"Lia, please… listen to me. You can't leave me for him. We love each other..don't you remember? We grew up together, Lia. You've always been mine…"
"L-Leonhart, let go of my hand..you're hurting me!"
"Leonhart…? You don't call me Leon anymore. Why? Because he showed up? Because now he's taking you away from me?!"
"She told you already, Lia loves me now. Not you. Let her go so we can move forward with our engagement... or I'll be forced to act in a way neither of us will enjoy."
Theodore's voice was like ice-calm, but cold. He stepped forward and gripped Leonhart's wrist, peeling him away from Lia with firm resolve.
No one cared about Leonhart's trembling... or the silent tears spilling from his eyes, as if his suffering didn't matter.
"Ah… I see. It's because he's the Emperor now. And I'm just a discarded prince from a powerless kingdom. Isn't that right, Lia?"
"Leonhart… What are you even saying? I love Theo for who he is. You're a good man too, and I hope… someday, you'll find someone who truly suits you. Someone better than I ever could be."
"Ha… Hahaha… HAHAHAHA…"
Leonhart laughed, a sound so hollow it chilled the air around them. Then he raised his head, and his eyes—once warm—burned with venomous desperation. In one swift motion, he pulled a dagger and lunged at Theodore, aiming for his throat.
But Theodore was faster. He caught Leonhart's wrist midair and twisted it until the dagger clattered to the floor. Lia screamed.
Leonhart didn't.
He just stood there… staring at the man who had taken everything from him.
"You actually tried to kill me. How pathetic. Guards!"
The guards reacted instantly, casting a binding spell that forced Leonhart to his knees.
He lowered his head and murmured, voice cracking "I thought… if he disappeared… you'd come back to me… Lia… how could you…?"
Then he shouted, voice filled with fury and heartbreak "You'll pay for this! I curse you both! You'll never know peace! Lia, you—"
But he didn't finish his sentence.
His head hit the ground before his words did, severed cleanly from his body by a sharp sword.
Amelia fell to her knees and wept.
Theodore stood beside her, silent, his hand resting gently on her trembling shoulder. They were childhood friends before they became enemies.
Eventually, they married.
And lived happily ever after.
—The End—
"The end…? What a joke."
I flung the pink-covered novel across the room and collapsed onto my bed.
"Amelia? That useless excuse of a heroine? Five men fell for her? Seriously? What does she have—six legs? Four eyes? What's so special about her?"
I rolled onto my side, fuming. Sleep? Impossible.
"She cries every five minutes, makes the dumbest decisions, and somehow every man in the story is head over heels for her. What is this, a romance or a circus?"
I glanced at the clock.
3:00 a.m.
"Damn it... only three hours of sleep left."
With a sigh, I closed my eyes.
---
"Dr. Rowan, are you alright? You look pale."
"I'm fine. Just... didn't sleep much."
I pinched the bridge of my nose, adjusting my glasses as I skimmed through test results.
I regretted ordering that novel. What I thought was sci-fi turned out to be a chaotic soap opera in fantasy dressing. Returning it wasn't an option, so I read it, just to feel like I hadn't wasted my money.
And now here I was. No sleep. Over-caffeinated. Irritated.
"Doctor, the patient in Room 82 said he's going to sleep. If you want to check on him before you leave..."
He'd had a bone tumor in his foot. It was a simple procedure, and I'd down ed a few cups of coffee before the surgery. Everything had gone smoothly
I headed to the patient's room. The moment I opened the door, I was met with a unexpected scene.
a man crying, holding a blood-stained knife- and the patient covered in blood.
I froze. My brain stalled, but my body moved. As the man fled through the back door, I shouted "Stop! You're not getting away with this!"
I chased him into the street. He stopped, turned, and hurled a rock.
It hit me square in the head.
The world spun.
IEven though my eyes were shut and all sounds were muffled, I felt a blinding light pierce through the darkness I was trapped in.
Something massive slammed into my body, lifting my feet off the ground—then, suddenly, I crashed back down.
Oh... it was a truck.
I couldn't open my eyes. There was no pain, just darkness. An endless, silent black.
"Quick! Give me the—"
[Beep... beep... beep—flatline]
"...The patient has died."
What?
Patient?
Wait—me…?
Did I just… die?
Is someone crying?
Stop crying... it's annoying...
"Congratulations, Your Majesty! You've given birth to healthy triplets!"
Your Majesty?! Triplets?! Why is someone giving birth in my death scene?!
Can't I just die in peace?
I decided to open my eyes to look at the Ma'am, I mean… the crying babies.
Oh... they were just huge people.
...
Did I end up in one of those anime fantasy shows I used to watch or something?
Did I die in a delivery room, or did she give birth in my room because the hospital ran out of space? Whatever the case, I'm clearly dead. But then… why can I open my eyes? Why can I move?
The first thing I saw were giants trying to pick me up, and when I turned my head to the side, I found two hideous newborns lying next to me—red from birth or blood or… I don't know, I'm not an obstetrician.
I tried to speak, but the only thing that came out of my throat sounded like a strangled duck. My throat was dry, and I was starving. I had no idea how long I'd been dead…
Wait a sec—no, no, hold on... why is my hand so tiny?
My train of thought stopped when a woman picked me up and handed me over to that 'queen'—or so they were calling her.
I had no idea why they kept calling her that. Were they being blackmailed or something? I'd rather die again than call someone 'Your Majesty.' Even if she's rich.
The furniture looked strange too, straight out of the medieval era. It honestly felt like I had stepped into a movie set.
But of course, I'm not in some filming location where a random woman just decided to give birth, right? RIGHT?
Has 'My Journey from Doctor to Baby in a Strange Kingdom' already begun?