A hell-like week passed before finally, the date of Hannah’s trial was announced. It was three days later.
There was a rumor that the First Consort and the ducal family of Tanium will soon drag the judge to their side.
At the same time, the emperor tried to save her but didn’t get much out of it.
Unfortunately, there was nothing Kathia could do. She just laid down on the bed like a corpse, thinking in the strange room and on the strange bed.
Among all of her thoughts, she was thinking, ‘Mom should’ve strolled to the pond for a long period of time instead.’
The reason is unknown, but Mom didn’t sleepwalk that night.
Her mind was clear, and she wasn’t wet, even though there was a rainstorm that night.
Why. Why on that night?
“This…”
By the day of the trial, Kathia finally found out what happened that night.
Because of something she showed Kathia, Madam Murphy pleaded with her to have at least one bite of the gruel, due to staying up all night.
The small pieces of colorful cloth sewn up. The soft feeling as if it were stuffed with cotton. Just large enough to be held.
It’s almost in the shape of a person. Round face as well as crooked eyes, nose, and mouth.
Just like a child’s drawing…
“So this is called a doll. The one that you said you wished to have.”
The night the incident happened. Hannah was busy trying to prepare the gift for Kathia along with the sewing maids.
This was the first time Kathia wanted anything in her life, so Hannah decided she must make it herself.
Created as such, the doll had pink yarn hair and blue buttoned eyes, seemingly smiling widely.
“Haha…”
Holding the doll that resembled her in her hands, Kathia broke out in haggard laughter. A pang of pain welled in her eyes and because tears wouldn’t come out like for the past ten days, her eyes spewed out whatever she could.
Again, it’s all my fault.
I almost pushed Mom into the pond, and now, to the execution ground.
Again, it was because of my greed. It would’ve been a good time to give up, but because of my stupidity and reluctance to, it ended up like this.”
I should’ve known how I am. I should’ve never asked for anything other than my mom.
Because I told her I wanted a scrap of cloth like this!
Now, what do I do? What should I do? Think about anything good. Maybe I can find an answer. Think.
Think.
THINK.
Thi—
Suddenly, Kathia’s eyes widened. As if latching onto a lead. A memory.
A memory from a faraway place, not from here!
Kathia searched through the depths of her dusty previous life, scrapped it off, pulled it off, and molded it.
Then she realized.
“It can’t be.”
This place was inside a novel.
One her previous life had the chance to read.
Yes, yes it was. She loved books.
To be correct, she loved being stuck in a library filled with books.
To her, her ‘house’ wasn’t a comfortable place to be in. Especially after she became a middle schooler.
To their precious son, who was one year younger than her and was a crucial role in raising the household, it was a sensitive time for her parents, since they were educating him to be prepared for middle school.
Even her parents wanted to leave her be outside.
At first, she was trying to find a safe place to be for a girl like herself wearing a school uniform at night, but once she chose the library, it didn’t take long for her to fall in love with the enticing books.
Something called ‘stories’ was captivating.
There was the main character, a creative world unfolding, and although it didn’t always have a happy ending, it had a reasonable flow.
It was beautiful, incomparable to her life of isolation since birth.
The genre she was attracted to the most was fantasy. Fantasy is a genre that exists solely for the purpose of the main character, by the main character, for the main character.
When getting introduced to a fantasy main character, she didn’t need to be stuck in a corner, but rather, in the center of the world.
Then, she has a chance to envy. How it would be nice to be a main character.