“Well, this is quite remarkable. Though it appears human on the outside, it’s behaving like a dog.”

“How is that possible? Could I see too? I want to see how the woman who possessed my body is living.”

As Ciella tried to move closer, the mage hastily covered the crystal ball.

“That would be… difficult. Especially given the current situation…”

The mage, who had been calm until moments ago, suddenly began stammering and seemed reluctant to speak freely.

“What do you mean? What’s happening right now? Am I on the verge of death? Or have I contracted some terrible disease?”

His behavior was so suspicious that Ciella felt a sudden pang of fear.

“N-no, nothing like that. You’re quite healthy, but…”

The mage couldn’t finish his sentence. His face showed a mixture of shock and embarrassment, and cold sweat was running down his forehead.

What could possibly make him so flustered?

Though frustrated that he likely wouldn’t give her more answers even if she pressed him, she had to be grateful that at least she wasn’t suffering from a fatal illness.

Realizing further questions about the crystal ball would likely be fruitless, Ciella changed the direction of her inquiry.

“Do you happen to know how long I’ve been trapped in the dog’s body?”

Living in a dog’s body had left Ciella with no concept of time, so she had no idea how many years she had spent trapped in that form.

“Calculating from when your soul was separated, it seems to have been about three years.”

A whole three years living as a dog! If she left her body at 19, that would make her 22 now. Goodness…

“Why did this happen? Do you know the reason our bodies were switched?”

When Ciella asked with a bitter expression, the mage looked at her with sympathetic eyes.

“Someone likely placed a curse on you.”

“A curse? Who would do such an absurd thing?”

The moment she heard the word “curse,” she felt goosebumps all over her body.

“Is there anyone who might bear a grudge against you? Or perhaps against your family? This must be the work of someone with malicious intent.”

Ciella slowly recalled the people around her, trying to think of anyone who might want to harm her, but she couldn’t think of anyone suspicious.

“Could it be the woman who possessed my body?”

Though she didn’t know who it was, Ciella thought that woman might be the culprit behind the body switch.

“That’s possible. But seeing that she appears to be around your age, I think she’s more likely a victim who was used rather than the one who cast the curse. Dark magic is involved in curses, and not just anyone can use it, nor are dark mages easy to encounter.”

“Ah, that could be true.”

Hearing the mage’s words, she felt ashamed for hastily casting the person who possessed her body as a villain. She shouldn’t jump to conclusions when she knew so little.

“I’d like to talk more, but… we’re running out of time. I don’t think your soul should remain separated from your body any longer.”

The mage’s voice became somewhat urgent. Looking at herself, Ciella could see that her light had dimmed compared to when she first appeared.

She felt that if her soul remained separated from her body for too long, she might simply disappear.

The mage, who had been wearing a gentle smile, suddenly looked like he had remembered something, and his face darkened.

“Why, why are you looking like that?”

She felt a surge of fear, worried he might tell her it was too late to return to her body.

“I must apologize in advance.”

“Apologize? Just helping me return to my body is more than enough for me to be grateful.”

Ciella couldn’t understand the mage’s behavior.

“When you return to your body, you’ll find yourself in a rather shocking situation. I wish I could help you further, but sending you back is already taxing my abilities.”

“What’s happening to my body right now?”

His continued warnings made her worry that something terrible had happened. What could be so bad that he’s acting this way?

“If only we had met earlier. Still, the situation should resolve naturally with time, so you just need to be careful until then.”

Instead of answering, he clicked his tongue and sighed in a small voice.

“What on earth…”

His continued mysterious mutterings only increased her anxiety.

“There’s truly no time left. You must return to your body now.”

Too rushed to consider her feelings, the mage began urgently chanting a spell. Simultaneously, Ciella felt her body beginning to float.

The dimmed light around her gradually intensified until a massive glow enveloped her.

“If you ever visit the capital, please come to the Roxburrow Duchy. I am Lady Ciella of the Roxburrow Ducal family.”

Wanting to properly thank him after regaining her body, Ciella hurriedly introduced herself just before returning.

“The Roxburrow Duchy, I see. If I visit the capital, I’ll be sure to stop by. My name is…”

The mage said his name, but it didn’t reach Ciella’s ears. Before that, her floating body slowly descended as her mind went blank.

In her hazy consciousness, all she could feel was the sensation of many butterflies gently landing on bare skin.

She felt a strange sensation of floating up and then sinking down with them. Yet it wasn’t unpleasant; rather, it felt like being immersed in a fantasy.

Just like a dream…

A dream?

Was it really a dream? She felt a sense of discomfort, like something real had happened inside her body. Come to think of it, breathing wasn’t comfortable either. Short, rapid breaths escaped her mouth without pause.

“What’s going on? How could this f*cking happen?”

The moment she realized it wasn’t a dream, a cold, settled voice penetrated her consciousness. It was a voice she had never heard before, so cold it sent chills through her entire body.

In that moment, her foggy mind suddenly cleared. Fluttering her long eyelashes, Ciella slowly opened her eyes. With each blink, her long, straight lashes fluttered like falling flower petals.

“I see you’ve awakened.”

Once again, that chilling voice echoed in her ears.

Huh?

Ciella found herself pinned beneath a man with an arrogant expression.

Golden hair, exquisite features like a living sculpture, a man with his own natural halo, possessing eyes as cold as a winter forest. It felt almost like being dragged into a white darkness.

Is this a dream?

Ciella raised her hand to cover her frowning eyes. If she blinked a few times, she would surely wake from this dream.

But no matter how many times she blinked or pinched her cheeks, she didn’t wake up.

After repeating the same actions several times, she realized that this situation wasn’t a dream but reality. Thankfully, the mage had restored her to her original body.

She was truly grateful, tearfully so, but also bewildered.

Because while the man was fully clothed, she was completely n*ked.

Actually, the man wasn’t entirely normal. He looked fine on the outside, but he reeked of alcohol.

What’s going on here? Could it be that he was about to take advantage of her while drunk? She was horrified at the thought.

“Kyaa! Wh-what are you doing? G-get off me right now!”

She frantically tried to pull the blanket to cover herself, but couldn’t because the man was pressing down on her. Unable to pull the blanket, she had no choice but to hide under the part of the blanket she was lying on.

With a face flushed bright red, Ciella slowly slipped under the blanket.

“Why are you suddenly acting like this? Did you eat something bad?”

“What are you saying! You’re the one who must have eaten something bad.”

The situation was alarming. Why was this man on top of her?

Judging by his appearance, he didn’t look like a womanizer. On the contrary, his dry, expressionless gaze suggested he had absolutely no interest in a woman’s n*ked body.

Just making eye contact with those sharply gleaming eyes was enough to make her tremble with fear, such was the pressure he exuded.

A man emanating murderous intent… He looked familiar, but where had she seen him before?

Seeing this somehow familiar man, she felt on the verge of remembering.

Ciella rolled her eyes and looked at the man with a gaze full of fear.

“Ha, is this person completely insane? Anyone who sees us would think I’m the one forcing myself on you.”

He let out a dry laugh of disbelief, and his dried-up gaze changed to one filled with contempt.

“What are you saying? Looking at this situation, anyone would see that you’re the one forcing yourself on—”

“Did you lose your memory in that short moment, or are you just pretending?”

His irritated voice, cutting off Ciella’s words, landed sharply in her ears. It wasn’t the voice of someone trying to violate her.

Come to think of it, his expression was too stiff and rigid to be that of a man forcing himself on someone.

Especially those red eyes, flowing with such coldness that her body froze, appeared dark in stark contrast to his bright golden hair reflecting in the moonlight.