Chapter 33
“Yeah. Only we get to bully big sister. Big sister belongs to us!”
Lari chimed in as well. Of course she did. To the twins, I was nothing more or less than an object.
Thanks a lot.
“Yes…….”
The maids all bowed their heads at once. Watching them, Rohen seemed quite pleased—his shoulders lifted slightly before his gaze shifted to me.
His eyes were completely different from when he’d been looking at the maids just moments ago. They openly showed something like, Did I do well?
“Ahem.”
When I just stared at him without saying anything, Rohen cleared his throat as if he were waiting for praise.
“Aisha.”
“Yeah.”
“Aren’t you going to say anything?”
“No. Nothing.”
“Why not? I think I was really cool just now.”
He really was such a kid at times. Watching Rohen proudly declare himself cool, I finally burst out laughing.
“Why are you laughing?!”
“Because you’re cute.”
“I’m not cute. I’m really cool.”
“Truly cool people look cool without having to say it.”
At that, Rohen let out an “Ah,” as if he’d just had an epiphany.
“Like the Grand Duke?”
“Huh?”
“Come to think of it, Aisha. The look you had when you saw the Grand Duke was kind of strange.”
“It wasn’t.”
“Yes, it was. Anyway, I don’t like it.”
With his arms crossed, Rohen stuck out his lips as if he were jealous. That was unfair. But no matter how unfair it was, Rohen didn’t look like he had any intention of listening.
“It really wasn’t. Think whatever you want.”
The reason my expression toward the Grand Duke had been strange was because I was being careful, in case that lunatic suddenly changed his mind and killed me. But Rohen had no way of knowing that. A deep crease had already formed between his brows.
“Anyway, aren’t you hungry? Are we just going to keep standing here?”
“Oh. Now that you mention it, I am hungry.”
“Big sister! Lari’s hungry too!”
Now that the tension had eased after coming inside, my body started aching here and there, and my stomach was empty. I was tired from riding in the carriage, and I hadn’t eaten properly, so I had no energy at all.
Not even enough to argue with Rohen.
“Then we will prepare things so that you may dine immediately after washing.”
As if she didn’t want to miss the opportunity, one of the maids—who had been bowing her head until just now—quickly spoke up.
Guess we looked pretty filthy.
You’d think they’d prepare a meal right away once we said we were hungry, but they were quite firm about it. And honestly, now that we were inside, it did feel like our bodies smelled. We’d always been wearing old, recycled clothes, so it was only natural.
“Then let’s go wash up. Lari. Rohen.”
“I’ll wash later. You two go first.”
At that, the maid nodded with a very pleased expression.
“Then, may we assist you with bathing now?”
“Yes! As long as I’m with big sister, I like anything!”
“Alright. Then let’s go wash.”
Only then did Lari take my hand and start walking again. Just like that, we headed toward the bath.
It’s huge.
The bathroom that had only been mentioned in a few lines in the novel. Warm sunlight streamed in through a large window, and a little distance away stood a bathtub large enough to fit several people. The scent of warm steam filling the air…
Why does this feel familiar?
I’d only seen it in words. I’d never enjoyed such luxury before, yet strangely, it felt like I’d experienced this situation somewhere before.
In the meantime, Lari’s and my clothes were removed. Though my perspective was different, I was certain I’d been in this kind of bathroom before.
What is this… why?
Like the hazy steam hanging before my eyes, my memories felt obscured by something. No matter how hard I tried to look into them, I couldn’t see. That strange feeling I’d had since last time thudded heavily somewhere in my chest.
They were my emotions, yet not my emotions—primitive feelings rising from a very deep place.
And then, they suddenly surfaced again. As if emotions and memories had tangled together, unfamiliar scenes and familiar scenes crossed before my eyes.
What… is this?
“Big sister? The water’s ready! You can get in now!”
I should’ve nodded at Lari’s bright voice, but my body wouldn’t move, as if it no longer belonged to me. My lips, which had been working just fine moments ago—even breathing felt difficult.
“H… ha….”
Unable to breathe properly, my vision suddenly grew cloudy. It was as if all the steam in the bathroom had gathered in front of me—I couldn’t see anything.
“Big sister? What’s wrong?! Your face is so pale!”
No, I’m fine. I just can’t breathe. I needed to say that, but the steam-filled white vision soon turned black.
And I felt it—my body, which had been standing just fine, was collapsing sideways. It felt like someone caught me, but my body was no longer under my control.
“Big sister…!”
With Lari’s startled voice as the last thing I heard, my consciousness abruptly cut off.
When I came to again, my vision was slowly brightening. It was much clearer than before. But what I saw was completely different from the scene just moments ago.
A low ceiling that felt like it could touch my head. A place filled with an unknown, pungent stench. A shabby hut.
A place utterly unlike the Grand Duke’s bathroom.
And I wasn’t alone there.
[Get a hold of yourself, Aisha.]
At the sudden voice, I looked at the person in front of me. How did they know my name? Was this a dream? Or reality? Before I could even tell, words flowed naturally from my mouth.
[You can’t do this, Director…!]
It wasn’t my voice, and it wasn’t something I intended to say.
Scenes suddenly appeared before my eyes like a movie playing. There was nothing I could do about it. All I could do was watch.
My own angry voice. And another woman’s voice—calm, but filled with rage.
It didn’t take long to realize this was a dream. Once I knew it was a dream, I slowly engraved its contents into my mind.
[So you want me to just let this go? Absolutely not. I’ll kill them all. You need to wake up too. Because of those bastards, all the children who grew up with you are dead. You grew up seeing those corpses, and now you’re trying to act kind?!]
[B-but… what did those children do wrong…?!]
[Their very existence is wrong!]
At that moment, what appeared before my eyes was a gaunt woman whose face had been melted away by burns over more than half of it. The venom in her eyes made it clear she was no ordinary woman.
And that familiar voice.
No way… could it be the orphanage director?
No matter how much I wanted to deny it, her outward appearance was unmistakable.
[Even so… even so… those children…]
[I’m not telling you to do anything else. Just go there and keep an eye on them.]
[…]
[Amanet. You know how I raised you, don’t you? Who saved you when you were on the brink of death, and who raised you until today!]
I slightly raised my hand. I couldn’t change what happened in the dream, but simple movements weren’t difficult.
And the hand I saw raised… wasn’t a child’s hand. It was the hand of an adult woman—someone of some age.
[Ah…]
[I know you, kind as you are, would feel burdened by such a task. Of course I know. But in this state, it’s impossible for me to go there myself. You’re different. Those children won’t even remember you. You can roughly fake your background.]
[…But… right now, even if we don’t do anything…]
[Enough talk. Go. If you know how I raised you, go to the Grand Duke’s household!]
At those words, my body in the dream began to move naturally. My trembling hands were clutching my skirt hem, and before I knew it, I was turning and leaving the house.
A terribly shabby hut. And outside, as if everything had already been arranged, a carriage was waiting.
This dream… what is it, exactly? The future…? But right now I’m with the twins…?
Before I could finish thinking, I was already climbing into the carriage. No one spoke to me. There was only a single sheet of paper given to me. A fake name and a fake family to conceal my identity. Things to be careful about. The page was filled with nothing but that.
While I was stammering, unable to even guess what this dream was, the carriage departed.
The scenery outside the window slowly changed.
This place is…
What I saw outside was a very familiar landscape. A carriage descending a winding mountain path. The back mountain where I’d watched fireworks with Rohen before. A lone chair sitting there. That strangely familiar scenery came into view.
“Ah… wait…”
I was about to say to stop for a moment, that there was something I wanted to see—but perhaps because I said something other than what had been decided, the surroundings began to distort.
Not yet. There was something I needed to check. I wanted to ask what this situation was, what was happening, where this place was—but there was no more opportunity.
My vision gradually darkened, and when I opened my eyes again, I was inside a room with neatly pasted, ornate wallpaper. The scenery from before was gone.
“Ah…”
“Are you okay?”
As I let out a short groan, a familiar head suddenly popped into view. It was Rohen.
“Huh…?”
“I asked if you’re okay!”
“Ah… what… what just happened…?”
“Idiot. If you were in pain, you should’ve said something!”
