I’m All Out of Health!

Chapter 4

When I first woke up in this body, I addressed everyone formally out of habit. It was something the real Ninenya would never have done. Soon, a bunch of maids as well as the butler were surrounding my bed, asking what was wrong. They all teared up, clearly thinking I was nearing my end. So, I had no choice but to act sharp and haughty, and they all loved it. I’d swat any hand that touched me, and they would blush. When I glared at them, their eyes sparkled, begging for more.

Thankfully, I was pretty perceptive and could guess the reason for that. It was the only thing that indicated Ninenya was alive. All she could do was to get angry and irritated. She was limp and more than half dead, and her furious reactions were the only thing that proved she was alive.

“Ha…”

Every time I took a spoonful of soup, I felt them watching eagerly and nervously. It made me pity the real Ninenya all the more. She had so many people who loved her, but she must not have been able to appreciate it because of how much she suffered.

But I’m not her. And unlike her, I’m not going to give up.

I had to concentrate on eating, so I closed the bed curtains.

“Ooh! The lady has closed the curtains!”

They cheered, but I did my best to ignore it. Only then could I eat in peace and quiet.

After I had a good meal, it was time to take care of the next most important thing—hygiene.

“Hehe.”

When I took a bath in this world, women I didn’t really know well softly scrubbed my body, discussing which part was the prettiest. It was so embarrassing that I almost took refuge under the water.

But I would die if I did that! My body was so frail that if I stopped breathing even for a second, there was a chance I might never breathe again.

“Lady Ninenya, how is your belly button so pretty? It’s so smooth.”

“And have you noticed this fuzz? It’s like golden thread dried in sunlight.”

“Still, I think the lady’s pinky is the loveliest of all. It’s so elegant, you know.”

Belly button, fuzz, pinky… My face heated up hearing the maids talk like that to me. It was embarrassing as hell, and I wasn’t enjoying it. I couldn’t even begin to understand why they were complimenting my body parts like that.

“How long will it take?” I asked.

“We’re almost done. We just need to wash off the suds now.”

I blushed as I tried to free my arm from their hands.

“But you’ve been saying that for several minutes…”

“Oh, but this time, we mean it. We’re all done now.”

It was kind of like how a person would bathe their cat that abhors water. In other words, they were lying to me.

Quite a long time passed before I was allowed to leave the bathroom.

“Lady Ninenya, please walk carefully.”

A maid helped me get to the bed. I became too dizzy after being in hot water and couldn’t walk without support. I couldn’t risk falling, knowing the consequences would be grave. And it wasn’t like I could bathe in cool water, either—that would give me a cold immediately.

It’s super uncomfortable.

I staggered along with the maid’s help. The bed was only a few steps away, and yet it felt like miles. Being in a body that was weaker than a reed made me mad all over again.

“Stupid, useless body,” I muttered to myself.

But just then, I heard some muffled sniffling. I turned and saw that everyone was looking at me tearfully, their eyes full of pity.

I flinched and attempted a clumsy excuse. “I mean, it’s less useless for now…”

The maids all lit up and agreed.

“Yes. You can eat all by yourself now!”

“And exercise.”

“And you can lie down on your own!”

They all shouted in unison. At that point, I started wondering if they were doing it on purpose. I really didn’t know if I should laugh or cry.

Well, I can barely finish a bowl of soup without spilling it dozens of times, and the only exercise I do is walking around the bed. When I lie down, I just let you do all the work of changing my position… But it’s still an improvement.

I tried to convince myself, but it didn’t work.

Thinking about it just makes me more exasperated!

“Ugh!”

I pulled angrily at my damp hair, but the maids didn’t care and carefully brushed it with wide smiles on their faces.

“Lady Ninenya, your hair is the most exquisite color in the world. It’s like it’s made of molten gold and silver.”

“It’s just pale white…” I muttered blankly.

Then, someone knocked on the door.

“Come in,” I said.

The butler entered quickly and shouted, “Lady Ninenya! Your father has sent someone!”

A tall man followed him in. He was a head taller than the butler, so even though he was standing behind him, I could still see his face.

“Huh? Who…”

The man had a solemn, icy aura and distinctive facial features. The shadow in his eyes was dark but surprisingly calm. He was beautiful, and yet it was his hardened, glacial eyes that struck me first. The moment our eyes met, my heart started racing, and a chill ran down my spine.

They’re like a dead man’s eyes…

His eyes had lost focus as though his spirit had left him. I imagined a ghost with unfinished business would have eyes more humane than his.

The man took large steps toward me, giving me the creeps. His presence overwhelmed me, putting my survival instincts on alert.

Wh-what is he going to do to me?

I closed my eyes in fear, but to my surprise, he slowly bowed as if he had no intention of hurting me.

“The name’s Kaisar Adelman, my lady.”

His voice was firm as he spoke his name.

“What?” I asked with wide eyes. “Kai—”

I coughed right in his face.

He had introduced himself politely, and in return, I had showered him in saliva.

Oh, and according to what I had read, he was a germaphobe.

His eyes took an even colder shade as he looked down at me, and his cheeks burned red. He rarely did anything he didn’t mean, so if he looked like that, it meant he was really irritated.

When his eyes moved to look at me again, I felt like my heart was being squashed.

“Ugh…”

At that moment, I was convinced he wanted to kill me. It was a mere thought—a shard of anger—yet it made my heart sink and my organs quake. My hand flew to my heart as my body slowly fell backward.

He wasn’t hurting me on purpose. He didn’t have that much emotion to do so. In fact, he was completely and perfectly disinterested in me. I could see that in his eyes.

He’s going to let me fall.

I thought he would just stand there and watch as I fell and hurt myself, but then he reached out to grab me. His faint hostility was gone.

“Are you okay?”

Not at all.

That was what the answer would have been. I’d never been internally injured, but I was sure that was what was happening. In Wuxia stories about Chinese martial artists, warriors could make people throw up blood using only inner energy. That was exactly what I was feeling at this moment. Thankfully, I didn’t vomit blood, but I feared I’d already been damaged enough.

“I thought I had three more months to live… But I guess this is the end…” I muttered with my eyes closed.

The world spun around me when I opened my eyes, so staying still was the best thing I could do. But if I had known it was Kaisar’s gloved hand that was holding me, I would have used my very last bit of strength to get up. Unfortunately, I couldn’t see that with my eyes closed.

“You’re not going to die—for now.”

“So I’m not going to die for now, but what about after that… Wait, what?”

I realized a moment too late that his voice was coming from too close. My eyelids trembled, and I opened them slightly.

“Aaargh!”

“Good, you have the strength to scream—”

In shock, I broke into a series of coughs. And of course, I showered Kaisar with more of my spit.

The silence that followed was deadly.