At the top of the mountain, among tall trees covered in snow, lay Doelloos. His body was exhausted, and a long trail of blood snaked from where he lay to a distant mansion hidden in the shadows of the valley. Almost unconscious, Doelloos could barely remember what had brought him there. But that didn't matter.
After all... this wasn't his first death.
In the middle of the snow stood a tall, thin man with black hair and black eyes, wearing a bloodstained butler's uniform. Doelloos looked at his abdomen, which had been pierced. There was blood everywhere, including on his butler's uniform, which made Doelloos suddenly realize something.
A probable attempted murder of a butler? — Even though he was weak from blood loss, Doelloos placed his hand over the wound and slowly turned around, and could see the mansion from the top of the ridge.
What could I have done to be killed like this...
Well, not that I care. — After saying that, he just closed his eyes, slowly waiting for death....
... — A silence hung in the air.
My consciousness is fading... — He opened his eyes in his last moments to see the snow falling, even though he had seen it many times before.
How beautiful...
His strength was almost exhausted. He struggled to keep his eyes open, but was suddenly surprised.
What? — An unexpected sight in his current situation. A beautiful girl with blonde hair and blue eyes, wearing a red cloak.
Was she the one who attacked me...?
Impossible.
Wait, wh—The girl grabbed his clothes before he could think, specifically on the shoulder.
Is she going to carry me?
Why isn't she saying anything?
I don't think I can hold on much longer...
I'm...
His body froze, and his mind went blank.
...
And then, he recovered.
Doelloos slowly opened his eyes, already prepared for the next life, but his thinking was very wrong.
Hm? — Doelloos, waking up on a strange mattress, sat up and looked around, and noticed his bloodstained shirt that he had been wearing before, but clean and folded on the stone floor.
My shirt?
So what am I—Before finishing his thought, he looked down and saw his abdomen bandaged, tight enough to stop the bleeding.
Oh, she knows first aid.
So she saved me...
And that smell...
Sniff-sniff
"OH MY GOD!"
What a terrible smell!
Did someone pee in this room?!
What kind of place is this? — Looking around, Doelloos immediately realized the precarious situation.
It was a cramped and stuffy room with moldy walls and a ceiling that dripped incessantly. The floor was wet, covered with dirty rags and bloody clothes, scattered as if they had been thrown down in a hurry. Rotten food mixed with the dampness, giving off an unbearable smell. In the corner, an old, grimy wooden door seemed to be the only way out.
What the hell is this?
Does that girl live here?
No one can live in these conditions.
And that door... — Doelloos looks at the door, which gives off a pleasant smell, unlike anything he has ever smelled here, even against his will.
Why does it smell so good?
And then, before Doelloos could get up, that door that smelled so good suddenly opened. A wave of steam came out through the door. — Tsssshhhh. — The steam ended up blocking his view of what was about to come out. All Doelloos saw was a dark silhouette of someone small, but with long hair that went past their abdomen.
What is that?
Could it be... — Doelloos' thoughts were interrupted when a female voice echoed through the room.
"Oh, you're awake? I'm glad." A soft tone, but also emotionless. Doelloos quickly recognized who this person was, given his situation.
The girl slowly came out of the bathroom.
She had probably just taken a shower. Although she was wearing the same clothes as before, they were now clean. Unlike the cloak, which was still stained with blood.
"Who are you? And why did you save me?" The doubt was evident on her face, impossible to hide.
"I don't know."
The girl sat down on the floor, taking a fine comb from inside her hood, and immediately began combing her hair.
"Where did that comb come from...? I don't think it would fit inside a hood."
"Does that matter?"
"Not really, then give me a valid answer as to why you saved me."
"I really don't know, I just wanted to."
"What do you mean? Would you save any stranger and take them home just like that?"
"I could hurt you, anyone could."
"But you won't." She speaks indifferently as she combs her beautiful long blonde hair.
"And what makes you say that?" Doelloos grits his teeth as he speaks, then abruptly stands up.
"Where did you get the idea that I couldn't hurt you?" He begins to walk quickly toward the seated girl, quickening his pace.
Thump thump.
Standing in front of the girl, Doelloos grabs her by the collar of her red cloak and lifts her up forcefully.
With a menacing look on his face, he begins to yell at the girl who saved his life. "I'M NOT GOING?!"
"WHAT MAKES YOU SO SURE?" He squeezes the girl harder with each shout. "ANSWER ME NOW!"
However, upon looking more closely at the girl, Doelloos saw it. The face of someone who no longer cares about anything, empty and lifeless eyes. The girl no longer cared about anything, not even life itself.
"Then kill me."
"Huh?"
"Kill me."
"If you can."
"You wanted to know why I saved you, right?"
"..." All Doelloos can do is remain silent.
"It's because... You look like my father."
"He's dead." She looks away, uncomfortable after saying that.
"So... I saved you."
Doelloos, in shock, lets go of the girl, who falls to the ground. "Thud!" Feelings of guilt and disgust overwhelm Doelloos, and memories of his first life come flooding back.
"Please live your lives without regrets." His last words, which he said proudly to his children.
"Young man?"
"W-What...?" Doelloos responds tensely, unable to believe the situation he is in.
"Why are you crying?"
Huh?
Me? Crying?
I haven't cried since my first life...
Then why...
Sniff... sniff...
This isn't me...
Threatening the person who saved me.
Doelloos, still with tears on his face, clearly shaken, kneels before the girl.
"I'M SORRY!"
"I did all this out of nowhere and without thinking, I don't know what came over me..."
"You saved my life, so I beg you..."
"I'm sorry, I promise to redeem myself to you and compensate you for saving my life."
A brief silence echoed through the room, until the young girl replied to Doelloos.
"Milly."
"What...?"
"My name is Milly."
"Ah! Mine is Doelloos!" His mood suddenly changes, he quickly dries his tears and starts staring at Milly, expecting something more.
"It's okay, I forgive you."
"But I don't want to be compensated. You can go back where you came from."
"Of cour—What?"
Doelloos froze after interrupting himself; he hadn't expected that response. He felt a twinge in his heart after have your help rejected by a child.