[Year 453, October 4]

It’s been a long time since I wrote in a diary.

To be precise, should I say I’m recording a diary? Like a vehicle’s black box, capturing the surrounding circumstances while adding my thoughts to the record.

When was the last time I wrote in a diary? Was it during elementary school? I think it was around that time. I remember it being an assignment for the vacation. Probably.

And one by one, we were called to the podium to present how we spent our vacation.

My classmates proudly recited their sparkling memories of trips with their parents or new toys they had bought.

But the lines written in my diary were all gloomy and unhappy, so I couldn’t bear to read them aloud and just kept my head down.

Who would want to hear about the neighbor uncle who vomited on the landing?

So I think I came to dislike diaries.

There were no memories to reminisce about, and even if I tried to reflect and write, it would only serve to chew over my misery. So after that, even when diary writing was assigned as vacation homework, I didn’t do it.

But this time, I felt it might be necessary, so I picked up a pen. I had heard somewhere that writing a diary is very effective for organizing one’s thoughts.

After decades, even crossing dimensions, I am resuming diary writing.

I’ll stop writing here for today. I need to clean the hallway neatly.

Recording ended.

——–

[Year 453, October 5]

Should I start with a self-introduction?

I am the module of a mad wizard. And this is the mansion of the Northern Duke.

Due to the goddess’s “Forced Exile,” I was torn into dozens of pieces and, whether by luck or fate, I was flung in front of Daisy’s mansion.

Naturally, I was broke, and when I checked my body, my computational power and magical energy were nearly at rock bottom, akin to a sluggish worm, making it nearly impossible to do anything on my own.

So, I thought I might freeze to death in the Northern wasteland.

“Well, I can afford at least one attendant, so from now on, wear this and get to work.”

“⋯⋯I’ll do my best!”

Thanks to the kind-hearted steward’s goodwill, I was able to be employed as a servant in the mansion.

The salary is meager, but it’s not a big problem.

There’s no threat to my life, I can have meals at every sitting, and there’s even a definite way to escape from here. If I wait, Daisy will come to this place.

When Daisy returns to the mansion, I can ask then. To contact the Purple Mage Tower. Then Yuna will show up and take me away.

⋯⋯It feels a bit peculiar.

I, that is, ‘I’ who is not the main body, have a slightly different composition of information.

The main body was a person made of smoke and life. However, during the process of being separated by the “Forced Exile,” only the smoke flew away, and that is me.

It’s as if the actor’s character has been stripped away.

For me, the life of the main body feels distant and hazy. The moonlit night in the hillside village, memories of modern times, Yuna’s smile… I remember all the basics, but they feel far away.

In contrast, the time that must have been smoke is all too vivid and close. The time when I sold stories under the name Heart, the time spent talking and playing with Daisy.

So, who am I?

Am I still the mad wizard playing Heart?

Or am I Heart playing the mad wizard?

⋯⋯⋯⋯.

I could remember the names of others.

That fact felt like it distinguished me from the main body.

Recording ended.

——–

[Year of the Lion’s Might, October 7th]

These b*stards are really territorial.

“There’s dust left on the window frame. Is this how you’re going to do it?”

Or something like that.

“I can see how you survived outside. With that obvious face, you must have been charming and slacking off all the time!”

Or something like that.

I’ve never even provoked them, yet they come at me like a pack of dogs, causing a ruckus.

If I had been slacking off, I wouldn’t feel so wronged; after all, I had cleaned the mansion where Lord Daisy lives with utmost care.

That wretched girl even pointed out that there was dust left on the window frame.

When I rubbed my finger on the window frame and found no dust, she pulled some dust from the broom she was holding to make her point. I wanted to tear my hair out.

From noble mtl dot come

I tried to let some minor troubles slide. Like subtly pushing her work onto me or asking me to do the laundry in the middle of winter. I could endure that kind of thing.

But if the intention is personal attack, it’s hard to tolerate.

The maids who follow the first lady are particularly troublesome.

One can gauge the status of a master by the demeanor of their servants. I suspected that the first lady was not a decent human being.

Still, I endured.

Given my current situation as an outsider, causing a scene and getting kicked out of the mansion would truly be problematic. It would naturally eliminate any chance of meeting Lord Daisy.

Even if I knocked on the mansion’s door to meet Lord Daisy, the guards would likely cut me off, and if I jumped in front of his carriage, the soldiers might swing their swords before he could stop them.

Then… I would have to cross the North with nothing to my name, heading to the capital. I thought it would be better to endure the insults than to go through that hardship.

“The garden flowerbed is a complete mess. Is this how you handle your work, and do you plan to butter me up with that filthy body to gloss over it?”

“…………”

I thought it was ridiculous…

“Can’t even clean properly, it’s laughable. I don’t understand why the head maid took in such a half-wit. Did you even shake your butt in front of her?”

Damn it. Should I just charge at her?

No matter how lacking my credentials might be, I still have my knowledge. I’m confident I could take on a maid in a fair fight. I’m sure there was a frame behind me.

I could grab that and smash it over her head to initiate things. While she’s stunned, I could land a light hook to her jaw and handle two of them at most.

Then, I could drag the unconscious maids into an unused room and give them some physical mental training to prevent them from talking carelessly──

“What are you doing right now? I believe the meal isn’t ready yet.”

“Se-Second Lady…”

It was then that the second wife of Lord Daisy, Neriel Bruneu, appeared.

She was a beauty with chestnut hair. Her bust was above average. Her outfit was quite stylish. And above all, her eyes were clear.

As the second lady commanded, the wicked servants scattered like clouds before the wind. I felt an immense gratitude rising from deep within me.

I was on the verge of a violent incident, after all.

After a brief exchange of small talk, we introduced ourselves.

“I am the second lady of the Duke’s family, Neriel Bruneu. What is your name?”

“I’m Hart, my lady!”

Even with such a short introduction, I could sense it. She didn’t seem to have a bad first impression of me, and I quite liked her as well. I felt confident that we could become friends.

Thus, she made a new friend in the mansion.

Recording ended.

——–

[Year 453, October 12]

Neriel was a hard worker.

“What do you think about changing the curtains in the mansion to a different design, Hart? These are unnecessarily thick and gloomy, unpleasant to look at.”

“I think so too, Neriel. Wouldn’t something more refreshing be better?”

“Then we should place an order with the merchant… Is there anything else we need? Ah, didn’t you say we were low on spices in the kitchen?”

“We have about half a pound of sugar left and a third of a pound of salt. It’s time to restock.”

With Daisy absent, it was Neriel’s responsibility to manage the small affairs of the mansion. Daily necessities, food supplies, and financial management… she was busy running around all day.

Sometimes, she could be even more diligent than the attendants.

It wasn’t out of self-interest. Having married into the great house, she felt a commendable sense of duty to support her husband as a wife.

Despite these efforts.

“Neriel Bruneau, Duchess. Please do not interfere with our Northern Warriors.”

“…I was just asking if there was enough oil to clean the swords and armor. It’s not interference!”

“The Duchess does not have such authority.”

“…….”

Neriel’s position within the great house was weak. She was even told by the warriors to ‘mind her own business.’

The reasons for her being so disregarded, even as the duchess, were threefold.

1) She was the daughter of a family that had once betrayed the great house.

2) She lacked both power and status compared to the first wife.

And the most decisive third reason, Daisy was neglecting Neriel.

Neriel expressed her pent-up anger by pounding her pillow with her fist.

“…Isn’t this just too much? Moreover, he has never responded to any of my letters. Not once!”

“Really? That can’t be true…”

“He even completely ignored me as if he never received them. Can’t he at least say something like, ‘I received your letter’?!”

It was strange.

Though Daisy harbored winter in his heart, there seemed to be no reason for him to turn away from her like this. What was going on?

After gathering information discreetly within the mansion, Neriel realized she hadn’t caused any trouble at all. It was actually the first wife who had caused a stir.

What could it possibly be?

I comforted Neriel, telling her that everything would turn out fine. Daisy-kun isn’t such a bad person, and Neriel isn’t someone who deserves to be hated by anyone.

I thought that just having one clever cuckoo in the mix would dramatically improve the situation. Yes, that would be me. I would normalize this couple.

How sad would it be if, having gone so far as to get married, there was not a hint of sweetness between them? Even if it’s a marriage of convenience and there’s no love, can’t they at least be friends?

On the very day I resolved this.

“Darling, I’m back──”

“Heart… am I seeing things? You’re here.”

“………….”

The Northern Duke Daisy’s Neriel No-Look Pass incident had erupted.

Damn it.

I couldn’t bear to look at Neriel. I felt so sorry that I could hardly speak. Guilt surged up and struck me on the crown of my head.

To see that icy husband of mine showing a melted expression over another woman. This can’t be happening. Such a reality should not exist in this world.

“………ugh.”

Neriel covered her mouth with a handkerchief and ran silently into the mansion, tears falling like droplets, marking the ground with a constellation of sorrow.

Once the NTR shock settled, a seed of doubt sprouted in its place.

Daisy-kun is not a clueless fool.

No matter how you looked at it, my outfit was that of a maid. He must have recognized immediately that I had entered the mansion as a servant.

So.

He must have known very well how it would look to acknowledge a servant in a public place first, and what that would mean. In other words.

It was an intentional act.

Daisy-kun had made up his mind to socially ruin Neriel.

I need to confront him.

…Why did you do this, Daisy?

Recording stopped.

——–

The Northern Duke Elbillion Julius was grateful for the fortune that had come to him. He had thought he would never see it again, yet it was waiting for him in his mansion.

What could have happened? Elbillion was about to ask Heart, who was sitting quietly at the table, for an explanation—

“Heart, if it’s alright, I’d like to hear your story…”

“No. There’s something I need to say first. Why did you do it, Daisy?!”

—but Heart was quicker.

She was furious. It was an unvarnished, honest emotion. Why was Heart so angry? The Northern Duke thought for a moment and found the answer.

Heart seemed to have become close to Neriel with her characteristic charm. She was the type of person who would get angry on behalf of her friends, so it was no surprise that she was outraged by the neglect Neriel was receiving.

Since Heart had a slightly different atmosphere from what Elbillion remembered, he wondered if she might be a disguised outsider. However, seeing this aspect, it was clear that she was indeed Heart.

He explained his reasons candidly.

“I am on the brink of war. I will raise an army for the unification of the North, and we will either win or lose. Heart, can you imagine what will happen to the wife of the defeated?”

“… She won’t have a good time.”

“Exactly. She will either cling to me or be confined in a place where the sun doesn’t shine. However… if she has had a bad relationship with me all along, and that rumor is widespread throughout the North, the story would be a bit different.”

“Are you saying that you are deliberately keeping your distance so that Neriel won’t be implicated in the event that Daisy fails…?”

Elbillion nodded and added,

“Also, it is to ensure that power is not dispersed. If I die, the Duke’s power must go entirely to my son without scattering.”

Heart nodded in understanding but soon narrowed her eyes and pressed further.

“I can understand that. But… even if you maintain a deliberately bad relationship, you could have done it in a way that wouldn’t hurt each other.”

“Then it wouldn’t be certain. And, Neriel Bruneu does not like me either. She wouldn’t have been hurt that much.”

“What do you mean by that? If you had no interest in Daisy, you wouldn’t have written such heartfelt letters and sent them every week!”

“…….”

A question flickered in the eyes of Duke Elbillion of the North.

“I have never received a letter from Neriel Bruneu. Not a single one.”

“… What?”

——–

Tadadak. Tadadak.

Inside the fireplace, where sparks were flying. Along with the firewood.

The undelivered letters were burning to a crisp.