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Chapter 2
A few days passed, and I finally understood the situation I was in.
At first, I thought it was a dream—or one of those hallucinations people supposedly see right before they die.
But that idea quickly disappeared.
“Rowena, our beautiful daughter. Give Mommy a kiss on the cheek! …Oh my, good job! Our little princess can do anything.”
The woman who called me Rowena—who seemed to be this body’s mother—looked at me with such deep and gentle love that it was impossible to dismiss it as an illusion.
So this was neither my dream nor my past.
It couldn’t be.
I had never experienced anything like this before, and my imagination was nowhere near vivid enough to create something so realistic.
And that wasn’t all.
“Eunice. Rowena.”
“Ah, Calips. Did everything go well?”
“More or less. I think I’ll have to go again next week… How about you? Anything happen?”
“Hmm, nothing except that our daughter is far too adorable. Come on, Rowena. Daddy’s home. Shall we say hello to him?”
“…Rowena, it’s Daddy.”
“You should hold her too. …Hmm, you’re even steadier than I am.”
“…She’s so tiny.”
“Haha. Kizeph and Werner were both so big, that’s probably why she feels even smaller.”
The man carefully took me from the woman’s arms.
Although he looked stern, there was no denying the affection in his eyes as he looked down at me.
Watching the couple quietly chat while holding me in his strong arms…
“Ah, seriously! It’s always Mom and Dad who get to play with Rowena—ugh!”
“Werner. Is that any way to speak to your parents? And I told you not to run in the hallway.”
A loud series of footsteps echoed through the house.
A small boy appeared first, followed shortly by a slightly older one.
Anyone could tell they were brothers just by looking at them.
Seeing them, the woman gently stroking my cheek smiled brightly.
“My boys are here. You two missed your mother so much that you came running?”
“…Mm.”
“Oh? It looks like our second son only wanted to see the baby.”
“N-No! I wanted to see you too, Mom…”
His voice became quieter and quieter.
Even from my point of view, it wasn’t very convincing.
The way he kept secretly glancing toward me made it even more obvious.
“Hmm. Your face says otherwise… Oh dear. Your father and I are so hurt.”
“No, I…”
“Oh dear. Mommy’s so sad I might cry.”
“…Uuu.”
Only after the boy called Werner finally burst into tears did Eunice stop teasing him.
“Hahaha! My little crybaby. Come here. I’m sorry. Mommy teased you too much, didn’t she?”
“Eunice…”
Calips, who looked as if he had already given up on stopping her, watched Werner sniffle in Eunice’s arms before crouching down.
Apparently, he wanted to show me—his youngest child—to him.
The moment Werner looked at me, his tears stopped as though they had never existed.
I quietly blinked as he suddenly leaned his face close to mine.
That was all I did.
Yet Werner smiled brightly.
“Hehe… Rowena is so pretty.”
“It’s Rowena, not Roena.”
“Mm… Rowena.”
“Kizeph. Come over here too.”
At Calips’ call, the eldest son, Kizeph, walked over from the doorway.
…Both brothers really take after their father.
Their father’s genes must be incredibly strong.
I was thinking something so pointless when…
Despite having rushed in recklessly earlier, Kizeph reached out with an incredibly careful hand and gently touched my cheek.
“…Your cheeks are so soft.”
The eldest, who looked almost exactly like his quiet father, softly murmured those words.
Meanwhile, the lively younger brother grabbed the hand that had barely even touched me, silently roared with excitement, and ran wildly around the room.
Just from that, I could tell how much the two brothers loved their little sister.
That love had probably been inherited from the parents who looked at them with such warm eyes.
Inside the body of this newborn baby, I quietly watched the happy family.
I thought…
One day, this will end.
But one day became a week.
A week became a month.
And before I knew it, half a year had passed.
“Goodness! Honey! Boys! Rowell rolled over!”
“Waaah!”
“…A genius.”
When I finally managed to roll over in my baby’s body, the entire family celebrated.
“Ab… Ma… Ma…”
“Rowell, me too! Say ‘big brother’ just once! Please?”
“If that’s too hard, saying my name is fine too.”
“Op… br…”
“…Brother, did you hear that?”
“…I heard it.”
When I became frustrated enough to babble something that barely resembled words, everyone smiled as though nothing in the world could make them happier.
Those days passed again.
One day.
One week.
One month.
By the time my birthday celebration arrived…
I finally accepted it.
This wasn’t a dream.
It wasn’t an illusion.
The beloved youngest daughter whom this warm family called Rowena…
…was me.
Several years passed.
Now, only one month remained until my seventh birthday.
*
“…Miss.”
“…”
“Miss Rowena?”
A familiar voice broke through my wandering thoughts.
“Huh…?”
I slowly raised my head.
Jenna stood before me, looking slightly worried.
Only then did I remember that I had been on my way to lunch before getting lost in thought.
“Sorry, Jenna. I was just thinking about something.”
“It’s alright. But what were you thinking about so seriously?”
What was I thinking about…?
It was something I couldn’t tell Jenna—or anyone else.
So I used one of my special skills.
Its name was:
Smile vaguely and change the subject.
“Hmm… I was wondering what today’s lunch menu is. Yesterday I saw Uncle Hugh preparing a piece of beef this big.”
I deliberately lowered my voice and whispered as if sharing a secret.
Jenna’s eyes immediately widened.
“Oh my! When did you see that? The head chef said it was top secret from even you, Miss!”
Hmm.
Works every time.
“It’s a sec~ret. If I tell you, Jenna, Uncle Hugh will find out.”
“Miiiss… That time was really an accident.”
“Nope. I still can’t trust you…”
I shook my head and even added a dramatic sigh.
Jenna looked disappointed for a moment before bursting into laughter.
She especially loved this kind of playful teasing.
I watched her for a moment before smiling and continuing down the hallway.
Actually, unlike what I’d told Jenna, I had been swallowed by memories of my past.
More specifically…
The memories of when I died.
And the memories of first beginning my life as Rowena von Valentine.
Whenever I thought about the past, I became so absorbed that I often forgot my surroundings.
That’s why I try to think about it only when I’m alone…
But it’s surprisingly difficult.
Controlling your thoughts was never easy.
Especially in the body of a young child who was easily influenced by impulses and distractions.
Maybe it’s because I saw Isid yesterday.
Isid.
In a way…
…my one and only friend.
I silently repeated his name to myself.
After spending my first year denying reality, I had gradually settled into life as Rowena von Valentine.
In just one more month, I would turn seven.
That meant I had already lived six years and eleven months in this new life.
During that time, I learned two things.
First…
The current era was 500 years after my death.
Second…
I had been reincarnated as the descendant of one of my friends.
Before I died, I had four close friends.
Aside from the Black Dragon, Isid, the other three were companions I met in the allied army that fought against the dark mage.
Kyle.
Dayna.
Jin.
The original owner of my new name, Rowena von Valentine…
…was a descendant of Jin von Valentine, living five hundred years later.
“Roel. Are you alright?”
“…Kyle, Dayna. You really shouldn’t fight in public.”
“Roel, Isid. Please eat your dinner.”
Thinking of Jin naturally brought back his calm, gentle voice.
He didn’t talk much.
But he was incredibly considerate and kind.
Because Crown Prince Kyle and Saint Dayna were both just a little crazy in their own ways, Jin had always been the one forced to mediate between them.
Becoming the descendant of someone like him…
…felt incredibly strange.
Perhaps it was because I now carried my friend’s blood.
Or perhaps because someone who had laughed and talked beside me had suddenly become a person from five hundred years ago.
Who could ever have imagined something like this?
I swallowed a familiar sigh, took Jenna’s hand, and walked down the stairs.
Tap.
The moment we stepped into the lobby…
“Whoa!”
With a loud shout, something suddenly leaped right in front of me.
