Chapter 7
More than ten years had passed since my regression.
I was now twenty-four.
My life was very different from before.
I was an adult now, which meant it was much easier to shut down Uncle Marshal’s schemes. I also had capable aides, including my former guardian, Bell Dio.
Because of them, even if I stepped away for a while, the family continued to run smoothly.
That alone made me happy.
I had become much brighter than before.
And Ppuppu had played a huge part in that.
Just as I had said, we never met again. But over the past nine years, the letters we exchanged warmed my heart.
“I look like a small and cute teddy bear.”
Once every season.
Whenever we exchanged letters, I would correct his spelling.
“It’s teddy bear, not teddy bea.”
‘He doesn’t seem to fully understand what I tell him.’
No matter how many times I corrected him, his spelling would be strange again the next season.
I had put in quite a bit of effort, so it was a little disappointing.
But in my memory, Ppuppu was still just a round little boy. Even his odd speech felt cute.
Our letters continued like that for a long time.
Even during the times when I suffered excruciating pain, when I nearly lost sight in one eye.
Four times a year.
Spring, summer, autumn, and winter.
But at some point, Ppuppu’s letters started to sound strangely righteous.
“Soon the piece you like will come to the world!”
‘Well, setting aside the creative spelling.’
Below the sentence, he had drawn a muscular bear holding a terrifying sword.
‘What is this crazy bear supposed to be? Is this some kind of SOS?’
Still, whenever I received his letters, I couldn’t help but smile.
‘These days, every day feels enjoyable.’
It was thanks to the power of good deeds, something I had learned because of Ppuppu.
Today as well, I stepped into a hospital filled with the smell of medicine and nodded at a nurse.
“Hello. Everyone doing well?”
“Oh my, welcome, miss!”
I smiled brightly and waved.
I had used my personal fortune to build a large hospital in the commercial district.
The ward that treated the poor free of charge had become the first place struggling people came when they were sick.
“Waaah! Hello!”
The child bowing beside the nurse was named Ron.
Sadly, he came from a poor family and suffered from a rare illness.
“Ron, how are you feeling?”
“Really good! What about you, Noona?”
“I’m doing great too.”
He didn’t know I owned the hospital.
He didn’t know I was his sponsor.
To him, I was just an older sister who occasionally stopped by.
I patted his head.
“Not just fine. You need to be healthy, right?”
He grabbed the sleeve of his hospital gown tightly.
“They’re developing a new medicine!”
“That’s good news.”
After smiling at Ron, I carefully inspected the hospital interior.
‘I’m glad it’s running well.’
I jotted down notes about what was needed and left.
A smile formed on my lips without me realizing.
“This is pretty fun.”
But if there was one problem—
“Cough… hack…”
I quickly looked around and leaned against the outer wall of an empty ward, covering my mouth.
When the coughing finally stopped and I lowered my hand, blood stained my palm.
The coughing and blood were becoming more frequent.
While people were regaining their health in the ward I had built—
My end was truly approaching.
***
After returning to the Vuitri estate, I lay down on my bed.
I had no intention of avoiding death.
‘I’ve made sure the family will run fine even without me.’
I kept my deteriorating condition a strict secret and put trustworthy aides at the forefront in my place.
But what worried me about after I died—
Was something else.
Strange things had begun happening in this world.
Someone had appeared who had not existed before my regression.
For several years now, endless reports of victory had come from the frontlines.
At the center of them stood one man.
Aldehyde.
He had appeared out of nowhere, conquered the continent with overwhelming power, and brought peace to the Empire.
And just one week ago, I heard he had returned to the capital.
“He’s completely suspicious.”
I had been too sick to investigate him before.
But now, I intended to look into him carefully.
‘First, I need to focus on what I have to stop.’
A few months ago, strange rifts began forming in the center of the capital.
Cracks in the earth, and monsters from the underground world crawling out.
There were many casualties.
The rifts themselves weren’t new. They had happened in my previous life too.
‘The problem is that today, the largest rift in history will appear at the opera house.’
After deciding to do good deeds, I made a vow.
To save as many people as I could before I died.
Because seeing people smile made me happy too.
So after spending the winter in seclusion, I wrapped a shawl around myself and stepped outside.
And then—
***
In front of the opera house.
‘Today, the rift will appear here.’
So far, the rifts in the capital had been minor. Like a small tremor.
Only weak monsters like slimes appeared.
But from now on, that would change.
The signs would grow stronger, and from deeper cracks, stronger monsters would emerge.
I checked my watch.
In five minutes, the first major tremor would occur. People would panic and flee.
‘I need to evacuate them safely.’
So it should have been quiet right now—
Boom! Crash!
A massive explosion rang out.
“This is too early. What is that?”
The ground was already shattered as if an earthquake had struck.
Something was wrong.
I tried to approach the ticket booth where the noise had come from.
But it was as if a barrier had been placed there. I couldn’t get close.
“Move! Everyone, evacuate!”
…Huh?
Why were knights gathered at the opera house?
Before I could process it, I was herded away with the crowd.
‘What is going on?’
Then, about fifty meters away, I saw a man standing.
“Alright, my cute little monster friends. Gather up.”
A man with a cold expression was destroying the opera house.
No—
Not destroying it.
He was holding a shovel.
A gardening shovel.
Why a gardening shovel? Was he planting flowers?
‘What is he even doing?’
I blinked in confusion as he grinned.
Then he flicked the monsters crawling out of the rift with his finger.
“They look kind of cute.”
Orcs. Spiders. Basilisks.
There were over a hundred of them.
And he was smiling as if he were enjoying himself.
He truly looked insane.
And the madman’s strange behavior was far from over.
