A Possessed Person Lives in My Doll

I heard Nancy, my maid, outside the door.

“Miss, it’s Nancy.”

“Come in, Nancy. What’s up?”

Nancy opened the door and walked in, a hint of embarrassment on her face.

“The Count wants to see you.”

“By the look on your face, I suppose you intend to send me and scold me.”

Why now?

Perhaps you know about Blue’s work.

His face fell heavy. My heart raced. If he knew about this, he would stop me from doing math right now.

Nancy noticed my expression and gently squeezed my hand. Nancy’s mother was my nanny, so we were close friends.

She cupped my palm, offering comfort, not reassurance.

“It’s all because he’s worried about you,” she said, “and you’re such a sweetheart, but look at the calluses on your hands. What father wouldn’t worry about you doing such a rough job?”

“It was only loud, it wasn’t dangerous or anything, nothing to worry about.”

I smiled bitterly as I pulled my hand out of Nancy’s grasp. She was by her father’s side, after all.

She watched my flinching reaction, then turned away.

“What kind of doll is this, anyway?”

Nancy’s eyes flicked from the table to Blue, who was still. Blue had been stiffening and pretending to be a doll since Nancy walked in.

“I got it from an antique box. I thought it was cute and kept it in my room.”

“I see, it’s a cute doll. I think it brightens up the room.”

I nodded and left. Getting to see my dad is always something I have to brace myself for.

“I should come see my dad then.”

I turned to Blue and pursed my lips.

“Stay still.”

· * **

As soon as I walked into my father’s office, I was met with a fierce glare. My father’s anger was cold as blue-blazing fire.

“I heard there was a lot of commotion in your lab this time.”

“There was just a small mistake in the experiment, and I won’t make such a fuss next time.”

“Ancestor Eupiter, Mrs. Steven, who came to make a match this time, was so startled by the noise that she walked away sobbing, and I was so embarrassed!”

I shuddered at this sudden tone rise.

You’re upset about this. I was glad it wasn’t Blue’s fault.

“I’ll write a letter of apology to Mrs. Steven. I didn’t mean to do that either.”

“You’re nineteen now. You’ve got a lot of time on your hands, and you’re not getting any of it……. Why can’t you just do what other kids your age do, even if it’s just for fun?”

“I’ve earned my keep, and you know that the things I make bring in significant revenue for the estate.”

I lowered my eyes to hide my rebellious glare.

It was unfair that I should be treated like a hobbyist after showing such ability.

My father always treated me like a dirty child. Even if I worked as hard as I did and built up my skills, I shouldn’t be criticized because they weren’t what he wanted.

I didn’t want to fit my life into others’ lives. When will he accept me for who I am?

But my father’s voice, with its long sighs and tapping on my eardrums, always made me feel small.

“It’s not about money. It’s not that you’re exceptional, like Lord Valenti, who inherited his family’s talents. If you put as much effort into magic as you do into mage-engineering, you might not be exceptional, but you’d be a face to your ancestors.”

Sir Valenti again! Sir Valenti! Damn Titus!

I shuddered at his address to Titus.

“Father, you can say that all you want, but my talent is in magical engineering, not magic. You don’t want a lousy wizard who’s just trying to do his best.”

Count Eupiter was known for his magic. He wanted his only child to be a wizard.

I did not fulfill his expectations. No matter how hard I tried, I was never good enough.

It was then that my father had no expectations or wishes for me.

“That’s it. There’s a birthday party for Countess Rowena next week, and you’ve got an invitation, so you’ll attend, and now you’re out of here.”

My father offered the invitation with unenthusiastic expression. As someone who doesn’t like socializing, this invitation was punishment for all the fuss.

I kept my mouth shut and accepted the invitation.

· * *

I returned to my room from my soliloquy with my father. The invitation felt heavy in my hand. The thought of attending to the party made my breath catch in my throat.

“Did you go?”

I heard Blue’s voice, a voice I had forgotten about for a while. Blue stood up from the table and looked at me.

“Nothing happened, except I got stuck at a party I had no interest in.”

I added with a shrug.

“It’s been crazy. Let’s run to get some fresh air. Not many people come to the flower garden, so it’ll be pleasant to talk.”

“Let’s go. I want to know what it’s like here in the flower garden.”

Blue clapped his hands in agreement. I picked Blue up and started walking.

A cool spring breeze blew across my face as I stepped out into the flower garden. The garden was deserted. The peaceful silence was soothing.

I looked at Blue and spoke seriously.

“We discussed this earlier, and you said I was dead.”

“Yeah, that’s what I said.”

The word death gave me chills. An uneasy tension hovered around me like a hawk stalking its prey. I swallowed dryly.

Blue hesitated for a moment, then whispered in a low voice, as if he had no choice.

“That was five years ago for me. Twenty-five years from now. I was told you died in a carriage rollover while traveling from your villa to Castle Valenti.”

“A rollover accident……. I suppose you wouldn’t come to Castle Valenti unless you were married, and that would involve the Valentis.”

Still, I thought it would be a wise idea to build a new, safer carriage just in case.

I suddenly stared at a cute cream-colored stuffed bunny. Suspicion bubbled up inside me.

Was it really from the future?

Was this whole thing she told me just to manipulate me?

“How do you know everything that happened to me? Were you ever around me?”

“I told you, I was a man whose hobby was collecting newspapers; it was my only recreation. I was born and raised on the Valenti estate, so I was interested in your story as Mrs. Valenti.”

Blue shrugged, adding, ‘Thank goodness I’m a Valentine!’

I wonder if he noticed the doubt that still lingered like dust on my face. Blue opened his mouth as if he’d been waiting.

“You said today was April 1323, right?”

“That’s right.”

“At the end of April, there’s going to be a hailstorm, a really severe hailstorm, and when it happens, you’ll have to believe I’m really from the future.”

“Hail on a beautiful spring day like this…….”

As my voice trailed off, I heard unfamiliar footsteps. Blue and I fell silent.

The uninvited visitor, who suddenly appeared here, spoke bluntly.

“What are you mumbling to yourself?” You’re not even in the lab. I thought you had left.”

If tigers come to me when I talk to them, how did he know I was talking to him?

Titus Valenti’s silver hair blew in the wind, sunlight on his armor shimmered like a halo. A crooked smile stretched across his handsome face.

I locked eyes with him, unwilling to lose.

“I was just thinking about something. What’s going on with our family suddenly?”.