#.07
Emilia, my older sister, was a scholar who studied magic, divine power, and supernatural abilities.
She was recognized for her skills in Trovancia, but that wasn’t the point.
What I wanted to say was that thanks to her, I often found myself exposed to magical potions.
The potion François poured contained his own magic.
The grape juice darkened in color and began bubbling.
“Emiliaaaa unniieeeeee…”
Calling out to Emilia with a reluctant tone was my way of protesting, but all she did was hold my hand firmly.
“If you drink this, you’ll feel healthier.”
“It doesn’t look like the kind of color that would make me healthier.”
“Medicine that’s good for you always looks unappetizing.”
When I pushed the straw aside, Emilia unnie pulled out a new one, as if she had anticipated it
.
Sniff sniff. I pressed my nose against the grape juice and smelled it.
Instead of a sweet scent, a bitter smell wafted up.
“If you finish this, I’ll buy you anything you want to eat today.”
“…Ugh. Liliana doesn’t want anything today.”
“You’ll feel better if you drink it quickly.”
I frowned and reluctantly took a sip through the straw.
Ugh! Just a tiny taste, and the bitterness made me gag.
Seeing that I wouldn’t drink it willingly after the first taste, Emilia picked up the cup herself.
Then, holding me tightly, she pressed the cup to my lips.
“Ugh, no, I don’t want it!”
No matter how much I shook my head, it was useless.
Emilia unnie firmly held my jaw and forced my mouth open, tilting the cup.
The bitterness flooded my mouth, flowing down my throat, making my nose feel numb.
I struggled desperately to escape, but Emilia skillfully held me in place.
“Stop it, I hate this!”
“Just bear with it a little longer. It’ll make you healthier.”
“I don’t care about being healthy! Let me gooo!”
“Liliana, just a little more, okay? It’ll be over soon.”
It was the first time my sister pleaded with such a guilty expression.
So, I tightly shut my eyes and forced myself to swallow, but two gulps were my limit.
“Enough! I’d rather get an injection!”
As my struggling intensified, Emilia’s grip on me tightened.
Tears welled up in my eyes, and my nose started running.
Just before I burst into full-blown crying, the cup was finally taken away.
Sniffling, I pounded on Emilia’s arm with all my might, but she didn’t even flinch.
“I hate you, unnie!”
Angry to my core, I stood up and moved to the next table, taking my cake plate with me.
I dramatically flopped down, burying my face in the table and sniffling.
If I’d known it would taste this bad, I would’ve pretended to have a stomachache, even if it meant getting scolded for lying.
It was so disgusting I felt like crying. Tears dripped down uncontrollably.
“Liliana, I’m sorry. Don’t be mad, okay?”
“Hmph!”
When Emilia sat next to me and patted my shoulder, I shrugged her hand away.
I turned my head sharply in the opposite direction.
At that moment, a large blueberry strawberry chocolate cream cake was placed in front of me with a soft clink.
My shoulders instinctively flinched.
François crouched on the floor to meet my gaze.
“I’m sorry, Liliana. Can we make up? I’d be so happy if you ate this and forgave me.”
Ah. My resolve wavered under his earnest gaze. But no, I wouldn’t let my anger dissolve over some silly juice.
When I didn’t soften my expression, François gestured subtly with his hand.
A squirrel made of light appeared, wagging its tail as it danced in front of me.
Its tail swayed gently with every wiggle of its hips.
The squirrel brushed its tiny nose against mine, as if to nuzzle me.
Although it was a mere illusion with no real texture, it felt ticklish.
Heehee. A small laugh escaped me before I realized it.
When I stroked its striped back with my finger, the squirrel leaned into my touch.
It was warm, as if its yellow light carried a gentle heat.
“Let’s forgive each other and make up with François and your sister. Can you do that?”
“…Hmm.”
It definitely wasn’t because the dancing squirrel melted my heart.
And it absolutely wasn’t because François brought his ridiculously handsome face close enough to make my heart flutter.
No, it was because Emilia unnie took on the role of the bad guy for my sake.
I had to understand her intentions.
“…F-Fine!”
At my reply, the squirrel climbed onto my finger, scurried up my arm, and perched on my shoulder.
It hopped around for a bit before pecking my neck with tiny kisses.
Then it disappeared like a soap bubble, leaving me feeling oddly disappointed.
Just as I was about to pout, François cut a piece of cake with a fork and popped it into my mouth.
The combination of strawberry, chocolate, and soft chiffon cake chased away the lingering bitterness in my mouth, replacing it with sweetness.
It was so delicious! My legs kicked happily in the air.
Watching me, big sis Emilia gave François a peculiar look.
He chuckled and explained to her while sitting beside me.
“The potion was artificially structured to resemble divine power, so it had to taste awful. I thought she’d cry, but Liliana, you’re really brave!”
“Yup! I’m a brave kid!”
Feeling proud from the compliment, I tilted my chin up confidently.
Seeing this, François burst out laughing.
“It’s true! I’m not scared of anything!”
“That’s right, our youngest is the best.”
Emilia, my older sister, patted my head and resumed her conversation with François.
I needed to monitor them to prevent them from getting too close, but after being so startled by the sudden situation, all I could think of was eating some sweet cake to calm myself down.
Even if the two of them grew closer, their personalities were so different that nothing would likely come of it. There was no need to worry.
“It’s your first time absorbing magic, so your body might show some slight adverse reactions as it adjusts. If she feels nauseous or develops a fever, just give her medicine and let her rest well.”
“Understood. How long will you be staying in Trovancha?”
“Not sure. I’m here for work, so it won’t be for long.”
“Then, at least while you’re here, please check on Liliana once a week.”
“Alright. A contract is a contract. Besides…”
As I stared longingly at the plate, having scraped the cake clean to the last crumb, I felt someone’s gaze and lifted my head, meeting François’s golden eyes.
Unlike the smiles he had given me before, his current expression was serious and composed.
Without his smile, François looked colder than I had imagined, devoid of emotion, almost like a glass doll.
“I just want Liliana to grow up healthy.”
He concluded with a meaningful tone and stretched out his hand to pat my head.
His polished smile seemed mechanical, and I instinctively clung tightly to my oldest sister’s arm.
Although it was undoubtedly a warm spring, the surrounding air felt oddly chilly.
***
“What are you doing, little unnie?”
Upon returning home, I slightly opened Regina’s door and peeked my face through the gap.
Regina was standing before her open wardrobe, laying out clothes on the bed.
She picked up each outfit, stood in front of the mirror, and checked how they looked on her.
“Hey, come here, youngest.”
“Huh?”
My sister alternated holding two dresses against her body as she asked me,
“Which one looks better? This one or this one?”
“Um…”
My pupils quivered. This was harder than meeting the male leads from the original story.
‘The blue dress has a floral pattern, and the red one has a butterfly pattern.’
I, Liliana Berchio, faced an incredibly serious challenge six years into my life.
You need to answer this carefully.
Of course, Regina wasn’t someone who would scold me over such a question.
But she is my beloved sister, I wanted to give the most earnest answer possible.
“Uh… everything looks good on you!”
“That’s not helpful.”
“Who are you meeting?”
The youngest unnie, passing by on her way to the restroom, flung the door open and asked.
“A guy.”
“You’ve been on countless dates, so why are you agonizing over clothes now?”
The youngest crossed her arms skeptically, leaning against the doorframe.
Her reaction made sense since, unlike the oldest sister and the youngest, who showed little interest in romance, Regina was quite fond of dating.
With her honey-blonde curls and blue eyes—a rare combination in Trobancha—along with her striking beauty, Regina was incredibly popular.
Men trying to win her favor often bought me snack sets to curry favor with her.
Normally uninterested in relationships, today Regina was behaving completely differently. She twirled her golden curls around her finger as she answered.
“He seemed really great. Handsome and seemed to have a good personality.”
“Do you want to catch him because he’s great, or are you interested in him romantically?”
It was a sharp question, but Regina seemed delighted as she grinned mischievously.
“I’m interested in him because he’s great!”
“Oh.”
The youngest, raising an eyebrow in surprise, pulled a white dress from the wardrobe and handed it to Regina.
“You look best in this. Go with this one.”
“Oh.”
This time, I gasped in admiration.
Seeing the younger twin sister, who was seven minutes younger than Regina, suddenly act like the eldest was impressive.
It was the first time I’d seen Regina prepare for a date the day before, so my curiosity bubbled over.
“Who is this guy, Regina? Someone I know?”
“I’m meeting Leo, who we met the other day.”
“What?!”
I clapped a hand over my gaping mouth.
Leo? Leopold Baltrahein? One of the original story’s male leads?!
I had been trying to avoid any of the tragic twists from the original plot, like the 0.001% chance of war or despair, by staying on good terms with everyone. But now a date?!
This development was beyond my expectations… Could this be huge?
“Who’s Leo? What kind of guy is he?”
“You wouldn’t understand, Miss Forever Alone.”
“What?! Hey, tell me who he is! Why does the youngest know, but not me?”
“Just wait. If things go well with Leo, I’ll introduce you then.”
The twins started bickering.
I stomped in place, bursting with excitement.
In the original story, the empire and Trovancha went to war, with Leo and my older sister Alice as the commanders of their respective nations.
Leo was the one who defeated Alice. But if Regina and Leo hit it off, wouldn’t Alice stay safe even if war broke out?
Moreover, unlike Marius, who became emperor with blood on his hands, or François, who suffered from madness, Leo was a pure-hearted man through and through.
This is an opportunity!
Leo with Regina? That’s something I could feel safe about!
“Yay!”
Overwhelmed with joy, I flopped onto my sister’s bed.
The two of them would make a perfect pair, and from what I’d seen last time, they seemed interested in each other.
Leo kept stealing glances at Regina, and she kept tucking her hair behind her ear with a shy smile.
“If it’s Leo, I approve!”
“What?”
Regina laughed as she looked at me. At that moment, the youngest came over and put her hand on my forehead.
“Huh?”
“Youngest, take some fever medicine. You’re burning up.”
“What?”
“Up we go.”
The youngest picked me up.
Now that I thought about it, my head did feel a little warm.
The problem was that after taking the strawberry syrup-flavored fever medicine, my fever spiked.
By dawn, I was crying in pain, and Regina had to carry me on her back to the neighborhood clinic.
• ❁ • ❁ • ❁ •By Esraa• ❁ • ❁ • ❁ •
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