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Chapter – 02
Part – 01 Hell
Chapter – 01 Return (1)
I’m back.
The moment I realized it, an uncontrollable wave of nausea surged up.
“Ugh…”
“Lady Florence!”
I covered my mouth, but it was useless. Even after forcing the bitter contents out of my stomach, the retching wouldn’t stop. If I could, I would have torn my abdomen open and washed everything inside clean.
What had touched this skin, what had been spoken through this mouth… If only I couldn’t remember it, it would have been better—but those memories remained painfully vivid. They didn’t fade at all.
Filthy. Disgusting. Revolting.
“Oh my goodness, Lady Florence! It’s alright, just let it out!”
“Ugh, retch…”
“Julia, call the physician! And inform the master as well!”
I could vaguely hear someone running off. While my empty stomach was being forcibly scraped clean, a maid gently rubbed my back.
Her name was Helen. I had never met her before, but she was someone “Jang Hyeonji” had kept close for five years, favoring and exploiting her.
When I lifted my head, I met a pair of kind greenish-brown eyes looking at me with concern. She gazed at me as though I were a little sister she deeply worried about. Even through my nausea, I couldn’t help but let out a hollow laugh.
It was absurd—Helen worrying about “me.” I wasn’t Jang Hyeonji, and the woman she was so worried about had never seen her as anything more than a convenient tool, not even treating her like a person.
And she didn’t even know.
“Haa…”
“Lady Florence… how pitiful…”
Helen, tears welling in her eyes, grasped my hand. Even though my hands were smeared with vomit, she didn’t seem to care.
“I’m so glad you opened your eyes. I knew you would wake up, Lady Florence!”
“…My hand is dirty.”
“It’s not dirty. Ah, there’s warmth even in your fingertips…”
It terrified me that she meant it sincerely. There wasn’t a single lie in her expression. I finally understood why Jang Hyeonji kept her close—she was the type of person who could be easily used because of her blind devotion. Just like I used to be.
A person who easily gives away their heart with a little kindness, cheap sympathy, and a few tears.
Jang Hyeonji was someone who pursued convenience. To her, everything in this world was a gift prepared for her, and she simply picked what suited her taste.
She was the kind of person who could afford to live like that. And yet, everyone loved her.
“…I…”
I tried to make my voice sound natural.
“How long was I unconscious?”
“Ten days already. You never opened your eyes during that time and grew weaker by the day. Oh, dear God… everyone said Lady Florence would never wake again, but we believed. We believed you would shake it off and rise again like this…”
Too bad. The one who opened her eyes wasn’t the Jang Hyeonji they had been waiting for—it was me.
“Even the master was extremely worried about you. He stayed by your side until this morning, praying, not eating or sleeping properly…”
Of course he did. I swallowed the sarcastic remark. Helen was the type who wouldn’t interpret anything I said negatively anyway.
“That… man, is he…”
“The Countess of Lindquist called for him, so he went out this morning. But until the very moment he left, he stayed right by your side. Please believe me.”
“I believe you… I do.”
Of course I did. That man genuinely loved Jang Hyeonji.
In my memories, the black eyes that looked at “me” held a strange, unsettling heat. If that was what they called love, I would rather never understand love at all.
I wondered what he thought, holding my body after Jang Hyeonji had left it.
A sudden urge to laugh out loud rose in me.
“I already sent a message to Julia, so she’ll arrive by tomorrow morning at the latest. Before the master returns, we should have you examined by a physician. Oh, I almost forgot—I’ll also contact the church and call a priest. You need a blessing…”
“What time is it now?”
“It’s just past 1:30 p.m. Don’t worry. I’ll take good care of you until the master returns. How is your stomach? Any nausea?”
“I’m fine, Helen.”
“But you should still eat something. I’ll ask the cook to prepare something soft and nutritious…”
“Helen.”
I cut her off firmly. She looked at me, startled.
Rubbing my throbbing forehead, I said, “You already called the doctor, so that’s enough. But forget the priest. I’m fine.”
“But—”
“I said I’m fine.”
Helen blinked, confused. Right—Jang Hyeonji wouldn’t speak like this. She was playful and cheerful. But I didn’t have the luxury of adjusting to her expectations. My head felt like it was splitting open.
“And I feel dizzy.”
“Lady Florence…”
“Change the bedding. Prepare a bath. And leave me alone for a while.”
After I finished speaking, I looked up at her. She hesitated, then nodded.
With her help, I managed to sit on a chair. Even that short movement left me breathless. My body felt like it might collapse at any moment.
I barely had strength in my legs.
I need to escape immediately.
But in this condition, I couldn’t even walk out of the room. What had they done to this body? How had it been worn down so badly?
It was infuriating. Not only had I lost my body for five years, I now had to suffer the aftermath as well.
Even though Jang Hyeonji had treated it as her own, she had still abused it this much.
In my memories, I hadn’t lived particularly harshly. If anything, she had been pampered more than I ever was. She had never even lifted anything heavier than a feather pen.
And yet my body was this wrecked because I could no longer use the power she had used so naturally.
Magic and spirit arts.
I bent forward, holding my throbbing head. There was nothing left to throw up, but the nausea wouldn’t stop. The world spun. I felt like I might pass out—but I couldn’t allow myself to.
If I lost consciousness again, what if someone else took my body again?
“Lady Florence, the bedding has been changed. Please come lie down.”
“…Thank you…”
My voice barely came out. I couldn’t even move on my own, so I let Helen practically carry me to the bed. I couldn’t stand staying on the vomit-soiled sheets any longer.
Just a few steps, and my vision blurred.
I wasn’t perfectly healthy five years ago either, but it had never been this bad.
“You’re welcome, Lady Florence. Please rest well.”
Helen smiled brightly, her cheeks tinged pink.
A happy, relieved smile. Her face blurred in my fading vision. No one had ever smiled at me like that.
“I’m so glad you woke up, Lady Florence… truly…”
I didn’t answer.
Helen’s “Florence” wasn’t me. I didn’t know how to respond to sincere concern like that.
She gently brushed my forehead, pulled up the blanket, and finally left.
Alone, I squeezed my eyes shut. The blanket she placed over me felt unbearably heavy, too heavy for me to push away.
I need to think. I don’t have time to be overwhelmed with emotion just because I got my body back after five years. I had to get out of here immediately.
Still… I have until tomorrow morning.
Before that demon returns.
