Chapter One: I... a nanny?! nanny?! (1)
“Mama!”
I lived twenty years as a hired killer. By the nature of my work, I had nerves of steel, and I thought that nothing in this world could surprise me anymore. But this time was different... very dangerous.
“Achille, give it to mama!”
I opened my eyes to a strange sound. The first thing I saw was an unfamiliar ceiling, then a small golden fur ball.
“Achille, Leah is hungry!”
The golden fur ball that had mounted my chest without my permission moaned incessantly.
...Did this ball just talk?
But more importantly, didn't I die in that field full of reeds?
“Huh?!”
I gasped hard as if I was just drowning, then quickly sat up.
“Kyaaa!”
The talking fur ball screamed too, and rolled into the corner of the bed.
I instinctively felt my face and body. Breathing is normal, pulse is present, and the temperature in my body is still warm. I was really alive.
“Achille, what's wrong?”
The little furball said, tilting her head in surprise. But I didn't have time to explain my reaction to her.
“Mirror, where is the mirror?”
"The mirror? There."
The Golden Ball innocently answered my urgent question.
I hurried in the direction she pointed. In the mirror decorated with some simple decorations, a strange person appeared.
"What is this?"
The scene was so absurd that I even doubted my death. I slowly lifted a lock of my hair. The person in the mirror did the same. I held my breath, then let my hair fall again. I stared at the mirror blankly for a long time, then slapped my face with both hands.
Slap!
"brother!"
The sharp pain that spread through my cheeks forced me to groan. There is no more escape. Like it or not, I have to accept the truth: I died and came back to life in another body. Impossible...but it happened to me.
"Achille, why did you hit yourself? Hitting hurts!"
The golden ball came running to my feet, tugging at my skirt, but I couldn't pay attention to it. The reality in front of me was very shocking.
I looked at the “new me” in the mirror. My short red hair that exposed my neck was gone. In its place, soft dark brown hair cascaded down past my chest. My face, which had always been stern and sharp, was now gentle and calm. My body, which had been refined by harsh training, became weak and soft.
“Ha.”
I sighed in disbelief.
In short, I became a different person from head to toe. The only thing that remained the same were my golden-green eyes. That slight resemblance gave me a little reassurance, but it quickly faded in the face of the torrent of questions that surrounded my mind.
(I'm already dead...so why am I still alive? And why? For what reason?)
At that moment, someone knocked on the door.
“Mrs. Brown, are you in there?”
The sound came suddenly, and my overloaded mind couldn't comprehend it. A strange appearance, an unknown place, and a voice I don't know. My heart started beating like crazy, refusing to calm down. Then the golden fur ball whispered in a trembling voice:
“The Wicked Witch... She's the Wicked Witch!”
Wicked witch?
I looked down at the fur ball. Upon closer inspection, it wasn't even a ball of fur, but a little girl! She looked about four or five years old. Messy golden locks, big blue eyes, and a golden dress...that's why I thought it was a fur ball at first.
But her words didn't help anything.
I pressed my fingers to my temples and closed my eyes.
(Calm down, Kayla Angel. Remember who you are.)
Self-hypnosis has always worked for me. I quickly regained my calm and, as usual, began to analyze the situation.
(The voice behind the door spoke in the common language of the continent.)
The only country that uses this language in its daily life is the Ventrum Empire. So, I must be in Ventrum territory now. For me, born and raised in it, this was reassuring news. I took a good look around the room.
(Walls covered in silk...and high quality too.)
Although the price of silk declined with increased trade with the Eastern Continent, it was still a luxury good.
(At the very least, this must be the palace of a nobleman of the rank of count or higher.)
Even the furniture looked like pieces of art, the likes of which the common people could not own.
(But…)
What worried me was my clothes.
(The dress is made of good fabric...but very simple.)
It was neither suitable for a noblewoman nor a princess. My hands were full of nails, my shoes were very low-heeled, and the cuffs and hem of my skirt were a little frayed. In stark contrast to the child Amami's clothes, which were luxurious silks worn only by high nobles.
(Was the original owner of this body her nanny?)
There came a new knock on the door.
"Rachel Brown! I know you're in there. Open the door right now!"
She said in an annoyed voice.
“One moment.”
I answered with neutral words that did not arouse suspicion, and slowly advanced towards the door. As soon as I grabbed the handle, a middle-aged woman dressed as an elegant maid rushed over. From the looks of it, she looked like a high maid… perhaps a head butler.
Soon her words rained down like a rain:
“If you were accepted here because of a recommendation, at least do your work properly!”
Her harsh tone made me frown.
“How can a lazy person like you take care of your Highnesses!”
I felt a little pity for her, but I didn't understand what she was talking about at all.
(Nanny? Your Highnesses?)
My face frowned even more at these annoying words.
(Wait...did she say “Your Highnesses”?)
Only then did I notice the logo engraved on the door handle: a silver deer surrounded by a laurel wreath. It was the emblem of the imperial family.
(Damn.)
No doubt. I woke up in the Imperial Palace of the Ventrum Empire.