Chapter 6. Am I Trapped? (2)

Translator: Lili

“Ugh…”

The sharp sunlight piercing through her eyelids roused her from her dreamless sleep.

She tried to fight it, wanting to sleep a little longer, but the sleep had already slipped away. Giving up, Sera slowly lifted her heavy eyelids—

“ACK!”

She screamed the moment she saw the face in front of her. Scrambling backward on her hands, she saw Lee Rowoon frowning at her with an irritated expression.

“You’re so damn dramatic.”

“Where am I? And why are you here—”

“If you wanted to die, you should’ve gone far away to do it. You made such a fuss just to collapse right there?”

“…What?”

Rowoon didn’t bother answering and left the room without a second thought. Dazed, Sera slowly looked around.

The luxurious space, like a five-star hotel, was actually a private hospital room equipped with the latest medical technology. It was a familiar sight—she had been here several times since possessing Shin Sera’s body, whether due to ‘memory loss’ or other issues.

“Are you feeling awake now?”

“Oh… Hello, Professor.”

Professor Kim appeared from beyond the open door. Since his face was also familiar, Sera instinctively bowed politely as a greeting. The professor hesitated mid-step, looking visibly startled.

‘… Shit. That wasn’t very Shin Sera-like, was it?’

Quickly correcting herself, Sera lifted her chin, forcing a haughty expression onto her face, and asked in the most arrogant tone she could muster,

“Why am I here?”

“…Don’t tell me you’ve lost your memory again?”

“That’s not it.”

Frowning slightly, Sera tried to recall what happened. She had been sneaking away when she felt that pain, then everything had gone black. She was certain she had died, and yet…

“I thought I had a heart attack and died, but I’m alive.”

“If it had been a heart attack, you wouldn’t be sitting here looking perfectly fine.”

“…So it wasn’t a heart attack?”

Professor Kim pursed his lips, as if searching for the right words, then adjusted his glasses.

“I checked your chart, but there were no abnormal findings.”

“That’s impossible… I almost died. It really hurt.”

“Well, considering your recent collapse, along with memory loss and anxiety symptoms… It’s possible you’re experiencing a psychosomatic disorder. Have you been under extreme stress lately?”

‘Extreme stress? If being possessed by Shin Sera didn’t qualify, what did?’

Sera swallowed back her words and forced a weak smile.

“…Let’s run some detailed tests today, just to be sure.”

After a few more questions, Professor Kim left the room. Left alone, Sera chewed on her fingernails, deep in thought.

There might have been no medical abnormalities, but the pain she had felt was real. It was exactly the same as what she had experienced right before dying as Han Jia.

And this was the second time it had happened. Which meant… there was a chance it could happen again.

‘And if I die here too… what happens to me then? This time, it might really be the end.’

“Ugh.”

An intense wave of fear surged through her. She bit down hard on her nail to stop herself from trembling, and a drop of red blood welled up from the torn skin. As she stared at the trickle of blood, a sudden thought struck her like lightning.

“…Could it be… because I tried to reject Shin Sera’s fate?”

‘No way. That’s ridiculous.’

Sera shook her head. She was just overthinking things because of how bizarre this whole situation was. There was no way she had nearly died just because she tried to run away from the role of Shin Sera.

‘…Right?’

Even as she tried to dismiss the thought, the unease wouldn’t leave her. If anything, she was growing more certain that her theory was correct. Lost in thought, Sera blankly stared into the air—until her phone suddenly buzzed.

‘Wait. Phone?’

She had left that at the entrance before running away. Somehow, it had ended up back in her room. A new message notification blinked on the screen.

— Let’s meet and talk.

It was from her fiancé, Cha Jaeheon.

Sera had completely forgotten about him. She had left that breakup text without a second thought, planning to disappear forever—she hadn’t expected to be stuck like this.

‘How the hell am I supposed to deal with this now?’

Her head was starting to hurt again.