Lilian of Turin

Lilian’s lips parted in disbelief. The Great Feudal Lord Hemenlinna chuckled.

“Hmph, after seeing my baby eat it well, how can I stay still!”

“But the tree…will… Will it grow up? The soil and climate must be different…”

“Don’t worry, I ordered them to import 1200 trees because I thought there’d be difficulties in growing them.”

Only then did Lilian realize that the Elector of Hemenlinna was also the Great Captain who monopolized the famous eastern trade route, the Alt Sea.

By the time she heard that one of the trade ships owned by the Great Feudal Lord had been mobilized for this task, Lilian had given up on thinking about it any longer.

“Come to think of it, I gave my baby a gift for her sorority debut but I didn’t do anything when exchanging marriage certificates.”

Lilian thought that with just one diamond necklace from the Tears of Light series, she could have bought ten years’ worth of birthday presents, but she said nothing.

“As a wedding gift, I’ll make an orchard with the eastern peaches that you like and give it to you. Look forward to it.”

“Yes… thank you…”

Even if the grandfather’s scale was big, this was too big.

The bigger problem was Cedric, who was glaring at the Great Feudal Lord Hemenlinna with an expression like he was one step behind.

‘No, let’s not think too deeply…’

They weren’t ones that could be stopped. Lilian let out a small sigh.

Fortunately, those two were second only to wealth and power in this country.

‘If it wasn’t for that, they would have wasted all their money just to feed one person.’

***

That night.

Barely left alone, Lilian held her pen instead of falling asleep, deep in thought.

In front of her laid papers packed with painstakingly filled diagrams.

What was unusual was that it’s written in square-shaped characters that did not exist in this world.

“First, my parents died, then…”

Mumbling, Lilian checked again to see if there was anything missing from the contents she had filled out.

This diagram was the timeline of her original story, which she compiled from memory.

Through Marianne’s actions, Lilian realized that the future could change in a way she didn’t expect.

‘I can’t guarantee that I’ll remember every trivial part of the future until then.’

At the very least, it seemed like she should organize the things that should have happened in chronological order and remember them well.

“Hm.”

Seems like that was all that’s needed. Lilian nodded in satisfaction.

Through this, she realized that her future won’t always be under her control.

If she was greedy for even the smallest things and tried to change everything, she could have unexpected results.

Only the most desperate thing needed to be changed with the least amount of movement.

‘Then, what’s urgent and important right now in the current situation is…’

Lily’s blue eyes skimmed down the diagram and stopped halfway.

There, in letters recognizable only to her in this world, it was written.

[In September of the 7th year of Claude I, the Great Feudal Lord Hemenlinna died.]

The giant of the supporters of the crown prince collapsed.

It was a tremendous amount of content that anyone other than her would be stunned upon reading it.

Lilian stared at the handwritten words without speaking.

She was clear about what she wanted to do. First of all, she hoped that the Great Feudal Lord Hemenlinna, her grandfather, who’s also dear to her, wouldn’t die.

‘But…’

The Great Feudal Lord was currently 80 years old. He would die seven years later at the age of 87. It was a natural death that came after enjoying enough of the heavenly life.

It hurt already, but there was nothing Lilian could do.

‘Then next…’

[At the end of September of the same year, Prince Matteo disappeared (kidnapped).]

[In early October of the same year, Damian Rupenwein is blinded in his left eye. In the process of rescuing Prince Matteo, he was also mentally injured.]

Right after the death of the Great Feudal Lord Hemenlinna, who was a strong support and protection, the Emperor succeeded in kidnapping Prince Matteo as if he had waited.

Damian lost his left eye in the process of rescuing the Crown Prince and suffered mental injury for some reason.

‘This can be prevented. No, I have to stop it.’

She couldn’t do it yet. Fortunately, she had another seven years left.

Seven years, the time left before the wheel of her fortune turn.

‘Until then…’

Lilian made a promise while alternating between the name of the Great Feudal Lord Hemenlinna and the words 7 years.

‘He has to take care of his health so that he can live a little longer.’

And more importantly…

‘Let’s be loved to the fullest so that no regrets will remain even if we part ways at any time.’

From now on, when she received a gift, she should be a little less burdened and show a lot of joy, Lilian promised herself.

***

Since that resolution, 7 years of day and night have passed.

Autumn of the 7th year of Claude I.

The Great Feudal Lord Hemenlinna passed away. He was 87 years of age.

6. How the villain proposes.

Time flew.

Among living beings, some grow old, some get sick, and some die.

And some grow up.

“Oh my God, you’re already nineteen years old.”

On an ordinary morning.

With Rita becoming Lily’s handmaid and the maid positions filled up, Mrs. Hayworth had long since withdrawn from serving Lilian.

But sometimes, when she wasn’t so busy, she would visit Lilian and help in her growth.

It was like her hobby.

“How did you grow up like this?”

Embarassed by the passionate tone, Lilian smiled a little.

It wasn’t just Mrs. Hayworth.

The maids couldn’t hide their proud expressions and even Rita nodded her head.

‘It should be so.’

Born as a premature baby, the weak child began to suffer from a rare disease called magic depletion.

By the time she reached the age of fourteen, Lilian’s height had been on and off, causing everyone trouble.

“The previous Lord, and the current Lord, everyone is tall because they’re tall…”

“She must be like that since she couldn’t eat, and she’s hungry.”

“No. If you take one more spoonful here, the lady will vomit.”

“Then what should I do? From tomorrow, how about adding a little more butter to the food?”

“That’s great! Add some sugar to the snacks too!”

Thanks to everyone’s meticulous and tenacious efforts, Lilian belatedly entered a period of growth until she was sixteen.

It came so suddenly that she couldn’t sleep for half a year and struggled with the growth pains…

At that time, she inwardly prayed that it’d be fine if she didn’t grow up, so that she would stop being sick.

‘If that wish came true, it would have been a big deal.’

Mrs. Hayworth looked up proudly at Lilian, who had accomplished the feat of growing one finger taller than the average woman.

She was still as slender as a gourd carved out of jade, so she didn’t look as tall as she was, but she’s still satisfied.

‘I wish she could gain a little more weight, but that’s really difficult…’

‘Something like that happened recently after all.’

Lilian smiled a little, knowing what Mrs. Hayworth was thinking.

Claude I, 7th year, end of autumn.

The Empire was still coping with the shock of Hemenlinna’s death.

It was the same for Lily personally.

She was even more heartbroken because she knew in advance the death of someone close to her.

Anyway, she felt dizzy and even guilty, thinking about what she’d done wrong to prevent it.

After weeping bitterly for many days, Lilian realized it again.

She was neither omniscient or omnipotent now that she’d glimpsed the future.

Memories were just memories, Lilian was just Lilian.

Some things couldn’t be changed.

Some things just happened.

In her deep helplessness and tears, Lilian recalled her determination in her childhood.

‘Let’s be loved to the fullest so that no matter when we part ways, there’ll be less regret.’

Did she really act according to that determination?

Of the 1200 peach trees that crossed the Alt Sea seven years ago, 600 survived the winter that year. Of these, 300 trees survived for more than 5 years.

The Great Feudal Lord and Lilian shared the peaches every summer.

One was old and the other was weak, so they joked that they’re two people who needed a peach to live for 3000 years.

They’ve done that without skipping a single year so far.

When she remembered those times, the tears started to stop little by little.

Lilian just turned nineteen in February. The Imperial’s coming-of-age started from their nineteenth birthday.

She also spent that special birthday together with the Great Feudal Lord Hemenlinna.

When Lily hinted that it would be nice if the peaches were delicious this year, the Great Feudal Lord sat in an armchair and only returned a quiet smile.

Then he said.

“It was fun meeting you in my later years.”

Did he have a hunch back then?

The thick teardrops flowed for the last time. After that, there were times when her eyes were wet with tears but she didn’t weep.

It was as if someone had wiped away the tears.