♥ Chapter 3 ♥
I quickly touched my face and checked the silver chain around my neck.
The necklace was still there.
I pulled back the curtain covering the carriage window.
Outside, a landscape filled with lush green trees spread before my eyes.
“…Summer?”
“What’s wrong with you? Are you really sick? Should I tell them to turn the carriage around?”
Bellietta reached out and placed her hand on my forehead with a worried expression.
I stared at her for a moment before pulling away roughly.
Bellietta quickly withdrew her hand, looking startled.
I glared at her and spoke.
“Bellietta.”
“What is it all of a sudden? Did you have a nightmare? Your expression is scary, Sierra.”
“How old are you?”
“Me?”
“You.”
Instead of answering right away, Bellietta quietly looked into my eyes.
Her face clearly said, What’s wrong with her?
After a brief pause, she calmly replied,
“I’m eighteen.”
“Eighteen…”
Then that meant she had already come of age.
My birthday came before Bellietta’s, so I had celebrated my coming-of-age ceremony first.
Which meant…
I was eighteen too.
Compared to the twenty-five-year-old I had been just moments ago…
The number felt impossible.
Seven years.
I was speaking about my age from seven years ago.
Unless Bellietta was making fun of me, or unless I had completely lost my mind…
There was no easy way to accept this.
But winter had suddenly become summer.
My clothes had changed.
Bellietta looked seven years younger.
When I put everything together…
The answer became impossible to ignore.
I had returned seven years into the past.
Biting my lip, I looked out the carriage window.
The scenery rushed by as the carriage sped down the road.
Then I remembered the first thing Bellietta had said after I woke up.
To be honest…
More than anything, I wanted to curse at her and slap her across the face.
After everything you did to me… you still dare to calmly say my name?
I wanted to scream those words at her.
But understanding my situation came first.
Trying not to look at her disgusting face any longer than necessary, I spoke as calmly as I could.
“More importantly, Bellietta.”
“Hm? What is it?”
“You said it wasn’t too late.”
“Oh, that? You kept saying ‘It’s too late’ in your sleep, so I just answered you.”
Just then, the carriage jolted.
Since I was sitting with my back toward the direction we were traveling, my body leaned forward.
Naturally, my hair fell over my face.
I raised my hand and brushed it back before looking at Bellietta again.
But…
The words never left my mouth.
Bellietta’s hair hadn’t moved at all.
Yet the moment I brushed mine back…
She copied the exact same movement.
Like a mirror.
Every detail was the same.
The shape of her fingers.
The expression on her face.
Even the way she looked back at me afterward.
She had copied me from things as small as this.
That’s how it started.
That’s how she stole everything from me, Bellietta.
Suppressing a bitter laugh, I slowly opened my mouth.
“Right… that.”
“Where are we going?”
It was a ridiculous question.
I was already dressed and sitting inside the carriage.
Of course I should have known where we were going.
But I needed information.
If this really was seven years ago…
Knowing when was the most important thing.
As expected, Bellietta looked confused.
She frowned slightly before speaking carefully.
“Are you sure you’re not sick?”
“No. I just woke up, so my head feels a little confused.”
I had no idea whether that excuse would work.
It was the first thing that came to mind.
“Oh… I guess that makes sense.”
Thankfully…
Bellietta accepted it.
She nodded as if it were perfectly reasonable before explaining.
“I only told you we were going to Marquis Jaksion’s banquet. I never explained why. Then again, I only found out after getting into the carriage myself.”
Marquis Jaksion?
The famous general who defended the western front?
Seven years ago…
Marquis Jaksion…
He had been one of the House of Vozbon’s strongest supporters.
“This time, it seems the barbarian tribes united and tried to invade across the western front. Marquis Jaksion’s army stopped them and protected the border. The banquet is being held to celebrate his victory.”
Ah…
That banquet.
I remembered it vaguely.
There had been nothing particularly special about it.
It was simply a celebration honoring Marquis Jaksion’s achievements.
Many nobles attended.
That was all.
But judging by Bellietta’s appearance now…
Even at such an ordinary banquet…
She had probably copied me.
Our dresses were similar.
Our hairstyles were similar.
The only difference was that my hair was tied loosely over my right shoulder…
While hers rested over her left.
My dress was blue.
Bellietta’s was green.
The colors were different…
But the fabric…
The buttons…
Even the jewels decorating them…
They were almost identical.
It looked as if the same designer had made both dresses.
Anyone who saw us would immediately think she had copied me.
I clicked my tongue softly and looked back out the window.
“Sierra.”
Without turning my head, I glanced at Bellietta.
She hesitated for a moment before smiling brightly.
Then she asked,
“When were you planning to tell me?”
“Tell you what?”
“About the necklace.”
The necklace?
I frowned slightly.
“You said you’d tell me where you got it.”
“…”
My face twisted before I could stop it.
The first thing I heard after opening my eyes…
Was about the necklace.
I looked at Bellietta before slowly speaking.
“Did I? I don’t remember.”
“You definitely did. You said you’d tell me later.”
Her confident expression…
Even the look in her eyes…
She wasn’t even trying to hide how badly she wanted it.
I quietly watched her for a moment.
Then I smiled.
“I see. If I said that, then I should tell you.”
“Really? You always said it was too difficult to explain. What changed?”
She looked both surprised and excited.
Inside, I laughed coldly.
She already looked thrilled at the thought of stealing it.
Smiling gently, I answered,
“It’s made from a gemstone found on Depoxy Island. It’s extremely rare. Even nobles have to travel there themselves and beg to buy one.”
“If you want it…”
“You’ll have to go there yourself.”
“Depoxy?”
“That’s right.”
It was an island that took four full days to reach by carriage.
During the summer…
It was filled with mosquitoes and insects.
Even the people who lived there hated it.
Bellietta looked uncertain at the thought of going.
Meanwhile…
I felt strangely pleased.
Because…
I was lying.
It was only a small lie.
Just a simple trick.
But…
It was the beginning.
Everything Bellietta had done to me…
Everything she had tried to crush and steal…
My family.
The man I loved.
In the end…
Even my own identity.
Her hands had always been filled with things she stole from me.
From now on… those hands would hold nothing.
The only things Bellietta would ever be able to grasp…
Were greed.
Desire.
And sand slipping through her fingers.
When I was finished… the only things left for Bellietta would be despair… and death.
There would be no mercy.
* * *
The banquet hall was already crowded.
As proof of Marquis Jaksion’s power and influence, nobles from every corner of the Empire had gathered to praise and flatter him.
Normally, he was known as a humble man.
But today, he simply laughed heartily as he accepted everyone’s compliments.
Holding my wine glass, I quietly looked around the people surrounding him.
Soldiers.
Knights.
Merchants.
Powerful nobles.
Even those with hidden motives.
They crowded around him like ants gathering around food.
I couldn’t really blame them.
Marquis Jaksion was one of the Empire’s greatest nobles.
With just a few words from him…
Even the Imperial Family would think twice before objecting.
At least on the western front…
He was indispensable.
And among those protecting the western front…
Was the ruler of the famous land of Hermonia.
The head of the House of Ripton.
Aden Ripton.
The man people called…
The Ghost Grand Duke.
Hermonia had always been known as a harsh land.
It sat high in the mountains.
The roads were dangerous.
Because it lay deep within the mountain range, monsters frequently appeared there.
The Imperial Family had tried many times to clear the region and protect its people.
But it was never easy.
It was too far from the capital.
Sending soldiers there was difficult.
Even when they did…
There were simply too many monsters.
The losses became even greater.
Eventually…
The Empire gave up.
They handed complete authority over the region to the House of Ripton.
Despite watching the Empire fail again and again…
The House of Ripton chose to fight.
Everyone believed it was pointless.
They were wrong.
The House of Ripton drove the monsters out of the surrounding mountains.
They stabilized the region.
Recognizing their incredible achievement, the Imperial Family granted them an unofficial title.
The vast Ripton territory became a Grand Duchy.
A land completely independent from the Imperial Family.
The only region in the Empire guaranteed full self-rule.
Although there was no official noble title…
The ruler of that Grand Duchy became known throughout the Empire as…
The Ghost Grand Duke.
Aden Ripton…
I wonder if he’s here today.
He was famous for rarely appearing in public.
How old was he at this time?
Probably in his early twenties.
I had never seen his face before.
Even at Marquis Jaksion’s banquet in my previous life…
I had only heard that he attended.
I never actually saw him.
Back then…
Bellietta had clung to me the entire time, making the banquet unbearable.
Just like now.
