Chapter – 47
The baby was entrusted to the old woman I had brought before.
I personally took the baby to her, who was staying in a separate building.
“Please take good care of him, Grandma.”
“……You are quite unusual, young lady.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. A noble girl like you showing respect to a commoner like me, and even taking in an orphan from the slums.”
The old woman was genuinely pleased with the baby.
“I may not be able to fully help, but do you have any worries lately? I have a knack for offering solutions.”
Normally, I would have smiled, said I had no worries, and turned away immediately.
But perhaps because my heart was unsettled after finding the abandoned newborn, I found myself speaking.
“While others worry about surviving, I don’t understand why I have to worry about dying.”
“This world isn’t equal for everyone. It’s merciful to some, cruel to others.”
Was she comparing her own life as a struggling commoner to my life as a comfortable noble?
Even so, what she said was true.
“But even in that world, there are cracks. Keep knocking, and they will break.”
Her voice, looking me straight in the eyes, carried immense strength.
“So, don’t waver, don’t give up, keep going. The path you’re on is the right one.”
Though she could not possibly know my situation, her words were surprisingly comforting.
Perhaps it was easier to accept because they came from someone outside my tangled story. If the Crown Prince or Merina had said the same thing, I would have suspected a trap.
“If one screw comes loose, everything will change.”
“Pardon?”
“Nothing, just an old thought. Haha. By the way, what’s the baby’s name?”
“The name?”
The old woman nodded, encouraging me to give the baby a name.
First a silver fox, now a newborn—naming was not an easy task.
I looked at the innocent baby’s face, searching for inspiration. Fluffy hair like cotton, brown eyes gentle and honest.
Was it fate that I happened to meet you while picking apples, that in this life I was meant to bring you here?
“Nidana……”
“Nidana?”
“Yes, it means ‘fate’ in the East.”
“Fate, what a beautiful name.”
The old woman smiled, clearly pleased.
“By the way, I realize I haven’t properly introduced myself. I am Rosia Levian. What is your name, Grandma?”
“Me?”
She laughed as if hearing something very amusing. After a while, holding the struggling baby properly, she replied.
“I was called Clotho in a long, long past. Clotho, the spinner of threads. Almost no one remembers my name now.”
“I will remember it, so don’t worry.”
Though I didn’t know how long I could keep it.
“That’s a kindness. Make sure you remember; you might need it someday.”
“Then please rest well. If you need anything, speak freely.”
I left the separate building, puzzled by her words.
“Did you hear that, Lachesis? Or should I call you Nidana now?”
The old woman was alone with the baby, speaking as if she had known the child all along.
“I didn’t expect you to come out ‘into the world,’ and in the form of a baby, no less.”
The baby chewed on its small lips and replied coldly. It seemed to know the old woman well.
“Hmph, you laughed when I said I’d leave Delphi, but now you want to catch Rosia’s attention?”
“But Clotho, among the humans I’ve seen born at dawn, the ones who don’t give up are only five, and in this world, this one is the first.”
The baby gazed at the void with a wistful expression.
“I didn’t expect her to endure all the way to the forty-ninth. Most go mad before that.”
“That’s right. Returning to a life you don’t want usually makes you give up, but she is determined to change it.”
Clotho laughed softly.
“And I like humans like that.”
“No wonder she gave so many hints.”
The baby grumbled.
Even in this world, there are cracks. Keep knocking, and they will break.
So, don’t waver, don’t give up, keep going. The path you’re on is the right one.
Those few simple words from the old woman became Rosia’s method of escaping the fate that bound her.
“Didn’t she even speak in a way the child wouldn’t suspect—like the ‘voice of God’?”
“Isn’t it cruel that she had to endure a life of repeated brutal death? So it’s only fair to help a little.”
The baby sighed, as if resigned.
“So that leaves only Atropos in Delphi, right?”
“Yes. Only the cranky sisters remain. Once she meets Atropos, this child who refuses to give up will finally see the end.”
The baby’s expression showed pity for Rosia, though she wasn’t there.
Among the three goddesses of fate, who create countless worlds and determine the destinies of those who live in them, the youngest, Atropos, was extremely mischievous.
The four who came before her had reached the center of the world and stepped forward.
But two of those who were deceived by Atropos’ final trial had failed to end the endless cycle and were still repeating their lives, mad.
“Even if she reaches the finish line, Atropos will probably set a nasty trial… then she might give up on her dream.”
“That would be her fate, Nidana, just like your new name.”
Clotho’s calm reply made Lachesis frown.
Normally, Lachesis frowning would be terrifying, but the baby version of her just looked amusing.
“It’s not her fault she got this fate. Why even have a trial?”
“I said the same. But Atropos didn’t care to listen.”
“She probably just said it in passing.”
“You know me too well, little sister.”
Clotho clearly had come to observe out of boredom, despite claiming to like humans who don’t give up.
“Ugh……”
The baby shook her head.
“Now, please sign here.”
Across from me, the jewel craftsmen lifted their pens at the instruction of Count Stein.
Introduced by Count Stein, they were the ones to process the blue and red diamonds found in the Levian estate.
“Will you rest today and depart tomorrow, or head down to the estate immediately?”
The craftsmen replied that they would leave immediately.
They knew the Imperial language but were not allowed to speak directly with a woman.
Count Stein acted as intermediary between them and me. He also instructed the guards to replace the maids with male attendants for the journey.
“Now that the craftsmen have left, shall we take a short break?”
With the agreement with the Eastern jewel craftsmen finalized, both Count Stein and I were satisfied.
“I look forward to working with you, my lady.”
“The pleasure is mine.”
With our business partnership established, Count Stein and I could finally relax a little.
“Oh dear, I feel suffocated, yet they’re happily smiling,” Stella grumbled.
Representing her family, Stella had come to Levian estate to meet Eastern craftsmen for pearl jewelry.
The craftsmen headed to the family’s workshop, while Stella, Count Stein, and I gathered in the parlor.
Basking in the warm spring sunlight with familiar company, I enjoyed a rare moment of ease.
“By the way, did you hear, Roa?”
Stella, finishing a bunch of grapes, spoke with bright eyes.
“Merina Ickel has been banned from the palace.”
Such cases happened often, so I asked calmly.
“Was this by order of His Majesty, the Emperor?”
“No, by the Crown Prince.”
I choked slightly on the tea I had just sipped.
