Chapter 1

Always, thank you for your support.

I would be delighted if those who have read my works and those who haven't would join me!

I'm about to start without much preparation.

I have one older brother who is very handsome but has a rigid mind, and two older sisters who are beautiful but a bit air-headed.

In other words, we are four siblings.

My brother is an outstanding person, even considered a candidate for a prince's retinue, and my eldest sister, who married into a dukedom, and my second sister, who married into a marquessate, are charismatic figures known as the jewels of society.

In such a family, I, the youngest, am always buried in the library, a bookworm who dislikes social events and is obsessed with stuffing my head with knowledge.

"Women should study manners and fashion to be more ladylike."

My brother often said this to me.

"You must attend balls and find a wonderful husband! By the way, the recommended gentlemen are..."

"I found a dress that would suit you, Alteina! How about a frilly pastel pink dress? It's very trendy right now!"

I was tired of having my sisters' values imposed on me every day.

I was tired of my brother, who forced his ideal image of a woman on me, and my two sisters, who talked endlessly about things I had no interest in.

One day, I was proposed a marriage.

The other party was none other than the second prince of this country.

"Brother, it's impossible for me to get engaged. And to a prince, no less... It sounds like a bad joke."

"There will never be a better match than this. Alteina, stop being so stubborn and listen to me."

I challenged my brother to a fight, and as he grabbed my shoulder, I tried to shake him off and lost my balance, falling.

Unexpectedly, I hit my head on the floor and fainted. I could faintly hear my brother's panicked voice in the distance.

When I woke up, my brother, looking worried, was holding my hand, and my two sisters, with tears in their eyes, were peering at me.

"Alteina, do you understand? I'm sorry, it's all my fault."

I shook my head at my brother's apology.

"Alteina, does anything hurt?"

"Alteina, are you thirsty?"

I shook my head at my sisters' worried questions. I felt a slight bump on my head, but it wasn't unbearable.

I opened my mouth and touched my throat.

My brother and sisters tilted their heads in confusion.

I kept touching my throat and moved my mouth as if trying to speak.

"Alteina, can't you speak?"

My brother whispered, his face filled with despair.

The room echoed with the screams of my sisters, who seemed to want to cover their ears.

A doctor was immediately called, and various tests were conducted, but I couldn't speak at all...

No, it's not that I couldn't speak; I just didn't want to.

My brother and sisters, who wouldn't listen to what I had to say.

So, there was no point in speaking.

That's why I decided not to speak, to live a life of reading books.

This is a rehabilitation work.

Thank you for your support.