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Chapter :01
Chapter 1. Already the Seventh Time
“Gasp—haa, haa….”
Aria jolted awake, panting. A moment later, she abruptly sat up and began touching her entire body as if checking something.
“Miss, you’re awake?”
At the familiar voice, she turned her head. A black-haired girl who had just opened the door came into view.
“Lowell…?”
“Yes, Miss.”
“Don’t tell me… again….”
After scrutinizing the girl—her personal maid and longtime friend—Aria’s face twisted completely.
Startled by Aria’s piercing gaze, the girl flinched. As if shoved by someone unseen, Aria suddenly leapt out of bed.
“Miss! Be careful—!”
Aria dodged the girl trying to stop her and went straight to the mirror. Her movements were smooth and natural, like someone who knew exactly where the mirror was.
“…This can’t be.”
Her voice trembled as she stared at her reflection.
“…Lowell, what year is it now?”
“Imperial Year 478.”
“…No.”
All the strength drained from Aria’s knees. Perhaps the faint hope she had clung to was finally gone. She sank to the floor, her body slack.
‘Miss… this is already the seventh time.’
And as the black-haired girl, Lowell, lifted that limp body into her arms, she, too, thought the same—far too familiarly.
It had been a boring life. No particular talents, nothing she especially wanted—just drifting along.
There was only one thing that made that life enjoyable: writing novels.
She wasn’t a popular author, but reading the comments left on what she wrote in her spare time after work made her smile, even while juggling a job and writing.
Maybe—even if life stayed boring—she could have lived quite contentedly with just that hobby.
…Bang!
No—she would have lived contentedly. Truly.
If only there hadn’t been a truck that crashed into the bus she was riding home from work.
Lowell took her fallen mistress’s hand, put some strength into it, and helped her to her feet, then supported her back to the bed. Only then did she hand her a steaming cup of tea.
“I don’t want it.”
Aria muttered dully, staring at the teacup with empty eyes.
“You should drink it and get some rest.”
Lowell soothed her with practiced ease. After a few rounds of back and forth, Aria finally accepted the cup.
“Please rest. I’ll wake you at mealtime.”
After tidying the disheveled bedding, Lowell said that and left the room.
…Click.
“Haa….”
Outside the closed door, Lowell leaned against it, hand still on the doorknob, and looked up at the all-too-familiar ceiling—spotless and white. A sigh escaped her reflexively.
“It’s already the seventh time.”
Facing this tiresome ceiling again, her thoughts naturally drifted back to the very first time she came here—when she knew nothing at all.
“Pardon? You were hit by a carriage?”
Back then, people told the confused Lowell that she had amnesia from the accident. Well, if everyone said so, she supposed that must be it. At the time, she accepted it that simply.
“Lowell, what year is it now?”
But when Aria’s first regression occurred, Lowell finally realized where she was.
This was the world of the novel she had written, “Aria of Return.” And she—the author—had reincarnated as the female protagonist’s personal maid.
Her first work, Aria of Return, had been a so-called impulse write—something she dashed off as inspiration struck. Just as the story was getting interesting, circumstances forced her to abruptly stop serializing it, which made it particularly memorable.
Honestly, at first she was simply thrilled. Reincarnated into the novel she wrote! Being inside the story meant she could see with her own eyes the ending she’d never managed to write.
There was more that made her happy, too: a kind protagonist, friendly and cheerful companions, and a work environment with a guaranteed work-life balance.
For someone who’d lived the grind of a Korean office job, this world was perfect.
If only Aria—the regressed protagonist—would reach a splendid ending, everything would be complete.
“Lowell, what year is it now?”
She soon realized something was wrong, though.
“Lowell! What are you doing? Come help tidy up the garden!”
“Yes! Coming!”
At the head maid’s call from the end of the corridor, Lowell hurried over. As she drew closer, the smell of food wafted over—she must have just come from the kitchen.
“The miss is still asleep, right?”
“Yes. I think she’s tired.”
“Well, she did come back very late from the market district yesterday. Lowell, you should at least stop her when she gets stubborn. Our miss has always been lively—it’s nothing new.”
“…Ah, right.”
As she descended the stairs with that reply, Lowell’s steps slowed for a moment. Lost in thought, she spoke again.
“Head Maid.”
“Hm?”
The head maid turned and looked up at Lowell, who stood two steps above her.
“Have you ever felt like the same things keep repeating?”
“What?”
At the sudden question, the head maid narrowed her eyes and stared at Lowell.
“What are you talking about? You’ve been acting strange since earlier. You usually snap to attention, but now you look like your mind’s somewhere else.”
“Haha, it’s a joke. Just a joke.”
As the head maid’s gaze grew sharper, Lowell quickly averted her eyes and hurried down the stairs, forcing the brightest smile she could—like someone who’d just made a genuinely funny joke.
“What a strange joke to make.”
The head maid soon laughed it off and gestured for Lowell to hurry, then led the way down again.
As usual, only the miss and I remember.
The familiar, sigh-like thought flowed through Lowell’s mind.
Later, while helping in the garden, Lowell took out a paper she’d hidden in her clothes and unfolded it in a secluded corner. It was something she’d written bit by bit with a pen she’d kept hidden while pretending to work.
“So, if I summarize everything so far…”
‘Declaration of remaining single—failed. Marrying someone else—failed. Entering the academy for professional training—failed. And so on….’
“Everything fails.”
Just rereading it made a headache surge.
When the first regression happened, Lowell hadn’t worried much about Aria’s future.
After all, true to being the protagonist, Aria forged her own path through repeated timelines.
She avoided meeting the lover who would kill her to steal her magic, and distanced herself from her biological brother who used her magic without permission.
Of course, she also made sure to learn magic to protect herself.
But the result was… failure every time. The moment Lowell let her guard down, Aria met death and regressed again.
With each repetition, Lowell could only watch as Aria grew more and more worn down.
“And the timing keeps getting earlier.”
Lowell slowly traced the numbers written on the paper.
“…This won’t do.”
After staring at the page for a long while, Lowell brushed off her skirt and stood up, resolve shining in her eyes.
“Lowell? Where are you going?”
That night, as Lowell stood by the garden’s back door keeping watch, a familiar voice called out.
“Ah! You scared me… Miss, you’re not asleep?”
Startled into nearly shouting, Lowell hurriedly lowered her voice while glancing around.
“I felt like taking a short walk. And you?”
“Ah, I’m….”
Caught off guard by the immediate question, Lowell fidgeted with the edge of her cloak, searching for an answer.
No matter how many times time repeated, finding the right words in a sudden situation was never easy.
“Um… a date.”
She said it, knowing it would sound awkward.
“A date?”
“Yes, I’m meeting someone tonight….”
Perhaps because it was unexpected, one of Aria’s eyebrows arched.
“You had a lover at this point?”
“Yes!”
Lowell exclaimed with wide eyes. Realizing she’d reacted too strongly, she lowered her voice again.
“I have a lover now. We’re meeting today.”
She emphasized now on purpose, to erase the doubt in Aria’s eyes.
“…Really? Well, if you say so. My memories have been getting mixed up lately—they come and go. Sorry.”
Thankfully, instead of pressing further, Aria stepped back and rubbed the shadowed corner of her eye.
“You must be tired.”
“Go on. I’ll tell people you were with me in my room.”
“Thank… you.”
“Wait.”
Just as Lowell turned away, Aria caught her wrist. Lowell froze in surprise.
“Yes?”
“Stay a moment.”
Lowell watched as Aria slowly reached out. Perhaps it was Aria’s firm expression—without realizing it, Lowell squeezed her eyes shut as the hand drew closer.
“…?”
But Aria only gently placed her hand against Lowell’s left cheek.
When Lowell opened her eyes, she felt a faint warmth spreading from Aria’s hand.
“When did you get hurt?”
A cool, refreshing scent—Aria’s healing magic flowed into Lowell’s cheek.
“Ah… I think I got scratched while tidying the garden earlier.”
“Don’t get hurt, Lowell.”
At those warm words, Lowell looked up at her mistress—the protagonist, Aria. Kind green eyes slowly traced over Lowell’s face.
“…Yes, Miss.”
Moved by the sincerity conveyed, Lowell was momentarily speechless, but managed to nod.
“Right. The sky was always this beautiful at times like this.”
Apparently satisfied with Lowell’s reply, Aria murmured while looking up. Following her gaze, Lowell saw a cloudless sky and a single crescent moon.
“Have a good time.”
After leaving those words, Aria turned toward the garden entrance.
“…….”
Watching her retreating figure, Lowell took a deep breath in and out. Then, as if sealing her resolve, she murmured:
“Miss, your sky will stay beautiful from now on.”
