“For today, I’ll send you back to your room with my familiar. Get up quickly.”

However, Rosette couldn’t bring herself to get up. Her mind was in turmoil.

‘Am I really leaving?’

It had been just over four months since she started living with her family at the Duke Adrian’s residence. Compared to the 13 years she spent at the Marquis Dallas’ household in the past, it was an insignificant amount of time.

But during those four months, Rosette received incomparably more affection than she had in those 13 years. In fact, it would be accurate to say she barely received any love at the Dallas household.

Rosette had also given her whole heart to her family. Although she felt sorry towards Jane, she perhaps loved them even more than Jane.

But now she was being told to leave them. Moreover, would they be safe without her?

Rosette muttered, grasping at straws.

“If I’m here, it will be easier to deal with the Marquis Dallas. I know everything about the future.”

“I know about the future too. I can handle the Marquis Dallas just fine on my own. Besides, you’re not with the Dallas family anymore, are you?”

Rosette was at a loss for words.

‘Of course. I too believed that everything would be resolved if I just disappeared.’

Although she hadn’t realized it in the past, Rosette had done so much for Marquis Dallas. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that the Marquis gaining Duke Lillis’ trust was thanks to her.

What would happen if someone like her disappeared?

The Dallas family wouldn’t be able to exert their power properly, and the Adrian family wouldn’t crumble so easily.

Knowing this, Rosette thought the Adrian family would be safe when she first traveled back in time.

‘Besides, the prince knows the future just like I do. He’ll be able to notice if any variables arise.’

In other words, knowing the future wasn’t a bargaining chip. To persuade Joshua, she needed another condition.

In desperation, Rosette suddenly thought of something and exclaimed urgently.

“If I!”

Thinking this might be her last chance.

“If I can save the Empress, will you let me stay?”

Joshua paused and turned around.

“You? Save Her Majesty?”

“Yes!”

Seeing Rosette’s confident expression, Joshua’s face hardened.

Actually, until he met Rosette in person, he had intended to get information about the poisoning from her. He thought she might know something since she was the daughter of Marquis Dallas.

But after seeing her in person, he changed his mind. The Rosette he saw was extremely naive.

Although her magic skills were outstanding, she seemed to have been used as a chess piece by Marquis Dallas without knowing any information.

What fool in the world would tell important information to a chess piece? At least Marquis Dallas wasn’t that stupid.

‘So of course I thought she wouldn’t know important information like clues about the poisoning.’

But what did she just say? That she could save Her Majesty?

Interpreting those words in his own way, Joshua was filled with anger.

“How can you save Her Majesty? Don’t tell me you were also involved in that incident?”

“No!”

Realizing what kind of misunderstanding he had made, Rosette quickly denied it.

“At that time, I was only eight years old, and it hadn’t been long since I was adopted into the Dallas family. How could I have done such a thing? I hadn’t even learned magic back then.”

Joshua’s intensity subsided just a little.

“Then how do you plan to prevent it? Are you saying you know what illness Her Majesty suffered from? Even the official cause of death wasn’t properly revealed.”

The Empress had died mysteriously, and in the Imperial Palace of all places. Moreover, the imperial doctors couldn’t even properly identify the cause.

Thinking that the authority of the imperial family would be diminished if this became known to the outside world, the Emperor announced externally that the Empress had died from an epidemic.

Even to her home country of Evelyn Kingdom.

Because Ophelia had always been very weak, everyone believed it.

Joshua vehemently opposed it, but at twelve years old, he couldn’t go against the Emperor’s will.

So Rosette should have known that the Empress died from illness.

But Rosette answered without a hint of doubt.

“The Empress didn’t die from illness, she was poisoned. But the poison used for the assassination wasn’t properly identified.”

“…How do you know that?”

“Although I didn’t know much at the time, I learned about it later while studying on my own. I remember seeing it in Marquis Dallas’ documents that I secretly peeked at.”

Rosette jumped up from her seat and approached Joshua.

“You’ve been trying to find the poisoning method since you came back in time, right? But you probably failed.”

Joshua neither confirmed nor denied it. However, confident that her assumption was correct from his silence, Rosette continued speaking.

“That’s inevitable. The poison targeting the Empress was a unique poison.”

“A unique poison?”

“Yes. When used alone it’s used as medicine, but when combined with other substances, it becomes a poison.”

“Is there such a thing?”

“Yes.”

“But even the imperial doctors couldn’t figure it out.”

“That’s because it’s not an herb commonly known in the empire. I can tell you what poison was used. So if I can safely save the Empress, will you let me stay?”

Joshua thought for a moment and then asked.

“If I refuse, are you planning not to save Her Majesty? Are you threatening me right now?”

“No.”

Rosette shook her head without hesitation.

“Even if Your Highness doesn’t accept my proposal, I will still try to prevent the Empress’s poisoning. I’ve been thinking about that since I came to the Adrian family.”

“…”

“I was planning to ask sister Isabelle to go to the Imperial Palace soon, but if Your Highness helps, it will probably be easier to figure things out.”

“Then?”

“I’m just asking Your Highness. Please believe me just once that the current me is different from the past me. Please help me change the fate of the Adrian family.”

Joshua was moved by Rosette’s eyes looking straight into his own.

‘She seems like a different person from when I first met her.’

The child who trembled and cried when he confronted her at the Adrian mansion earlier was nowhere to be seen. She was even different from the Rosette Dallas he had seen in the past.

She had become a completely different person in just a few months. Both externally and internally. Probably thanks to growing up loved in the Adrian mansion.

Meanwhile, only those clear blue eyes looking at him remained the same. Those eyes were shining just as they had when he first saw her in the garden.

Was that why? Joshua wasn’t offended by her attitude. Rather, he even gave her advice without realizing it.

“Let me give you some advice. In situations like this, you should threaten me. You’ve already taken the initiative.”

“But I didn’t want to threaten with something like that.”

“Why not?”

“Because the Empress is someone precious to Your Highness. I don’t want to be a bad person who threatens with such things.”

It felt strange.

Clearly, Rosette was the one who had done wrong, but at this moment, Joshua felt like he had become a villain bullying an innocent child.

“So what are you going to do?”

“For now.”

Joshua deliberately averted his gaze from Rosette.

“I’ll postpone kicking you out. Stay at the Adrian mansion until Her Majesty’s matter is resolved.”

Rosette brightened up.

“Really?”

“But remember. If anything happens to Her Majesty, or if you try any tricks, I’ll personally kick you out.”

“Don’t worry! I really have no intention of trying any tricks. And the Empress…”

She clenched her small fist tightly.

“I will save her no matter what.”

“…”

Instead of answering, Joshua snapped his fingers. The wolf that had been far away came running like an arrow and bowed its body in front of Rosette.

“Now go back. We can’t let anyone notice that you’re gone.”

“Can I really go back?”

“Did you hear my words with your ears turned backwards?”

“I heard properly with my ears, but…”

“If you don’t want to, I can take you somewhere else right now.”

“No!”

Worried that he might really send her somewhere else, Rosette hurriedly climbed onto the wolf’s back. Pipi also noticed and perched on her shoulder.

“I’ll go home. Take me to our home, wolf.”

“Then let’s contact each other again soon.”

With those words, the wolf started to run. It jumped so high that Rosette felt like she was flying. Naturally, Pipi squeaked in fright.

Rosette was tense the entire way. Only when she saw the familiar mansion in the distance could she finally relax.

‘Thankfully, he really sent me to our home.’

The nameless wolf entered without being noticed by anyone, just as when it had left the mansion. Then it leaped up to the 3rd floor room in one breath.

Rosette, who had let out a silent scream once again, barely managed to get off with shaky legs. Pipi had already collapsed on the bed.

“Thank you for bringing me. By the way, what’s your name?”

The wolf growled something, but Rosette couldn’t understand its words.

“It seems I can only understand my own familiar’s words. I can’t understand you. Anyway, wolf, take care on your way back.”

The silver wolf, who mumbled something again, jumped out of the open window.

Rosette, who had been leaning against the windowsill watching the wolf disappear, collapsed onto the bed.

Pipi flew over and settled on the pillow.

“Still, it’s fortunate, Pipi.”

“At least we can stay here for now.”

Honestly, she didn’t know what came over her to negotiate, or rather not negotiate, with Joshua earlier. Thinking about the tense situation from before made her feel like she would fall over even though she was already lying down, her whole body going limp.

Recalling her conversation with Joshua, Rosette sniffled without realizing it.

“Actually, I was really scared. I was afraid that His Highness would really tell father and kick me out.”

Pipi gently pecked at her tear-streaked cheeks. Bursting into laughter, Rosette lay on her side and looked into Pipi’s small black eyes.

“But someday, I’ll have to reveal everything to father and the family, right? About what I did.”

If you don’t want to, you don’t have to. I don’t like anything Rosette dislikes. That’s what Pipi said.

This was why Rosette liked Pipi. Pipi always put Rosette first, no matter what anyone else said. Even if everyone else in the world criticized Rosette, Pipi alone would unconditionally take her side.

To be precise, it was more a characteristic of familiars rather than Pipi’s personality, but Rosette didn’t mind either way.

“Thank you, Pipi. For comforting me. But someday, I’ll have to tell them.”

Rosette muttered gloomily.

“There’s no secret that can be hidden forever.”