[“If you carry out your assigned task well, I will send you back safely.”]

“Could you at least let me hear my sister’s voice? To confirm she’s safe…”

[“You should know well that if you say useless things, I can’t guarantee your sister’s safety.”]

“……”

[“Anyway, move the plan forward as quickly as possible.”]

“Please give me more time.”

[“One week.”]

The other party said firmly.

[“Resolve it within a week.”]

Originally, the period he had given was one month. But now it was shortened to within a week.

However, he couldn’t argue. Joseph Osser was in a position where he had to do as he was told.

“I understand.”

Before his response was even finished, the communication was cut off. Joseph Osser glared at the communication device, then covered his face with both hands.

“Damn it……”

At eighteen years old this year, he had entered the Adrien family as a servant five years ago. He had persevered from the bottom up, and now he was about to face his knighthood ceremony. He was that loyal to the Adrien family.

But about a month ago, he received a call from his aunt who was taking care of Melody, saying that his sister had disappeared.

As soon as Joseph heard this, he took leave and thoroughly searched around his aunt’s house. However, he couldn’t find Melody.

It was when he was about to ask Duke Adrien for help, grasping at straws. A suspicious man came to find him.

He had only one purpose. Holding his sister hostage, he told Joseph to carry out the mission they would give him.

Without even knowing what the mission was, Joseph answered that he would do it just to save his sister. In the worst case, he was prepared to sacrifice his own life.

However, the ‘mission’ given by the other party was even more shocking than he had thought.

– Spray this potion on Duke Adrien’s carriage.

– What will happen if I spray it?

– That’s none of your business.

He didn’t tell him the effects of this potion, but Joseph could roughly guess. It would cause an accident.

If an accident occurred in a moving carriage, in the worst case, one could die on the spot. If extremely lucky, one might survive, but there was no guarantee the body would be intact.

And of all people, targeting Duke Adrien whom he respected.

He even thought about running to Duke Adrien right away and revealing all this. But as if they had anticipated this, warnings flew in every time he tried to approach the Duke.

It was a warning that if he revealed this fact to anyone, his sister would die.

Moreover, there was also a message saying that if he failed and the plan was all exposed, his sister would die, so he shouldn’t make any mistakes.

‘Now really……”

Joseph Osser tightly gripped the potion he had hidden deep in the drawer.

Now he really couldn’t avoid it anymore.

[This is the timeline separator]

“You’re walking slowly, little one. Even a turtle would be faster than you.”

Lucas followed along beside Rosette. Though he seemed to be running half-heartedly, his running speed was faster than Rosette who was running with all her might.

Glancing slightly at him, Rosette gritted her teeth and ran faster. Annoyingly, Lucas’s breathing didn’t falter at all even when she increased her speed.

Since yesterday, Rosette had decided to do morning training with Lucas every day.

All they did was run around the training ground, so it was embarrassing to call it ‘training’, but she was somewhat relieved to hear that everyone usually starts with this.

Of course, other than Lucas, the rest of the family was skeptical about Rosette’s decision. While they agreed since Rosette said she would do it, they added that she could quit anytime if it became too hard.

However, Rosette was confident she wouldn’t give up. She had a grand plan.

‘I’m going to build up my stamina quickly and create a mana core.’

With a mana core, she would be able to prepare for emergencies. Additionally, she planned to eat a lot to get chubby quickly.

Also.

‘I need to keep a close eye on Joseph Osser.’

Even while running breathlessly, Rosette looked at the Dallas family spy swinging a wooden sword in the distance.

She had heard from Daniel that his name was Joseph Osser and that he had been in the knights’ order for about 5 years. She also learned that he had lost his parents when he was young and only had a younger sister left.

In the process, Daniel subtly asked, ‘Why is our youngest curious about such things?’, and Lucas exclaimed, ‘So you are interested in that guy after all!’, but she somehow managed to explain that it wasn’t like that.

But there was something strange. According to Daniel, Joseph Osser was unusually diligent for his young age and had great loyalty to the Adrien family.

How did such a person end up becoming a spy for the Dallas family, targeting Daniel?

‘Is his sister being held hostage?’

While she was thinking that this was a plausible story, suddenly everything went dark. Lucas, who had somehow blocked her way, said sulkily.

“Again, again you’re looking at him. Listen carefully, little one. You’re eight years old and he’s eighteen! Think about the age difference!”

Oh, geez. He’s going on about that again even though it’s not like that. Instead of tiring herself out with explanations, Rosette ignored him and passed by Lucas. Lucas followed, chattering away, but she let it go in one ear and out the other this time too.

After running three laps, Rosette headed towards Joseph Osser without waiting for Lucas who had gone to fetch water.

“Joseph… right?”

Joseph, who was talking with a colleague, was startled when he saw Rosette.

“Ah, isn’t it the young lady!”

He looked down at her while standing with his back straight.

“What can I do for you?”

Rosette looked up at him brightly and whispered.

“Water……”

“Pardon?”

“I want to drink water.”

“Ah, water. Just a moment.”

“Young lady, please have this!”

“That’s what you were drinking! Young lady, this one hasn’t been touched, so please have this.”

While Joseph was frantically looking for a water bottle, the knights came rushing over. Rosette was suddenly surrounded by big-bodied knights.

Rosette grabbed one of the water bottles handed to her and opened the cap. As she gulped down the water, the knight whose bottle was chosen smiled contentedly.

“By the way, young lady. Aren’t you tired?”

“Still, you ran three laps, that’s amazing! It’s not easy, you know.”

“How’s your injured knee? Is it alright?”

Rosette nodded her head perfunctorily while observing Joseph, who was smiling awkwardly while holding a water bottle. More precisely, she was sensing the mana around him.

Although she hadn’t created a mana core yet, this was simply sensing the aura of mana, which she could do easily.

‘I can’t sense any mana aura.’

Rosette felt relieved. She had been worried that he might be under a curse like her past self, forced to obey Duke Dallas.

Last night, Rosette had thought a bit more about the Joseph Osser she had met in the past. From the fact that his expression had been extremely dark at the time, she guessed that he was being forced to follow Duke Dallas.

That point triggered her trauma. Rosette saw her own image in Joseph Osser, being used like a marionette doll, forcibly harming Duke Adrien and Daniel.

If Joseph Osser was also a victim, if he didn’t want this situation, she wanted to help him.

Fortunately, since it wasn’t a curse, it seemed there might be a way she could help.

‘If it’s not a curse, then is his sister really being held hostage?’

If so, she would need to prevent the accident, rescue Joseph Osser’s sister, and catch the mastermind behind it all.

‘But how? Can I do it alone? Without even a mana core?’

It was while Rosette was seriously pondering this. Lucas, who had approached her with a water bottle, shouted.

“What are you all doing now? If you crowd around like that, you’ll scare the little one!”

“Hah!”

“We’ll correct our behavior!”

The knights hurriedly backed away. Only then did Rosette’s figure, which had been hidden by the surrounding knights, become visible.

Lucas took away the water bottle Rosette had been drinking from and held out the one he had brought.

“Drink this.”

“I’ve already drunk enough… No, I’ll drink it.”

Although she had already emptied one bottle of water, Rosette gulped down the water Lucas had brought as well. Thanks to this, she ended up filling her stomach with water even before eating breakfast.

[This is the timeline separator]

“Then, good night, young lady.”

“Mm. Sleep well too, Joan.”

Rosette, who had been lying in bed, sat up abruptly as soon as she heard the door close. She closed her eyes and focused on the mana flowing through her body. This had been going on for over a month already.

Rosette gathered mana without even wiping away the cold sweat beading on her forehead. The mana gathered vaguely in her stomach gradually compressed, reducing in size.

This was the real challenge from now on. If her concentration wavered here or if her stamina couldn’t keep up, the compressed mana would scatter without forming a core.

Rosette had failed here for the past month due to lack of stamina.

‘Just a little more……”

Rosette barely held onto her scattering consciousness and concentrated and concentrated.

And finally.

With a sense of liberation, Rosette’s eyes flew open. She felt her still flat stomach with both hands. Though still faint, she could feel the aura of a mana core.

It was an aura so faint that others wouldn’t be able to sense it, but it was indeed a mana core. She had succeeded in creating a core a year earlier than in the past.

Although her stamina hadn’t increased much yet, it was possible because Rosette knew how to manipulate mana.

‘I probably can’t use proper magic yet, but……”

Rosette hadn’t created a mana core just to use magic right away. She had another reason.

She spread her hands and infused mana into them. Pink mana gathered on her palms, and then.

[Beep!]

A small white bird suddenly appeared. It was a familiar created from Rosette’s mana.

Rosette exclaimed happily.

“Pipi!”

The sparrow, Pipi, flapped its small wings in response.

[Peep!]

The familiar created from mana wasn’t a living, breathing creature, but it had its own consciousness.

However, since it didn’t remember the past, the current Pipi could be said to be different from the past Pipi.

Even so, Rosette was happy to see Pipi. In the past, Pipi had been her only friend when she was very lonely.

Rosette pressed her cheek against Pipi and murmured.

“It’s good to see you.”

[Peep!]

“Ah, right, this isn’t the time for this. You have a job to do.”

[Peep peep!]

“Go and watch a knight named Joseph Osser. That person is going to do something to the carriage. Let me know when that happens. No, let me know the moment that person leaves his room in the middle of the night. Understand?”

[Peeeeep!]

Nodding its head, Pipi flew out the window. Rosette collapsed onto the bed, feeling drained.

Now all that was left was to wait for Pipi’s signal.

[This is the timeline separator]

Three days later, around dawn, a signal came from Pipi. Squeezing through the slightly open window, Pipi tugged on the hair of the soundly sleeping Rosette with its beak.

“Ouch. Who… Pipi?”

[Peep!]

Pipi flapped its wings vigorously in the air. Snapping awake, Rosette threw on a cloak and followed Pipi towards the carriage storage. There was a large silhouette standing in a place that should have been empty.

Seeing the man, who must be Joseph Osser, approaching the carriage, Rosette ran at full speed.

“Stop!”