Episode 6
Rune fidgeted nervously, unsure of what to do as Sophia kept staring at him. Finally, he quickly finished what he was holding in his hands.
“Miss.”
Summoning the courage to call her once more, he placed what he’d been holding gently on Sophia’s head.
A flower crown woven beautifully with yellow and white blossoms.
Sophia, who hadn’t tied her hair or worn any ornaments just for this moment, reached up to touch the crown. Seeing her satisfied expression, Rune smiled brightly and spoke for her.
“Happy birthday.”
This was the only birthday gift Sophia had wished for. A pretty flower crown, something that only pure innocence could create.
Feeling thankful to once again experience that warmth, she responded.
“Yeah. Thank you.”
She smiled. Sophia did.
Just that small thing made Rune’s face burn red. Before she could notice, he quickly turned his head to the side and placed a hand to his cheek to cool down.
The cold hand began to absorb the heat.
But it turned out there was no need—someone stepped between Sophia and Rune.
“You brat! When did I ever say it was okay to pick flowers?”
A scolding voice aimed solely at Rune. Startled, Rune bowed his head deeply toward the woman standing behind him—Deflyn.
The heat that had flushed his cheeks vanished in an instant.
“Ah, uh… I’m sorry, Mom.”
“I told you to treat flowers with care, didn’t I?”
“But…”
“My birthday present should be an exception, shouldn’t it?”
Sophia pointed to her flower crown in defense of Rune, who was being scolded for not treating the flowers with care.
At that, Deflyn ruffled Rune’s hair and said,
“Miss, don’t spoil my son too much.”
“He’s just a kid. It’s okay.”
Deflyn blinked. Though Sophia spoke as if she were an adult, she and Rune were the same age.
It was too mature for a child pretending to be an adult. This castle forced children to grow up too quickly.
Joshua and Benjamin had given up on receiving love from their father when they were still very young. After their mother died, they trusted no one but each other, harboring hostility toward the lord and everyone else.
All of it was the castle’s doing. The lord’s, Bled’s.
“I didn’t want the young lady to end up the same…”
Someone once said this, smiling brightly like a flower bud basking in the summer sun, cheerful and carefree.
“If there comes a time when Sophia seems too grown-up, don’t question it. Just pat her head. And if she seems tired, give her a big hug.”
“Please, Deflyn.”
Benny Lo Ransell. The one who had left those words behind. She had been quite a peculiar woman—her views felt incredibly outdated, and all her quotes sounded like they came from ancient books.
Her accent was old-fashioned too. Maybe she was from the countryside?
When she was alive, there hadn’t been many chances to ask her questions. She rarely left her quarters except when walking in the garden with Chase or Sophia.
Now, remembering the one who had left, missing her suddenly, Deflyn unconsciously raised her hand and placed it on Sophia’s head—her last link to Benny.
Feeling the touch, Sophia blinked and looked up at her.
“Deflyn?”
“Huh? Ah… ah…”
Realizing where her hand was only after hearing Sophia’s voice, Deflyn started to withdraw it—then smiled brightly and gently patted Sophia’s head.
“You know you’re just a child too, right?”
“Ah…”
“Better than my son, though.”
“Don’t be too hard on him.”
Sophia said with a side glance at Rune.
One year. In just one year, Rune would go missing. Back then, Deflyn hadn’t smiled, hadn’t eaten properly, and had only stared blankly at the flower garden where Rune used to be.
She had cried, consumed by regret and guilt over the scolding she’d done and the things she hadn’t given him.
Regret would remain no matter what. All one could hope for was that the regret would be small.
“Be kind to him. Don’t be too harsh.”
Rune’s disappearance was not something that could be prevented. No matter how many times she entered the forest where he vanished, or even if she entered it with him from the beginning, it was always Rune who disappeared.
It was like something out of a ghost story. He vanished without a trace.
She had spent all her lives trying to save Rune, but not once had she succeeded.
This time would be the same—just like how she herself couldn’t escape death.
So Sophia had decided to give up from the beginning. Just as she had chosen to accept the future where she would die.
Instead, until the day Rune disappeared, she would make sure his life was comfortable and happy.
That was the only thing she could do.
Maybe that was why she found herself touching the flower crown Rune had made when a servant came running toward the garden where she was.
“Miss! You’ve been ordered to return to your room immediately!”
It was time to leave the garden.
Sophia didn’t question the command. She didn’t even ask why. She already knew.
“I’ll go. Rune, Deflyn.”
“Please come again. You’re always welcome here, Miss.”
“…Goodbye.”
Leaving behind Deflyn and Rune, who waved goodbye with reluctant faces, Sophia began walking with Jules, the servant who had come to fetch her.
‘Order.’ That was the term used when the lord gave a direct command to his child. And the reason Bled had given such an order now was because a very important guest had entered the castle.
Edmund, Lord of Western Powip.
Sophia Benny was Bled’s child, though that fact was never made public. After Benny’s death and her funeral, Bled had officially registered Sophia into the family.
But even Sophia herself hadn’t known that until her third life.
There was no way Bled would make the mistake of revealing Sophia to others. That’s why, whenever guests came, Sophia was confined to the castle. Her outings were not allowed either.
Because of that, the places she could visit were severely limited.
Realizing once again how narrow her position was, she frowned slightly. Jules, noticing her expression, grew nervous and looked up at the sky.
He remembered what Lorei had said—that a young lady’s skin was delicate, and even gentle sunlight could sting, so he must always care for her properly.
Today, the weather was beautiful, the sun high in a cloudless sky.
In a rush, Jules raised both hands over Sophia’s head to create a little shade. It was small, but enough to show his sincerity.
“The sun is strong today. I should’ve brought a parasol… I’m sorry, Miss.”
Sophia wasn’t someone to complain when someone showed such sincere care. She hadn’t even thought the sun was too hot.
“It’s fine.”
It was just… ironic. She wasn’t publicly acknowledged, wasn’t even given the family name, yet she was treated like a lady of the House of Roberti.
Bled’s actions remained incomprehensible. Did he hate her or like her? His behavior was truly ambiguous.
With Jules shading her, Sophia safely entered the castle.
As they walked down the corridor to her room on the third floor, Jules glanced outside and spoke.
“You can see the carriage from here.”
Normally, Sophia would’ve ignored the comment, but this time, her gaze naturally drifted to the window.
Until now, she’d been too preoccupied with manipulating her brothers and planning her future to look around freely. But now, she finally took the time to observe.
Near Rosent Castle, there was a place where carriages arrived. Looking that way, she saw someone stepping out of a carriage.
A long white robe. The hood was pulled deep over their head, revealing only a slender hand gripping a wooden staff.
Even that hand was so pale, it was hard to tell if the person was alive.
Wherever the castle lord stepped on his way to the main building, unknown grasses and flowers sprouted from the ground. The Flower Mage. That was the Lord of Powip.
“How fascinating.”
Magic was always intriguing. That’s probably why she couldn’t take her eyes off him. The moment the lord’s head turned toward her—
Even from a distance, she felt as if their eyes met, and her body grew hot. Her vision blurred, and she lost her balance, collapsing.
Her heart screamed that it was going to stop.
“Ah… ugh, what…?”
This had never happened before. Not once.
“M-Miss? Miss!”
After a few more groans, Sophia finally collapsed on the cold corridor floor and closed her eyes.
The flowers in her crown withered quickly.
