CHAPTER 1: I Intended to Live an Unmarried Life

1. What Has Been Reversed and What Has Not (1)

She had been lost in trivial thoughts about how remarkably beautiful her hands had become since earlier. It was also strange how her family members, whom she hadn’t seen up close in years, all looked oddly younger.

“Do you know how shocked we were when a child who was down with a cold suddenly fell into a coma and wouldn’t wake up?”

Sage stroked Saena’s head while letting out a sigh of relief. His voice seemed slightly choked with emotion, showing his genuine relief.

“…A cold?”

“You were suffering badly from last year’s cold, and then this happened.”

What nonsense is this about a cold?

Her sickly appearance couldn’t have possibly looked like just a cold…

What exactly is going on here?

“It might feel unfair, but you aged a year while lying down. You’re nineteen now.”

This was when Saena’s confusion, which had already been growing, increased even more.

“…What did you say?”

“A year has passed already.”

Seeing Saena’s dumbfounded expression, the Count scolded Sage.

“Why would you say such things to someone who just woke up?”

“Ahem, you’re right. I spoke without thinking.”

“It’s alright, dear. Whether it’s your debut or whatever, do as you wish, just stay healthy.”

“…Debut?”

One mountain after another. What nonsense is this about a debut at this age?

Saena hurriedly walked to the vanity. And upon seeing her reflection in the mirror, she was so shocked that she collapsed.

“Saya!”

“She must be weak, Baron!”

“Yes. I’ll quickly prepare some medicine that won’t be too harsh on an empty stomach!”

While the Count and Sage rushed to her fallen form making a commotion, Saena remained dazed. Because the reflection she had just seen in the mirror was shocking itself.

‘I’ve become younger…’

It wasn’t the appearance where her bones protruded due to weight loss.

Her cheeks, still retaining baby fat, were soft and smooth like a peach. Her fresh skin was that of a young girl.

A clear and soft face without dark circles or signs of fatigue.

That’s right. Her terminal illness hadn’t been cured; Saena had definitely died then.

And for some unknown reason, she had returned in time.

To the summer of her nineteenth year.

* * *

Here’s what she learned afterward:

Last autumn, Saena had fallen asleep with the window open and caught a severe cold.

‘That did happen.’

She remembered.

In her previous life too, around when she was eighteen, she had been quite ill, losing so much weight that they had to redo the fitting for her debut dress.

But the development after that was a bit strange. The fact that she got a cold was the same, but just when her fever seemed to break, she didn’t wake up.

Baron Gody’s examination showed that it was the same physical responses as when sleeping, but he couldn’t understand why she wouldn’t wake up, so they tried everything. Though it was all useless.

After more than a month passed like this, Count Debov and Baron Gody each brought in every expert they knew to examine Saena. Of course, there were no results.

The strange thing was that her body remained unchanged from the state when she fell asleep. They said neither her hair nor nails grew at all.

As if someone had temporarily removed her from the flow of time.

Usually, when someone wakes up after lying down for so long, their muscles and joints become stiff and bones weaken, requiring long-term nourishment and exercise to move normally again.

But since Saena was moving normally right after waking up, Baron Gody couldn’t hide his amazement.

“Still, just to be safe, you should start with easily digestible foods. I’ll tell them to wait three days to see your condition before introducing tough meats or hard foods.”

“That would be best, Baron.”

Before her death, Saena couldn’t keep down anything she ate. Since she’s already weak, her inability to digest food made her deteriorate rapidly.

It had been a long time since she felt any appetite. But now she felt like she could eat a whole cow. However, she couldn’t ignore the doctor’s advice, so she nodded.

“Thank goodness. I’m really so glad you’re awake.”

Sage and the Count hugged Saena once more and instructed the maid about her meal.

“You just woke up, no need to strain yourself by going down to the dining room. I’ll have it sent up to your room. Eat and rest well.”

“Yes. Thank you, Father.”

The family’s incredibly affectionate attitude felt unfamiliar yet heartwarming. Saena swallowed the lump in her throat as she replied.

“…Father? Why are you…”

“What?”

“Ah, never mind. Rest well.”

While the Count and Sage were leaving Saena’s room, Baron Gody packed his items in his medical bag and bid farewell.

“I’ll be taking my leave now, Miss. I plan to stay nearby for a few days, so please don’t hesitate to tell me if you feel any discomfort.”

“Yes. Thank you.”

“Not at all.”

Afterward, Saena took a bath in a tub filled with warm water.

It had been a very long time since she had received such attentive care from maids while bathing. In her memory, at least.

Then, returning to her room, she ate soft bread, stew made with rich broth, and the additional medicinal decoction that Baron Gody had sent up for nourishment.

“Ah, could you go downstairs and call Yuri for me?”

Saena spoke to the maid who was loading the finished dishes onto a trolley.

Actually, this was what she wanted to say the most after regaining consciousness.

“Yuri? There’s no maid by that name here, is it a servant?”

“…What?”

But the maid’s response was a bit strange.

“You don’t know Yuri? My brother.”

“…Young Master? But the Young Master’s name is…”

The maid tilted her head before saying she understood and left.

Saena was equally perplexed. She knew this maid had worked for the Debov family for quite a while, so how could she not know her young master’s name?

While Saena felt something was odd, she couldn’t think about it more deeply.

Whether it was due to the exhaustion from the shock of regression and reunion with her family, or the effect of the medicine, she fell asleep quickly without being able to wait much longer.

* * *

In the early morning, with the moon high in the sky.

Saena suddenly opened her eyes.

Having gone to bed in the early evening, she seemed to have woken up early.

‘Ah…’

This is… Right. I’ve traveled back in time.

Her memories triggered a chain reaction, bringing back the last scene before she fell asleep.

‘…Yuri.’

I didn’t see Yuri. Did he already come and go? He should have been the very first to come see me…

Since she was too alert to go back to sleep, Saena decided to take the initiative herself.

Carefully stepping down to the floor, Saena walked carefully on the plush carpet to avoid making noise as she approached the door.

Creeak.

Perhaps because it was the quiet of night, the door sound seemed particularly loud.

Saena carefully closed the door and stepped into the hallway. The corridor outside the room was dark, but not frightening.

‘How long has it been since we met…’

His room was downstairs.

Yuri used the same floor as Brother Sage. Saena descended the stairs secretly while checking her surroundings. She didn’t want to wake everyone unnecessarily.

She just wanted to see Yuri. Just Yuri.

Tap tap tap.

The small footsteps soon reached the familiar door. Bang! She opened the door without knocking, with a somewhat petulant forceful gesture. Hoping to startle him awake.

“……?”

Huh?

Saena went back out to the corridor to check the room’s location.

Third room from the end of the corridor.

‘This is it, right?’

Even though the inner rooms of the corridor were larger, Yuri had insisted on this room.

The official reason was that he liked the view from this room’s window best, but Saena knew the real reason wasn’t that.

It was because there was a large tree right outside the terrace, making it easy to sneak out of the room.

Saena entered the room and looked at the tree outside the terrace. Under the moonlit night, the large tree still stood in its place.

But Yuri wasn’t there.

“Why is the room empty?”

Had Yuri changed rooms during some time she couldn’t remember? Or was he out?

Something felt off about him being out too. This room had the unique coldness of a place that hadn’t been used for a long time.

‘Where did he go?’

Looking around the room, Saena opened the terrace and went out.

There was an area on the wall near where the tree connected where they would write their secret codes. They weren’t sophisticated codes, more like playful simple ones, but they both enjoyed it.

On nights when Yuri would sneak out by climbing the tree, he would leave simple coded messages for Saena to understand, indicating his destination or when he would return.

This was because Saena would often secretly visit him late at night.

But…

“…It’s gone.”

There were no traces of the codes.

No, there were traces of some codes, but only Yuri’s parts were missing.

If they had been erased, shouldn’t they all be gone, or all remain?

The crooked shapes written on the wall remained incomplete, with only half remaining.

‘…What’s going on?’

Saena began to feel uneasy.

It was like a dream, yet not at the same time,

A strange sense of dissonance…

Saena rushed out of the room.

The earlier carefulness of her tiptoeing was already gone.

She went into the corridor and flung open the door to Yuri’s adjacent room.

…Empty.

She opened the next door. And the next.

Bang! Bang! At the sound of doors opening and closing, Sage came out from the innermost room.

He had come out startled by the echoing noise in the midnight corridor, only to be more shocked seeing Saena frantically opening and closing doors.

“…Saya?”

Saena kept opening and closing doors as if possessed. Her expression was full of urgency.

Seeing Saena’s unsettling expression, Sage approached slowly with an anxious face.

“Saya, what are you doing at this hour?”

She seemed not to hear his words.

Saena continued flinging open doors, determined to check every room on this floor.

“Where… where did he go?”

Saena muttered. Her tone carried an urgent tearfulness.

Sage finally grabbed Saena’s wrist as she was about to open another door. Only then did she seem to notice him, looking at him startled.

“…Brother?”

“Yes, Saya. What’s going on?”

Saena grabbed him urgently and asked.

“Where did Yur, Yuri go?”

“…Yur?”

“Why is Yuri’s room empty?”

Sage was momentarily dumbfounded.

“Who is Yur…?”

“…Is this a dream? Was it all actually a dream?”

“Saya. This isn’t a dream, and you’re causing a commotion in the middle of the night.”

Saena looked up at Sage with a confused expression. Her expression made even Sage feel confused.

“Yur… who are you talking about, kid?”

Sage had been paying careful attention to every move his sister made since she finally woke up after lying down for so long.

This talk about dreams might be some kind of side effect from the long coma.

Thinking he should first find out who Yur was, Sage asked gently. However, hearing his question, Saena looked at him as if he were crazy.

“What do you mean who’s Yur, what’s wrong with you?”

“……”

“–Ah! You two are playing a prank on me, aren’t you?”

Sage’s expression hardened for a moment.

How could they be playing any prank when he didn’t even know who this ‘Yur’ was…

“Tell me quickly! Where is that guy hiding?”

Sage quietly held both of Saena’s arms and met her gaze.

“Saena.”

“……”

“Just who is this Yur you’re talking about? Tell me.”

Seeing Sage’s overly serious expression, Saena felt the great anxiety she had pushed aside coming back.

She swallowed hard and barely managed to speak.

“Really… I’m going to be angry, Brother. Stop it……”

Sage’s expression remained unchanged.

“–Yuri Debov. Your younger brother, Yur!”

Saena shouted, her voice nearly crying now. However, Sage’s reaction was as if he had no idea what she was talking about.

“Saya. What dream did you have? You and I are the only siblings in the Debov family.”

“What are you saying! My twin brother, Yuri Debov is here!”

“Haah….. Saena. I don’t know why you’re having such a misunderstanding…, but you’re not a twin. The Debov family has only you and me, one son and one daughter, no other children.”

Saena’s arms, which had been clinging to Sage, fell limply. Her eyes, bulging as if they might pop out, showed genuine shock.

“……”

This can’t be.

In this world she had returned to,

Her twin brother ‘Yuri Debov’ had vanished without a trace.