I was the most hated illegitimate daughter in the marquis’s household.
My mother died young. My father didn’t love me, and my stepmother despised me.
The only person in the whole household who would obey me was a taciturn guard.
But I treated him like a punching bag.
I made him stand night watch every day, kneel to warm my feet, and wash clothes in icy water in the middle of winter…
If anything displeased me, I’d hurl a teacup at him and call him “you wretched dog.”
That day, snow was falling thick and fast, but I insisted on having roasted sweet potatoes from the shop south of the city.
“There are some in the manor. I’ll heat them up,” he said quietly.
“I want the ones from that shop in the south! Go buy them!”
He gave me a silent look, then pushed open the door and walked into the blizzard.
I sat by the brazier, sulking, when a row of comments suddenly appeared before my eyes
[This wicked supporting female character is done for. The guard is actually the regent, who was lost among the common folk. He’s about to reclaim his identity.]
[The male lead’s first decree after returning to the palace will be to execute the woman who abused him.]
[She’ll be dragged out into the snow and frozen to death, without even a grave.]
I froze, and the hand warmer slipped from my fingers onto the floor.
The door opened
He came back covered in snow, ice crusting his eyelashes, yet he was still shielding a paper-wrapped parcel in his arms. Steam drifted out through the gaps.
He handed me the roasted sweet potatoes. His fingertips were purple with cold, and his voice trembled:
“There was a long line at that shop in the south… I ran all the way back. They’re still warm. Please don’t send me away, okay?”
…
