“Are you sure you’re okay being alone?”

“Yes. I just want to take a walk and clear my thoughts.”

“Then I’ll wait here. Call me loudly if you need me.”

Nodding her head, Rosha sent the maid away and wandered alone in the garden of the Count Aper’s mansion.

A place full of memories that she revisited countless times in her mind.

A place she had always wanted to come back to once she returned.

She touched the tree where she used to play hide-and-seek as a child, and even played in the small fountain made for the birds by dipping her fingers into it.

All the while, thoughts constantly swirled in her mind.

‘I need to settle the affairs with the uncle. But where should I start?’

There were only 30 days left until the first trial.

Considering that it wasn’t just any trial, but one with a hard mode applied, and she had to come up with a way to protect her family on her own, it was a ridiculously short amount of time.

Rosha walked along a secluded path in the garden, deep in thought.

‘First of all, I can’t use the magic here, which is my specialty. There’s hardly any magic particles in the air of this world.’

However, if it’s ‘psychic powers’ instead of magic, then it’s a different story.

Psychic powers manifest from physical energy, and her vibrant psychic abilities from Korea were still with her even after returning to her original world.

The only problem was…

‘My psychic power is too inefficient.’

She sighed as she touched her thin, muscle-less arm.

She had a strong feeling that if she used her psychic powers with her current physique, she’d be bedridden for a week. She might get a bit better with physical training, but one month would be too short.

Moreover, what else could she prepare?

“Ha-a.”

She couldn’t just blurt out to the brothers about the impending danger.

It felt utterly hopeless.

‘It would have been nice if I had a colleague who shared the same experiences as me.’

Rosha recalled a few faces and habitually murmured a prayer to the Guide God from her previous world.

“Oh Lord, what should I do?”

At that moment…

Whoosh!

“What the…”

She couldn’t quite grasp what was happening.

But when she saw a silver light bursting from deep within the garden, her feet moved instinctively. She felt a familiar aura from the light.

The aura of the Guide God.

‘This can’t be…’

Intervention by the god was only possible after the trial had begun. The Guide God had certainly asserted that…

Regardless, trusting her instincts, she began to run.

And then.

Flap!

From the approaching light, something burst out with the sound of flapping wings.

It was a parrot with a white body and yellow feathers on its head.

“Oh my, I’m gonna die!”

Seeing the parrot, which had landed on the ground and was groaning, Rosha’s eyes widened.

Because, that bird was the messenger of the Guide God and someone she knew.

So, from the previous world!

‘No way…’

Her expression naturally turned to disbelief.

Koko, why are you here?

The first time Rosha met the parrot Koko was shortly after she fell into another world.

Just as a distressed Rosha was wondering what to do, Koko flew in with the sound of flapping wings.

– Ahem, so you’re ‘that person’ the guiding one talked about.

With an arrogant tone, lifting his chin, trying to act cool.

Under normal circumstances, a talking bird would be surprising, but after witnessing a giant monster, a talking bird wasn’t that strange.

Through her tear-blurred vision, she glanced at him and said,

– Are you a chicken?

– …What, what?

– Huh, I’ll just call you Koko for now.

She thought it was a chicken because it looked like a yellow feather at first glance.

Of course, he was outraged, saying, ‘How dare you treat me, a great magician, like a mere chicken?’

‘But slowly, he got used to that nickname.’

They lived together through thick and thin for 18 long years. Seeing him again, for some unknown reason, a huge relief washed Rosha over.

Rushing, she picked up Koko and asked in a trembling voice:

“What happened? Are you hurt? How did you get here?”

“Uh-huh…”

Lying limp on her palm, Koko replied just lifting his head:

“How did I come? Well, the god used some of his power.”

“God? You mean the Guide God?”

“Yes.”

The Guide God. An unidentified deity who occasionally helped her and was the source of her powers. Koko was the messenger bird of this Guide God. Although he spoke quite rudely.

“Why would he throw me away and tell you to help? I can’t use power without magic, and that Guide doesn’t care about my situation at all!”

As Koko ranted, he seemed too weak to even speak, his yellow feathers drooping like a dehydrated plant.

‘Well, Koko’s body moves by magic.’

Given the almost non-existent magic particles in this world, it’s understandable he feels powerless.

In other words, Koko, who claims to be a ‘great magician’, cannot use magic.

…But still.

“I’m glad you’re here.”

There’s a sense of relief just being with an old comrade.

She felt like she could do anything, and she naturally smiled.

“Hey, if you were going to do this, why did you say you were going home?”

Koko, perhaps feeling the same, smiled back.

That was only for a moment.

Rosha walked to the garden entrance and explained her current situation. About the first trial that will hit in 30 days and that they first needed to clean the house to prepare for it.

And…

“Cedric, my eldest brother, is very smart.”

She also briefly talked about her precious family.

“Well, how smart can a mere human be?”

“It’s not just talk. He graduated top of his class from Imperial Academy for four years and became the youngest imperial aide.”

It was memorable that such a talent came from their family even after a long time.

“Hmm… Is that all?”

“No. He’s kind, considerate, and like the perfect brother you’d read about in textbooks. When I was young, I thought I’d never marry someone less than Cedric.”

“…”

Although Koko looked at her with a sour face, it was the truth.

Remembering her older brother’s warm embrace, her heart melted.

“But why did your relatives waste the family’s assets? Wasn’t he smart?”

“Because he had to go to the Imperial Academy on the Emperor’s orders.

The eldest son of a noble family in the Empire had to graduate from the academy. Cedric’s admission time was just unfortunate.

Rosha shared what she remembered.

“After our parents passed away, Cedric had to leave for the academy. Cassis and I were too young. Our grandfather took over the family’s affairs, but he was so heartbroken he didn’t notice the relatives’ misconduct.”

“Hmm…”

“And then, one day, he suddenly collapsed and fell into a coma.”

That meant Cedric wasn’t the head of the family but just acting on his behalf, in a messy situation with a relative who wanted the title.

Koko nodded as if understanding. After reminiscing about her grandfather, Rosha continued with a forced cheerful voice.

“And my second brother, Cassis, is…”

At that moment,

Suddenly, she felt someone’s presence and stopped talking.

Soon, she saw a man with loose clothes coming from the opposite road. Recognizing his reddish-brown hair similar to hers, it was obvious who he was.

It was Cassis.

He stopped in his tracks, noticing her, and briskly walked towards them.