Cinderella is... the Male Lead? - Chapter 5
At her words, Cinderella’s lips curved into a crooked smile.
“Now? I don’t know if this is another type of torment or some kind of whim, but I don’t believe you.”
“It’s really not…! Ah!”
Rona took a step closer to Cinderella, but she didn’t even get to finish her sentence before tripping over a bucket and landing on her bottom. The sharp pain in her tailbone made her wince and groan, and while she was clutching her backside in pain, Cinderella turned away.
“Hey. Cinderella!”
Cinderella glanced back at Rona before quickly running up the stairs. She moved so fast that Rona didn’t have time to grab her.
“What’s with her, moving so fast?”
As Rona tried to follow, she sighed and rubbed her forehead. She hadn’t expected Cinderella to be this resistant. Although she could understand where she’s coming from, it felt like it would be a long time before they could get along.
But giving up wasn’t an option. No matter what, she needed to become friends with Cinderella within a year.
Rona awkwardly got up and looked at the bucket she had kicked over.
“Was this always at my feet? I don’t think so… This is just ridiculous.”
***
“Haa… What should I do.”
Rona sat in the garden in front of the mansion, sighing. She had suggested to Susan that they hire some workers, but Susan had only replied, “Why would we need more when we have Cinderella?” She tried to persuade her repeatedly, but Susan remained firm, even feeling Rona’s forehead to check if she was still sick.
‘This is strange. She finds it inconvenient, but refuses to hire help. Will she agree if I keep trying?’
If they had fired the previous servants because they were troublesome, they could simply hire new ones. But Susan, either due to anxiety or some other reason, refused to hire more help.
‘Or maybe it’s because of the plot. Since this goes against the original story, she might instinctively resist it.’
It was a desperate situation. If she couldn’t hire workers, it would make Rona seem like she had lied to Cinderella.
‘Tsk, it seemed like Cinderella didn’t believe me anyway… If this keeps up, she’ll just hate me more.’
Rona trembled at the thought of Cinderella becoming even colder towards her. At this time, Cinderella was likely cleaning the mansion alone. Seeing that there wasn’t a single ant crawling around, Cinderella might really think that Rona had lied.
“Ah, my big mouth. I shouldn’t have said anything about hiring workers.”
Imagining Cinderella’s even colder expression made Rona hesitate to go find her. What should she do? Although she was determined to avoid the gruesome fate, changing Susan’s attitude seemed difficult.
As Rona was pulling at her hair, an idea suddenly struck her like lightning.
‘Wait… what am I worrying about? Why bother with all this when I can just run away? How did I not think of this? There’s no need to become friends with her. I just need to leave this mansion.’
If she ran away, she wouldn’t need to persuade Susan or try to melt Cinderella’s icy heart.
Brightening at the thought, she quickly got up from the bench and ran to her room to pack for a nighttime escape.
***
Late at night, carrying the bag she had packed earlier, Rona tiptoed down the hallway. She was careful with every step to avoid making noise and alerting Susan.
Just as she reached the stairs leading down to the first floor, a chilling voice came from behind her.
“Sister Rona, where are you going at this late hour?”
“Gah!”
Rona turned in shock. In the dark hallway stood Cinderella, looking like a ghost. Her loose blonde hair, white nightgown, and pale face glowing in the moonlight made her look haunting.
Trying not to show her fear, Rona forced a calm voice, though her trembling smile betrayed her.
“Ahh, Cinderella! Why aren’t you asleep?”
“Where are you going?”
Ignoring Rona’s cheerful tone, Cinderella asked again coldly, her gaze dropping to the bag Rona was holding.
Oops, I forgot to hide it. Rona quickly moved the bag behind her and nervously glanced around. She pointed outside with her finger.
“Oh? Ah, just going for a walk! Ahaha!”
“What’s in your hand? It looks quite heavy.”
“Oh, this? Just… my clothes…”
Rona trailed off, sneaking a glance at Cinderella. Her fierce eyes were frightening. Rona had a bad feeling that if Cinderella found out about her attempted escape, things would go badly.
Cinderella, narrowing her eyes at Rona’s bag, suddenly grabbed her wrist.
Is she going to take the bag? Rona clutched it desperately, stumbling in her panic.
“W-What are you doing?”
“You said you wanted to become friends with me. A night walk sounds nice. Let’s go together.”
Cinderella’s grip was surprisingly strong. Rona’s wrist began to ache. How could someone who looked like they couldn’t hurt a fly be so strong?
Glancing at her wrist held by Cinderella, Rona forced a smile while sweating nervously.
“Oh? Ah… sure, I’d like that.”
How could she refuse someone asking to go for a walk? Especially not the most powerful being in this world, Cinderella. There was no way she could turn down her request.
