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Chapter 16
“I don’t really understand it. The part about entering someone else’s body.”
“Think of it simply. Those old geezers at the Holy Imperial Church prayed for a thousand days while collapsing left and right. So they summoned you. If you start asking how, you’ll only tire yourself out. Just accept that it happened.”
Easy for her to say.
But Legria couldn’t get angry or even argue.
This body wasn’t hers.
It belonged to the woman standing before her—Beatrice.
Which meant…
Hadn’t she effectively driven someone else out and taken possession of their body?
“Normally, you and I shouldn’t even be able to have a conversation like this… I have no idea how it’s possible. Well, maybe I’m such a pain in the ass that even hell kicked me out.”
Beatrice was cheerful.
There wasn’t the slightest trace of grief over her own death.
If anything…
She looked relieved.
“First of all, my existence is a secret, okay? Eos probably noticed something when I got too excited and stepped forward that time… but as long as it doesn’t happen twice, we’re fine. There’s no physical evidence. Only suspicion. And when it comes to suspicion, the person who plays dumb the best usually wins.”
“I’ll… keep it secret.”
“Thank you. We really do get along well, don’t we? We’re so alike.”
No way.
Legria rejected the idea immediately.
They had the same face now, the same eyes.
But everything was different, even something as simple as lifting a teacup.
Beatrice possessed an elegance that seemed innate.
Grace, perhaps.
Something that didn’t disappear just because she used rough language.
“You’re the same. A Saint is placed into the body most similar to its original owner. You just haven’t realized it yet.”
“The Holy Imperial Church. A Saint…”
Even if she didn’t fully understand the terms, she could infer their meaning.
Then she suddenly realized something.
The two of them were speaking entirely different languages, yet they understood each other perfectly.
Is it because this is a dream?
If so, she couldn’t waste this opportunity.
After floundering in confusion and shock, she pinched her thigh and forced herself to focus.
There were too many things she wanted to ask.
Too many things she wanted to know.
And above all else, one question mattered most.
“I want to go back to where I came from.”
“Hmm. Well… I don’t know how to do that either.”
“I see…”
Her shoulders, which had tensed with hope, drooped again.
Beatrice patted her back, then leaned in close with a beautiful smile in her eyes.
“Do you really need to go back?”
“Need to?”
“Is there some reason you absolutely must?”
Legria fell silent.
“I’ve seen all your memories,” Beatrice continued. “You don’t have anyone precious waiting for you, do you? If you had a reason to return, you would’ve fought much harder to escape. You wouldn’t have hidden behind the excuse of your legs not working.”
Her words struck perfectly.
Family?
Her family had only ever caused her pain.
If possible, she wanted to spend the rest of her life never seeing her mother or younger sibling again.
A huge two-story house with a swimming pool.
Luxury cars worth fortunes.
Jeweled brooches.
She had never wanted any of those things.
They had never been given to her, either.
What she had truly wanted was—
“Freedom.”
Beatrice whispered the word.
Like a trap baited with honey-covered cheese, it was irresistibly tempting.
“Why go back to a place like that when you can live however you want here?”
“…”
“Instead of returning, stay here and discover things little by little. See how far you can go with that beautiful face. See what you’re capable of.”
Beatrice gently brushed Legria’s hair behind her ear.
Then she poked her cheek.
“And smile more. You hardly ever smile.”
“Ah.”
“Live however you want. Laugh like a madwoman, enjoy yourself, shine brilliantly. Just like I did.”
Legria had always swallowed her emotions whenever they rose.
Never once had she let them spill out.
She had been water trapped inside an aquarium.
Not fireworks exploding freely across the night sky.
But another body… a world where no one knows me. A place without family.
Could she live here as though she were someone entirely different?
“Oh, and those people? They’ll gather together and gossip behind your back, then run straight to a dressmaker afterward and ask to look exactly like you.”
The surroundings shifted.
Now the two women, sharing the same face, stood together before a mirror.
“As long as I can maintain consciousness, I’ll teach you everything I can. During the day, study how to become Crown Princess. At night, meet me in your dreams and learn practical lessons.”
“Crown Princess?”
“Yes. You’re going to become the Crown Princess.”
That was an incredibly high position.
Legria hadn’t wanted anything like that.
She had imagined working part-time at a café somewhere nobody knew her.
Not becoming someone important and burdened by responsibilities.
Once her body recovered, couldn’t she simply leave wherever she was staying?
“Do I have to become Crown Princess?”
“Hmm… Well. Unless you want to be sold into the slave class.”
“What?”
“Rejecting the position of Crown Princess is unthinkable. If you do, the Imperial Palace will absolutely try to kill you. Then they’ll summon another Crown Princess.”
“And then?”
“And it would be a waste, wouldn’t it? A Saint finally arrived, after all. Rather than throwing you away, someone would officially declare you dead, brand you a slave, and hand you over to all sorts of low-quality Holy Knights.”
Holy Knights.
Another unfamiliar term.
As Legria carefully stored every new word in her memory, determined not to forget them upon waking, Beatrice wrapped her arms around her waist and rubbed her cheek against her shoulder.
“Ahh. It would’ve been wonderful if we’d met as sisters.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Why are you apologizing? It’s not like you chose to enter my body. Come on. Let’s walk.”
The surroundings rippled once more.
The mirror vanished.
A path appeared before them.
Beatrice walked several steps ahead and clasped her hands behind her back.
“Copy me.”
“My posture?”
“That’s right. And from now on, stop apologizing just because you feel sorry. An apology is an admission of guilt. Once you admit guilt, compensation becomes expected. Nobles treat people who apologize easily as prey.”
“…That part, I understand very well.”
“Good. Then you’ll adapt quickly.”
Strength in the waist.
Shoulders back.
It wasn’t only men who needed to stand tall.
Women, too, had to lift their chins and push their chests forward slightly.
Confident.
Proud.
Arrogant, even.
If you didn’t want to look easy to exploit.
Apparently that rule applied everywhere, even in noble society.
“Ah, found it.”
At that moment, Beatrice, who had been running her hand along a pitch-black wall, suddenly grabbed something and held it out.
“A snake?”
No.
A thick cord, perhaps?
After hesitating, Legria reached out and grabbed it.
The moment she did, a brilliant transformation occurred.
The darkness surrounding them began turning pure gold, starting from where her hand touched the cord.
The light spread gradually.
Then all at once.
Before she knew it, the darkness had vanished entirely, leaving only radiant brightness.
“Just as I thought. It worked immediately when you touched it.”
“What is all this?”
“The twisted insides of that detestable man. From now on, you’ll be unraveling these things one by one.”
“I have to unravel all of this?”
Legria looked around in disbelief.
It resembled a maze without an exit.
And at the same time, a tangled ball of thread.
Why would she need to untangle something like this?
“If you unravel it all, he’ll stop doing insane things quite so often. Ah, there’s a benefit too. Every time you loosen part of it, he’ll become more dependent on you. By the end, he’ll probably be kneeling at your feet and sobbing. I really wish I could see that.”
Beatrice licked her lips regretfully.
The explanation still lacked details.
But Legria felt as though she understood.
“So they summoned me to untangle this.”
“Correct. You’re smart.”
“And it’s something you can’t do?”
“Only a Saint can enter a Holy Knight’s inner world. I can only see it because I’m connected to you. Every Holy Knight’s inner world looks different.”
So there wasn’t just one Holy Knight.
As she pieced together information from the conversation, her hands moved unconsciously.
The thick cord had become a golden bundle of thread.
If she carefully soothed it and unraveled it little by little, perhaps one day she could untangle it completely.
“Until I find a way to escape…”
“You really don’t want to be Crown Princess?”
“It’s not that I hate it. It’s just too much for me. Too overwhelming.”
Beatrice let out a thoughtful hum.
Feeling slightly embarrassed, Legria deliberately changed the subject.
“Do you have anything you want me to tell your family?”
“Didn’t I say we’re alike?”
Then she must not have any.
Legria hadn’t expected even that to be similar.
“Oh, but I do have a friend. Fyodor Ian Silverlake.”
“A friend?”
“Yes. But Fyodor is incredibly rigid. And he absolutely despises the system of Transit People.”
“Transit People?”
“Mm-hmm. So he’ll probably take his frustrations out on you. When that happens, don’t panic. Tighten your stomach muscles and say this. That’s right, lift your chin higher.”
“What should I say?”
“How dare you intimidate a delicate young lady out of nowhere! Are you truly a knight, sir?”
“Hm. With this face?”
She didn’t look delicate at all.
By now, enough thread had unraveled to fill her arms.
She didn’t really understand why, but somehow it felt like this was enough for today.
Carefully winding the golden thread into a neat bundle so it wouldn’t tangle again, she set it on the ground.
Then Beatrice leaned close and whispered softly into her ear.
“Or you could simply say, ‘Do you think I’d ever marry someone like that?’”
“I’ll pass it along. If I ever meet him.”
Dreams really were short.
The surroundings began trembling.
The bundles of thread slowly faded away, as though telling her it was time to leave.
Beatrice seemed to sense it as well and frowned slightly.
“This is sincere advice, so listen carefully.”
“I will.”
“Never say out loud that you don’t want to become Crown Princess. Maintain your position. Meet people. Find those who will stand on your side. Use every resource available to you.”
Her gaze sharpened.
“Even if that resource is another person.”
“I understand.”
“Lahik Barakiel Velligraeam. He is a frightening man. Even among all the Crown Princes in history, he is considered exceptionally powerful. It would be wise to tame him.”
In short—
Don’t act recklessly.
When Legria nodded, Beatrice finally seemed relieved.
She exhaled softly and smiled once more.
“There’s still time. No need to regret anything yet. Enjoy your happiness. Take everything you can get your hands on. You possess the status and position to do so. Stop burying yourself in misery.”
Beatrice’s words sounded like both a song and a spell.
“And if, after all that, you still want to know everything…”
She paused.
“Then I’ll tell you.”
“Tell me what?”
“The ugly truth of this world.”
For the first time, all expression vanished from Beatrice’s face.
“But until then, for my sake at least, enjoy it.”
Her voice grew quiet.
“Enjoy the bright side of this world.”
Thud.
Beatrice placed a hand on Legria’s shoulder and pushed her from the edge of a cliff.
As she fell, she couldn’t see what expression Beatrice was wearing.
Only one final sentence remained ringing in her ears.
“Ah, and one more thing. Don’t waste your time feeling guilty. I gave this body to you of my own free will.”
