Nerina sat on the edge of her bed, staring at the faint glow of the system panel before her. The words lingered, hanging in the air like a noose tightening around her neck.

[Additional Condition: Key individuals have regressed alongside the Hero.]

[Details: Evelyn Arkwright, Roselyn Ashbourne and Lyra Veyl will retain their memories from the previous timeline.]

[Note: The Hero's memories will awaken at the age of 18.]

Her stomach churned as she reread the words. Evelyn… She couldn’t stop the image of Evelyn’s piercing gaze from flashing in her mind—the coldness, the fear, the ruthless determination that came after their friendship shattered in the past timeline.

Her hands trembled as she clasped them tightly in her lap, biting down on her lower lip hard enough to draw blood.

It wasn’t just Evelyn. There were two others. Two more people who would remember everything. Every atrocity she did.

Her chest ached as a sob threatened to escape her throat, but she swallowed it down, forcing herself to think rationally.

This wasn’t just a punishment—It was a trap. The system was ensuring that no matter how hard she tried, no matter how much she wanted to change, those who knew her as the villain would never allow her to.

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They’ll be watching me from the start, she thought bitterly.

I’ll never have a chance to show them I’m different.

Her mind raced as the reality of her situation sank in. They would suspect her of manipulation the moment she did anything kind.

They’d view her every action with suspicion, every smile as a mask. And eventually, they would destroy her—just as they did before.

Her nails dug into her palms as she fought the rising despair. She wanted to scream, to cry out at the unfairness of it all—but she couldn’t. Not here. Not now.

And yet— as the suffocating weight threatened to crush her, the system’s last note echoed in her mind like a faint glimmer of light in the darkness:

[The Hero's memories will awaken at the age of 18.]

Her breath caught as she clung to the words, her mind latching onto the small reprieve they offered. Her brother wouldn’t remember. Not yet.

Tears welled in her eyes again, but this time they weren’t entirely born of despair. She pressed a hand to her chest, feeling the faint flutter of hope beneath the storm of her emotions.

He won’t know who I really am—not for years, she thought. There’s still time.

She could still spend these years with him, even if it was fleeting. She could make up for her regrets even if she knew it would all come crashing down when he finally remembered, she could still hold onto these moments.

And there was more, her awakening this time had come much earlier. She was only six years old—half the time it had taken in the previous timeline.

That meant there was more time to plan and prepare, to be with those she cared about.

Her lips trembled as she whispered to herself.

“Evelyn will despise me, but… maybe I can still spend time with her before everything falls apart.”

The thought gave her a small sense of purpose, even as the weight of the system’s demands pressed down on her.

This time— she swore;

I’ll make sure to give them something worth remembering.

"Even if they never trust me again."

She wiped her tears with the back of her hand and stood, her legs shaky but steadying with each step she took.

Nerina walked over to the balcony window and gazed at the quiet village, her heart heavy yet determined.

The system might have robbed her of a true second chance, but it hadn’t taken everything. Not completely.

She placed a hand on the windowpane, her reflection staring back at her. For now, she had time—time to be the sister she wanted to be, to be the friend she wished she could’ve been.

The future loomed over her like a dark veil, the shadow of it's inevitabilty marked her future as bleak— but she wasn’t going to let it swallow her whole.

Not yet.