“There’s so much love surrounding you, young lady.”
The fortune-teller glanced down at the card I had drawn, then looked up at my face with interest.
“Not only are you loved by your family, but your romantic life seems to be going quite smoothly as well. Am I right?”
“Oh my, yes!”
As expected of someone so renowned—she hit the mark perfectly.
Everything she said was true. I was lucky enough to be born the youngest daughter of a ducal family, and on top of that, I was surrounded by more love than I could ever need.
Though my mother passed away when I was young, I never felt the absence. The rest of my family filled that void.
My father cherished me more than anyone in the world, and my older brother, who recently inherited the title of count, was as kind and caring as ever.
And just recently, I had even found a lover. With that, the already overflowing love in my life had become almost too much.
“You also have great financial fortune. Every day must feel like a blessing for you.”
“Really?”
She hadn’t even read my future yet, but I felt a flutter of excitement at the compliment.
“So what about my future? I came here because I wanted to know what lies ahead.”
That was the real reason I came. Even Anna, my maid who’d accompanied me, looked on eagerly.
“Please draw three more cards,” the fortune-teller instructed.
“Alright.”
I obediently picked out three new cards.
“Let’s see what today’s fortune looks like…”
But as soon as she flipped over the first card, the fortune-teller’s expression froze.
“…Why did this come out?”
She glanced at me, then turned over the remaining cards. Unlike before, these were dark, ominous, and disturbing.
What? What on earth had I pulled?
After examining all three cards, the fortune-teller’s face turned grim.
“This is bad. Very bad.”
“Bad?”
“You’ve drawn the card of the black dog. It’s a highly unlucky omen!”
Sure enough, one of the cards did have a black dog illustrated on it.
“Especially today—your luck is at its absolute worst. Something terrible is going to happen to you.”
“What?”
“You must be cautious. At worst… it could cost you your life.”
“Excuse me?”
What on earth…?
I was stunned by the sudden change in her reading.
Fortunes can turn out like this?
Everything had been going so well, and now she was talking about death?
“What do you think you’re saying to the young lady?”
Anna, seeing me frozen in shock, spoke up sharply.
“You dare speak to the Duke of Burkell’s daughter like that? Apologize to her at once!”
“Th-The Duke…?”
The fortune-teller flinched. She looked panicked the moment she noticed the smile had vanished from my face.
“I’ll report this to His Grace immed—”
“It’s fine, Anna.”
I cut in to stop her. I had only come for fun in the first place—I didn’t want to make a fuss.
Even if her words had predicted my misfortune.
“Here, take this. Thank you for your time.”
Don’t worry. I won’t retaliate.
I offered her a faint smile and paid the fee.
Because of the unexpected dark fortune, Anna and I left the shop much earlier than planned.
“I should’ve just stayed home.”
Once outside, I muttered honestly.
I wasn’t angry—but I wasn’t exactly in a good mood either.
How could I feel okay when a well-known fortune-teller had just predicted my death?
“What an unpleasant old witch. Please don’t believe her, my lady.”
“You’re right. I shouldn’t.”
They say when it comes to fortune-telling, it’s best to only believe the good parts.
So I decided to pretend I hadn’t heard any of the bad.
“You have to get ready for the party now.”
“Right. Let’s head back.”
That evening, we were due at a party hosted by the Earl of Burtz.
Maybe I can shake off this uneasy feeling at the party.
I pushed the fortune-teller’s words out of my mind and resolved to enjoy myself.
What I didn’t know then… was that her reading would prove to be true.
That evening, disaster struck.
SCREEEEECH—
The party was the problem.
“Above you! Lady Burkell, look out above!”
“Above…?”
Why then of all times did the chandelier have to fall right above me?
“Get out of the way!”
It all happened so fast. There was no time to react.
The massive chandelier came crashing down.
____________.𖥔 ݁ ˖𓆰♕𓆪 ֶָ֢._________
“Ah!”
My eyes flew open.
Above me was a familiar ceiling. It was my room.
Hadn’t I died beneath the chandelier…? I blinked up at it in a daze.
Was it all a dream?
But the whole scene had felt too real.
As I sat lost in thought, the door opened. Anna walked in.
“Ah! My lady…?”
“Urgh—”
Trying to sit up made my head pound. I managed to lift myself up with difficulty.
“You’re awake…?” Anna asked in disbelief.
I nodded, and she immediately rushed out. Judging by her reaction, it hadn’t been a dream after all.
So I really almost died…
Maybe that fortune-teller was the real deal.
Soon, Baron Price, our family doctor, came in to examine me.
“I’ll check your pulse for a moment.”
As he went about his task, I looked at him and asked:
“I was seriously in danger, wasn’t I?”
“Yes. You were very lucky to survive.”
And yet… there were no visible injuries. No bandages, not even on my head. That was strange.
At that moment, the door opened again.
“Brother?”
It was my brother, Milan. He must have come as soon as he heard I was awake.
His expression was rigid.
I could understand why—what happened would’ve been terrifying to hear about.
“That must’ve been a shock, right?” I said.
“It was.”
His voice was dry, and he stared at me intently.
“You seem fine enough to speak.”
“Yes. I don’t have any injuries.”
He didn’t answer. He just continued to look at me coldly.
“…Do you think this is funny?”
“What?”
His question caught me off guard.
“Am I not allowed to smile?”
“What?”
“I survived. Isn’t that something to be happy about?”
Shouldn’t my brother be glad I was okay?
But Milan’s face didn’t ease at all. As I began to feel something was off, he asked,
“Where is Mother’s tiara?”
“You mean the one in her room?”
He must have been talking about the expensive tiara our late mother wore at her wedding, now kept in her room as a keepsake.
“You moved it, didn’t you?”
Milan clenched his teeth.
“I did? I didn’t touch it!”
I had no idea what he was talking about. I had never seen him this angry before.
What’s gotten into him?
We were always close siblings.
With a six-year age gap, we never even fought—not once.
The Milan I knew should’ve been relieved I was alive, not accusing me over a family heirloom.
“You stole it and now you’re pretending you don’t know. If you’re going to lie, at least make it convincing.”
“I swear I didn’t!”
“So you’re going to keep denying it?”
I tried answering honestly, but Milan just frowned.
“I’ll ask again tomorrow. And tomorrow, I expect the right answer.”
With that cryptic warning, he left my room.
“…What is going on?”
I muttered, glancing toward Anna and the doctor. They had both been watching in awkward silence.
“What is he talking about? What tiara?”
It was obvious something had happened while I was unconscious.
Milan had clearly misunderstood something—and now he was furious.
“Why is he so angry with me?”
“Well…”
Anna seemed hesitant to explain, as if unsure whether she should.
But there were too many strange things to ignore.
I stared down at my smooth, unblemished arms.
“I got crushed under a massive chandelier… so why don’t I have a single scratch?”
“You… what?” Anna said, blinking.
That was exactly what I had wanted to ask earlier—before Milan showed up.
“At the very least, I should’ve hit my head.”
It was a fall that should’ve easily broken my neck.
And the headache I’d felt wasn’t from an injury either. As I was puzzling over it, Baron Price spoke, his face growing serious.
“You were crushed by the chandelier? You, my lady?”
“Yes. Isn’t that why I collapsed?”
The physician and Anna exchanged uncertain glances.
A few moments later, Father entered my room.
“I heard Vanessa claimed she was in an accident at the party?”
“Yes, Your Grace,” the doctor replied.
“I didn’t know you were at the estate. You didn’t come earlier…”
“I was delayed finishing other business,” he said calmly in response to my greeting.
The fact that he came only now, after his daughter had supposedly survived a terrible accident, felt as unfamiliar as the coldness I’d seen earlier in Milan.
“She claims she was injured at the Earl of Burtz’s party?”
Father addressed the doctor, not me.
“Yes, Your Grace. It seems the young lady is suffering from some confusion in her memory.”
“Then she doesn’t remember what happened that day? Nor where the tiara went?”
“Father,” I said, unable to stay quiet any longer, “I was going to ask you—has Mother’s tiara really gone missing?”
I cut in, trying to follow their strange conversation.
“Are you all suspecting me of losing it?”
“So you don’t remember,” Father murmured, his eyes finally landing on me.
This whole situation was beginning to feel more and more absurd.
“I swear I didn’t do it. Why would I even touch something like that?”
I could swear it to the heavens if they wanted. But all three of them looked at me with doubt in their eyes.
After a long pause, Father looked to the doctor with a heavy expression.
“Can she be cured?”
“I’ve never encountered a case like this, but… I’ll do my best.”
“Father? My memory is perfectly fine!”
But it was like my voice didn’t even reach him.
His gaze returned to me—tired, troubled—but not in a way that showed concern or affection.
That cold detachment was the most unfamiliar of all.
“There’s no point in asking about the tiara, then.”
Just like Milan had said.
He stood up with a sigh.
“You’ve woken up. Rest while you can.”
And with that, Father left my room.
“…Why is no one worried about me?”
I couldn’t understand it.
“They’re all obsessed with Mother’s tiara. What really happened while I was unconscious?”
Still trying to make sense of things, I heard Anna speak cautiously beside me.
“Um… My lady, you weren’t injured at the party.”
“…What?”
“You never even went to the Earl of Burtz’s party.”
Oh no you seem to have slipped into a parallel universe