IBDF 07

Chapter 7

“If you don’t like what Mom made, should I buy something from outside?”

“Ah, just leave me alone!”

Crash!

The first time in my life that I threw something at my mother, I couldn’t see the expression on her face.

I could only guess how she felt from the sharp intake of breath she made in surprise.

My mother quietly closed the door and left. Late that night, she came back in and began silently cleaning up the objects scattered across the floor.

Hidden under my blanket, I lay there for a long time, listening to the sounds.

No tears fell from my eyes that had lost their light.

Only an indescribable throbbing pain lingered deep inside my chest.

The next day, for reasons I still don’t fully understand, I stepped out of my room for the first time in six months.

And I began learning everything again.

How to walk. How to read. How to write.

All the things I had thought I would never be able to do on my own again.

Surprisingly, the world I experienced through sound, taste, smell, and touch—without visual information—was just as rich and diverse as the world I had once seen.

It was never a dull world, nor one where nothing could be felt.

As years passed, I gradually returned to something resembling my old life.

And just when I had finally blended back into the world again…

I was hit by a truck and possessed another body.
It was the second accident of my life.

In truth, it took me several months just to realize that I had been possessed.

That was because Lizzie Swan—the person I possessed—was a seventeen-year-old girl who, like me, had lost her eyesight in an accident.

Things others could understand at a glance, I had to figure out by listening, touching, and feeling them myself.

After learning to understand and speak a language I had never heard before, and after months of finding it strange that I couldn’t hear televisions or the sound of cars…

Only then did I finally realize that I was living in someone else’s body.

At the time, Lizzie Swan had lost both her eyesight and her only family member—her mother—in an accident.

Fortunately, her aunt and uncle kindly took in their pitiful niece, who had nowhere else to go, and cared for her devotedly.

If it weren’t for the two of them, I might not have survived in this world.

With their help, I learned how to weave reed baskets and began earning a living.

Then one day, my aunt, who had gone into the village, came running back, breathless, saying she had incredible news.

A nearby duke’s household was looking for a maid.

But the condition was rather unusual.

“They’re looking for someone who can work even in an environment where nothing can be seen. Lizzie! You fit that condition perfectly!”

“Well… that’s true, but what kind of condition is that? Which duke’s household is it?”

“The House of Duke Rebanion!”

“Rebanion… you say?”

The House of Duke Rebanion.
Possession.
A place so dark that someone who couldn’t see would be needed.

At last, all the pieces fell into place.

I finally realized which novel’s world this was.

However, unlike the typical possessed protagonists in novels, I didn’t have the luxury to worry about whether my interference would twist the original story.

Surviving came first.

Since the wages offered by the ducal house would obviously be far higher than what I earned selling reed baskets, I came here without hesitation.

And that was how I met Callios.

“…Is this punishment for throwing something at my mother back then?”

Muttering to myself, I listened to the crunch of broken glass beneath my feet.

The room, which Callios had trashed in a fit of agitation, was once again in complete chaos.

I had just finished cleaning it up by myself a few days ago—only for it to end up like this again.

I let out a deep sigh.

Unaware of my feelings, Callios was asleep, breathing softly.

Careful not to wake him, I quietly grabbed a broom and began sweeping up the shards of glass.

“His fainting was only temporary.”

An hour earlier, the doctor who examined the collapsed Callios had given only that brief explanation.

There was no special treatment. He merely said to make sure the young master rested in a calm, stable environment.

Once even the doctor left, I was once again the only one remaining by Callios’s side.

“Young master, are you awake now?”

He finally came to his senses the next day at noon.

“How are you feeling?”

“……”

There was no response.

It was as if he had returned to his old self—the young duke who never answered, no matter how much you called him, lying there listlessly.

“You must be hungry. Shall I bring you something to eat?”

“……”

“Is there anything you’d like? If I tell the kitchen, they’ll prepare it right away.”

“…I’m not eating.”

“Why not? You need to eat to regain your strength.”

“…I said I’m not eating.”

“I’ll just go down and—”

“I said I’m not eating!”

Something suddenly flew past my face.

The object struck the wall and then fell to the floor.

“……”

Only the sound of something rolling across the floor filled the room.

“…All right, then. I’ll bring your meal later.”

I quietly stood up and walked toward where the object had fallen.

When I felt it, I realized it was a glass of water.

Thankfully, it hadn’t broken, but the water had spilled, leaving the floor damp. I brought a rag and began wiping it up.

Tsk. The work just keeps piling up, doesn’t it?

“…Did it hit you?”

At the voice breaking the silence, I looked up.

What, now you’re checking for a finishing blow?

“Why? If it didn’t hit me, should I let you throw it again?”

“……”

“You know, young master, you’re really hard to deal with. I’m starting to think I should ask for double my pay.”

Despite the rather insolent words coming from a maid, Callios didn’t reply.

After a moment, he rustled slightly as he lay back down, then spoke in a voice so quiet it was barely audible.

“Then you should leave too. There’s no reason for you to stay here.”

I stopped wiping and stood up.

“What do you mean by that?”

“Sticking by me won’t get you anything. You’ve seen it yourself. I’m someone who can’t do anything anymore.”

Seriously. Does he think I’m here expecting something grand?

I’m here for the paycheck—paid on time, no less.

With a hint of disappointment in my voice, I replied.

“If I leave, then who’s going to take care of you?”

“……”

“How will you move around? Who will bring you your meals? What, are you planning to starve to death?”

After listening in silence, Callios finally let out a deep sigh.

“…Living like this, I’d rather die.”

…What?

At his words, spoken as though he had given up on everything, I clenched my apron without realizing it.

Of course, I knew a happy ending awaited him in the end.

And I knew it was ridiculous for someone as insignificant as me—just an extra—to feel sorry over his every word.

I knew all that, but still…

“Young master, you can’t give up like this!”

Maybe it was because he reminded me too much of my past self.

“What do you know?” Callios replied coldly.

“Of course I don’t know everything. I can’t fully understand how you feel. But I do know this—your life doesn’t end here.”

The day I lost my eyesight, I thought my life was completely over.

But look at me now.

Far from being over, I fell into some bizarre world and am living just fine—even taking care of a brat like you.

“…You can walk without seeing. You can eat. You can change clothes. If you train, you can do it.”

So don’t give up.

I swallowed the rest of my words, hoping my sincerity would reach him.

After a long pause, Callios finally spoke in a voice cracked beyond repair.

“It’s pointless. I won’t be able to do it anyway.”

“You can.”

“I can’t.”

“You can, young master. You really can.”

Slowly, I reached out and, for the first time, took hold of Callios’s hand.