The Prince’s First Love Was Me Chapter 2

“……What a mess.”

Toby let out a dry laugh, pulled a key out of his apron, and waved it around.

“Why don’t you sleep at my place tonight?”

“No, it’s fine. I have a perfectly good home of my own. I can’t do that.”

Even if my body was male, my mind was still a woman’s. Until I got used to this, I wanted to keep my distance from my big brother.

“Just teach me how to do the job.”

If I was going to spend the rest of my life in this body, it was better to learn how things worked around here as soon as possible.

As Toby taught me the job, I learned two things.

The only drink delivered from the café was hot chocolate, which was why people called me the “chocolate delivery boy.”

The job itself was simple.

All I had to do was pour milk chocolate and milk into a silver teapot in the right proportions, place it on a portable tea stove to heat it, and then float some marshmallows on top.

‘This is a piece of cake.’

By then, the sun had completely set. After seeing off the last customer and finishing up the cleaning, Toby turned around.

“Aren’t you going home?”

“Just give me the shop keys and go ahead. I’ll head home as soon as I remember the address.”

Since I had no idea where my house was, I planned to stay here for the time being.

I also needed some quiet time to figure out which story I had ended up in.

“You have to make sure the shop is open by nine in the morning at the latest.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

If I’m still here in the morning, just assume I stayed up all night.

I saw Toby out of the shop, then returned to my seat, clutching my head and groaning as I tried to think.

The only clues I had so far were the names Ronnie and Toby.

Other people seemed perfectly capable of figuring out who they were and recalling the general plot just by hearing their own names.

“I should’ve read those novels more carefully.”

At this point, I figured it was probably my own fault for having such a terrible memory.

How much time had passed?

The night grew darker as my worries deepened.

Suddenly, a shadow flickered beside the window. A young-looking woman leaned into view and tapped on the glass.

‘Do I know her?’

For now, I went outside, locked the shop door, and turned around.

The woman seemed unable to wait even a moment longer. She strode toward me, grabbed my wrist, and shouted,

“Big sis!”

Oh, my goodness! What is this girl talking about?

I put both hands on my hips and glared at her with a deliberately stern look.

“Excuse me, miss. I know I have a pretty face, but you can’t just call me big sis the moment you see me. How do you think a man feels when someone makes such a careless assumption?”

How did I feel? Proud, of course.

Suppressing the smile threatening to spread across my face, I puffed out my chest with dignity.

The woman furrowed her brows and looked around.

“What’s wrong? Is there someone else here besides us?”

“No. It’s just you and me, miss.”

I shrugged and straightened my rumpled clothes.

Maybe I really was a man on the inside, despite my delicate appearance. With a pretty woman standing right in front of me, I couldn’t help but puff out my chest a little.

I could feel the desire to make a good impression slowly creeping up on me.

It was another reminder of just how frighteningly adaptable human beings could be.

“Anyway, I don’t know which noble family you belong to, but……”

“Come on! Seriously! We don’t have time for this! Everyone at home is worried about you!”

“Whoa!”

Before I could finish speaking, she suddenly yanked me by the wrist.

She kept glancing around as she dragged me along, forcing me to walk almost at a run without knowing what was going on.

Before long, she hurriedly climbed into a waiting carriage.

When I remained standing there instead of following her, a wrinkle appeared between her brows.

“What are you doing? Aren’t you getting in? I told you everyone’s waiting!”

She’d been going on about how people at home were worried and waiting for me. Judging by that, the woman in front of me was probably the young lady I currently served.

Maybe she’d gotten worried because her servant hadn’t returned home, so she’d come out to look for me herself. How considerate.

I awkwardly climbed into the carriage, and the coachman soon clicked his tongue and set the reins in motion.

“How was your day? Was it difficult?”

“Yes, well, nothing special. Delivery work is pretty much the same everywhere. I did slip on some water and fall down along the way, which caused a bit of a commotion, but as you can see, I’m perfectly fine.”

Was it just my imagination, or had my way of speaking changed from that of a servant to something more like a common laborer the moment I realized she was the young lady I served?

“Hey……”

The woman, who had been watching me with a confused expression, cautiously parted her lips.

“Why have you been acting so strange? Did I do something wrong to upset you?”

“Why have you been acting so strange, miss? Why do you keep calling a fine, strapping man like me big sis? Is it a nickname, perhaps? Since my name is Ronnie, did you come up with some variation of it?”

Whatever had shocked her so much, the woman stammered with a horrified expression.

“……A fine, strapping man? You can’t have all that!”

“Why not?”

Sure, I might have a delicate face, but a man was supposed to have……!

Overcome with indignation, I reached toward the front of my trousers, but then I noticed her staring at me and cleared my throat awkwardly.

“Please turn your head to the side. I’ll check right now and give you a firsthand report.”

The woman looked at me with an expression of displeasure, but eventually whipped her head around.

I looked down and swallowed nervously.

This was a moment I would have to face sooner or later, now that I had a man’s body.

Having made up my mind, I squeezed my eyes shut and grabbed the area between my legs.

But then……

“Why is there……?”

There was nothing to grab.

My hand, having failed to find what it was looking for, wandered helplessly through the air.

“Can I turn around now?”

“Ah, not yet!”

This couldn’t be happening!

Just in case, I thoroughly felt around my thighs, too, but the result was the same.

No, was something like this even possible?

If I had nothing up top and nothing down below, then what on earth was I? What kind of living creature was I?

My head filled with question marks.

The woman seemed to be saying something, but her voice was nothing more than a distant buzz in my ears.

“……nie! Big sis!”

Only after hearing her desperate calls did I finally manage to come to my senses.

The woman was studying my complexion with a deeply concerned look.

She seemed to have finally realized that my behavior up until now hadn’t been a joke.

“Be honest with me. Did something really happen to you today? You don’t seem like yourself at all.”

“Actually……”

Feeling awkward, I scratched my cheek.

“I fell down earlier and hit my head on the ground. Ever since then, I haven’t been able to remember anything.”

“What?! You should’ve told me sooner! No wonder our conversation kept going around in circles. Are you badly hurt? Does it hurt anywhere?”

“No. Other than the inconvenience of not remembering anything, I’m fine.”

“……Where do I even begin explaining everything?”

The woman muttered with a troubled expression before finally nodding.

“Your name is Dahlia Lopez. I’m Lucy, your younger sister.”

Lucy told me that my real name was Dahlia. Dahlia Lopez, the eldest daughter of Viscount Lopez’s family.

Apparently, the Lopez family was currently struggling with debt after their father’s business suddenly went bankrupt. To pay it off, they were selling off all the expensive belongings in their home.

All the servants had scattered, except for the bare minimum needed to keep the household running.

The taxes collected from their territory weren’t enough to repay the debt, so the family members had also started working to earn money. Unlike their father, who had easily found a job through his connections, I had repeatedly been rejected because I was a noble lady who had been raised in luxury.

Then, six months ago, my father injured his ankle and his health began to deteriorate, leaving him unable to work.

Unable to sit back and watch, I had entered the job market myself, even going so far as to disguise myself as a man.

“I really thought I was a man, you know. I felt around, but there were no breasts.”

“You always bind the cloth so tightly around your chest. You said that if you tied it loosely, people would notice when they carried you or hugged you. Besides, your vest is pretty thick.”

“Ahahaha. No wonder my chest felt so compressed. When I looked in the mirror, the clothes fit so perfectly that I thought men’s clothes were just supposed to be that tight.”

Since even I had been fooled, the chances of anyone noticing just by looking at me were practically nonexistent.

Great. I’ll just keep binding my chest tightly from now on.

The carriage arrived at the viscount’s estate only after the surroundings had grown completely dark.

I followed Lucy as she led the way, walking awkwardly.

The mansion was quite large for a family whose fortunes were declining.

Selling the mansion itself seemed like a much faster way to pay off their debts than selling expensive belongings one by one. But in the world of nobility, where appearances mattered so much, that was probably out of the question.

“Ohhh! Dahlia!”

“My lady!”

Suddenly, cries that sounded almost like screams rang out.

I hadn’t noticed because I’d been looking around, but a group of people gathered near the entrance were all staring at me.

When I hesitated, startled by their enthusiastic welcome, Lucy gave an awkward smile.

“See? I told you everyone was worried. This is the first time you’ve come home this late since you started working.”

I hadn’t meant to worry anyone, but since I’d apparently done so anyway, I was more than willing to let the two women rushing toward me with their arms outstretched embrace me.

Just as I was about to hug the two women, who had come running from a distance and were breathing heavily, Lucy stepped in front of me.

“Big sis needs complete rest today. She fell while working and hit her head, and apparently she’s lost all her memories.”

“What? Dahlia, is that true? Do you recognize your mother?”

“My lady! What about me? You remember me, don’t you? I’m Becky! I’ve taken care of you with all my heart ever since you were little!”

While Lucy and I struggled to comfort the two women, who were on the verge of tears, a sudden, deep male voice shook the air.

“Daaahlia!”

The voice was so loud it was almost a roar. Looking bewildered, I turned toward the entrance.