As promised, my sister brought me Karky grass.
With a fluttering heart, I rushed to my bedroom.
Even though I knew no one would enter without permission, I still locked the door.
That’s how extraordinary this matter was.
Anyway, with quick fingers, I ground the Karky grass and placed it on the mark, clenching my fist tightly.
How much time had passed?
With a mix of curiosity and doubt, in a word, a trembling heart, I cautiously opened my palm.
“What, what is this!”
I really thought I was possessed by a ghost.
The mark that had been so clear just a moment ago had completely disappeared.
I clenched and unclenched my fist repeatedly, but the mark was gone.
‘Yay!’
I covered my mouth, suppressing my joy.
No one must know about this.
I worried that even the ‘Silence’ attribute might have disappeared, but even with the mark gone, the attribute remained.
“Phew, that’s a relief.”
I sighed in relief and climbed onto the bed.
The mark disappearing was good news, but it was still too early to relax.
I still didn’t know what the mark meant, and I had to wait and see if the Karky grass removal was permanent.
“Besides, I can’t just dismiss that Granny Horuru and her astrology so easily.”
The old woman’s voice, clicking her tongue with a frown, still lingered in my ears.
‘Tsk tsk, can you really hide what’s meant to be? It’s futile to try and cover the sky with your palm.’
Like the old woman said, you can never cover the sky with your palm.
I agree a hundred times over.
But it is possible to temporarily not see the sky.
I don’t expect it to be forever, but at least until I succeed in the hidden ending, I hope no one knows that I’m a transmigrator.
And the old woman’s words echoed in my head again.
‘But is there really anyone in the world who is unnecessary? Even an ant has its use.’
Am I a better being than an ant here, or worse?
For what purpose did I come here?
Lost in sudden self-reflection, I let out a hollow laugh.
It’s ridiculous, me doing this.
I know better than anyone that I have to do something to survive.
‘I should probably find out more about the imperial insignia.’
I decided to visit the library as soon as it was light tomorrow and laid my head on the pillow.
If I take it one step at a time, I’ll see a clue somewhere.
And I didn’t know it at this time.
That what I thought would happen in a few days would happen tomorrow.
The next day.
I had finished getting ready early and was about to go downstairs.
I heard Anne’s voice from afar.
“What’s going on?”
Huh? Someone’s here?
I hesitated, about to go downstairs.
The conversation was audible since it wasn’t far away.
“Um, did you try the apples? If they’re good, I’d appreciate it if you bought some more today.”
It sounded like the old woman who had visited a while ago.
The apples Anne had recently purchased were only from that time.
By the way.
‘She came again?’
My eyes widened in an instant.
Is this really an event happening?
I decided to listen more closely to their conversation, just in case.
“Well, Granny. The apples were delicious, but I don’t think I can buy any more.”
“May I ask why?”
“Actually, our young lady got a stomachache after eating the apples.”
“Oh my! I’m so sorry.”
“Oh, you have no idea how much our young lady suffered. I wake up in the middle of the night just thinking about it.”
Anne…
Did you have to say it so bluntly?
I wondered if the old woman would be embarrassed, but I also understood why Anne would say that.
I could see Anne’s worried heart at a glance, even from afar.
That’s because Anne had suffered as much as I had.
‘Well, I should have been going to the bathroom every morning.’
Anne must have been living in hell, worried that something terrible would happen to me.
My father wasn’t home either, so her sense of responsibility must have been immense.
She had been burdened because I had strictly told her not to tell anyone about this.
That included my father.
I didn’t want to worry my father, who was suffering away from home, over a simple stomachache.
I sighed as I recalled that day.
‘I should be careful from now on.’
But if the whole family had been sick after eating the same apples, it would be different, but since I was the only one who was sick, it was unreasonable to blame the old woman for everything.
I was anxious that Anne might mention compensation, thinking of me.
“I know it’s rude, but may I see the young lady’s face for a moment?”
“Excuse me? Our young lady? Why, why?”
I heard Anne’s flustered voice.
I was curious too.
Why would she want to see my face?
‘Hmm, should I watch a little longer?’
It wouldn’t hurt to judge whether it’s a favorable event for me or not before acting.
I focused on the situation downstairs again.
“This old woman sold a lot of apples and feels heavy-hearted. Moreover, the precious young lady had a stomachache, so I wanted to ask for forgiveness. Can’t you allow it?”
“Still, I can’t just show you our young lady’s face.”
“Please, grant this old woman’s request.”
“I said I can’t, didn’t I?”
“Then, please ask the mistress. I want to talk to the young lady.”
The atmosphere was unusual.
Anne was firm, and the old woman showed no signs of backing down.
‘It looks like the argument will be prolonged.’
I couldn’t stand it any longer and quickly went downstairs.
“Anne.”
“Oh? Young lady?”
“I’ll go out.”
“Yes? No, you don’t have to deal with them one by one. If you get involved.”
“It’s okay, Anne.”
Anne tried to stop me, surprised, but if this was really an event, it was something I had to resolve.
I calmed Anne down and confidently went to the door.
“Granny, you were looking for me?”
“Are you the mistress here?”
“Yes, why?”
“Oh!”
The old woman, seeing me, tried to widen her eyes even more.
The wrinkles around her eyes temporarily straightened.
I wanted to resolve whatever event this was quickly.
“Ah! Granny, the apples were delicious.”
“Oh, really? But I heard you had a stomachache, but you look fine now.”
“Yes, that’s right. I had a bit of a stomachache for a while. I’m all better now.”
“That’s a relief. This old woman is sorry.”
“It’s okay.”
I answered reflexively to the old woman’s words.
This was a problem between humans, apart from the game event.
How many unscrupulous sellers are there who only sell things and don’t care about the problems that arise?
That’s why there’s even a saying that you feel different going to the bathroom and coming out.
‘In contrast, the old woman apologized to me directly.’
At least she wasn’t completely unreasonable.
“Granny, I don’t think there was a problem with all the apples. So don’t worry too much.”
I added a smile appropriately.
I didn’t feel comfortable with the old woman, who was old enough to be my grandmother, bowing to me just because I was a noble.
At this time, I thought my deep meaning had been well conveyed.
“Is that so? Then, I have a request.”
“A request?”
“It’s nothing much, but how about buying some apples for the servants who didn’t get a stomachache? I’ll give you a lot extra.”
Huh! I was speechless. Is she really saying this?
She was apologizing just a moment ago.
This was not the attitude of someone who was apologizing at all.
Take back what I said earlier! Take it all back!
She was truly unscrupulous.
Taking advantage of my confusion, the old woman began to sell aggressively.
“The young lady can buy apples at a low price, which is good for reducing the cost of the servants, and I’m good because I lose less. How about it?”
Now I could see the old woman’s intentions clearly.
She was trying to grab a reliable source of funds, not the servants, and sell to them calculatively.
‘She thought I was an easy target, didn’t she?’
Even if I’m a Confucian girl, I can’t stand this!
I wiped the smile off my face and put on my unique cold expression.
I heard you shouldn’t smile when you’re speaking firmly.
“Granny, I was being too nice, wasn’t I? There are still apples piled up in the warehouse, so I’m thinking of getting a refund because of the stomachache.”
“Yes?”
“Oh, right. The cost of medicine, compensation for mental damage, and even the crime of mocking a noble. Then you can spend at least your retirement comfortably in prison. How about it?”
She wouldn’t be stubborn anymore, would she?
In fact, I never intended to receive compensation from the beginning.
It would be enough if she understood my intentions.
But…
The old woman didn’t care and just stared at my face for a long time.
She really had a thick face?
“What are you staring at?”
She was staring so intently that I was more embarrassed.
At this point, even the old woman’s unkempt blonde hair bothered me.
The old woman, sensing the chilly atmosphere, belatedly opened her mouth.
“Oh my, this old woman is being nosy. Seeing such a beautiful young lady, I just couldn’t take my eyes off you. I’m sorry. I’ve been rude.”
Yeah, I don’t believe you!
I chuckled at her amazing acting skills.
No matter how much she praised me, my heart was completely closed.
“I won’t say it twice. Please go back.”
I closed the door with my finishing remarks.
I should have listened to Anne from the beginning.
I just wasted time.
Now it didn’t seem like an event at all.
Above all,
‘The way she was staring was somehow creepy.’
I rubbed my arms for no reason.
I went to the window and pulled up the curtain halfway, and the old woman was pushing a cart loaded with apples, grumbling, ‘How picky. Tsk tsk.’
I couldn’t take my eyes off the old woman until she completely disappeared.
‘But that blonde hair, it’s strangely familiar.’
Where did I see it?
I shook my head after thinking hard.
Well, I might have run into her sometime while passing by.
I decided not to forget my original purpose.
I couldn’t keep wasting time in the wrong place.
As soon as I entered the library, the unique smell of books filled my lungs.
It somehow felt like I was accumulating knowledge.
I went further inside.
‘Eek, there are so many.’
My mouth dropped open involuntarily.
The amount of books exceeded my expectations, filling the bookshelves tightly.
On the other hand, the inside was quite deserted.
I could browse the books comfortably without worrying about being watched.
‘Let’s see. What should I refer to?’
I slowly looked through the books.
Most of the ones that caught my interest were books about the history of the empire.
There’s a saying that if you want to know the future, look at the past.
Even if it’s shallow knowledge, I had to know anything that could be helpful.
Could it be that the reason I transmigrated here?
‘Is it really because of a hidden identity?’
It’s usually a story that would only come out in novels, but since I transmigrated into a game, I couldn’t completely rule it out.
There might be an inside story to see the hidden ending.
‘If that’s the case.’
Does that mean that my current father is not my real father, or that my mother is not my real mother?
But to say that, I look a lot like my mother’s outstanding appearance.
‘Then, maybe my father is of royal blood?’