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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 1
Chapter Title: Time Turned Back (1)
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“But why…”

A cool voice descended upon Rosette. Rosette, her head hanging limply, struggled to look up at the sound of his voice.

Her vision had already blurred, and she couldn't make out the face of the man standing before her, but she knew instantly who he was.

Joshua Ehrnhardt. The First Prince of the Ehrnhardt Empire. He collapsed before Rosette as if his legs had given out.

Bitter tears streamed from his bloodshot eyes.

“Why did you do it?”

In all her twenty years, Rosette had never seen a grown man cry like this. And this was the prince, who always appeared so perfect in front of others.

The cold, and at times, cynical prince.

“What sin did my master and Daniel commit that you had to kill them! Why!”

He, who was said not to have cried even when he lost his mother, the former empress, was now sobbing like a child.

It stirred something deep inside Rosette. She barely managed to move her swollen, torn lips.

“I…”

But she couldn't say anything more. Just as he said, she was the one who had killed his master, Duke Adrian, and his dear friend, Daniel Adrian.

The fact that her heart was cursed, forcing her body to obey Marquis Dallas's commands, was not even an excuse.

It hadn't been of her own will, but Rosette had undeniably killed them.

In the end, Rosette said nothing. Unable to bear the sight of Joshua's anguish, she lowered her head.

The cold stone floor was stained with his tears. Rosette held her breath and endured the raw fury.

A moment later, the man stood up. His face, now void of emotion, was chilling to the bone.

“The date of your execution has been set.”

Was it because she had expected this? Rosette wasn't particularly surprised by his words. But she couldn't help but be shaken by what he said next.

“Your death won't bring them back, but at least we can honor their souls. If you have even a shred of guilt, then atone for your sins until the moment you die.”

His words struck another chord in Rosette's heart. She bit her lip to suppress the emotion welling up in her throat.

She felt like crying, but she didn't want to cry in front of him. She was a sinner, and in his presence, even crying was not permitted.

The man looked at Rosette with an unreadable expression before turning and walking out. Rosette was left alone in the cell, bathed in the dim moonlight.

Only then did the tears she had been holding back burst forth. Fresh tears fell upon the drying tear stains on her cheeks.

“I…”

The moment she had killed Duke Adrian and Daniel ten days ago was still vivid in her mind.

-Doesn't it pain you to be used by the Marquis?

Even knowing that Rosette had come to kill him, he couldn't bring himself to attack her readily.

-You remind me of my daughter. It's not too late. Go back. You don't belong in this line of work.

It was the first time anyone had said such a thing to her. Many had died at Rosette’s hands, but they had all either begged on their knees or cursed her.

He was the first to speak to her like that.

And yet, Rosette had killed Duke Adrian. Perhaps the only reason she could kill a Sword Master so easily was because he had no will to attack her.

From the moment she killed him, Rosette had constantly regretted her blood-stained life.

If only I could go back, I would never have taken Marquis Dallas's hand…

*'Go back?'*

A sudden realization struck Rosette, and she bit her tongue. With the blood that trickled from between her teeth, she began to draw a magic circle. Her limbs were bound, leaving her no other choice.

The blood didn't flow freely, forcing her to bite her tongue again and again. Her consciousness faded in and out, but she persevered and completed the circle.

It was a forbidden magic, one that no one had ever succeeded in casting. It was from an ancient tome that Marquis Dallas had forced her to read in the past.

-Just in case, make sure you learn the magic circle.

The Marquis had likely intended to use the time-reversal magic as a last resort if his plans failed.

*'Marquis Dallas probably never imagined I'd use it like this.'*

And she didn't even know if it was actually possible.

Rosette collapsed, activating the magic circle.

A brilliant light erupted from the circle, enveloping her body. As she looked at the faint tear stains on her cheeks, Rosette made a vow.

If I go back, this time, I will…

***

When she opened her eyes again, she saw a ceiling that felt both unfamiliar and yet somehow familiar.

Staring at the ceiling, which was so cracked it looked like it might collapse at any moment, Rosette soon remembered where she was.

It was the orphanage where she had lived before being adopted by the Marquisate of Dallas.

*'Did it really work?'*

Bewildered, Rosette examined her body. Short arms and legs, hands as small as maple leaves.

She was just as scrawny as before, but her whole body was smaller. A single glance told her it was the body of a child, not an adult.

*'Was that really possible?'*

Even as she activated the magic circle, she hadn't been confident it would succeed. So now, she couldn't tell if she had turned back time or if this was all just a dream.

Rosette was reaching for her cheek to check if she was dreaming when the door opened.

“Rose, are you still sleeping?”

A child entered as the door slowly swung open. Rosette recognized the girl with auburn hair and green eyes at a glance.

“Jane?”

It was Jane, who had cherished her like a real sister. Rosette crawled over on her knees and hugged her.

Jane was warm. The sensation was so vivid it couldn't possibly be a dream.

*'I'm back.'*

Only then did the emotions welling up inside Rosette burst out as tears.

“Rose? Why are you crying? Did you have a nightmare?”

Rosette shook her head from within Jane’s embrace.

“No, I’m just happy… I’m so happy to see you again.”

Jane had died for some reason over ten years ago. Seeing her again, Rosette was seized by a sense of elation, a feeling that this time, she could set everything right.

*'I'll change it.'*

Jane's future, and the future of the Duchy of Adrian.

*'And his future, too.'*

But right now, the person she needed to worry about most was Jane, who stood right before her.

Though thirteen years had passed, Rosette dredged up the old memory that felt as vivid as if it had happened yesterday.

A few months before Rosette was adopted by the Dallas family, Jane had gone into town and been accused of being a thief. The source of the trouble was the dress she was wearing.

The villagers had seen the dress, which Jane had bought with money she had rightfully earned from delivering milk, and mistakenly assumed she had stolen it.

-You, where did you get that!
-Did you steal it?

To make matters worse, even the shop owner who had sold her the dress had forgotten Jane had bought it.

It was impossible to know if he had truly forgotten or was just pretending not to know, but the owner also accused Jane of being a thief.

-I paid for this with my own money!
-How could you!
-I saved up money from delivering milk!

Jane vehemently proclaimed her innocence, but no one believed her. It got to the point where they tried to strip the dress off her.

When Jane curled up and resisted, they began to throw stones at her. On the small body of a mere ten-year-old, where was there even a place to strike?

At the time, Rosette had gone looking for Jane when she didn't return, and had witnessed the scene.

-…!

Rosette knew better than anyone that Jane was not a thief. But she couldn't step forward. She feared that if she did, she would be stoned as well.

So she had hidden from a distance, watching it all unfold. Even as bright red blood trickled from Jane's head, she couldn't even manage to cry out for them to stop.

And Jane, having lost so much blood, died before she could even be seen by a doctor. Only then did Rosette crouch beside her and burst into tears.

Until the day she died, Rosette had regretted that moment over and over.

*'Of course, even if I had stepped in, nothing would have changed.'*

In the worst-case scenario, Rosette might have been stoned as well, meeting the same end.

But still, if she had stepped forward, might things have been a little different? That thought had always plagued her.

“Jane, I'm so, so sorry.”

Rosette murmured the apology she had only ever thought in her heart. Tears once again streamed down her face.

“I'm so sorry.”

Thankfully, Jane didn't take her apology too seriously.

“What's this? Did you have another nightmare?”

Rosette vigorously nodded her tear-streaked face. It was a dream, if you could call it that. By turning back time, all those terrible things had now become events that hadn't happened.

But just because the future was gone didn't mean those events were completely erased. If things continued as they were, Jane would once again be accused of being a thief and killed.

*'But I can change it.'*

She would save Jane. And then she would run away from Marquis Dallas. Then she would never be used by him, and she would never kill Duke Adrian.

First, Rosette asked Jane for today's date.

Fortunately, Jane answered without any suspicion. In fact, she seemed quite excited. She had been teaching Rosette her numbers recently.

“January 5th! You're just starting to learn numbers, so it's confusing, right? Yesterday was the 4th, so today is the 5th!”

Even when she was young, Jane had always been keen on teaching Rosette. The other children would look at her with pity, wondering what use an orphan had for learning letters and numbers, but Jane had big ambitions.

She would go into town and learn letters and numbers, little by little, from the friendly bookstore owner. Then she would come back and teach Rosette everything she had learned.

It was all thanks to Jane that Rosette had been able to keep up with her lessons without much difficulty when she first went to the Marquisate of Dallas.

“My birthday is soon.”

Rosette’s birthday was January 22nd. Since she didn't know her actual birthday, she had made the day she first arrived at the orphanage her birthday.

At Rosette’s murmur, Jane seized the opportunity and smiled slyly.

“Alright, Rose. After your birthday this year, how old will you be?”

This long-winded Q&A was because she didn't know the answer. But instead of saying so, Rosette guessed her age based on her appearance.

“Six… years old?”
“Wrong! Six is one less than seven. You're seven now, so you have to add one.”
“Oh, eight years old.”

*So I'll be eight soon. I guess I was smaller than I thought.*

As this thought vaguely crossed her mind, a shiver ran down Rosette's spine.

*'My god, if I'm eight…'*

Marquis Dallas had come to find her in the spring of the year she turned eight. And Jane had died before Rosette had even reached her eighth birthday.

That meant Jane was fated to die in just a few days. If she had returned even a little later, she might not have been able to save her.