs right in front of her retreated as far as the light reached.
“First, the kettle…… but where is the kettle?”
Making tea while fumbling around an unfamiliar kitchen wasn’t as easy as it sounded. However, Jacqueline persistently searched the kitchen and finally succeeded in placing the kettle on the stove.
This time, she scanned the line of cabinets with her eyes. The fourth one was the cabinet where tea leaves were stored. As she opened the cabinet door, she paused.
“Hm?”
She thought she had heard footsteps. She listened quietly, but heard nothing.
“Did I hear wrong?”
Woo-ung, woo-ung.
A horned owl hooted nearby.
Tilting her head, she took out the tea canister. She checked the aroma and scooped out an appropriate amount of tea leaves with a spoon. Then she paused again.
“Huh?”
She heard footsteps more clearly this time. She whirled around, but saw no one. Only deep darkness stared back at her.
The monster’s maw.
For a moment, her hair stood on end. Swallowing hard, Jacqueline summoned her courage.
“Is anyone there?”
Her voice sounded quite tense as it left her mouth. Just then, a strong wind blew outside the window.
Eeeeeee.
The sound of the wind squeezing through the window cracks was as eerie as a woman’s scream.
“Co-Colin. It’s okay. It’s nothing.”
Jacqueline unconsciously pulled Colin close. Her heart began to race madly, making a loud noise.
Thump thump thump thump.
Her throat kept getting dry. As she turned around again.
“!”
A black shadow suddenly appeared from beyond the wall. Jacqueline, belatedly noticing this fact, widened her eyes and opened her mouth.
“Kyaa…!”
Just as she was about to scream, a large hand covered her mouth. Her heart dropped to the floor with a thud.
The terror of a monster that had only existed in imagination appearing in reality was indescribable. In her mind, she had already envisioned her own terrible end.
Oh, God!
As she muttered her final prayer, a deep voice fell from above her head. It was too polite to be the voice of a monster.
“This isn’t a good time to scream, Miss Somerset.”
“…Mmmmph?”
A muffled sound escaped between the palm. Only then did the hand covering her mouth fall away.
“Lord Preston?”
Jacqueline asked again, enunciating clearly. Her suspicious gaze carefully examined the shadow buried in darkness.
Maybe it’s a monster mimicking Lord Preston’s voice. I think I’ve read a book like that.
Her rich imagination began to billow up. Jacqueline brought the oil lamp close to Windsor’s face.
“Ah, it really is Lord Preston.”
She let out a belated sigh of relief. Her tensed body sagged like wet cotton.
Windsor frowned and stepped back to avoid the oil lamp. An indifferent voice flowed from between his teeth.
“What is Miss Somerset doing here at this hour?”
Abruptly.
Jacqueline brought the oil lamp close again as much as he had retreated. As if afraid he might turn into a monster if he escaped the light.
The wrinkle between Windsor’s brows deepened a little more.
“Ah!”
At that moment, Jacqueline’s eyes widened.
Windsor narrowed his eyes at her, who seemed to have no intention of answering his question.
Is she avoiding the answer?
But then.
“You… resemble Benjamin.”
Suddenly, her eyes curved like a crescent moon. Windsor silently looked at her face. Even in the darkness, her green eyes emitted a clear light.
“I didn’t notice during the day because your hair was slicked back with pomade, but it’s fluffy like cotton candy. Just like Benjamin’s.”
Windsor’s brow furrowed a bit more. As if trying to gauge what Jacqueline was thinking.
He had sharper eyes and ears than most people. Whether it was due to the influence of his mother who had been an opera singer, or a habit formed in the military, he couldn’t be sure.
However, he was always the first to notice unusual signs. It was common for the siren alerting enemy movements to sound only after Windsor had already begun to move.
His close aide, Roman, once jokingly asked, “Do you have antennae or something?” only to receive a sharp glare.
His ears picked up the sound of footsteps quietly crossing the corridor. Unlike those of a maid. Much more cultured and elegant steps.
Windsor immediately recognized who those footsteps belonged to. And he was curious as to why she was moving about at this late hour, avoiding people’s eyes.
After checking the clock, he slowly rose from his seat. Roman had said she hadn’t yet made contact with the king, but it was Windsor’s role to doubt even that.
Regretting after the fact didn’t suit him. He was a man of caution and prudence.
“Next time, I’d appreciate if you could make some noise to announce your presence. I was really startled.”
Her voice carried a hint of resentment. The look she gave him was sharper than usual.
Suddenly, Windsor’s eyes moved downward. He frowned slightly as he saw the teddy bear tightly hugged in Jacqueline’s arms.
Noticing his expression, she hurriedly opened her mouth as if to explain.
When the male lead is punished by carrying the female lead’s child and having periods like a woman
“I’ve given birth to two children for you, yet you still think about him.
Was I nothing but his substitute to you from beginning to end?”
Synopsis:
Meng Huan, a scumbag who has dated countless girlfriends, transmigrates to a female-dominated country.
Day 1: Whether it’s female dominance or not doesn’t matter. The beauties here are passionate and amorous. Isn’t it easier to date them than in modern times?
Day 2: After a night, Meng Huan discovers the differences in the female-dominated world. Men here actually have chastity locks and menstrual cycles. This hinders his ability to perform, damn it!
Day 3: What’s wrong with sleeping around? I don’t want you to marry me. I’m meant to be a playboy. I don’t care about male virtues… What? You want to drown me in a pig cage? Marry, I’ll marry!
Day N: Meng Huan inexplicably vomits and receives the shocking news of his life… He’s pregnant.
_____
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