That boy’s name was Roystan Noart.
He was my cousin, four years older than me.
As the only son of my eldest uncle, he had always been convinced he would be the future heir of the Noart family.
That was, of course, until Julian appeared and shattered all his dreams.
And I remembered this boy very well.
"Hey, stop right there. You're that ‘apprentice,’ aren’t you?"
Even before my regression, I had run into him at this exact moment—on this very path leading back to the annex after leaving Julian’s room.
Up until now, he had refrained from bothering me out of consideration for Julian.
But the moment Julian lost his memories, he immediately started picking a fight.
"The apprentice needs to get lost and go back to the temple. No one here thinks of you as family."
Even after regressing, his words hadn’t changed.
"That butcher’s brat was the only one looking out for you, and now he’s . Shouldn’t you take the hint and crawl back to where you belong?"
To them, Julian was just the butcher’s brat, and I was merely the apprentice.
"Besides, your mother ran away from here ages ago. And in the most disgraceful way possible."
The resentment he had harbored toward Julian all this time burned in his eyes.
"You really think that butcher-brained idiot, stuck at seventeen, is going to love you the way he used to?"
Roystan tapped my head condescendingly as he spoke.
"Get this through your thick skull—Noart despises the temple. There was never a place for an ‘apprentice’ in this house to begin with."
With each aggressive push, my small body staggered backward.
"You think Grandfather would ever acknowledge an apprentice as a Noart? You actually believe you belong in this estate?"
I didn’t say a word. My lips only trembled as my tear-filled eyes wavered.
Heidi, clearly distressed, anxiously looked around. She couldn’t openly defy Roystan due to the difference in status, so she was desperately hoping that someone passing by would intervene.
And just then, a group of people appeared in the distance.
Hope flickered across Heidi’s face.
"Don’t bother. Who in this house would step in to help an apprentice now?"
With a sneering chuckle, he pressed a finger hard against my forehead.
Before my regression, this was the moment Roystan had kicked me.
I had lain there, taking those kicks, while bitterly thinking that maybe he was right.
Julian didn’t need to take responsibility for a worthless, lowly little sister he couldn’t even remember.
So I had left the Noart estate and returned to the temple—only to be thrown straight into their experiments.
"What? The apprentice who was taken into Noart came crawling back? Oh! We just so happen to need a new test subject! Toss her into the lab immediately!"
"That damn Julian Noart was a pain in the ass, too! Sneaking into the temple under a fake identity just to snatch his little sister away? If we had known she had Noart blood in her, we would have taken care of her a long time ago!"
It was only then that I realized the truth—apprentices being used for experiments was a regular occurrence at the temple.
They had always disappeared in batches. I just hadn’t known.
That was how I spent ten years locked away.
I was moments away from being kicked by Roystan once again.
"Are you going to get lost on your own, or do you need a proper beating to finally understand your place?"
My body flinched involuntarily, remembering the pain from before.
Heidi shrieked as she rushed to support me.
The papers in my hand fluttered to the ground.
She tried to shield me, stepping forward despite the clear risks.
A group of people spotted us and rushed over.
"There she is! Lady Rosie!"
"Lady Rosie, we need a word with you! It’s urgent!"
I had endured this moment just for this.
There was a reason I hadn’t fought back. There was a reason I had stayed silent and let my tears well up.
Because now—I wasn’t going to be helpless anymore.
I staggered dramatically.
The people holding documents sprinted toward us.
"Lady Rosie! Please, we need to talk!"
"There’s something important we must discuss!"
They swarmed around me, Heidi, and Roystan.
Roystan gaped in shock.
I remained collapsed on the ground, panting pitifully.
"I’m sorry... I just... I fell over...."
With the most sorrowful expression I could muster, I sniffled as the crowd completely surrounded me.
"I’m too overwhelmed to think straight, so I’ll be meeting my guests in my room... Don’t worry, I’ll see everyone. Besides, holding onto all this money by myself is terrifying..."
Roystan muttered, "Money?" under his breath.
Then his eyes landed on the papers that had fallen at my feet. The moment he realized what they were, he flinched so hard that he fell flat on his backside.
I cast a sideways glance at him and smirked inwardly.
You didn’t just push around some ‘apprentice’—you pushed the owner of 137 billion gold.
Apparently, he wasn’t a complete fool, because his face had already gone deathly pale.
"Originally, I was planning to entrust it to my eldest uncle since Grandfather is away, but... I think I need to reconsider."
I gathered the papers with exaggerated care and spoke in the most sorrowful voice I could manage.
"I already heard my uncle’s opinion through you, Roystan."
Roystan’s eyes went wide.
"Me?" His face twisted in confusion, like he had no idea what I was talking about.
I gave him a sweet, innocent smile.
"This, right? You told me to everything to the temple. You also told me to return there. Truly, your devotion is admirable..."
Now fully facing him, I lightly brushed the dust off his collar and tilted my head.
"I didn’t notice from a distance, but up close, I can see your outfit is made from Etton fiber. It’s a luxurious fabric, a major source of income for the temple. I suppose that means you have no real bias against the temple. I understand your sincerity now."
"Etton fiber. Have you not been keeping up with the news since Grandfather’s been away? It was the front-page article in today’s paper."
I shrugged nonchalantly.
"Hmm. It seems you don’t quite fit into the Noart estate, either."
It was Grandfather’s rule that everyone in the family read the newspaper over breakfast.
And now, Roystan had nothing to say. He was seething, but words completely escaped him.
"Not fitting into the Noart estate."
That was the exact insult he had thrown at me earlier.
Throwing it back in his face felt incredibly refreshing.
I watched his crumpled expression with amusement and continued speaking as calmly as ever.
"Of course, donating to the temple would be meaningful, considering my background... but since Grandfather despises the temple, I should probably consult with others before making a decision."
And with the sweetest smile I could muster, I drove in the final nail.
"Oh, and that means my uncle’s people don’t need to come. No need to go through the trouble twice, right? I’m very considerate like that."
The expressions of the subordinates from my eldest uncle’s side darkened visibly.
"Anyway, thanks for the lesson, Roystan."
I said, my voice as kind as ever.
"I’ll make sure to never forget your words. Ever."
My uncle, Murloc Noart, was definitely going to latch onto that one line: "Originally, I was going to entrust it to my uncle."
And Roystan? He was about to get scolded like never before.
After all, the loss of money that was almost within reach always stung the most.
"I know you weren’t wrong about some things. I am from the temple. My mother did run away from this house on her own."
Roystan’s face twisted even further as I leaned in and whispered.
The moment I erased my smile, he stiffened and bit down on his lower lip.
"Even so, I’m never going to live thinking of myself as worthless or lowly."
Because in my past life—I had thought that way.
Speaking not to him, but to myself, I enunciated every word carefully.
"If I think that way about myself, my brother, who loved me so much, would be sad. That’s why I have to cherish myself."
Even if Julian had lost those memories, at the very least, I still had them.
I had to carry them with me, every second, every moment, never letting them fade.
Because last time, I had forgotten.
I had made a terrible mistake in my past life—
I hadn’t valued myself.
I had thought the love Julian had given me was completely gone.
This time, I won’t make that mistake.
Now, it was my turn to protect the things Julian had once shielded for me.
"So no matter what you say, you can’t hurt me. No matter where I come from, no matter whether my brother remembers me or not—I will stand tall anywhere I go."
Locking eyes with Roystan, I whispered slowly.
"You’d better not forget that either."