After baby Dambi fell asleep from exhaustion, the translucent curtain was drawn aside, revealing a man leaning against the fireplace.
His turquoise eyes, filled with immense magical power, looked at the small, fluffy creature and saw a girl.
Silver hair that shimmered with a red tint at the ends and white, round ears. Small, slender hands and smooth feet that hadn't yet gained weight.
A clever and lovely child who once called him ‘Father.’
Honest, straightforward, and sometimes so daring that it made his heart drop...
He had found her again.
‘No, I haven't completely found her yet.’
He couldn't let his guard down. Kiraxis glanced at the dice-shaped jewel in his hand.
A dreadful object that had driven his precious daughter-in-law to her death. In this life, he had retrieved it in advance.
It was his first regret for not doing so before.
- You need to live long to see the outcome. Who would have thought you'd use a 'wish' for someone else?
Kiraxis's shadow quivered and gradually rose, forming a human shape.
With two large horns protruding from its forehead, it took on a human form, but felt far from human.
- Are you sure that's the wish you want? It's one of the three.
“I don't care. Make it happen.”
- As you wish. I will change everyone's memories as you desire.
The jewel in his hand clattered roughly.
With this, he could eliminate his second regret.
‘The past where she came in as a maid clung to her persistently.’
Within the mansion, it didn't matter if she had such a past. He could protect her so that no one would look down on Florin.
But once she entered society, someone dug into Florin's past and used it against her. Eventually, it was revealed that she was a spy, and Florin faced great humiliation.
Kiraxis regretted not erasing the past with his power.
If he had, that small child wouldn't have had to cry secretly from being hurt.
‘Yes, at first, I brought her in because she was useful.’
Holding the weakness of being a spy, she couldn't betray him, and she couldn't act recklessly. Being from the Holy Empire, she had no family or friends in the Magic Empire, making her easy to isolate and monitor.
He needed a 'doll' to play the role of his daughter-in-law, and that's why he brought in Florin, who caught his eye. In fact, if not Florin, he would have brought in anyone with similar conditions.
‘...But then.’
That small child showed him so many different emotions.
He had believed he could never experience fatherly love in his lifetime. But whenever he looked at Florin... strangely, he felt that he might have such human emotions.
‘In the end, I went to such lengths because I couldn't bear to lose her... This could be called fatherly love.’
Kiraxis's lips curled into a silent smile.
- It's done.
Tick.
At this moment, Florin's past was erased from everyone's memory except for him and Florin.
Now, no one in this world would remember Florin as a spy or a maid.
‘Florin is simply a child I brought one day. That's enough.’
His resolve was firm, and it didn't matter if no one, not even Florin, knew. He didn't turn back time for recognition.
* * *
The next day, I had a hearty breakfast of warm milk, goat cheese, and savory bread that Nina brought.
Feeling full, I felt like I could finally live.
“Don't talk while eating.”
Kiraxis, who was fastening his cufflinks beside me, handed me a handkerchief.
I couldn't help but flinch whenever he reached out, but I didn't avoid him. If he intended to harm me, he would have done it already.
‘Besides, his beauty raises the global standard of handsome men...’
Dressed in a clean suit with his hair slicked back, Kiraxis was dazzling. It made me wonder if I'd ever get used to that face.
‘But I mustn't be fooled. In the original story, Kiraxis was a madman who even made an army out of his dead kin's corpses.’
And he hunted down his relatives, who were infatuated with Raine, one by one. Cold and detached, without feeling any emotions.
‘He might kick me out soon.’
Or the family meeting today might decide not to accept me.
‘The family meeting will probably determine if I can stay here.
In the original story, the Driblyane family made major decisions through family meetings. So deciding to take an albino as a daughter-in-law would naturally be done through a family meeting.
‘Given my current situation, the best thing is to stay here as a daughter-in-law.’
But if that doesn't work out, I need to stay as long as possible to save money for independence and learn something. So I can survive no matter what happens outside.
But this room doesn't even have a single piece of jewelry.
‘Live a little luxuriously! How about some jewelry in the cabinet?’
Then I could secretly stash one under my pillow.
“Oh. Your official name is Florin.”
“Eek!”
At that moment, I heard a voice very close by, as if he knew I was badmouthing him.
Creaking, I turned around to find Kiraxis leaning over my head with a very calm expression.
“I found the person from the Holy Empire who placed you here. I tore him apart and fed him to the dogs, so you don't need to worry about them approaching.”
“...Squeak!”
Did you cause havoc in the Holy Empire overnight?
‘He's indeed a villain! So scary, so scary!’
While trembling inside, I forced myself to act composed. Kiraxis continued as he scrutinized me.
“I also killed the maid who handled your documents, so no one knows your origin now.”
“Yes, yes.”
“But I don't like that name, so I'll change it to Florin. From now on, your name is Florin.”
Wow, so high-handed...
But I couldn't protest, having been caught by him from the beginning.
Well, the name is pretty, so I don't mind.
‘Florin.’
It was the first name I'd been given in this world after seven reincarnations.
Somehow, my chest felt tight, and I scrunched my nose, but the villain shattered my sentimentality.
“There's a wrinkle in your meatball. Have you lost some juice over the past few days?”
“Yikes! I'm not a meatball! I mean...”
I yelled, forgetting who I was talking to, then quickly realized and lowered my voice to a murmur.
Kiraxis chuckled and continued his nonsense.
“We need to feed you more nutritious meals.”
Huh, will I get meat for dinner?
That would be nice.
Thanks to the saint who stole the seasons, the ecosystem had long been destroyed. Herbivorous beastkin couldn't farm, herbivores were starving in the fields, and naturally, carnivores were disappearing these days.
The Driblyane family was a huge household, so they didn't have major problems, but with many mouths to feed, the usual diet wasn't extravagant.
So I had no complaints about a meatless breakfast.
Compared to the scraps of bean peels I managed to get from the maids, it was a feast!
‘Well, it would be nice to have something sweeter to eat.’
Like cookies, chocolate, or cake.
I love desserts, but since all the bodies I reincarnated into were tiny, I had to abstain from desserts forcibly.
A water strider can't eat cookies.
Crunch.
At that moment.
“...”
A sweet smell?
Detecting a scent of sugar, butter, and flour in perfect harmony, I twitched my nose and turned around to see Kiraxis fumbling in the air.
A creaking sound came from the air as if an oven was being opened, and soon...
“Cookie...?”
A freshly baked, steaming cookie appeared on his palm. Then he placed the precious thing in front of me!
“Eat. You need to gain some weight.”
“Is it... mine?”
He raised his eyebrows slightly.
“I've cast a spell to cool it down, so it should be firm. You can eat it right away.”
“Cookie...”
Unable to believe I was given a cookie, I stared blankly and held it to my chest very, very carefully.
Gulp. The buttery aroma made my mouth water.
After hesitating for a moment, I opened my mouth and cautiously took a small bite.
“!!!”
Tears welled up in my eyes.
“D-Delicious...”
“I'll give you more if you finish that.”
“Dessert...?”
“Yes. But listen to me while you eat it.”
Nodding, my tail wagged involuntarily.
‘Maybe Kiraxis is actually a good person.’
I'm definitely not an easy ferret.
I won't be swayed by a cookie, no way.
I started nibbling on the cookie carefully, fearing it might crumble. Watching me, Kiraxis's eyes seemed to soften for a moment.
