In Order to Meet You, Beloved - Chapter 9

EPISODE 9

“What?!”

Unlike Cordelia’s playful tone, Noah’s response was slightly awkward. Even though she thought it wasn’t meant with any bad intention, Cordelia felt offended for a moment. What’s wrong with her?!

“No, that’s ridiculous. How could you say that….”

“What’s with that attitude? Am I that lacking?”

“Lacking? Not at all! It’s overwhelmingly… no, that’s not it.”

Noah’s face turned red as he babbled. Cordelia, who was looking at him intently while stroking her chin, watched the beautiful and innocent-looking Noah blush and stammer.

“Wh-why are you looking at me like that?”

“No reason, I just wondered if my face would look like that when it turns red.”

“…What?”

“It’s nothing, don’t worry about it.”

Cordelia waved her hand dismissively. She couldn’t admit that she was thinking of using this as a reference for a novel even if her mouth was torn apart.

She knew better than anyone how she appeared. Despite having an impression of being both elegant and free-spirited, that was just a part of her personality.

She had never shown more than this to anyone she dated. Wanting to be fully understood was arrogance. No one can completely understand another person, so it was better to bury the parts that couldn’t be understood deep inside.

It was a lesson she learned from over ten years of experience.

…Even so, why does that fact sometimes feel so frustrating?

“Come on, don’t just stand there. Help out a bit. We need to draw the magic circle.”

Lyneth’s indifferent voice broke the subtle tension between them. Cordelia pouted as if she found it unfortunate, and Noah silently thanked her.

When they moved the carpet in the middle and cleared the sofas and tables as instructed, Lyneth took out white chalk and drew a large circle on the floor. Even in the midst of this, Cordelia sneaked out and hid the paper she had in her bosom in her room.

When she returned, she saw Noah and Lyneth talking about something. Unlike Noah, who avoided her gaze as soon as he saw her, Lyneth had a rather serious expression. When Cordelia asked what it was, Lyneth just shook her head, saying it wasn’t the right time to tell her yet.

When she pouted, Lyneth frowned, saying her face looked creepy like that, to which Cordelia retorted that Lyneth didn’t know what was cute because she wasn’t cute herself.

That day, Noah realized for the first time that people could be hit with a look.

After such twists and turns, when Lyneth finished preparing and locked the door tightly, she stood Cordelia and Noah inside the circle.

“What is this?”

“It’s a magic circle used to minimize recoil and also as a barrier. To cut off such a powerful spell, you need a lot of strength, and getting detected again like before would be troublesome.”

Normally, priests were prohibited from using magic outside without permission unless they were in danger. Of course, not everyone adhered to this rule, but if caught, it was hard to avoid punishment.

“Now, reach out your hands…”

As Lyneth chanted the spell, a slow wind began to blow from outside the circle. The furniture around them started to rattle, and Noah’s hat, which had been holding his hair in place, was blown off and moved with the wind.

Lyneth’s eyes gleamed as she saw the white thread connecting the tips of their fingers. The red energy seeping from Lyneth’s hands formed into a small pair of scissors. With a tense, expressionless face, she slowly opened the scissors and positioned them around the thread.

Then, in one swift motion, she cut the thread.

At that moment, the wind stopped, and Cordelia and Noah lost their balance as if they were puppets whose strings had been cut. Immediately, a sharp pain enveloped their bodies, as if they had been struck all over. It felt like the world was turning upside down.

Noah barely managed to keep his balance, almost falling on his rear, while Cordelia clutched her neck and coughed violently.

“Hah, hah… Ugh!”

Cordelia, dizzy and retching, felt her legs give out. As she was about to collapse to the floor, Noah quickly supported her by the shoulders.

“Are you alright, Cordelia?!”

“Ugh, I feel like I’m dying…”

This was even worse than the hangover she experienced after a drinking bout with her father. Cordelia muttered weakly and then her eyes widened when she saw the hands holding her firmly.

Wow, his hands are really big.

Looking down at his strong, veiny hands, she slowly raised her head to see an incredibly handsome face gazing down at her with concern.

His bangs were too close to completely hide the contours of his face. His finely arched eyelashes, round eyes, sharp nose, and plump red lips stood out prominently.

The impression was completely different from what she saw in the mirror.

Despite the dizziness, Cordelia blinked slowly, dazzled by his appearance. She couldn’t believe it.

How could someone look so much like her type?

If she were an artist or sculptor, she might have immediately asked him to be her model. Even now, inspiration was flooding her mind.

Moments ago, it felt like she was floating in a dream, but now, realizing he was a real person made everything feel strangely unfamiliar. Her nausea gradually subsided.

Noah, feeling awkward under her intense gaze, asked hesitantly.

“Can you stand on your own…?”

Wait, seeing this face means…

As she replied that she was fine and managed to stand up, her golden hair and elegant fingers, as well as her familiar height, suddenly felt novel. Cordelia beamed with delight.

“I’m back! Huh?!”

Staring at the back of her hand, Cordelia grabbed Noah’s hand. Not noticing that Noah’s ears turned red when she touched him, she showed both their hands to Lyneth.

“One of the lines has disappeared, Lyneth.”

The outer line of the hexagram pattern had been erased, leaving five lines inside the circle. Seeing this, Lyneth crossed her arms. As expected.

“Unfortunately, the spell isn’t broken yet.”

“What?”

“It seems that one line disappears each time the connection is cut. This is just a guess, though.”

With that, Lyneth slowly wiped away the magic circle she had drawn with the chalk using her foot.

“So, we could swap bodies again? At least five more times?”

“It appears so. You two are strongly bound by some kind of magic. If we don’t solve the fundamental cause, you’ll revert to your original state. Even if that’s not the case, if certain conditions are met, you might switch bodies again.”

“What kind of conditions? What do you mean?”

“We’ll have to find out. I’m not entirely sure, so I need to go back and do some research.”

“Please take care of it, priest.”

Cordelia looked up at Noah’s face, marveling once again.

Wow, the more she looks, the more handsome he is. How can a person look like that?

“It’s okay, it’s okay. We’ll manage somehow. It’s a bit troublesome, though.”

Cordelia tried to appear nonchalant as she picked up Noah’s fallen hat, dusted it off, and placed it back on his head.

“Oh, and. It’s good that our bodies are back, but we need to find another way. This is too much to handle.”

Not only did her insides feel turned upside down, but her whole body ached as if it had been beaten. Cordelia forced herself to act cheerful. Lyneth clicked her tongue lightly.

“I did say the recoil would be significant.”

“I didn’t know it would be this bad!”

Noah, who had suffered the same pain, looked at Cordelia with concern. Hiding his trembling hands behind his back, he spoke calmly.

“It seems to take a great toll on our bodies. Could you please find another way?”

“Of course, I planned to. This is just a temporary measure. And I’ll make sure to get proper compensation for my efforts.”

“Lyneth, is it okay for a priest to be so money-minded?”

Lyneth snorted at Cordelia’s remark as if she found it absurd.

“I’m just claiming rightful compensation for my labor. The temple doesn’t give extra pay even if they work us to the bone. Damn. It’s not like the god takes care of my meals.”

“Well, the temple’s main income is donations, but…”

“Let’s set aside minor details and discuss the approximate cost.”

Upon hearing the amount Lyneth proposed, Cordelia accepted it without much thought, but Noah cautiously offered his opinion.

“I have quite a bit of money as well. May I cover the cost for this matter?”

Cordelia chuckled and waved her hand dismissively.

“No, no. I have plenty of money anyway.”

“Regardless of Cordelia’s wealth, I think it’s only right for me to cover this since I’m the cause of the problem.”

Noah’s clear, beautiful blue eyes, reminiscent of a deer, looked at Cordelia earnestly. Cordelia found herself nodding her head, almost as if entranced, before realizing it and taking a sharp breath.

A handsome man is dangerous. Realizing this, Cordelia answered reluctantly.

“Alright, fine. But in return, come with me to the dressmaker’s later. Or better yet, I’ll have someone come to measure us.”

“What?”

“If our bodies might change again, I want to wear clothes that suit my taste. I can’t make you buy them for me, right?”

No matter what he wore, he would look handsome, but beautiful clothes always suited a beautiful face. She needed to contact her regular tailor. She was confident the tailor would be motivated upon seeing Noah’s face.

Her tailor was a peculiar one who often rejected commissions unless the client was to their liking, despite their undeniable skill. Cordelia had occasionally ordered clothes for her ex-lovers from this tailor, so she was quite familiar with them.

Other than the tailor’s nagging about how quickly she broke up with people, their tastes matched well, so they maintained a good relationship. Imagining the tailor fussing over which clothes would suit Noah made Cordelia feel very pleased.

Suppressing her growing ulterior motives and feigning nonchalance, Noah responded with a puzzled look on his face.

“But what if our bodies change again?”

“We need to have a thorough conversation about that.”

Their personalities, speech, and jobs were completely different. While both were involved in creative work, their spheres of activity were worlds apart. To ensure people around them didn’t notice anything amiss, they needed to coordinate their stories.

After a moment of contemplation, Cordelia voiced a sudden thought.

“There are plenty of rooms here. How about just staying with me?”