EEBT Chapter 2 : That Extra

When she opened her eyes again, the hospital bed in 21st-century South Korea was nowhere to be seen. Instead, Adelaine’s bedroom, which she had glimpsed the night before under the faint moonlight streaming through the window, came into view. As morning light poured in, the room, which had seemed luxurious before, now appeared even more opulent, dazzling her eyes.

“Are you awake, my lady?”

A woman in a maid’s uniform bowed her head and greeted her. Adelaine nodded, still dazed. She noticed that the cast on her leg was already being removed by the maid’s hands.

“…Yeah. I’m up.”

“I’ll bring the doctor and the Duke shortly. Please wait a moment.”

With that, the maid left the room. Soon after, a group of maids, too many to count, entered and began attending to her.

Overwhelmed by the lavish treatment she had never experienced before, Adelaine barely had time to process it all. After being washed and dressed by others—another first for her—she found two strangers waiting in her bedroom.

“You’re awake. How are you feeling?”

A somewhat stern-looking middle-aged man looked down at her as he spoke. Adelaine racked her brain, trying to recall details from the novel.

The answer came to her fairly easily.

“I’m… fine, Father.”

“Good. You’ve been unconscious for nearly a week. It was quite worrying.”

However, her father—Frederick Somua Lopitz, the Duke—showed no sign of worry or relief. His expression was cold and unreadable.

The doctor beside him quietly examined her condition and then spoke.

“Considering you were unconscious for a week, your health is within expected parameters. Ensure you get proper nutrition, and for rehabilitation, take a two-hour walk or go horseback riding daily. You should recover quickly.”

“Understood. You may leave now.”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

At the Duke’s command, the doctor bowed and left the room. Once they were alone, the Duke looked down at her and spoke.

“Tsk. You’ve inherited your mother’s foolishness. If you were going to such a place, you should’ve at least avoided getting caught. Now you’ve made a mess of things…”

The Duke clicked his tongue, his gaze filled with displeasure.

“Until now, I’ve managed to block the Army and Capital Defense Force from interrogating you, using your unconscious state as an excuse. But now that you’re awake, things will get more complicated.”

He continued to click his tongue as he stared at her.

“Well? Do you remember anything? The young lady from the Trudeau Count’s family, who went with you, said she doesn’t remember anything either.”

At his words, an idea sparked in Adelaine’s mind.

This could buy her some time.

“Actually…”

“What is it?”

“I… don’t remember much. Not just recent events, but most of my memories feel like they’ve been wiped clean…”

As she spoke, the Duke’s expression shifted to one of satisfaction.

“Good. That’s understandable. The Army’s Rifle Brigade was too aggressive during the raid on the black market. A gunfight in the middle of the capital, with nobles present… It’s no wonder you’re traumatized.”

“…That happened?”

Seeing her genuinely confused expression, the Duke smirked, clearly pleased.

“Yes. Just stick to that story. My daughter, raised without so much as a drop of blood on her hands, witnessing death for the first time… It’s only natural that the shock would cause memory loss.”

Having crafted his own narrative, the Duke wore a satisfied expression as he turned to leave. But before he did, he glanced back at Adelaine.

“Don’t breathe a word of this to anyone. If you’re going to act the part, do it well. Don’t mess this up with your stupidity.”

At the Duke’s words, Adelaine couldn’t help but nod her head with a dumbfounded expression, almost involuntarily.

The Duke, seemingly even more satisfied with Adelaine’s uncharacteristic behavior, smirked and left the room.

But Adelaine was different.

The Rifle Brigade detachment? That term sounded familiar…

She racked her brain, sifting through the fragments of the novel she remembered. Then, a particular scene flashed in her mind.

*“We are the Rifle Brigade detachment under the direct command of the Army Headquarters. Your orders, Crown Prince, hold no authority over us. Stop wasting time and tend to your own affairs.”*

It was the scene where the female lead, in a moment of crisis, swallowed her pride and went to Manningham, who was lazing around, to ask for help. While other characters readily offered assistance, Manningham only spouted theoretical nonsense and refused to help.

That was the moment he truly fell out of favor with the readers.

Adelaine felt a wave of relief.

Right. Manningham, that infuriating man. There’s no reason to get tangled up with him. As he said, I just need to take care of myself.

* * *

The lounge at the Army Ministry in the capital. Despite its plush cushions and sweet beverages, which made it seem worlds apart from the frontlines or battlefields, Alex felt anything but comfortable.

Unlike his usual deep green uniform, the red woolen uniform he was wearing was hot and stifling. He had to wear it solely for the sake of formality, and it made him want to scream in frustration.

But he couldn’t. Not in front of the officer glaring at him, holding a stack of documents.

“Alex.”

“Captain Alex Manningham.”

“Really… you’re always the same, aren’t you?”

Captain Alex Manningham watched as the officer in front of him sighed deeply.

The officer, wearing the black-and-white uniform of the Capital Defense Force, slid the stack of documents toward him.

“…Let’s just drop this case. Even if it’s unpleasant, it’s better to let it go and wash our hands of it.”

That was the response he received from Inspector Whitaker, the commander of the 3rd Capital Defense Unit, whom he had come to see.

“Why is that?”

“Things have gotten complicated. Really tangled up.”

Inspector Whitaker poured him a cup of tea as he spoke.

“You know the young lady from the Count’s family is claiming trauma and saying she can’t remember anything, right?”

“Yes. I’m aware.”

Alex sighed as he sipped his tea, recalling how brazenly she had lied during the investigation earlier.

“The young lady from the Duke’s family is using the same strategy. Claiming trauma and memory loss. It’s like she’s taken acting classes or something. I can’t even figure out how to break through her story.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, so… sigh…”

Inspector Whitaker let out a deep breath and looked at Alex.

“Let’s just drop it. It’s better to pass the hot potato to someone else.”

As Whitaker lit his pipe with a troubled expression, Alex casually asked, “Do you remember Sergeant Lake?”

The name rang a bell, and Whitaker chuckled, nodding his head.

“Ah, yeah. That guy who took down the bootlegger last time. What about him?”

“…He’s been discharged as a disabled veteran. The official notice will come out by the end of the month, but…”

At those words, Whitaker’s expression darkened rapidly. He took the pipe out of his mouth and averted his gaze. His conscience, not yet completely worn out, made it impossible for him to look Alex in the eye.

“…….”

“His leg was badly cut while escorting that young lady from the Duke’s family, Adelaine. To have his injury recognized as duty-related, we need reports and witnesses.”

Finally understanding why Alex was so persistent about this case, Whitaker looked at him. Alex’s eyes were pleading.

*Isn’t there any way?*

Whitaker groaned for a moment before asking Alex, “If those young ladies refuse to testify and he can’t be processed as a wounded soldier…”

“He won’t get a pension or anything. He’ll just receive a meager severance package and that’ll be it. He can barely walk as it is.”

“Damn it.”

Whitaker, his face clearly showing his inner turmoil, puffed on his pipe repeatedly, lost in thought. Holding onto this case was a fatal waste for him, as he still had many ranks to climb but limited opportunities.

Yet, his conscience kept knocking on the firmly closed door in his heart.

*Help him. Haven’t you helped enough?*

“Sigh… I was saving this for when I was absolutely stuck and couldn’t get promoted…”

As he spoke, he pulled out a document from the stack of files in his bag.

*The Asterios Information Guild Case File.*

“Here, take this. Use it to get that sergeant involved and just dip his toes into the operation zone. You know how to get the kids to play along, right?”

It was essentially a suggestion to manipulate the situation, but Alex had no other choice.

By the end of the month, if Sergeant Lake wasn’t recognized as a wounded soldier, he’d be forced out with just a pittance of money, and with his broken body, finding a decent job would be nearly impossible.

Alex skimmed through the file.

As Whitaker had said, this was a case worthy of being called a last resort. The information guild, despite its name, was involved in far dirtier dealings than what was permissible.

“They’re connected to the human trafficking organization we took down.”

“Yeah. We’ll provide backup, but you’ll take the lead. Just put my name on it, and I won’t interfere.”

“Can I take command?”

“When have you ever not been in command? I’ve always just lent my name. Let me know if you need anything. I’ll do my best to get it for you.”

A little over three weeks until the end of the month, a formidable enemy, and exhausted subordinates.

The situation was far from ideal, but there was no other way. That insufferable young lady from the Duke’s family wouldn’t care about a lowly sergeant from a commoner background, so there was no chance she’d testify.

“…Understood. I’ll bring the operation plan as soon as possible.”

* * *

A week later.

“Alright… then.”

Adelaine glanced at the clock. It was midnight, the dead of night.

For the past week, under the guise of rehabilitation, she had been taking walks and horseback rides. To the outside world, it looked like she was making an effort to recover her memory, but in reality, she had been reinforcing her fading memories of the novel’s plot with the help of the tutor the Duke had assigned her. She had also been learning basic etiquette and general knowledge.

She still couldn’t trust anyone in the Duke’s household. So, she quietly slipped out of bed and put on the clothes she had prepared in advance.

A servant’s outfit she had sneakily taken from the laundry drying rack and hidden away. Fortunately, it was only slightly too big, not unwearable.

Adelaine, now dressed in a plain woolen shirt and pants, looked at herself in the mirror. Her noble appearance didn’t quite match the commoner’s clothes.

*Oh well. If it comes to it, I can just cover my face with a hat.*

Next, she stuffed the rings and jewelry she had been eyeing into a silk pouch she had taken from the jewelry box.

Since she didn’t have any cash on hand, she had no choice but to pawn these items and exchange them for money.

Recalling the plan she had formulated over the past week, she reminded herself of what she needed to do next.

Adelaine’s plan was clear: head to the Asterios Information Guild, meet one of the sub-male leads, Seyd, and strike a deal. The silk pouch filled with valuables, the secrets about Seyd she had gleaned from the novel, and the information about the dangers he would soon face—all of it would be her bargaining chips.

“I have to make this work…”

She didn’t have the wit or courage to negotiate with him on equal footing like the female lead would have. But she had to do it. She needed to create allies for herself.

She needed to forge strong, reliable alliances and create as many lifelines as possible. This was the world of the novel, and not just any part of it—this was two years before the main story, a time barely touched upon in the book.

She needed allies who could save her if something went wrong. And at the very least, she needed to eliminate any threats to her. In that regard, winning Seyd over was crucial.

After all, it was Seyd’s Asterios Guild that had ultimately cut off Adelaine’s breath in the novel.

“Alright, let’s go.”

She put on a wide-brimmed hat and quietly slipped out of her bedroom.

Fortunately, it was late at night, and there were few servants around.

She hurried toward the stables. Thankfully, the stable hand was fast asleep, his hat pulled low over his face.

“Good girl, Caroni. That’s it.”

Caroni, Adelaine’s beloved horse, whom she had grown close to over the past few days of riding, perked up when she saw her.

Luckily, the saddle was hanging nearby, and Adelaine had paid attention to how the stable hand worked.

“Ugh… why is this saddle so heavy?”

She struggled to lift the heavy saddle onto Caroni’s back and attached the rest of the tack.

Then, moving quietly so as not to wake the stable hand, she led Caroni out of the stables. Fortunately, Caroni, being a well-trained and gentle mare, seemed to understand Adelaine’s intentions and followed without making a sound.

Once they were a safe distance away, Adelaine mounted Caroni.

“Alright, shall we go?”

Having gotten the hang of riding over the past few days, Adelaine urged Caroni forward. The intelligent mare understood and gradually picked up speed.

Everything seemed to be going well.

Yes. This is a good sign. With this momentum… I’ll secure a strong ally in the sub-male lead.