Chapter 3: Annie Wiese Swinton

Upon opening his eyes once more, Lu Xing found himself enveloped in darkness. Initially, he thought he was still in his dormitory. Reaching out to his side to find his phone and check the time, he groped around but found no phone. Instead, his palm brushed against a soft and comfortable fabric, reminiscent of silk bedding.

“Have I really transmigrated again!?”

Wide awake now, Lu Xing looked down and, bathed in moonlight, saw a pristine white rabbit embroidered on the chest of the delicate nightdress that wrapped around him.

This youthful maiden’s body he now inhabited was without any undergarments…

His blood surged wildly, and it took him a moment to calm himself.

The room was dimly lit only by moonlight streaming through the window. After some careful observation, Lu Xing discerned that the décor was neither Chinese nor futuristic but bore the unmistakable style of a Western palace.

This lady, with her snow-white skin and thick, long hair, occupied a spacious chamber. The bed was a luxurious affair over two meters in length and width, layered with several sheets. A canopy draped from above to the floor, adorned with numerous jewels, exuding an unimaginable opulence.

“Xiao Ai, turn on the light? Turn on the light?”

Lu Xing fumbled around the bedside and the bed itself but could find no light switch, remote, or voice assistant.

The room remained shrouded in darkness.

Only then did he realize how challenging it was to adapt to life after transmigrating—when he had become Jiang Xuannü, the lights had turned on automatically right after waking, thanks to full smart automation.

“Have I come to ancient times?”

Abandoning the search for the light switch, Lu Xing chose to get out of bed.

But a new problem arose quickly.

He could not find any shoes belonging to this seemingly medieval noble lady!

Neither side of the bed held any, and the floor was covered with a thick, soft carpet so plush that even the tender palms of a noblewoman’s feet would find it comfortable.

“Enough, I’ll go barefoot.”

Stepping down, his now diminutive feet touched the carpet as he began to cautiously explore this unfamiliar world.

He approached the window and, under the moonlight, examined himself—or rather, the noble lady’s visage.

She appeared quite young, not yet twenty, tall and slender, with skin as soft and fair as jade. Her golden hair was thick and smooth, cascading in waves behind her.

Lu Xing restrained the impulse to further explore her figure.

After all, they would soon have to swap back.

Though no one would know if he touched indiscriminately, Lu Xing had been raised under a red flag as a model youth and was not so desperate as to lose control.

He held back.

Dressed in a fine nightgown and barefoot, Lu Xing circled the room, noting its vastness. There was a sitting room inside, beyond which lay a reception chamber containing a fireplace, bookshelves, a desk, porcelain pieces, and unfamiliar animal bones and clubs mounted on the walls.

“Animal bones and hides usually signify the owner’s prowess in hunting… Does this noble lady hunt?”

Frowning, Lu Xing sensed that the noblewoman he had become was no ordinary aristocrat.

Time slowly passed, and dawn approached. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door.

Lu Xing swiftly and quietly returned to bed and lay down again, his nerves tingling in this strange world with unfamiliar relationships.

This place was utterly different from the futuristic world he had known!

The social connections of Jiang Xuannü and this noble lady were worlds apart.

“Miss Annie, I’m coming in.”

With those words came the door opening, footsteps, and further calling of “Miss Annie.”

Lu Xing relaxed somewhat; the language spoken was not English, yet he understood without difficulty for reasons unknown.

He closed his eyes and feigned sleep.

When the maids reached his bedside, the woman who had spoken earlier knelt on the bed, gently nudged him, and softly called out, “Miss Annie, it’s time to get up. Lying in bed too long is not the habit of a noble lady.”

Sorry, I’m not a noble lady, let alone your Miss Annie!

Lu Xing slowly opened his eyes to see a beautifully delicate face. She appeared slightly older than Lu Xing, with emerald-green eyes like a clear, translucent amber. Her eyes were deep-set, nose high and straight, with an icy elegance and strikingly sculpted features.

“Miss Annie, you’re awake?”

Seeing him awake, the emerald-eyed maid respectfully got off the bed. After she steadied herself, Lu Xing gently raised a hand and pointed; the chandelier hanging in the room suddenly lit up, followed by other lamps gradually illuminating the entire chamber in magnificent splendor.

“So, it’s a magical lamp!”

Lu Xing blurted out, drawing curious glances from the maids. The emerald-eyed maid gave him a puzzled look as well.

Lu Xing masked his embarrassment with a sheepish smile—though he had no idea how strange it must look for Miss Annie’s face to wear such an awkward expression.

Yet it seemed these maids had never seen Miss Annie smile like this before.

After a brief silence, the maid spoke, “Miss Annie, you should get up. This morning you have your favored alchemy lesson. Professor Isaac will come to the house to see you shortly.”

Alchemy?!

Lu Xing broke out in a cold sweat.

Before the National Day holiday, he was still in a classroom learning algorithms and data structures. Now suddenly, he was summoned to attend the alchemy class of a noble lady in a magical otherworld.

Kill me now—I know nothing about alchemy!

“Miss?”

A maid whispered softly, while the head maid watched him.

Silence. Tonight was steeped in silence.

“I’m sick today!”

Quick-witted, Lu Xing used a clear, melodious maiden’s voice.

And indeed, Miss Annie's voice was as pure as her appearance—vibrant, healthy, and lively, befitting a noble lady full of vitality.

Such an energetic noble lady would hardly fall ill…

Lu Xing broke into a cold sweat again, seeing the maids’ stunned looks as if it had been ages since they last saw Miss Annie sick.

The emerald-eyed maid scrutinized him intently before expressionlessly saying,

“Respected Miss Swindon, this is your first lie since you were six years old.”

She added, “Your last lie was when you fell and hurt your wrist while running in the garden. You feared madam’s reprimand and claimed the hall floor was slippery, which even caused madam to replace the hall’s tiles.”

Such extravagance, such waste!

Lu Xing, used to hardship, grumbled inwardly, then forced a smile on Miss Annie’s delicate face.

“I—I really am sick today. Please inform the professor I won’t attend class.”

Though he felt guilty for Miss Annie, Lu Xing just wanted to get through today; everything else could wait.

The maids exchanged glances, apparently witnessing a rare tantrum from Miss Annie.

The emerald-eyed maid leaned closer, bending slightly to meet Lu Xing’s feigned calm but uneasy eyes. After a moment, she straightened her slender waist and said formally,

“Very well, Miss Annie. I will inform madam and say you are ill, so madam will send someone to the church to invite a priest to attend to you.”

“N-no... I mean, my illness isn’t serious…”

“You are being willfully stubborn and not truly ill, correct?”

“...”