Chapter 2

***

Since Robain had visited the mansion, it probably meant that the plot of the novel was now beginning.

In other words, it meant that Julianne was now about to be entangled with the male lead candidates.

And from among those candidates, I had a plan to choose the best one to be by Julianne's side.

If not, she was going to be with me forever.

Honestly, deep in my heart, I did want the two of us to stay together, but…

“Lili, don’t you want to play with your dolls?”

Julianne gently tilted her head and asked as her soft, pink hair cascaded down, reaching her waist.

‘Her hair’s the same color as mine, but why does it look prettier? Is it because my hair’s curly…?’

I gently grabbed a strand of her hair, then nodded as I opened and closed my fist.

“Uh-huh, it’s no fun.”

I was too old to play with dolls.

Besides, the eight-year-olds where I used to live played with a new technology called smartphones.

Since I was in a fictional world anyway, how nice would it have been if it was the kind of world where I could use smart devices?

“Then, what should we play instead...?” Julianne murmured as she thought deeply.

I furrowed my eyebrows along with my sister and quietly observed her.

Her delicate, long eyelashes and the emerald eyes beneath them formed a perfect harmony.

Julianne took after our mother's side and had her emerald eyes, while I, on the other hand, had silver eyes.

Since Lilianne Blanchet wasn't properly featured in the novel, I knew the least about myself out of everyone there.

However, the original Lilianne's personality or her abilities weren’t that important anymore.

After all, I had become her.

As I thought that way, I couldn’t help but feel sorry for Julianne. She’d practically lost her real little sister, now that I thought about it.

“…I’m sorry, Lia.”

Even though I hadn’t wished for any of this, I still mumbled and apologized to her.

Anyways, It wasn’t like that I could just tell her that I wasn’t her real sister, so she should just forget about me and leave me to live on my own. After all, I was still just an eight-year-old.

“Huh? Is something wrong, Lili?”

Julianne's eyes widened as she looked down at me.

I could clearly tell that she was worried about me from the look she was giving me.

I shook my head slowly.

Even if she asked what was wrong, I could never tell her. I didn’t want to end up getting kicked out of the house.

She might even think something was wrong with my head, and then she’d get even more overprotective and make me go through strange treatments. I didn't want that.

I had no choice but to keep my mouth shut.

“I-it’s nothing...”

"Like it’s nothing. Tell me what it is."

Julianne grabbed my shoulder gently as she spoke. She still looked incredibly beautiful at that moment.

‘It’s nothing, Lia. I'll just be as good to you as much as the old Lilianne...’

...But in reality, Julianne hadn’t really spent much time with Lilianne before I possessed her. Since she was fifteen, she had spent the past five years back at the academy.

Originally, the academy stuck to three-year-long courses, but Julianne continued her studies in graduate school for an extra two years.

That was probably the reason why she treated me so well.

In the end, her sister, whom she had been separated from for five years, had been bedridden for several months after their long-awaited reunion.

I would’ve felt the same if I was in her situation.

But thanks to that, I was able to live as myself without anyone discovering that I wasn’t the real Lilianne.

Moreover, strangely enough, my personality must’ve been quite similar to Lilianne’s.

Both Julianne and our parents were rarely at the mansion due to their busy schedules, so it wouldn't be unusual for them not to notice. However, even the mansion's servants didn't seem to find me peculiar.

Of course, I was too loved to think that I was being neglected.

"Actually, I didn't eat all my carrots earlier."

Anyway, now was the time to relieve the worry on that pretty face, so I purposely smiled wider and confessed to Julianne.

As soon as I did so, she pulled on my cheek gently and burst out into laughter.

‘Ah, she smiled!’

My sister truly looked prettier when she smiled...

"I told you not to be picky, Lili."

"Ah…"

Wait a minute, was she pinching me even harder? Turned out my sister was even strong as well...

"Promise me you’ll eat them next time, okay?"

Shortly after, Julianne kissed my cheek and brightly smiled.

I wondered if I would be able to smile like that in the future.

In the real world, I was supposed to be about as old as Julianne.

If I had taken the role of a villain instead, would we have become good friends?

Of course, being her sister wasn’t that bad at all.

It was just a problem that I felt self-hatred when I acted like a kid sometimes.

‘Well, I’m eating well and living a good life, so maybe that's all that matters...’

"Shall we go outside and play hide-and-seek then, Lili? You used to love playing hide-and-seek. You always used to ask me to play it with you all the time before you got sick. But you haven’t brought it up these days…”

Julianne tilted her head curiously as she asked. I guessed that we used to do things like that together.

‘She'll probably worry that I’m sick if I say I don’t want to now...’

"Sure!"

After a moment of thought, I vigorously nodded.

Living as an eight-year-old was tough…

***

‘I... What am I even doing at this mental age...?’

I curled up inside the bushes of the garden, letting out a quiet sigh.

I’d never intended to be that enthusiastic, but I’d already come so far when I realized it.

There was no doubt that my inner child had surged up within me.

"I should’ve just told her I don’t like hide-and-seek anymore."

Or maybe I should’ve told her that I had a headache.

However, last time, when I pretended to be sick to get Robain away from her, Julianne had caused a fuss…

She even tried to call all the physicians in the capital from what I remember. She’d gone completely pale at the time.

That was too much, even thinking about it again.

My shoulders slightly trembled at the thought.

It would be better to only pretend to be sick as a last resort, so I couldn’t simply use it as an excuse to avoid playing hide-and-seek.

Regardless of my personal preferences, kids at this age would probably be playing games like tag or hide-and-seek.

In an era without any advanced technology, what else was there to do besides going out to play?

...Even if it did seem a little strange, maybe it would be better to tell Julianne that I wanted to read a book now.

In that case, I would definitely have to read a fairytale book. It wouldn't be appropriate for an eight-year-old like me to read novels or professional books in the mansion. I might be treated like a genius if I did such a thing.

‘Should I just be a genius and become the protagonist?’

...That’s what I’d thought at first, but I wasn’t smart enough to do such a thing.

At best, I had the brain of a twenty-year-old, but everyone would figure out that I wasn’t actually a genius by the time I was fifteen.

I didn’t want to become a genius who suddenly turned dumb again. No way I was going to have such a character trait.

"Here I come, Lili!"

Soon enough, Julianne's voice echoed from afar.

It was like the clear sound of bells, spreading throughout vast plains. Even her voice made her sound like she was the protagonist.

I grabbed the end of my skirt, afraid that my clothes might stick out of the bushes.

I kept being serious for no reason, likely due to my determination to win.

I couldn’t stand losing, after all.

"..."

While I held my breath and remained still, I could hear grass being stepped on nearby.

‘I thought her voice sounded far away, but she’s already this close?’

I thought I should hide further in, so I moved back as quietly as possible.

But at that moment, I stepped on a branch, causing a snapping sound to echo throughout the garden.

‘…Darn it. I don’t want to be it. Going around finding people is exhausting.’

Soon enough, I heard footsteps coming closer in my direction.

Since it had come to this, I decided to put on a goofy expression when I was caught.

But when I smiled with a somewhat embarrassed look on my face and lifted my head up…

"...Hello?"

Instead of Julianne’s clear voice, a low, gentle voice seeped into my ears.

I opened my eyes wide and stared at the person in front of me.

With white hair gently swaying in the wind, and golden irises even deeper than Robain's, he boasted gentle, curved eyes and distinct facial features.

If he had white hair and golden eyes, he had to be Michael Evans, one of the four male lead candidates, the youngest, extremely brilliant Grand Duke.

"...Who are you?"

I acted like I didn’t know who he was.

I deliberately blinked during I spoke, and the man in front of me reached out his hand before replying.

"You're Julianne’s sister, right? I've heard a lot about you from her. You two really do look alike."

‘So, he remembered Julianne mentioning her sister. He's better than Robain, at least.’

I stared up at his hand.

Michael Evans was always second best in Delire Academy.

Ever since he fell in love with Julianne at first sight, he stayed by her side until Robain took her away.

He was the intelligent, scheming sub-male lead.

"...Julianne told me not to go off with strangers."

"Well, you've been taught well."

Michael let out a gentle laugh, keeping his hand extended.

There wasn’t much about him revealed in the novel, so I couldn’t recall exactly what his personality was like.

"But you’re going to get dirt all over your pretty clothes. Take my hand, I’ll help you up."

"But I was in the middle of playing hide-and-seek with Lia."

"I already found you, so isn’t it over?

‘What? What kind of logic is that?’

But just when I frowned and pouted…

"I bought some muffins nearby. Would you like to share some with me? I bought them for you."

Michael shook a small box and smiled brightly.

‘He bought them for me? Especially for me?’

I tilted my head in confusion.

As far as I remember, Michael Evans was never kind to anyone but Julianne.

Something was suspicious.