Chapter 4: Unraveling Faces

“Okay, Mom. I’ll be home later. Bye…” Aimee ended the call with a sigh and leaned against the rooftop railing. For a moment, her face went blank, the sunset casting shadows across her eyes. The city buzzed below her, but her heart felt distant.

She clutched her phone, staring at the black screen.

“When will this end?” she murmured.

Just then, her phone vibrated with a message.

Romelyne: She’s awake.

Aimee stood straight, slipped her phone into her pocket, and headed back inside.

She made her way through the hospital corridors, her steps slow but sure, until she reached the room. She gently pushed the door open and peeked in.

The girl was sitting upright in the bed, staring blankly out the window as if searching for something just beyond the horizon.

“Uhm… hey,” Aimee said softly, stepping inside. “I’m Aimee.”

She walked up and offered a polite smile, extending her hand. “What’s your name?”

No response. The girl didn’t even glance at her.

“I... I’m sorry about earlier,” Aimee added, her voice quieter. “I didn’t see you crossing the road. It was an accident.”

Still, the girl remained silent.

“You need to cooperate. We need your name, at least,” Romelyne chimed in from behind. “So we can help contact your friends or family.”

The silence stretched between them like a wall.

“Romelyne…” Aimee said gently. “Maybe she needs time. Let’s not pressure her.”

“Hmft. Okay,” Romelyne muttered, folding her arms.

Suddenly, the girl spoke.

“I… I don’t remember anything.”

Both girls looked at her, startled.

“Really?” Romelyne asked.

The girl nodded slowly.

“Not even your name?” Aimee pressed.

“You can just call me Sushie,” she replied faintly. “That’s all I remember when I woke up.”

She turned her gaze back to the window, as if the sky itself held the answers.

The two girls glanced at each other and quietly stepped outside the room to talk.

“Aimee… I can’t take her home,” Romelyne said, frustrated. “You know my parents won’t allow it. We’re barely managing.”

“I know… same here.” Aimee leaned against the wall. “But we can’t just leave her like this. I hit her. I should take responsibility.”

Romelyne sighed. “You sure about this?”

“No,” Aimee said honestly. “But I’ll figure it out.”

Meanwhile, in Eriland…

“How is she?”

Queen Krystle stood tall in her silk robes, her golden crown glinting in the sunlight. Her voice was calm but firm.

“My Queen,” Chipi the pixie bowed low. “The Princess remains unconscious. She’s in a deep, unnatural sleep.”

“Let her rest,” the Queen said after a pause. “But the wedding must proceed tomorrow. We no longer have time to delay.”

A second voice interrupted the air.

“Queen.”

Yon Zue stepped forward, his cloak trailing behind him. “The Princess hasn’t awakened. Are you certain—”

“The wedding is decided,” Queen Krystle snapped. “No more delays, Yon Zue. Ensure everything goes perfectly. No more mistakes.”

“Yes, my Queen,” Yon Zue bowed. The Queen swept from the room, her attendants trailing behind her.

As soon as the doors slammed shut behind them, Chipi’s wings buzzed in a panic.

“Sushie!” she gasped, darting to the bedside like a falling star.

On the bed, Shiya's fingers twitched. A flicker of a grin tugged at the corner of her mouth.

“Ugh… that voice again,” she thought groggily. “That annoying pixie’s still yapping. Guess that means I’m not dead.”

“Sushie! Come on, open your eyes! Please!” Chipi cried, voice trembling.

Slowly, with the weight of a mountain, Shiya’s eyelids fluttered open. Her vision blurred, but shapes formed—Chipi, glowing nervously, and a tall, silent figure beside her.

With an exaggerated yawn, Shiya stretched. “Hey there, little glitter bug,” she muttered, then reached up and pinched Chipi’s cheek.

The pixie recoiled, stunned. “W-What? Sushie… what are you doing?!”

But Shiya didn’t answer. Her gaze shifted to the man beside her—the stranger with storm-dark eyes and a presence that felt like a blade against her throat.

“You must be Yon Zue,” she said with a sly smile. “Much better-looking than that nightmare guy who kept showing up in my dreams.”

Yon Zue stiffened.

His instincts screamed.

That voice, that tone—too casual. Too alive. Too wrong.

“Chipi,” he said sharply, eyes never leaving Shiya. “Go. Now.”

“But—”

“Now.”

Chipi hesitated, casting a worried glance at Shiya, then vanished through the door in a trail of light.

As soon as they were alone, silence settled like a blade before the strike.

Shiya hummed softly to herself, swaying slightly as she sat on the bed. “So… Yon Zue, huh? I gotta say, you’re intense up clo—”

Shing!

Steel flashed. Yon Zue’s sword was at her throat before she could blink.

Her breath caught.

“Who are you?” His voice was ice, his eyes colder.

“E-Excuse me?” she stammered, suddenly alert. “Put that thing away!”

“Where. Is. The Princess?” he demanded, blade pressing tighter. “Did Ornaphendreul send you?”

Her heart slammed in her chest. “I—I don’t know who that is! I swear!”

Without warning, he lunged forward and grabbed her by the throat, lifting her off the bed.

Shiya choked, kicking wildly. “L-Let go… I… can’t…”

“You’ll speak, or I’ll gut you where you stand!”

“I can’t answer if I’m DEAD, you psychopath!” she wheezed.

The pain was real. This wasn’t a dream. Her lungs burned. Her vision swam. Panic clawed through her chest.

Finally, Yon Zue dropped her. She collapsed in a heap, coughing and gasping for air.

SLAP!

Her palm met his cheek with a loud crack.

Tears welled in her eyes, and she screamed, “WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?! ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL ME TOO?!”

Yon Zue froze. He didn’t even flinch from the hit.

“She’s not one of them,” he realized. “Too reactive. Too chaotic. Too… different.”

“Stop staring at me!” Shiya sobbed. “Everyone here is insane! I wake up in some medieval fever dream and the first thing I get is choked out by a sword-wielding lunatic!”

“What?” he muttered.

“I don’t know who you are, or what twisted play this is, but my name is Shiya. SHI-YA. Not Sushie. Not ‘Princess.’ Just me. I was asleep—and now I’m being interrogated like a criminal in some fantasy nightmare!”

Yon Zue’s eyes narrowed. “You… look exactly like her.”

Shiya stopped. Her breath hitched.

“Exactly like who?” she asked.

He didn’t answer. Just stared at her.

Then she broke again. “WHY does this always happen to me?!” she wailed, sobbing louder.

Yon Zue groaned and stepped back, rubbing his temples. “Goddess help me… she’s a banshee.”

He waited for her to quiet down—which took an unbearable five minutes—then finally sat beside her, sword sheathed but not forgotten.

“You listen now,” he said, voice low and serious. “If you want to live, you’ll pretend to be the Princess. Say nothing. Act like her. Or they’ll execute you for impersonating royalty.”

Shiya blinked. “I what now?”

“You’re marrying Prince Liu tomorrow. No more outbursts. Follow my lead, or die.”

She stared at him like he’d grown a second head.

In her mind: Marry some fantasy prince with a dictator bodyguard and a murderous aura? Not in this lifetime, sword boy. You’ll regret choking me, I swear.

Yon Zue raised an eyebrow. “Why are you smiling like that?”

“Nothing,” she said sweetly, brushing a tear away. “Just thinking about how much I’d love to stab you with your own sword.”

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***