The Rebirth of Evelyn Knox

Rufus of course agreed with his cousin wholeheartedly. That pink haired girl was like his unlucky star. Every time he saw her, it brought him misfortune. If his older cousin could help him get rid of her, wouldn't that be great?

The young boy suppressed the excitement in his heart, wondering just how his cousin planned to deal with that annoyance. "What should we do then? Can I help?"

The taller boy frowned as he gave his younger cousin a cold look. They had already exited the quiet alley in which that obscure garment shop had been located, so shouldn't he have enough sense to not discuss such things so openly?

Rufus seemed to get the hint, and kept his mouth shut until they left the city's busy streets and entered a deserted alley once more.

The older boy nodded as he made sure no one was around before turning to his cousin. "Are you an idiot, Rufus? Did you think we should set up an ambush somewhere in the city and teach her a lesson today itself?"

Rufus couldn't deny that he had such thoughts.

His cousin sighed in disappointment. "That would be extremely foolish and naïve, little cousin. Even if we manage to hurt her, can we just kill her? Do you think the academy won't investigate the death of one of their students within one of the forbidden cities?" 

Rufus frowned. Thinking about it, was it really worth it to ruin his future just for that girl? 

Although he had suffered a blow to his reputation among his friends and fellow Terrans, Rufus still believed he had a bright future. Why would he want to ruin that?

But when he thought about letting go of his grudge… it was impossible. "I-I can't just forgive her…"

The older boy sighed. "Idiot. Who told you to do that? Didn't I say earlier that we can't let her go unpunished? But if we just set up a crude ambush, we'll reveal our tracks far too easily, and our punishment won't be light at all."

Seeing how Rufus nodded in understanding, his cousin couldn't help but smirk. "Only if we make our move in a way that it cannot be blamed on us can we be assured of a flawless victory."

"But if we let her leave the city and go back to the academy… won't it be even harder to hurt her in there?"

The older boy nodded. "Of course, ambushing her will be the height of foolishness. You never know when a professor is looking from afar, with all those high turrets and towers in numerous palaces."

Rufus couldn't help but be dumbfounded. How come his cousin kept denying both sides of his argument? "I don't understand at all…"

The taller boy couldn't help but click his tongue. "Do we have to act like some bandits by setting up an ambush? There are hundreds of ways to hurt someone, little cousin. Have you not heard how many students have been gravely injured while practicing alchemical reactions, or trying to tame a beast far beyond their level?"

Rufus opened his mouth in shock. "Y-You mean, we'll stage an accident?"

His cousin shook his head. "For now, we lie low and do nothing. Just keep me updated on what classes she takes, and where she's at usually at certain times. It's best if you have a good excuse for keeping an eye on her, too."

Rufus blinked in confusion. "A good excuse… like what?"

The older boy frowned and thought about it for a while before smiling. "How about this… Since your impression on her is already negative, you make it seem like you were 'bullying' her because you had a crush on her. Doesn't it make sense then that you look at her more often?"

Rufus couldn't imagine the scene at all, and sputtered indignantly at the mere thought. "W-WHAT?! How can I… ugh, I don't think—"

The older boy cut off his excuse coldly. "Then don't think. Just do it."

"But—"

There was a condescending sneer on the older boy's face, his eyes dark. "Do you want to take revenge on her first, or do you want to preserve your so called dignity? It's not even a great shame. A year later, who will blame you for an unreasonable crush on a girl they had already forgotten about?"

Rufus felt his eyes light up. Does that mean they would be able to deal with her… permanently?!

The older boy seemed to understand what Rufus was thinking, and nodded calmly. "Once we have her routine figured out, we can make a plan."

Rufus grinned as he thought about the sweet feeling of revenge when that girl finally suffered the consequences of going against him over and over. For such a future, it was alright to bear with it a little more for now. "O-Oh… I understand. Then, don't worry, cousin. I'll do it!"

==========

Once she had finally managed to chase the two boys away, the old lady closed the door and locked it with a sigh. Although she had great respect for the boy's grandmother, and they could be considered good friends, that did not carry on over to him.

Not to mention a grandson, even her son or daughter would not get any extra respect from her. Though she could consider helping them out, but that was only if she felt like it.

After all, they were all their own separate individuals. How could she know if they weren't completely different from their grandmother? If she ended up misplacing her trust in such a way, the only one to suffer would be herself.

And what of the boy's grandma? Even if she respected her, did she owe her a life debt? Since that wasn't so, why must she coddle her descendants just because they used to be friends all those decades ago? 

She had already given up enough for her when she gave up the pursuit of the man she loved because her friend happened to fall for him as well. In the end, she had failed to find anyone else with whom she could happily spend the rest of her life together, and ended up as a poor old lonely soul.

Perhaps the brightest of her days were lit by this insolent little girl who had taken a liking to frequently barging into her shop in the last two years.

But of course, their relationship was more like friends than anything else, despite Cecilia calling her granny.

The old seamstress shook her head, putting those thoughts behind her as she focused back on the present.

"Now, where were we? Oh yes, for your dress… why don't you let me decide?"

Evelyn blinked, and then nodded. Anyway, she didn't really mind, unless the cost was exorbitant. She doubted Cecilia would let her get swindled though.

In the worst case, even if Evelyn never wanted to wear it, she could just keep the dress in her inventory or give it to someone else later.

The old lady picked out a noble blue colored cloth bolt this time. Evelyn saw that she didn't use scissors or instruments to cut the cloth, directly using spirit power. 

This time, instead of using the silver lion's blood, she directly applied spirit power to the cut out pieces.

Evelyn couldn't help but be a little confused. 'Is she not going to put any special property on mine, then?'

But even when the dress looked finished, the old lady didn't hand it over. Instead, she turned it inside out before taking out a bottle of ink and a quill feather from her desk.

The ink was also the same shade of blue, so Evelyn could only tell what she was drawing based on her strokes.

Her expression couldn't help but turn a little strange. 'Is she drawing… a cat?'

After finishing her invisible drawing on the inside of the dress, the old lady turned it over again, and then handed it to her with a satisfied smile. "Seems like I got into a good rhythm this time, you're quite lucky. I think it turned out pretty good. Take a look, are you satisfied?"

Evelyn just smiled and nodded. Of course, even if she wasn't satisfied, would she offend Cecilia's acquaintance for such a reason?

But of course, not to mention the appearance of the dress, even the stats left her with no room to complain.

[ Kittykat Blue Halter Dress: Grade 2 ]

—Attribute Enhancement: +25 Physique while equipped.

—Special Property: Self-cleaning [Level 2] – Dust and grime will be easier to shake out of the item, while finding it harder to latch onto it at the same time. Stains will slowly fade away after some time.

—Special Property: Self-repair [Level 2] – When the amount of damage to the item does not exceed ten percent, it can slowly mend itself back to perfect condition, provided that no material is missing.

"Ahh…"

As expected, both of the dresses she got today were exceptionally good, but Evelyn was a little worried about the cost. "How much do I owe you, Madam Genie?"

The old lady chuckled. "Just call me granny like Cecilia does, and I can't really accept double payment for the same goods, can I?"

The pink haired girl blinked in confusion. Not to mention herself, even Cecilia hadn't made a move to pay, right? "I don't understand, granny… what double payment?"

Cecilia patted her shoulder mischievously. "Fufufu… Evey dear, I forgot to tell you that I keep a tab with granny here."

Evelyn couldn't help but roll her eyes. "Cecilia!"

The ash blonde stuck out her tongue. "Sorry, but Cecilia payment service has a strict no refunds policy."