Chapter 3 (Part 2)

Grace reflexively grabbed Leonardo’s clothes, yanked him to the ground, and drew her sword simultaneously.  

Then she leaped toward the Pla, slashing horizontally with her sword.  

“Get lost! You filthy beast!”  

When she drew her sword and stepped forward, the two Pla retreated as if it was a joke and soon disappeared into the forest.  

As Grace took a step forward as if to chase them, Leonardo said,  

“Don’t chase them. It could be dangerous with that body.”  

At his words, Grace spat on the ground.  

Then, with both hands in her pockets, she stood crookedly and glared in the direction where the Pla had disappeared. Watching her, Leonardo dusted off his bottom and stood up.  

Honestly, Leonardo had heard that Grace’s skills were exceptional, but he wasn’t interested.  

He would have remained that way for life if it weren’t for this incident.  

‘Even with a changed body, such reflexes.’  

Thinking of the moment he hid Grace behind him when he saw the Pla, Leonardo’s ears turned red with embarrassment.  

What on earth was I thinking?  

‘Even if Sir Lowell was genuinely scared earlier, what does that have to do with me?’  

Was I unable to make proper judgments due to this bizarre situation, or was my mind truly affected by the magic?  

Leonardo briefly pondered such thoughts.  

But he soon shook his head to clear his mind and looked at the spot where the bloodstains remained.  

“Oh, come to think of it, I think I was slightly injured then. Why does it seem fine?”

At Grace’s words as she approached, Leonardo lifted his head.  

Both of them had been injured by the Pla’s attack, and they had fainted simultaneously. And as they knew, they had been in this state since waking up.  

“It was written that they treated the unconscious commander, didn’t you see it?”  

At his words, Grace tried to recall but couldn’t remember seeing such a note.  

Understandably so, as the first thing she did upon waking was freak out over the changed body, flailing about, so she couldn’t recall what was around her.  

As Grace awkwardly turned her head, Leonardo seemed to understand and shifted his gaze back to the ground.  

‘The sap from the crushed Golden Day Primrose mixed with… blood.’  

In addition, there must have been the Pla’s curse attack.  

Leonardo took out a collection bag from his pocket and, with gloved hands, tore it open and put it in.  

Then he took a deep breath.  

It was strange that he hadn’t noticed until now; the area was filled with a magical aura.  

“What can you find out by taking that?”  

As Grace pointed to the bag and asked, Leonardo stood up.  

“That can only be known after investigation.”  

Saying so, Leonardo said he would go first and entered the shelter.  

After he went in, Grace remained outside alone and looked around. Strangely, even though it was a place she visited often, it felt unfamiliar now.  

‘……It feels like I might be enchanted.’  

It was fine now since it was daytime, but she had a feeling it wouldn’t be good to come out at night.  

The endlessly stretching forest, the dense trees. And the Golden Day Primrose blooming endlessly, covering the ground.  

Grace felt as if this place wasn’t the one she knew, but a strange place she had never been to before.  

‘I should go in.’  

The floral scent wafting from somewhere wasn’t pleasant either.  

Grace impulsively grabbed a nearby Golden Day Primrose with a rough hand and threw it to the ground.  

The sticky sap unique to the flower stained her hand.  

“―Disgusting.”

Both the Pla and the Golden Day Primrose.

Grace gritted her teeth once and walked inside with clenched fists.  

So she didn’t notice at all.  

That the sticky sap on her hand soon disappeared.  

“……Busy, huh.”

Entering the shelter, she saw Leonardo sitting at the table. He was busy comparing the sample he had just obtained with something else.  

Grace didn’t particularly want to disturb him.  

She quietly walked to the kitchen, heated some preserved food, put it on a plate, and headed to the men’s quarters.  

For some reason, Grace, staring at the vacant quarters with the door fallen off, sighed and sat on the bed by the window.  

‘……Boring.’  

It was just that Leonardo wasn’t in this space, yet she found it strangely dull.

Perhaps it was because there was no one to bother.  

Grace watched Leonardo, who was still engrossed in something, after finishing her meal and washing the dishes.  

Then, yawning, she returned to her quarters.  

‘Boring. I should just sleep.’  

Thinking so, Grace lay down on the bed and closed her eyes.  

After all, as Leonardo said, she couldn’t be of help over there. She might even be a hindrance.  

The persistent floral scent from somewhere made her feel very uncomfortable.  

‘……Even though it shouldn’t have any scent.’  

Thinking up to that point, Grace fell asleep, like a doll whose power supply was cut off, with her head drooping.

***  

She was sure she had fallen asleep cursing the Golden Day Primrose.  

Grace laughed incredulously at the glaringly bright yellow field that hurt her eyes.  

“What is this?”  

Grace had the ability to never forget a path once she had walked it.  

Perhaps because of that, or due to her occupational traits, she liked to travel around, and the paths she traveled were densely stored in her mind like a map.  

That’s why she was certain this place was not somewhere she knew.  

If so, did Leonardo abandon me here?  

‘Even if he dislikes me, he’s not someone who would do such a thing.’  

Maybe in the past, but the current Grace knew Leonardo Fernandez wasn’t someone who would do something so dirty and petty.  

Then where was this place, and how did I end up here?  

‘Is it a dream?’  

Grace wandered aimlessly, stepping wherever her feet took her. She tried crushing and tearing the Golden Day Primrose and even smelled it.  

Thinking it was a dream, she was sure there wouldn’t be any scent, but the floral scent carried by the wind was stronger than the one near the shelter.  

‘Why does it smell if it’s a dream?’  

She had many questions but no one to answer them.  

After tearing the flowers a few times, she began to get bored.  

‘Why am I not waking up?’  

In such a vivid lucid dream, one should wake up as soon as they realized it was a dream.  

At least, that’s how it was for Grace.  

But was it normal to still wander in a dream like this?  

Just as she began to think this might not be a dream, she spotted a person with long blonde hair fluttering in the distance.  

She thought she was okay, but maybe she was anxious. She was glad to see the back of someone she could guess.  

“Sir Leonardo!”  

After calling out to him loudly, Grace immediately regretted it.  

Leonardo’s original appearance, which confirmed this was a dream, was one thing, but him appearing in her dream was another.  

‘Why am I dreaming about him?’  

Unconsciously, Grace started to back away and run.  

But the truly bewildering thing happened next.  

Leonardo, whose name was called, began running towards Grace.  

“Why, why is he chasing me!”  

Shouting like that while running, Grace glanced back and felt a chill seeing Leonardo’s determined expression as he chased her closely.  

He seemed determined to catch her no matter what.  

“Ah!”  

In her frantic run, Grace, uncharacteristically, tripped over her own feet and fell.  

As she lay sprawled, catching her breath, Leonardo, who looked perfectly fine, approached quickly.  

And he was taking off his clothes.  

“Hey, Sir Leonardo Fernandez! Are you crazy?”  

She needed to get up and run again, but strangely, her legs wouldn’t cooperate.  

Grace grabbed the nearby Golden Day Primrose and threw it at Leonardo.  

The floral scent, so strong it was almost nauseating, made her head ache, but she didn’t stop.  

“Don’t come, you crazy bastard!”  

By then, Leonardo was staring at Grace, holding his pants buckle.  

Seeing that, she was utterly confused.  

‘Why am I having such a dream? I’ve never thought of him like that!’  

Grace felt a surge of injustice.  

But for some reason, she had no strength in her body, and all she could do was slowly retreat while sitting.  

And the more she backed away, the closer Leonardo got.  

“Why, why are you doing this, Sir?”  

Hearing her voice, clearly mixed with tears, Grace bit her lip.  

Was I about to be violated like this? Was Leonardo truly such a scoundrel? 

Countless thoughts raced through her mind.  

As she bit her lip until it bled, Leonardo reached out his hand.  

“Ugh!”  

Unconsciously, she hunched her shoulders as his warm hand brushed past her lips.  

Seeing his clear eyes, unlike earlier when he seemed full of desire, Grace unconsciously licked the lips he wiped.  

The moment she tasted the bitter flavor, her mind went blank as if she had fainted.