The next morning at dawn.
Hoo-ooh!
Euuum… My ears are itchy…
“The Demon King’s Army is attacking! Everyone, ring the jingle bells!”
Waaah!
Thud-
If someone hadn’t grabbed my back, I would have rolled off the bed.
[Jingle Bell~ Jingle Bell~ Jingle all the way~]
The alarm I set for 5 AM finally started ringing.
For some reason, the usually late-sleeping Cheon Saetbyeol woke up first and got me up.
She hurriedly turned on the room light and set up a chair.
Yawn “I’m still sleepy.”
“Just sit still. I’ll do everything.”
I plopped down on a tiny little chair and started nodding off again.
The citrus scent from my dye magic filled the room.
“You must’ve slept late last night, unnie.”
“Just practicing a few things… What time did you wake up?”
“A little after 4? I went to bed early yesterday.”
“I envy your ability to fall asleep right away.”
“I’m looking forward to breakfast!”
Breakfast in the Ricci Mansion can be ordered directly from the chef if you go to the dining table.
The operating hours are from 6 AM to 9 AM.
Dad, who doesn’t need any morning sleep, always gets up at the crack of dawn.
So today, as soon as it hits 6, he’ll probably show up at the dining table.
Since it’s such an important birthday, I thought I’d spend at least one more hour with him.
“Ta-da, all done!”
At Saetbyeol’s words, I slowly opened my eyes.
My platinum hair, a tad lighter than in my past life, flowed smoothly down to the floor.
Looking in the mirror after a shower, there was a strange feeling looming over me.
‘Should I match my eye color too?’
Just right, my unique aura is also golden.
I tried to send out my aura, but my pupils shone ominously, so I gave up.
Meanwhile, Saetbyeol shoved a purple princess dress into the shower.
It was the outfit of a certain princess renowned for her keratin fibers.
“Kyaah! Unnie, you look so cute! You must have truly been a princess in your past life.”
When I stepped out in the perfectly fitted dress, Saetbyeol was snapping photos left and right.
“I didn’t look like this in my past life, you know?”
The race may be different, but still.
I didn’t deny that I looked cute at all.
Perhaps I inherited Seol-ah’s beautiful looks, as I could occasionally see her face overlapping with mine as I aged.
In fact, I sometimes questioned whether my biological father actually existed, as our appearances were nearly identical.
After drying my hair, Saetbyeol hung a mini guitar around my neck.
Ding-ling-
“I’m suddenly feeling a little self-conscious.”
“Hey! No backing out!”
As we headed to the dining table on the first floor, staff members stole glances at us.
Just hearing the morning greetings, with smiles saying my outfit was pretty, overwhelmed me with embarrassment.
Saetbyeol was behind me, making sure my hair didn’t get messy.
She was taking on a crucial role in the upcoming event, so I decided to focus on my own part.
By now, I adapted to the princess outfit and entered the dining area.
“Why are there so many people…?”
Is this really what 6 AM looks like?
Aside from the chairman and his wife, it seemed like everyone I saw at last night’s dinner was here.
“Na-me, over here! Here!”
Monica, who should have been at the hospital, waved her arm from her wheelchair.
Word must have spread like wildfire.
At the back, Professor Cheon waved at me with a slightly surprised expression.
Hoo.
I stepped across the wide space between the tables.
Along with him, I plucked at the strings of a guitar that tasted of iron.
With a bit of tension in my abdomen and steady breathing,
I relaxed my vocal cords and started singing.
“The morning sunlight sneaks in,
What should I expect today, feeling a bit fluttery,
I open the window and take a deep breath,
I’ll do my best today, I promise myself.”
With the guitar accompaniment following.
I sat next to Professor Cheon and awkwardly smiled as I looked up.
“Standing in front of the mirror, oh no, the smile’s not enough,
Picking an outfit, yet somehow it just doesn’t feel right,
What should I say when I meet you?
Eh, eh, how is it that we’re already in front of my house?”
The sound of applause from everyone followed.
With a rush of confidence, I sang the chorus.
“My hair’s a mess, just wait a moment,
Truth is, it might just be my heart that’s messy,
You and I, in this moment together, I lowered my head,
How should I say this, it’s a bit awkward, but it’s okay, this feeling.”
There’s a saying that music from childhood sticks with you for life.
So I intentionally pulled out a song from 40 years ago that was in Professor Cheon’s playlist.
As the guitar’s reverberation lingered, I opened my closed eyes.
I smiled brightly at my dad, facing him.
“Happy birthday, Dad!”
*
Normally, I’m not a breakfast person, so I just sat at the dining table, resting my chin on my hands.
Saetbyeol and Monica seemed to be on a mission to replay the video of me singing all day long.
“Na-me, your voice sounds as clear as a filter-free day. Should we upload this?”
“Come on, Monica, that’s not how you title something. Look, if I didn’t save the country in my past life, I wouldn’t have a daughter like this… Or General Yi Sun-sin is probably happy over there—”
“Hey, hey, hey you two! Just stop it. If you’re going to upload it, do it with no title.”
“No title? Oh, I’d love that! NoName sings—”
Sigh.
I clicked my tongue in exasperation, giving them a disapproving look.
“When did you practice something like this, Na-me?”
“Just a little last night. But I didn’t half-heartedly practice; I actually worked hard on it.”
“Wow, my daughter got me such a wonderful gift on my birthday. Thank you so much.”
“This is just the beginning. You have to enjoy today to the fullest.”
“Hahaha! Got it, I’ll look forward to it.”
It seemed like he was already enjoying it enough.
The smile on Professor Cheon’s face seemed to never fade.
It feels like I’m seeing him happy for the first time today.
“Just brush your teeth and we’ll head out right away. Oh, and since we’re taking a boat, dress warmly. And, Monica?”
“Yes, Na-me?”
I leaned in and whispered softly in her ear.
“In four weeks, if you’re not all healed up, I’ll break your legs, so be prepared.”
Gyaaa! Is that a compliment or a threat…?
“Of course, it’s a threat.”
“Cruel princess!”
After sending Monica, whose hiccups were acting up, away, the three of us set off for the birthday trip.
On the way, we passed the time humming to the Cannon Variations and much older songs.
Being someone who appreciates the oldies, I found the lyrics of late 20th-century songs really nice.
“Does the refreshing sun visit the sky in the fairy tale full of the Milky Way?”
Even though there were no familiar tracks, the lyrical atmosphere was something we all shared.
“Isn’t there something a bit more exciting?”
“It’s not your birthday.”
“Right, Na-me. Let’s sing the song Saetbyeol wants too.”
“Well, if that’s the case…”
Dududududu-!
I strummed the strings at 180 BPM without pause.
“This is it!”
Only then did Saetbyeol seem to approve and began to shake her head like a rockstar.
Taking a deep breath, I started spitting lyrics at a very low tone like a machine gun.
“Oh God, punish those evildoers. Arm yourselves and line up. Chain them, behead them, let the black blood sprinkle across the crow field—”
“W-Wait stooo-op!”
“Is that really what’s trending nowadays? It sounds a bit confusing to me…”
“I’ve never heard such a song!”
“We asked for something fun!”
It’s a song that has both gods and excitement.
Even in that boring past life, it was almost the only song I hummed along with the captain of the Utopia.
Professor Cheon was on the verge of forming a negative opinion about today’s singers.
I just brushed it off as a light joke with Saetbyeol, but the trust in my words was lacking.
Soon we arrived at Cope Lake.
We flat out refused the offer of security to stick with us and took a commemorative photo with just the three of us.
People were starting to recognize us, but since today is Dad’s birthday, we restrained ourselves from providing fan service.
While walking along the dock where yachts were already moored, a large two-story yacht came into view.
“Wow! Are we really going to ride that? Isn’t it expensive?”
“With the captain’s fee and other things included, it’s around 2000 euros? I think that’s a reasonable price.”
Just because I had money, I would never throw in extra cash.
Like how annoying it feels when they deduct taxes for ridiculous reasons.
A scruffy-looking captain walked over from the dock.
“Today’s sailing is managed by Giovanni Russo. I thought you were joking when you said your name was NoName, so I never imagined a real person would show up, haha!”
“Nice to meet you, Captain Russo. I look forward to your guidance.”
Everything I ordered was already loaded onto the yacht.
Barbecue grills, various types of meat and vegetables.
Especially the freshwater fishing rods installed on the side of the yacht were a nice touch.
The captain also made sure to hire someone skilled at fish dismantling.
“Well then, if you’re ready, we shall set sail.”
The yacht slowly began to cross the lake.
The faint vibrations felt beneath my feet.
I set my guitar down and leaned against the railing, admiring the glimmering ripples of the lake.
Chirrup chirrup The sound joyfully hit my ears.
“This time of year, we’re usually supposed to catch a lot of fish, but I guess the numbers are down this year. But isn’t there always the luck of a beginner? Haha!”
As we reached the lake’s center, the captain stepped out and pulled bait from a container.
While Professor Cheon was receiving fishing tips from the captain, I quietly called Saetbyeol to the other side of the deck.
“What should we do, unnie? They say the fish aren’t biting much, so should we just try?”
“Just give it a go, and if it’s really not working out, I’ll share my aura with you. Just dive down a little to lure them towards our fishing rods.”
“Are you sure? I find it hard to believe just releasing a bit of aura would make the fish come up…”
I knelt and dipped my arms in the lake.
Splash-!
A fish leaped up immediately.
I wiped the water off my face and grinned.
“As long as I catch one big one, I’ll be satisfied.”
