Chapter 05
Tiya felt her heart pounding in her chest.
It wasn’t fear of the horrifying future Winter had described earlier.
“Me…?”
It was hope.
<Yes. To save the Vladijev family, you are needed.>
The thought that even a “defective” member of the family could do something—anything—for the family, for her loved ones, filled Tiya with determination.
Those words plugged the hole in her heart. With a surge of energy, Tiya sprang to her feet.
“I’ll do it! No—let me do it!”
At last, a satisfied smile curved Winter’s lips at Tiya’s spirited declaration.
Three hours later.
The grand plan to save the Vladijev family was complete.
- Stop the plague.
- Eliminate the hidden enemies.
- Gain allies.
“Perfect!”
Tiya snorted triumphantly.
Winter, exhausted from explaining everything in terms simple enough for Tiya to understand, sprawled lazily in midair.
<You… really understand this time, right?>
“Of course! I’m smart enough to read and write now!”
<A child who can’t even add is so smart, huh.>
“Uh, I’m just a little weak at math…”
As Winter rested her head tilted on her hands, lounging as if in her own room, she asked suddenly:
<First question. What’s the ingredient for the cure for the Reaper’s Mark plague?>
The quiz started abruptly.
But Tiya shot her hand into the air and answered boldly:
“Tip! Palancho!”
<… You forgot the most important part. I said, “Holy Palancho. How many times do I have to say it?>
“Oh, right! That’s why it can only be found in the temple.”
Luckily, Winter knew the herb that could treat the plague!
At the outbreak’s beginning, somehow the royal court sent a large supply of Palancho to the North.
Yet there was one crucial problem.
It wasn’t enough to have the herb—it had to be imbued with holy power by a priest to truly cure the plague.
Holy power was a sacred force granted by the gods to heal people.
Priests used it only when healing others.
Even if Tiya fetched Palancho and begged a priest, “Please pour your holy power into this!” they would refuse, citing the laws.
<Second question. Why can’t we tell the priests—or anyone else—that holy Palancho is the cure?>
“Tip! Because of the prohibition—we can’t reveal future events!”
<Correct. Both the fact that the Vladijevs will be annihilated and that holy Palancho is the cure are knowledge I gained from the future. Under the Great Spirit’s laws, information gained through time travel cannot be disclosed…>
Winter’s explanation suddenly stopped.
Tiya tilted her head, feigning confusion, prompting Winter to realize she had gone on too long.
<Third question. Who is the true enemy of the Vladijev family?>
Winter’s voice dropped, and Tiya’s face stiffened with tension.
The real reason the Vladijevs were annihilated wasn’t the plague, nor the barbarians.
<There was a massive invasion by barbarians, equipped, surprisingly, with the Empire’s modern weapons.>
The royal court had stubbornly refused to lift the blockade.
Behind all of it lurked a hidden mastermind.
Tiya spoke the name with grave determination:
“Marquis Montes.”
<…Correct. The uncle of the prince who will later become emperor is our true enemy. Even if we cure the plague, the Vladijevs won’t be safe while he stands.>
So Marquis Montes must be removed from power, or if necessary, assassinated.
Concealing the bloody details from the child, Winter moved to the next question.
<Fourth question: Why must we gain allies?>
The difficulty spiked suddenly.
Tiya drew a deep breath, bracing herself.
Winter, however, didn’t expect her to answer correctly.
The matter was politically complex, far beyond a child’s understanding—
“Marquis Montes has the royal family backing him. The Vladijevs are kings of the North, but their isolation limits their influence. We need allies to act on behalf of the Vladijevs, keeping Montes in check!”
By the end, Tiya was panting from speaking so quickly.
Winter’s mouth opened in surprise, and Tiya puffed her chest out, triumphant.
After a pause, Winter asked again:
<…An ally?>
“Marquis Montes has royal backing. The Vladijevs are kings of the North—”
<You didn’t even understand that, did you? Memorizing it won’t help!>
“Grandma said, if you don’t know, memorize it!”
<You say “don’t know” in such a difficult way.>
To think she’d have to involve a child in schemes and political maneuvers… it felt daunting.
“But Winter. Who’s the ally? Who do we bring over to our side?”
Winter hesitated.
Someone established in the political center of the Empire, strong enough to oppose Marquis Montes, and with connections to Northern nobles to bridge the Empire and the North.
‘And he even knows the temple.’
There was no more perfect candidate for the North, which would soon be isolated by the plague.
Yet Winter hesitated, then finally said:
<…Shurka. We must make him our ally.>
“Good. Shurka will be our ally!”
Tiya repeated it like a parrot for memorization, then froze.
Shurka? That name sounded familiar…
Her eyes widened in realization:
“That’s Dad!”
Tiya straightened her chest, brimming with confidence.
“Don’t worry, Winter. Dad is already on our side.”
<Why do you think that?>
“Because he’s family!”
Winter snorted.
<Shurka is the one who didn’t send a single herb to the North during over ten years of blockade. You really think he’ll become our ally just because of “family”? >
“W-what did you call him?”
<Cold-blooded. A man who treats even his own children like pawns, without mercy or tears.>
Tiya’s eyes narrowed sharply.
She wasn’t sure, but one thing was clear.
“Did you just insult my dad?”
<Did it sound like that? I just stated facts.>
“You just insulted him again! I heard everything!”
The previously harmonious partnership between the girl and the ghost suddenly felt like a river they could never cross.
Neither willing to give in, they glared at each other—
Knock, knock.
A young maid peeked in cautiously.
“Miss, the Count is looking for you. Shall we go?”
<Perfect timing. Go see what kind of man the Count is, with your own eyes.>
It was the first call from her father in five days.
Tiya swallowed nervously and looked up at the door before her.
The door that had seemed massive at four years old still loomed intimidatingly at eight.
She straightened her shoulders, forcing confidence.
Winter’s lessons had temporarily distracted her.
She remembered catching Erin—the thief who had tried to steal a Spirit Egg yesterday.
The estate’s staff had all shown her care and praise.
‘Maybe Dad wants to praise me too.’
Her heart pounded as if she’d sprinted.
The door swung open, and the hot scent of sun-baked sand drifted in.
Many adults were inside the office, but Tiya’s attention focused on one.
Long black hair like hers, icy blue eyes, exuding both a fragile beauty and an arrogant gaze, as if looking down on the world.
“Dad.”
All her longing and missing him was compressed into that single word.
Step by step, she approached him, until the Count’s next words stopped her as if she were sinking into quicksand.
“What were you doing there?”
“Pardon?”
“The reason you were in a forbidden room at midnight, Astia Vladijev.”
At last, her father lifted his gaze from the papers to meet hers.
Before, she thought those eyes were merely cold. But now…
‘They’re empty.’
No trace of cruelty remained—there was nothing there at all.
