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Grace shuddered as she recalled the future awaiting her. Seeing her tremble, Benjamin asked with concern,
“Madam, is something the matter?”
“No, nothing at all.”
“It must be the cold, then. Shall we go inside? It’s been a while since your last outing, so you might not feel well.”
“No, I’m really fine.”
As Grace had remembered earlier, in the original story, she never appeared directly—not even once until her death.
‘Can you even call a character who never shows up an extra? She’s just part of the setting.’
Her death wasn’t described either. It was only mentioned briefly by Benjamin at the duke family’s funeral that the duchess had “died of illness.” That was because Benjamin had strictly forbidden anyone from speaking about her death.
And after Grace died, Benjamin began to show his true nature.
Though known for his brown hair, green eyes, and trustworthy kindness, the author had wanted to shock the readers—Benjamin turned out to be the final villain, confronting the heroine and hero in the end.
‘He tried to kidnap the heroine, and later even attempted to kill her.’
Driven by his relentless obsession, he ultimately died in the heroine’s arms.
Given that, it wasn’t too far-fetched to think he might have killed his own wife under the guise of illness to get closer to the heroine. The novel never stated it outright, but as Grace had loved Benjamin most, that was the only conclusion she could draw.
‘He was my favorite…’
When reading the novel, Grace had firmly believed that Benjamin could never be just a supporting male character.
He used to bring up his wife frequently in conversations with the heroine, Aria.
Grace had liked Benjamin for his domestic and gentle side—not the obsessive, deranged man who later spiraled because of his fixation on the heroine.
She remembered his final confession to Aria before his death:
“I just wanted to live happily with the woman I love…”
Even though Grace felt betrayed, she accepted it with a strange clarity.
‘Yeah… there’s no way he could truly love a wife like me.’
Still, her heart thumped uncomfortably.
It was the original Grace’s lingering feelings for Benjamin.
Despite being married, Grace and Benjamin lived separately—not just in different rooms, but entirely different buildings. Benjamin stayed in the main mansion, while Grace lived in the annex.
‘Well, at least I have some memories rather than none at all…’
Though fragmented, the original Grace’s memories gave her useful bits of information—like how Benjamin never entered the annex.
‘This is exhausting.’
After her short walk, Grace collapsed onto the sofa like a corpse.
She had wanted to walk longer, but Benjamin had followed her around like a goldfish trailing after another, making it impossible to enjoy the stroll.
‘Maybe I should’ve told him I wanted to walk alone.’
But she couldn’t bring herself to reject him coldly. Not because she liked him that way—it wasn’t about preference.
‘I don’t want to upset him and accidentally speed up my “death by illness” ending…’
‘Though to be fair, it’s not confirmed that Benjamin was the one who killed Grace…’
The thought of her vague death made her shiver again.
“Madam, shall we light the fireplace?”
“If it’s too cold, we can use a magic device for warmth.”
“N–No, it’s fine.”
Grace shook her head and glanced at the maids.
Even though she lay sprawled on the sofa without a hint of decorum, they neither commented nor looked displeased.
‘So I’m not that much of a scorned figure, then?’
Grace held two titles: “The lady who isolates herself in the annex instead of the main mansion” and “The lady who doesn’t manage the household.”
She barely ever saw Benjamin, harbored a secret crush on him, and rarely left the annex.
‘Whenever it was time to fulfill marital duties, Benjamin always made himself scarce.’
Grace stared blankly at the ceiling.
She didn’t need to search through memories—she had read The Saint’s Wish countless times.
People around Benjamin frequently gossiped about how unfair and unreasonable his marriage had been.
Even the protagonists, Aria and Sylvester, had heard plenty of rumors about the duchess.
‘And yet, Grace never appeared even once in the original.’
It was also common knowledge that they never spent nights together, leading to whispers behind her back.
“She must be hideous if he can’t even stand to touch her.”
“……”
Even though Grace knew she wasn’t the original Grace, the words still stung.
‘Still, thank goodness he’s always the one who leaves the mansion during those nights.’
From her memories, Benjamin always conveniently left the estate when the time approached, using various excuses.
Since he was the one avoiding her, the blame directed toward Grace wasn’t as harsh—at least not for that reason.
But as negative thoughts piled up, Grace suddenly imagined her body emitting a foul odor.
She sniffed her arm nervously.
She had bathed recently and just walked through a blooming garden, so of course she smelled pleasant.
‘It’s just in my head.’
She forced herself up.
“I’m hungry.”
Even in the middle of self-deprecation, her stomach didn’t care.
The maids brightened at her words.
“Shall we prepare a meal in the dining hall?”
“If you prefer, we can bring it to your room, Madam.”
“…I can eat in my room?”
She asked with wide eyes. One of the maids nodded. Grace glanced toward the bay window.
“…Then can I eat over there?”
“Of course, Madam. Whatever you wish.”
Once the maids left, Grace stood absentmindedly, staring at the closed door before moving to sit by the window.
She looked down at her plump hands cast in the shadow of the window frame.
“Chubby? No… more like pudgy.”
Either way, anyone else would probably just call her fat. She almost grew gloomy again but shook her head to focus on the positives.
For example, her current body was much better than the life she had before possessing Grace.
“……”
She clenched her hands tightly.
The smell of medicine, the sounds of machines, people passing in the hallways, and then—
“Ah.”
She cut off her thoughts.
She’d tried to think positively but ended up sinking into dark thoughts.
‘Did the real me die just like that?’
Her original body could have died at any moment anyway.
At that moment, she heard someone breathing.
Her body stiffened, and she whipped her head around.
“Did I imagine that?”
The room was still empty except for her.
Still, her heart pounded nervously.
‘No, I definitely heard it…’
There it was again—a breath, followed by a laugh.
‘That laugh…’
It was a grotesque, mocking laugh that made her skin crawl.
Then came a knock at the door.
“Madam, your meal has arrived.”
The sound broke her thoughts.
Grace gasped and turned toward the door.
“…Come in.”
Though her reply was quiet, the maid heard and opened the door.
A tray with a basket of warm soup and bread was brought in.
“We prepared something light since your stomach’s empty.”
“Thank you.”
Since possessing Grace’s body, she had barely left the room or eaten properly for several days.
The maid had prepared a light meal out of consideration.
‘With this body, I’m surprised I managed to move at all…’
Noticing the thoughtfulness, Grace smiled faintly.
“Shall I set it here, Madam?”
“Yes.”
The maid placed the tray beside her and stepped back.
Grace picked up a piece of bread and tore it apart. The smell of freshly baked buttered bread wafted up.
‘Delicious.’
The rich, sweet flavor melted gently on her tongue as she chewed.
It felt like she was trying to chew up and digest all the tangled thoughts from earlier.
Just as she dipped the remaining half into the soup, she noticed a carriage being prepared outside.
‘What’s that?’
Benjamin, dressed more neatly than before, hurried out of the main mansion and climbed into the carriage.
Grace watched him, still chewing on bread.
“……”
The carriage left through the gates, which then closed behind it.
“Do you know where His Grace is going?”
“Ah.”
The maid looked startled at her unexpected question.
“Do you?”
“T–That is…”
“You do.”
Grace turned to look at the maid.
