The poisoned spring concluded with my death, but it wasn't the end. As expected, I woke up in a different setting, with the same body but an entirely new identity. Who am I this time?

"Allari," A sonorous voice spoke. "You're awake!"

As soon as I opened my eyes, a man's face greeted me in close proximity. He had curly brown hair and wore thick glasses with round lenses. Aside from that, he had notable freckles across his face.

"I was so worried!" His blue eyes twitched as he flailed his arms around. "I thought you had died!"

Well, technically, I already died twice.

I cautiously looked around. We were in a modest house, with lots of herbs and mixing equipments. Based on the empty bottles on the nearby table, I could only think of two things: alchemy or magic.

"Wah! I messed up the teleportation spell, that's why you passed out on the way home!" The man rubbed his hands apologetically. "I'm so sorry!"

I got up from the bed. I was about to answer him, but when I opened my mouth, no voice came out.

Huh?

My hands landed on my throat. I can't speak?

"Hmm? What's wrong?" The brown-haired guy circled around me. "Does it hurt anywhere?"

I lifted my gaze to him and gestured that I couldn't speak. He blinked twice and looked taken aback.

"Uhm," He seemed concerned. "By any chance, are you trying to say something right now, Allari?"

I nodded frantically in response.

"Well, that's..." For some reason, he was nervous, like he was choosing his words carefully. "Allari, I'm sorry but have you forgotten you're mute?"

Wait a minute. Did I hear that correctly?

I gawked at him in disbelief.

"Yes, you're mute!" He reiterated with a bright smile, as if rubbing salt on fresh wounds. "So there's no point in trying to speak, okay?"

My jaw dropped. Mute? Are you kidding me?!

As if being an extra isn't enough, they even turned me into a character who can't speak? What kind of joke is this?! Dude, I'm so upset! This is too much!

Since I couldn't voice out my frustrations, I kept raising my middle finger on the skies. You damn gods! I hate you! This is just human bullying!

"Haha! Are you mad at the heavens because you're mute?" The man sat on the edge of my bed. "Don't be mad at them. After all, it's the work of a witch."

When I turned to him, there was a sympathetic look on his face. He seemed a bit sad for me.

Heh, this guy looks like a pushover.

"But how can you forget such a crucial detail?" He gave me a puzzled look. "Oh, god! Could it be that you lost some of your memories, Allari? Is that it?"

I nodded consecutive times.

"Do you remember who I am?" he asked.

I shook my head as an answer.

"Oh, no!" He's like a puppy. "What should we do?"

I made a disgusted face when he hugged me.

"Now, now. There's no need to be scared, Allari." He gently caressed my head. "Brother Servan is here for you. Everything will be okay, sister!"

Sister?! Wow, this is unexpected. I was an orphan in my first two lives, but now I have a family?!

---

After doing my own research and observing for quite some time, my mind was blown away.

First of all, the story did a three-year timeskip.

"Oh, how lovely." Servan commented when he peeked on the newspaper I was holding. "Grand Duke Averill is finally married to Lady Camellia!"

Second, Alistair became her husband.

How in the world did it end up like this? Did Rumi fail to deliver the letter? Why did he become her spouse three years later? I feel hurt and betrayed.

I can still feel the excruciating pain as the blade chopped off my head numerous times. Every time I recollect my gruesome death, I keep reminding myself that I died miserably like that because the villainess, Ruth Alessia di Camellia, betrayed me.

What am I supposed to do if the person I love married the woman who drove me to death?

"I feel happy for His Grace. He has been through so much." My brown-haired companion added like a proud parent. "He withdrew from society for three years. The lady helped him start anew."

So that's what happened.

Ruth took advantage of Alistair's vulnerability through the years. She must've won his heart.

How vexing. Did she kill me for that purpose?

"Don't they look so good together, Allari?"

A vein popped on the side of my forehead.

"H-Haha! I suppose you aren't interested in nobles that much." Servan laughed nervously when he noticed my glare. "It's like a different world, huh?"

Seriously, he's so damn talkative.

This airhead with me is Servan, and he seems to be my brother. From what I learned, we're both mages from the tower who specialize in healing.

More importantly, I am a girl named Allari who was afflicted with a curse when we accidentally came across an evil witch during our childhood.

Servan told me that curse sealed away my voice.

When I looked at the mirror, I still had the same face, but it seems like I aged a bit. Isabelle was eighteen. This body looks at least in twenties.

This is already my third role. How exhausting.

My brother walked up to me. "Put this on, sister."

Servan helped me wear a white robe with ornate patterns in a light green shade. It seems that this is the standard dress for healing mages in the tower.

"Done!" He clapped in excitement. "Wah, we're wearing matching outfits, Allari! I'm so happy!"

Dude, what matching outfit? It's a uniform.

I only gave him an unimpressed look.

"Hehe, lately you keep looking at me like I'm some bug, Allari." Servan scratched his cheek innocently. "Did I do anything? Are you mad?"

I ignored Servan the whole time as we made our way to the tower. I can't believe I'm a full-fledged mage. Can I even use this body's magic? I was just a normal human working as a maid a while ago!

"Ta-da!" Servan spread his arms upward when we arrived at the tower of mages. "This is our workplace, Allari! Do you remember now?"

I shot him a disgusted look. I noticed this earlier, but why is he treating me like a five-year old kid?

It's not like I can answer him verbally, so I simply rolled my eyes. Servan flinched, and he seemed to take this to heart, like a puppy with his ears down.

Both of us tilted our head to the entrance where a lot of mages were running to and fro. What's up?

"Wow," he blurted out with mild interest. "Look at all these people. Well, two major events are taking place today, so they must need a lot of manpower."

I stared at him, waiting for him to explain further.

"Hm?" His face brightened. "If you give your brother a hug, I'll explain it to you! Tee-hee!"

I hissed at him, like a cat ready to fight.

"Y-You don't need to look so disgusted." He pouted, sulking. "Fine. I'll tell you since you're so cute."

Siscon. He's a siscon. That must be it, right?

"First, the envoy His Majesty sent for a territorial inspection will be arriving at the tower today."

An envoy? A territorial inspection?

"Second, Sir Haniel is returning today!"

I have no idea who the fuck that is.

That aside, these events must be related to the plot of the novel, but I don't even know what to expect from the second arc. I can't even recall its name!

Since I awakened as a mage, then I surmise that this arc's storyline must be related to the tower.

Servan nudged me then smiled. "Shall we go?"

This guy doesn't seem to care about anything else other than his sister. It makes me wonder if he has any significance in the novel. Who exactly is he?

Will Servan be a purposeful extra like me, or a character with no impact on the story at all?

Only time can tell, I suppose.

---

Upon entering the tower, it felt like a whole new world to me, and it's not a welcomed progress in my part. It felt like the genre of the story changed.

Moreover, as I have mentioned before, I was only a normal human just a while ago. I only brewed tea and prepared pastries. What would I know about magic? Why did they give me this role?

Servan seemed to have noticed my exhaustion, so he told me to take a stroll within the tower's area for a change of scenery. I decided to do as he says.

What should I do now?

That question rang on my head as I sauntered within the garden. The flowers were still in full bloom, complementing the salty summer air.

But no matter how peaceful this present time was, it can't alleviate my fears and pains from the past.

The blade slicing through my neck and the crowd celebrating my death... All of it feels like yesterday.

Why are you with her, Alistair?

My heart ached at my question. Did he fall in love with Ruth after I died? Has he forgotten about me?

What do I want to do? Or rather, is there anything I can do at all with this body that can't even speak?

It seems that Grand Duke Averill withdrew from society these past few years, and it was only recently that he recovered thanks to Lady Camellia. Isn't it such a wonderful healing story?

If I show up in front him with this face that looks exactly like his dead lover, he'll just suffer again.

Should I just disappear, then?

Come to think of it, I never tried killing myself before. If I take my life before I could even fulfill my role, would I still revive as the same person?

Let's try it, then. What is there to lose? Nothing.

I already lost everything, anyway.

With shaking hands, I took out the kitchen knife that I secretly brought with me from our house.

I hesitated for a moment, but steeled my resolve afterwards. I already went through death twice.

At this point, I should be numb from the pain.

I positioned the knife on the side of my neck. I just need to make a clean cut to kill myself. It's easy.

I was just about to slice through my neck when I heard someone unsheathing their sword behind me. Before I could even react, a blade swung on me upwards, sending my knife flying away.

"Taking your own life?" The sound of his voice had me emotional. "How foolish and cowardly."

Even until my last breath, he was the only person that ever crossed my mind. I wanted to run my fingers through his silver hair once more, and prayed for another chance to gaze into his eyes.

But now that he was in front of me, I couldn't even move an inch, let alone utter a single word or cry even if I wanted to do so.

To me whose life was timed, the last arc only happened a few hours ago. The pain has yet to subside and the memories were still vivid.

To Alistair, however, it has been three full years.

We had a different sense of time. He might have ran many miles, but I have barely taken a step.

As soon as our gazes met, his golden eyes flickered in shock. Soon after, it also turned into confusion.

"Isabelle?" he said barely above a whisper.

That one summer day, I reunited with the love of my life. He was just as dashing as I last saw him.

Alistair Kirsten de Averill was still the same.

Only this time, he was already married.

---