KMKS 33

chapter 33

Meanwhile, Jace, the butler of the Winston Duke family, had just left the bank and was heading toward the cafeteria.

Amid his busy duties, this was a rare moment to catch his breath.

Even though the workload had increased because of Leo’s memory loss, he couldn’t give up this small period of respite.

‘How long has it been since I had a moment like this…’

As he was about to order coffee, someone suddenly blocked his path.

“Make it an iced black coffee.”

A blonde man appeared out of nowhere, cut in front of Jace, and even completed the order and payment.

Just as Jace was about to get annoyed at being cut in line right before his eyes, he turned around—and his eyes went wide.

“Aiden Spencer, Viscount?”

Unlike the bewildered Jace, a faint smile spread across Aiden’s lips.

“Can I have a moment with you?”
“You… want to see me?”
“Who else is here besides you?”

He acted as if he and Jace had shared private conversations before, speaking in a friendly, familiar manner.

Except for the time he handed over the collapsed duke, this was essentially the first time they had met face-to-face like this.

Puzzled, Jace quickly straightened his attire.

Aiden’s gaze was sharp and unusual.

Before regaining his memories, Aiden could not understand Leo Winston’s abnormal attention toward Sarah—the unpleasant stares and the subtle possessiveness had driven Aiden crazy.

And yet, Leo was Sarah’s husband—the very man who had kept her in the shadows and caused her suffering.

If it were up to him, Aiden would have signed the divorce papers Sarah had painstakingly prepared and severed the ties between them.

[Are you comfortable staying here? Or do you want to leave…?]

[I’m not thinking that. I’m doing well here.]

If Sarah didn’t want a divorce, Aiden couldn’t simply carry it out. The handwriting was also indistinguishable from that of her real husband.

‘I can’t argue with that.’

Aiden’s eyes flashed. The person in front of him, Jace, was the only one who could act as the key.

Currently, there was no one at the Spencer residence he could fully trust with such matters. Perhaps someone loyal to Leo with dark intentions already existed.

“Sit for now.”

He handed the black coffee to Jace and gestured toward the table.

“Why… are you giving this to me…?”

Aiden knew Jace’s coffee preferences well. They had grown up together, and regardless of rank, they had been closest friends.

The ‘him’ inside the body of the Winston Duke would not know this—that Jace took this same break at this same time every day.

‘What a sharp-eyed person.’

Although he wanted to tease an old friend, the situation was serious, so Aiden composed himself. He had to act no matter what.

Before the one in Leo’s body could sway Jace, he needed to make the first move.

‘Even if he tried before, I just need him to recognize me.’

“Do you recognize me?”
“Aiden Spencer, Viscount, isn’t it?”

Though the answer was obvious, Jace tilted his head in confusion.

“You do ask obvious things, Viscount.”

Direct confrontation seemed too difficult, and Aiden pressed his brow.

“Ah, and thank you for saving our duke the other day. If you had been even a little late, it could have been disastrous. Thanks to you, he’s awake now.”

Jace continuously offered his gratitude, seemingly unaware of the presence of his true master.

“I didn’t call you to hear thanks… …can’t be helped.”

At Aiden’s reaction, Jace swallowed dryly, unable to touch his coffee. No matter how he thought about it, there seemed no reason for the Viscount to summon him personally.

“You have a fork-shaped burn mark on your ribs.”
“Eh? How did you… Did the Duke tell you?”

As Aiden touched the area near the ribs, Jace’s jaw dropped.

Whether he liked it or not, the secret agreements between Jace and Leo were slowly being revealed.

“Your first love’s name was Ruby, right?”
“Eh? How much do you know…?”
“You still sleep hugging your favorite stuffed toy.”

Aiden’s lips curled in a playful smile. Jace’s ears reddened.

“That… you shouldn’t remember yet, right?”

Jace could not hide his embarrassment, having had a secret no one else should know revealed. A hint of betrayal toward the Winston Duke also appeared.

“Could it be that our Duke has regained all his memories? Oh, my God.”
“You still act as if you heard it from someone else. I’m disappointed you can’t recognize an old friend.”

Jace jumped up in surprise.

“N-No way!”

Looking at Aiden, he thought there was something similar to his master in him. Although the build and facial features were completely different, he couldn’t believe someone could spill secrets that were between Leo and him so easily.

“Is that even possible?”

The idea of a person’s soul changing bodies was unheard of. Jace couldn’t imagine such a thing—at least not until Aiden spoke clearly and decisively.

“You remember that thing I asked of you before?”
“What…?”
“Talua Orphanage.”
“D-Duke?!”

Jace’s doubts quickly became certainty.

Even if the Duke had shared personal matters with his closest friend, the orphanage was different. No one should know about it—it was Leo Winston’s own secret.

Worried someone might overhear, Jace quickly covered his mouth. Too surprised to think clearly, he didn’t even realize that they had discovered the whereabouts of a certain woman his master had been desperately searching for.

“Wh-What exactly happened? I can’t believe it.”
“Sit down again for now.”

After examining Aiden’s body for a long time, Jace sat down. To ease his confusion, Aiden explained the situation.

The exact circumstances of the body swap were unknown, but it seemed likely that the carriage accident causing memory loss had been the cause. He speculated that, coincidentally, they were in the same space at the time of the accident.

“The reason I couldn’t come back immediately…”

Aiden himself had suffered from memory loss. Who would have thought his body was elsewhere?

He only regained his memory two days ago, after speaking with the Duke at the Cordelia estate.

“I needed time to think.”
“……”

Jace, now somewhat relieved, looked at him calmly. If even a third party would be confused, how much more so the person involved?

“So, what do you plan to do?”

Though outwardly composed, Jace trembled with another worry. The man who had tarnished the Duke’s reputation was still out there in the Duke’s body somewhere. He had personally seen his unsavory, womanizing side.

“Shouldn’t we chase him out immediately? Wait… there must be a way to restore the body, right?”

Aiden shook his head.

“We need to find out first. That’s why I came to you.”
“Eh?”

Jace slapped his forehead in frustration. Despite being a competent butler, how would he find a way to restore the body? He felt like he was hitting his head against the ground.

“Sometimes, the Duke trusts me too much.”

As Jace muttered, Aiden recalled how he had collapsed last night, clutching his chest.

“He must have regained his memory too.”
“That sounds like I should pretend I don’t know.”
“Right. And one more thing, we need to monitor him. We must find a way to restore the body.”

Trying to lighten the serious mood, Aiden smiled.

“Duke! Are you laughing right now?”

Even as Jace grumbled about being short on hands, Aiden didn’t remove the smile from his face. Jace would carry out his duty no matter what. He always had.

Meeting an old friend reminded Aiden why he had to keep moving forward.

[She’s your wife.]

For a brief moment, he had thought of Sarah as his wife. Among the strangers at the Spencer residence, she was familiar.

He could faintly sense the scent he had once known on her.

Perhaps that was why, even now that he had regained his memories, Aiden wanted to protect Sarah—who had nothing to do with him—from the Viscount.

He didn’t know what emotion drove it. Perhaps it was because he, who had no family, had a family for the first time.

An unexplainable emotion welled up, and Aiden’s brow furrowed. His chest felt tight.

“Are you leaving now?”
“Yes. Carefully, so he doesn’t notice.”

The two men left the cafeteria and parted ways.

After leaving Aiden, Jace hit his head against the carriage roof on the way back to the Duke’s residence.

‘That idiot.’

He hadn’t realized even after three hints. And unlike the real Leo, whose posture was proper, this Duke’s odd behavior alone should have been a clue.

[Watch your words. What gentleman like me exists, tsk.]

Obsessed only with the idea of a ‘gentleman,’ he had acted arrogantly toward Jace. Jace should have noticed from his rough behavior that this was someone else. How could he claim to be the Duke’s longtime friend?

[Damn it.]

He had never cursed in his life before. Even when Aiden gave him the difficult-to-obtain documents related to Talua Orphanage, the Duke had tried to restrain his curse.

‘Ah, the documents!’

Jace finally remembered something important. Before Leo lost his memory, he had asked Jace to find a woman who had disappeared from Talua Orphanage.

The whereabouts of the woman Jace had finally discovered were now with Aiden, who had Leo’s body.

‘Wait.’

That meant he would have to go find her again.

Jace buried his head in thought.

“Why is there only one body, Duke?”

He swallowed the pain of his heavy workload while thinking of the real master in Aiden’s body. And so, he had one more mission added to his duties.