Coughing, Camilla looked like she had a lot to say, but wasn't going to say it, she quickly searched her arms.
As soon as she woke up, her mind was only on one thing.
'Whew.'
Fortunately, she felt the Divine Beast's egg. She will never jump into the damn lake again.
A long sigh of relief poured out of her as she realized she was alive.
She thought she'd become a water ghost!
Sinking to the floor, Camilla barely opened her eyes and looked at Donna.
"What was that?"
What's wrong with her!?
"Why did you come here?"
Camilla couldn't believe it.
She couldn't understand why she'd come to the Academy, and why she'd jump into the lake no matter how hard she'd try.
"What on earth are you doing, Miss!?"
"What do you mean?"
"Why did you jump into the lake!?"
"That…"
"Why are you trying to die all of a sudden!?"
"I think there's a misunderstanding—"
"If you die this time, it's really over!"
"…What?"
This time?
"You can't go back to the past like before!"
Suddenly, a cold wind blew in and swept across her body. The breeze was so cold against her wet skin that goosebumps broke out.
Camilla's face slowly hardened as she couldn't figure out whether the goosebumps were from the wind or Donna's words.
"What did you just say?"
* * *
"Oh my!"
"Oh, my goodness!"
"Miss!"
Back at home, Camilla's jaw dropped as they staggered at her drenched state.
She didn't think to change before coming back. She had too many things on her mind.
Flutter!
Suddenly, a large cloak wrapped around her. She turned her head, and Ludville stood looking at her.
He was dressed in the Knights Templar regalia, as if he was training.
"Is it them again?"
Them?
'Ah.'
Ludville's eyes turned cold, as if she had been bullied by Jude and his companions again.
She shook her head.
Camilla shook her head and resumed walking. She wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone right now.
Turning away from all those who wanted to follow her, Camilla set her eyes on one person, Donna.
As she stood there looking impatient, Camilla glared at her as if to say:
Come with me, now.
[Child.]
[Miss…]
"You two, get out."
Entering the room a moment later, Camilla spoke sternly to Herschel and Derrin, who had followed her in.
[But—]
"If anyone shows the slightest interest in what's going on in this room after this time, or if anyone overhears, I'm going to assume they'll never speak to me again."
They both turned away, their faces ashen as ever, as Camilla's expression hardened.
Knock, knock.
"Come in."
Soon the door opens and Donna, the maid, enters.
"Miss…"
"…"
"Let me get you a cup of hot tea first—"
"Enough."
Camilla cut her off right away.
"Who are you?"
"Who am I? I'm Donna, the maid that serves you—"
"Do you want to die?"
Who was she kidding?
Donna's body stiffened at the coldness in her voice.
"Answer me straight. If I die this time, I can't go to the past like before. What did you mean by that?"
'You can't go to the past like before!'
She thought over and over again about everything that had happened and what Donna had said at the lake.
Camilla spoke her conclusions, one by one.
"How did I get into this world? What's going on—"
She should know, right?
Eventually, Donna, who had her head down, straightened up. She sighed and gave an unexpected answer.
"Until recently, I was a soul manager."
Camilla's eyebrows shot upward, and Donna hastened to explain.
"It's like a custodian of a soul."
Like the Grim Reaper. …But why is she not surprised? Come on.
'What a bother.'
She had a moment of self-deprecation when she realized that she didn't look surprised to hear the ridiculous word "soul manager".
After all, seeing ghosts is very bad for your mental health--- wait, until recently?
"Did you just say 'until recently'?"
"Yes."
Donna's expression grew sullen.
"I was kicked out."
"Kicked out?"
"I made some mistakes…"
She looked at Camilla and continued.
"I put two souls in the wrong place."
"What do you mean? You put a different soul in someone else's body?"
"You're so quick to understand!"
Unlike Donna, who was clapping her hands in admiration, Camilla's expression grew sterner.
Misplaced souls? Why does she have a bad feeling about that?
"Just as we all have clothes that fit us and feel comfortable in them, so does the soul. When the wrong soul enters the body, everything goes awry."
Donna paused for a moment, then looked back at Camilla.
"The most obvious example is being shunned by those around you."
"Shunned?"
"Even their family doesn't give them any affection. They all find their presence very uncomfortable."
"…"
"It's like an instinct. You instinctively feel a sense of rejection towards someone who's different from you, and you shun them and turn away from them, no matter who they are. There are some people who don't, but that's a really special case."
She avoided her gaze.
Camilla slowly rose from her seat. The cloak that had been draped over her shoulders slid down with a thud.
"So the misplaced soul is me?"
"Correct!"
Donna clapped her hands again.
"The souls of Camilla and Lee Sia have been switched. You are not only understanding but also judgemental—"
"Shut up."
"Yes."
"…"
Camilla couldn't say anything for a while. It felt like she'd been hit over the head with something hard and blunt.
"So…"
Everything that's happened to Camilla and her so far is a result of a soul-swap.
'It's all because of you!'
'D-Dad…'
'You can't possibly be my daughter!'
A memory from long ago came to mind. A memory of a man she called dad spouting those words of caution.
'Father! P-Please spare me!'
'Drag her away.'
'F-Father!'
Her last sight of Camilla also came to mind.
"Mistake?"
A mistake? She's saying that everything that she and Camilla went through was because of a mistake?
"Ha! Oh my god…"
Her head pounded with a sense of urgency she hadn't felt in a long time.
"Hey…"
Donna flinched and took a step backwards.
"Why did you take off your shoe all of a sudden…?"
Donna's tone became more cautious as she watched Camilla remove her shoe and hold it in her hand.
"Just because."
She's glad her shoes are so pointy today. The hand that was holding the shoe worked hard.
"I felt the need to hold it."
Donna leaned back a little further with a terrified look on her face.
"So, you're saying this body was originally mine?"
"Th-That's right."
"Why?"
"Why what?"
"If you knew you were wrong, you should have put the soul back in its place! Why didn't you change it right away!?"
If she had just put the soul back in their place as soon as she realized she had put it in the wrong place, there would have been no problems.
"Tell me why!"
She didn't understand why they had left it alone for so long and now suddenly put it back in place.
"It's not a simple matter of taking a soul that's already inhabited a body and replacing it, especially one that's on a different plane."
A short sigh escaped Donna's mouth.
"It would break the inherent laws that the two dimensions maintain, and it would disrupt the flow of the world."
Even as she spoke, Donna's eyes never left Camilla's tight grip on her shoe, and she slipped back once more.
"So one condition is needed."
"Condition?"
"They have to acknowledge each other. Perhaps you've been watching Camilla here for a long time."
That was the reason for the strange phenomenon she'd been experiencing for over 20 years?
'But wait a minute.'
Acknowledge each other?
"Did this child watch me, too?"
"That's right."
"…!"
"Camilla, who was here, continued to watch the life of Lee Sia repeat itself in the other world."
"Ha…"
She was also experiencing the same phenomenon, being sucked into another world and watching another life.
"So, this is my place."
"Yes."
"And I'm never going to be able to go back to that world again?"
"That's right."
"If I die, it's really the end?"
"Ding, ding, ding!"
Camilla let out a long, ragged laugh. She felt a surge of anger, but then laughed at the absurdity of it all.
After realizing that she could never really go back to the other side, she felt a strange sense of relief that she was back where she belonged.
"…Wait."
Then Camilla realized something else that made her pause.
"Did I die every time I was in the other world?"
Earlier, she said "Lee Sia's repeated lives." Did that mean that she also died in the other world and returned to the past each time?
"Yes. Lee Sia died every time as well."
"…!"
"By your father's hands."
"…Whose?"
"Your father from that world."
Why is he popping up here all of a sudden?
"Ha…"
She hadn't seen him in a long time. He blackmailed her into paying up, then disappeared without a trace, never to be seen again.
'I ended up dying by the hands of that man?'
And every time? That means…
"Then we might die again!"
Lee Sia in the other world is in danger!
"Lee Sia knows that, too."
Donna shook her head slightly, as if to tell her not to worry.
"Just as Camilla is working hard to survive here, she must also be working very hard to avoid the dangers in that world."
"That's true."
Unless she's an idiot, she'll be prepared.