Chapter 5
She could reason out that she had become Emilia Tollin, but accepting that it had actually happened still required more time for Hera.
“Cecilia, are you going to stay in Emilia’s room again today?”
A man’s voice came just then. He stepped quietly into the room and spoke to Cecilia.
“Julian, look! Sister is awake!”
“Emilia!”
The man who ran toward Hera was Julian Tollin, the eldest son of the Tollin family.
“Are you alright?”
He had very neatly groomed black hair. No, calling it entirely black wouldn’t be accurate—there were hints of dark hazelnut mixed in.
Having lived her whole life with black hair, Hera was able to properly judge Julian’s hair color.
Aside from the hair, his eyes had a subtly melancholic look, unlike Cecilia’s. It drew Hera’s attention.
He was a man with a composed jawline, yet his features created a strange, almost conflicting atmosphere.
“I-I’m fine…”
Hera replied awkwardly, pulling the blanket up to cover half her face.
Cecilia and Julian exchanged confused glances, as though they were seeing this side of Emilia for the first time.
“Sister must still be a bit out of it. Julian, let’s go call the doctor together.”
Almost as if she could read Hera’s mind and sense her desire to be alone, Cecilia stood up quickly.
Julian gave a slight nod and followed after her.
Before leaving Hera’s side, Julian gently kissed her forehead and spoke softly.
“Emilia, my dear sister. Please don’t fall so terribly ill again. I thought my heart was going to burn to ashes.”
Though Hera had been kissed on the forehead by her mother and father every day, receiving a kiss from a boy around her age stirred a very different emotion.
It was awkward—and frankly, embarrassing.
Her face flushed red, and she quickly pulled the blanket over her head to hide it.
‘What on earth has happened to me?’
Even after a long time of hiding under the blanket and thinking, Hera found no answers.
It felt like being tossed alone into a pitch-dark cave.
Before she realized it, tears welled up in her eyes.
‘I remember being very sick. I started to fall into a deep sleep, and then closed my eyes.’
Hera’s final memory was of her death.
That afternoon, while resting in bed, the mysterious incurable illness that had plagued her all her life finally stole her breath away.
The one who found Hera’s silent, lifeless body—with not even a short scream escaping—was her mother Belina, who came late at night for a goodnight kiss.
‘Am I dreaming or something?’
Unaware that she had died, or that her soul had been absorbed into Emilia’s body, Hera was understandably confused by everything.
The only thing that brought her a shred of comfort was how light her body now felt.
The shortness of breath that had always tormented her, the hands and feet that had felt cold to the point of pain, and the constant motion sickness—all of it was gone.
It felt as though that suffering had been cut away with scissors.
That’s why Hera believed she must be dreaming.
She had always dreamed of being free from pain…
“Ah!”
But something existed that proved Hera’s assumption wrong.
A sudden, rough movement threw her blanket away.
Startled, Hera sat up on the bed, completely exposed.
[A revised contract has arrived. Please review it.]
“A… a book… is flying…”
She had never seen—or even imagined—such a sight in her life.
Floating in the air before Hera was a thick hardcover book.
Its cover was encrusted with jewels and gold of dazzling colors.
Although Hera had lived her whole life in a noble household, she had never seen something that looked this valuable.
Even more surprising, words were floating out of the book and forming sentences in mid-air.
[A revised contract has arrived. Please review it.]
The same sentence reappeared, as if insisting.
Hesitating, Hera reached out her hand.
As soon as her fingers touched the floating sentence, the book transformed into a single scroll.
Heart pounding, Hera cautiously began to read the contract:
“The Contractor shall be bound for life. The Contractor is granted abilities necessary to fulfill the duties of the contract. The Contractor is obligated to collect forty-four treasures and four holy relics. Upon completion of the contract duties, no further restrictions shall apply to the Contractor’s next contract.”
As she read this far, Hera noticed that the letters had started to fade and appear worn—like inscriptions carved into a weathered stone tablet.
In contrast, the text below remained vivid.
Why the difference?
“In the absence of Emilia Tollin’s soul, this contract shall be fully transferred to the new Contractor occupying Emilia Tollin’s body…”
That clause clearly referred to Hera.
She immediately shook her head in refusal.
She might not fully understand the contract, but her instincts told her it was dangerous.
“This has nothing to do with me. I don’t even know what it means. Please just go away.”
Hera tried to flee to the head of the bed, but the contract scroll relentlessly followed her.
Keeping a consistent distance, it hovered near her, which somehow felt even more threatening.
“I’m not Emilia! I don’t need any contract like this!”
As Hera protested desperately, a new line appeared in the air:
[We are aware, Hera Wintaile.]
The fact that it knew her real name filled Hera with fear.
Unable to even fix her pajama strap as it slipped from her shoulder, she ran barefoot for the door.
‘This is my first time ever running…’
Her amazement at this newly healthy body was short-lived.
Suddenly, blue rose petals appeared behind her and turned into chains, wrapping around her waist.
“Ugh!!”
They yanked her back toward the bed.
[Do you refuse to accept Emilia Tollin’s contract?]
The book asked. Hera nodded frantically.
“Yes! I refuse!”
[Emilia Tollin’s body is bound to this contract. Shall we proceed with incineration of the body?]
“In… incineration? You’re going to burn this body?!”
[Unfulfilled contracts shall be incinerated.]
Hera froze.
What would happen to her if this body were burned?
[Incineration ready.]
A vivid blue flame burst forth in front of her.
Even at a glance, it was hot enough to easily burn a human body.
‘Burn to death? No… I’m scared…’
“Wait! I’ll do it!”
Panicked, Hera screamed. The flame vanished instantly.
[Will you sign the revised contract?]
The sentence floated in the air again.
Hera nodded hurriedly.
The contract floated down to where her hand could reach it.
“…the above contract shall be fully transferred to the new Contractor…”
Even rereading it, the terms were unreasonable.
Signing this meant she would be deeply entangled in Emilia’s life. She could forget about having her own fresh start.
‘But there’s no other way right now.’
Hera shut her eyes tightly and placed her hand on the contract.
Suddenly, blue rose vines began to sprout from the scroll like budding plants, wrapping themselves around her fingers and wrist.
“Ow!”
The thorns on the roses pricked her hand repeatedly.
Bright red blood dripped onto the scroll.
Moments later, a blue rose bud bloomed fully.
It had drunk Hera’s red blood and bloomed into a vibrant blue rose.
The strange, vivid color mesmerized Hera for a moment.
[Contract complete.]
