SRSBO: Chapter 2

I opened my eyes again.

The intravenous fluid flowed into the narrow plastic tube.

The tip of the tube inserted into the back of the hand, which was as pale as paper, and even the black hair gently swaying at the chest wrapped in a stiff hospital gown, felt unfamiliar to me.

To put it simply, just like the day I possessed someone else’s body, I suddenly returned to the world I originally belonged to.

When I held up a small mirror placed on top of the hospital desk to my face, instead of seeing a delicate beauty with silver hair and warm, green eyes, I saw a pale-faced woman with black hair and sharp, piercing eyes.

‘…Ah, I’m Kim Eujung again.’

Before I could even gather my thoughts upon seeing my long-lost reflection, the hospital door suddenly swung open with a loud bang.

Immediately after, a woman burst into the room, and started sobbing.

“How many times have I told you to leave that guy!”

The woman grabbed my shoulder, shaking me as she angrily demanded what was wrong with me. She asked why I bothered to cling to someone like him and even volunteered to introduce me to someone better, so I could stop my crazy antics.

Ugh, I feel like I’m going to throw up.

Thinking that if things continued like this, neither of us would be able to see each other in a good light, so I quickly grabbed the woman’s arm.

“Wait, wait. Ah, wait!!”

“Uh, uh?”

“Stop shaking me! I’m already feeling dizzy, I’m going to throw up. Now, look at me and breathe. In, out. In, out.”

“Uh, huh? Huh? Hoo, haa. Huu, haa.”

“Alright, you seem to have calmed down a bit. So, who are you?”

She seemed to be in her twenties, with dyed brown hair, pearl earrings, coral eye makeup, and a neatly tailored suit.

No matter how much I thought about it, it was a face I didn’t recognize. Who is it?

The awkwardness seemed to show on my face, and the woman’s eyes turned teary again.

“Why, why are you being like this? Eujung… Are you saying this because I told you to break up with Ham Sihyook?”

The woman continued to speak as tears flowed from her eyes.

“But Eujung, that bastard Ham Sihyook promised you he wouldn’t see anyone else again, and then he brought another woman into the house! You’re not seriously going to forgive him again, are you?!”

“Huh? Forgive who?”

“I can’t accept it! I’ll introduce someone better to you instead. Okay? There are plenty of young guys in their early twenties, so what’s wrong with you that you’re settling for someone like him!”

“Early 20s? Young?”

At those words, I carefully patted my face.

Clearly, the reflection I saw in the mirror just a moment ago looked different from how I remembered it, it appeared thinner and more mature than the version in my memories.

However, since it had been such a long time ago, my memory might have been wrong, or I might have lost weight while I was asleep in the other world, so I didn’t pay much attention to it.

But after hearing the woman’s words, I began to think again.

What if that was not the case? What if, while I lived for seven years in that other world, seven years also passed in this world?

In that case….

“Eujung?”

Who was the one who occupied my body for 7 years?

* * *

Usually, in most transmigration novels, when the protagonist returns to their original world, time in that world is either frozen or only a very short amount of time has passed.

So that’s why I had thought. I had naturally assumed that everything would remain the same as it was before.

“So… I was dating a guy named Ham Sihyook? And he cheated not just once, but five times? And every time he apologized for cheating, I took him back?”

“Uhm… More than that, Eujung. Are you really sure I don’t need to call a doctor? What if there’s something seriously wrong with your head?”

“I’m fine, keep talking. I can barely remember anything.”

I nodded my head while holding my forehead.

Considering the circumstances the woman in front of me mentioned, my past actions, and the reputation of Amelia that I heard about in the other world, it seemed that the one who had been in my body for those seven years was indeed the real Amelia Campbell.

Just as I had lived as Amelia for seven years, perhaps she had also lived as Kim Eujung. Stories of bodies swapping aren’t supposed to be this common…

‘…Let’s just believe that.’

Regardless of the truth, it was better for my mental health to think that way. If I considered anything else, it would be too unsettling, even chilling.

Anyway, Amelia (presumably) seemed to have been trying to adapt to the changed environment just like I had.

“But you, have had the same problem before.”

The woman in front of me, who looked like she was about to worry herself to death, was also a connection created by Amelia.

“I’ve heard that ever since that incident, you’ve been having some confusion with your memories. Maybe you should really get checked out?”

If it’s that incident, is she referring to the time I collapsed in the subway? Ah, my personality suddenly changed, so she needed a valid excuse.

As I silently sifted through my past memories, the woman watched me with anxious eyes.

The woman’s name was Han Siyoung. She said she was working as a guide and that she took half a day off because of me today.

She said that we attended the same high school, but since I couldn’t remember her, it seemed Amelia must have met her after possessing my body.

Then what happened to Oh Minah? Did we lose contact? I suddenly wondered if there was any news about my close friend from high school.

“No, it’s fine. More importantly, is it okay for you to take a half-day off because of me?”

“Yeah. Since I’m a Guide, if I have health issues, it’s easier for me to take a half-day off compared to regular companies. Although, I lied about being sick.”

I didn’t realize it was easier to take a half-day off in the tourism industry. That’s surprising.

“Oh, is my house still in the same location as it was in high school? Is my family doing well? Since I’m already 24, I must have graduated from college… Did I get a job? Or am I still hunting for one? Wait, maybe I took a leave?”

I muttered incessantly. The more I spoke, the paler Han Siyoung’s face became, but I didn’t have time to pay attention to that.

Just think about it. It’s been 7 years.

In Han Siyoung’s eyes, I might have seemed like a crazy person, but being updated on the information I had accumulated over time was more important than reassuring her.

It was already impossible to try to imitate Amelia, someone I had never even met in the first place.

“Eu, Eujung….”

Han Siyoung, who had been rolling her eyes anxiously with a pale face like someone who had seen a ghost, opened her mouth with difficulty. And as she continued to talk, I inhaled sharply, with a face that was even paler than hers.

“…What? I didn’t attend college?”

First of all, Kim Eujung didn’t even get into college, let alone graduate.

Of course, I didn’t think Amelia would be able to do things the way I had done.

Since she was in the same situation as me, she needed to relearn the basics, starting with reading and writing the letters from the very beginning. There was no way she could jump straight into preparing for college entrance exams.

However, my family was the type that insisted on all of their children graduating from college, no matter what.

So, even if they had to lower their expectations and make her repeat the year, they should have still forced me to attend a college….

“Self-employed? Running a flower shop? Me?”

But I, who didn’t even know the names of flowers, let alone their meanings, was running a flower shop.

That was the moment when my outlook on life, that I would rather become one of cogs in society’s wheel and live as a slaved employee than run a business, came crashing down.

“On top of that, I lent money to my ex-boyfriend? Five hundred thousand won? Without even a promissory note??”

I guess I should be thankful I didn’t act as a guarantor, at least.

Everything I heard made me shake to the core, but this was the most shocking part.

“My parents… moved to the countryside to become farmers?”

My house was gone.

* * *

When I returned to reality after seven years, all the academic achievements I had worked so hard for since childhood had been reduced to nothing.

I got a job right after graduating from high school, but quit shortly after.

After that, I hopped from one part-time job to another before starting a flower shop, so even my work experience was broken and fragmented.

On top of that, I lent 5 million won to my ex-boyfriend, who was presumed to be trash, without a promissory note.

As a result, the only assets I had were the loan my previous self had left, the small flower shop I financed with that loan, and a one-room apartment.

“This must be a nightmare….”

A terrible nightmare on top of that.

I couldn’t even get angry because it was beyond my acceptable limit. I was just staring blankly at the floor, not knowing what to do.

The door to the hospital room opened again, and this time a man rushed in.

“Eujung!”

“Oh, Hyunwoo. The situation is not good right now, so first, let’s go through the discharge procedures and then head to Eujung’s house to talk. I’ll explain everything.”

Han Siyoung, who seemed to be acquainted with the man, spoke first.

The man, who had been wearing a tense expression, seemed to relax upon seeing her, but when he turned to look at me, his face suddenly shifted to one of realization.

“This can’t be happening. I don’t know if it’s the right time to say it, but… I heard Eujung’s house has collapsed.”

What?

“What? What are you talking about all of a sudden?”

Instead of me, Han Siyoung asked. At her question, the man hesitated for a long time before speaking.

He glanced at me, as if he was worried that I, who already looked weak, would collapse again.

“I’m fine, tell me.”

When I urged him with a calm expression, the man cautiously parted his lips to speak.

“That… A high-ranking Esper went berserk near Eujung’s house, and her house collapsed as a result.”

What’s an Esper anyway? Is it some kind of typhoon name?

Unless an elephant appeared on the road or something, why would a perfectly fine house collapse?

Hearing that even my already small fortune had disappeared, I quietly grabbed the back of my neck. My body began falling backwards on its own.

“Eujung!!”