âI need knowledge about this place. It will take too long to learn and adapt one by one. AndâŚ.â
As I was about to continue talking, one side of my chest suddenly felt numb.
While crying deep until dawn, Iâve thought a lot of things. First of all, I mourned for my short 25 years of life, and I thought for a long time about Rubette, who was willing to die for me.
And right now, Iâm experiencing different emotions that I have never felt before.
I feel so sorry for treating her like a stalker, whom I should have given a word of comfort and a sense of debt for her who gave me a new lifeâŚ
âYou mentioned before that Rubette lived under persecution for 45 years, right? Then she learned that she would die and turned back time. But was life so hard that she even thought about suicide? Even though she was still young?â
ââŚMaybe.â
As soon as I woke up from Rubetteâs body, I remembered the faces of those siblings who mocked her.
âI can only guess, but listening to it doesnât make any sense. Whatâs the reason why Rubette was so envious of my life? And what led her to think of suicideâŚâ
ââŚâŚâ
ââŚI want to sympathize with her.â
Perhaps it was an unexpected request, Wisht looked startled, but he soon rubbed his chin as he mumbled.
âThen how are you going to make a wish? Should I add the knowledge of this world and assimilate all of Rubetteâs emotions? So that means youâre going to make two wishes?â
I frowned and stared at the Wisht.
âYouâre quite a merchant, arenât you? Do you have any welfare benefits for me? Like can you provide free knowledge of the world?â
âIâm sorry. Iâm just following the rules.â
While Wisht resolutely shrugged his shoulders, I sighed and pondered.
âThen you donât have to give me two wishes, just let me remember Rubetteâs memories for the 45 years of her life, give it to me as if it was mine.â
âAhaâŚ.â
âHer knowledge, her memories, emotionsâŚ. Everything that she saw, heard and felt. Then I can solve everything I need in just one wish.â
Wisht, who was silent as he nodded at my request, soon narrowed his eyes at me.
âItâs definitely an efficient way to spend a wish, but youâll regret it.â
âBut why?â
âArenât you saying that you want to absorb Rubetteâs life as if it were yours? Itâs like youâre going to be a Rubette herself, can you handle it?â
I hesitated for a moment at the frightening words, then nodded.
âTo that extent, of course. Rubette even died for me.â
ââŚWell, thatâs good. Then you would be getting a good nightâs sleep and you would have everything after you woke up.â
And then after that, Wisht smiled and swung his finger into the air, and I fell into a deep long sleep.
Since then, it has been a long series of dreams.
* * *
Rubetria Diollus.
She was born with a golden spoon, or rather a diamond spoon, in this world of strict social status and perhaps she possessed a more splendid life than me.
She was born with a good bloodline and undying wealth, she also came from a family who were protected by spirits, by the age of 15, she would gain a spirit that would grant any wishes.
And not only thatâŚ.
Her father who was the head of the Diollus family, boasts power comparable to that of the Imperial Family, her eldest brother, who was already acting as the head of the family at the age of 14 years old and the deputy head of the Imperial Order at an excellent young age.
And she also had a second brother, who was outstanding like her older brother.
Unfortunately, all of that did not prevent Rubetteâs predestined misfortune.
Because she couldnât properly use the things that she already had and at the age of 45, due to complications from being overweight, she was diagnosed that she had a limited time to live.
After she learned that she would die eventually, it became the biggest tragedy of her life, which was supposed to happen at the end, thinking that something more unfortunate would happen.
âThatâs when she decided to use her first wish, Rubette turned back time.â
In the face of death, Rubette returned to the past. In order to live a life that was full of regrets again.
But the Rubbette who decided to return back time and decided to live a healthy life decided to commit suicideâŚ..
âIt was abuse.â
There was an underlying cause that made her unable to spread her wings in the first place.
I raised my hand as if asking a question.
âExcuse me, Wisht. Can I make a wish to kill someone?â
âIn this world, there is no wish that I cannot grant, except to bring the dead back to life.â
I was puzzled by Wishtâs plain answer.
âThen why didnât Rubette make a wish to get rid of those garbage?â
âItâs probably because sheâs weak-minded.â
ââŚItâs fun.â
Contrary to the words that I said, it was not a pleasant feeling at all.
Rubette and her family were not the only ones who were living in the Duchy of Diollus.
Sadly, there are a lot of demons that were living together with them, and Rubetter has been mentally abused by them all her life.
The level of abuse inflicted on her was the worst. It was a memory that I guessed and accepted to some extent, but even so, I clenched my teeth in anger.
It reminds me of Ricky, who was slapped by me yesterday and ran away saying, âIâm going to tell my mom!â
âMolga Diollusâ
Molga Diollus is the âMotherâ that the child spoke of. The mother of those twin siblings, and the person whoâs been controlling the Diollus as a Duchess all her life and the main culprit behind the abuse of Rubette.
She is a young woman who was the former lover of Duke of Diollus, the mistress of Rubetteâs grandpa, and eventually took the position of a Duchess.
A slender beauty with gorgeous blonde hair, blue eyes like the sea, and pale white skin.
âOf course, the appearance and personality are very different.â
With Rubetteâs father, the present Duke of Diollus, they are in a stepmother and son relationship on paper. But they were only one year apart.
âTheyâre putting up a show as if they are not a (*)dysfunctional family.â
(T/N: (*) (figurative) The state of a family where there is no order or bond among the family members. )
Feeling frustrated, I rubbed the top of my chest with the palm of my hand.
After the dream, not only information about them but also all the memories and emotions that Rubette had for them, it was not easy for me to calm down.
âMolga, that woman is going to make my life harder in the future. Since I have two wishes left, wouldnât it be okay to just get rid of them?â
I shook my head after thinking seriously.
Besides, it would be a waste for me to use it for that. Rubetteâs revenge would be sufficient even without the help of Wisht.
âAre you going to make another wish?â
I shook my head to Wisht, who asked me, secretly with some hope.
âThen, what are you going to do from now onâ?
âWellâŚâ
I raised my body while contemplating.
âWhat I need the most right now is.â
âWhat is it?â
Instead of answering, I picked up a white tablecloth from the table in the center of the room and spread it out on the bed.
And right away, I opened the first drawer of the bedside table. There were about ten individually wrapped colorful macarons.
âTo add it up, Rubette devoured snacks and ate non-stop.â
I took out all the macarons and moved them onto the open tablecloth.
Candies and chocolates in the second drawer and bite-sized cookies in the third drawer were all transferred on the tablecloth.
And then I headed to the next place.
ââŚâŚ.â
The Wisht, who was standing tall caught my eyes, a memory of Rubette suddenly came to mind.
âStop crying. If you donât want to be teased, just make a wish to me. Isnât it better to be pretty and slim?â
âNo. Once I start asking for wishes, I would start getting greedy. If that would happen, then I would use up my three wishes in no time. Then that means you would leave me forever. I donât want that to happen, it would break my heartâ
The reason why Rubette never made a wish like a fool in her entire life. Actually, it wasnât because she didnât want to waste her wish for anything.
âYouâre going to disappear once Iâve used all three wishes.â
ââŚâŚ..â
Wisht suddenly stopped and looked at me quietly.
âAfter using up all of her three wishes, Wisht would disappear. Thatâs why Rubette saved her wishes with all her might.â
Wisht existence, who was the only friend to Rubette, because she was a loner and aloof, thatâs why I understand the reason why she endured not using all of her wishes.
And maybeâŚ
âRubette must have been a very precious friend to this alien.â
I couldnât even imagine how Wisht felt when he had to grant her wish to die instead of me.
âIâm sorry. It wasnât my intention, but you have lost a very special friend.â
I apologized in a low voice.
ââŚâŚ.â
Wisht looked down at me quietly for a while, soon turned his gaze, and said.
ââŚ.No. It was Rubette who wanted to peek into your life from the beginning, and it was me who granted that wish, so you are not responsible here.â
Feeling exhausted, I sighed and headed across the room to the other closet.
When I opened the drawer, I saw huge, flattering dresses that fit Rubetteâs size.
As I slipped my hand through the dress, and then I saw a bunch of snack packages that were the size of my forearm.
I took them out and said.
âHey, Rubette is not determined to commit suicide, because you werenât precious to be left alone. It was because she was in pain by living in a world that is beyond her control.â
ââŚâŚ.â
I couldnât see Wishtâs face who was standing behind me, but even if I didnât see his face, I could imagine what kind of expression he would have.
âEven though Rubette returned to her past life with full determination, her kind personality was still there. She didnât have that coldness to punish or take revenge on those people who tormented her, and couldnât resist having the same life as before.â
Nothing changed just because she turned back time. Rather, the fear of living the life that was like hell once more bothered her the most.
âSighâŚâ
I sighed and opened the drawer below the closet. A bag full of Rubetteâs favorite chocolate cookies.
I went back to bed with an armful of diet obstacles that I had found in the closet, I poured it on the table cloth and said.
âAnd, there is another thing that you are mistaken about.â
âWhat is it?â
I looked straight up Wisht and continued my words.
âRubette didnât want to live as a pretty and slim woman. She just wanted to live happily.â
ââŚâŚ.â
âThe only reason she longed for that life of a pretty, thin woman was because she thought that the reason why she was unhappy was because she was ugly and fat. The demons in this house made her think like that.â
â⌠Right.â
âIf It werenât for the abuse, I think she wouldnât be stressed because of her appearance.â
As I said that, I bent down to look as I reached under the bed.
ââŚWow, I couldnât believe this.â
As I swept out all the rustling candy bags that touched my hands, I felt a burden. I picked them up one by one and moved them to the tablecloth.
âOkay, is that all?â
I quickly wiped the sweat from my forehead, grabbed the corner of the tablecloth, and tied it tightly. The size of the sealed snack package was truly enormous.
âI owe Rubette, so I will listen to Rubetteâs wishes. She wants to live a happy life, so I will do whatever she wants.â
âOkay. I get itâŚâ
Then Wisht asked, who suddenly brought his face to my side and looked at the snack pack.
ââŚWhy are these wrapped around? What are you going to do with them?â
âWhat do you mean? I need to lose weight?â
When I frowned and answered Wisht, who was asking a very obvious question, then he snorted.
âThatâs contradictory.â
âWhat?â
âA little while ago, didnât Rubette just wish for a happy life? And you said that she wouldnât be happy even if sheâs thin, right?â
âWell, thatâs right?â
âBut the reason she wanted to lose weight itâs because you donât want to live in the form of a fat Rubette.â
âWellâŚâ
Then, I put my index finger in front of Wisht and waved it.
âEven if the standard of happiness is not about appearance, I still have to lose weight. Starting today, Iâm going on a diet in hell.â
âWhy?â
âWhy do you keep asking the obvious?â
I shrugged and said.
âObesity is the root of all diseases. I donât want to die due to complications of being overweight at the age of 45.â