This time her voice was clearer—but shaky.
She slowly sat up in the bed, every cell in her body screaming that she wasn't okay.
But mentally? She was on the edge of collapse.
"No… this is wrong. This makes no sense."
"I was… we were in the car… Sabrina… Himari…"
Her breathing quickened, her hand trembling as she clutched her chest, trying to feel her heartbeat.
Her breath turned into panic… her mind spinning… and something deep inside her whispered:
"You're not in your world… not anymore… this is somewhere else."
She pressed her hands against her head, eyes wide.
"Am I dreaming? No, no, no… this isn't a dream. I'm awake… but… where?!"
Then—soft footsteps behind the wooden door.
Katarina froze, her eyes darting toward it.
A gentle knock.
"Are you awake?"
A soft female voice. But the language… was strange.
Understandable… but the accent? The tone? Different. Not English. Not Japanese.
It felt like a voice from another era.
Katarina didn't respond.
The door opened slowly…
And in walked a woman dressed in old-fashioned traditional clothes, like a maid from a period drama.
She bowed politely and gently closed the wooden door behind her.
"You've finally awakened, my lady."
Katarina stared at her in shock… then down at her own hands… then back to the room.
"Am… I'm dead?"
But the answer came with the maid's calm voice:
"No, my lady… You could say you were in a slight coma after the accident you caused."
Katarina's eyes widened as if slapped by an invisible hand.
"Coma? Accident? I caused it?"
Every word stabbed her already-fractured mind. She tried to sit up, her hands shaking, breath ragged.
The maid stepped forward with trained grace, pouring water into a clear glass and offering it with delicate caution, as if she were handing it to something that might shatter at any moment.
"Here… this might help a little," she said softly.
Katarina, despite the fear, reached out with hesitation. Her fingertips trembled, as if the glass would explode in her hands. She took a sip…
The cold water touched her parched throat and brought back a flicker of clarity—but her mind was still boiling with questions.
Before she could speak, the silence was broken by footsteps sprinting violently down the hall—
"Thump! Thump! Thump!"
Loud footsteps echoed on the wooden floor, then the door burst open violently. A small boy, around seven years old, barged in with a mischievous expression and eyes sparkling with childlike mischief.
He looked her up and down and then said sarcastically, raising an eyebrow:
> "Ooooh, you're finally awake? Lazy Leona is back to life! Heh!"
The name hit her mind like a bomb.
> "Leona? Who's Leona?"
She stared at him in shock, then looked at the maid, quickly set the glass down on the table, and stood up like she'd been electrocuted.
> "W–who said that name? Who is Leona?! I'm... I'm Katri—"
She didn't finish.
She stumbled toward the corner of the room, barely able to stay on her feet, running toward a mirror. She grabbed it, hoping to see her own reflection… but she didn't see Katrina.
She saw another girl—similar, yet completely different.
Very pale blonde hair, almost white. Eyelashes nearly the same shade. Skin so fair it looked untouched by the sun for months. And…
Violet eyes.
A white bandage wrapped around the left side of her forehead, with a visible wound underneath.
She was stunned.
Her mouth hung open, no words escaping, breath rapid. Her hand touched her cheek to make sure she wasn't hallucinating.
> "This… isn't me."
> "I'm… not her!"
The boy, confused and wide-eyed, ran to the door and shouted at the top of his lungs:
> "Moooom! Leona's acting crazy again! Hurry before she breaks something!"
At that moment…
Katrina—no, Leona—stood frozen in front of the mirror.
As if time stopped.
As if her heart had stopped.
And all she felt was…
Lost.
Lost identity.
Lost name.
Lost everything she knew about herself.
Suddenly…
The sound of rushing footsteps echoed down the hallway and into the room burst a woman in her mid-forties, her features elegant and refined, face pale with worry, hands clutching the sides of her dress as if she'd been praying just seconds ago.
She wore a simple lavender dress, her brown hair tied up in a messy bun. Her expression reflected warmth—the kind of person who carried the whole world in her heart.
As soon as her eyes fell on "Leona," she gasped sharply and ran toward her. But—
Katrina screamed and ran to the corner of the room, hiding behind an overturned chair, shouting in fear:
> "Don't come near me! Don't touch me!! Who are you people?! Where am I?!"
The woman froze, immediately raising her hands as if calming a wounded deer deep in the woods.
She spoke, voice trembling with bottled-up emotion:
The mother – very gently:
> "Leona… sweetheart, I'm your mother. Don't you remember me? You've been asleep for two weeks… Oh God, I thought I'd lost you forever…"
She took a hesitant step forward, but Katrina's scream stopped her again:
Katrina – crying, her voice caught between her throat and chest:
> "I'm not Leona!! I'm Katrina! I… I was at a match! I was in Japan! This… this isn't my face!!"
She clutched her hair, as if trying to rip the impossible truth from her skull, staring back at the mirror — a face she didn't know, violet eyes, whitish-blonde hair, a bandage… a body completely foreign.
The little boy peeked from behind the door and mumbled so quietly it could barely be heard:
> "Sis went loony again…"
The mother was shocked by her words—but didn't shout, didn't argue. Instead, she dropped to her knees, keeping her distance, and said in a voice thick with emotion:
> "I know you're in shock… I know this isn't easy. I don't know if you've lost your memory… or if the accident affected you in ways we don't understand… But please believe me, we are your family. I'm your mother, and this is your little brother… and this is your body, Leona."
Katrina – crying, trying to escape reality with words:
> "No… no, this is impossible! Impossible…! I… I was heading home… the sidewalk… something hit me… then… darkness… and now… I'm in someone else's body?! This can't be real!"
The maid approached cautiously and gently draped a blanket over her trembling shoulders.
She whispered softly:
The maid – calmly:
> "My lady… You were in an accident… hit by a wild horse… Your head was injured badly… and the doctors said you might experience some confusion when you woke up…"
Katrina – teary-eyed and in a faint voice, as if speaking to herself:
> "Confusion? This isn't a movie… I'm not crazy… I swear I'm not crazy… I'm Katrina, I'm 16, from Russia, I was in Japan…"
But no one understood. No one knew what she meant.
The mother didn't move closer—she just wiped her tears and said in a voice that trembled with hope:
> "No matter what you feel right now… I'm here. And I'll stay here… until you remember. Or at least… until you trust me again."
The room fell silent, the boy watching nervously from behind the doorframe.
And the only sound left… was Katrina's shaky breathing, filling the heavy silence.
To be continued…
"Oh, things just got real."
Tomorrow? Tomorrow begins the story that's gonna change everything.
Katrina? She's no longer just an ordinary girl.
The isekai? Forget what you know—she tore it apart and rebuilt it.
Now it's deeper. Stranger. And way more dangerous.
And the most important detail?
Don't forget the time: 8:45 PM.
It's not just a random number—
It's the key.
Later on, you'll wish you paid more attention to it 😏.
And those two characters Katrina glimpsed?
They won't appear much in the story...
But there's something off about them.
Something connected to what happened.
Maybe even the reason behind it all.
So now the real question is:
Are you ready?
Or will you realize too late…
that you've stepped into a world with no way out? 🕯️🖤
Questions for you:
What moment made you feel like there was an unsolved mystery lurking beneath the surface?
What do you think is the biggest secret hidden in this episode?