Changing habits that had already become ingrained in the body was not easy. Moreover, having lived freely, it was extremely frustrating to assign meaning to every action, from meals to speech and gait.

But I couldn’t help feeling frustrated. Now that I had to live as Claire, the young lady of Count McCain, I naturally had to get used to it. So what did memories from a month ago matter? In this situation where adapting to the life ahead was already overwhelming.

“Sigh, even the nobility doesn’t always live leisurely……”

As I let out a deep sigh, there was a knock on the door from outside.

“Young lady. The lady asks you to come down to the garden. She said she wants to have tea together.”

“I understand. No, I see.”

Having to speak down to the servants was also something not easily getting used to.

“Would you like help changing your clothes?”

“No, it’s fine. I can do it myself. I’ll change quickly and come out.”

“Then please call if you need anything.”

I replied to her that I understood and immediately ran to the wardrobe. The nobility had to maintain a formal dress code even when living at home.

Even if not meeting anyone in particular, clothes had to be changed at least twice a day, and there was also appropriate attire for drinking tea in the garden.

“The McCain family is certainly wealthy.”

Looking at the closet full of clothes, I smiled with a satisfied face.

Although it was uncomfortable and frustrating to be formal in every little thing, I liked changing clothes twice a day. Wearing beautiful clothes I couldn’t even dream of before and looking in the mirror felt like a sweet reward.

“I thought I’d never wear such fluttery clothes in my life……”

Partly because circumstances weren’t affluent, and working as an apothecary, there was no occasion to wear pretty clothes. The most important things when choosing clothes were whether they were comfortable to move in and if the material was durable.

There was no need to consider color; it was always dark, deep ink-like shades. Because if medicinal water splashed on the fabric, it wouldn’t easily come off, so bright colored clothes couldn’t be worn.

Unlike my simple wardrobe, Claire’s closet was filled with various outfits. The fabric quality was also soft and luxurious.

There were some with lots of fluttering lace attached, and there were elaborate dresses decorated with small jewels. Even the seemingly plain outfits weren’t entirely simple.

Looking closely, they were meticulously embroidered with thread in similar colors to the fabric. While choosing clothes, I spent a while admiring the delicacy of the fabric.

“For drinking tea in the garden, bright and light colors…… Was it a blouse with a long pleated skirt that was good?”

I chose clothes suitable for drinking tea in the garden as I had learned from Ileana.

For the top, I chose a blouse with lace around the neck and lots of pleats on the shoulders, and for the bottom, a long skirt made of heavy material with pleats.

I changed carefully so as not to mess up my hair. It was troublesome to have the maid fix my hair again. After making a ribbon around my waist with a long string, I checked my appearance in the mirror. It was quite satisfactory.

“The downside is that it feels like I’m peeking at someone beyond the window rather than looking in the mirror……”

Every time I looked in the mirror and saw Claire’s face, I felt awkward because it wasn’t familiar.

“If it were even a little similar, I might get used to it. It’s so unlike me that I don’t understand how I ended up in this body……”

Claire had a small and cute figure. It felt like my eye level had decreased by about 15cm from my original height.

With soft pink hair like flower petals and a pristinely clean, snow-white skin, she was like a fairy. Every time she blinked, her long eyelashes moved like butterfly wings. Thanks to her graceful appearance, she could pull off any outfit without issue.

If I had worn it, it would have looked awkward like wearing someone else’s clothes. Would it have just been awkward? It would have seemed ridiculous even.

That’s why every time I dressed up and looked in the mirror, it felt like playing with dolls. Everything fit perfectly no matter what I wore. I ended up staring into the mirror for a long time in admiration.

While gazing at the mirror, something suddenly occurred to me, and I felt around the back of my head.

“There should be a big scar on the back of the head……”

I heard that when Claire saved Prince Daniel, she was kicked in the head by a horse’s hoof. They said the bleeding was so severe that it soaked the floor with blood, so there should be quite a large scar, but I couldn’t feel anything particularly noticeable under my fingertips.

“Come to think of it, didn’t that healer exclaim it was a divine miracle that even the wound had healed completely? I was too confused at the time to understand what he meant, but was he talking about the scar on the back of the head disappearing? How strange.”

It seemed a miracle had indeed occurred, as the healer said. Although too much was happening to me now to make a fuss about a scar not remaining.

“The real miracle is a dead person waking up in someone else’s body.”

Judging from my last memory of losing consciousness while inhaling acrid and hot smoke under the golden dragon grandfather clock, it seemed I had died in that fire.

Of course, there was also the suspicion that I might be the real Claire and had created a fictional character named Jane the apothecary due to memory confusion. There were cases of people claiming to be someone else or losing their memory after a head injury.

But I had no memories of living as Claire and vivid memories of living as Jane. Except for the last month. The memories of life as Jane were too clear to be explained by confusion from a head injury.

When I secretly had a maid investigate, I confirmed that the apothecary Jane certainly existed, and that she had died in a pharmacy fire accident a week ago.

The flames were so intense that they said they couldn’t even find the body. It seemed to have been completely consumed by the fire.

At the time of my death, Claire was in a state of unconsciousness due to an accident. The healers said she was as good as dead, having been unconscious for so long. No wonder the healer went wild shouting about a miracle when I opened my eyes.

My reasoning is as follows.

I died in the fire. But perhaps my soul had a strong desire to live, and as soon as the soul of young lady Claire McCain, who was on the brink of death from the accident, left her body, I swiftly occupied that place.

‘I’m not a thief, yet I’ve taken someone else’s body….. I didn’t know I was so obsessed with life.’

This was all just my speculation. It wasn’t something I could consult or ask anyone about, so I was merely guessing.

“Young lady, are you ready?”

I was startled by the maid’s voice from outside.

“Oh my! This isn’t the time. Ileana must be waiting. I’ll be out soon!”

I hurriedly put on a lavender bonnet and quickly tied a pink ribbon under my chin as I went outside.

An incomprehensible event had occurred anyway. No matter how much I pondered, I wouldn’t find an answer. So rather than being unnecessarily lost in thought, I needed to focus on my immediate life as Claire.

The garden of the McCain Count’s mansion was well-maintained, satisfying enough just to look at.

The garden was brightly blooming with white peony flowers. Although peonies are typically known for their red color, they existed in various colors including white, pink, and light purple.

The peony trees had dark green broad leaves and grew to about knee height. Though not strongly scented, they were often planted in gardens due to their splendid appearance.

“The root bark of peonies is good for pain suppression, and especially effective for suppurating wounds. When the flowers wilt, I should harvest and dry them……”

One of the reasons I looked forward to tea time with Ileana was because the garden was full of useful medicinal herbs. Of course, there would be the effort of processing them myself. Still, just looking at the garden made me feel full.

It felt like being a lord looking at a granary filled after harvest…….

With a satisfied heart, I surveyed various parts of the garden as I walked to where white tables and chairs were placed. Ileana was already seated there. The shade of a large tree made it seem like a good place to stay for a long time.

As I had learned from her, I quietly waited for the maid to pull out the chair before sitting down naturally.

Ileana watched with satisfaction as I sat down obediently.

At first, I was clumsy even when sitting, either perching on the edge of the chair or fidgeting uncomfortably, creating an unsightly scene, but fortunately, I had become quite natural now.

Ileana’s eyes became moist, seeming to have many thoughts cross her mind as she looked at me.

When teaching me etiquette, she was stern and resolute, but usually, she was extremely kind. I wondered if the relationship between a sister-in-law and a bride was usually this affectionate.

Claire’s elder brother, Count Shuri McCain, was unexpectedly brusque, and since the only women in the family were Ileana and Claire, the relationship between the two was said to be exceptionally close.