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Episode 9
In truth, Tiya had often heard harsh words from Shurka.
Each time, she would pretend to be fine and smile bravely, but later she would add awkwardly to herself, ‘My dad… he’s still just a kid.’
‘I can clearly see she gets hurt. That act of being strong…’
At that moment, as if lost in thought, Tiya asked:
“Winter, I’ve been thinking. I think we need more allies than just Dad.”
For once, a proper thought?
Conveniently, Winter had also been thinking about finding new allies.
<For example?>
Tiya replied as if she had been waiting for the question.
“Lev oppa and Rodion orabeoni.”
After returning home, Tiya realized something she hadn’t noticed before:
Her mother had died of illness, her father buried himself in work after losing his emotions, Lev stayed shut in his room, and Rodion, who claimed to have extended his stay at the Academy, never showed his face at home.
‘Our family is totally broken.’
At a time when the family should unite to overcome Vladijev’s crisis, they could barely even face each other.
“We need to bring Lev oppa and Rodion orabeoni to our side and prepare together!”
<Rodion might be useful, sure. But Lev? No.>
“Why? Because I fought with Lev oppa? So it’ll be hard to make him our ally?”
A week ago, Mia, Tiya’s new personal maid, told her that Lev’s condition had improved.
Excited, Tiya had rushed to his room and finally met the brother she had missed so much.
“Lev oppa!”
“Tiya…?”
His platinum curls were as messy as ever, and his honey-colored eyes made him look like an angel statue at a temple entrance. Everything about him was exactly as she remembered—perhaps too much so.
Only now, he seemed smaller, almost shrunken compared to her memory.
“Uh, oppa, why did you shrink?”
She blurted it out without thinking. Perhaps that was a mistake.
Lev’s brow furrowed, and he responded coldly:
“What about you? You call yourself Tiya? You got uglier.”
“I don’t talk to ugly kids. Get lost.”
Thus ended the siblings’ reunion after four long years.
Since then, Tiya had tried to visit him multiple times, but each time—
“Oppa, can you show me your spirit?”
“Do you think a spirit master is some kind of clown? Stop bothering me and get out.”
“Later, let’s go to the North together! I’ll show you Sasha—my pet—”
“Ugh, I hate fur-shedding animals. Get out.”
“Oppa!”
“Get out.”
“I didn’t even say anything yet…”
She was thrown out again and again.
<Sure, things are bad between you two. But that’s not the real problem.>
Because despite being kicked out every time, Tiya would forget about it by the next day and knock on his door again.
“Ah! I get it. My oppa’s like a shut-in mushroom!”
<Well, you’re not wrong…>
Lev barely left his bed, let alone his room—he didn’t seem like he’d be much help.
But that wasn’t why Winter objected.
“Then why?”
Tiya asked as they reached Lev’s door.
Winter folded her arms, studied Tiya for a moment, and seemed to decide something.
<Because he’s going to die soon—>
“Say that again. My little sister is what?”
A cold voice, one Tiya had never heard from her brother before, cut Winter off.
Startled, Tiya hid behind the door, peeking inside.
The servants had gathered in front of Lev’s bed, seemingly unaware of Tiya’s arrival.
One maid stammered:
“Your illness reminded me of my younger brother… He was also chronically ill, but he miraculously got better. So surely, for you too—kyaa!”
Crash!
In an instant, Lev had hurled a glass at her. It shattered nearby.
“Clinging to that nonsense? What if your brother miraculously dies tomorrow—what will you say then?”
Something in Tiya’s head snapped.
Before she realized it, she had leapt onto the bed like a hungry black bear and grabbed Lev by the collar.
“How dare you act so rough toward a lady?! If you’re a man from the North, you can’t behave like this!”
Lev’s startled face twisted with irritation.
“Let go! And don’t stand on my bed with your shoes, you savage!”
“You’re the savage! Throwing things is wrong! You should be kind to people!”
“Why should I?”
“Huh…?”
His shameless answer left Tiya speechless.
“I’m going to die before I even grow up. So what’s the point of being kind to anyone?”
Tiya blinked.
Die?
“Why would you say that?”
No one answered—neither Lev nor the others.
The air had dried, becoming tense and heavy. Fear crept into Tiya’s voice.
“Oppa… are you really sick?”
Lev clicked his tongue and looked away.
“Melody. Get her out.”
“Wait, oppa!”
Tiya clung to his sleeve, but Lev shook her off roughly.
“You’re annoying. Just leave already!”
Thud!
“Aaah!”
His flailing elbow struck something—Tiya’s nose.
Blood trickled between her fingers as she cupped it. But worse was yet to come.
With teary eyes, she suddenly spat something white into her palm.
Lev’s face went pale.
“No… that’s not… is that—”
“My tooth…”
<Her baby tooth.>
“It fell out.”
Blood welled up from the empty socket.
“Melody! Get the doctor—or a priest!”
Lev jumped from bed, his face drained of color.
* * *
“Say ‘ah,’ please.”
“Ahhh.”
Tiya opened her mouth wide as the doctor inspected her teeth. After a moment, he smiled in relief.
“It was just a baby tooth. Came out cleanly, too.”
“Hear that, oppa? It came out clean. Maybe you’ve got a talent for pulling teeth!”
Grinning, Tiya looked at Lev, who stood by her bed, restless and anxious.
Her missing tooth made her smile look rather silly.
<The kid was already a bit dumb. Now she even looks dumb when she smiles.>
Winter clicked her tongue, and Lev gave a small chuckle.
Then his smile vanished, his brow furrowed.
“Now get out.”
