Chapter 4 Part 4: Their Childhood

The cold winter approached quickly. The ripe fruits fell, and the bare branches swayed in the wind.

The women began to wear thick clothes, and the men wrapped themselves in the fur of animals they had hunted or bartered for, like trophies.

Two men in the village were warming their hands in front of a fireplace.

“So, how’s this winter treating you?”

“It’s not easy. We don’t have much firewood.”

There had been a lot of rain last fall, so they couldn’t gather much usable firewood from the forest.

“I’ll have to dip into my savings.”

“That’s a big problem.”

“It is.”

But the two men didn’t look too gloomy.

“Well, this winter will pass too, just like it always does.”

Soon, the two villagers began to talk about the future. How someone in the village who was an old bachelor was getting married next spring, and how they would test out a new hunting tool next spring.

Winter is that kind of season. A time when the long year finally comes to an end. A time for everyone to reflect on the past and make new plans.

Of course, this also applied to Rosa, and it had been five years since she was possessed into this world.

“Whew-“

White breath rose in the air. Looking at the scenery outside the carriage window, Rosa fell into thought.

They say that even a dog living near a schoolhouse for three years can recite poetry, and even the most awkward of people become close after half a year in society.

But it had been five years.

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that she was now more accustomed to the body of the girl, Rosa Anencia.

Her figure had become more feminine, and her shoulder-length hair now reached her waist. She hadn’t cut it partly because it was a hassle, but also because she thought it was pretty and didn’t see the need to cut it.

People are creatures of habit.

She cared about her appearance and tried not to look awkward.

From her looks to her personality and even her 말투.

Many things had changed in five years.

Of course, it wasn’t as if time had flowed smoothly.

The fact that she was possessed into a novel, and into a girl’s body at that. There was a time when she couldn’t accept that fact and struggled.

Such feelings of depression usually came suddenly, without warning, and couldn’t be prepared for.

The realization that this was just a world inside a novel. The realization that she was a fake even in this world.

Whenever she thought like that, she would actually fall ill for a few days. Her whole body would burn with fever, surprising even herself.

Thanks to that, she became even more faithful to the character setting of being sickly.

‘Well, that’s all in the past.’

Now, Rosa didn’t think everything was so bad.

‘When you think about it, I’m a person who has been possessed.’

There were definitely things she could use if she wanted to.

For example, the knowledge that an expensive mine would be discovered on an island at some point in the future. Things like that.

But she didn’t want to risk it all for a chance at a dramatic life change. The protagonist of such information would undoubtedly attract a lot of attention.

‘Let’s just live quietly like now.’

For now, the most important turning point was not far away.

Her marriage to the second prince, Cayron Winslet. If she could avoid that, she would be free.

‘It’s weird to marry a man when I have a man’s memories… And a marriage I don’t even want…?’

Rosa was determined to avoid that at all costs.

So, she had to prepare for the worst. It was a book she had read more than ten years ago. Rosa barely managed to recall a fortuitous event that wouldn’t be noticed by others.

It happened earlier, before she got on the carriage.

“Here you go.”

She held out an envelope with a red seal.

A middle-aged woman with graying hair checked the amount inside the envelope and was surprised.

“Really, are you really giving us all of this…?”

“Yes. Please use it for the children.”

The woman looked at Rosa as if she were an angel descended from heaven. Then, she accepted the envelope.

She closed her eyes tightly and her hands trembled.

“..Who are you? Who are you to give such a large sum of money…”

“It’s just an investment.”

The woman gasped. She was the director of this orphanage. And the children were starving. She had gone around asking for donations, but all she received was the cold shoulder from nobles and merchants.

But the noble lady in front of her?

She was wearing a mask. Even so, her smooth, white jawline hinted at the beauty beneath the mask. Her silver hair, sparkling like platinum in the firelight, was captivating in itself.

“Oh, and please give this to a boy named Louis.”

A handkerchief embroidered with a single violet.

The woman took the embroidered handkerchief and asked, “How can we repay you…?”

“You’ll know when the time comes.”

Thus, Rosa snatched away one of the original female lead’s fortuitous events.

Later, a playwright from this orphanage would become incredibly popular.

Louis Dice ফোর্স. He portrayed not the ideal romance, but the hardships and sorrows of reality, and paradoxically, the pursuit of pleasure and enjoyment in such situations.

He was so popular among commoners and nobles alike, and he also played the role of a sub-male lead, which was why Rosa remembered him.

In the novel, Louis never forgot the donation he received as a child. He never forgot the warm helping hand that saved him and his friends at the orphanage when they were at their coldest and hungriest.

Later, he dedicated his most successful play, <Oh, Mademoiselle>, to the female lead.

Coincidentally, the orphanage wasn’t far from the count’s territory, so she had donated the allowance she had saved up for a few years. Allowance, or “navi” as it was called here, was a budget usually given to the lady of the house or her children.

She knew. She knew that she was being materialistic.

But so what. It wasn’t like she wanted to be possessed.

‘So it’s okay to take this much.’

Having a backup plan for the worst-case scenario was quite reassuring.

Looking out the winter window, Rosa smiled. It was the winter when she was around seventeen.

Eckshire in winter was truly beautiful. A small village of about twenty households. The scenery of snow piled up on the stone walls and roofs. It looked like a small, pretty doll village in a music box.

In that white landscape, a girl was waiting for someone. Her slender, white legs swayed with the movement of the swing.

“Hmm..”

She furrowed her brow slightly.

The girl seemed to be deep in thought, her gaze fixed on the ground. Actually, even this waiting was natural now.

‘Since when was it?’

That she started waiting for the boy like this. No matter how much she thought about it, she couldn’t come up with a clear reason.

“Caron.”

What exactly did that name mean to her?

Having recently visited the orphanage, she was reminded of Caron’s childhood.

At first, it felt like looking at a lost baby animal. Like she needed to take care of him, play with him, and guide him because he seemed so fragile.

Perhaps her occupational habit as a youth counselor had kicked in.

‘It definitely felt like that…’

She approached the boy out of pity. In a way, she might have projected her own situation onto him.

At that time, Rosa felt isolated from the world, so the boy who appeared in such a shocking state seemed to be in a similar situation to her.

The red blood that flowed from his young body, the marks of abuse all over his body. But nothing seemed as desperate as the emotion in the boy’s eyes.

In fact, anyone who saw the boy at that time would have offered a helping hand.

So Rosa reached out first, and although it was a slow process, the boy gradually opened up to her.

So what was it now?

Now, something was clearly different.

Both the boy and she in this world. They had grown up in the same time and changed. Honestly, Caron didn’t seem to need her help anymore.

‘The problem is…’

As she spent time with him, Rosa felt like her mental age had also become younger. At some point, she started to feel like Caron was truly her friend.

In other words, she also genuinely enjoyed playing with Caron.

‘It also feels like I’m regaining my childlike innocence…’

More than anything, Caron was a kind of proof to her.

It might be an arrogant thought. That Rosa had changed the boy.

But seeing the boy gradually change, Rosa felt her existence in this world. She felt like she was living a real life, not just following the predetermined flow of the novel.

Crunch-

She heard the sound of footsteps on the snow. Rosa turned her head towards the sound.

“Oh, long time no see.”

They were meeting again after two months. Of course, she was happy to see him. Seeing Rosa’s beautiful smile, Caron hesitated for a moment before taking another step.

“Have you been well?”

Caron nodded.

“You?”

“I’ve been fine.”

The next moment, Rosa’s gaze swept over Caron’s entire body.

“You’re wearing the clothes I gave you.”

A brown hoodie that covered his neck. Pants made of several layers of thick wool. It was a gift she had given Caron last winter, thinking of him.

“You must like them.”

Rosa chuckled. Caron didn’t deny it and sat down next to her, brushing the snow off the seat.

Thump-

The swing swayed. It was cold enough to see their breath. Caron looked at Rosa’s flushed cheeks and slowly opened his mouth.

“Why were you waiting outside?”

“Because I like it. The snow.”

The forest covered in white snow. Rosa looked at the scenery with an excited expression and asked him, “Hmm.. What should we do today?”

“Whatever you want to do.”

Caron said, as always, just one sentence.

The boy and girl, meeting after a long time, talked as if nothing had changed.

As if she expected it, Rosa smiled.

“Really? Okay.”

She seemed to have something in mind.