The reason why Silian could not escape from the imperial temple.

The contract he had to make under the pretext of protecting his younger sister. That’s what Sesenia was trying to do.

“Do you have multiple lives or something?”

“Of course not. But not right now.”

“So you’re backing down after all. Now that you’re about to do it. Are you scared?”

“No. I’m not scared. But I should at least show you. How useful the person you’re trying to contract with is. Watch that and then make the contract. Contracts, you see, require more caution than you might think.”

He had lived as royalty.

Although he was being pursued, there was no one trying to use him. So he made his contract knowing the weight it carried. That’s why this situation didn’t make sense to him.

“Don’t just jump into a contract like a fool. Since ancient times, contracts were something to be carefully examined before making.”

“… Are you treating me like a fool right now?”

“Yeah. Because kind people like me rarely exist. So watch carefully.”

Sesenia’s bright smile, invisible to the eyes, while saying such thorny words so nonchalantly, made him even more bewildered.

“Huh……”

But Sesenia felt sorry for him.

‘He must have been that desperate. Because he wanted to protect his sister. Because he wanted to save his sister who was sealed, unlike himself, no matter what.’

That was all Sesenia knew.

The twins of Salmon, whose very birth was a sin. Salmon considered the twins to be the wrath of God. Although they were born as royalty of unprecedented strength, the twins were a symbol of ill omen. So they kept only Silian, the boy, and sealed Pepe for being a girl. Because a male was more suitable for inheriting the throne.

Continuing the bloodline, marrying a strong person and having children. Their conclusion was that men were more suitable for sowing seeds. Silian and Pepe, separated at birth and raised apart. But Silian was overwhelmed by terrible loneliness. And he found out. That he had a twin.

Still, he heard and believed that she was growing up well. But when his father died and he was about to inherit the throne, Silian learned the truth.

About his twin sister Pepe who lived a different life from him. That she was living a life that was neither dead nor alive, due to the selfishness of adults who tried to extract her power in every way possible, not just sealing it.

‘That’s why he asked the empire for help.’

Knowing this, he felt uneasy. The only thing Silian did wrong was that he was too foolish.

She didn’t want Silian, who was trying to contract with anyone who could help in his desire to save his sister, to repeat the past.

“Then let’s go.”

“Where are you saying we’re going?”

“We’ll go to my place of business, then to where you want to go. I need to go there too and make a proper contract. Shouldn’t I become a trustworthy person for my contractor?”

Silian smiled as if amused. As if all he needed was to leave this place, he sat down next to Sesenia without saying anything else.

As much as he wanted to kick him away right then and there, Teddy, who couldn’t do so because this person had been talking about being his master’s contractor or whatever, naturally wedged himself between the two.

“Move aside?”

“The spot next to the master is my place.”

“…Are you going to sit next to your master like a child, saying this is how you’ll go?”

To be fair, it did look a bit like that. Teddy, with his naturally good build, had become even more solid recently due to learning swordsmanship and exercising. With such a person squeezing into the narrow space between the two…

“It’s too cramped for both of you.”

Still, Teddy showed no sign of backing down.

“There’s no reason for you to be next to the master. You haven’t even made a contract or anything yet. Go hide in that corner like before.”

“I don’t want to? Unlike you, I’m of very noble blood, you see.”

“You’re still just a thief.”

“Ha. Says the slave.”

The two bickering showed no signs of backing down. Perhaps finding their behavior a bit cute, Sesenia chuckled and got up to sit next to Lizbeth.

“This looks good.”

“Master!”

“I’ll come over there too.”

“No. You two stay cozily seated there. This is an order. I hate cramped spaces, you know.”

“Then I’ll-”

“I should go. Between people about to make a contract…”

“No.”

Like a dog and cat trying to guard their owner’s side, neither showed any intention of backing down as they both tried to stand up. But Sesenia waved her hand and firmly controlled them.

“If even one of you comes here, it’ll be cramped. Don’t come. It looks nice with you two together.”

“…But master…”

“There’s no reason to sit with someone who can’t control their own strength and reeks of a foul smell.”

Finally, as if giving up, Silian stood up and hid himself in the darkness. Despite the carriage not being very large, he disappeared without a trace.

“Wh-where did he go? Did he leave? Miss?”

“No. He’s still here.”

“Ah…”

Lizbeth looked at Sesenia with a disappointed expression. As if she had something to say if that person disappeared, Lizbeth kept moving her lips, and seeing this, Sesenia held her hand tightly.

“Neither of you need to worry. That person is not someone who would ever harm me.”

“But to the young lady… no.”

Lizbeth, who was about to say something, shut her mouth firmly. The current Lizbeth had no way of knowing about Silian. But she acted as if she knew quite a bit for someone who shouldn’t know.

‘For some reason… it seems Lizbeth knows.’

But Sesenia had no intention of telling her even if she knew everything. If Lizbeth found out that Sesenia had come from the future, that she was living in the present after already experiencing death, it would surely break Lizbeth’s heart.

‘Just like me now. That pain is enough for me alone.’

The more she felt that Lizbeth knew everything about the future, that she was a returnee like herself, the more Sesenia felt sorry. If she knew that Sesenia had died, that time had turned back because of that…

Sesenia shook her head vigorously.

“Lizbeth. It’s okay. That person is allowed to.”

“There’s nothing that should be allowed. If he acts rudely to the master again, I’ll…”

Teddy, who instinctively knew Silian’s location, turned his head while glaring.

“It’s okay. He’s family now.”

Though he didn’t say anything, Teddy turned his head sharply with an expression that clearly showed he could never accept that. It was a silent protest that he couldn’t lie while looking at Sesenia’s eyes.

Finding it cute, Sesenia chuckled and shifted her gaze to the window.

The wind was cold. Her nose felt chilly. Like ink spilled on absorbent paper, winter had slowly seeped into everyday life.

‘How will my life flow? Will I be able to succeed in this revenge? Can the future really change?’

She shook her head.

What use would all this be if she couldn’t believe in herself?

‘I’ll doubt myself at every moment. Because the past failed. But I have to believe. I’ve already changed so many things. This time, I… I’ll change the future. Let’s believe that.’

That she won’t fail.

That God bringing her to this time meant for her to perfect that revenge. As she felt both relief and anxiety the more things differed from the past, Sesenia tried to calm her heart and clenched her fist tightly.

**

Iard Trading Company.

“Stay here for a moment.”

“What? We’re staying here?”

“Ah. No. I was talking to someone else. Let’s go inside first.”

“What about me?”

“How could I bring such an esteemed person to such a humble place? Come if you want to, don’t if you don’t want to.”

“……”

“Well, I’ll be back soon so you can stay here if you want. There’s someone I can’t take to the temple, so I’m just going to drop by briefly.”

Without giving him time to choose, Sesenia got out of the carriage. Naturally, Teddy followed behind her protectively, and Lizbeth followed as well.

Sesenia entered the trading company as if she didn’t care whether he followed or not.

“Welcome.”

As the door opened with a jingling sound, Rohan greeted her as if he had been waiting.

“Yes.”

“Seeing your good expression, it seems the matter was resolved well.”

“You can tell at a glance. That’s right. The matter was resolved well. More importantly, Rohan.”

As if trying not to mention that matter any further, Sesenia changed the subject.

“You started selling right away, right?”

Since she had already mentioned this before leaving for the orphanage, Sesenia confirmed it once more.

“You mean the Hephria cotton? It’s a shame, you could make more profit if you held onto it longer.”

“There’s no need for that. There will be more occasions like this in the future anyway.”

“Are you planning to sell the firewood at a low price as well?”

Rohan shook his head regretfully at her words as he organized some documents.

“We have to. The moment Hephria cotton hits the market, firewood prices will drop lower than ever.”

“Ah.”

“It’s hard for us to manage once we start moving warehouses anyway, so let’s just hand it over. There won’t be anything more profitable than this.”

“I thought you might say that, so I’ve already moved everything.”

A smile bloomed on Sesenia’s face like a spring flower.

“If you’ve done all that, why did you ask?”

“I thought you might have changed your mind. You still show no hesitation in what you’ve decided, young lady.”

“Was I like that before too?”