In Order to Meet You, Beloved - Chapter 31

EPISODE 31

Oh, what a face to see.

“Wow, you got here really quickly.”

As soon as Lyneth saw Cordelia shouting nonchalantly, she squinted her eyes.

“Do you know how surprised I was when I received your letter?!”

Lyneth, who had walked up quickly, pinched Cordelia’s cheek without hesitation. Her expression was fierce as if she could kill someone.

“Ugh, it hurts, it does!”

Despite the emotional attack, Cordelia sniffled but, no matter how merciless she was, the priest would have remained unmoved even if there was a puppy right in front of her.

When she finally let go, Cordelia’s cheek was flushed red. Covering her face with her hands, Cordelia grumbled earnestly.

“What if a scar gets on this national treasure of a face?”

“What’s the big deal if a man has a scar? People will just treat it as a medal.”

“Ah? Is that why you’re so ruthless only when I’m in Noah’s body?”

“Hmm, so what’s the reason for the body swap this time?”

Whether it was specially borrowed or not, this room was quite spacious compared to their previous accommodation. Although it was at the top, the room was quite dark because the windows were tightly shut even though it was daytime.

The four of them sat in a row on the sofa. Cordelia’s eyes sparkled with excitement.

“It feels like we’re plotting something.”

When Lyneth snapped her fingers, one of the closed windows opened wide. Sunlight flooded into the room.

“If you’re trying to set the mood…”

“You’ll ruin your eyes.”

“Are you our mother now?”

“It does feel like I’ve got a child I didn’t ask for.”

After lightly dismissing Cordelia’s complaints, Lyneth looked at the three of them in turn.

“Now, please explain. Thanks to you, I had to volunteer for the advance team and my head is aching from the effort.”

If Daniel, who knew her well, had been here, he would have found it suspicious, but fortunately, he was in the capital.

Lyneth had been so shocked upon receiving the letter from Jerania. Although she usually planned her schedule, there are always variables. When she met the courier who handed her the letter just as the inspection team arrived, she was chilled.

Reading the letter brought a lot of thoughts to mind. At first, she wondered if the secret had been discovered, but realizing that the issue was more complicated than she thought made her head hurt.

It would be nice if she could wash her hands of this now, but she got tangled up with this mischievous princess somehow.

“So, the body swap happened again, and things like that happened?”

After hearing the explanation, Lyneth let out a big sigh. Her indifferent brown eyes glanced at Noah.

For some reason, she had vaguely written about this person, but was this why? Now that she knew the identity, the fatigue seemed to double.

“I was hoping nothing would happen within a month…”

“No, I don’t even know what’s going on myself.”

“I understand. Judging by your expression, Mr. Epherman, it seems like you might have some idea.”

“What?”

“Yes, it seems that the conditions you mentioned to this priest before are indeed applicable.”

When did they have such a conversation behind her back?

Cordelia, who was pouting with a peculiar sense of alienation, stared at Noah sitting across from her.

“Wait a minute, so you know why the bodies are swapping?”

“Yes… It’s probably more of my issue than yours. Maybe.”

“What’s the condition?”

“That, well…”

Unable to wait for Noah to stutter and trail off, Lyneth spoke up.

“He wished to see you again.”

She wasn’t lying. Ignoring the frozen Noah, Lyneth stuck out her tongue.

“Eh, me?”

Noah, flustered by Cordelia’s blank stare as if trying to understand what she meant, hurriedly confessed the truth.

“I had met you once before. Just, so…”

Despite speaking calmly, Noah’s fingers fidgeted as if reflecting his anxious feelings.

“What? I’ve met you before?!”

“At the royal banquet… Don’t you remember?”

“No, I can’t believe I don’t remember such a face. How forgetful was I in the past… Wait a minute.”

‘Eh, who is that?’

Cordelia stopped speaking momentarily as images flickered through her mind. Let’s see… Was it around the time when she was eighteen or nineteen?

She had left the banquet hall for a moment’s respite from the men bothering her and was walking along a woodland path. The faint sound of sniffling carried on the breeze caught her ear.

Curious, she approached the source of the sound and found someone crouched in the bushes. A boy with his knees drawn up and his head buried in his arms looked up with puffy eyes.

With a round, pale face still having baby fat, large eyes despite being swollen, a high nose, and a trembling red mouth.

A few strands of golden hair sticking out stood upright like a dowsing rod.

He was a beauty. Quite a significant one.

‘Um, who…’

The high voice, almost like it was scraping the vocal cords, sounded slightly irritating. Was he going through puberty?

‘A walker. Why are you hiding here?’

‘I’m being chased.’

‘Playing tag or something? That sounds fun.’

Even though it was not the case, she sat down next to him pretending not to know. The hem of her dress would get stained, but what could she do? Ignoring the faint scream of her governess Charlotte in her ears, she sat down.

The boy, unable to say a word despite the unexpected guest, just blinked his eyes vacantly, with tears falling from his face like pearls. As she gazed at his face, the boy stuttered.

‘Why, why are you looking at me like that?’

Why was she looking at him like that?

‘Because I like it.’

‘What?’

‘Don’t you ever get told you’re cute? If you grew up a bit more, you’d fit my taste.’

‘Taste?’

‘It means good-looking.’

Although he looked a bit younger, it seemed like his face would become more to her liking as he aged and his features became more defined. If she felt this way even with his eyes swollen, she could only imagine how he would look when he was in perfect condition.

Despite the bold statement, the boy looked astonished but slightly raised his lips as if finding her words amusing.

‘So, why are you crying?’

‘Um, well…’

Cordelia gently wiped away his tears with her thumb, which seemed to startle the boy as his body flinched at the sudden touch.

‘Do you have a dilemma?’

The boy shook his head.

‘It’s just… I’m pathetic. In many ways.’

The boy’s clothes were quite elaborate up close. It looked like he came from a good family, so perhaps there was an issue with his family.

Instead of probing deeper, Cordelia lightly threw out a piece of advice like bait.

‘I don’t know what your concerns are but don’t overthink it. Sometimes, things are clearer when you think simply.’

‘I wish I could think simply.’

His face, with tears, stopped, curved into a faint smile, looking very forlorn.

‘It’s just… I have something I want to do, but everyone expects me to do something else. And it doesn’t suit me at all… I’m at a loss about what to do.’

‘Wouldn’t it be better to say you can’t do it if you can’t?’

‘It’s just that the expectations placed on me are so high. Maybe I’m also afraid of disappointing those people.’

‘That might be true.’

Cordelia met the boy’s gaze as if affirming his feelings. His sky-blue eyes sparkled with moisture.

‘But how can you satisfy everyone?’

‘What?’

‘It’s good to meet other people’s expectations, but if you set that as your standard, you’ll reach a limit someday.’

Instead of her usual bright smile, she gave serious advice. Having faced career concerns herself, she was able to offer somewhat convincing advice.

‘This is your life, so I can’t dictate what you should or shouldn’t do, but think about it a bit more! Life is only lived once. It’s a shame to waste time on something that doesn’t fit you.’

If Rick, who takes living for the family as a given, heard this, he would surely be appalled. But Cordelia didn’t want to deceive herself.

She didn’t want to give up on everything she wanted to do or have. Even if it was selfish, she wanted to show that there could be someone who lived for themselves.

‘Is the task you’re supposed to do something that only you can handle?’

‘No, there are others who could do it…’

‘Then that’s good. So why are you worrying so much?’

The boy remained silent, keeping his mouth tightly shut. It seemed to be a sensitive issue. Cordelia didn’t add anything further and got up from her seat. She looked down at the boy and spread her arms wide. The wind that blew made her hair flutter.

‘I’m going to live the way I want to. No matter what anyone says!’

Being the youngest in a harmonious and large family of powerful people was quite advantageous in that sense. Even if she strayed onto a completely different path, it wouldn’t stand out much.

If she had any ambitions, it might have been somewhat painful, but since her desired path had nothing to do with power, she considered herself quite fortunate.

The boy, who had remained silent, stood up to follow her. Cordelia’s eyes widened as she noticed his suddenly elevated height.

Wow, he’s bigger than she expected!

Standing side by side, his jawline was just about at her eye level. Could he be around the same age as her? No, but he’s still quite tall!

The boy, flustered, looked around and carefully picked some wildflowers, making a small bouquet. After hesitating for a while, he shyly offered the flowers, his face red like a perfectly ripened apple.

‘Thank you for listening to me! This… would you accept it?’

He smiled brightly with a polite attitude. Despite his swollen eyes, his lips curved into a smile. Although it looked somewhat awkward, it was quite cute. His unblemished demeanor seemed to suit the summer well.

When dealing with those who tried to flatter her with flowers and gifts, she would feel proud, thinking, ‘Well, that’s me!’ But now, it felt oddly awkward.

As she pretended to reluctantly accept the flowers, the corners of her lips curled up. Well, at least it meant he had some goodwill towards her, right?

Her heart raced a bit faster, and she wondered if this might be a sign of love. Come to think of it, she hadn’t introduced herself yet. Clearing her throat, she spoke up.

‘I’m Cordelia. Cordelia Weichen! What’s your name?’

‘I’m…’

“Ah-!”

She remembered!

“We met before! Yes, I thought you were very handsome back then.”

When she said this, Liam had laughed at her a lot. Even now, recalling it, he was such an annoying guy. It was also a moment that reminded her again that she didn’t have a taste for just anyone who looked fine.

Cordelia, who had clenched her fists in anger, spun around to look at Noah.