She came back.

I died, then I came back fifteen years before my death.

The simpler way to explain it: I was framed, I was imprisoned, and I was murdered. My mother's stepdaughter, Ginea, did it, everything was planned by her. She betrayed me and exchanged me, then she let me die in her stead. Sigh... I was a fool, for a second time I believed in the illusion of love and care, and I was betrayed.

If I hadn't chosen to leave with my mother, if only I had chosen my dad... maybe...

"Lily, who do you want to go with, darling? Tell me, sweety, don't be afraid."

That was the question grandma asked me when I was five years old. I looked at my parents, my dad to the right, the man who disappeared from my life that very day, and my mother to the left, the woman who kept reminding me every day of my life what a hideous waste of space I was.

Well, this time she won't have this burden with her. Though, she will leave with nothing but her pretty face.

"Lily, love," I heard her soft voice. She looked at me with those pretty bright blue eyes with the ability to enchant any man in a perimeter of a few hundred miles. "Please... mommy loves you."

At that time, I easily fell for her words, like any other kid that craved for his mother's love. However, she never hugged me nor kissed me in the past, she never considered me her daughter. Just this one time, she told me she loved me. But it was fake, all because of grandma Mirelle's inheritance.

Then I turned to stare at dad, tall with a brown bear covering half of his good looking face, dignified and strong. He was the Count of Naillin, the strongest swordmaster of the country and the only man who survived alone in the Dark Forest for an entire year.

He looked scary and I trembled with his piercing sight, but he never did anything bad to me, in my last life, he was the only one who believed me and tried to save me, but... but he... because of me. No... I won't let it happen again.

"Darling?"

My mother, Nadia Omeir called me, she even stepped forward to hug me but I didn't say her name. Not even when she kissed my forehead lovingly.

"I will go with dad," I said, at least, I hoped he won't be as atrocious as this woman.

"What?!"

The woman, my mother threw me back, her face suddenly changed to the same old one, the disgusted one as if she had eaten something truly bad.

"I said I want to go with dad," my eyes didn't falter, I looked at my father and he looked at me. He nodded.

My grandma took my hand and smiled. In my last life, this grandma was my godmother, the Duchess of Julien, she let me and my family stay within her territory as she was grateful to my father. He saved her son when they went to war, and he protected her husband when they were attacked on the road to the capital. If not for my father, the Ducky would have perished long ago.

"This can't be," my mother said with a trembling tone, "darling, Lily, you said you will come with me this morning, don't you remember? We promise to live as mother and daughter, together, you promised."

I turned to look at grandma. Somehow, I felt she was happier than in my previous life, well, I think she truly never liked my mother. I guess the attempted times my mother tried to seduce her son were enough to make anyone dislike her.

"Grandma, I want to go to dad," I said and the old woman smiled.

"Lily!" I heard mother shouting. She was about to take my shoulder when someone carried me.

The man, the tall dad I got, grabbed me from the shoulders and made me look at him. His blue eyes resembled mine, we stared at each other for a bit of time. Then I moved my head to one side, he got one white hair in the mustache. Should I tell him? He looked great anyway, a tall handsome man with a mustache and a bear, and one white hair. That's my dad.

"Are you sure, kid?"

Did I have a choice? It was either him or that crazy woman over there. And, I had seen my life with her, it was horrible. First, she spent the whole inheritance the Duchess gave me in luxury items, dresses, jewels, a big house in the mansion, and servants. Nothing went to me, only a bit of food, a few clothes, and several beatings. If someone spoke badly of her, she will come back and shouted at me, if someone ridiculed her, she kicked me till I begged and cried. However, everything became worse when she married Count Drion, he never liked me, but he took me in because of his reputation. However, I was a mere maid inside that house. Sigh... No more, fools.

"I am," I said to the man with the mustache, "I want to go with you."

I won't give you a choice, man. Take me with you and if you don't treat me well, I will escape and come back to the Duchess. At least she will cherish me.

"Good, let's go."

He said and made me sit in his strong arm.

"Wait... wait, you can't leave me like that! I am your wife and her mother!"

The laugh from my grandma shut her up. "Miss Nadia, you were the one demanding the divorce and I granted it already, it is sealed and it is done. You can't take it back. Now... you should go from this place, I am sorry but you are no longer welcomed. My servants will take your thing to whichever place you want."

Applause to my cool grandma, though, I knew she was dying to say all that. My mother's face was really gloomy. Somehow I felt a bit of pity.

"Mom?"

I called her, she turned to see me with bright eyes.

"Take this, this will be enough, good luck."

I gave her one silver coin, the only one I had. Well, she gave me the same exact words in my past life, so... good luck.