Over the span of three years, Leflina watched with her own eyes as one family member after another left her.
In the second year of the drought, her grandmother, wanting to leave more food for the children, chose to take her own life.
After all the stored grain had been eaten, her grandfather went alone into the mountains to hunt on a snowy day—and never returned.
Later, her two uncles decided that waiting to die here was pointless. It would be better to go out and try their luck; perhaps there would still be a slim chance to survive.
Leflina's father, however, stayed behind. Leflina was still too young, and her mother's health was poor, so he could not leave. Fortunately, before departing, her two elder brothers left behind most of the grass roots they had managed to dig up.
And so, Leflina's family of three survived for several more months in that lifeless village.
Until one night, when Leflina woke up to find that her father had quietly taken her on his back and left the village she had lived in since birth.
Leaving behind everything she had ever known—her family, her friends, and…
"Father, where is Mother?"
When she woke, the young Leflina did not cry or make a fuss. A life of hardship had already made her unusually sensible. After witnessing the deaths of so many relatives, she had already formed a vague guess about her mother's fate.
"She's asleep," her father replied.
He turned his head to look at Leflina, hesitating, as if he wanted to say something but could not bring himself to do so.
Leflina's father was no ordinary man. In his youth, he had once served as a soldier under a noble and had a few old comrades with whom he had shared life-and-death bonds.
One of those comrades still owed him sixty copper coins. The amount was insignificant in normal times, but in a year of disaster it could buy a few hard, dry loaves of black bread.
Those few loaves might not save the entire family, but they could preserve Leflina's life.
And Leflina was the hope of the entire family.
When she was very young, a wandering mage had once come to their home and said that Leflina possessed the potential to become an extraordinary being. The specifics were unclear, but he said she would need to go to Savant City for testing when she turned twelve.
And so, Leflina's father carried her on his back, crossing half of the Scholars' Nation, until they finally reached Savant City.
Along the way, that kind-hearted old comrade not only repaid the money he owed, but also helped Leflina's father join a noble merchant guild near Savant City.
Thus, because he had no money and had originally planned to send Leflina into the city alone before leaving, her father instead stayed behind.
Relying on the combat skills he had gained as a soldier and his smooth way of dealing with people, he gradually rose through the ranks of the merchant guild. After a few years, he became a minor but respectable manager within it.
From that day on, Leflina's life slowly began to improve.
At first, father and daughter slept in a stable. Later, they were able to rent a place within the city.
When she turned twelve, her magical aptitude was finally confirmed, and the Royal Education Office granted her a scholarship of three gold coins—though she had heard that the amount was supposed to be ten.
Later still, due to her decent talent, she received admission letters from three different academies.
However, because only the so-called most underperforming Art Academy waived her tuition fees, she ultimately chose that school.
Now, Leflina's life had indeed improved. She no longer suffered from hunger as she once had.
But compared to the young masters and ladies of the Spark Society, she understood the suffering of the lower classes far more deeply.
That was why she could never truly agree with the Spark Society's ideals.
Their so-called free will was nothing more than transferring the masses from the hands of one group of exploiters into the hands of another.
Yet these memories did not bring her only pain—they also brought growth.
She did not know why she had come here, nor why her body was no longer under her control, wandering aimlessly.
But she knew one thing for certain: this was no ordinary dream.
"I already know your answer, Leflina."
The black-haired girl once again drifted to her ear and whispered softly,
"You understand very well that this is not normal.
Ordinary people should not be squeezed dry by decadent nobility—decadent nobles—nor should they be deceived by those bastards of the church.
They should take control of their own fate, strive for their future, and strive for the sake of their descendants.
Not labor for some illusory god.
I know you carry within you the desire to change all of this. Because changing it is your destiny—and a responsibility you cannot shirk."
"So what do you want me to do?"
At last, Leflina was able to speak.
And her first words were not the dull, expected questions—Who are you? What are you trying to do to me?
Instead, she calmly reflected on what had just been said and went straight to the heart of the matter.
"And why do you say this is my predetermined destiny?"
Her two questions clearly caught the black-haired girl off guard. She froze for a moment, then covered her mouth and laughed softly.
"As expected of the fated woman destined to guide change. Your composure only makes me more certain that you are the one who can truly transform this world."
"So?" Leflina raised an eyebrow, clearly irritated by this habit of speaking in riddles and never finishing a thought.
"So," the black-haired girl said lightly,"go and feel your own heart.
Understand what it is you truly desire within, and then…"
Her lips curled upward, revealing a row of pale, eerily white teeth.
"…go and embrace the authority and power that belong to you alone."
As her words fell, Leflina suddenly felt the ground vanish beneath her feet.
Her body plunged downward, completely out of control.
She looked up and saw, at the edge of a circular opening above, the black-haired girl standing there, silently watching her fall. Her lips moved, as if she were saying something.
But the roar of the rushing wind drowned out all sound.
Powerless, Leflina could only surrender herself to the endless abyss below.
At the edge of the opening, the black-haired girl quietly watched Leflina disappear into the darkness, her lips curved in a faint smile as she murmured to herself:
"In this play woven by fate, you, I, and everyone else are nothing more than puppets standing upon the stage, performing according to a predetermined script.
You will usher in your revolution, and I will obtain everything I desire."
As she spoke, the black-haired girl slowly descended to the ground. She rolled her shoulders, then removed the black bandage wrapped around her eyes, revealing a pair of flawless, immaculate white pupils—untainted by even the slightest impurity.
"I really wonder what kind of expression Albedo will make when she realizes that I've guided her into someone else's dream.
I'm actually rather looking forward to my foolish little sister's performance."