Layla woke up and stared at the ceiling, feeling rather exhausted. She shut her eyes and frowned as she remembered what happened before she lost consciousness.
This is making me nuts.
She thought, totally frustrated with the situation she was in.
She opened her eyes again and stared at the ceiling.
The whole situation was making her go crazy.
Just what the heck did I do to get myself into this situation?
She wanted to cry from all the stress and frustration she had ever felt in her life.
Layla immediately knew her theory was correct when she saw the evidence in front of her.
That man, the master, was indeed the hero of the novel.
There was no doubt about it.
Those raven hair and blue eyes that man possessed were the same as how the hero was portrayed in the novel. And the way he looked was the same as the illustration the author provided in the novel.
He was the living embodiment of the character.
That's not a coincidence, right?
And that scene that Layla saw was in the novel.
The hero, Samuel Archer, was forced to return to his estate when the heroine caught a cold and needed to be taken care of. They came to his estate since it was near their current location.
Every scene that Layla saw, she read about it in the book. From the way the hero carried the heroine in his arms all the way to where he ordered in a stern voice to his servants to prepare a room for her and to call a physician,
It was even written in the book that the hero was so completely focused on the heroine in his arms that he didn't pay attention to the people around him.
That was not the only thing that made Layla certain that her theory was right.
That figure that Samuel was carrying, Layla saw blonde hair peeking out from under his arm.
The heroine has blonde hair too. So, Layla was convinced that Samuel was carrying the heroine.
And that was the thing that made Layla certain that her theory was right.
"Oh my god. The madam is awake!" Layla heard a servant shout as she was lost in thought.
Layla turned her attention to the servants that took care of her, and they came into her room, and all had the same expression of concern.
"Are you okay, madam? You suddenly fainted this morning, and we were so worried about you."
"I'm fine. I was just exhausted. " Layla roamed her eyes over the servants, looking for someone.
"Where's Benidict?"
The servants glanced at each other before responding to her question. "He's probably with the master, Madam."
Right, the head butler needs to be beside the master of the house.
Layla was getting used to having the head butler by her side, but now that the master of the house is present, the head butler will have to be with the master.
It's just proper etiquette.
Why isn't the master here? Layla wondered to herself.
She can't help but question that.
Memories gushed into her head before Layla lost consciousness. It was Ophelia's memory.
Based on Ophelia's memories, the couple seems to be happy in their marriage and were quite close, but she thinks there's something missing.
She might not have remembered all of Ophelia's memories yet.
Layla learned many things based on Ophelia's memories.
This body was known to have two identities. One was Ophelia Archer, whose name the servants knew, and the wife of Samuel Archer. And the other was Ophelia Lockhart, who was the head of another household.
This body was living a double life.
Based on what Layla saw in Ophelia's memory, Ophelia married Samuel in secret, and their marriage was never known in public.
Ophelia married Samuel when she was only eighteen years old, and he was twenty-three years old.
And now Ophelia is around twenty-two years old. That would make them married for around four years without the knowledge of the general public.
"Ella, since when did I become ill?" Layla asked out of curiosity.
Layla was curious since she didn't see anything in Ophelia's memory about when she became ill.
"Since around this time of the year a year ago, madam," Ella replied as she poured Layla a cup of tea.
Around the start of winter.
"Oh, I see." Layla nodded thoughtfully.
"When did the master leave the estate for his job?"
Ella paused for a moment before answering, "It was around three months after you became ill, madam." She handed Layla the cup of tea.
After hearing the servant's answer, Layla remembered something from the novel.
The story started when the church ordered the heroine to lead the cleansing of many tainted territories that develop during winter.
Now that Layla realized it was the same time Ophelia got ill that the land was tainted, three months later the heroine and the hero depart for their journey, which is around fall.
Layla's color dropped as she realized this and remembered all the details of the story.
It had already been nine months since the novel started, and those nine months that the heroine spent time together with the hero were enough for them to fall deeply in love with each other.
The things that happened in those nine months
Layla felt her stomach starting to get upset.
"Madam, is there something wrong? Your complexion is pale!" the servant said, but Layla can't seem to hear what she said.
The hero has a wife while having a relationship with the heroine.
He cheated on his wife.
The relationship that Layla totally adored and supported in the novel was, in truth, an affair all along.
Layla feels disgusted by this whole thing.
How can I have supported that kind of thing?!
I feel like such a fool.
Layla in her previous life didn't enter any relationships, but somehow, she was aware of the effects of cheating based on her observations of the people she knew.
How it can affect the person who was cheated on and also the people close to them, especially their offspring.
She knew that it could cause emotional pain and trauma that could last for years.
She once had a friend who was cheated on by her husband, and she saw firsthand how it not only devastated her friend but also her friend's children and extended family.
It was a reminder that infidelity doesn't just affect the two people involved; it can ripple out and cause a lot of pain for others as well.
Layla hated the idea of cheating from that day on and made a promise to herself to never betray someone's trust in that way.
But how come I adored something that was the outcome of cheating?
The hero and heroine that she adored were the most hated kind of people in her eyes all along: cheaters.
How could the hero do such a thing when his wife was on her deathbed?!
How can he do all those happy things with another woman when he promised to love and cherish his wife until death do them part?
Layla didn't realize tears were streaming down her cheeks as her heart ached for the wife who had been betrayed. Plus, the fact that Layla saw in Ophelia's memories how the hero vowed to love her and cherish his wife until death do them part made the pain even more unbearable.
The relationship she adored was a sinful affair.
The hero that she thought was an ideal husband was not what she thought it was.
The hero was the complete opposite. He was a walking red flag.
Layla can't help but change her perspective on the story.
How come the author didn't mention such an important thing in the novel?
***