“You slept the entire way back, and now you’re finally awake. You were sleeping so soundly. I see you’re still as fond of sleep as ever.”

“…….”

“What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell? Shall I have them stop the carriage for a moment?”

Baron Velosi gazed affectionately at Medeia with his light brown eyes.

The carriage rattled and swayed around her.

The coachman urged the horses onward.

She could smell the warm scent of spring sunlight.

“……Uncle. Where are we going……? Why are you here?”

She did not know why she could see again, but she had assumed Baron Velosi had rescued her.

“Where else? We’re on our way home after thirteen years. Serenier must feel unfamiliar since it’s so different from Aragon, isn’t it? I hope you’ll settle in quickly.”

“……What?”

“You have no idea how often I’ve dreamed of this day. Your uncle is overjoyed to have finally found you and to be able to take you back to the House of Heidel.”

‘Wait…….’

It was all far too familiar.

Thirteen years ago, Medeia had been abducted and thrown into the sea, only to be rescued by Princess Charlotte of the neighboring kingdom of Aragon.

Afterward, the shock of nearly drowning erased all her childhood memories, and she remained in Aragon.

Then, at the age of eighteen, she met Baron Velosi and was finally able to return to Serenier.

“It breaks my heart to think that if I hadn’t gone to Aragon as part of the delegation, I might never have discovered that you were Medeia.”

Even his words were exactly the same as those he had spoken that day two years ago.

Even the way he deliberately spoke in Aragonian for her sake because she was unfamiliar with Serenian.

‘Am I dreaming……?’

Medeia pinched her cheek. A sharp sting immediately followed. There was no way all of this was merely a dream.

“No one here will dare mistreat you. You are the legitimate daughter of the House of Heidel. Everyone has been waiting for you.”

Just as she remembered, Baron Velosi was saying exactly the same things.

She blinked several times, but her sight remained clear.

There was no other explanation for what was happening.

She had died and returned to the past.

To confirm it, she asked Baron Velosi.

“Uncle, what…… is today’s date?”

“April fifteenth.”

“……The year 620 of the Serenier Kingdom calendar?”

He looked puzzled, as though wondering why she would suddenly ask such a question, but then flinched in surprise.

“Medeia, until just a moment ago, you clearly had trouble pronouncing Serenian! What in the world is going on?”

Seeing Baron Velosi’s astonishment, Medeia became certain.

She really had returned to two years ago.

“Even when we disembarked at Betiang Port, you could barely pronounce your own name, but now, all of a sudden…… How?”

His bewildered reaction made Medeia realize that she had made a careless mistake.

Because Aragon and Serenier used different languages, Medeia had not learned Serenian until much later.

It was only after living at the House of Heidel for six months that she had finally become able to speak Serenian. Until then, she had communicated with her family in Aragonian.

Medeia had merely returned to the past, but from Baron Velosi’s perspective, she had suddenly begun speaking perfect Serenian, so his surprise was only natural.

“Medeia, you…….”

Medeia tensed when she saw him furrow his brow and trail off in a grave tone.

Had he noticed that something was strange about her?

“You truly are Elze’s daughter! Elze was also fluent in the languages of many countries. That was how she caught Her Highness the Crown Princess’s attention and became her lady-in-waiting!”

“…….”

“And thanks to that, she received a marriage proposal from the Duke of Heidel and became the duchess.”

……Ah.

She had forgotten.

‘Uncle had always been like this.’

He was naturally cheerful and never thought deeply about anything.

She relaxed her tense shoulders and took a deep breath.

Soon, the carriage passed through the main gates of the Heidel estate.

The enormous mansion, visible even from afar, filled her view.

As they passed between the fountains, the scent of daisies in full bloom drifted towards her.

Medeia inhaled the fragrance deeply as she fought back her nausea. Her heart, which had been beating slowly, began to race.

Chirp, chirp.

Hearing the birdsong, she looked up at the clear, cloudless sky.

She dug her nails firmly into her skin.

But her heart refused to calm down.

Soon, she would have to face her family and Daphne.

The thought was painful and she wanted to avoid it.

But…

‘……If God deliberately turned back time to this very day.’

Maybe she was destined to take revenge on Daphne.

Then again, maybe she was simply too excited to return home and be reunited with her family after thirteen years away.

Although she had lived under Princess Charlotte’s protection, there had been several occasions during her time in Aragon when she had nearly lost her life.

Living constantly on her guard and doubting others in order to survive had been exhausting.

Relieved to have finally returned home, she trusted everyone without question and chose to see only the good in them.

Even when Daphne did something hurtful, she dismissed it as unintentional.

She had never realized that Daphne had been insincere from the beginning.

This time would be different, though. Previously, she had been unable to fight back, merely enduring everything until she fell down the stairs and died.

She knew exactly what would happen over the next two years.

This time, she would be able to repay Daphne in exactly the same way for each one.

The carriage began to slow to a stop.

“Come, Medeia.”

Baron Velosi rose first, stepped outside, and extended his hand.

Medeia pressed her lips together, took his hand, and stepped down from the carriage.

Once her feet touched the ground, she slowly raised her head.

“Lady Medeia, we have been awaiting your return.”

She saw servants standing in long lines on either side of her with their heads bowed.

“My ba……!”

Her mother, the Duchess of Heidel.

“……Medeia.”

Her father, the Duke of Heidel.

And then.

“……Medeia, it’s nice to meet you.”

Daphne stood there.

Medeia noticed the corners of her upturned lips stiffening and trembling faintly.

Why had she failed to notice that back then?

Daphne was not pleased by her return.

“My daughter…… My baby…….”

The Duchess of Heidel, who had been clutching her handkerchief tightly and fighting back tears, pulled Medeia into a tight embrace.

Her tears fell onto Medeia’s cheek. Her sorrowful murmurs brushed against Medeia’s ears.

Although she had been unable to understand Serenian at the time, she loved being held in her mother’s arms. She was happy to learn that she had a mother and to be reunited with her family she had lost.

“Dea, my beloved baby…… Mommy was wrong……. I should never have left you alone…….”

Yes. Back then, she had been so overwhelmed by the love in those light brown eyes that she had cried with her.

‘Why won’t you admit what you did? Why do you keep denying it……?’

Now, that memory was overshadowed by the disappointment she had seen in her mother’s eyes.

‘You said you loved me, Mother, but in the end, you loved Daphne more.’

Otherwise, how could she have done such a thing?

After all, she was someone who had given up searching for her biological daughter just five years after her abduction, choosing instead to adopt another daughter.

The trust that they had failed to build during their years apart could not simply become unshakable just because the Duchess was her birth mother.

The Duke of Heidel proved this when he slapped Medeia the moment Daphne collapsed, coughing up blood.

Ultimately, they had abandoned her.

They had chosen Daphne.

Medeia was determined not to be abandoned again. Although the swelling on her cheek had gone down, the stinging sensation remained vivid.

The mark may have disappeared, but the memory would stay with her forever.

Despite her limited vision at the time, she had never forgotten the cold gaze of the Duchess of Heidel.

Medeia took a step back and slipped out of the Duchess’s embrace.

“……Baby? What’s wrong? It’s Mommy.”

The duchess’s eyes widened as though she could not believe that her arms had been left empty.