Chapter 6 (Part 4)

After a long time, he managed to calm down a bit and stood up, letting out a long breath.

‘This isn’t normal, Leonardo Fernandez.’

Getting aroused in Grace Lowell’s body. The strange sensation he felt earlier was clearly arousal.

Feeling guilty, Leonardo threw off the blanket and went outside. His underwear felt damp, but he ignored it.

“Young Lady! Are you awake?”

A lively voice came from outside, and someone peeked through the door and entered.

He was about to reprimand the rude maid who entered without being called when he clenched his fist.

[My close maid Becky is like a friend!]

Because of the phrase that suddenly came to mind.

Leonardo cleared his throat lightly and slowly lifted the corners of his mouth.

“Oh my, you look even prettier today!”

Becky, who had come inside, exclaimed and opened the curtains.

As sunlight flooded into the room, Leonardo involuntarily frowned, which made Becky exclaim in surprise.

“Young Lady! Your face is wrinkling!”

Becky quickly approached and pressed ‘Grace’s face’ with her hands to massage it.

“Stop, Becky.”

Aside from the fact that the pressure was quite painful, the problem was that Becky was standing too close, causing her body to keep touching his face.

Every time her chest brushed past his nose, Leonardo gritted his teeth.

The discomfort was completely different from what he felt with Grace.

Unaware of Leonardo’s feelings, Becky diligently massaged the young lady’s face and stepped back, saying,

“Oh dear, why has your face become so rough in the past few days? You should do a face pack after breakfast!”

Leonardo barely nodded at her words.

He thought she had only brought herself into the room, but she had also pushed in a tray, and only then did he notice the steak and various other foods.

“I’ll go prepare the face pack, Young Lady!”

Forcing a smile at Becky, Leonardo buried his face in his hands and let out a frustrated sigh.

“You said she was like a friend…”

Really, could I keep my identity hidden from such a loyal maid?

For the first time, Leonardo was worried about that.

Moreover, a steak for breakfast was overwhelming just to look at. Leonardo glanced at the time without realizing it.

‘It’s almost time to switch bodies.’

Hopefully, when Grace returned to this body, she wouldn’t find the damp underwear strange.

Leonardo closed his eyes tightly and bowed his head.

He didn’t want to cut and eat steak for breakfast, so he endured, waiting for time to pass. But he had to sit at the table due to the sound from outside.

The chattering voice was unmistakably Becky’s.

“Oh my, Young Lady! The meat is getting cold! Why haven’t you started eating yet?”

Sure enough, Becky pushed the door open without knocking and lightly scolded as she saw the untouched meal.

Leonardo, as if making an excuse, said to her,

“I just lay down for a bit longer, and before I knew it…”

“Were you that tired? Sleeping with meat in front of you, Young Lady. I’ll have them put a bath additive that’s good for fatigue recovery in the tub.”

Nodding absentmindedly at Becky’s concern, Leonardo glanced at the clock.

Finally, the appointed time had come.

While Becky turned her back to tidy the bedding, Leonardo quickly drank the potion. As the now-familiar aching pain hit, he let out a small groan.

“Ah, Young Lady!”

When Leonardo suddenly clutched his heart and fell forward, Becky, startled, rushed over and caught her.

Becky’s face turned pale as she instinctively placed her hand over her nose.

“Young Lady, you’re not breathing!”

Becky’s body trembled like an aspen tree in the unexpected situation.

Lifting Grace and laying her back on the bed, Becky confirmed that she still wasn’t breathing and, with tears streaming down, ran out of the room.

“The physician, the physician! The Young Lady has collapsed!”

Becky’s shout echoed through the mansion.

And moments later, Grace opened her eyes.

She found it strange that she was still lying in bed despite it being past the time to get up.

“Why am I still lying here?”

Propping herself up, she saw the meat on the dining table getting cold.

Grace got up abruptly, sat at the table, and picked up a knife. Then she grumbled while cutting the meat.

“If I leave it like this, the meat will get cold and lose its taste. Why is there no interest in eating?”

Just as she put the cut meat into her mouth, the door suddenly burst open, and people rushed in.

With the meat still in her mouth, Grace blinked at the people entering her room.

“Y-Young Lady!”

Becky suddenly appeared among the crowd, ran over, knelt in front of her, and grabbed her hands.

In that brief moment, it was evident how much she had cried, as her eyes were swollen.

“Wait, did you cry? Why?”

Grace asked in a surprised voice, and Becky burst into tears again, saying,

“You, hic! You stopped, huuh! Breathing! Boohoo!”

“Hey, Becky! What are you talking about?”

Amelia approached Grace, who was confused.

After carefully examining her daughter, Amelia sighed and placed a hand on her shoulder, saying,

“It’s a relief you seem fine. That girl ran around the mansion crying, saying you stopped breathing.”

“Me? I suddenly stopped breathing?”

Amelia, watching her daughter’s face as if she were speaking nonsense, gestured for the physician waiting behind to come forward.

Amelia spoke to him as he quickly approached.

“She seems fine now, but please check her.”

“Yes, Madam.”

Grace received a medical examination without knowing why.

She had never heard of not breathing when their bodies swapped, so she wondered what was going on.

“Becky, did I really stop breathing?”

At Grace’s words, Becky nodded vigorously, tears welling up as if just thinking about it made her cry again.

“You were sitting at the table, and I was tidying the bedding. Then you suddenly… hic!”

Grace fell silent at her words.

It seemed Becky had been present when their bodies swapped.

But thinking back, she had never heard of not breathing despite the many times their bodies had swapped.

‘Or was there really no such thing?’

Until now, only the two involved had been present, and both had briefly lost consciousness, so they might not have known.

If, at the moment of drinking the potion and switching bodies, the body temporarily became dead due to the absence of the ‘soul.’

‘Is it okay to keep switching bodies like this?’

A shiver ran through Grace, and she involuntarily hunched her shoulders. Meanwhile, the physician’s examination was over.

“For now, the Young Lady is in good health. However, she seems to be a bit fatigued.”

At the doctor’s diagnosis, Becky burst into tears again.

“Boohoo, thank goodness, Young Lady!”

Amelia also let out a small sigh of relief, barely noticeable to others.

When Becky had rushed in, saying her daughter wasn’t breathing, Amelia had been so shocked it felt like she couldn’t breathe herself.

“Why would I be sick? I’m really fine.”

Amelia quietly watched her daughter comforting the maid.

She easily noticed the young anxiety beneath the awkward smile, because she loved her daughter.

‘Actually, her physical condition doesn’t seem quite normal either.’

To her eyes, which had reached the pinnacle of swordsmanship, her daughter’s mana, which was usually a deep blue, was now tinged with gold.

And Amelia knew only one person with such a distinct golden mana.

‘Sir Leonardo Fernandez.’

Amelia’s gaze darkened.

She spoke to Grace, who was still busy comforting the maid.

“That’s enough. It’s good that nothing happened. Becky, you’ve troubled the Young Lady enough.”

Startled by Amelia’s remark, Becky jumped up and wiped her eyes with her sleeve.

Grace looked at Amelia with a troubled expression. Even though she recognized her daughter’s expression, Amelia pretended not to notice and added,

“Gracie, as a knight, you should take care of your body. Let’s spar every morning from now on.”

Grace was appalled by the sudden suggestion.

“M-Mother!”

“That’s settled, now finish getting ready for work.”

With that, Amelia turned and left.

Grace gaped at Amelia’s retreating figure, who had spoken coldly and then left.

‘Oh no, I’m doomed.’

She didn’t know how she managed to wash, dress, and get to work.

Only the thought of being doomed kept running through her mind as she ran to Leonardo’s laboratory, staring blankly at the door with luxurious patterns.

“Why are you standing there like that?”

Startled by Leonardo’s voice from behind, Grace turned her head.

He was holding a stack of documents, having already handled some work.

Noticing Grace’s uneasy appearance, Leonardo took her hand and led her into his lab.

After seating her, he cast a soundproofing spell.

“Did something happen?”

“…You met my close maid this morning, didn’t you?”

Leonardo nodded at Grace’s question.

Recalling how her chest kept brushing against his face, he spoke with a stiff expression.

“Did something happen with that maid?”

Grace shook her head at his words.

For a moment, she wondered if she could really trust Leonardo. Glancing at him as he scrutinized her, Grace remained silent.