[Chapter 003] Blythe Acacia's Strong Body

Mazi, the head maid of the Count Acacia's mansion, narrowed her eyes and watched the mistress of the house. Blier, reading the "Imperial Gazette" that the butler had hastily retrieved. Yes, that "Imperial Gazette." The newspaper she had scoffed at, saying it was full of nonsense and throwing it away. The one she had said was useless, asking why it kept being delivered to the front of the house when the Count wasn't even home, and telling him to use it as kindling.

'She must be truly insane.'

She would be walking perfectly fine on two legs, then suddenly stop and be happy. She would ask for a glass of water, and when it was handed to her, she would look at it with gratitude and say, "Thank you." And then, sitting in the reception room, sipping tea, she would suddenly be happy again, and she would start her day reading a proper newspaper, not a gossip magazine. The Countess of Acacia… . As she turned her gaze towards the entrance of the reception room, she saw, as expected, other maids gathered there, watching the scene and whispering. The combination of Blier and the newspaper was certainly something the maids could watch.

'Maybe there's a shopping catalog in there?'

'Maybe there's news about a big fire or flood somewhere.'

'That's possible. If it's the Madam, she might like that.'

She could faintly hear their whispers. Mazi hastily chased them away. After all, she was the mistress of this mansion, whether she liked it or not, so bad rumors shouldn't spread. She had a separate reason for worrying about this. Unlike before, when she had only worried about the Countess's lack of education, which she showed by "acting ignorant," Blier, who had been cooped up in her room for days, had started asking strange questions. For example,

'What, what is my name exactly?'

'Where is Count Acacia?'

'Are you, are you my nanny?'

…and so on, very nonsensical questions. And she asked them very cautiously. Thankfully, she asked them when Mazi was alone. If the young maids with loose lips had heard those questions, the rumor that "The Countess of Acacia has gone mad" would have spread throughout the capital.

"Mazi."

So Mazi tensed up at the sound of her voice. She checked to make sure the reception room door was properly closed, then pursed her lips and approached Blier. Blier, having finished reading the Imperial Gazette, had been staring blankly for a while before calling her.

'What kind of crazy thing is she going to say this time… .'

"Am I… am I Noebian Trovica's mistress?"

"!"

Good heavens, good heavens. Mazi quickly looked around the empty reception room, then lowered her voice and replied.

"Are you finally going to tell me the truth?"

"…Truth?"

Blier's beautiful emerald green eyes stared intently at her. Mazi nodded and leaned close to her, whispering.

"You are, you know, in that kind of relationship with His Grace, the Grand Duke?"

"…Why, why do you think that?"

Blier's speech, which had been no different from that of a commoner, had somehow become aristocratic. Like Count Acacia. Mazi felt a strange sense of incongruity, but she was afraid that Blier, who had suddenly become cautious, would clam up, so she quickly continued.

"No, if she wasn't his mistress, there's no way he would be so concerned about the Grand Duchess's safety."

"…Me?"

"Of course. And His Grace often sent you gifts, like jewelry and dresses… ."

"He… he did that."

Blier's voice dropped. Mazi looked troubled, wondering if she had said something wrong. In fact, Mazi had already taken her theory as a fact. She had casually tested the waters in the morning, saying things like, "You're the Grand Duke's mistress, so you wouldn't mind the Grand Duchess's death, would you?" It was all to see how she would react.

"You even call His Grace 'he' so affectionately… Oh, Madam. It's true, isn't it? Would His Grace, just because a vassal was away, be so attentive as to personally invite his wife to the funeral?"

Count Acacia was busy with his estate and rarely came to his mansion in the capital. When a vassal was away, his spouse naturally had to be under the protection of his lord, the Grand Duke. So, he could personally invite his wife to the Grand Duchess's funeral. But… .

"Just looking at how he turns a blind eye to any of your outings, it seems like you two are more than just ordinary acquaintances. Don't hide it anymore, tell me everything."

She had just sent a surprising answer to the servant, saying that she would attend the funeral after thinking about it. How dare she, to the Grand Duke. If the reason she could do that wasn't because she was his mistress, then what on earth was it? But as a long-time servant of this household, Mazi had also heard a lot about the Grand Duke's temperament, and she was also worried. Because it didn't seem like the Grand Duke would be very patient with his mistress.

'I need to get her dressed and have the carriage ready… .'

Someone is worried that she'll be struck by lightning from the Grand Duke! But the person involved, Blier, didn't show the slightest sign of haste.

"You don't know either, do you."

'Well, she's not telling me anything, how am I supposed to know?!'

There's a limit to how much you can tolerate someone being strange. Mazi gritted her teeth, gathered her patience, and nodded.

"Yes, no one in this mansion can tell me the answer. For now, for now, I have no choice but to accept his invitation and go to the funeral."

No, but what kind of relationship are you two in? And the Grand Duchess is dead, and the Grand Duke himself contacted you, and you're talking about attending the funeral as if it's some kind of favor? All sorts of thoughts swirled in her chest, but Mazi held them back. She couldn't have forgotten his temper just because he had been quiet for the past few days. She chose to quietly help her get dressed before he threw something at her. She kept a close eye on Blier's unfamiliar behavior, her fingers constantly fidgeting, expressing her anxiety.

I saw that the head maid, Mazi, was comfortable with me, but the other maids were practically bowing in half when they addressed me. They all watched me, but when our eyes met, they immediately looked away. And if they even tried to speak, they were clearly tense.

'Blier Acacia was a scary person.'

It was understandable. She was full of energy. She could run around and yell at the top of her lungs and still be fine. It had been so long since I had worn shoes instead of slippers without my body swaying. The handfuls of hair that used to fall out wouldn't come out no matter how many times I brushed it.

"You're all set, Madam."

A young maid named Yona said, her face flushed. I stood in front of the full-length mirror, and my familiar face and unfamiliar body were reflected back at me. I was surprised by my healthy-looking face, which had gained a bit of weight. I hadn't coughed even once, and I hadn't had a single seizure while getting up, eating, and getting dressed.

"…You look healthy."

"Yes?"

 Yona's face turned pale, as if she realized her words were an insult. But I smiled contentedly. How much had I prayed and prayed to have a body like this? I had spent the entire morning alternating between confusion and a dazed state, and finally, I accepted that this was not a 'dream' or an 'illusion'. Every newspaper had the news of Adrienne Trovica's death on the front page, and the circumstances were the same as the last I remembered. A severe seizure due to her illness, and sudden death. I was confused only about whether my soul, which had entered Blier Acacia's body, would return to my original body, which was already dead, or if I was Blier Acacia all along and had gone insane. But no matter how much I thought about it, I was Adrienne. I slowly took another step closer to the mirror. Her rosy cheeks were lovely. There was only one reason why I wasn't going crazy right now, despite this absurd situation. It was because this woman's face was eerily similar to mine. It was so much like the image of myself that I had always dreamed of. It felt like I was dreaming.

'Did God give me a chance?'

I couldn't shake the feeling that I had been reborn, as if I had shed my sick and ailing body and gained the same body. It was a phenomenon I had never heard of, but wasn't I experiencing it right now? What if the soul in this body tried to return to my original body, which was already dead?

'Absolutely not.'

I would rather stop it. I felt a little sorry for Blier, the owner of this body. I was eating alone, walking alone, and every single action I took alone was a joy. I didn't even believe that my husband and the owner of this body were in a strange relationship. Noebian, who prioritized his own reputation above all else, would never do such a thing, and he, who loved me so much that he wanted to make me his Grand Duchess even though he knew I was weak, what would he be lacking? He was so busy that he could barely even visit the capital, let alone the Grand Duke's mansion. The thought of him leisurely enjoying a date with his mistress made me chuckle. The man I knew would never do such a thing. Dating? What dating? He's half-crazy about work. In fact, I had heard that there were women who secretly spread rumors about him having a charming mistress in the social circles. But they didn't know how busy Noebian was, solving cases and running around on the Emperor's orders.

I got into the carriage, feeling a strange mix of joy and sadness. It had been a long time since I had dressed up and gone out. When I arrived at the Trovica family cemetery, I calmed my pounding heart and got out of the carriage. As I got closer to the entrance of the cemetery, I felt a chill run down my spine. The strange excitement didn't last long. The feeling of joy at being healthy was also fading. With each step I took, I saw 'me', lying there beautifully dressed, as if she were not dead.

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