Chapter 7

"Steve, I feel like Beth is becoming more and more wild. No, it's not that her studies or manners are a problem. In fact, she's quite excellent. But she's abnormally tough..."

Charles spoke to Steve, the butler, with a troubled expression.

It had been six years since Elizabeth came to Sutherland. Ever since she read a survival-focused adventure story at the age of eight, she had started to play often in the nearby hills and forests.

Recently, she had even started gathering medicinal herbs, hunting, and fishing. She became particularly enthusiastic about fishing and eventually started making her own fishing gear, influenced by a book called "The Angler's Expert Diary." Whenever she went out, she always had a guard with her, but she occasionally shared the fish she caught with them. She would clean the fish with a knife, start a fire, and cook them herself, displaying a surprising level of skill for a young lady.

To avoid getting sunburned, as befitting a noble lady, she wore a wide-brimmed hat, a gauze scarf that covered her face except for her eyes, and gloves. She looked like a complete suspicious person.

On the other hand, Charles had grown stronger and was planning to debut in society this fall. He was also preparing to transfer to a school in the capital. This was the perfect opportunity for Elizabeth to return to the capital as well, and she was also planning to enroll in the same school as Charles.

"This life is coming to an end... Big brother, I really want to stay here forever."

"Beth, we are nobles. We must do what is necessary for our people. Don't you think?"

"Big brother, isn't it because you want to see Lady Madeleine that you want to return to the capital? Hehehe."

"Hey! Don't tease your brother!"

Charles had become engaged to Madeleine, the eldest daughter of the Campbell Duke, two years ago. She was a plump young lady with thin gray eyes, a round nose, and thick lips, and could hardly be called beautiful. However, she was a kind and intelligent woman who cared for the frail Charles. They had been corresponding frequently since their engagement, sharing their thoughts on books they read, which deepened their friendship.

"It seems that the list of Beth's potential suitors is narrowing down. You know, a love marriage is impossible for a noble like you, Beth. But I believe it's not impossible to build a happy family even in a political marriage."

"Big brother, I'm glad you got engaged to Lady Madeleine. It feels more like a love marriage than a political one with her. As for me... I can't even imagine wanting to get married."

"That's going to be difficult. Father won't allow it."

In the past, after her brother's death, Elizabeth was engaged to Henry, Madeleine's younger brother. Her father seemed to want to form an alliance with the Campbell family at any cost. The reason he didn't arrange a suitor for Elizabeth, who was a backup for her sickly brother, was due to this background.

—After getting engaged to Lord Henry, I met Prince Alan, the third prince of this kingdom, at school. I fell in love with him at first sight. Then, Henry got in the way... So I made him take a powerful aphrodisiac and attack the poor countess's daughter, Catherine. I had always disliked Catherine for no reason. In the end, he had to marry her to take responsibility, but Catherine already had a boyfriend, so she looked quite miserable. I was really a terrible person back then.

Thinking back to her school days, Elizabeth felt a deep sense of despair. She had made a poor noble lady be attacked by a vagrant, framed Elizabeth for stealing her belongings to get her expelled, and even laced her tea with poison at every tea party, repeating such cruel acts daily.

She had a particular obsession with Karen, a baron's daughter who was in love with Prince Alan. She tried to kill Karen with great determination, but there were always people around her, and she never showed any weakness. In the end, Elizabeth was exiled and tortured without achieving her goal.

However, if Charles, her brother, is still alive in this future, the situation should change. And the current Elizabeth will not fall in love with Prince Alan. She can say this with certainty. The prince has lustrous black hair and golden eyes, a strikingly beautiful pale complexion, but he is arrogant, selfish, and has a bad attitude. Moreover, he is a city dweller who is afraid of bugs. To the current Elizabeth, he is not at all attractive; rather, he is someone she finds difficult to deal with. The only reason she found his fear of bugs cute was because she was completely blinded by love.

Now that she has no suitor, Elizabeth thought about how she could avoid marriage and live an independent life while she was maintaining her fishing rod.