"P-please, please... Stop..."
A weak, heartbreaking cry from a woman echoed from the room of Princess Viana Yanis and her husband, Count Lazarus Bloodworth.
But once again, the sound of punches and slaps echoed, followed by the rough, hoarse voice of the Count, trying to satisfy his lust.
"Shut up, you shameless woman!"
His curses rang out again, making the faces of the servants outside the room grow even paler.
They stared blankly at the closed bedroom door, thinking that tomorrow they would once more see the Princess's bruised and swollen face and body.
Then, the Princess's scream pierced the air again, before everything fell silent.
Suddenly, the bedroom door swung wide open, and the Count stepped out, wearing clothes that looked hastily thrown on.
A strong smell of alcohol wafted from him.
Roughly, he shouted at the group of maidservants gathered near the Princess's room, "No one is allowed to enter that room tonight!"
The frightened servants quickly replied in unison, "Yes, yes, Master."
***
Viana, the Princess, curled up weak and in pain on her bed.
Her cheeks were red from her husband's slaps, and her whole body ached.
Wrapped in a thin blanket, she struggled to get out of bed and walked toward the small wardrobe at the end of her room.
She opened the drawer, her trembling hand reaching to the very back. Then she pulled out a small glass bottle filled with red liquid.
With great effort, she sat back on the edge of her bed and stared blankly at the bottle's contents. She shook it slightly before opening the cap.
With her eyes closed, she drank all the red liquid in one gulp. As it entered her body, her eyes shot open, and a burning pain seared her throat.
Then, she crawled onto the bed and managed to lie on her back, her bare body covered by the blanket.
Every part of her body hurt. She gazed weakly at the canopy ceiling above her bed and whispered softly, "Finally, I will be free from all this suffering..."
She closed her eyes and felt her consciousness fade away. Her breathing stopped.
***
However, now she felt something entirely different from what her body had experienced before.
There was no pain anymore. She opened her eyes and found herself floating in an empty space, dark with hues of purple, scattered with countless tiny lights like distant stars.
With confusion in her eyes, she looked around the entire place, trying to understand where she was.
'Where am I?'
Her body floated, unable to move up or down, though she could still move all her limbs freely.
But when she looked at her hands and feet, she realized they were completely transparent.
'Is this the afterlife?'
She glanced around her surroundings again, then thought to herself, 'Oh, well. At least I don't feel any pain now.'
Smiling, she allowed herself to float aimlessly, closing her eyes with a sense of bliss.
Suddenly, a sound startled her.
Ring!
'Huh? What was that? It sounded like a bell.'
She opened her eyes and saw a screen appear in front of her.
[Are you willing to be given a second chance in your life?]
"What is this?" she muttered, confused as she looked at the transparent screen with text in front of her.
She examined it from the front, left, right, and even behind it. But the screen stayed in her view, following wherever her gaze shifted.
"A second chance? What do you mean by that?" she asked the screen after she read the sentence, her tone filled with confusion.
[A second chance to go back to your past life and fix everything, including your own life.]
The screen responded as though it could hear her question, displaying its message clearly in front of her.
Viana stared at the screen with a blank expression.
Did she really want to return to her previous life, knowing she might have to endure the same suffering and marry that horrible Count again?
She said, "No," then closed her eyes and floated as if she were lying down, enjoying her newfound freedom.
Curious, she opened one eye and saw the screen still displayed in front of her.
'Why does this message keep pushing me?' she thought.
"Leave me alone!" she shouted at the screen.
The screen disappeared, but moments later, it reappeared with new words displayed.
[Don't you want to change your fate and live happily with a kind and wealthy husband?]
"What the..." Viana muttered under her breath.
"No. I just want to live peacefully," Viana replied, frowning slightly.
The screen disappeared for a moment but reappeared again. This time, it displayed a new message.
[Do you want to stay in a place like this? There's no one here to keep you company.]
Viana froze.
'The screen is right, there's no one here,' she thought.
She started to panic and said, "But what guarantee do you have that if I return, I won't live in misery again?"
The screen disappeared again but reappeared moments later with new words.
[The System will assist you.]
Viana thought for a moment, then asked, "What kind of help?"
[We will give you guidance to start your new life. You'll understand once you return to life.]
'So annoying,' she thought, frowning. She ignored the screen and went back to floating in the air and lying midair as if nothing else mattered.
But the bell sound rang again.
This time, Viana chose to ignore it, keeping her eyes shut and savoring the peace around her.
Ring!
A little annoyed, Viana turned her body to the side.
Ring!
Her eyebrows twitched slightly.
Ring!
Finally, utterly frustrated, she sat up and glared at the screen in front of her. This time, the screen displayed a new message.
[You are being given a second chance to live. Are you willing to accept it?]
"Okay, okay," she finally answered in an annoyed tone.
But then her body started to disappear, and Viana screamed hysterically, "Nooooooooo!"