Episode 4
After class ended, I stayed seated at my desk, thinking about what I needed to do next.
*I can’t let anyone find out I can write yet…*
So I decided to jot things down using only consonants—like a code.
First…
**「ㄱㅂ ㅅㄹㄱ」**
*Save Gabi.*
Just like I planned this morning, I need to cure Gabriella’s cold so it doesn’t turn into pneumonia.
If I fail, my life will become extremely difficult, so I must succeed.
Next…
**「ㅅㅌㅂㄱ」**
*Receive the oracle.*
The oracle is something truly life-changing.
Princesses of Lurella normally gain divine power when they receive their first oracle at age seven. The whole mess started because Rosa was the one who went instead of me.
That damn Rosa came back after receiving the oracle and made my scent pouch.
*She must have heard something in the oracle about my divine power.*
And yet she hid that part and only talked about herself.
That she would soon be able to see the future.
So this time, at age seven, **I** must be the one to hear the oracle. Absolutely.
*But why did Rosa go that far…?*
Her foresight is far more valuable than Mother’s healing ability.
In the entire history of Lurella, a king blessed with foresight was rare even among the greatest rulers.
*She must have also heard the oracle about her foresight…*
Then I finally realized:
*My divine power manifested too early…*
Rosa didn’t know when her foresight would awaken, and she must have been terrified that she’d become useless once my power showed up on time.
We were forbidden twins, and we didn’t know about Mother’s oracle either.
*She must have thought she could be abandoned.*
Still—did she really have to lie to me my whole life?
Turn me into some useless younger twin—what did she even gain from that?
*The people’s love and respect?*
I fumed and wrote the next line.
**「ㄹㅅㅇㄱ ㅇㄱㅇ」**
*Get back at Rosa.*
Mother’s oracle protects us, so no matter what, no one can throw a child outside the castle.
*But waiting until the age-seven oracle to do something? That’s too much.*
And once Rosa starts seeing the future, she’ll be harder to deal with.
This small body won’t make it easy but…
*Still, I’ll do it.*
I glared at the paper where I’d scribbled Rosa’s name in consonants.
Just then—knock, knock.
“Mm?”
When I answered, Beatrice appeared, eyes crinkling with a gentle smile.
“Your Highness, are you reviewing? Oh, how admirable.”
“Mmhm, ju—…”
I hid the paper to prevent her from noticing I could write, but she didn’t show the slightest interest in it.
She only smiled softly.
“We’ll be seeing His Majesty the King at dinner. Shall we practice your greeting?”
Oh…
Apparently, when we were young, we were embarrassingly shy around our father.
Because we barely ever saw him.
*I didn’t know we even practiced greetings for him.*
Beatrice must have misunderstood my troubled face and quickly waved her hands.
“If you don’t want to, we don’t have to, Your Highness.”
Wait a moment…
In Mother’s oracle, there was a condition—*“You may reveal the existence of the oracle after the child’s divine power manifests.”*
*If Rosa hadn’t hidden my divine power at age seven…*
There would have been no reason to lie to Father for **eight whole years.**
If he had known we were twins, he wouldn’t have spent years hoping for a second child that never came…
*One of us could have inherited the Duchy of Nigel.*
Hold on.
Did Rosa really not manifest until age fifteen?
*What a joke.*
She must have known earlier.
*That’s how she kept me from getting hurt—so my healing power wouldn’t be revealed.*
As far back as I remember, Rosa was always clumsy.
Portrait frames fell, vases shattered—accidents followed her everywhere.
We shared everything, but anything broken always happened in Rosa’s hands.
*I thought she was just unbelievably clumsy…*
She was taking responsibility for **my** accidents?
To prevent me from getting hurt?
I pulled the paper back out and drew the biggest circle around the words:
**「ㄹㅅㅇㄱ ㅇㄱㅇ」**
*Get back at Rosa.*
There’s no way I’m letting her off.
*Then when does Rosa’s power awaken?*
If that day isn’t far off, then I’m the one who’s running out of time.
Even if my healing manifests first, I can’t beat someone who sees the future.
*Then until then…*
I quietly added another line while Beatrice wasn’t looking:
**「ㅇㅃ ㅅㅇ」**
*Recruit Dad.*
Gather as many allies as possible.
Let’s do it. Fighting!
—
“Hello.”
At the dinner hall, the man at the head seat gave a drawn smile, looking tense.
Even after practicing my greeting with Beatrice, I instinctively shrank at his voice.
Before fifteen, Father had always been scary and uncomfortable. After that, all I felt was guilt.
*For all 22 years of my life, Father was always difficult…*
Mother stepped in, sounding almost amused.
“You really are something—still shy around him after all this time.”
“…Seems so.”
For the first time, I noticed his trembling lips.
And the flicker of hope in his violet eyes… extinguished instantly.
*No. I have to fix this.*
I forced myself to raise my head and awkwardly lifted my hand.
“…Pa.”
Father froze.
Then he shot up from his chair so hard it scraped across the floor, rushed over, and knelt down to meet my height.
“You… called me Dad? You called me Dad?”
Why would he look at me like that over one word…?
“Hup—”
I burst into tears out of guilt.
Mother scolded him on purpose.
“Oh heavens, why’d you get so close? You’ll scare the child.”
“A-ah… I—I’m sorry. I’m sorry, darling…”
He shuffled back to his seat and didn’t look at me again.
He ate the kingdom’s finest dinner like it was tasteless stone.
Afraid I’d cry again.
*Great. Totally ruined.*
God… why am I doing this again?
—
That night, utterly exhausted from being four years old, I fell asleep the moment I lay down.
I slept so deeply I didn’t even know Gabriella carried me back to the annex.
So I didn’t get to see Rosa.
*Rosa Rostel La Parca…*
Staring at the plain ceiling of the annex, I imagined Rosa’s annoying face—identical to mine, unfortunately.
*How do I get revenge?*
I didn’t choose to return, but now that I’m here, I **will** stomp her flat.
*But how, if I can’t even see her?*
When we were very young, we didn’t even know the other existed.
Of course—there was no chance to meet.
After we learned to speak, Gabriella drilled it into me every day.
That I had a twin sister.
That people thought we were one person.
“We only need to keep it a secret until the age-seven oracle. Then everyone will be happy.”
If only things had stayed that simple.
I remember the dawn I first realized Rosa existed.
*Seeing another me, the same face… I never forgot it.*
We rarely met afterward, but once we learned to write, we began exchanging short notes.
Like:
**“Teacher says there’s a test today.”**
Knowing that morning didn’t help, but…
*Pretending I had no idea was worse.*
Then Rosa went off by herself and received the oracle, then handed me a pouch like it was a gift.
Of course it was suspicious.
*And I still accepted it and wore it day and night. The past me should die.*
Oh, right. I already did.
Ugh. Can’t die again now that I’ve come back.
*If one of us has to die this time… it’ll be Rosa.*
She can be the hostage. Or concubine. Whatever.
Let’s be fair—one turn each.
*I spent a day locked up. Has she ever tasted the misery of a dungeon?*
Does she know betrayal?
*If she hadn’t said all that crap about “family” and “love”…*
Ugh.
Thinking about her ruins my sleep. I’m destined for lifelong insomnia thanks to Rosa.
Gabriella giggled at my heavy sighing.
“Thank you for yesterday, Your Highness. You even sent for the court physician because I was sick… When did the baby I cared for grow so much?”
