-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 11
Chapter Title: Sweeter Than Syrup (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“Kiddo, wake up!”
A voice even rougher than Jude’s roused Rosette from her sleep. Clutching a stuffed rabbit, she burrowed deeper under the covers.
“Kiddo! If you sleep now, you won’t be able to sleep tonight!”
“Young Lord, the young lady must be tired. Why don’t we let her rest for today?”
“But she needs to eat dinner! You have to eat well to grow big and strong!”
“But you also need to sleep a lot to grow big and strong.”
“Really?”
The voices murmuring by her ear faded into the distance. Thanks to that, Rosette was able to fall back asleep.
As she sank into a deep slumber, she began to dream.
In her first dream, Marquis Dallas appeared. Furious that Rosette couldn’t properly cast the spells he had taught her, he threw everything within his reach.
-You worthless vermin! Do you think I brought you here to see this pathetic display!
A flowerpot he threw struck her head, and she began to bleed. Still, he showed no signs of stopping. Rosette prostrated herself at his feet, begging him to spare her.
Please, save me. Save me… Pained moans escaped the lips of the sleeping Rosette.
Next, her stepsister, Elisha Dallas, appeared. She had the maids torment Rosette in subtle ways.
That much, she could endure. But…
-Why did you do it? What did my master and Daniel ever do to you to deserve death! Why!
Hearing that cold voice, filled with anguish, Rosette shed tears in her sleep.
*It wasn’t my choice. I turned back time to undo everything. I’ll change it. I’ll give you back everything you lost.*
*I’ll get it back, no matter what it takes.*
But the man, Joshua Ehrnhardt, didn’t listen to her. With eyes steeped in madness, he began to choke her, as if that would solve everything.
Just then, Rosette gasped for air and woke up, like someone who had just been pulled from the water.
The first thing she saw upon opening her eyes was an unfamiliar ceiling. Staring at the white canopy swaying in the darkness, she slowly came to her senses.
‘That’s right. I turned back time.’
After that, she had saved Jane and been adopted into the Duchy of Adrian. Rosette let out a sigh of relief as she processed the facts anew.
It was a sigh born of hope—the hope that just as she had saved Jane, she could save the people of the Adrian family as well.
At the same time, she felt as if all the strength had drained from her body. As a wave of exhaustion washed over her, Rosette was about to close her eyes again.
But then, she saw sunlight seeping through the curtains and her eyes widened. It was morning.
‘I slept the whole day!’
Sleeping in on her very first day at the Adrian estate. What would people think?
Startled, Rosette scrambled down from the bed. But unused to her small body, she lost her balance and tumbled to the floor.
“Aah!”
A scream was followed by a rather loud crash.
“What is it, Young Lady!”
Joanne rushed inside and hurried over to Rosette, who was tangled in the blankets on the floor. Instantly grasping the situation, she lifted Rosette into her arms.
“Are you alright?”
“Y-Yes.”
“Are you hurt anywhere?”
“No.”
“That’s a relief. It would be terrible if your precious body were harmed.”
After setting Rosette back on the bed, Joanne wiped her face with a warm, damp towel. The towel was soft, and Joanne’s touch was softer still.
Rosette blushed, feeling as though she had truly become a child, but Joanne simply smiled at her expression.
“There, all done. By the way, aren’t you hungry? You haven’t eaten anything since breakfast yesterday.”
“I’m f—”
She was about to say she was fine out of habit. But then, a loud growl rumbled from Rosette’s flat stomach. Her face turned a shade redder.
Joanne managed to stifle a laugh and whispered.
“The two young lords and the eldest young lady are still at their dawn training. It will be a little while before the meal is ready, so I’ll bring you a glass of warm milk.”
Without giving Rosette a chance to refuse, Joanne left the room. A moment later, she returned with a large mug of milk.
“Drink slowly.”
“Okay.”
Rosette blew on the milk and, just as Joanne had said, drank it slowly. When she finished, a white ring was left around her lips, which Joanne wiped away with a handkerchief.
“Feeling a little better now?”
“Yes.”
Rosette hesitated for a moment before asking.
“Um, Joanne. Can I go watch the practice?”
“Practice? Oh, do you mean the dawn training?”
Rosette nodded instead of answering. Joanne seemed lost in thought. Rosette watched her expression and asked again.
“Is it not allowed?”
“It’s not that it’s not allowed. There is nowhere in this mansion the young lady cannot go. I’m just worried you might be startled…”
“I’m okay! I promise I won’t be startled!”
At Rosette’s first display of assertiveness, Joanne found herself nodding.
“Alright. But first, let me help you change your clothes.”
Joanne led Rosette to the dressing room. She eyed Rosette’s frame, then began rummaging through the dresses.
“For now, I’ve brought some of Lady Isabelle’s old clothes that she’s outgrown. But even these look big on you, Young Lady.”
“They do.”
“I’ll have to call a tailor today. Ah, this one might be a bit better.”
The outfit Joanne chose was a simple white dress with no embellishments. As a swordswoman, Isabelle disliked cumbersome clothing and naturally avoided lace or accessories on her dresses.
“Alright, raise your arms.”
When Rosette raised her arms, Joanne deftly changed her clothes. The sleeves were too long, but after rolling them up a few times, it looked presentable enough.
Joanne took Rosette’s hand.
“Well then, shall we go?”
***
The training grounds were about a ten-minute walk from the main building. Even before they arrived, they could hear loud, energetic shouts.
“Your pace is too slow. Faster!”
“Yes, sir!”
“I can’t hear you! One more lap!”
Rosette was slightly surprised but didn’t let it show as she continued walking. Upon entering the training grounds, she saw a group of people running in formation.
‘He’s not here.’
But the people Rosette was looking for were nowhere to be seen. Just as she was feeling a little disappointed, a voice called out.
“Oh? The kiddo’s awake!”
A clear, ringing voice sounded, and Lucas came running over with a wooden sword slung over his shoulder. Reaching her in an instant, he began to tease her.
“You’re quite the sleepyhead, aren’t you?”
Rosette’s face flushed red again.
“I’m not… a sleepyhead.”
“Really? But your eyes are all puffy like a fish’s.”
When Rosette covered her eyes with both hands, Lucas burst out laughing.
“So, what are you doing here? Not heading to the dining hall?”
“I heard everyone was here…”
Rosette peeked at Lucas through the small gap between her fingers.
“But where is Daniel… sir?”
“Brother Daniel? He went out with Father for a bit. Hey, why are you calling him ‘Daniel-sir’?”
“Pardon? If not Daniel-sir, then what should I…”
“You should call him ‘brother’.”
Startled, Rosette waved her hands frantically.
“But how could I…”
As Rosette hesitated, Lucas narrowed his eyes.
“You’re not going to call me ‘Lucas-sir’ too, are you?”
Why wouldn’t she? In fact, that was exactly what Rosette had intended to call him.
Seeing that she couldn’t readily deny it, Lucas’s eyes narrowed even further.
“You’re my little sister now. Right?”
“…Yes.”
“So isn’t it weird for family to use titles like ‘sir’?”
Honestly, she had no idea if it was weird. Rosette had never had a family from birth.
In her past life, she gained a family when she was adopted by Marquis Dallas, but she had always addressed them as ‘Marquis Dallas’ or ‘Lady Elisha’.
But from the look of things, it seemed she was supposed to say it was weird. Rosette slowly nodded her head. Only then did Lucas smile with satisfaction.
“Right? It seems weird to you too, doesn’t it?”
“…Yes.”
“Then try calling me Brother Lucas.”
“…”
“Go on.”
She had used the term ‘oppa’ for the older boys at the orphanage. But for some reason, calling Lucas that felt both the same and different.
It felt embarrassing and awkward. Rosette hesitated, then clasped her hands together and whispered.
“Lucas… B-bwother.”
“What was that? I can’t hear you.”
“Brother Lucas.”
By now, even Rosette’s ears had turned red. Lucas let out a hearty laugh, looking pleased.
“Great, great. I finally have a little sister! I’m not the youngest anymore!”
He seemed to be happy for a slightly odd reason, but since he looked pleased, Rosette felt relieved. At the same time, she found it a bit strange.
‘Why is everyone so welcoming to me?’
In the Dallas family, no one had welcomed her. Even when Marquis Dallas introduced her as a child the family needed, they all showed their disapproval.
Elisha, in particular, had openly pinched her nose, complaining that the unwashed Rosette smelled like garbage.
As if that weren’t enough, even after Rosette was clean, she would often snap that she smelled common.
Rosette had thought that was the normal reaction. The nobles she had seen held the belief that they were different from commoners and tended to look down on them.
So, adopting a commoner orphan? To them, it must have been like welcoming livestock into the family.
In fact, hadn’t Isabelle, whom she met yesterday, been a little hesitant about her adoption at first? Though, unlike Elisha, she seemed to be worried about Rosette.
But neither Daniel nor Lucas showed any sign of opposing Duke Adrian’s decision. If anything, the atmosphere was welcoming.
Rosette was curious about the reason but couldn’t bring herself to ask.
“So, why were you looking for my brother Daniel?”
“Ah…”
At that, Rosette pressed her lips together.
‘I have to warn Sir Daniel quickly.’
While drinking the milk Joanne had brought her, Rosette had reminded herself of her most important task. No matter how she thought about it, preventing Daniel’s accident was the priority.
All she knew about his accident was that it happened in the spring of the year she was adopted by the Dallas family and that it was a plot orchestrated by the Marquis.
She didn’t know the exact date or how it would happen.
However, she had heard that a carriage wheel had come off, causing the carriage to fall off a cliff. There was even a fire, and he had nearly lost his life.
Since the accident could happen as soon as today, she wanted to warn him as quickly as possible—to tell him to double-check the carriage wheels before riding.
‘It should be fine for now. I can tell him tonight.’
It was still winter, not spring. Thinking this, Rosette gave a vague excuse.
“I just wanted to see Sir Daniel.”
But something strange happened. Hearing her words, Lucas’s expression twisted oddly, and he pouted.
“So you wanted to see Brother Daniel, but you didn’t want to see me?”
“…Pardon?”
“I guess you got close since you spent a few days with him, huh?”
Rosette couldn’t understand why Lucas was angry. But before she could figure out the reason, he exclaimed.
“Fine! I’ll show you that I’m a better big brother than Daniel!”
