“That time?”

“Oh dear, look at me.”

Saying so, the nanny tapped her own lips as if scolding herself.

“When you were young, my lady, at this villa… There was that intruder, remember?”

The nanny cautiously watched my reaction as she spoke.

“Am I supposed to remember that?”

“Oh, no! Of course not.”

“Hm, but you know, nanny. Ever since recently…”

“Yes, my lady. It’s nothing significant.”

In truth, I had no memories left of this body’s original owner. Supposedly, when one possesses another body, their memories synchronize with it.

‘Possession really is all about practice.’

Right now, I was pretending to have lost all my memories due to the shock of receiving a terminal diagnosis.

It seemed that even in this world, people believed that one’s personality could change when one is near death.

“Anyway, I heard that if someone doesn’t pass through the mansion’s entrance, an alarm should go off… Ah, that man didn’t even manage the barrier properly?”

The nanny’s expression darkened ominously.

It was the same look she had worn on our first day in Meldorf when she was furious at Baron Alterman, the acting lord.

***

Baron Alterman seemed displeased with my very existence.

I had summoned him in the morning, yet he only arrived long after lunchtime.

It was when Dame Gwendolyn’s afternoon medical check-up had ended, and I was on the balcony, patting the baby while basking in the sunlight.

A middle-aged man, dressed rather extravagantly, strolled into the garden at a leisurely pace.

From his sluggish steps… I could already sense an air of insufferability.

“This is our first meeting since you’ve come of age. I am Adolph Alterman, the lo….acting lord of Meldorf.”

That pause—he had meant to say lord, hadn’t he?

Even his pompous way of speaking only strengthened my bad premonition.

“Nanny. If he’s the acting lord, that means he serves Lure, right?”

“Well, yes, the Alterman barony has served for generations…”

Hearing our conversation right in front of him, the baron’s face flushed red with anger.

“The founding hero Lure—what a thing of the past! And that title, ‘most beautiful in the kingdom’? No one in Meldorf even knows about it!”

Ugh, definitely a nuisance.

‘He should be grateful he isn’t being treated like a disposable pawn.’

Clicking my tongue, I spoke.

“I won’t take much of your time. Come inside.”

Sensing that the conversation with the baron would turn unpleasant, I entrusted the baby to the nanny.

Through some trial and error, I had learned how to leave the baby behind without it crying.

“Baby, I’ll just have a quick talk with that man over there, so be good and listen to the nanny, okay?”

“Uuu.”

Looking straight into the baby’s golden eyes, I firmly reassured it.

As if understanding me, the baby blinked slowly.

‘So cute…!’

When left with others, the baby would often fidget and try to return to me, but earlier, when I had desperately explained that I needed to use the restroom, it had actually stayed put!

Even now, the baby remained obediently nestled in the nanny’s arms.

It even wiggled its little fingers as if telling me to return soon…

‘How is something this cute not lethal to the heart?’

For someone with a terminal illness, this was a dangerously sweet assault on my heart.

“This is big sister’s shawl, so wrap yourself in it and think of me, okay?”

I draped my shawl around the baby, and it wiggled its tiny fingers as if enjoying the texture. It even sniffed at it as though trying to catch my scent.

“See you later, baby?”

“Waa!”

With reluctance, I stepped into the parlor.

‘Ugh.’

The moment I entered, I was met with the baron’s scowling face, making the whole room seem gloomier.

It was enough to make my chest pang again.

“Ha, as expected, indulging in luxury, I see.”

I wasn’t sure if he was displeased about having to wait, but the baron clicked his tongue, sweeping his eyes scornfully around the room. His gaze carried the air of someone who knew exactly what state the mansion had been in before.

‘I’ve only bought gardening supplies since arriving here.’

Since Odelia’s last visit as a child, the villa had been left in neglect, with its furniture aged and faded. Hans had worked hard to fix it up.

‘If he knew how bad the place was and still neglected its upkeep, then his loyalty must have long since vanished.’

As we silently sized each other up, Mila brought in a tea tray.

In front of me, Dame Gwendolyn’s special medicinal tea was placed, while the baron was given a common black tea.

With an incredulous look, he blurted out,

“Hah! Do you think I wouldn’t be able to tell the difference?”

So he thought I was drinking some rare, luxurious tea by myself?

What an absurd persecution complex.

“Mila, serve the baron the same tea as mine.”

“Are you sure? But Dame Gwendolyn’s tea…”

“He’ll barely be able to take a sip anyway.”

“You have got to be kidding me—!”

Oh dear, how foolish.

Without knowing what it was, the baron, acting purely on pride, took a sip of the tea Mila poured him…

“Pffft! Ugh! Cough—bleh—what in the world is this?!”

As if expecting this outcome, Mila calmly handed him a neatly folded cloth to wipe his mouth.

The baron, overwhelmed by the bitterness that assaulted his tongue, wiped his lips in a daze without even realizing what he was holding.

“Pfeh! To think that someone who’s soon to leave would play such tricks, damn it…”

Even while rinsing his mouth with the lemon water Mila provided, he continued to grumble.

But something about his words struck me as odd.

‘Soon to leave? There’s no way he knows about my terminal illness…’

Even the people I had hired in Meldorf only knew I was ill, not that I was terminal.

‘Does he think I’ll flee because I can’t adapt to life here?’

If it were the real Odelia, that might have been true.

But I knew better—that even worse circumstances awaited me if I tried to run.

As for my current life?

I had plenty of money, kind servants, the freedom to do whatever I wanted, and no one to reprimand me.

I was utterly satisfied with this comfortable, terminally ill possession lifestyle.

So why would I leave?

“So, what do you want?”

“I want to know how the security of the mountain behind this mansion is being managed.”

“How else? The magical barrier has been in place for well over ten years now.”

“And it’s never been deactivated in all that time? What about maintenance costs?”

“Maintenance costs? Hah.”

The baron’s lips curled into a smirk of derision.

“Have you forgotten who cast the barrier on this mountain?”

“A magician…?”

How was I supposed to know that?

At my dumbfounded response, the baron let out a scoff.

“Wasn’t it His Highness the Crown Prince who cast the barrier for the young lady?”

Huh? The crown prince? The male lead, Michael? Were they close in the past?

I’d heard he had been utterly fed up with Odelia, who had been his childhood playmate, yet it seemed he had even vacationed with her at Lure’s villa.

“If you mean that incident…”

“When the beast invaded, yes. Not only did His Highness eliminate it on the spot, but he also went so far as to cast that formidable barrier to prevent both humans and monsters from entering at will.”

A beast…!

The nanny had only vaguely mentioned an intruder, but this was a much bigger incident than I had imagined.

According to history, the founder of Arcadia had signed a non-aggression pact with the Demon Realm, meaning there shouldn’t have been any beasts roaming around.

Yet Michael apparently displayed extraordinary magical talent at a young age, proving himself a true male lead.

‘Because of the non-aggression pact, there was never a need to subdue magical beasts in the original story, so his magic was never actually shown.’

As I silently pondered the untold backstory of the original novel, the baron continued to chatter away without a care.

“Given that we’re lucky enough to still have the barrier preserved for the daughter of a traitor, we should be grateful. His Highness even reinforced it recently.”

…Rather than an act of kindness, it was likely more about maintaining the royal family’s reputation.

Having spared her life, they wouldn’t want rumors spreading that they were secretly scheming against her.

‘But why does this man keep speaking as if he’s siding with the crown prince? No matter how treacherous Lure was, Michael was still the political enemy of the family he served.’

Had Michael’s reputation as an unparalleled magical prodigy made the baron admire him regardless of faction?

“But why are you asking about this?”

“I found a baby in the forest and wanted to check if there had been an intruder.”

At my response, the baron’s amber eyes glinted slyly.

He had seemed eager to say something ever since spotting the baby from the balcony.

“Well, given your popularity in high society… Could it possibly be your own child?”

“…What?”

So he was implying that I had a child of my own and was trying to cover it up.

‘…I may not have liked Odelia, but even I know that’s ridiculous.’

Odelia, who had always aspired to be the crown princess, had kept an iron grip on her personal life.

With men constantly on guard around her and no one daring to harm the only daughter of a founding noble family, her reputation had remained impeccably clean.

To the point that it was almost irritating.

“Baron, what are you—”

“If not, perhaps you should inquire with Norhart.”

Perhaps realizing how absurd his claim was, the baron quickly changed the subject.

“Norhart?”

“If there’s anyone capable of breaching the royal barrier, it could only be them.”

After saying that, the baron once again rolled his glinting eyes slyly.

“Well, considering the number of petitions filed against the marquis, I suppose your relationship with him is already quite… close.”

“Baron…!”

“Ahem. What? Am I not even allowed to mutter to myself?”

The baron continued his sarcasm to the very end as if he had fully made up his mind to provoke me.

I could feel an old migraine creeping back. Even if I wasn’t actually Odelia, that didn’t make his words any less infuriating.

‘As much as I want to punch him, I can’t make an enemy without knowing more…’

Pressing my fingers to my temple, I gave the order for him to leave.

“Thank you for taking the time to come. You may go now.”

“If you’re going to summon me for such trivial matters, at least send a servant next time!”

With a loud huff, the baron stomped out of the mansion, his heavy footsteps echoing in the hall.

Good grief, what an insufferable man…!

“My Lady, are you all right?”

As soon as the baron left, Dame Gwendolyn swiftly entered the room.

“Do you feel any tension at the back of your neck? A fever at the crown of your head?”

“Mm, just a slight headache. My blood pressure is fine.”

“You’ve moved around more than usual today and then had to deal with that pest of a man…”

“Surprisingly, I feel light. Maybe because the baby is just too adorable.”

Even though my morning walk had been longer than usual, I wasn’t particularly fatigued.

Maybe my mood had lifted simply from looking at such a cute baby.

Thinking about the baby made my face unconsciously soften into a smile.

I needed to see them again soon—such a precious little thing.

“Emotions are one thing, but only move as much as I’ve prescribed. I’ll be the one to judge.”

“…Fine, I got it.”

Dame Gwendolyn remained professional as she began examining me, her expression calm as ever.

As I let her check my arms, neck, and other areas, my thoughts returned to what the baron had said.

‘Norhart, huh… That name sounds familiar.’

I recalled hearing the workers mention it while discussing wages the other day, which meant it must be a wealthy estate nearby. But even so, it sounded oddly familiar for something I had only heard once.

Casually, I asked,

“Dame, what kind of… family is Norhart again?”

“Norhart?”

Dame Gwendolyn adjusted her glasses with a meaningful look as she checked my pulse. She was clearly noting down ‘lack of common knowledge due to shock-induced memory loss’ in her mental records.

“The Grand Duchy of Norhart… You mean? It borders the northern region of Meldorf, and its ruler shares the first bloodline of Arcadia.”

Dame Gwendolyn was undoubtedly a professional.

She carefully laid out details that would help jog my memory.

‘The first bloodline of Arcadia… That means they carry the royal founder’s lineage.’

The moment I heard that, I finally realized why the name Norhart sounded so familiar.

‘The Grand Duke of Norhart—he’s the villain of the original story!’