People say that nothing is impossible in this world.
But to Emi, this was too absurd to be true.
“No way!
This can’t be happening!
Am I in a historical romance novel?” Emi suddenly shouted as she stood up on her bed.
“Lady Emily, what’s wrong?
What’s the matter, My Lady?” Anna asked, panicking along with her.
Then Emi let her body fall back onto the bed, as if there were no strength left in her.
“How can the main characters in those transmigration novels just casually accept something like this?
Have they all gone insane??” Emi muttered.
Instantly, her final memories from her original world jostled to surface and flooded her mind.
An excruciating headache pounded her head, as if she’d been trampled by a herd of elephants—even though she’d never been trampled by an elephant in her life, she was certain that’s exactly what it would feel like.
“Aarrghhh… ugh…” Emi groaned, clutching her head as if it were about to split open.
“Lady Emily?
My Lady?
What’s wrong?” Anna asked frantically, trying to release Emi’s hands, which were clutching her hair so tightly it felt as though she were trying to rip every strand from her scalp.
Not long after, Emi froze, her eyes staring blankly into the distance.
At that moment, somehow, her soul was being transported back to see the state of her original world before she was swept into this novel’s world.
— The Real World in Emi’s Last Memory — It was already 8 p.m.
A 39-year-old woman, her hair tied back in a slightly messy bun, was busy typing on a keyboard to work on a research paper she had been working on lately, sitting at a shared dining table in the on-call room.
On her uniform was a name tag reading ‘Dr.
Emi, Consultant Cardiovascular Specialist.’ The previously quiet room was broken by the sound of a door opening, and a female resident doctor named Lily appeared.
“Haven’t you gone home yet, doc?” she asked as she sat on the bed, took off her white coat, and then lay down on the provided bed, her eyes clearly showing exhaustion and sleepiness.
“Just a little longer,” Emi replied briefly, her focus still on the laptop screen.
“Oh, right, I almost forgot!” Emi rummaged through her bag and pulled out a novel with a dark cover titled ‘A Tragedy of Love and Power’.
“I’ve finished reading it; the story’s pretty interesting.
Thanks for lending it to me.
It’s a nice way to pass the time when I’m bored,” said Emi as she handed the novel back to Lily.
“The novel’s good, right, Doc?
The story’s really interesting, isn’t it?
Is there a character you like?
I love the character Iris!
The girl who’s skilled with a sword for the sake of the poor—isn’t she just like Robin Hood?” Lily said enthusiastically, without a pause, as if firing a rapid-fire stream of words.
Lily, who had been lying on the bed looking like a zombie, suddenly sat up and began talking with great enthusiasm.
Lily really loved reading fantasy romance novels, so she enjoyed lending them to her coworkers so they could discuss them together later.
“Besides the characters I like, there is a character I don’t like,” Emi replied indifferently while continuing to type.
“Who?
Who is it, doc?” Lily asked, too curious and overly excited.
“Hmm… a character named Emily Maynard,” Emi answered briefly.
“Why?
Why don’t you like her?
She’s just a petty criminal—why don’t you like her?” “She is spineless.
Just to gain her family’s approval, she’s even willing to betray her husband.
I mean, it’s not that I encourage evil.
But if you really want to do something, isn’t it better to do it for yourself?” Emi replied, resting her chin on her right hand on the table.
“That makes sense, but we won’t know how someone feels until we’re in their shoes, right?” asked Lily, putting on her coat and looking at her phone.
“Yeah, I think you’re right.” “I’ve got another call.
Bye, doc, see you later!” Lily said as she stood up and walked toward the door, waving without looking back.
After Lily left, Emi’s phone suddenly vibrated, signaling an incoming call.
Her mother’s name appeared on the caller ID.
“What’s up, Mom?” Emi asked, picking up the phone half-heartedly.
“What do you mean, ‘what’s up’?
Why didn’t you come?
I went to all the trouble of finding a potential match for you, even asking my friends for help, but you didn’t even show up at the meeting place?” her mother scolded over the phone.
“I’m busy, Mom.
I suddenly got a call for an emergency surgery,” Emi replied, still typing away.
“You’re almost 40, dear.
Do you want to grow old alone?
How long do you plan to keep working?
If I’d known this, I wouldn’t have let you become a doctor.” “Mom… whether I get married or not has nothing to do with my happiness.
You’ll never understand.” “I just want to see you get married before I die.
I don’t want you to be alone when I’m gone… sniff… sniff… sniff…” her mother said, starting to cry.
‘Lately, Mom has been more sensitive and cries easily.
Is it because of menopause?’ Emi thought to herself.
“Come on, Mom, I’m busy.
I’m hanging up now.
Good night, Mom… click.” Emi replied, quickly hanging up the phone.
She wasn’t in the mood to argue with her mother.
Over the past few years, Emi and her mother had often argued about the fact that Emi still didn’t have a partner.
“Ding… Ding… Ding…” A message notification popped up on Emi’s phone.
“-8:15 PM – From: Dad Emi, don’t be too hard on your mom.
Just listen to her sometimes; she’s worried.” Just as Emi was about to type a reply, another message popped up in her inbox.
“-8:16 PM – From: The Good-for-Nothing Beggar What have you done now?
Mom’s crying again at home; Dad’s trying to calm her down.
Oh, and next week I’m going hiking with my friends.
Transfer me some money.” A message from her younger brother, Alex, who’s currently in his second semester of mechanical engineering.
“Hah…” Emi let out a long sigh.
Actually, Emi also wants to have a husband, but she’s too busy with her work.
Forget about dating—she doesn’t even have time to just go out and hang out with her friends.
Emi has even forgotten when the last time was that she went out with her family, just to watch a movie or eat out.
“It seems like I’ve really gone too far…” she muttered softly.
Emi got up from her seat and walked toward the bathroom to wash her tired face.
========================================================================== The staff-only hospital bathroom was pretty quiet at night.
She went into one of the stalls to clear her head.
Suddenly, she heard two women talking by the sink.
“Hey, yesterday I heard a rumor about a ghost in the on-call room.
Is it true?” asked one woman curiously.
“Hahaha… You’ve only been working here a week, so you don’t know.
The ‘On-Call Room Ghost’ isn’t an ordinary ghost; actually, we’re talking about Dr.
Emi, the consultant.” replied the other, continuing to giggle softly.
Their voices were hushed, yet to Emi—who was hiding in the stall—it felt like hearing thunder in broad daylight.
“Then why is she called a ghost?” “She’s always there every day working on her thesis, research papers, and so on, while also helping with on-call duties.
We often joke that maybe she doesn’t have a home, hahaha…” “Wouldn’t a resident doctor feel uncomfortable resting if a consultant doctor is always there?
She should show a little empathy.” “That’s why many resident doctors secretly dislike her.
They say she is very strict, not a single mistake escapes from her sight.
“Hmm… I don’t mean to gossip, but could her being old and unmarried have anything to do with her workaholic and heartless nature?” “Maybe?
So you better get married soon.
You don’t want to end up like her, do you?” The two women then laughed together as they stepped out of the restroom.
Meanwhile, Emi, her hands trembling on her knees, could only hold back the tears that seemed ready to spill at any moment.
“If we want to save someone’s life, shouldn’t we avoid making any mistakes?” she muttered.
“How foolish of me to be so busy taking care of others that I neglected the people closest to me—the ones who matter most in my life.
For what?
Just to be humiliated and hated like this?” Emi said regretfully.
Tears began to fall freely down her cheeks, unable to be held back any longer.
Emi took her phone out of her pocket and started typing a message: ‘-8:30 PM – From: Me Mom, thank you for worrying about me.
I’m actually happy with my life right now.
I love you.
– ‘ Sent to Mom’s number.
‘-8:31 PM – From: Me Dad, please cheer Mom up; it seems like she can’t live without you ^-^, I’ll be home soon.
Let’s eat at Mom’s favorite restaurant.’ Sent to Dad.
‘- 8:33 PM – From: Me Hey, you idiot, I’m sick of having to keep transferring money to you.
My ATM card and saving account book are in the second drawer of my desk.
The PIN is Mom’s 8-digit birthdate.
Use it wisely, and don’t forget to set some aside for Mom and Dad.-‘ Sent to Alex As soon as she finished sending the messages, Emi gathered her strength to stand up and leave the bathroom stall.
She had decided to pack up and go home right away.
There was no point in crying in the bathroom stall; it was just too pathetic.
“Bbbrrrr….
Bbbbrrr….” Her phone vibrated again, signaling an incoming call.
Her younger brother’s name appeared on the screen.
“Why did you suddenly send a message like that?” Alex asked, his voice sounding worried.
“Pffttt… why?
Are you worried your source of pocket money will disappear?” Emi teased sarcastically.
“….” Emi, who thought Alex would be annoyed by her teasing, was surprised to find her younger brother just staying silent without answering.
The phone call fell silent for a moment.
Emi was about to start speaking again when suddenly her chest felt excruciatingly painful.
‘What is this?
What’s wrong with me?
Why does my chest hurt?’ she thought to herself as she clutched her chest with her left hand and held the phone tightly to her ear with her right.
Her legs went weak, and she collapsed onto the floor.
“Isn’t it okay for me to worry about my own sister?
When are you coming home?
Do you want me to pick you up?” Alex asked again, for some reason feeling uneasy.
“A…Alex… huff… huff…” Emi called out, her breath coming in gasps.
“What’s wrong?
Why does your voice sound like that?
Are you sick?” Alex asked frantically; the sound of him grabbing his motorcycle keys could be heard.
Emi wanted to answer Alex’s question, but she couldn’t.
Her chest felt too tight, as if an elephant were sitting on it; her breathing began to catch.
“Hang in there!
I’m on my way!” “Alex… huff… huff…” Emi wanted to say, “Please tell Dad and Mom that I miss them, that I love Alex, that deep down, she also wanted to get married and be happy like everyone else.
She wanted to say that if she had another chance, she would change for the better.
“A cardiac subspecialist having a heart attack?
Is this some kind of comedy show?” Emi thought to herself.
“Alex… I love you all…” Emi said slowly, using the last of her strength.
“Hello… Hello…?
Emi, answer me!” Alex shouted into the phone.
“….” “Emi!
Emi, answer!” “….” No sound came from the other end of the line.
Alex collapsed, too weak to stand, still clutching the motorcycle keys he had been about to use.
Time of Death: 8:43 PM.
Emi finally found the most peaceful rest she had ever known.