For a moment, I lingered longer than necessary, trying to digest the sight as a zillion thoughts stormed through my head. Did the old woman actually own a monkey? Or had this monkey invaded her house? Or… was she telling the story to this monkey?
Sitting at eye level with the beast, staring at it in disbelief, the wild ball of fur suddenly swung its left arm toward the girl's ear. Even though her timing was late, her right hand managed to catch that hot, fur-covered, soft arm before the monkey could grab the earring and rip her earlobe apart.
In that moment, adrenaline surged through her body. She felt no fear-completely forgot the chance of the old woman showing up-and instead her body filled with raw courage. Without slowing, the monkey's right fist slammed upward into the outer side of her right elbow.
The poor girl let out a guttural scream, her right arm twisting violently, bent at an impossible angle. Even if it wasn't broken, it had definitely popped out of its socket. She had thought this was just an ordinary monkey.
"Shittt!"
Pain burned through me, and I desperately hoped someone would come running at the sound of my scream. I didn't have much time left, maybe I really was about to die, but at the very least, there was no way I'd go down without putting this stupid ass-faced creature in its place!
Before I could even process the pain in my arm, I saw its next move. But my body… my body couldn't dodge. Physically impossible. The only chance, if I moved fast enough, maybe time itself would stretch, and maybe I could escape.
"YOU SON OF A BIT-.."
I felt my eyes explode out of their sockets, piercing the back of my skull. I inhaled one last desperate breath… I can't say I lived a shitty life, but damn, I wish I'd turned down the outside noise just once and listened to my own voice. At least once. Hell, I should've gone to the toilet first…
A long silence settled over the room. The monkey, having completed its task, was practically drooling from satisfaction. Two of its fingers pressed against the girl's closed eyelids, while the space around them trembled.
Cause and effect unraveled, the laws of force dissolved, and every object around them lost its boundaries, twisting, warping, reshaping. This metamorphosis would last for hours…
I began to hear sounds again, even to feel my flesh reknitting itself at an alarming pace. I was walking. No-no, I was being dragged forward! Agony tore through every part of my body. Even if I forced my eyes open,everything remained black.
Panic coiled inside me. WAS I BLIND? At least if I'd died… wait. If there's no death, then is this what it feels like? I couldn't breathe properly; hot breath kept bouncing back against my face.
When I tuned into the sounds outside, a sharp breath of surprise escaped me. The language was unlike anything I had ever even heard before. Foreign to the bone. And yet, the dominant voice-a middle-aged man's-filled the space. For a split second, I thought I'd been exiled. Until I realized… I understood them.
"As our honorable king commanded, the guillotine has been installed. The palace residents await the execution in the central hall."
Who the hell were they talking about?
"Ouch."
A sudden pain in my arm jolted me forward, forcing me to take a small step just to balance myself, why the hell was I stepping so short? My body felt… not mine.
"Arghh!"
My chest slammed hard into the ground, and that was it, I was convinced something was wrong with me. My face pressed flat against the floor, darkness still smothering my sight.
Only then did I realize the thing between my face and the ground was fabric. So that's why it was so dark… hopefully. With one hand I pushed myself up, and with the other, I tore the cloth from my head.
"Eeeek!"
One of the guards let out a shrill scream the moment he saw my face. I, just as shocked by the unexpected surroundings, couldn't help but answer with a deep, booming shout.
"AAAAaaaAAA!!"
My voice! It was so deep, like a man's! Instinctively my hand flew to my throat. My heart pounded furiously. After opening my eyes, the second thing I did was look down at my body.
"I'M A MAN!!"
Where the hell are my boobs?!
Both guards' faces twisted, the first, brows furrowed with a look that leaned more toward rage; the second, brows raised in disbelief, teetering on shock.
"Didn't you look at his cursed face when you bagged his head!?"
"You were the one on guard all night… maybe his beard just fell out from stress?"
"What the hell are you talking about, dumbass? How can someone turn into my aunt in one day!?"
"Didn't you hear him? He said he's a man!"
"Shut it, idiot! What are we supposed to tell the king? We'll be executed too!"
The man trembled, unable to think through the fear, clutching his head with both hands like it would split. After a few seconds of writhing helplessly, an unreadable expression spread across his face.
"…What if we execute him while his head is still covered?"
He tilted his head toward the other guard, seeking support. The second man's features smoothed, as if he were being convinced against his better judgment.
My jaw dropped.
"EXECUTION!?"