The Duke’s Daughter Is Hated

Chapter 7

7. I'm going into the second year and an exchange student is coming

Translated by KaiesV
Edited by KaiesV

I’m in second year.

An exchange student from a neighboring country is coming this year.

Every year, several students from neighboring countries come to this country like this.

I guess it’s better than me being in this country too… I wanted to study abroad, but was denied because of mysterious words such as,「We can’t give that bad girl to the neighboring countries.」They feared that I, with my bad reputation, would go to a neighboring country and ruin the reputation of this country.

When you are in a situation where you are really hated by the royal family, you can’t do many things you want to do. I thought it would be a good experience if I could go to a neighboring country, and I thought it would be a fun school life even though I am not well-liked.

I get letters from Father and Mother asking if there is anyone I could get engaged to. Of course, I answered that I don’t have any. I heard that Father and Mother are very fond of me because of my parents’ greed, but I’m hated and that’s probably not going to happen.

Some of the exchange students who came to the school after their sophomore year were commoners. One of them, a commoner, greeted me smilingly.

He is a dark-haired, red-eyed man named Ihmut.

He wears glasses and looks unremarkable. But there may be some circumstances, since those glasses look like a magic tool for blocking recognition.

「Nice to meet you.」

「…It would be better if you didn’t talk to me.」

Since I spoke to him in public, I only said so because I thought that if he was a commoner, he might not know about my rumors.

Because I didn’t want this person to be treated very harsh too, just because he talked to me. I would have made a bad impression if I had just said a few words and turned away.

…But to my surprise, the man talked to me a few weeks later while I was studying in the library.

「Is it okay if we’re not in public?」

「…You know the rumors about me, don’t you? I think people have told you, haven’t they? They said you shouldn’t talk to me.」

「I was told that. But I wanted to talk to you. Was it not alright? Or won’t Shefinko-sama talk to me because I am a commoner?」

「No, that’s not what I mean. It makes your position look bad. I think it would be better if you didn’t talk to me, a person who is not well-liked.」

When I gave him that advice, for some reason he laughed.

——To my surprise, then and only then, in the middle of nowhere, would I engage him in conversation.

Although I knew that it was better not to talk to Ihmut, I ended up going to the library because there was no one there and I wanted to talk to someone if I could. I decide to shun him if things get really sour.

And there was one more thing that was making this school crowded, and not just with exchange students.

It was the illegitimate daughter of a certain count family—— It’s a former commoner illegitimate daughter transferred to this academy. She is neither a commoner nor a countess who was not educated as an aristocrat. It is a very delicate position to be in.

If I were to put myself in her shoes, I would not like it very much if I were a commoner and suddenly I had to attend the academy. It’s awkward and I don’t want that kind of thing.

That’s how different commoners and nobles are.

It seems that she’s the child of a maid of honor whom the head of the count’s family had previously meddled with. The count who had a hand in the maid of honor, and the woman who carried the child. And that woman is pregnant with the child. As it was, the maid of honor disappeared and apparently raised the child without the Count’s knowledge.

She doesn’t want to get the Count in trouble… And because his legal wife was about to do something to the lady-in-waiting. That would be true. For the legal wife, if she’s there and the lady-in-waiting touch her, people get angry and furious.

But even so, the lady-in-waiting could have done more than run away like that… I guess, but I think they can’t help what has happened to such things.

Incidentally, though, it seems that after the death of his rightful wife, she was miraculously reunited with her father and her brother decided to take her in. Wouldn’t that be uninteresting from the point of view of his legal wife’s children? I thought so, but rumor has it that she are adored by them.

Still, the class is different, but I think it’s not easy for that child to suddenly be sent to the school from the second grade after being a commoner in this way. If I were not in the position of being hated, I would have helped make her life at the school easier, but I don’t do that because it would be counterproductive if I talked to her.

When I told Ihmut that I was going to,

「Shefinko-sama is really kind.」

I was told with things such as that.