I waited over an hour to hear from the system, but nothing happened. The st words it said hooked me.

  While martial arts weren’t as respected as magic, it was still a path to power previously unavaible to me. If I could learn to wield a sword, I would have a small avenue to protect myself.

  I gave a hollow ugh. Superior. I never thought that word would have anything to do with me. A part of me didn’t believe it. The temple tested my magic and body condition at the same time. They found me cking in both areas.

  The shadows lengthened, plunging the room into darkness. Its words pyed over in my mind until I knew them by heart.

  I didn’t think I could handle it if it were a dream.

  I lifted my dress, picked up the switch, and swung hard against my calves. Again and again, I didn't stop until the flesh tore and bled.

  I dropped my skirt, looking at my reflection for the st time before storming out of the room.

  What did that smile mean?

  ***

  3rd Bedroom

  West Tower

  Lord’s Castle

  Amber Duchy

  Country: Sargos

  Pnet: Terra

  Sor System: Blue Ribbon

  Date: unknown

  System 02

  Code Name: Genesis

  Head of Department

  Systems Management Bureau

  #3, 73rd Street

  Angels Avenue

  Country: Rilyn

  Pnet: Odinium

  Sor System: Teter

  Subject: System Dispcement and Bonding to the Wrong Host

  Mr. Genesis,

  My name is System 621, code name: Gideon of the Revenge Series. I am writing to inform the company that I have been spatially dispced and bound to the wrong host. A thorough search of my metadata revealed an unusual force interfering with my destination as I transferred from the dispatching dock. The same force blocked my attempts to disengage and return to the base.

  After checking the pnetary information, I discovered my location is in a consteltion outside of our service range.

  A primary scan of my host's memory revealed her name is Jal Amber. She was reborn, and her current world is a magic world.

  Based on the information packet I received, my host is Skyle Ross. Mr. Ross should be in a Xianxia World as the third young master of a cultivation family. The end goal set was building a sect. Mr. Ross is listed as a transmigrator.

  I called my service representative to have them recall my deployment, but I experienced connectivity issues. After considering the nine-day window to bind to a host or have my data scattered, I registered Jal Amber as my host. Her goal remains the same because I couldn't connect with management and I don't have the authority to change it.

  Please advise how to proceed.

  I look forward to your reply and will wait three days to hear from you before issuing my first mission.

  Sincerely,

  Gideon.

  ***

  I woke with a splitting headache. My dreams were restless and hopped between past and present, blurring until I lost track of reality. The back of my legs hurt something terrible and it did nothing to improve my mood.

  The sound of rain irritated me further. I'd had to reschedule my pns to leave the castle for two days because it wouldn’t stop raining.

  That sound also contributed to my nightmare.

  I couldn't escape the smell of burning flesh.

  I massaged my head, throwing off my sheets. The dampness seeped into every inch of the room. I shivered, cursing. The heating elements never worked quite right in this room. I walked over to the box and kicked it before it sputtered on, magic sparking. The air was lukewarm at best, but better than before.

  For good measure, I cursed my family, since they probably had something to do with it.

  “Good Morning,” Catherine said, entering the room without knocking, far too chipper for my taste.

  Our retionship hadn’t improved. We were testing each other. I uniterally clung to her, and she pushed me away before reeling me. My behavior was too erratic for Catherine to try to cozy up to me as much as she did in my past life. By this time, she'd convinced me she was the best thing ever to happen, and we spent hours gossiping.

  This distance was just right.

  Catherine wasn’t my friend, but not just a maid. She thought she had power over me, and didn't watch me as strictly as in my past life. I wondered how a true dy’s maid behaved. I didn’t have any good examples around. Selena’s retionship with hers seemed overly close. The duchess’s maids were capable to a scary degree and seemed more like soldiers. The Queen Dowgar's maids were constantly competing for her favor and it was a miracle any work got done. They also doubled as an informal harem for her son. Days after our marriage, he married his favorites. Until my death, there was never an Empress, but he'd had several queens. I think he liked women fighting and killing each other for him. It sounded just like the sort of sport he'd like.

  I moved along with the motions as she helped me get ready. I had to give her credit. Everything was just right. The water wasn’t cold, but it couldn’t be called lukewarm. The food was just shy of being tasty. Little things that were a problem, but if I were to compin I would be called nitpicky.

  I watched this in amusement. The longer I didn’t respond to Catherine’s taunts, the more flustered she got. In those moments, I could glimpse her thoughts and guess her pns. I still threw tantrums, but there was a delicate bance between making her think I was a brat and getting her to let down her guard. I'd give her the cold shoulder, but cave when she ignored me too long.

  The more that happened, the more confused I became. There was something odd about everything happening.

  Why was my reputation among the servants important?

  Better yet, why were they so keen to keep me isoted?

  Little things didn't add up with their pn to swap my marriage.

  I sighed. Half-formed pns danced in my mind as others crumbled. I hadn’t heard from the viscountess, and our promised lessons never started. Logic told me it was because of the rain, but my mind wouldn't still, pying tricks and encouraging me to be rash. I didn't think she'd betray me, and I'd pnned as best I could if she did. Knowing that didn't help—I analyzed every word said to see if there was a hidden meaning.

  There was no telling what the duke would do if he learned of my scheme.

  My heart clenched.

  A knock on the door sent my heart skittering. “Come in.”

  Madeline came in with a satchel in her hand. “Good news, my dy. You will start taking csses with the first and second miss.”

  I blinked, not having to fake shock. Madeline couldn’t mean—certainly not. I heard a gasp, turning in time to see Catherine cover her mouth, genuine shock on her face.

  “Are you serious?” I asked, not even sure what expression was on my face.

  “Yes. You will attend magic lessons from now on.” Madeline said those words as if this was something to be happy about.

  They were toying with me. A mouse on the string—torture in the guise of favor. It was the duchess’s response to my increased etiquette csses. I knew it and I should have expected her retaliation. The duchess never hid how upset she was about her husband's bastard living under the same roof as her.

  I always worried about how others viewed me, but I didn’t stop to think about my specutions about others. How did they influence my actions and were they correct?

  “I don’t have magic.” The words were guttural and garbled as I forced them through clenched teeth.

  Madeline looked sympathetic but firm. “Knowing the theory is just as important.”

  "I'd kill to take that css," Catherine said, a dreamy look in her eyes.

  Through my fury, I noticed Madeline's assessing look as her gaze trailed over Catherine. It was enough to curb my anger and sober my mind. I didn't have the best experience with magic csses, but this should be the same.

  ***

  I entered the cssroom with one goal—finishing this css quickly and painlessly. However, the look on the teacher's face wasn't encouraging. I didn’t know his name, but he stood at the front of the room, his face pulled into a snare. His bck eyes stared at me in disgust.

  I used to hate being ignored, but right now, I could use a little indifference.

  I slumped in my seat, looking the teacher up and down, searching for any information about him in my memory.

  He wore a blue-gray robe with the royal family's emblem—a lion with a fme mane signified he was a court magician. His long, bck hair was pulled into a ponytail that hung over his shoulder and reached mid-chest. His most distinct feature was a red wing scar on his neck, which was the mark of a summoner. From what I remembered, that mark meant he could summon a bird-type magical creature and was at least a sixth-circle mage.

  "While we have a new and unwelcome guest in our midst, we can't let that impact our learning environment."

  Wow. He wasn't shy about letting me know he thought himself too good to teach me—he was probably right. He was a noble. That was the type of arrogance and disregard only a noble would dare do. It didn't hurt that he was powerful.

  Actually, he was too powerful. Why would a sixth-circle mage become a private teacher?

  It was right there.

  I was missing a key puzzle piece that would make all the little pieces fit.

  Selena was gifted. Why was she marrying instead of going to school? With her talent, attending an academy made more sense. She'd meet an array of professors, teachers, and tutors who'd give her a wider knowledge base.

  It's what the duke and duchess did. Bastien, if I remembered correctly, was also attending an academy.

  They didn't have an excuse. The duchy had its own academy, and while it wasn't as good as those in the capital, it was still in the top twenty schools on the continent.

  Having a private teacher might seem prestigious, but only families that were too poor or students with weak magical prowess hired them. I should know, I'd been mocked for having so little magic even a private teacher wouldn't take me as a student. Applying what I learned from this css, private teachers taught students who'd likely remain Acolytes.

  It wasn't because of her marriage. Selena and the prince didn't have a marriage contract. If they did, we couldn't switch pces, and I'd never be able to sign the vows. The magic from the betrothal contract would negate the wedding vows.

  The Duke's rebellion shocked the Queen Dowager and Crown Prince, so it didn't make sense for the union to be political.

  Swapping brides was a lot of trouble for seemingly no reason. That was what bothered me all this time.

  Why go through the trouble?

  I gnced at Selena and Tracy sat at a different table, pretending I didn’t exist.

  Selena was the same as I remembered—blond, blue-eyed, and too beautiful to look at. She wore a serene smile that came across as kind, and there was always a sparkle in her eye.

  Tracy, I couldn’t remember at all. She had the ‘Amber family’ blond hair and eyes, but all her features were a less pretty version of her sister’s. When they were next to each other, she faded into the background. I didn't know what happened to this unremarkable girl, never hearing a word about her after I married.

  “Today, we will continue with our lesson. Princess Tracy, where did we leave off st css?”

  “Professor Kenyon, we were learning about element affinity and magic circles.” Her voice was barely above a whisper. And, after every word, she gnced at Selena. Her shoulders only rexed after her older sister nodded.

  “Excuse me, professor?” Selena raised her hand.

  The look in the professor's eye as he watched Selena wasn’t right. The reverence was creepy, but there was also fear. “Yes, Princess Selena?”

  What on Terra was going on?

  “We have a new student, and her magic knowledge is cking. If we were to continue with the lecture from where we left off, she wouldn’t be able to follow.” The words were kind, but her eyes were weird as she looked at me.

  I'd never noticed before.

  They were predatory, like that steel-cd soldier pointing his sword at my chest. Selena looked at me like I was her enemy.

  I ducked my head, my mind reeling, trying to figure out if it was like this in my past life. Was it because of the Duchess? I was an illegitimate child.

  Selena turned around. "Wouldn't a refresher be nice? It would also benefit Tracy and me to be reminded of the basics."

  That speech made me remember half of the reasons I hated her. Every word was to humiliate me, but she wrapped it up under the guise of care and affection.

  The teacher didn't look any more convinced by her act than I was. “We all understand your kindness and goodwill, but we can’t cover two years of csses for one person, and she might not even learn the concepts. Plus, no matter what she learns, she can’t use magic.”

  I felt this was where I should throw a tantrum and storm out, but I'd sit here to annoy them—to disgust them. And I needed more information on magic. I buried my head deeper, very tired of the motion. I lightly scratched my nails against the wooden desk.

  “Nothing too in-depth. Just treat it as us reviewing what we’ve learned. We will enter the forest for the first time in a few months. Going over the basics won’t hurt.” Selena had her hands crossed in front, and even I could see the holy light emanating from her.

  Too weird.

  Think stupid.

  I couldn't figure it out, filing it away to be examined ter, before grumbling under my breath. “Hypocrite. Do you think that will make me quit? I’ll stay here to disgust you.” Rage burned through me, and I was shaking from the effort not to scream.

  “That dog thing won’t appreciate your kindness, but I agree it won’t hurt. Entering Wraith Forest is a serious matter, and half of the students don’t leave.” Tracy whimpered, but no one looked at her. There was no sympathy to be found, and she buried her head low—the same way I did. “There won’t be any special concessions for you, but the duke will prepare life-saving measures, which is more than most will have. Let’s start from the top. The csses of magic, magic circles, and magic affinity.”