Chapter 11 (Part 4)

Grace buried her face in her hands as she entered Leonardo’s laboratory, reflecting on the outrageous act she had committed on the street earlier.  

Soon, rumors would spread throughout the social circles, filled with all sorts of nonsense.  

Though perhaps half of them would be true.  

“…I must be crazy.”  

“They’ll forget soon enough.”  

Leonardo, sipping coffee nonchalantly, spoke as Grace glared at him sharply.  

“That’s why, why do you do such things!”  

“I don’t know what you’re accusing me of.”  

Leonardo feigned innocence with an innocent expression, prompting Grace to grab his cheeks and pull them sideways.  

“You’re so annoying, I swear.”  

Then, realizing how casually she was treating Leonardo, Grace flinched.  

Leonardo noticed her reaction but pretended not to as he gently took her hands and lowered them, saying,  

“There are sorcerers who recently helped with the sorcery circle.”  

“Sorcerers? Does that mean they know about our situation?”  

Grace, still unaware that her hands were in his, asked with a serious expression.  

Leonardo, feigning ignorance, shook his head and replied,  

“Not exactly, but I think sharp ones might notice something.”  

Grace fell silent at his words.  

Leonardo, who was usually cautious, must have sought help from the sorcerers because it was necessary.  

While it would be best to keep this situation as hidden as possible, if that wasn’t an option, there was no choice.  

“Is it a difficult task?”  

At Grace’s question, Leonardo shook his head.  

“Not at all. The sorcerer isn’t the type to step out of their domain, and they promised to leave as soon as their curiosity was satisfied.”  

Hearing this, Grace sighed and leaned back in her chair, murmuring with her eyes closed,  

“Who would believe this kind of situation anyway?”  

Living in someone else’s body, and that too, in the body of an enemy—no one would believe it.  

Even if this were a novel, it would fail miserably.  

Moreover, Grace had another reason for wanting this resolved quickly.  

“Sir, you may not understand, but… I have more enemies than you think.”  

Leonardo frowned at her unexpected words. He didn’t think lightly of the matter but didn’t make any other assumptions either.  

Grace Lowell and “enemies”?  

“That’s… not something I would have guessed.”  

At his comment, Grace let out a small laugh. Just as she was about to say something, pain struck her, signaling the body swap.  

Frowning slightly, she remarked,  

“It hurts less than it did before.”  

As she spoke, the sensation of her body changing returned, and the swap occurred.  

Waking up in Leonardo’s body, Grace instinctively touched her cheek and gathered her long hair. She then said,  

“There’s a hair tie in your jacket pocket. Could you get it for me?”  

Leonardo, now in Grace’s body, checked the pocket and found a plain-colored hair tie as she had said.  

Taking the tie, Grace tied her hair and continued the conversation she had started earlier.  

“You haven’t forgotten that I’m the Commander of the 2nd Knight Order, have you?”  

Only then did Leonardo realize what she was trying to say.  

The 2nd Knight Order also handled the capital’s security. While most tasks were managed by the city guards, the 2nd Knight Order was called upon for major incidents.  

“There weren’t many cases, but… I personally caught some big ones.”  

Leonardo recalled the articles about Grace Lowell apprehending serial killers, arsonists, and robbers.  

He also remembered how he had scoffed when others praised the female Knight’s achievements.  

If he had known things would turn out like this, he wouldn’t have acted so childishly.  

‘What a fool I was, not seeing even an inch ahead.’  

While Leonardo silently berated himself, Grace continued speaking, her expression growing serious.  

“Some of them will be released soon.”  

But then, as if brushing off her seriousness, Grace shrugged playfully and smiled at Leonardo.  

“There are a few who’d love to find out how powerless I am in this body.”  

Leonardo thought for a moment before asking with a grave expression,  

“Does Dyson know about this?”  

Grace pondered for a moment before nodding.  

“He doesn’t know everything, but he might know about a few of them.”  

Even as she answered, Grace’s expression was uncertain. She wondered if she really needed to worry about what she had just thought of.  

But Leonardo pointed it out precisely.  

“We should keep an eye on him for now. He might use this to retaliate against you, Sir Grace.”  

Grace, momentarily speechless, opened and closed her mouth several times before finally managing to reply.  

“…He wouldn’t go that far.”  

“He would.”  

Leonardo’s firm response left Grace silent. After a long pause, she sighed and asked,  

“So, when do you plan to leave?”  

“If it’s alright with you, I was thinking of departing at this time tomorrow.”  

Grace reluctantly nodded and stood up.  

As if to leave the laboratory, she turned and spoke in a low voice,  

“I’ll tell Becky to prepare.”  

She seemed ready to head straight to the Marquisate, so Leonardo smiled and asked,  

“Are you going like that?”  

“What’s wrong with—oh.”  

Turning back, Grace realized her mistake and scratched her cheek awkwardly. How could she go back to the Marquisate in this state?  

Feeling embarrassed, Grace stomped back to her seat and plopped down, saying,  

“Figure something out. Either you go and handle it, or switch our bodies back.”  

“If nothing else, just rest here for a while. I can’t move immediately either.”  

Seeing Leonardo shrug, Grace sighed deeply, grabbed a random book nearby, and leaned back in her chair.  

“Wake me up later.”  

Her tone carried no intention of actually reading the book, making Leonardo chuckle.  

Grace pouted and glared at him before turning her attention to the book.  

And within less than five minutes,  

“…Sir Grace. Are you really asleep?”  

Leonardo called out in an amused voice as he saw Grace sleeping in the same position she had been holding the book.  

When she didn’t respond after several calls, Leonardo carefully and slowly removed the book from her hands.  

Her head drooped to the side as if a string had been cut.  

“No need for sleeping pills with her.”  

Every time Leonardo discovered such differences, he found Grace utterly adorable.  

So much so that he wanted to tease her endlessly.  

‘What a childish thought.’  

Leonardo pinched Grace’s nose briefly before letting go.  

Grace lazily waved her hand as if annoyed.  

Watching her, Leonardo chuckled softly and tidied her long hair.  

Then he sat beside her and began reviewing documents. Somehow, the tedious task felt enjoyable.  

‘This is magic.’  

A warm kind of magic that made him smile for no reason.  

***

When Grace woke up, everything had already been taken care of.  

Leonardo’s belongings were packed, the sorcerers had responded that they could leave, and even Grace’s belongings were neatly prepared.  

“…You’re amazing, Sir.”  

Seeing how everything she might have struggled to finish in a day was perfectly organized, Grace murmured in a daze.  

Leonardo smiled and replied,  

“It wasn’t much, but hearing you say that makes me feel like a great mage.”  

Referring to her earlier comment about his magic, Leonardo smirked as Grace squinted at him with narrowed eyes.

Leonardo, with a soft smile, handed her a potion and said,  

“Anyway, it’s time to return now.”  

Grace hesitated briefly before opening the bottle handed to her.  

She drank it in one gulp, returned the empty bottle, and said,  

“Thank you for today.”  

Grace smiled, saying she felt she wouldn’t be able to express her thoughts once things returned to normal, and closed her eyes.  

Leonardo watched her for a brief moment before drinking his potion as well.  

When the familiar pain subsided and he opened his eyes, Grace was already gone.  

Feeling a ticklish sensation, he found himself unable to do anything for a while.  

For some reason, he felt as though the distance between him and Grace had narrowed a little.