Chapter 25 — Not a Shepherd Boy, But a Girl (1)
The place where I opened my eyes was a cozy room bathed in warm sunlight.
The sunlight was gentle, the breeze refreshing, and the blanket soft—everything was perfect.
That is, if not for my arms being tied to the headboard.
“What a pervert…”
I murmured with a hoarse voice and sat up, only to hear the clinking of chains near my ankles.
As expected, shackles were also secured around them.
The only saving grace was that the shackles weren’t fixed to anything but rather attached to a large iron weight.
…Could I escape if I ran with it?
I swallowed my dry saliva and entertained the ridiculous thought.
My mind was still foggy from the lingering effects of alcohol.
Then, I saw a glass of water in my line of sight.
Ginger, or someone else, must have prepared it.
But if they were going to leave me a drink, they could’ve at least placed it closer.
Clicking my tongue, I bit at the cloth tying my wrists.
It wasn’t a complete restraint, so I managed to undo the binding easily.
Now, just the iron weight left. Could I lift it?
When I carefully tried lifting it, my muscles trembled under the heavy burden.
It wasn’t impossible to lift—but definitely impossible to run with.
If it was meant to frustrate someone, it had succeeded.
…I’ll bite their solar plexus later.
With that firm resolve, I staggered toward the table with the water.
Who knew getting a sip of water would be this exhausting?
As I drank, the nausea that had been churning since I woke up seemed to settle.
I was so grateful for this peaceful moment I almost cried.
“…Now what do I do to get back?”
After quenching my thirst, even returning to the bed felt like a long journey.
I couldn’t just sit on the marble floor… Actually, it seemed more comfortable.
I was flushed from the remaining alcohol. The cool floor helped ease the heat.
It was clean, after all.
“…Hehe—”
As I pressed my face to the floor and wiggled around, I heard a strange laugh.
Startled, I raised my head and scanned the room. A woman was sitting in a chair in the corner.
It was a familiar face.
A neat black bob just brushing the shoulders. Dark eyes under faint double eyelids. A decently shaped nose and lips that looked like they’d speak well.
Extremely ordinary. Extremely East Asian.
A face I used to see every single morning in my previous life.
“Did you sleep well?”
Her cheerful greeting made me wonder if my voice had ever sounded that bright.
“…Odelia?”
Her gentle smile sparkled with familiarity.
“Yes. I’m Odelia Snifter.”
At her bright confirmation, I sighed.
It was clearly my face—but didn’t feel like mine.
I was nearing thirty in my previous life.
And I never had a particularly pretty or cute impression. That girlish smile didn’t suit me.
But the face in front of me looked charming, like someone in her early twenties.
Or rather, it lacked the ‘wear and tear’ that had accumulated on my face during working life.
You know those automatic Photoshop cameras—like the Little Prince camera or Snow White filters? That’s what this felt like.
“…Well, nice to meet you.”
“Nice to meet you too.”
As Odelia walked toward me with a bright smile, I let out another sigh.
Seeing my face in that fancy outfit made me feel like it would disappear from the sheer contrast.
A simple shirt and slacks would’ve been enough. Or pajamas and a cotton tee.
Recalling the clothes I used to wear in my past life, I sighed deeply.
Then, Odelia reached out her hand to me.
“Need help?”
“Thanks for the kindness. Mind lifting this iron ball? With my old body, I could’ve run with it.”
Odelia tilted her head, confused.
Oh, girl…
To survive as a regular office worker in Korea, you need decent muscle strength.
You should be able to carry a 20kg rice bag up five flights of stairs.
That’s how you get promoted.
The memory made me unexpectedly emotional.
I really lived diligently. I wish I could get my life back.
Odelia tried extending her arms here and there to lift the iron ball, then drew back, apologetically.
“Sorry. I’ve never lifted something like this before.”
“…Understandable.”
The words “just grab it and lift” rose to my throat but I swallowed them.
If she lived as a noble lady all her life, she wouldn’t know. It was only natural.
So I didn’t press further and nudged the iron ball with my foot.
“Can you unlock this?”
“…You won’t run away, right?”
She eyed me suspiciously, and I shrugged.
“If you know your body well, you’d know I can’t escape. And since your body is mine, it’d be easy for you to overpower me.”
“…True.”
Looking fascinated, she clasped and unclasped her hands, then pulled out a ring of keys from her pocket.
The shackles clinked as they came off, and my ankle felt lighter.
As I rolled it to loosen up, she grabbed my arm.
“What’s this for?”
“Just in case.”
Just in case? No matter how much I resist, escaping the Duke of Stawood’s estate alone would be impossible.
Even if I shook her off and ran, there’s no way I could avoid the knights and assassins guarding this place.
That much was certain.
And even if I could sneak out—it wouldn’t be now.
“Odelia. You’re really her, right?”
“Of course.”
…Sigh.
Maybe it was the overly confident expression.
Or maybe it was because she was saying it with my own face.
I had never been told I had a trustworthy face, but hearing it from myself made me kind of believe it.
I had fallen into the body of the tragic female lead of a dark fantasy novel I was reading before bed.
Now that protagonist had possessed my body to meet me.
Whoever came up with this plot—bravo. But also, I’d like to strangle you.
As I scratched my head in frustration, I felt her gaze grow uncomfortable.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“…Because it’s fascinating.”
“My face? It’s yours.”
I meant it as, “what’s so special?”—but she shook her head.
“I always wondered. What part of my beauty drives people mad?”
There was a flicker of envy—and maybe anger—in her eyes.
Whatever it was, it wasn’t right to direct that emotion at her own body.
That’s when I became sure. The girl in front of me was not Odelia.
She was not Odelia.
The Odelia in the original story was the purest soul of all.
She didn’t doubt anyone. Loved everyone. Never held negative emotions, no matter the situation.
She was beautiful to the very depths of her soul.
In modern terms, maybe a fool or a pushover.
The girl in front of me was not that pure.
If Odelia had to be innocent and noble as the heroine, this girl was more like an envious extra.
“Odelia thinks people go mad because of her own faults, but that’s not it.”
“…What?”
“This world was insane to begin with.”
Her eyes widened in confusion, so I explained kindly.
“Literally. A world of the crazy, by the crazy, for the crazy.”
“…Is that meant to comfort me?”
“Dunno. Did it sound like that?”
If she found comfort in it, fine. If not, also fine.
But one thing was clear—this girl knew nothing about Odelia.
She probably didn’t even know this world was the novel Blooming Handsome Men.
Then how did she end up with my face?
“Um…”
As I was thinking, she called me.
Maybe she’d reveal something? I tilted my head, and she smiled innocently.
“May I ask your name?”
“Hm…”
I hesitated.
Should I leave any trace of myself in this world?
But Ginger already knew. So what if others do too?
I’m going to disappear anyway.
“…It’s Jina.”
“Jina?”
She tilted her head, clearly unfamiliar with the name.
After repeating it to herself, she gently patted my hand.
“You’ve gone through so much living in my body, Lady Jina.”
“Ugh… Just call me Jina.”
‘Lady’ sounded gross coming from my own face.
Even after spending time in this world, the name and life I had for nearly thirty years—Jina—was still what felt real.
That wouldn’t change easily.
I stuck out my tongue in disgust, and she nodded.
“You don’t have to worry anymore. You can go wherever you want, Jina.”
Her magnanimous tone made me chuckle.
So that’s what this was.
She wanted all the love that Odelia had received.
From the crown prince, her marquis brother, and the duke.
…If only she knew what that really meant.
Honestly, watching her long to be loved using my face gave me chills.
So now, what should I do with her?
I didn’t have much left to learn from her.
“Thanks for the concern. And for meeting me. If it were me, I wouldn’t want to meet someone impersonating me.”
“Really? I wanted to talk to you. I believed there was a reason. It wasn’t easy, but I begged the marquis to let us meet alone.”
“Is that so? Then… did you ask him to take care of the guards too?”
“…What?”
Her pure expression didn’t falter, but I smiled bitterly.
Yeah, I wasn’t a nice person.
I wanted to throw a curveball at the one who screwed me.
I recalled the last scene before I fainted.
“You know… the knights of the family. Did Odelia agree to killing them too?”
As I asked with a gentle smile, her face went pale.
She waved her hands like I was saying something outrageous.
Such a familiar expression.
In my past life, I lived off of reading people. I knew what that face meant.
It was an act.
Her shocked, terrified expression—it was fake.
“To think I’d be involved in something so cruel…”
“So it was all the duke’s doing? Odelia’s just too kind, huh?”
“Yes! I told him not to, but he wouldn’t listen! How could he harm people so casually…”
“Wow, the bullshit never stops.”
The moment I humored her, she took off running with it.
I couldn’t stop laughing.
“Jina, what are you—”
“Hey, is voice phishing not a crime in this empire or something?”
