Chapter 1

The magnificent melody of the pipe organ spread like concentric circles.

On both sides of Virgin Road, guests in colorful robes filled the seats, and the whole ceremony was filled with solemn dignity.

In terms of formality, it was perfect like a duke’s wedding.

However, there was no wedding-like joy or bustle to be seen anywhere.

‘I think it would be more appropriate to call it a funeral.’

It really is.

Both the groom’s guests and the bride’s guests have dark faces.

‘Please control your expressions no matter how uncomfortable you are. Am I the only one who can do it?’

I have to walk in the middle of this frozen ceremony and stand next to a man who will kill me.

“Now, Edith Rigelhof, please come in.”

The priest who did not know whether he had come to officiate at a wedding or to attend a funeral mass ordered my entrance grimly.

I practiced all day yesterday and simulated it in my head, but I couldn’t help but feel nervous.

I walked forward slowly, kicking the hem of my dress with my toes, just as I practiced with all my strength to prevent an accidental fall.

But the skirt is not the problem with the wedding dress I am wearing.

My chest… I mean, I know my breasts are big and beautiful, but they are too exposed.

This is my first time wearing it and I think something that should cover my chest is missing.

‘No matter how good a sensual dress is, isn’t it a bit too much on a wedding day?’

As if I am not the only one who thinks so, the gazes looking at me clearly contained negative emotions; loathing, contempt, disregard, or lust.

I walked over to the man who will one day slash my neck, cutting through the heavy air that I couldn’t even feel the flakes of favor.

Of course, he didn’t even look at me. To him, I must be like a curse or punishment given to him.

‘Whoa, I didn’t fall down anyway. Step one is clear.’

I bent my knees and bowed my head slightly towards the priest to show my courtesy and breathed a sigh of relief.

The priest nodded his head indifferently and began to recite a prayer of blessing.

“All things in the world praise you, my God, Hershan. I bless you both, beautiful man and woman who will build a happy and warm family in the arms of the Creator today…

Well… I don’t think I’ll ever be able to create a happy or warm future with this man.

In this situation, knowing that a man who hates me will slash my neck, it’s extremely unclear whether I will be able to obtain either a ‘happy or warm family’ or ‘future.’

But there is no way for me to deny or avoid this situation beforehand.

When I opened my eyes, I was in the body of a woman who was going to get married in a week.

How crazy the process was, too.

***

Misfortune does not come alone.

That’s what happened on that day.

“Suna! I told you not to do this!”

“Yes? This is senior Yeong-eun’s—”

“I’m sorry, Manager. Suna’s still not good at working with Excel. I will fix it again.”

Ahn Young-eun, who had done all kinds of bad things just because she was a senior who came a year earlier than me, blamed me for her mistakes.

Manager Park, who printed out a messy Excel table, gave me a harsh look and nagged me for a long time before going back.

I looked at Young-eun with a bewildered expression, but she sat down in her seat as if tired, without even looking at me.

– How long is Ahn Young-un going to live like that?

– I don’t know.

– Ugh… she’s been cursing since morning. Suna, cheer up!

My coworker cheered me on via messenger, but it didn’t give me much strength.

Maybe it was because I saw her going to buy coffee with Young-eun at the end of lunchtime.

I was in a bad mood, but this is such a common thing that I thought it was just bad luck, and I deserved it.

It was Friday, and I had an appointment with my boyfriend after work.

But it wasn’t until after my workday that I got a message from my boyfriend to cancel our date.

– Baby~ I got the weekend shift and will be working overtime today. I’m sorry ㅠㅗㅠ See you next week. I’ll buy you something delicious ♡

Aside from not being able to meet him all weekend, I was upset to hear that my boyfriend, who had been suffering from overtime recently, had to work until the weekend.

If I hadn’t stopped by XX Mall, which is today’s meeting place, I wouldn’t have seen my boyfriend holding hands with another woman…

I stared blankly at their backs as they moved away, and only after they had completely disappeared from my sight did I take out my phone and text him.

– You said that you will be working overtime today, so the woman walking with you seems to be your boss? Looks like you two are really working hard. Just work hard until all your bones are broken! Don’t contact me in the future!

Even when I witnessed my boyfriend cheating on me with my own eyes, strangely, it didn’t seem like my hands were shaking or I was going to cry. Actually, I wasn’t even mad.

Perhaps I was unconsciously expecting such a breakup.

‘Cause I’m not worthy of him…’

He is a sincere man who grew up in a well-to-do family and works for a fairly large company. He is a good-looking man, and is moderately tall, kind, and educated.

Unlike me, who lives in a poor family and tries hard not to show that I have no money, he is a man who feels comfortable even in a simple lifestyle.

I am grateful that such a man treats me kindly, but at the same time, I could not shake the thought of ‘Until when will this go on?’

And that ‘when’ is today.

‘I’m out of money. This weekend, I’ll have to pay for a lot of novels in the cart and read them.’

Thinking about it that way made me feel a little better.

It’s my pleasure to read romantic fantasy novels before bed. Even if I don’t have enough pocket money, I have to open one free chapter a day or wait to see it.

When I thought I could save money to meet an imaginary man and pay for some novels in the cart, my steps back home became lighter in an instant.

But it was just my misunderstanding that the bad things of the day ended there.

“What are you doing now? Hurry up and come here, you punk!”

“Huh? Oppa?”

My older brother was waiting in front of the door to my studio next to the steep stairs in a shabby multi-family house.

Before I could even get close, the smell of alcohol made my body stiff.

“Hey, give me whatever money you have.”

“What? I don’t have money.”

“You have a card! Get some cash on hand and give me some!”

“Oppa, did you gamble again…?!”

“Oh, damn it, you babble a lot! Who are you to nag me, your savior, who made you live so far?!”

I was deafened by my brother’s sudden shout, but I was more anxious about whether there was someone next door or maybe listening to this.

‘Will that savior excuse haunt me until I die?’

Under the pretext of giving me–who had leukemia–a bone marrow transplant thirteen years ago, my older brother always shamelessly asked me for money.

I don’t know how much I thought it would have been convenient if I had died without a bone marrow transplant at that time.

It was even more so today.

I tend to forget bad things quickly, but I’m fed up with this repeated situation.

“…no. Do you know how much money you borrowed from me? Pay it back and ask for a loan!”

“What? This damn bitch!”

My brother slapped me on the cheek.

There was a flash of light in front of my eyes and my ears were deaf. I felt a strange sensation as if I was floating in the air.

‘Oh, there are stairs behind me…’

The moment I had that thought, immediately after, I rolled on the stairs and hit my head hard somewhere at the end of the stairs.

That was my last memory as a Korean woman in her twenties, Choi Suna.

***

I felt like I had slept for a long time.

My consciousness slowly came and I realized that I was not dead.

I opened my eyes thinking I was in a hospital, but a scene that could never be a hospital caught my eye.

‘Princess room…?’

It was a room similar to the Palace of Versailles I saw on the Internet.

Besides, I didn’t feel any pain in my body that should have been broken or at least badly bruised. No, I even had a feeling that I was more energetic than usual.

‘What? How long have I been unconsciousness?’

As I got up from the bed, rich reddish-brown hair ran down my shoulders.

After suffering from leukemia, my hair was thin and I had never dyed it.

With fine hair in my hands, I was stunned, and someone knocked on the door.

“It’s Sophia, my lady.”

“…Sophia?”

“I’m coming in.”

Then the door opened and a young woman with a slightly scared look came in with a copper washbasin on something like a tray.

Her clothes look just like the maid clothes that cosplayers often wear.

“The master ordered you to stop by the office after you get ready.”

“Yes…?”

“Hurry up.”

I had to wash my face, comb my hair, and wear a slick dress by that woman without knowing what was going on.

And as I stood in front of the mirror to check my makeup, I realized that things were going very strangely.

‘Who are you?’

My appearance in the mirror was so unfamiliar.

She is a westerner with red hair, light brown eyes, white skin, and a glamorous body.

It’s pretty, but it looks a bit scrawny. It’s a good impression for someone who goes to ask for a refund.

And in the meantime, someone’s memories slowly began to flow into my mind.

Edith Rigelhof, a 22-year-old noblewoman who will marry a week later.

It was strange to have the memory of a noblewoman in the minds of people living in the 21st century, but it was even more strange that her name was not unfamiliar.

‘Edith… Edith Rigelhof. Where did I hear that name? Who is she? Oh, wait! No way…?’

I remember. It’s the name of the villainess in the romantic fantasy novel I read until the end yesterday.

It was a novel titled “I Refuse Your Obsession” with a Cider[1] narration.

[1] A cliché story, and usually refers to an unobstructed, exhilarating, and rapid development. In other words, the world is only created for the main character. The opposite of Cider is Sweet Potato: a novel with a convoluted story/too much drama.

‘Nonsense! Did I possess the villainous girl of a romantic fantasy novel?’

It seems I’ve lost my mind. Not the main character, but the villainess! No, I possessed before I became a villainess!