Chapter 2
“…”
Marquis Elaine’s mouth, which had been shut all the time, opened wide.
“…Am I dreaming?”
The Marquis pinched the cheek of the young man beside him.
“Aghh! What’s wrong with you!”
“…It’s not a dream.”
His eyes were watery.
“My daughter wakes up!”
The Marquis flew to where I was.
“My daughter, my daughter! Let me see!”
Why were you looking at me when you were looking at your daughter?
The Marquis even held my hand and rubbed it on his cheek.
The young man beside him hurriedly asked.
“Do you recognize who I am?”
Absolutely.
Ulysse Lu Yeronimo. Marquis Elaine’s son and a medical genius who could recite celestial energy.
He was originally famous, but he became even more famous after becoming the disciple of Verus, the greatest medical scientist of the empire.
He was particularly popular among the young ladies because of his fair-white skin, compared to the other young masters of the noble family.
I never thought I’d see the infamous young master here.
‘For now, should I show courtesy first? Or should I speak first?’
I was extremely flustered.
As I tried to get up in a hurry, The Marquis gently pushed my shoulder.
“Don’t get up!”
No, so why are you pushing me?
“Wait a minute, father. I will examine her first.”
Ulysse touched my forehead with a trembling hand.
“No fever.”
He grabbed my wrist this time.
“Her pulse is fine…”
Ulysse, who put his fingers somewhere below my neck, cried out.
“No way, even her blocked breathing is normal!”
He raised his head.
“Father, not only Navian survived. Her illness is gone! She’s gotten healthier!”
Everyone’s eyes were on me.
The faces filled with despair turned into great happiness.
I finally understood something that had been uncertain so far.
They called me Navian.
As soon I recognized the name, the feeling of being a spectator watching from a distance completely disappeared, and a creepy sense of reality came.
‘No way.’
At the unbelievable fact, I looked at my arm.
‘There’s no scar.’
The arm, which had a small scar, was clean.
‘Have I entered someone else’s body?’
Was this possible?
I looked around with puzzled eyes.
Then a broad chest came before me.
“How admirable, my daughter.”
The Marquis hugged me.
After that, Ulysse wrapped his arms around The Marquis and me.
“Thank you for living. Thank you so much for coming back.”
My shoulders were wet with the two men’s tears.
“Huaah…”
A young servant in a maid uniform burst into tears and I could hear people crying from all directions.
Pat-! Pat-!
I patted their back with a clumsy hand gesture.
They cried louder because of my awkward consolation.
‘I’m at loss.’
At that time, a young man dressed like a butler came into the room.
“Master, have you calmed down?”
My gaze met the butler’s eyes. Then he opened his eyes wide.
“Miss!”
“Butler! Navian is…!” The Marquis abruptly stopped talking and jumped up.
“That’s right! You said an aide came from the Imperial Palace!”
The Marquis asked hastily.
“What should I do? Was he very angry?”
“It didn’t seem like it, but I think you’d better go. Because he’s a person sent by The Crown Prince.”
The Crown Prince?
I vaguely remembered the conversation about someone from the imperial palace coming here.
‘There was no crown prince in the empire until I died.’
I was about to ask who the crown prince was, but The Marquis spoke with a nervous face.
“Butler, lead the way. My daughter just comes back to life, we can’t be exterminated.”
“Yes, sir.”
The Marquis looked back at me with a kind face.
“Take a rest. I’m going to see the guest. Ulysse, keep an eye on Navian.”
After finishing his word, The Marquis soon left.
As I looked at his fleeing back, I heard a wailing sound.
“…Are you sure you’re okay?”
Ulysse’s crying face made me feel uneasy.
Eventually, I opened my mouth, which had been shut all this time.
“I’m alright.”
Ulysse’s eyes opened wide, but I paid no heed to it.
“I’m sorry to trouble you. Please stop crying.”
Looking at the stuff that I had been eyeing for a while, I continued.
“Please bring me a mirror.”
***
It’s a colorful combination. A lemon-colored blonde hair with a slightly curved tip and jewel-like pink eyes that glowed like a star.
‘It’s not me, indeed.’
While looking at the mirror in Ulysse’s hand, I asked him.
“What year is it now?”
Ulysse’s finger trembled. Soon, I heard a stupefied answer.
“Avita calendar…year 1217.”
It’s one year since I died. After I heard what I’m curious about, I nodded.
“That’s enough. Thank you.”
Kung-!
The mirror slipped from Ulysse’s weak hand.
He had a dazed expression as if he just heard something shocking. It wasn’t just Ulysse.
Everyone had their jaw dropped since I asked them to bring me a mirror.
‘What’s wrong with them?’
Soon, Ulysse murmured.
“…Anna.”
“…Yes, young master.”
“Do you remember when the last time Navian spoke?”
What are you saying?
“Perhaps, was it the day when she collapsed on her way back to bed after eating?”
A servant named Anna shook her head.
“Then..was it when she dropped a cup of water and fell on the broken glass, caught tetanus, almost died and survived?”
She shook her head again.
“Ah. It was the day when I prepared healthy food, but because of the allergy, her airway was swollen.”
She shook her head and spoke.
“It was the next day. When she saw the fish and told me to clean it up.”
‘…what could have killed you?’
It was no surprise to me that this noble lady, Navian, was silent.
I was a knight, and it was my daily routine to hear about the detailed rumors of noble families.
‘The problem is that I came into this body.’
This body was weak enough to fall on her way back to bed after eating.
“…I can’t help it. Let’s double-check.”
But I’m not the only one who was surprised by this situation.
It must have been a great shock to these people because their young miss suddenly spoke.
“Can you take a slow breath?”
I had no choice but to inhale. My bosom went up and down.
“That’s right! You did a great job.”
I was praised for breathing.
“Now shall we move lightly?”
I let out a sigh.
‘This is not the time for this.’
It was also important to ask about the crown prince, but I need to tell them that the owner of this body was dead.
This excessive affection wasn’t mine.
‘Before it’s too late, let’s just say it.’
I made up my mind and made eye contact with Ulysse. Just as I was about to open my mouth, he spoke first.
“Thank you, Navian. For living and keeping eye contact with me,” Ulysse’s eyes sank sadly.
“I treated others from afar without knowing you were in critical condition. Because of my duty as a bastard who could recite the celestial energy.”
He smiled faintly.
“If you hadn’t opened your eyes, father and I would have followed you.”
“…”
“I won’t leave you again. I don’t want to go through that again.”
From the look of it, I was convinced that they were going to follow her to death.
‘…Let’s postpone saying it for now.’
A young servant in a maid uniform who stood beside Ulysse rebuked him.
“Young Master! Why would you say such a scary thing? There are so many things to show to the miss.”
The young servant spoke while folding her fingers one by one.
“We can walk around to see the flowers in the garden, and we can have an outing to a nice scenic area. We can roam around the local streets, too.”
The young servant held her hands together.
“Maybe she’ll be making her debut in the social world and attend the banquet in the palace. It’s the beginning of our miss’ life.”
“What? Walk? Palace?”
Ulysse interrupted in a bleak voice.
“We can’t do that. You know the empire’s situation.”
“The palace may be too much, but at least we can take a walk. It’s not like we’re going to hunt-”
“No walking, either. I need to make sure that the ground in the garden was even and there were no protruding branches and stones.”
“…The miss has eyes, though.”
“How can a child who’s having a hard time walking avoid a stone?”
The young servant answered in a dissatisfied voice.
“That’s too much. The miss finally in good health, and you won’t let her do anything. I want to play with the miss, too!”
“Still, she can’t go outside, ”
Anna, who silently listened to the conversation, suddenly spoke.
“I feel the same way as Mary.”
“Anna!”
“The fact that his aide is here means that the miss and His Highness may encounter someday. We can’t put it off any longer. Now is the time to build up her stamina.”
“….”
“So we can be prepared for whatever may occur.”
Then I asked.
“What’s going on?”
Ulysse answered with a disturbed face.
“It’s about the Crown Prince of this empire.”
“If it’s The Crown Prince…”
“It’s His Highness Signus.”
I opened my mouth wide.
“Don’t tell me, you don’t know?”
“….”
“Understandable. It’s because you’ve been sick and unconscious all this time.”
I barely tried to open my mouth.
“When did he…become the crown prince?”
“Exactly today, one year ago.”
“Is that so..”
I lowered my gaze. My heart was crammed with happiness.
‘That’s great.’
I smiled in excitement. It was worthwhile to save him by sacrificing my life.
Signus lived and became the Crown Prince. I’ve finished my job.
‘Now he’ll become a wise emperor and rule the empire well.’
I quietly rejoiced and turned my eyes.
Because there was a heavy silence in the room.
“Is there something wrong?”
There was no answer.
I felt like there was something wrong in everyone’s expression.
‘I don’t understand what Anna just said.’
She said we need to ‘prepare’.
It sounded like Signus was going to do something.
‘The Crown Prince of Avita is Signus. He’s not the first prince. Then the empire should be peaceful, isn’t it?’
Something must have been wrong.
‘It’s strange that I’m alive.’
Although I’m in somebody else’s body, my mind was still intact.
‘Don’t tell me, there’s something wrong?’
But the future was certainly changed.
Then why?
“His Highness Signus has changed.”
Ulysse’s green eyes became dark.
“He became a tyrant that endangered the empire.”