บท 7: Chapter 7 - Genius?
It was July 16th, Saturday morning, Malia woke up with a smile on her face remembering the events the other night – it was so thrilling.
All she wanted was for her father to punish Arlene lightly. However, looking back, their family would have fallen apart if only Arlene had succeeded in her plans.
'No way will I ever agree to have a stepmother. I'm not a fan of Cinderella-shit story'
She noticed some changes in her. With power, she felt like nothing, or no one could stop her from achieving happiness in this life.
She just needs to live honestly without harming anyone and her second life should be smooth sailing. However, since she's also a strong believer in King Hammurabi, if anyone dares to harm her first, then it will always be "an eye for an eye".
"Alright! Good morning, Malia! Let's deal with annoying people today, but first… let's have breakfast", she said with enthusiasm.
Today, Malia felt like a princess. She played with bubbles in her glamorous tub until her hands turned wrinkly. She also enjoyed her bath more after switching all her flower-scented soaps and shampoo with mild vanilla-scented ones.
She was dressed in a pink tulle dress reaching her ankles that looked very simple yet very elegant. She also applied a light pink gloss to complete her look.
In her mirror, there is also a note she pinned a few days ago saying, "ALWAYS WEAR YOUR MASK!".
She decided to do this on the mirror and on the door so she could read it before going outside her room. She's kind of extra meticulous regarding this thing.
'Maybe I'll ask someone to carve it on some wood', she thought.
She opened the door and saw Lily standing outside. Lily gave a greeting, then she stood next to her side and continued to follow her.
Malia would greet or smile at anyone she would come across. Everyone who encountered her on her way to the dining room would stop and stare at her; captivated by her stunning glow.
No one could see her face, but the way she carried herself and her elegance were breathtaking. Some were enchanted but others were envious. Particularly the three very close female servants that were the same age as Malia.
'Her family's wealthy. If I'm as wealthy as her, then I will definitely look even better.' whispered the servant with a freckled face.
'I agree, I have light green hair, I believe that that dress would look better if I'm the one wearing it!', the servant in the middle said.
'What's the use of her beautiful dresses and wealthy family if she looked like a commoner behind her mask? I bet her father will give her a business to run. No nobleman would like to take someone with black hair unless they badly needed money or connections.', it was Ana, the leader of the group.
Those malicious comments didn't escape Malia's ears.
She rolled her eyes in disbelief. 'How dare they insult me! Maybe this is the reason why Malia has low confidence despite her goddess looks.'
She glared at the three servants and remembered their faces. She also whispered to Lily to remember those three and get their names.
Lily simply nodded.
As she reached the dining room, she greeted her family who were already settled at the table.
"Good morning, everyone!"
"Good morning my clever and skillful sister!", Matthew winked at her.
She blushed to see her brother wink at her. She hadn't comfortably adjusted yet to her brother's divine appearance.
"Good morning sweety, come sit.", her mother was smiling brightly at her.
'Oh-la-la-la, love is in the air.'
She stared at the hands squeezing on top of the table. She also noticed her father lovingly glancing at her mom.
"Are we gonna be expecting another sibling? I want a baby sister!"
"HAHAHA" – Everyone laughed at her comment.
Anyone looking at them would undeniably label them as a perfect and harmonious family.
They began their breakfast and the Marquis would sometimes mention or discuss business with Matthew.
She was just listening to their discussion to gain more knowledge about the economy and their family's business. They also discussed future business plans or people involved in their projects.
Everyone enjoyed their breakfast and attended to their own important affairs after the meal.
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Malia, alone in her room and having nothing better to do, decided to proceed with her plan to get rid of one more annoying person in this new life.
Last Tuesday, she received a letter from Eliza stating that she would come to visit her next week. As expected, the letter includes her request for Malia to bring Matthew along with her and set them up.
She's fed up and wants to end it once and for all. Aside from wanting to be close to her brother, Malia also discovered in the letters that it was Eliza who suggested she wear gloomy dresses saying "It looks good" on her.
Malia thought of ways and things she would include in her letter, then after half an hour she started writing her response, which said:
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Yow Eliza,
If you want to flirt with my brother, just send him the letters directly. Stop bothering me with these pretentious letters. I know you don't like me and I'm not your "Matchmaker".
PS. My Brother hates your scent.
PPS. I suggest taking a bath. <3
Love,
Malia Ava Augustus.
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Malia stared at her letter for a while and felt satisfied with it. She looked for her signature stamp. In this world, they rarely use signatures; for official letters or documents, they can use a unique stamp that has their initials and house crests or insignia below.
Malia doesn't actually know whether her brother likes Eliza or whatnot. She just wants to get rid of this fake friend and avoid possible future discussions that she may not be able to answer or can't relate to.
'Better create new and genuine friends to have fewer worries. I already have Lily anyway.' she thought.
After stamping it, she requested Lily to deliver the letter.
After being with Lily for more than a week, she already trusts her 100%… well, of course, after reading some of Lily's thoughts, that is.
She discovered how trustworthy and sincere Lily was. She also stopped reading Lily's thoughts after she confirmed her loyalty; she didn't want to always pry or disrespect Lily's privacy any longer.
She only did it a few times to test Lily as she cannot risk putting her trust in anyone in an unfamiliar world.
After Lily left, Malia went to their entertainment space in the mansion. Her purpose that day was to practice singing or exercising her inexperienced vocal cords while playing the piano.
She also plans to ask her father for a guitar next week, as they don't own one.
She was testing the keys and when everything seemed good, she started playing a chorus of a very famous song while singing loudly.
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"Never gonna give you up …
Never gonna let you down …
Never gonna run around and desert youuuuu!
Never gonna make you cry…
Never gonna say goodbye
Never gonna tell a lie and hurt youuuuu!"
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"Hahahahhahahahha", she then laughed so hard. Rick-rolling was very famous before she transmigrated. Almost every link or URL could potentially lead you to this song.
She eventually calmed down and stopped laughing.
A few days ago, she tried checking Malia's voice, and she could tell that Malia's voice was incredible. She can reach good ranges or higher pitch than her previous self. She can also use her long delicate fingers to play the piano better.
'Sooo it was genes all along (-__-) ', she remembered how hard it was playing the piano with her short and stubby fingers and now it seems fairly easy and maybe the body also remembers playing as it has good instinctive reflex.
She's now in her serious mode and started playing simple piano pieces, starting with Beethoven's Für Elise. After feeling satisfied, she then played Debussy's Clair de lune.
She liked how Clair de Lune sounded melancholic and contemplative, so after playing it for 5 minutes, she decided to give it another 3 more sets.
The melody had a sad feeling to it and somehow it made her sleepy.
*CLAP! CLAP! CLAP! CLAP! CLAP*
She jolted and felt like a spirit left her body hearing someone clap from behind.
"Father?!"
"Lia, darling, that piano piece was amazing! I almost shed a tear after listening!", The Marquis exclaimed.
"What- Ha- How did you know I was playing here?"
"I had just left my office, and was about to invite your mother for tea in the greenhouse garden when I happened to pass in here."
Malia learned later on that the Marquis' office was only two rooms away from their entertainment space.
"Now tell me the name of this wonderful melody! How did you come up with such a beautiful piece?"
"Ahh... I—I…"
She cannot think of an excuse. She can't just say it was from Claude Debussy, a woman in a different world!
'Argh, whatever! Madam Claude, I'm sorry in advance!'
"Ahh... Uhm... I- I call it Clair de Lune... which means Moonlight.", she said while smiling nervously.
She then added, "You know how I'm always alone and an emo-girl type, so I kind of composed it one peaceful evening while staring at the moon". It would be harder to explain that the inspiration was from a poem or painting that didn't exist here.
"Emo what? Emo girl? What's that?" Her father asked.
"OH ah-- it means emotional girl Hehe", she said in a panic.
"Oh! Haha, that makes sense. Anyway, can you play that melody again?"
"Mmm… yeah, I can do that."
"Wait, wait, wait! Let me call your mom"
Before she could protest, her father had already called a servant in the hallway.
'Well... I don't mean to hide my skills anyway. I guess this should be fine. The music played on the radio isn't that bad but they're old and have been played for more than 60 years. Letting them hear music from another world could revolutionize the music industry and will be treated as a blessing.'
"I'll just have to be careful in selecting songs in the future," she muttered. She was so relieved that her father didn't catch her playing the rick-roll song.
After a few minutes, her mother entered the room with her brother Matthew.
"Hi, honey. What's happening here?", The Marchioness approached her husband and gave a quick kiss.
"Good, Matthew's here as well." - Marquis
"Yeah, it's almost lunch and I saw mom, so I just followed her," Matthew explained.
"So why are we all here?", asked the Marchioness, looking at her husband and Malia.
"Everyone, Lia composed a very very beautiful piano song. I cannot describe how beautiful it was." He looked at Malia.
"Darling, can you play it again for us? Honey, let's sit." He held and guided the Marchioness to the nearby sofa.
Matthew also followed them and smiled at Malia, feeling excited. Their father rarely gives praise, so he's expecting a lot.
"... Alright...", Malia looked at them for a few seconds and started to play Clair de Lune.
The piece was 5 or more minutes long. When Malia finished playing, everyone was clapping really hard.
* CLAP! CLAP! CLAP! CLAP! CLAP! CLAP! CLAP! CLAP! CLAP! CLAP! *
"Malia... darling, that was wonderful... It's indeed very beautiful!", Her mother was sobbing, the piano piece touched her heart so much that she could not contain her tears of happiness.
"Lia, I'm so proud of you! How can you be such a genius?!", Matthew added. He knew Malia was good at playing piano but not this well. It was outstanding!
'Oh gosh, I'm not a genius! It's embarrassing to receive these compliments.' She said to herself, but a part of her mind told her that she did a good job remembering all the keys and tempo, including the correct order of chords.
"Uhm... Thank you?", Malia shyly answered.
"Father, are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Matthew looked at his father with a knowing look.
The Marquis smiled at him.
"Let's help Malia produce this music!"
"WHAT?"
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--- end of chapter 7 ---
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