It was my first time coming to the capital since I was born. I’ve never left the comfort of the Empire’s northern region in my 18 years of life. In other words, I was a frog living inside a well.
If my butler hadn’t brought me the notice for the selection of knights, I’d still be digging herbs in the mountains and training my swordsmanship on the fief. So it was my first time in the capital and there was no way anyone would recognize me. I was certain of that.
“…Hi there, can I ask you for directions?”
“Yes, what..oh my gosh!”
Ah, again.
The man, who turned around with a smile, became frightened as soon as he saw me. Is this the tenth time? I was very taken aback at first, but given that humans are adaptable creatures, I became more accustomed to it after each encounter.
“Excuse me, but where’s the sign up for the royal family’s selection of knights…”
I’m a good citizen of the Empire, not some kind of feared beast.
To look as harmless as possible, I curved the corners of my lips. My intention was to look like a country bumpkin who just came to the capital, but unfortunately it didn’t work at all.
At my smile, the man paled, as if he had just met a beast from the mountains. And then, I heard something strange when he ran away in a hurry.
“L-lady Bright came back. Aaah!”
“Ah! Wait a minute!”
What is he saying? I wanted to catch the man who left me my first clue, but it was too late.
I sighed at the figure of the man quickly running away.
‘Lady Bright?’
Who’s that? Let’s see, Bright sounds like a familiar family name. I stood in the middle of the road searching my memories, but nothing came to mind.
Ah, I don’t know. How would a young lady like me who came from the countryside know anyone from the capital.
Just thinking about it gave me a headache, so I gave up.
‘Ugh.’
I rubbed my face, then looked around to find another person to ask for directions. Soon, I happened to spot a woman with a basket walking towards me.
“Excuse me…”
“Pardon?…Ah?!”
After greeting the woman carefully, the woman looked at me in surprise. She was so surprised that she threw away the basket in her hand.
“Hello.”
Please don’t run away, please don’t run away.
I smiled towards the trembling woman. However, it was another unsuccessful attempt.
“Aaah!”
The woman ran away screaming as if she had seen a heinous criminal.
“What is it? What’s the commotion?”
“Lady Bright?”
“That person…ah!”
“G-ghost?”
At the woman’s scream, people came out onto the road. Seeing my face, everyone became surprised.
“I think there’s some kind of misunderstanding…”
“It can’t be!”
I don’t understand what they’re talking about..I’m starting to get annoyed at this point.
Putting aside whether I’m upset or not, are the people deaf or playing a prank on me? They were busily whispering amongst themselves when suddenly I heard a troubling shout.
“Call the guards!”
What? Guards? That’s absurd. For now, I should avoid such a situation.
I decided to get off the narrow road to avoid the guards. I didn’t want to cause trouble for no reason. I thought maybe I could just go to another place to ask anyway…
“Oh my gosh! G-ghost!”
It was another failure.
“I…I’d like to ask you a question.”
“Ah! Marquess Bright’s young miss…?!”
So, who the hell is she?
“Over there! There, Lady Bright, don’t move!”
No, I’m not that person!
‘Miss, did you know?’
My butler once told me. Every person has someone who looks like them in this world, even if they’re not related by blood.
‘Walking among us in this world, such a person is called a doppelganger.’
What did I say back then? I think I said if such a person exists, I’d like to meet them. That hasn’t changed even now. However, if my doppelganger is a criminal, then I’m the sacrificial lamb.
Why would I say that? Because I was mistaken for someone else and detained in a holding cell by the royal guards. Some bastard reported me to the guards, saying they saw Lady Bright, so that’s how I was caught.
‘There! Lady Bright!’
‘Over there!’
‘Ah, come on! I’m not Lady Bright!’
No one listened to what I said. I was going to draw my sword but held back because I thought I’d truly become a criminal if I did. At any rate, I thought the guards would be more sensible than the people I had met. But I was completely mistaken.
‘We’ve contacted your family, so I hope you behave until someone comes, Marquess Bright’s young miss.’
‘No, I’m not her! I mean, my family’s name is Sabrina! Iris Sabrina! I even showed you my identification!’
‘Whoa, young miss. Please stay quiet before you’re charged with identification forgery.’
The reactions of the guards were no different from the people I met on the streets. I even showed my identification with the name ‘Iris Sabrina’ on it, but it didn’t work like everything else. Treating me like a dirty luggage, the guards detained me.
Does society not have eyes?
I couldn’t understand this situation no matter how much I thought about it. Nevertheless, there was nothing I could do in this situation. I have no choice but to wait patiently for a member of the Bright’s family to come here now. Someone from the family should recognize that I’m not Lady Bright.
‘Huu…’
How the hell did it end up like this? Leaning against the musty wall of the holding cell, I thought of Lady Bright who got me into this situation. I came to the capital with the grand dream of becoming a knight, but things have taken a turn for the worse.
‘Marquess Bright’s young miss…’
Who the hell is she? Everyone I met in the capital called me ‘Lady Bright.’ They all mistook me for her. That means the two of us must look quite similar.
Also, regardless of the social standing here, everyone recognized the face of Lady Bright, so it was clear that she was quite known. And probably not in a good way.
‘Hmm.’
Just because our faces are similar, don’t tell me that’ll prevent me from becoming a knight?
I frowned as I recalled the negative reactions people had when they saw me. I was worried that I might be at a disadvantage because of something like this.
Hrmph, however, no matter what that’s unlikely…
Well, the more I think about it, the more nervous I got, so let’s stop.
While trying to keep my head up and dispel all worries, there was a commotion outside the bleak holding cell. Anyhow, it seems that someone from the Bright family has arrived.
Great, now I can clear up the misunderstanding and leave here.
I stood up as I listened to the sound of footsteps getting closer.
“My baby…!”
Huh? I widened my eyes at the sight of a person who appeared behind the bars of the holding cell.
Walking inside and pale as a sheet was a middle-aged man with azure hair and green eyes like mine. When I saw some resemblance of myself in him, only then did I understand the reaction of the people who saw me.
“What is the meaning of this?! Do you know who you locked up? How dare…!”
The man became furious when he saw me detained in the holding cell. As he went on a tirade, from beginning to end, the guards who had been rude to me all this time kept their heads down.
“Locking up my daughter in this musty den…! What if she collapses? Do you have a death wish?”
“I-I’m sorry, Your Excellency.”
“Quickly unlock it! Hurry up!”
Oh, he must be Lady Bright’s father. I thought a butler or employee would come, but it turns out to be her father.
I listened quietly in appreciation of the man who was yelling at the guards.
Wait, why are you so pretty? I’ve only seen men that looked like bandits, so seeing a man with a pretty face and thick red lips was an eye opener.
Are all men in the capital like this? Come to think of it, compared to the people back home, the people I saw in the capital were all pretty, regardless of age and gender.
“My baby!”
The man came into the holding cell as soon as a guard opened the door. His appearance shone as he got closer. If his daughter is around my age then he should be at least 40 years old, so I was in awe at his smooth and unblemish skin.
“Where the hell have you been all this time…”
“Wait a minute!”
Pretty is pretty, that’s all.
I shouted for the man to stop as soon as he appeared in front of me. He came running at the news of his daughter, and I didn’t want to mislead him, so I wanted to clear up the misunderstanding.
“Baby?”
Approaching me as if he was going to hug me, the man hesitated when he saw my behavior. Looking at me puzzling, I closed my eyes.
“I’m sorry, but you’re not my father.”
“What?”
Hearing my words, the man’s green pupils violently wavered. Soon, he spoke in a mournful voice.
“What do you mean? Are you still angry?”
It was strange. The man has the image of a father who cares about his beloved daughter dearly, so why can’t he distinguish his own daughter? I really couldn’t understand it.
“I’m not the Lady Bright that you’re looking for.”
“Huh?”
Once again, the man blinked with a puzzled look at my denial.
It was somewhat cute. No, that isn’t right. In any case, I have to fix the misunderstanding as soon as possible.
“I…”
“Ah! Are you pretending to have memory loss again like before?”
With a face that says he understands, the man burst into a smile as he cut me off. In a gentle voice as if speaking to a rabbit while dangling a carrot, the man spoke.
“Baby, it’s dad’s fault. Okay?”
“No, that’s not it…”
“Anyway, your acting skills have improved a lot since last time.”
“Hey, calm down and listen to me…”
“You haven’t sent me any news in months…I was worried that something bad might have happened…Heuk”
Wait, why are you crying?! It’s me who should be crying!
I became speechless when I saw the man suddenly bursting into tears. After he quieted down, I thought he would listen to what I had to say, so I came a little closer.
“Your grandfather didn’t come, but he also misses you. So please stop making it difficult and forgive me. Okay?”