Chapter 5 (Part 4)

Leonardo now realized how great a knight’s developed senses were and laughed.  

To hear a monologue through a door.  

Grateful anew for Grace’s highly developed hearing, he raised his evaluation of knights.  

‘It was just the face that was her type, but now it’s not.’

Knowing at least that Grace Lowell didn’t dislike him was a significant gain.

Between him and Grace, there was not only a long-standing personal grudge but also a deep political and academic rift.

And those weren’t things that could be bridged in a short time.  

‘I should do something about that during this opportunity.’  

The time spent together here was short, but during that time, Leonardo realized he didn’t know Grace Lowell as well as he thought and that he didn’t hate her as much as he believed.  

Especially after mixing bodies with her, it became even clearer.  

‘If my face and body are her type, things might get easier.’  

Leonardo smiled and opened the lodging door.  

Seeing Grace in her knight’s uniform, he approached and said reproachfully,  

“Dress properly.”

Saying that, Leonardo tidied up her slightly disheveled shirt and pants.  

While fixing her shirt and pants, he deliberately slipped his hand into her pants and pretended to accidentally touch her member, then acted as if nothing happened.  

“…!”  

The only one surprised was Grace, who momentarily felt a strange sensation at his touch.  

She should have felt bad, but the lukewarm warmth brushing against the clueless thing made Grace Lowell feel good.  

“Will you drink the potion after breakfast?”

Leonardo spoke in a calm voice, pretending not to notice Grace’s agitation.  

Barely hiding her agitation, Grace nodded and spoke in an awkward voice.  

“That, by the way, where’s the paper you wrote?”  

“Here it is.”  

Handing over the paper he had painstakingly written the night before, Leonardo subtly brushed her palm with his fingers.  

Startled by the subtle touch, Grace’s eyes filled with confusion.  

‘Why are you doing this to me?’  

She felt like the Leonardo Fernandez she knew was drifting further away.  

Who exactly was this person smiling in front of her now?  

‘Strange. I thought he wasn’t normal before, but… now he seems completely out of his mind.’  

He seemed to want something, but she had no idea what it was. Or rather, what could he possibly want from her?  

Grace had no choice but to read the words written on the paper, urged by Leonardo to ask any questions she had immediately.

“There’s a separate space in the lab?”

Everything else was predictable. When Grace pointed it out, Leonardo nodded.

“Yes, that’s correct. If life in the Ducal residence is difficult, you can also solve your living needs in the lab and stay there.”

It was a better story than expected, so Grace nodded immediately.

Feeling a bit guilty, she added,

“I don’t have such a space. I commuted from home.”

Grace added an excuse, saying she didn’t feel the need for one, and Leonardo smiled as if it was okay.

“Don’t worry. If it becomes necessary, I can make another one.”

At his words, Grace nodded.

Without thinking deeply about where or how he would make another one, Grace folded the paper and stuffed it into her pocket.

“Then, shall we have breakfast?”

He nodded at Grace, who confidently suggested eating, even though she hadn’t prepared anything.

“I grilled some meat simply because we need strength today.”

At his words, Grace’s eyes sparkled.

She hurried to the drawing room, and Leonardo chuckled at her retreating figure.

When she came out, as Leonardo said, there was meat. A perfect breakfast was prepared with a large steak on a plate, golden-brown grilled vegetables, and even lukewarm soup.

“……Sir, how can you be so good at this?”

At her enthusiastic words, Leonardo sat opposite her with a subtle smile.

“What do you mean? Cooking? Or―.”

He said, looking Grace straight in the eyes.

Feeling the intense gaze, Grace glanced away. She immediately understood what he meant by his additional words.

When Grace couldn’t meet his gaze, he laughed and said,

“Let’s eat first. We’ll be busy all morning.”

Only then did Grace pick up the knife and fork.

Looking delighted, she cut the meat and put it in her mouth, then asked, puzzled, seeing Leonardo’s plate.

“Why is your breakfast so light?”

Unlike her plate with a large steak, Leonardo’s plate only had a sandwich, a few pieces of meat, and a cup of strong coffee.

“If I eat meat in the morning, it upsets my stomach.”

At his words, Grace blinked.

Wasn’t I eating meat with Leonardo’s body now? Yet he said he couldn’t eat meat in the morning.

After pondering for a moment, Grace put down the knife and said,

“It would be better to switch bodies now. I need to exert strength with that body later, and it’ll be hard with such a light meal.”

She intended to say it was fine, but Leonardo handed over the potion at Grace’s firm expression.

Grace took it and drank it in one go, closing her eyes tightly. She groaned softly at the immediate pain and murmured.

“It hurts like hell, really.”

After a while, Grace opened her eyes in her own body and reached out to Leonardo, who was similarly regaining his senses.

“Give me my plate.”

Leonardo slowly pushed the utensils towards Grace, looking down at the food ‘Leonardo’ had been eating just moments ago.

After handing over the items in front of her, Grace spoke in a much lighter voice.

“I wondered why my stomach hurt when I ate a lot with your body. It turns out you’re not someone who eats much.”

Watching Grace, who seemed much happier eating meat with her own body, he spoke.

“I only need to consume the minimum amount of food.”

“Enough to not die? How is that possible? There are so many delicious things in the world.”

Leonardo faintly smiled at Grace’s response, which expressed disbelief.

“There’s more food, so help yourself if you want more. But, we have a set time―.”

Grace nodded roughly at his words.

With quick hands, she swiftly cut and ate the meat, then got up and headed to the kitchen.

Her footsteps showed determination to eat as much as possible in a short time.

“Ah, I’m full. Shall we move now?”

Having eaten three pieces of meat and finished two bowls of soup, she came out of the kitchen, patting her belly after washing the dishes.

It was astonishing how slim her body remained despite eating so much.

“Yes, let’s go.”

Leonardo checked the capture box he had put in his pocket and tied his hair back.

Grace also tied her pink hair up high and strapped two swords to her belt. Then she walked out.

Upon stepping outside, two Pla flew in the opposite direction.

“……Those are our targets. We need to enter the forest as if we’re not aware of them.”

Grace nodded at his words.

Although she disliked the idea of pretending to take a leisurely walk with Leonardo, there was no other way now.

As she walked ahead, Leonardo followed behind.

“The symbol on Jacob Baudouin’s corpse, have you seen something similar before?”

Leonardo asked, and after thinking carefully, Grace shook her head.

“No, but it feels like I’ve seen it somewhere.”

“I feel the same. If that symbol is related to ancient magic, I shouldn’t have seen it before, but it feels strangely familiar.”

Saying so, Leonardo naturally placed his hand on Grace’s waist and changed direction, continuing to speak.

“So, I thought, perhaps it’s related to the Pla.”

“With the Pla? Are you saying they might have killed Jacob Baudouin? That’s not possible.”

Grace’s face twisted as if finding his speculation absurd, and Leonardo shook his head.

“No. He died from the backlash of magic. I’m suggesting that the symbol might be engraved on the Pla.”

At his words, Grace’s eyes sparkled.

As she quietly recalled, she spoke as if she remembered something.

“Come to think of it, there was a Pla with a strange pattern.”

“Then I might be right.”

Grace nodded and glanced at the Pla keeping a distance and following them.

Then she held Leonardo’s hand, palm facing up, and said,

“How far should we go? It’s better to go far, right?”

Grace wrote letters on Leonardo’s palm with her index finger.

[Those are the Pla from last time. The ones we first encountered here.]

At that moment, Leonardo was entirely distracted by her words, or rather, by the calloused fingertips tickling his palm.

The heat starting from his palm brought a subtle sensation, tickling his insides.

However, he smiled as if he felt nothing.

Leonardo wrote letters on her palm with his finger, just as Grace had done.

“If we go too far, we might get lost.”

[Are you sure?]

“Is that so? Well, we’ll find our way somehow, won’t we? There’s something around here.”

[Yes. I’m sure it’s the Pla we first encountered.]

At Grace’s words, Leonardo exchanged glances with her.

The Pla seemed less wary than before, thinking the two were just walking without doing anything.

“Then, let’s go.”

Saying so, Grace suddenly turned and ran at an incredible speed toward the Pla.

Following her like a shot cannonball, Leonardo clicked his tongue.

What incredible agility.

“I’ll assist.”

Leonardo’s golden mana formed a net, following Grace.