I Became the Substitute for the Runaway Heroine

“Is the medicine not working?”

A large, calloused hand touched her forehead, pulling her consciousness back.

Yet, Odette couldn’t bring herself to open her eyes.

Just hearing Caesar’s voice was enough to bring back Mary’s dying screams, echoing deep inside her skull.

“Ugh… This is terrifying.”

Even though this was a world inside a novel, people were still dying—for real.

She wasn’t ready to live out the heroine’s life in this story.

More than anything, she couldn’t bear the fact that none of this had happened by her own will.

“Should I summon the physician and have him prepare another antidote?”

It was Aden, Caesar’s adjutant, who spoke.

“It’s useless. Even the Elixir of Life from Viscount Philip didn’t work.”

“W-What?! The Elixir of Life? You gave that priceless medicine—the one that can even revive the dying—to that imposter? That sacred remedy, which Viscount Philip went all the way to the East to obtain for you?”

Aden’s voice rose in anger, but he suddenly sucked in a sharp breath.

Caesar must have shot him a withering glare.

“That girl? Did you just call my wife a fake?”

“But…”

“But what?”

Caesar’s voice grew dangerously low. Aden hesitated before stammering out a response.

“D-Do you truly intend to take her as your wife?”

“Take her? We’ve already shared a bed. How could I throw away the woman who’s become mine? Unless I were to kill her, that is.”

“…Then, from now on, I will serve her as my lady.”

“Good. Now, go to Viscount Philip again. I fed her the elixir myself, and yet my wife is still sick. If that bastard dares to give me a fake remedy and boast about it, tell him he should prepare to die.”

Even as he uttered such chilling threats, Caesar’s fingers gently swept through Odette’s hair.

Each time, her body flinched.

She couldn’t help it—her fear responded before she could control it.

“Understood. I will return swiftly.”

As soon as Aden hurriedly left the room, Caesar leaned down, whispering softly in her ear.

“I know you’re awake.”

Odette’s heart nearly burst, but she kept her eyes shut.

All she wanted was for him to leave the room.

“From now on, don’t trust just anyone. Don’t rely on them, either. Understood? Only trust me. Only depend on me.”

“…….”

“And if you betray me, you’ll die in far more excruciating pain than that maid.”

So that was why he had dragged her to the underground prison.

It had been a lesson—a way to show her firsthand what happened to those who defied him.

“And if you try to contact that second-born bastard from the viscounty, he’ll die too.”

“……!”

“Along with the youngest son you used to care for. Got it?”

After making such a bone-chilling threat, Caesar pressed a soft kiss to her forehead.

“Sleep well, my beloved Odette.”

“I have to escape.”

Odette thought of her wise mother.

Her mother had always been clever.

Whenever hunters barged into their hut, threatening them or trying to instill fear, her mother had always found a way to survive.

“Odette, when you encounter a beast in the mountains, throw it food and slowly step back. It’s the same with people. If someone charges at you, ready to tear you apart, never fight back—offer them something they want. Then, get out of there. Once you’re safe, you can make a new plan.”

Even when they had little to spare, her mother had always offered food to the hunters.

While they ate, she would tell them:

“If you ever get trapped in a snowstorm or injured while tracking prey, ring the bell. I’ll come to help.”

After that, the hunters never caused trouble again.

Perhaps they thought they might need her help one day.

“I need to give Caesar something, too.”

If she wanted to escape, she had to wait until Caesar trusted her—until he let his guard down.

And to do that, she needed to offer him something tempting.

But what did Caesar, a man who already had wealth and an army, truly need?

Then, a memory surfaced—Count Anderson’s words from her dream.

“While that bastard was off at war, Maes embezzled a fortune from the mines and the territory. As soon as he checks the ledgers, he’ll realize the theft.”

Even in the original novel, Count Anderson had mentioned that Maes had been stealing Caesar’s assets.

If she could just find the proof—

Then Caesar would march straight to Count Anderson’s doorstep, wouldn’t he?

As long as Caesar and Count Anderson were busy fighting, she could seize the chance to escape.

“I can find the evidence with my ability!”

While confined in Amelia’s room, Odette had experimented with different methods to uncover information through her dreams.

She had discovered that if she held an item with a person’s name on it or something they always carried, she could enter their unconscious thoughts in her dreams.

It was more than just dreaming—it was like peering into their subconscious mind.

When she had fallen asleep gripping the worn hair tie Amelia had given her, she had met Amelia in her dream while she was in the Kingdom of Dekan.

When she had overheard Count Anderson and Jovern talking on a terrace in a dream, she had been holding Jovern’s handkerchief.

“Where is that thing Count Anderson gave me?”

Odette rummaged through her belongings, pulling out a small travel bag from the wardrobe and shaking it upside down.

A wooden flute tumbled onto the floor.

It was the one Count Anderson had given her before leaving the estate, meant for summoning a carrier pigeon. His touch had worn it smooth, and his full name, ‘Owen Anderson,’ was engraved on it.

“Perfect!”

Odette clutched the wooden flute tightly in her hand and waited for sleep to take her.

“Please, please, show up in my dream, you vile man!”

“Your name is Odette, isn’t it? Your mother must have been quite an ambitious woman. Giving such a lofty name to a lowly thing like you—was she hoping you’d use that pretty face to seduce some dimwitted noble and change your fate? Ha!”

Count Anderson sneered down at Odette, insulting her deceased mother.

“It actually worked?”

Odette blinked in disbelief. She had deliberately tried to invade Count Anderson’s unconscious mind through her dream, but she hadn’t expected it to work so effortlessly.

“Perhaps your mother’s wish came true after all. Caesar Maes may be a monster, but he’s still a noble. So in a way, you’ve fulfilled her dying wish. What a devoted daughter you are, Odette! Hahaha!”

“Shut up. Your breath reeks like a sewer.”

Odette glared at him. Since this was a dream, there was no reason to be afraid.

“What did you just say? Have you lost your mind, girl?”

Count Anderson shot to his feet, storming toward her.

His fingers twitched as if he was about to grab her by the hair and slam her to the floor.

Odette backed away, her voice sharp as she shouted,

“Of course I’ve lost my mind! How could I not? You plan to kill me, don’t you? You have to—it’s the only way to ensure no one ever finds out that Amelia escaped!”

“Hah! So you’re smarter than I thought. But I don’t need a clever maid—I need a perfect puppet to replace Amelia. Butler! Take this girl away and deal with her!”

Odette spun toward the door and yelled,

“Lock the door!”

The moment the words left her lips, the door clicked shut from the inside.

“Wow! It actually worked!”

She felt a surge of excitement.

Of course, Count Anderson had no idea this was a dream—so he had no control here.

“Y-You… did you just use magic?!”

Count Anderson grunted as he struggled with the locked door, then turned to glare at her.

“Magic? I wouldn’t call it that.”

Odette’s gaze landed on the portraits of the Anderson ancestors lining the walls.

With a theatrical gesture, she shouted toward the paintings,

“Ancestors! Appear before us! Your descendant has become so utterly disgraceful that he needs a lesson!”

The paintings trembled. Moments later, the figures inside stepped out, surrounding Count Anderson.

“W-What is happening? Grandfather? Father?! I did everything for the sake of the family— AARGH!”

The ancestors raised their weapons—swords, canes, staffs—and began beating Count Anderson mercilessly.

“He’s about to experience the worst nightmare of his life.”

But if the nightmare became too horrific, he might wake up—and that would ruin everything.

Odette rushed to his desk, frantically searching for something useful.

“That girl has gone insane! What is she doing?! AARGH!”

A loud crash echoed as part of the wall collapsed—he was on the verge of waking up.

“Found it.”

Odette’s fingers skimmed over documents and maps related to the mines.

She quickly scanned every detail, committing as much to memory as possible.

If she played this right, Caesar would have a reason to go after Count Anderson immediately.