003
Alright, now it's the second day since I arrived in this world. Considering it as a dream is getting too long. I have truly entered the world of "Sophia's Story."
Speaking of "Sophia's Story," it's highly likely that the world I'm in is "Sophia's Story: Rev."—the game world instead of the novel world—based on the mismatched information between this world and the world in the novel. The disparity is so evident that you can't possibly not notice it.
Because in this world, Martha doesn't have a mother.
In the novel, the main culprits of Sophia's bullying are her wicked aunt and cousin. While in this world, there's only me as her cousin, and my father as her uncle. There's no one named Wicked Aunt, no one named Mischievous Cousin.
After realizing it, I was unsure whether to be happy or sad. On one hand, Sophia won't experience bullying. On the other hand, I no longer have a mother.
I glanced at the calendar. It seems this family has a habit of crossing out the past dates. Well, that's helpful. Thanks to this small habit, I can now figure out the current date. Let's see... Sunday, August 20, 298 R.
Okay, it's Sunday, August 20. Let's just ignore the year.
I really can't fathom the game developers' reasoning. I mean, they created their own year calculation, yet the names of the days and months still follow the Gregorian calendar.
Oh well, let it be.
Today's agenda is doing the laundry. Sophia might already be annoyed waiting for me to come downstairs. So, I quickly tied my hair and went to meet the Little Protagonist.
As expected, when I showed up, Sophia was grumbling and pouting in a disheveled manner. Even so, she still looked adorable.
"Took you so long! They might return from the river before we're done!"
"Yeah, sorry," I replied. "By the way, why do you really want to wash at the river?"
Martha's house has its own well. It wouldn't be a big problem to hire a laundry service, considering my father is an viscount. There's no reason for us to go far to wash clothes by the river, except...
"Washing together with everyone is more fun, you know!" Sophia said.
I couldn't deny it. Doing something with a lot of people is indeed more enjoyable. Besides, I need to get used to the new environment.
With that in mind, we headed to the riverbank.
It might be around half-past seven now, but the temperature here was unexpectedly quite cold. As I thought about going back to change into warmer clothes, the people at the river were wearing very revealing outfits. Some of them were even completely naked.
"Let's go over there!" Sophia pointed to a big rock in the middle. There were two adult women and a little child bathing. The naked child was one of them.
"Mika!"
Oh, it turned out that the naked girl was Sophia's friend.
"Sophia!" she called out, then turned to look at me. "Martha, why did you come here for once?"
"Sophia insisted," I replied.
I placed the bucket filled with clothes down, and Sophia also brought down her bucket containing soap, a scrubbing brush, and a washboard.
"Well, if I didn't drag Martha along, she would never come here," Sophia retorted.
Responding to Sophia's words would only prolong the argument. Instead, I decided to greet the two women who were washing their clothes.
"We'll be washing our clothes here too, ma'am."
They just smiled and nodded.
"Why? Bathing in the river is fun, you know," Mika asked.
"Martha has her own well," Sophia replied.
"Oh, that makes sense." Mika looked at me, squinting her eyes suspiciously. "Hmm... I think even if you have your own well, it's better to wash here."
"I'll consider it," I said, intending to end the conversation.
However, Sophia added, "I think so too. Martha, as part of society, we should socialize."
Hey, where did you learn those words?
"Mika," called the woman on the right. "You can't compare us with Martha."
"Martha, are you the daughter of Lord Julius?"
The woman on the left asked me. It was a bit difficult to answer because I didn't even know my father's name.
"Yeah, and?" Sophia interjected.
"Oh, no wonder," mumbled the woman on the left. "Though it's late, we offer our condolences for the passing of your mother."
It seemed that my mother's passing was recent. I remembered seeing a family portrait of Martha in the living room, and it looked quite new. The portrait showed my father, mother, and Martha at her current age. Yes, it must have been not long since she passed away.
"Yes, thank you."
This time, the woman on the right asked in a hushed voice, "Um, Martha, I hope I'm not being too forward. I heard that your mother's accident was planned. Is that true?"
Well, that was quite surprising. It seemed Sophia heard it too, and she was equally surprised. It also meant that she didn't know.
"I'm sorry, I don't want to talk about it," I replied.
"Oh, that must have been very painful for you. I'm sorry, Martha. Auntie is truly sorry!"
I thought a half-hearted smile was enough to respond. It seemed Sophia noticed the change in my expression, and she was influenced by it, then said cheerfully.
"Come on, Martha, take off your clothes! It's time to bathe!"
Even though her actions were sometimes irrational, at times like this, Sophia could actually read the mood. She truly was a protagonist.
I had to go along with her change of mood.
"Oh, so that's why you asked me to wash by the river when you hadn't even bathed yet?"
"Hehe...." Sophia started taking off her clothes. "I told you, you don't need to bathe or anything, right?"
"No way! A lady must always maintain her appearance."
"But a lady doesn't wash in the river," Mika retorted.
"That's fine," Sophia replied. "Martha, a lady of the people. Sounds good, right?"
"Ahahaha!" Mika burst into laughter. "That's a good one! You have the potential to advance three terms."
I didn't understand, but it seemed like Mika's words were quite daring. It's better not to react to it.
I scooped water directly into the small bucket that Sophia brought after emptying all its contents, then poured it into the big bucket containing dirty clothes.
"That's the risk of being part of the noble family."
As I started scrubbing the first piece of clothing, the conversation between the two aunts behind me piqued my curiosity. So, while washing and chatting with the two little girls, I also eavesdropped.
"I think the problem lies in the political affairs. You know how it is, right? Lord Julius, despite being a noble, is just a viscount. He's not blue-blooded."
So, they were talking about my father?
"What do you mean? Nobles' matters are certainly related to politics. What else could it be?"
Well, not necessarily. Look at the Crown Prince, all he does is flirt with Sophia. Can that be considered a political affair?
"You're so foolish. If both of them are the same, then even the Emperor's leisure activities can be seen as political, right?"
Wow, it seems the Emperor's family is quite a mess.
"Hush! If someone overhears you, you could get reported, you know."
"Ahaha, you're so scared," said the aunt on the left. "Everyone around here is our neighbor. I can assure you that none of them are secret police."
Oh, right. In Sophia's Story, there's something called the "Secret Police." I don't remember their main duties, but one of Sophia's friends is a secret police officer. He reports the Crown Prince's activities at the Academy to the Emperor, including his closeness to Sophia. In a way, they are the antagonists besides the Duke's Daughter.
"I don't know. Ever since the incident six years ago, I've become anxious like this."
Wow, what happened six years ago?
"Oh, you mean Mr. Govanni? Don't worry, it's just a rumor."
"You're so casual about it! How can you dismiss a vile betrayal like that as just a rumor?" said the aunt on the right. "Or could it be... are you also a secret police?"
"Nonsense!—"
"Martha! Didn't you hear me?"
My attention was drawn to the conversation between the aunts due to the topic of the incident six years ago. Sophia seems to have been calling my name all this time. She looks annoyed that I haven't been listening.
"What?"
Oh, her pouting face is adorable. I wish I could gaze at it longer. But Sophia's hand is already clenched and raised high. If I didn't answer just now, she would probably hit me for real.
"You've been called for so long. What's wrong with you?"
"If I don't respond, it means I didn't hear."
"Fine, whatever," Sophia grumbled as she put her clothes back on. "After this, we're going to play at the treehouse."
Isn't the treehouse damaged from the explosion? Oh, maybe she means another treehouse.
"So?"
"You hurry up with the laundry! or we'll leave you here!"
Hey, you little shit! You were the one who dragged me to wash at the river, and now you're just using it to take a bath and leave?
"Help me out here! It's not fair if you just play and leave!"