"I was reborn! I'm not Kim Eun-jung!"
The patient vehemently denied.
Either way,
"Readers imagine themselves as the protagonist of a novel. That's the charm of novels. But if a novel is reality, the author would be the creator of the world... Do you think the author of this novel is a god?"
"......"
"You turned your back on common sense, intoxicated by the joy of becoming a beautiful protagonist. Date men in reality."
"Who are you to interfere!"
"It's a story I heard from a mother who cleans her grown-up daughter's excrement and pushes her wheelchair, you know?"
My emotional reason for not saying nice words to the patient.
It's because of the ignorant attitude of not knowing parents' love and sacrifice, and only thinking about dating handsome men.
Even untrained animals wouldn't be as selfish as this woman.
"E-Excrement...?"
"If you don't clean it up yourself, someone else has to. Isn't that obvious?"
"......"
The patient, whose shame soared, covered her red face with her palm.
"You are not the beautiful lady of the Count's family. You wear adult diapers-"
"Stop! Please stop! I've heard enough, just stop talking...!"
"...Alright."
Is it because life in this novel world is no longer happy?
Kim Eun-jung, who became the youngest daughter of the Count’s Family, didn't deny everything blindly like Choi Kang-min, the magical boy, covering his ears.
However,
'She still hasn't woken up.'
I wasn't disappointed about that. If she could be awakened with just this much stimulation, things wouldn't have escalated this far.
The real challenge starts now.
"Miss Kim Eun-jung. All the men who loved you have been ruined. The Emperor became impotent and the laughingstock of everyone, the Prince was dethroned, and the Pimaang Baron died on the battlefield. Ah! There's also someone who became your pet."
Receiving treatment worse than an animal as a price for divorce!
Except for the prince of the desert kingdom I persuaded when I visited the nursery of Chimac Count’s territory, everyone else faced a miserable end.
"I don't want to hear it."
"Aren't you curious about your future as the Empress of Doom?"
"That's a lie! I didn't marry the Emperor...!"
"But people don't think that way. They believe that the empire was destroyed because you clouded the wise Emperor's eyes."
The real cause was that they couldn't inflict any damage in the naval battle they should have won overwhelmingly and lost consecutively.
However, in the original novel, the Emperor was set as "beloved by the people," so all the resentment went to the protagonist!
It's very unfortunate.
"It's unfair..."
"Originally, they planned to skin you alive and hang you at the entrance of the imperial palace."
I told the patient a toned-down version for her mental health. The original plan was much more inhumane and cruel.
"Please save me!"
"Don't worry. It didn't happen because the Emperor needed for the stabilization of the empire put your safety as a condition."
"Th-Thank goodness..."
"But it's too early to be happy. You have been sentenced to serve in the nursery until you die. You can't date or marry. This is the Emperor's wish after being castrated."
"......"
I also told her a toned-down version for her mental health. There's no way she would only serve in the nursery, right?
It's better not to know.
"Miss Kim Eun-jung. Are you still not tired of living as Chimac? Do you want to keep living like this?"
"...Please help me."
"I don't have the power to do that."
I can guide the patient to wake up from her sweet dream, but the choice is up to her.
"You're lying! You have mysterious powers like that woman!"
"...By any chance, did that woman wear a black pointed hat?"
"Yes!"
"......"
The reason she could move from the kingdom to the empire in an instant.
The witch was involved.
"Please send me to a safe country! If you want, I can become your wife too!"
"...Miss Kim Eun-jung. There is no safe country for you in this world. Let go of your foolishness and accept reality."
"I don't want to...!"
"I have finished what I had to say. Think slowly while serving."
"I can't even if I die...!"
"Then die. Stop torturing your parents."
"......"
I turned around after bursting out with a sharp remark.
* * *
"My lord, may I ask you a question?"
Valentine, who had been silent all the way to my bedroom, which is the second most splendid in the imperial palace.
She looked at me with a strong gaze as she opened her lips, which she had been holding back.
'She really held it in for a long time.'
Applause for her patience and professionalism, who focused on escorting!
I nodded.
"Feel free. But it would be difficult if you ask too many."
"Are you leaving for another world?"
"Yes."
I admired Valentine's flexibility for deducing this far with only the fragmented knowledge she had picked up.
It might be even more so when compared to a patient who couldn't accept reality and was being unreasonable.
"Can I follow you?"
"No."
"......"
"Don't misunderstand. It's not that I don't want you to, Valentine. It's that I can't."
The two are clearly different.
"I know. I know that my lord doesn't dislike me."
"Thank you for understanding."
It was a mystery how Valentine knew, but it wasn't the atmosphere to ask, so I remained silent.
"When are you leaving?"
"About when Angelina Chimac gets tired and wants to die."
"There are only a few days left."
"Yes."
"......"
"......"
I had mixed feelings about having to say goodbye to the beautiful escort knight with whom I had shared big and small events.
'If this was reality... Oh, what a foolish...'
Just a while ago, I scolded the patient for holding onto this novel world, and now I'm doing the same?
A bitter smile naturally came out at my contradictory self.
"This is my last question."
"Go ahead."
"Can I call you 'oppa'?"
"......"
I saw an irresistible devil.
* * *
The mental strength of 'Kim Eun-jung,' an ordinary woman who just likes romance fantasy novels, wasn't strong.
She gave up the protagonist's life only one day after the public trial ended and started serving.
As evidence,
"...This is the worst feeling."
I, who had been spending dream-like time with Valentine, was mercilessly brought back to the cold reality.
The furniture and appliances with a neat design finished in plastic were not as luxurious as my bedroom in the imperial palace, but...
My mind was awakened to the fact that I had returned to the hotel room.
'Valentine...'
Her last image, hugging me as I disappeared like a mirage and sobbing, did not fade from my mind.
"Hmm..."
As if to call me right after waking up from the dream, the call device was lightly held in my right hand.
Squeeze.
As soon as I pressed the red button, it didn't take long for Manager Seo Hye-joo to open the door and enter the room.
"You woke up early."
"Manager, how long have I been asleep?"
"It's been 14 days today."
"That's really short."
It took quite some time to destroy two countries madly in love and establish a huge empire.
But only 14 days?
It was absurd, but it definitely didn't mean I was dissatisfied.
'It's a relief.'
If the muscles stiffen or deteriorate, rehabilitation takes a long time and effort. There's no harm in waking up early.
"Ugh...!"
As soon as I tried to get up from the bed, the muscles that had not been used for 14 days screamed in pain.
Gurgle!
My body, which had been relying on fluids without consuming food properly, cried out in hunger...
"Just wait a moment. There's porridge in the fridge."
Manager Seo Hye-joo handed me warm porridge heated in the microwave.
"Thank you."
"Did the work go well?"
"Yes. I struggled until the very end because I couldn't let go of my attachment. There was also unexpected interference."
"Interference?"
"Yes. The witch helped the patient escape to the empire when she was cornered."
If Kim Eun-jung hadn't been caught by the prince, it would have been easily resolved without going to the empire.
Navigation, naval battle, sea god, conquest, Baron...
And Valentine.
I had various experiences that I didn't consider when planning with Manager Seo Hye-joo.
"If it's a witch... is it the woman who appeared in Choi Kang-min's dream?"
"That's right."
Vvrrring-
At that moment, Manager Seo Hye-joo's smartphone vibrated in her pocket.
"Hello-"
(Doctor! Eun-jung spoke! Oh my god! Thank you! I had completely given up...!)
The excited voice of the lady from the other side of the smartphone.
It seemed like the patient's mind had returned to reality like mine.
"I'll be there soon."
(Doctor! Thank you! Thank you so much!)
"Please thank Mr. Kang Moon-soo, not me. I just helped from the side."
(Yes, yes!)
Click.
Manager Seo Hye-joo, who ended the call, gave me a bitter smile.
"Mr. Kang Moon-soo, how does it feel to save a family?"
"It's just... I feel numb."
"Huh~ Your expression is like a male who failed to mate. What happened in the dream?"
"Did it show that much?"
"Very much."
I scolded Manager Seo Hye-joo, who was smirking mischievously.
"Aren't you going to see the patient?"
"I'm going to listen first."
"I had a knight who taught me swordsmanship."
"Is it a character from the novel?"
"Yes. Manager, you should at least remember the name. Valentine. The woman who had an affair with the protagonist's fiancé..."
"Then she must have been a great beauty."
"Yes.
"Even more than Song Seon-young?"
"......"
I avoided her gaze because either answer would be a disaster.
"How about it?"
"I'll exercise my right to remain silent."
"Don't do that, just be honest. I'll keep it a secret."
"I still can't."
"What a shame."
Manager Seo Hye-joo backed off easily, albeit disappointed.
"...The aftereffects are more severe in a different way than Choi Kang-min."
I felt empty.
"It seems you had many good things happen in your dream."
"I'll tell you later."
"I'm looking forward to it."
"Now, please leave me alone and go take care of the patient. She suffered a lot being treated as a villain at the end."
"I can imagine. Romance and infidelity are just a hair's breadth away."
"What..."
It's a guess she can make because she doesn't know about the inhumane punishment of the Middle Ages.
"Get some rest."
"Yes."
After Manager Seo Hye-joo left, I ate the cold porridge while talking and sat on the sofa.
"......"
Feeling empty as if there was a huge hole in my chest.
The empty spot left by Valentine, who was almost always by my side under the pretext of escorting, felt enormous.
'It's just a novel and a dream.'
I watched the exotic scenery outside the window while sorting out my mixed feelings.
Tourists, utility poles, smartphones, asphalt, concrete, cars...
My senses, which had become accustomed to the Middle Ages, gradually returned to the modern era.
Ding-dong!
While I was slowly recovering from the aftereffects, the doorbell of the hotel room rang.
"Who is it?"
"Open the door quickly!"
"Huh?"
I was startled by the very familiar voice of the girl.
"Open it quickly!"
"Why are you angry?"
I cautiously asked as I stood in front of the room door.
"What? Stop talking nonsense and open it quickly!"
And I couldn't even get an answer.
"Okay."
Click-
As soon as she heard the sound of the lock being released, the guest opened the door wide.
"Hey!"
"Hello- Ahhh?!"
Thud!
I screamed as I was kicked in the shin and fell to the floor.
"You deserve more! What? You'll never move?"
"So, Song Seon-young...?"
"Do you want to get hit again? Call me properly!"
"...Seon-young?"
"Nice to see you♪"
The lively girl, who seemed more energetic than when I last saw her at Elmorang Hospital, was right in front of me.
'Why is Song Seon-young here?!'
Her long legs, which had kicked my shin, were showing off their charm beneath her short blue dress.
"What are you looking at?"
"Ahem."
It's someone's fault that the angle of my vision is strange.
"How's your body?"
"Well... it's okay except for my shin."
"That's a relief!"
Song Seon-young, who entered the room with big strides, sat on the sofa with her legs crossed.
"It's nice to see you after a long time, but how did you get here?"
"Why? Can't I come?"
"That's not the question."
Her twisted personality seems to be the same.
"I have a shoot."
"A shoot?"
"I became a swimsuit model. I'm wearing one right now. Want me to show you?"
"No, thank you."
"...Okay."
"Yes."
Song Seon-young, who I met again, looked very happy.
"I was reborn! I'm not Kim Eun-jung!"
The patient vehemently denied.
Either way,
"Readers imagine themselves as the protagonist of a novel. That's the charm of novels. But if a novel is reality, the author would be the creator of the world... Do you think the author of this novel is a god?"
"......"
"You turned your back on common sense, intoxicated by the joy of becoming a beautiful protagonist. Date men in reality."
"Who are you to interfere!"
"It's a story I heard from a mother who cleans her grown-up daughter's excrement and pushes her wheelchair, you know?"
My emotional reason for not saying nice words to the patient.
It's because of the ignorant attitude of not knowing parents' love and sacrifice, and only thinking about dating handsome men.
Even untrained animals wouldn't be as selfish as this woman.
"E-Excrement...?"
"If you don't clean it up yourself, someone else has to. Isn't that obvious?"
"......"
The patient, whose shame soared, covered her red face with her palm.
"You are not the beautiful lady of the Count's family. You wear adult diapers-"
"Stop! Please stop! I've heard enough, just stop talking...!"
"...Alright."
Is it because life in this novel world is no longer happy?
Kim Eun-jung, who became the youngest daughter of the Count’s Family, didn't deny everything blindly like Choi Kang-min, the magical boy, covering his ears.
However,
'She still hasn't woken up.'
I wasn't disappointed about that. If she could be awakened with just this much stimulation, things wouldn't have escalated this far.
The real challenge starts now.
"Miss Kim Eun-jung. All the men who loved you have been ruined. The Emperor became impotent and the laughingstock of everyone, the Prince was dethroned, and the Pimaang Baron died on the battlefield. Ah! There's also someone who became your pet."
Receiving treatment worse than an animal as a price for divorce!
Except for the prince of the desert kingdom I persuaded when I visited the nursery of Chimac Count’s territory, everyone else faced a miserable end.
"I don't want to hear it."
"Aren't you curious about your future as the Empress of Doom?"
"That's a lie! I didn't marry the Emperor...!"
"But people don't think that way. They believe that the empire was destroyed because you clouded the wise Emperor's eyes."
The real cause was that they couldn't inflict any damage in the naval battle they should have won overwhelmingly and lost consecutively.
However, in the original novel, the Emperor was set as "beloved by the people," so all the resentment went to the protagonist!
It's very unfortunate.
"It's unfair..."
"Originally, they planned to skin you alive and hang you at the entrance of the imperial palace."
I told the patient a toned-down version for her mental health. The original plan was much more inhumane and cruel.
"Please save me!"
"Don't worry. It didn't happen because the Emperor needed for the stabilization of the empire put your safety as a condition."
"Th-Thank goodness..."
"But it's too early to be happy. You have been sentenced to serve in the nursery until you die. You can't date or marry. This is the Emperor's wish after being castrated."
"......"
I also told her a toned-down version for her mental health. There's no way she would only serve in the nursery, right?
It's better not to know.
"Miss Kim Eun-jung. Are you still not tired of living as Chimac? Do you want to keep living like this?"
"...Please help me."
"I don't have the power to do that."
I can guide the patient to wake up from her sweet dream, but the choice is up to her.
"You're lying! You have mysterious powers like that woman!"
"...By any chance, did that woman wear a black pointed hat?"
"Yes!"
"......"
The reason she could move from the kingdom to the empire in an instant.
The witch was involved.
"Please send me to a safe country! If you want, I can become your wife too!"
"...Miss Kim Eun-jung. There is no safe country for you in this world. Let go of your foolishness and accept reality."
"I don't want to...!"
"I have finished what I had to say. Think slowly while serving."
"I can't even if I die...!"
"Then die. Stop torturing your parents."
"......"
I turned around after bursting out with a sharp remark.
* * *
"My lord, may I ask you a question?"
Valentine, who had been silent all the way to my bedroom, which is the second most splendid in the imperial palace.
She looked at me with a strong gaze as she opened her lips, which she had been holding back.
'She really held it in for a long time.'
Applause for her patience and professionalism, who focused on escorting!
I nodded.
"Feel free. But it would be difficult if you ask too many."
"Are you leaving for another world?"
"Yes."
I admired Valentine's flexibility for deducing this far with only the fragmented knowledge she had picked up.
It might be even more so when compared to a patient who couldn't accept reality and was being unreasonable.
"Can I follow you?"
"No."
"......"
"Don't misunderstand. It's not that I don't want you to, Valentine. It's that I can't."
The two are clearly different.
"I know. I know that my lord doesn't dislike me."
"Thank you for understanding."
It was a mystery how Valentine knew, but it wasn't the atmosphere to ask, so I remained silent.
"When are you leaving?"
"About when Angelina Chimac gets tired and wants to die."
"There are only a few days left."
"Yes."
"......"
"......"
I had mixed feelings about having to say goodbye to the beautiful escort knight with whom I had shared big and small events.
'If this was reality... Oh, what a foolish...'
Just a while ago, I scolded the patient for holding onto this novel world, and now I'm doing the same?
A bitter smile naturally came out at my contradictory self.
"This is my last question."
"Go ahead."
"Can I call you 'oppa'?"
"......"
I saw an irresistible devil.
* * *
The mental strength of 'Kim Eun-jung,' an ordinary woman who just likes romance fantasy novels, wasn't strong.
She gave up the protagonist's life only one day after the public trial ended and started serving.
As evidence,
"...This is the worst feeling."
I, who had been spending dream-like time with Valentine, was mercilessly brought back to the cold reality.
The furniture and appliances with a neat design finished in plastic were not as luxurious as my bedroom in the imperial palace, but...
My mind was awakened to the fact that I had returned to the hotel room.
'Valentine...'
Her last image, hugging me as I disappeared like a mirage and sobbing, did not fade from my mind.
"Hmm..."
As if to call me right after waking up from the dream, the call device was lightly held in my right hand.
Squeeze.
As soon as I pressed the red button, it didn't take long for Manager Seo Hye-joo to open the door and enter the room.
"You woke up early."
"Manager, how long have I been asleep?"
"It's been 14 days today."
"That's really short."
It took quite some time to destroy two countries madly in love and establish a huge empire.
But only 14 days?
It was absurd, but it definitely didn't mean I was dissatisfied.
'It's a relief.'
If the muscles stiffen or deteriorate, rehabilitation takes a long time and effort. There's no harm in waking up early.
"Ugh...!"
As soon as I tried to get up from the bed, the muscles that had not been used for 14 days screamed in pain.
Gurgle!
My body, which had been relying on fluids without consuming food properly, cried out in hunger...
"Just wait a moment. There's porridge in the fridge."
Manager Seo Hye-joo handed me warm porridge heated in the microwave.
"Thank you."
"Did the work go well?"
"Yes. I struggled until the very end because I couldn't let go of my attachment. There was also unexpected interference."
"Interference?"
"Yes. The witch helped the patient escape to the empire when she was cornered."
If Kim Eun-jung hadn't been caught by the prince, it would have been easily resolved without going to the empire.
Navigation, naval battle, sea god, conquest, Baron...
And Valentine.
I had various experiences that I didn't consider when planning with Manager Seo Hye-joo.
"If it's a witch... is it the woman who appeared in Choi Kang-min's dream?"
"That's right."
Vvrrring-
At that moment, Manager Seo Hye-joo's smartphone vibrated in her pocket.
"Hello-"
(Doctor! Eun-jung spoke! Oh my god! Thank you! I had completely given up...!)
The excited voice of the lady from the other side of the smartphone.
It seemed like the patient's mind had returned to reality like mine.
"I'll be there soon."
(Doctor! Thank you! Thank you so much!)
"Please thank Mr. Kang Moon-soo, not me. I just helped from the side."
(Yes, yes!)
Click.
Manager Seo Hye-joo, who ended the call, gave me a bitter smile.
"Mr. Kang Moon-soo, how does it feel to save a family?"
"It's just... I feel numb."
"Huh~ Your expression is like a male who failed to mate. What happened in the dream?"
"Did it show that much?"
"Very much."
I scolded Manager Seo Hye-joo, who was smirking mischievously.
"Aren't you going to see the patient?"
"I'm going to listen first."
"I had a knight who taught me swordsmanship."
"Is it a character from the novel?"
"Yes. Manager, you should at least remember the name. Valentine. The woman who had an affair with the protagonist's fiancé..."
"Then she must have been a great beauty."
"Yes.
"Even more than Song Seon-young?"
"......"
I avoided her gaze because either answer would be a disaster.
"How about it?"
"I'll exercise my right to remain silent."
"Don't do that, just be honest. I'll keep it a secret."
"I still can't."
"What a shame."
Manager Seo Hye-joo backed off easily, albeit disappointed.
"...The aftereffects are more severe in a different way than Choi Kang-min."
I felt empty.
"It seems you had many good things happen in your dream."
"I'll tell you later."
"I'm looking forward to it."
"Now, please leave me alone and go take care of the patient. She suffered a lot being treated as a villain at the end."
"I can imagine. Romance and infidelity are just a hair's breadth away."
"What..."
It's a guess she can make because she doesn't know about the inhumane punishment of the Middle Ages.
"Get some rest."
"Yes."
After Manager Seo Hye-joo left, I ate the cold porridge while talking and sat on the sofa.
"......"
Feeling empty as if there was a huge hole in my chest.
The empty spot left by Valentine, who was almost always by my side under the pretext of escorting, felt enormous.
'It's just a novel and a dream.'
I watched the exotic scenery outside the window while sorting out my mixed feelings.
Tourists, utility poles, smartphones, asphalt, concrete, cars...
My senses, which had become accustomed to the Middle Ages, gradually returned to the modern era.
Ding-dong!
While I was slowly recovering from the aftereffects, the doorbell of the hotel room rang.
"Who is it?"
"Open the door quickly!"
"Huh?"
I was startled by the very familiar voice of the girl.
"Open it quickly!"
"Why are you angry?"
I cautiously asked as I stood in front of the room door.
"What? Stop talking nonsense and open it quickly!"
And I couldn't even get an answer.
"Okay."
Click-
As soon as she heard the sound of the lock being released, the guest opened the door wide.
"Hey!"
"Hello- Ahhh?!"
Thud!
I screamed as I was kicked in the shin and fell to the floor.
"You deserve more! What? You'll never move?"
"So, Song Seon-young...?"
"Do you want to get hit again? Call me properly!"
"...Seon-young?"
"Nice to see you♪"
The lively girl, who seemed more energetic than when I last saw her at Elmorang Hospital, was right in front of me.
'Why is Song Seon-young here?!'
Her long legs, which had kicked my shin, were showing off their charm beneath her short blue dress.
"What are you looking at?"
"Ahem."
It's someone's fault that the angle of my vision is strange.
"How's your body?"
"Well... it's okay except for my shin."
"That's a relief!"
Song Seon-young, who entered the room with big strides, sat on the sofa with her legs crossed.
"It's nice to see you after a long time, but how did you get here?"
"Why? Can't I come?"
"That's not the question."
Her twisted personality seems to be the same.
"I have a shoot."
"A shoot?"
"I became a swimsuit model. I'm wearing one right now. Want me to show you?"
"No, thank you."
"...Okay."
"Yes."
Song Seon-young, who I met again, looked very happy.
