YDGMFS CHAPTER 2

‘Thank you, Goddess.’

Rosette silently offered a prayer of gratitude before speaking up.

“Unnie, you know that pink dress you bought last time?”

“Yeah?”

“Can you not wear it for a while?”

“That’s not a problem, but why all of a sudden?”

Rosette quickly came up with a plausible excuse.

“It’s thin, right? If you wear it outside, you’ll catch a cold like I did.”

“Ah, I see.”

“Yeah. Unnie, seeing me sick made me realize how terrible it is to be sick. So, let’s save that dress for spring. And when you do wear it, always go out with me.”

“Why?”

“Because I want to see you looking pretty!”

When Rosette spoke in her most childish tone, Jane burst out laughing.

“You must really like that dress, huh? Alright. From now on, I’ll only wear it when I go out with you. No, actually, I won’t wear it at all. Thinking about it, that dress would suit you better than me. I’ll keep it aside and give it to you when you’re a little bigger.”

“You don’t have to do that.”

“No, I’d rather see you wear it, Rose.”

Hehe, seeing Jane laugh made Rosette’s nose sting again. She hugged Jane tightly once more.

“Unnie, let’s stay together for a while and not go into town.”

Jane gently patted Rosette’s head.

“Our Rose has become more clingy since she got sick, huh? Alright. I won’t go anywhere for a while and stay with you.”

“Promise?”

When Rosette held out her pinky finger, Jane didn’t hesitate to hook her own pinky around it.

“Yeah, promise.”

Jane’s hand, now intertwined with hers, was warm. Unlike the cold, lifeless hand she had held as Jane lay dying, this hand was full of warmth.

Rosette gripped Jane’s hand tightly and made another vow.

She would definitely save Jane.

And unlike in the past, she would avoid the Marquis of Dallas and live happily with her.

* * *

“…Rose.”

“Hmm.”

At the buzzing voice near her ear, Rosette pulled the blanket over her head. Her body felt heavy, and sleep was overwhelming her. She wanted to sleep like this without any interruptions.

But the unwelcome guest didn’t seem inclined to let her sleep.

“Hey, Rosette!”

A loud shout rang out, and before she knew it, Rosette’s blanket was yanked away. With the blanket gone, the cold air made her shiver.

“Wake up for a second.”

Rosette immediately recognized the rough voice of this boy. It was Jude, the kid who bothered her almost every day.

Is he here to bother me again?

Even though she had reunited with him after returning to the past, given the circumstances, irritation outweighed any sense of joy. Her voice automatically turned sharp as she responded.

“What? Why are you waking me up?”

But her voice, heavy with sleep, came out more sluggish than she intended. She could hear Jude laughing.

“Hey, you sound so dumb right now.”

“Did you come here just to make fun of me?”

“No, it’s not that.”

Rosette squinted her eyes and glared at him. Jude fidgeted nervously, watching her reaction.

“Where’s Jane unnie? I haven’t seen her since earlier.”

Rosette yawned and replied half-heartedly.

“She went to the village, yawn, earlier.”

“I saw her going to the village too, but she hasn’t come back yet?”

The nuance in his words felt off. Rosette glanced at the winter sunset, now tinged with crimson, and asked in an uneasy voice. Jane had left for the village when the sun was still high in the sky.

“Jude, how long has it been since unnie left?”

“Huh? Uh, about an hour? No, maybe two hours now?”

It took about 20 minutes for the children to walk to the village and back. Jane had declared she’d return quickly because she was worried about Rosette, so she should have been back by now. There was no reason for her to be out for two hours.

A cold sweat broke out on Rosette’s back. Her heart pounded with a sense of impending crisis.

“Huh? Rose? Hey, Rose! Where are you going?”

Rosette shot up from where she was sitting and started running toward the village. Jude shouted after her, but she ignored him and kept running.

Normally, she was slower than Jude, but somehow she found the strength to outpace him. She hadn’t even put on her shoes, so her bare feet hurt as they hit the ground, but she couldn’t stop.

‘Jane unnie!’

Please, don’t let it be what I’m thinking! But the rising anxiety made tears well up in her eyes, blurring her vision.

Because of that, she didn’t see the small rock on the ground and tripped, falling flat on her face.

“Hey, are you okay?”

A woman helped her up, but Rosette only managed to nod before running off again. When she finally reached the village, the scene she encountered was horrifying.

“Where did you learn to be so wicked?”

“All you know how to do is steal, huh?”

The villagers had gathered in the small square. They surrounded someone and were throwing stones.

From a distance, Rosette couldn’t see who was in the center, but she was certain it was Jane.

Jane, who had been smiling so warmly just two hours ago, was now lying on the ground, covered in blood.

It was exactly the same as the scene she had witnessed in the past.

‘Jane unnie was wearing different clothes, so why?’

Why was this happening again?

Rosette realized it too late.

‘The clothes were just an excuse.’

The villagers didn’t truly believe Jane had stolen anything. They just needed someone to take their frustrations out on.

This year’s harvest had been significantly smaller due to less rainfall. Naturally, some people were struggling to make ends meet.

To those people, Jane, an orphan they considered beneath them, was a source of resentment. Her happiness made them feel inferior, and they couldn’t stand it. The new dress was just an excuse.

If it wasn’t the dress, it would have been the money she had, or the snacks she bought. There were plenty of excuses.

It was only now, after traveling back in time, that Rosette understood. Her plan to protect Jane had been an impossible dream from the start. No matter what she did, Jane would have faced the same fate.

But one thing had changed: Rosette. She wasn’t the same coward who had trembled in fear, hiding from the angry crowd in the past.

Rosette screamed and charged into the crowd.

“Stop hurting my unnie! You monsters!”

“What’s this kid doing?”

“Monsters?”

Ignoring the murmurs of the crowd, Rosette ran to Jane and hugged her. Jane, despite bleeding, was clutching a paper bag tightly.

This, too, was the same as the past. Jane had gone out to buy snacks for Rosette with the money she had saved, just as she often did.

Stupidly, Rosette thought, what’s so great about a little sister who can’t do anything? Tears of frustration fell onto Jane’s bloodied forehead.

“Unnie, open your eyes. Please? Unnie.”

No matter how much she called, Jane didn’t move.

This happiness, regained by turning back time, had been so fleeting. The two days she had spent with Jane were far happier than the 12 years she had lived in the Dallas household. She had thought only happiness lay ahead this time, but how could she have made such a mistake?
It’s all my fault. If only I had known this would happen and held onto Jane…

This time, stones began to fall on Rosette as well. The laughter and angry voices of the people around her were terrifying.

“It’s because of trash like you that the goddess is angry and our crops have failed!”

“If you hadn’t clung to us like parasites, this wouldn’t have happened!”

No. They had never clung to anyone or begged for anything.

The orphanage where Rosette lived was run by the temple and supported by donations from noble families. They had never relied on or begged from these people.

So why were they blaming them?

But Rosette couldn’t argue with them. Right now, Jane was all that mattered.

“Unnie, please, just breathe.”

If she could just breathe, if she was still breathing, Rosette could save her. She wasn’t the helpless, powerless child from the past anymore.

Then, Jane let out a breath she had been holding. Rosette, filled with relief, placed her hand on Jane’s forehead.

‘Wait, is this really okay?’

A sense of unease washed over her. Using this magic might alert the Marquis of Dallas, and she feared he would come looking for her. Her vow to escape him and live happily with Jane felt hollow, as if she would be caught in his grasp once again.

But her hesitation was brief. Even if she had to live in hell, as long as Jane was safe, she would be happy.

Rosette didn’t hesitate any longer and began to channel her mana. The pain was excruciating, like claws scraping her insides, too much for her young body to handle.

Swallowing the metallic taste rising in her throat, Rosette cast a healing spell on Jane.

Light emanated from where their skin touched, and Jane’s wounds began to heal.

The gash on her forehead from the stones, the scraped knees from falling, the cuts on her soles from stepping on sharp rocks—all of it disappeared without a trace.

Her forehead, now clean, looked as if it had never been injured, save for the dried blood. Jane didn’t open her eyes, but her breathing was steady, as if she were simply asleep.

The people who had been watching fell to their knees.

“A saint?”

“The saint has appeared!”

“Saint, please, my child is sick too. Please, just one look.”

Rosette felt a wave of nausea as she watched their sudden change in attitude. She was the same person before and after healing Jane. So why had they despised and scorned her before, yet now revered her?

Why were the same people who had thrown stones at her now showing her kindness?

Just as Rosette was about to speak up, a voice rang out from the entrance of the square.

“Have you no conscience?”

The angry voice belonged to a man. Though not particularly loud, its deep resonance made the square feel crowded.

Rosette flinched at the voice, which felt both unfamiliar and strangely familiar.

When the man pushed through the crowd and approached her, she nearly had a panic attack.

“Are you alright?”

The man with platinum blonde hair and purple eyes, who extended his hand to her politely, was undoubtedly Duke Adrian.

He looked younger than she remembered, but it was definitely him. She could never forget that striking, unique hair color.

And he was the man she had killed with her magic in the past.

At the same time, she thought of Joshua, who had cried before her in her final moments. Why did he come to mind now, of all times?