From the moment I was born, I had full awareness, though my vision was still undeveloped. I couldn't see much, but I could hear the voices around me, faintly aware of my surroundings.
As a newborn, I cried instinctively. Beside me, I heard another child's cry. "Aren't they cute?" a woman with a gentle, beautiful voice said, and I felt a soft hand caress my cheek.
"Yes, but this one is a girl…" replied an older woman.
"My husband mustn't know about this, or he'll want this child gone. You know how much he despises the idea of a daughter," the first woman murmured, her hand still brushing my cheek.
The old woman asked, "Alright, miss, what should we name them?"
"Well… my husband had hoped for a son. He said he wanted to name him Claudius."
Claudius? That name seemed familiar.
"And this little one will be Oliver." I felt a gentle pat on my head.
Claudius… Oliver… Wait. I've heard those names before. Could it be—
"You will be Claudius Ashford, and you will be Oliver Ashford," she said, finalizing the names.
Wait a minute! Just as I thought—I've been reborn in the novel I read before I died! And it seems I've been reborn as Oliver Ashford?
Isn't Oliver Ashford the twin brother of Claudius? How is it possible that I'm a girl? Wasn't I supposed to be a boy?
I tried to make sense of the situation. From what I'd gathered so far—and from my memory of the novel—Arthur Ashford, Claudius's father, was a deeply misogynistic man who looked down on women, even his own wife. Claudius, his favorite, had been raised to adopt his father's twisted views, which turned him into a terrible person.
Does this mean Oliver Ashford was actually a girl all along, pretending to be a boy? In the novel, the story began when they were ten, with scenes hinting at the twins' strained relationship. Claudius didn't know his "brother" was actually a girl. In his eyes, Oliver was a weak, pathetic disappointment unworthy of his time, and just being around Oliver seemed to disgust him.
Claudius's cruel treatment of Oliver had always seemed connected to his father's favoritism. Arthur had labeled Oliver as "useless and unworthy." Years later, as teens, they attended the academy together. Oliver consistently received praise for high grades, fueling Claudius's jealousy. While he was bright, he could never quite surpass Oliver academically and resented always being second.
Physically, however, Claudius was far superior. He excelled in swordsmanship, frequently bullied Oliver, and grew more irritated by the lack of retaliation.
When they were sixteen, Claudius snapped. He murdered his father, Oliver, and even his mother, all to seize control of the Ashford estate. To cover up the crime, he staged it as a robbery, earning sympathy as a "tragic" child who lost his family so young. Only he knew the truth behind the massacre, yet no one suspected him. He became more ambitious, eventually plotting to rule the kingdom itself.
To achieve this, he manipulated powerful and talented women, each admired for their knowledge, magic, or strength. Using his charm, he deceived them into believing he loved them, leading them to join his harem. I pitied those girls, thinking Claudius was their savior, while in truth, he was exploiting them.
I had read this novel up to the latest available chapter, hoping Claudius would experience some character growth or face someone who could end his tyranny. But so far, nothing had happened.
Thinking about my future now, anger rose within me. The gods had granted me a second life, but for what? To die again in a hopeless situation? It felt like they'd revived a fish, only to fry it.
I wanted to sigh, but as a newborn, I could only keep crying.
Days passed, and two weeks after my birth, my vision had improved. Though still a bit blurry, I could see things more clearly if they were close by. Staring up at the ceiling, I wondered if I could change my fate. Now that I thought about it, didn't God mention a blessing before sending me here? I wondered what it might be. As I pondered, I began to feel sleepy and drifted off.
In my sleep, I floated in darkness, searching for a way out. Eventually, I spotted a small golden light and tried to move toward it. But just as I was about to touch it, I felt myself being picked up, jolting me awake—and I began to cry.
"Hmph! Stinky, noisy brat! Take this kid and quiet him down!" I opened my eyes and briefly saw the man's face before being passed into someone else's arms.
"I told you they were still sleeping. You shouldn't have woken them," said a red-haired woman with a beautiful, soothing voice as she tried to calm me.
"Heh! I don't want a kid who cries all the time," the man sneered, then slammed the door as he left, the sound startling me into crying even louder.
"Mother's here, Oliver," the woman cooed, placing a soft kiss on my forehead. She began to sing a gentle lullaby. As I listened, the memory of my mother from Earth returned to me. Her voice, too, was calming, and it lulled me back into sleep.