The castle was a mess. The entire forest surrounding the castle was covered in flames. This fire’s origin was in the Roberti Castle itself.

“Everything’s on fire.”

“…My Lord.”

“My dream has finally come true.”

“Dream?”

“Now that it has come to this, I don’t know what to do next. Losing my path at this age is truly unexpected.”

Vlad Howl Roberti, with a sword that was dyed in blood, blocked her way after killing all the servants who tried to escape the raging flames of the castle.

The father of Sophia Benny, who is the Lord of the Southern Castle and was known as a great priest.

The man who never allowed her to carry the Roberti surname nor address him as father, looked down at Sophia with grave eyes. That yellow-eyed creature, both moon-like and hungry-looking, was someone Sophia had always hated.

Death was always near when that eye was directed at her.

“I’m not allowed to escape, am I?”

“…This is the only thing that I will let you do.”

The bloodstained sword pointed to the side, drawing an elegant line. The direction it was pointing, revealed a passageway with a byway through the castle.

Sophia, who had followed the sword with her eyes, glanced back at his direction with a look of disbelief.

“Walk.”

“Really, I… You’re going to kill him.”

 At the end of the path, there will be two brothers who lived just to kill their one and only younger sibling with whom they don’t share blood with. Two brothers who have the same mother, share the same face and blood.

Without responding to Sophia’s words, he walked away.

Sophia hesitated for a moment. There is another way. But whichever he chose, he will still die. For he knew that his death would happen if he gave way, he crossed the line first.

All the other choices already failed. That choice was the only way out.

What will happen to you in the future, and what will happen to you in the countless paths that you didn’t take? I know. I know everything.

“Because I’ve walked all those paths… Damn it!”

I will walk the road in vain without a single light guiding my way. Sofia walked to the path that her father allowed her to use.

At the end, what stood in front of Sofia was her brothers, who turned their backs against the world and blocked their way.

Benjamin Chase Roberti and Joshua Chase Roberti. With Vlad standing tall behind them.

Snow-white hair and yellow eyes, which only he had not inherited, shone beautifully under the sunlit sky.

It might not be a sunset, but a rising fire that seems to have engulfed the sky.

His eyes may seem hollow, but it is blinded by hatred.

‘Is it a failure again?’

She shook her head. She didn’t want to think negatively, so she shouted for the last time and tried to stir their emotions. Furthermore, she called them with a title that she had never used.

“Father! My brothers! That’s enough. This isn’t right. I…”

The moment she tried to utter another word, Benjamin’s sword was pushed close to her neck.

“Sophia.”

How dare you call me in a friendly way? How dare you argue about this?

Their cool eyes gazed sharply at her that felt like she was being skinned alive. Their golden eyes, except hers, shone coldly in front of the chaotic city.

If she tries speaking one more time, he will cut off Sophia’s throat without hesitation.

Whatever she does, Sophia Benny will die without ever leaving the castle.

“Ha…Haha.”

Sophia’s sorrowful tears towards them, that stopped her from leaving the castle, died down. Her expression changed.

It’s a broken, damned world. What’s there to be afraid of? The world will turn back for her anyway.

Sophia Benny chuckled. Then, it slowly turned into a laugh. She just continued laughing like a madman.

Soon, the laughter stopped, and a cold sigh came out.

“I’m so annoyed. You can’t do anything. I mean, this bunch of crap…”

Rather than tears, anger was written in her dark purple eyes. She glanced at her brother, who seemed ready to cut her throat at any moment. There’s another one who also looks like him. They’re her twin brothers. They say two is bad luck.

“Live a decent life, you bastards!”

Sophia’s eyes flashed the same time she shouted loudly. Her heart was beating fast, cold sweat dripping all over her body.

It’s quiet outside. There was even a sound of birds singing peacefully.

The world outside the window was lush green, nothing like the one she just experienced where everything around the castle was engulfed with flames.

Sophia looked at herself from the window. A small body with a small hand and an average-size head greeted her.

She checked it a few more times before lying down on the bed again.

I’m back, again. 12 years old, the day before my birthday.

Her fourth life started again.

“…So annoying.”

She died three times and came back. The future has not changed, even though she did everything to survive through those many opportunities. It’s strange that she didn’t get crazy, but her mind was always clear after going back.

As if her body and mind had already perceived this situation as normal.

“I won’t.”

No matter what happens, she’s not going to do anything for them in this life.

‘I’m tired now. And whatever I do, I will still die at 21. If that’s my fate, then I’d rather live my life now than cling to those uneducated things.’

Sophia Benny chose to give them up.

The most comfortable road that Sophia has never walked before.

Sofia put the blanket up to the tip of her head and curled herself in it.

As soon as she thought she wouldn’t move enough to forget how to use her legs, the door opened followed by two footsteps.

“Young Lady.”

“…”

“It’s time to get up.”

 Sophia was awakened by the ringing of the bell and the servant’s voice. She pulled down her blanket again and raised her upper body to lean on her bedside.

The face she saw after a long time was smiling at her.

“…Loray.”

“I’m sure you’ll say something about me waking you up when you didn’t get enough sleep.”

“…Yes, because I’m a growing child.”

“Indeed. So I’ve let you keep your 9 hours of sleep.”

She did not look old in her neat appearance even with gray hair. She didn’t even appear to be suffering from a disease.

The still-looking servant over mid-thirties, grumbled playfully at her.

This morning, which has been repeated four times so far, has been her favourite in all of her past lives.

A normal exchange of conversations, as if to say that everything that happened earlier after returning from death is a dream.

How can I not like it?

“So you have to get up quickly, miss. “

Loray, who turned the child’s grumbling over to a light laugh, placed the bell on the table.

Sofia’s servant, Loray Muckle, arranged her light purple hair, which had been tangled from lying down, with a kind touch.

The good thing about returning was this. To be able to meet again my own person who died earlier than me.

While Sophia was tapping her face with a towel after washing it with the water that Loray had prepared, Loray put something in front of her.

“This is a list of gifts prepared by the lord. Which one do you want the most?”

A booklet of candidates for a birthday present. Handing the towel over to the other servant, Sophia glanced at it.

It’s no use preparing for the lord. He wouldn’t even know my birthday.

If Sofia chooses one of the things she wanted here, she would rather choose the money to buy gifts for Loray and the other servants who Sophia was particularly fond of.

The Lord said that he didn’t want Sophia to hate his father for not seeing his face once properly.

I don’t know why, but people around me didn’t want me to hate him.

Surprisingly, I’ve already hated him.

 ‘I don’t want to spend money on my useless birthday,’ she thought. Sophia swung her hand around and handed the booklet back.

“None.”

“Oh, miss?”

After a short reply, she crawled back into bed.

“No need.”

 “But Miss, it’s your birthday present…”

“Get out. I’ll have a meal later.”

Looking quietly at Sophia, who wrapped herself inside the blanket, Loray sighed and stroked slightly where her head would be.

“Don’t hate the lord too much. He cares about you so much that he can’t just come see you because he’s afraid you’ll get hurt by the slightest force.”

Loray said so and left the room with the servant. In the quiet room, where nobody was there, Sofia crouched more and more.

He doesn’t come to see me because he’s afraid of getting hurt. To be honest, I don’t understand the meaning of the word. This is by no means a way of keeping. It’s being neglected.

I know he doesn’t come to see me because he’s afraid of getting hurt. To be honest, I don’t really understand the meaning of the word. I do not feel protected with his actions. Rather, I consider this as being neglected.

‘Vlad…’

Before her mother died, Sofia had spent the most time with her, but her memory of that time was already fading.

From 12 to 21. During that long repetition of time, memories before the age of 12 were now almost non-existent in her head.

But then, she knew that he was just trying to save himself. Because there was someone who died because of his love for Sofia and her mother, Benny.

Chase Seviche Roberti. Benjamin and Joshua’s mother and a person who was trapped in a tower and died lonely.

Come to think of it, today was Chase’s death anniversary.

The memory of that day suddenly came to her mind.

‘Would you like us if our mother killed your mother?’

‘How can we love the daughter of the man who killed our mother?‘

Oh, I feel sick.

It felt like I remembered the taste of the poison that went over my throat that day.

If I regressed 4 times, I would just…be done with life.

Share this:

Because of you and your mother, our mother died.

Chase Seviche Roberti. Her. It was in her second life that she heard the story.

When Sophia was 5, and Benjamin and Joshua were 12 years old, Sofia’s mother, Benny Lo Lancel, as well as Chase, was alive.

About three years after Benny, who was from the street, came into the castle with the generosity of the lord, Benjamin and Joshua saw a strange man sneaking into the castle and talking to Benny.

 A man with shaggy hair colour often held Benny’s hand talking this and that.

His face was a blur that his words and expressions couldn’t be seen well due to the distance, but he was suspicious enough to see him sneaking in, ignoring the fine path that he c.

“Should I let father know, Benji?”

“You don’t have to be involved, do you? He said he could call a guest anytime.”

At Joshua’s question, Benjamin shrugged as if he were not very interested. Then Joshua opened his mouth with a serious glare in his eyes.

“If you’re a guest, you won’t sneak in like that. He might become the culprit if something big happens later.”

“You’ve been reading too many detective stories lately.”

“Still, isn’t that plausible?”

As if it were funny, Benjamin did not hide his laughter. He’s become too serious about this nonsense.

It was quite fun for Joshua, who had always been indifferent to situations where he could not reach, to show interest, but more than this was unnecessary.

A few days ago, a servant said something about Benny, and his tongue got cut off.

“Not at all. Let’s pretend we don’t know because we might get scolded by our father for talking for no reason. He cares more about her than we do.”

Benjamin and Joshua, who were hiding in the grass and chatting in a whisper, made up their minds and quietly escaped from them.

They did not announce that a suspicious person had entered the castle. They loved the peace that Benny brought.

A few days later, Joshua, walking in the hallway, happened to see the man he saw then.

A man with shaggy hair and a clean-cut look. He might not recognize him because he looked more decent than, but Joshua was able to know him because he focused on the man at that time.

“Josh, I’m going to go to mom this time because the cookies are baked well… What are you doing there?”

When Joshua stopped walking when he saw a familiar face, Benjamin, who had a bunch of golden cookies in a small basket, ran after finding him.

“I think mother has a visitor.”

“Visitor?”

I didn’t sneak here this time. Under the guidance of his servants, the man, clad in quite fine clothes, entered the drawing room with Chase proudly.

He had purple eyes that resembled Sophia, but ironically he didn’t look like her at all.

“That guy… He must have known mother.”

“I know. I guess he wasn’t a bad guy.”

As Joshua muttered so much, Benjamin chewed on the cookies as if he were laughing at them.

After seeing Benjamin brutally eating animal-shaped cookies, Joshua turned his interest toward the man to him.

“More than that, what kind of cookie is it? I’m sure Henney almost made it.”

“No, the chef won’t do anything. And I did a perfect job on my own.”

“Anyway, I’m not eating. I know what it tastes like. I couldn’t forget the burning taste.”

“Sophia said it was delicious this time! Open your mouth, I’ll put the whole basket in!”

Joshua ran as hard as he could to avoid Benjamin who was chasing him. They heard Loray’s advice not to run, but the two continued to  play tag.

It was peaceful. If only Chase hadn’t gone mad after meeting the man, it would have been a lifelong peace.

“Mother, it’s me. It’s Benjamin! Joshua is next to me. Josh!”

“Benzie, Benji… Josh, where are you…!”

“Mother…”

Her mind went off. She couldn’t recognize who was who, turned the room upside down and even attempted suicide.

It was very difficult for a child to handle.

Joshua and Benjamin cried and asked for help from their father, Vlad, but he kept down and said nothing.

His eyes wanted to say something, but in the end, he kept his mouth shut. Like someone forced him to.

“…Sorry.”

The situation got worse while getting the word.

Chase had more seizures overnight, so Benjamin and Joshua lived in their mother’s room. They were the only ones who could stand by her side.

One day, when Chase woke up in fear, she sobbed with her sons in her arms.

“Every time I dream, I feel strange… I think I’m going to die. No, I think I’m going to kill her.”

“It’s all right, Mother. We’re right next to you.”

“Ah… Benji… Josh… Sophie, Sophia…”

That’s how she fell asleep again.

The two were puzzled at the time when she suddenly mentioned Sofia’s name, but it didn’t take long for Chase to realize  what she was trying to say.

“Mother tried to kill Sophia!”

“That’s nonsense! Mother couldn’t have done that.”

“That’s right! There’s no reason to kill her!”

Words that could not have been said that day

‘Sophie, Sophia… I feel like I’m going to kill….’

Benjamin and Joshua realized what more she was going to say after that.

‘When that time comes… Please, protect her.’

Why did he now understand the words of that day when he pleaded with his eyes?

The two, who lately knew the meaning of what Chase said, tried to raise their voices, but Vlad already gave orders.

“I want you to keep Chase Seviche in the spire and only give her a bowl of water every week.”

The Seviche family protested, saying, “The older brother is too much. How is the child of the government more important than the wife of the lord?”

But he ignored all the words and proceeded with the punishment.

How can a person live on that spire? The spire is narrow and high. The room was limited to a tight fit.

A plate of water? It is not enough when trapped in that place. They wanted to argue about it right away, but they couldn’t.

He was very generous in keeping her direct descendants alive without even excommunicating them.

“That man must be the cause.”

One day in tears, Joshua said so. Benjamin, of course, agreed. Since she met him, their mother has suddenly become strange.

“She’s close to him. Sophia’s mother.”

“I heard our relatives say she might have done it to drive mother out and take over her place.”

“…To keep her daughter as the next lord? To be the wife of the lord?”

“Maybe… yeah.”

“But mother…”

She wanted to protect Sophia.

It didn’t make sense at first. Was Chase and Benny not close? Benny refused to take the government or being a concubine.

It was an off-putting puzzle, but it was a puzzle that would be matched if the direction was changed.

‘What if being friendly, being nice, was a lie?’

What if Benny Lo Lancel is actually bad and purposely made friends with Chase? What if the rejection of the government and the concubine was to pretend that she was not interested in power?

When they saw the pure smile, one side of their heart made them realize that they were never the kind of person to think this way, but their mother’s death was not enough to stop them from thinking the same thing.

Deep and deep. When they were about to hate the existence of Sophia, including Benny, Sophia found them with blue roses.

“This is called a ‘miracle’ in flower language.”

“…Ah.”

A small hand grabbed Benjamin and Joshua’s collar, and at the same time, the two felt saved from the pit.

The tiny sunlight glittered before her eyes and waved at the flowers.

“Do you know why?”

Perhaps she had learned something from Loray. Sophia mumbled with a smile at the thought of letting others know what she learned.

Chase would have explained that the reason why she disappeared and was not in her room was because of a bad cold. And there’s no way Vlad or Benny would have informed her that she almost died.

Because Sophia was still young.

Yeah. She’s young. You don’t know anything, you know…

Not knowing that Benjamin and Joshua’s bitter smile was directed at her, Sophia continued to speak.

“Blue roses do not exist, and they’re made by the Wizard of Flowers. He created something that wasn’t there, and he said it was a miracle.”

“Yes, you’re smart.”

Benjamin smiled faintly and stroked Sophia’s head. Joshua was also looking at Sophia with a relaxed face.

The child, who would have been happy to be praised, still had a serious face. Realizing that she had something else to say, they waited for Sophia’s next words. Sophia held the rose and wriggled her hands.

“So, I’ll give this to Cherry…”

“And?”

“I’m going to say ‘I hope your cold gets better like a miracle!'”

Cherry was Sofia’s nickname for Chase. When Chase came to see her, she always brought cherries, so she called her Cherry. And Chase asked her to call her that because it was cute.

But the cherry could not receive this flower.

 She’s destined to be trapped in the spire and die without meeting anyone.

Joshua opened his mouth, taking out the rose from Sophia’s small hand.

“We’ll give this to her.”

“Huh? What about me? I’m coming, too.”

“No. Sophia is weak and has a cold.”

“I’m strong! I’m very strong!”

Sophia said in a loud voice, thinking that she would never be taken unless she told them in a strong voice, but Joshua pretended not to hear her and ruffled her hair with more strength than Benjamin.

“Benny gets upset when Sofia gets a cold.”

“Ah…”

“So we’ll go on our own. She’s strong, unlike Sophia.”

So only Joshua and Benjamin left and walked to the spire.