Please bear with me and this series, it’s literally a super long prologue till almost the end of volume 1, then things start moving on :3
Without further ado, enjoy~
Fioria di Florence thoroughly believes in her fate. Something like a lethal dose of posion is unable to kill her. In actuality, that is the truth.
It has been 20 years since her comatose.
The spring wind that morning was somewhat strong.
She then awakened without any notice.
Fioria is good with mornings. She herself thinks that other noble daughters who try to appeal to others by saying 'I always have low blood pressure in the morning and it's troubling." Is a huge fake.
Refreshed and invigorated, at her best from the time of wake. A relatively high blood pressure lifestyle.
Her wake in quite a while ended up the same, she jumped out of bed vigorously. As she does so, she collided onto someone who had peeked on her.
"~~~~~~~~~~!"
Fioria was fine since has a hard head, but that turned out a big catastrophe to the other party who had a painful looking expression. It was a slender and white-porcelain skin young man in a butler suit.
A translucent face that looked like a piece of art.
… I wonder if he is fine from the full force headbutt. I hope it's not split in two.
"My apologies, are you okay?"
"That.. is.. not.. a problem.." Is what he uttered, but it looked extremely painful.
Even so, he endured it franticly and held his head up, which Fioria liked. She then smiled and asked, "I had not seen your face before. Are you perharps a new servant?"
As someone who stand on top, Fioria had conviction to recognize all the servants working for the Florence duke family.
The young man did not answer. He stayed silent and did not seemed focused.
Has the headbutt earlier been the cause?
"Pardon my rudeness, I was charmed."
"Oh my, thank you. I'm happy even if it's flattery."
"By no means do I flatter you. … Milady, do you really not remember me?"
"I'm sorry, can you wait for a while? I shall recall it now."
Fioria is searching through her memories. Who on earth is this young man. Had she met him previously, she should have recalled.
"I am Lex, Lexfall Medias. I was an orphan found by Milady 20 years ago."
"… 20 years?"
Even Fioria had not expected this.
"Did I really sleep so much?"
"Your sleeping face was very beautiful. Would you like to see an oil painting of it?"
"You are so capricious. Someone such as me would be boring for a painting."
As she answered, she flashbacked her memory.
The Lex that she knew was 6 years of age, an orphan from the slums. Though Fioria does not differentiate people from their birth and upbringing. In Lex's case, as he had sharp eyes and great processing abilities, he was welcomed to work for the Florences as Fioria's aide.
"I remember you being more unreliable. How splendid have you become."
"In this 20 years, in preparation to Milady's awakening, I had trained my body and in magic, including the art of poisons. I shall protect Milady from whatever and whoever there is in the world. Please do rely on me."
If perhaps that time comes, I shall leave it to you, as she answered so, a sudden realization that 20 years had passed since she had fallen to poison.
My oh my, now how old would I have become.
"Lex, would you bring over a mirror?"
17+20 = 37.
A harsh reality.
While asleep, she had passed by her teens, twenties, and reached the end of her thirties. Her outer appearance would have definitely changed much.
What if I have wrinkles all over, as she thought so and received a mirror that Lex had brought over.
"Hmm?"
This is weird. As she approaches closer, her relfection too came closer. Smooth white skin, jade colour eyes, golden yellow hair that had been blessed by the sunlight.
Her appearance reflected through the mirror was completely the same as before.
"How in the world did this?"
What a wonder it was to have not age. Checked by both the doctors and pharmacists, the reason was unknown.
"Well, all is well. It's not a bad thing in particular."
Seconds before losing her consciousness, she had put her all into neutralizing the poison. It might had been a side effect, maybe.
"Changing the topic. Annerose, I shall pay back what had been done. That woman, have she got married with Oswald?"
"Not long after Milady had fallen, Annerose went into hiding. It appears she was a spy for another country all along."
"A spy for another country?! The heroine did?!"
Well, a main character revised into honey trap would have been great that one could have in game.
As she whispered so, she tilted her head. Heroine? Main character? Honey trap? What are they?
She did not understand a word that had came out from her thoughts.
"Oswald-sama had leaked quite a number of confidential informations, hence he was locked on the castle's clock tower. He is living, barely that is."
"Locked in the clock tower. The game had quite a similar development in the bad ending route but.. hmm?"
An uncomfortable feeling. This was the second time. What am I saying. Game? Bad Ending? Words I have not a speck of understanding- or maybe not.
Her memories bursted out. Fioria had remembered.
It seems her previous life was a woman in the mid-thirties living in a country called Japan who had passed on. Working in a general trading company, fighting with numbers in receipts every single day. Scolding middle aged colleagues who tried to play with the company's finances during the bubble boom, earning her the title of 'Management Queen'.
Seems in this life, there was not much change in her personality either, the body's sturdiness was the only difference.
The only difference lies in previously getting killed by a wild truck due to overworking every day, making her body unsteady.
I too should be careful around carriages, they frequently go berserk too.
As she flashbacked, she realized something.
(Isn't this world too similar to an otome game that I had loved before?"
My previous life was spent without a speck of romance and I was even feared as the queen in the company. Thanks to that, all I yearn for was to get drunk on sweet love stories. My yearnings are fulfilled by otome games.
My off days are purely spent on gaming. Among all the games I had played, one was called 'The Deep Sleep of Amnesia'.
The game is set a bit passed the middle ages, a fantasy world similar to the voyaging era. The main heroine Annerose, a commoner, transferred into the nobles' academy and falls in love with noble sons whose status were above her. So to speak, the cliché cinderella type of story.
Fioria di Florence is one the game's character. Prince Oswald's fiance, and the rival character during his route. Though she is not the typical spiteful villainess, rather, she stands up fair and square facing up to judge Annerose.
In the good ending, she backed down and approved Annerose's being with Oswald and gave her blessings.
Fioria's dignified action were greatly received by players and was 'the most handsome' (even though she is a she). Her ranking in popularity polls brings shame to the supposing possible captured candidates (even though it was an otome game).
Though there were extreme antis, but that is a matter of course for a popular character. In my previous life, while keeping an objective stance towards Fioria, I felt a sense of similarity towards her. In reality, my personality is quite close to hers. Thanks to that, the previous and current me did not bring about confusion and melded together.
(But it seems this was not perfectly the same as the game)
There is no end if the small details were mentioned, but the big difference was in Annerose's personality. Quite different from her honest personality, she was a crafty man seducing spy. Fioria herself prefer the current Annerose compared to the game's goody old shoes girl, since she is cooler. But the payment for the poisoning shall be repayed.
(Speaking of which, isn't this too late?)
In my previously life, other than otome games, I was indulged in web novels as well. Within them were stories about reincarnations, but most of them had their memories returned since young.
The orthodox 'using my past knowledge to change the future' pattern.
However in Fioria's case it was 20 years set after the timeline. If adapted to the game's timeline, not to mention it's way pass the ending, it's even further than the staff roll or epilogues.
Coming back to the topic, how can I apply my past knowledge. Using what I know to conquer the candidates and turn it into a reverse harem?
No no no, they all should have gotten married and have children.
No thanks to drama conflicts.
Then cheat through the current domestic affairs? Not possible.
Since I had accomplished them 20 years ago.
(But these knowledges won't be in vain. There is definitely a way to use them.)
The possible capture candidates in 'The Deep Sleep of Amnesia' each have their own family problems. Each were troublesome tangling problems, I wonder what happen to them?
Perhaps I could lend them a hand if they are still struggling.
Fioria is self-centered, arrogant, and she does not go easy on her enemies. But her core is just one of a meddlesome person.
"Speaking of which, Annerose's family … the Izolte baron? Was it brought down?"
"I hope you would camly listen to me."
"Ah, the result is definitely a no good."
"With the aid of other countries, It had gained independency as the Izolte kingdom and is currenly at war with our kingdom, rather, our family."
"… There seems to be a need to give the Izolte family a painful experience." As Fioria silently smiles.