Chapter 09
To Duke Dain,
I may look like a five-year-old, but I am someone who has returned from the past. In my previous life, I hurt you deeply by living as a fake noble lady. Because you forgave me, I tried to live earnestly, and after returning, I wanted to be of help to you.
But now, this is the end.
I’ll write down what is to come. If you take this letter to heart, fortune will follow; if not, misfortune will…
Crackle!
“Uwaaa! What the heck! This sounds like one of those cursed chain letters!”
After scribbling away with my quill until I was exhausted, I buried my face into the soft pillow.
‘Damn it! Isn’t it too early to be writing a will at five years old…?’
The hellish days of the past few days flashed before my eyes.
Holding my breath until I saw an old man waving from across the river, the maids panicking at my floating body in the bathtub and performing chest compressions until my tiny ribs nearly shattered…
And in the end, I’d barely managed to stop them from tattling to the Duke with desperate pleas.
What a rough journey it had been…
And despite all that effort, it was useless.
There’s no way I’d be able to hold my breath for three minutes in a week. That’s basically telling me to go to the underworld and come back again.
I took out the ring the Duke had given me, raised it high, and prayed fervently.
‘Goddess, please, tell me this is real. Please!’
With a sliver of hope, I bit down hard on the ring.
If it didn’t get damaged, maybe it really was a holy relic.
Crunch!
As expected, contrary to my hopes, my tiny teeth left distinct marks.
“Waaah! It’s just pure gold!”
How could gold feel this depressing?
Of all things, the one I’d stolen had to be the holy relic that could have saved me today!
Duke! Of all people, you should have at least kept your ducal ring!
I stomped my feet in frustration, but all that did was scatter dust from the blankets.
Now, the only thing left for me was an external method—
Yes, like a straw!
Suddenly, I remembered that one night when I’d hidden underwater with a bamboo tube to breathe, pretending to be dead to escape the lunatic knight of the Empire known as the Blooded Butcher.
‘Alright! A straw! I just need a straw…!’
But soon, despair set in again.
‘You idiot, where would you even connect it when you can’t open the door? Uuugh…’
Tears rolled sideways down my cheeks.
This desperate wish wasn’t because I wanted to cling to life—
It was simply because, stuck in this tiny child’s body, I couldn’t even enjoy one small thrill before dying.
The only indulgence available to me was stuffing myself full of sweets.
Crunch, munch.
Lying flat on my stomach, I chewed at the fragrant rose macarons while writing.
‘Age twenty-seven, not a single romantic experience. With this face, I should have at least had one first love as sweet as spring, but the only man chasing me down was a beast reeking of blood…’
Lost in my venting, I suddenly felt someone’s presence and quickly shoved the paper under my pillow.
Rustle!
“Milady?”
“Wha—wha! Ro—Roshi! Linda!”
“Oh my, you’re already writing?”
“Goodness! I knew you were bright, but this is incredible!”
“Th–that’s not— Wait! What are you doing barging into my room without permission!?”
But this time, my authority didn’t work.
The two maids crossed their arms, glaring down at me with stern faces.
“Milady, whose fault is all this, hm?”
“Who was the one who dunked her head in every bit of water she saw?”
“…Tch.”
Just a few days ago, they’d been so careful to keep their distance, but my ridiculous lung-training had destroyed whatever dignity a noble lady should have had.
Roshi began picking up the sugary debris of my emotional breakdown from the bed.
“Aigoo, look how sticky the blankets are. Linda, tie up Milady’s hair, will you?”
“Sure. Come here, Milady. It’s almost time to leave. You’ll be riding the carriage soon.”
“…’Kay…”
I furrowed my brow at their nagging but soon lost all strength, reminded of the fate awaiting me.
“What color should we use today? Oh! How about this one? Pink ribbons suit your silver hair perfectly! Well, not that anything wouldn’t look cute on you!”
“…”
‘Ha… does ribbon color even matter when I’m heading to my death?’
When I sat before the mirror, Linda’s deft brushing made my thin silver hair ripple and gleam like liquid light.
She even hummed as she worked—clearly enjoying dressing me up.
Then, I caught a proper look at myself in the mirror.
‘…I used to think I was ugly because everyone bullied me for being a commoner.’
But this childlike face with golden eyes… it was honestly adorable, even to me.
And if I had to credit anything for that, it would be the Duke’s ring.
After my parents fled overnight, the ring was all I had left. I’d planned to pawn it, but the pawnshop turned out to be run by a fence for stolen goods.
The man there had been looking for a woman to help with a con that needed a pretty face, and upon seeing me, he’d offered a deal.
I was startled—but also oddly relieved.
Because I’d never truly wanted to sell the Duke’s ring.
Damn it! And now the one thing I’d kept all that time isn’t even here when I need it most!
Unless the Duke had given me another ring on purpose, it was probably still buried under that hotel where I’d died before.
‘And since the hotel was carved into a mountain, I guess I’m buried in a mountain too. I’m doomed. Totally doomed!’
Just as I was sinking into despair, Linda spoke up.
“Oh, for the Guard Grave ceremony, it’s the white ribbon! I’ll tie it with this one, alright? We don’t have time to find another. I’m sorry.”
“No, it’s fine. Since there’s no time anyway, tie it tight around my neck. Better to go in one clean blow…”
“Sorry? What was that?”
Clink, clatter.
Just then, the metallic clashing of armor echoed from outside the window. Reflected sunlight shimmered like pebbles across the room.
That too was the same as before.
My room, located on the east side of the main manor, was closest to the forest path leading to the ancestral tombs.
As soon as Linda finished the ribbon, I ran to the window and stood on tiptoe.
At the head of the white procession was Duke Dain, clad in silver armor that gleamed like light itself.
The Ceremony of the Guard Grave—a banquet for the dead.
In my past life, I’d never attended, thanks to the Duke’s kindness in sparing me the need to prove myself.
So I’d always secretly watched the dazzling parade from afar, envious.
If only I were the true daughter of this house, I could have walked among them, I used to think.
Pathetic thoughts for a fake, but I’d hated being left behind in the mansion so much that I couldn’t help it.
‘…Well, I guess my wish came true in the end. Even if it’s the first and last time.’
The Duchy of Everhardt, known as the Land of the Sun.
Its “Black Forest,” dense and dark, served as the ancestral burial ground of the ducal family—a sacred land forbidden to ordinary people.
There was only one time in the year when it became lively: the Guard Grave Ceremony, when all of the Duke’s retainers dressed in pure white.
Entering the forest’s gates, passing the evergreen trees so dark they were almost black, the procession eventually reached towering iron gates surrounded by countless tombstones.
Beyond them stood the destination—the sacred white temple.
The temple, built of marble as pure as ivory, gleamed without a speck of dust.
There, the silver-armored knights halted, waiting solemnly for someone.
They were waiting for the star of the day—the child who would lay flowers upon the altar.
Clip-clop.
The heavy silence was broken only by the sound of hooves.
When the carriage stopped, all eyes turned toward it.
The door opened, and a small foot stepped out—a child with fluttering silver hair.
She looked as fragile as a wildflower about to crumble under the stern gazes of the solemn adults.
But the little girl only looked straight at the Duke as she stepped between the two stone lions, the family’s sacred guardians, one careful step after another.
If no one interrupted her, one might have cheered her on—for such a tiny child to walk so bravely.
“Milady, please wait. Here are five chrysanthemums for the ancestors, and the lantern.”
“Y-yes.”
“Careful now.”
The chrysanthemums the young servant handed her were particularly large and full today, almost too big for her small arms.
But she took them all, one by one, until she held every last bloom.
Standing tall on her short legs, the girl looked straight ahead with a solemnity far too mature for her age—
And began walking toward the Duke once more.
