“Ah, hing, eugh, eck.”
As I opened my mouth, thinking I’d better make an excuse, what came out wasn’t quite language—it was something else entirely.
Upon hearing the strange sounds I made, the maid seemed to conclude that my condition was quite serious.
“The food is hot. It could be dangerous if you spill it, so let me assist you with your meal.”
“Ah, no, it’s fine!”
No matter how much my body had become a girl, I was still a full-grown adult inside. Even if I looked like this, I had been working a job! It was just a bit awkward for a woman who didn’t seem much older than me—maybe even younger—to be feeding me.
Ah, sure, the maid was incredibly beautiful, but still, it would definitely be super awkward for someone who wasn’t even a lover to be doing something like this.
Feeling extremely out of place already in a body that wasn’t even mine, I thought that becoming even more awkward would make each day incredibly hard to bear.
Thinking that, I made a gesture with my hands to show her, “Look! My hands are fine, and my arms can move—”
But my words couldn’t finish.
The maid stood there staring at me with an expression as if she were seeing a strange creature for the very first time.
“……”
“……”
Seeing the maid’s blank expression as she slightly opened her mouth, I finally realized something was wrong.
After all, she was a maid.
Of course, I knew this world wasn’t in a medieval fantasy setting. There were ambulances, and the police wore the same uniforms as Korean police, and the doctors were dressed in suits with white coats. This world’s backdrop clearly appeared to be modern.
But… aside from that, there was a maid clad in a traditional maid uniform in a mansion that was absurdly large for just one family. And judging from the fact that the maid called me ‘young lady,’ regardless of the age difference between this girl and her, it was implied that the maid either served the original owner of this body or at least was employed by her.
…And, of course, while not everyone is the same, there are always people who love to speak informally and act superior to their employees, regardless of age.
Or perhaps over time, they established some kind of bond, given that just last night, the maid had put her hand on my forehead without hesitation. Maybe they had a close sisterly relationship. The maid used honorifics, but the girl might have spoken casually.
“……”
“……”
Amidst the continued silence, I slowly lowered my hands, which I had raised high.
“Perhaps it would be better for me to assist you with your meal after all.”
The maid said firmly.
Should I respond with “Yes”? Or “Uh-huh”?
Ultimately, I couldn’t decide how to answer, so I could only nod my head in reply.
It took nearly an hour for the maid to slowly feed me the porridge she ladled out one spoonful at a time, cooling each one before offering it to me.
After finally finishing my meal with a face as red as a tomato, I watched as the maid once again backed out of the room, and I immediately sat up.
Then I began to search through the room.
*
The information I was able to glean from the room wasn’t that much. The room was spacious and well-decorated, but the evidence of this girl’s life was limited to around the bed. There was a bookshelf, but aside from a few classic literature books, it was mostly empty.
I sat in front of a mirror on the dressing table, but the reflection showed just a girl with long black hair and pale skin, nothing more. If there was anything noteworthy, it was that her eyes had quite a sharp look. Even sharper than the maid I had seen earlier.
The red eyes were also a distinguishing feature. How many female characters with red eyes and black hair have appeared in web novels or light novels?
Finding no useful information from there, I immediately rose and entered the attached shower room.
*
Coming out of the shower room, I let out a deep sigh. The information I obtained there had only complicated my thoughts further.
The girl’s body looked extremely frail.
It seemed she hadn’t eaten well, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that it didn’t stem from domestic violence. I might question it since her parents hadn’t followed her to the hospital, but if she was truly starved and abused, the maid wouldn’t have brought me porridge to eat, let alone encouraged it.
The bruises were the same. At least no bruise was visible on her face in the mirror. But on the back, the situation was brutal.
Mainly, areas that directly touched the ground when lying down, such as her shoulders, arms, butt, and calves—these were all darkly bruised.
Sure, you could argue that someone must have hit her, but do abusive parents usually focus that sporadically?
…Well, maybe given the nasty bruise on her backside, that might be true.
I mean, I’ve never lived through any abuse, so making judgments solely from my limited experience could be dangerous.
If she truly was a character who got beaten daily by her parents, that would be significant! I would wonder whether she could adequately resist in this body. Even if she tried to resist, it surely wouldn’t end well for her.
…
…Though it was a relief that looking at this body didn’t invoke any lewd thoughts within me.
*
After that, I searched the room thoroughly. I checked the wardrobe, the desk, the drawers, and even the books on the shelf. I even looked between books to see if something was stuck there, but I found nothing. In the drawer of the desk, I pulled out a thick, unmarked hardcover notebook, a sealed envelope, and a half-full bottle of sleeping pills.
Inside the wardrobe, I found a school uniform. Judging by the huge 中 written prominently on the emblem on the left pocket, it looked like something a middle schooler would wear. The name tag above that pocket read “Ye Sara.”
And then, I finally realized exactly what world I’d landed in.
…I had somehow fallen into the “if you wish” world that I had watched streamers play not too long ago.
I had become the villainess, ‘Ye Sara,’ who was the daughter of a chaebol! It was perfectly reasonable that I didn’t match it since the in-game graphics were on a level that looked like they were drawn with a mouse in Paint. It was understandable that I wouldn’t recognize it at all—going from 2D to 3D was hard enough; consider how much more difficult it would be if that 2D data was inaccurate!
I’m doomed…
…Wait a minute. Am I really doomed?
I sat cross-legged on the bed, contemplating the clues spread out before me.
I may be the villainess, but I wasn’t the villainess just yet. Apparently, I hadn’t even become a high school student!
This made sense, as searching through the wardrobe revealed only middle school uniforms and no high school outfits. The digital clock on the desk indicated that today was January 1, which meant I had about two months and one day before the entrance ceremony.
Since high school relationships hadn’t yet formed, it was no wonder I couldn’t become ‘the villain’ in the story.
Moreover, while I couldn’t see it clearly due to the graphics, high school uniforms undoubtedly had name tags. I’d see who was who in high school! All I needed to do was to either become friendly with the game’s main characters or ensure that I remained distant enough from whatever characters ended up getting together with the heroine, and that would guarantee I’d be fine.
And that’s not a hard task at all! While becoming friends might be a bit dicey, avoiding them was easy! I could just huddle in a corner of the classroom!
Also, I already had a track record of huddling in corners throughout my high school years!
…It’s not exactly something worth bragging about, though.
“Ugh…”
Setting aside the memories of my dreary high school days, I began to examine the remaining clues one by one.
First, the sleeping pills.
…If a middle schooler needed to take sleeping pills, just how much stress had she been under?
Moreover, are sleeping pills really prescribed to minors? Furthermore, this bottle contained several pills already! Is it common to prescribe so many at once?
…I wouldn’t know! I’ve not had a particularly fortunate childhood, but I never dealt with any serious mental health issues either.
I decided to set the sleeping pills aside. Then I picked up the unmarked notebook.
At first, I thought it was a diary, but it was more like a sketchbook.
And not just any sketchbook; it seemed to be some sort of fantasy novel!
This notebook contained a multitude of stories that Ye Sara had likely written throughout her middle school years.
[His skin was as white as a blank sheet of paper…]
[Hehehe, sealed within my left arm…]
[Nayuta, around countless transgressions, I shall…]
[Die die die die die—]
“……”
I quietly closed the notebook.
Well, I kind of understand why she might be writing things like that. I’ve been there too, and it’s common for introspective people who can’t express their energy externally to need some kind of outlet.
The writing was certainly cringeworthy, but more than that, reading someone’s private thoughts felt invasive. Even if I was low on clues, was it really necessary to invade someone’s fantasy notebook like this?
I felt a voice in my conscience ask if my previous shower escapade was also okay, but I brushed that thought away. Regardless of this notebook, entering the shower or bathroom was an inevitable necessity for me in this body. I couldn’t have the maid take care of showering or bathroom duty for me—that would indeed be sexual harassment.
Besides, I had no idea how I’d even get back.
…
Yeah, every time I read a TS novel, I’d think about why I had to search for a way back, yet here I was, before even 24 hours had passed, already speculating on how to return.
Setting the notebook aside, I noticed a plain white envelope nearby. It had no special decorations and looked like something you could buy for about a thousand won at a store like Daiso. Written on it was “To Mother.”
Nice handwriting.
Then again, the handwriting in the notebook had been pretty nice too.
After checking out that notebook a moment ago, I grew afraid of tearing open this envelope. This could contain truly personal content. While I couldn’t know exactly what this girl wanted to say to her mother, did I really have the right to recklessly open her letter and read it?
Pondering over it for a moment, I let out a deep sigh and stood up. I took the notebook and envelope and tucked them deep back into the drawer.
Right, I could just be here for a bit, maybe. Perhaps I’d return to my original body just as suddenly as I entered this one. It’s possible that it was just a simple case of falling asleep rather than some bizarre bus accident. I didn’t feel particularly dreamlike at all.
And in that scenario, if Ye Sara returned to her drawer only to find the envelope opened, what would she think?
If I were to just be here temporarily, wouldn’t it be best to just keep things in order?
…Wouldn’t I only be here temporarily?
“…Status screen?”
I muttered once again, but there was still no sign of any status window appearing.
I clasped my head in my hands and sighed.
I tried to recall what I knew about the game’s settings.
The stats were Knowledge, Endurance, and Charm. Naturally, since it wasn’t set against a fantasy backdrop, there was no Mana, and that Endurance referred to the kind of ‘endurance’ we think of in daily life, not HP.
The stats affected choices, and depending on the options, you had to have those stats to select them, or you’d fail if your stats dropped. To woo a character, you needed the stats to catch up with them. I remembered an earlier streamer’s first playthrough, where they had mismanaged their stats and ended up pursuing a character they didn’t intend to.
…If this world really matched that “game,” then I had to figure out some way to check those stats.
Could it be that I couldn’t open the status window since I wasn’t the main character?
But if that were the case, a significant problem would arise.
While the stats may be fixed outside of the protagonist, the game has a setting called “Instinct.”
This was essentially a sort of superpower prepared by the developers to allow players to play comfortably, despite stats being low. Of course, it wasn’t real superpower stuff! In-game, it was a convenience function! This instinct could be selected beforehand and would offer bonuses to help gameplay, such as impacting the feelings of characters or reading hidden character stats—basically a bonus feature to assist with pursuing characters in the game.
This was set as the heroine’s “feeling.”
And this instinct existed not just in the system but was a regular part of the setting, where most major characters in the game had some sort of instinct. While it might not explicitly be referred to as ‘Instinct,’ characters would sometimes guess what option the protagonist hovered over, or realize the protagonist’s stats—a comedic element that flirted with breaking the fourth wall.
The issue, however, was that all I knew was “main characters have instincts;” I didn’t know what instinct Ye Sara actually possessed.
…Or maybe she didn’t possess one at all. While she was a target in the game, it wasn’t necessarily the case that every essential character had one.
“Ugh…”
I just hope I have some useful ability.
*
A little detour turned into two weeks and a month.
In all that time, no sign of me returning to my original body ever appeared.
Fortunately, it was a relief that, as I’d suspected, Ye Sara wasn’t the type of character who received beatings at home. In fact, it seemed her mother simply didn’t care much for her.
From my intense attention and internet digging over the past month and a half, I discovered that Ye Sara’s great-grandfather founded the Eugene Group, and her grandfather and father managed it until Ye Sara’s father passed away prematurely, leaving her mother as the current chairwoman.
Interestingly, Ye Sara’s mom was not her biological mother. Her biological mother passed away shortly after giving birth, and the woman I called my mother now was someone who came into her life after her father remarried.
Not all stepmothers are like this, but since it felt like I’d stepped into a drama, it seemed that Ye Sara’s stepmother didn’t much care to love her as a child. Thankfully, Ye Sara’s father hadn’t had children with her remarried mother, so while Ye Sara’s life didn’t seem to be in jeopardy, this stepmother’s views toward her seemed far from pleasant—as if she simply put her in a big house and let her live on her own.
The Eugene Group in this universe was the top conglomerate in South Korea. Cash, real estate, stocks… pretty much all areas of wealth were overwhelmingly dominated by Eugene Group, showing how wealthy they were compared to others. Maybe that’s why it was easy to find information on Ye Sara online.
Well, it was mostly just a few childhood photos though.
There were a few people who liked her due to her striking looks, but many others couldn’t have a good impression because of the misfortunes caused by the Eugene Group.
…Well, at least it didn’t seem like I’d run out of money anytime soon.
There were twelve staff members based in this mansion solely for Ye Sara. Her personal maid, that young woman who had just fed me, Yang Hye-in, seemed to be both the head of the staff.
Among the other eleven people, four were men in black suits. Of those four, only Yang Hye-in was a maid; the rest were on rotating shifts, which meant many more could be summoned in case of emergencies like last time in the hospital.
The remaining staff included three chefs, three cleaners, and one gardener.
Previously, when I hadn’t seen the house, I’d thought of it as just a large home in Seongbuk-dong, but it was actually a mansion, complete with a lobby and two floors—something out of a movie!
I found out that the house itself was even marked as a registered cultural property or something.
Built in the expensive land of the heart of Seoul, this mansion made me realize just how rich the Eugene Group actually was.
Rumors were already circulating that they owned the property flat out, which either meant they were looking to redevelop it or simply planned to utilize it without putting it to waste.
Maybe that’s why Ye Sara was living in this mansion—it was to give the impression of “We are merely utilizing this house.”
“What are you looking at so intently?”
As I was browsing through my smartphone, Yang Hye-in, sitting beside me, asked. Since she was the maid, she seemed to have some level of familiarity with Ye Sara—contrary to her somewhat cold expression.
“…I was searching for information about the Eugene Group,” I replied.
I had decided that for the past month, I’d lay the groundwork and go with polite speech. I had no info on how I’d previously interacted with this maid. I had just observed the streamer playing the game; while I knew Ye Sara, I didn’t know Yang Hye-in was included with her.
Even if I had played the game, if I hadn’t taken Ye Sara’s route, I wouldn’t know.
There was no way I could casually speak informally to an adult I consider a stranger.
Although my polite speech led to a seemingly awkward moment, Yang Hye-in soon adapted and didn’t mind my choice of words.
“That’s a good habit. Since you’re destined to inherit the whole group one day, it would be wise to be aware of public opinion in advance,” she said with a light smile. Yang Hye-in was wearing the same black coat as she had in the hospital. It didn’t occur to me then, but I later learned that coat was simply worn over her maid uniform. Thus, it appeared a bit loose from the waist down yet managed to give her a slim appearance. In some ways, it looked quite good.
“…But where are we headed now?”
“Didn’t I mention?”
Yang Hye-in widened her eyes slightly as she asked.
“No, I just know you said the previously canceled schedule was back on. What was the schedule?”
At my question, Yang Hye-in blinked a few times.
Her expression was one of utter astonishment, as though my forgetting was unfathomable.
“Young lady, do you truly not remember?”
“Uh…”
I tossed my eyes around. What to say? Considering her reaction, this clearly meant it had to be something important—something I wouldn’t just casually forget.
“Miss?”
In a serious tone with a slightly subdued voice, Yang Hye-in spoke.
“You are currently on your way to meet your fiancé.”
“……”
What?
It was a miracle I managed to keep that exclamation in my mind.
“……Excuse me?”
I struggled to suppress the urge to curse as I answered her slowly.
“You are on your way to meet your fiancé, I said.”
What the actual hell!
Fortunately, I didn’t scream out that curse either.
