~Chapter 7~
The boy’s name was Roystan Noart.
He was my cousin, four years older than me.
The only son of my eldest uncle, and ever since he was little, he was convinced he would inherit the Noart family title one day.
That is, until Julian appeared and ruined all his dreams.
And of course, I remembered this boy very well.
***
“Hey, stop right there. You’re that trainee, right?”
I had run into him at this exact moment in my previous life too—on the path from Yulian’s room back to the annex.
Before, he never dared touch me because Yulian was around.
But now that Julian had lost his memory, he immediately came looking for trouble.
“Go back to the temple where you belong, trainee. No one here considers you family.”
His lines hadn’t changed at all, even in this life.
“That butcher’s brat who always stuck to you ended up like that, so shouldn’t you also crawl back to your place?”
To them, Yulian was the butcher’s brat, and I was the trainee.
“Even your mom ran away ages ago—shamefully, too.”
All that resentment he’d bottled up toward Julian flashed in his eyes.
“You really think that butcher brat with the mind of a seventeen-year-old will still love you the way he did before?”
Roystan tapped the top of my head with his finger.
“Remember this well. The Noart family hates the temple. There was never a place for a ‘trainee’ in this mansion.”
With each rough push of his hand, my small body stumbled backward.
“You think Grandpa’s gonna recognize some trainee as a Noart? You think you belong here?”
Ouch… that hurts.
I didn’t say anything.
My lips just trembled, and my eyes filled with tears.
Heidi fidgeted nervously beside me, glancing around as if begging someone—anyone—to come and help, since her status meant she couldn’t speak up against Roystan.
And right then, a group of people appeared in the distance.
Seeing them, hope lit up Heidi’s face.
Roystan smirked.
“Pointless. Who here would bother helping a trainee now?”
He snickered and shoved my forehead harder with his finger.
“Ahhh!”
I stumbled and fell.
In my past life, this was exactly when Roystan had kicked me hard while I was down.
And back then, I had even agreed with him in my heart.
Brother doesn’t need to take responsibility for a worthless, lowborn little sister he doesn’t even remember.
So I had left the Noart mansion and gone back to the temple—only to be dragged into their experiments right after.
***
“What? The trainee who went to the Noart family came back? Perfect! We just need a new test subject. Throw her in the lab!”
“That damn Yulian Noart was such a nuisance too! Sneaking into the temple under a false identity and even stealing his sister away! If we’d known that trainee had Noart blood in her, we would’ve never let her go!”
***
It was only then I learned the truth—experiments on trainees were pretty common at the temple.
Trainees disappeared from time to time, but I had been too naive to notice before.
And that’s how I ended up trapped for ten years.
And now, here I was again—right at the moment before Roystan’s kick.
“Get out already! Do I need to beat you up properly before you get it, you worthless brat?”
My body flinched instinctively, remembering that kick.
“Lady Rosy!”
Heidi shrieked and grabbed me to help me up. The papers in my hands fluttered to the ground.
She even tried to shield me with her body.
Just then, the group of people spotted us and rushed over.
“There she is! Lady Rosy!”
“You’re still here!”
“Please, wait! We need to speak with you—it’s urgent!”
Yes.
This is it.
I smiled secretly inside.
I hadn’t endured Roystan’s bullying for nothing.
I had kept quiet and dragged out time just for this moment.
I wasn’t going to stay helpless anymore.
“Ahhh…”
I swayed dramatically.
The people holding papers dashed over.
“Please, wait a moment! We need to talk!”
“Lady Rosy, there’s something we must tell you!”
They crowded around me.
They looked a lot like the people I’d seen in Yulian’s room earlier.
Roystan’s jaw dropped.
“Wha…?”
I collapsed gracefully and panted.
“Sorry… I just fell down…”
The people surrounded me, Roystan, and Heidi.
I sniffled pitifully, looking like the picture of misery.
“My head’s spinning… I’ll meet everyone in my room instead. Don’t worry, I’ll talk to all of you. Honestly… it’s too much money for me to handle on my own. I’m scared…”
“Money?” Roystan muttered, then caught sight of the papers at my feet. His eyes bulged, and he fell back on his butt in shock.
See that?
I shot him a sly glance and smirked inside.
You didn’t just shove a trainee—you shoved the heir to 137 billion gold.
Roystan wasn’t a complete fool; his face had already gone pale.
“At first, I thought I’d just entrust everything to my eldest uncle since Grandpa’s away. But… maybe I need to reconsider.”
I picked up the papers with trembling hands and said in a sorrowful voice:
“I already know my eldest uncle’s wishes through Roystan.”
Roystan’s eyes widened. Me?
He looked completely dumbfounded, but I just smiled sweetly at him.
“He wants me to donate it all to the temple. To send me back there. Such… pious devotion.”
Roystan gaped.
I even brushed the dust off his clothes with a calm hand.
“Wow, now that I look closely, you’re wearing Etton fiber, aren’t you? That’s expensive and very trendy. It’s also one of the temple’s top sources of income. So you never really had any bias against the temple after all. I can see your sincerity.”
“W-what…?”
“Etton fiber. Oh, you don’t keep up with the newspapers when Grandpa’s not around, huh? It was on the front page today.”
I shrugged casually.
“Hmm. Maybe you’re not such a great fit for the Noart mansion yourself.”
Ahh, that felt good.
Reading the morning paper with breakfast had always been one of Grandpa’s strict household rules.
And Roystan? He just fumed, speechless.
“Anyway, donating everything could be meaningful, considering my background… but since Grandpa really hates the temple, I should hear other people’s opinions too.”
Then, with the sweetest smile, I twisted the knife:
“Oh, so those who came on my eldest uncle’s behalf don’t need to come anymore. No point doing the same work twice. I like to be considerate, you see.”
The faces of my uncle’s men instantly darkened.
“Thanks for your advice, Roystan.”
I smiled kindly.
“Like you said, I won’t ever forget your words.”
My uncle, Murlock Noart, would latch onto that line ‘I was going to entrust it to my eldest uncle’ and tear into Roystan later.
Nothing stings more than losing money that was almost in your grasp.
“You weren’t wrong about one thing. I am a former trainee. And yes, my mom did leave this house on her own, disgracefully.”
I stared at Roystan’s crumpled face and whispered:
“But listen.”
I wiped the smile from my face.
He flinched and bit his lip.
“I won’t live thinking I’m worthless or lowborn.”
Because in my past life, I had.
“Why? Because if I think of myself that way… it’ll make my brother, who loved me so much, sad. That’s why I have to treasure myself.”
Even if Yulian had lost those memories now, at least I still carried them.
And I had to remember—always.
In my past life, I’d forgotten.
I hadn’t valued myself.
I thought all of Yulian’s love had vanished.
And that mistake cost me everything.
This time, I would protect the things Yulian once protected for me.
“So your words can’t hurt me anymore. Whatever my background is, whether Brother remembers me or not—I’ll stand tall anywhere.”
I looked straight into Roystan’s eyes and whispered:
“Don’t you forget that.”
