Lina regained consciousness with a throbbing headache and the uncomfortable sensation that she had been sleeping in an awkward position for far too long.
Her first thought was that the strange encounter with the guardian had finally ended and that she had somehow returned to the world of the living. Perhaps everything she had experienced had been a dream, an elaborate illusion conjured up by her dying mind. Perhaps she would open her eyes, find herself in familiar surroundings, and discover that the entire business of becoming an empress had been nothing more than a ridiculous fantasy.
She opened her eyes expectantly.
Unfortunately, the scene before her did not resemble anything she recognized.
Instead of the familiar ceiling she had expected to see, there was a canopy of lush green leaves stretching overhead. Sunlight filtered through the branches in delicate golden beams, illuminating the grass beneath her and casting shifting patterns across the ground. A gentle breeze stirred the foliage, carrying the scent of flowers and damp earth, while the distant calls of unfamiliar birds mingled with the soft murmur of running water.
Lina remained motionless for several seconds, staring at the leaves above her.
Then she slowly sat up.
Before her lay a peaceful woodland clearing, surrounded by towering trees and thick vegetation. A narrow stream wound its way through the grass nearby, its clear water glistening in the sunlight. The air was remarkably fresh, and there was none of the exhaust fumes, dust, or urban noise she would have expected from the modern world she had left behind.
She drew in a cautious breath.
The air smelled so clean that she almost wanted to laugh. If this was a dream, her subconscious had certainly gone to considerable trouble to create a convincing landscape.
However, the cool grass beneath her hands felt real, the breeze against her cheeks was unmistakable, and the sunlight warming her skin was far too pleasant to dismiss as an ordinary hallucination.
Lina closed her eyes and pinched the back of her hand.
It really hurt.
She opened her eyes again.
"Oh, come on," she muttered. "You're telling me that actually happened?"
She remembered the guardian's calm expression, the two glowing lights, and her own ridiculous declaration that she wanted to become an empress. At the time, she had thought the entire conversation was nothing more than a strange dream. She had never imagined that her casual answer would somehow determine what happened to her after death.
Yet here she was, apparently alive again, in a place that bore no resemblance to her former world.
Lina pressed her fingers against her temples and forced herself to think rationally. Panicking would accomplish nothing, and screaming at the trees would hardly make them explain what had happened. If she had truly been reborn, she needed to understand her circumstances before doing anything else.
Only then did she notice the objects arranged on the ground beside her.
A soft blanket had been spread beneath the tree, accompanied by a book, a plate of fruit, several small bottles containing unfamiliar liquids, and a rolled parchment that looked as though it had been taken directly from an old historical fantasy film.
Lina stared at the arrangement.
Who had put these things here?
She had no memory of carrying them, and there was certainly no one else in the clearing. The objects appeared to have been placed beside her deliberately, as though someone had prepared everything she might need before leaving her alone.
She reached for the blanket first, rubbing the material between her fingers. It felt soft and thick, perhaps wool, though its texture suggested that it had been woven by hand rather than produced by modern machinery. The fruit on the plate was less mysterious. There were grapes and oranges, both familiar enough to reassure her that at least some things in this world were not entirely different from what she knew.
She picked up one of the bottles and cautiously sniffed its contents to find that it was water.
The next bottle contained a reddish liquid with a strong, unmistakable smell of wine.
Lina set it down again.
Her attention shifted to the book.
She opened it and examined the pages, only to discover that the writing was completely unfamiliar. The letters resembled a mixture of several languages she had encountered before, but she couldn't make out a single sentence. There were no illustrations to offer clues, and the smooth, pale paper suggested that the people of this world possessed a reasonably developed method of papermaking.
She flipped through several more pages before giving up.
Whatever language this was, she would have to learn it eventually.
Then she remembered the parchment.
The scroll lay beside the blanket, its edges marked with elaborate patterns that looked more ceremonial than decorative. Lina picked it up carefully and unrolled it across her lap. The moment she did, a faint red glow spread across the surface, illuminating lines of densely written characters.
She nearly dropped it.
"What's this supposed to be?"
Unlike the writing in the book, the characters on the parchment were perfectly legible to her. They were written in English, and there were so many of them that she suspected the document contained several thousand words.
Lina scanned the first few lines, her expression growing increasingly bewildered.
It appeared to be a contract.
More specifically, it was a contract confirming an agreement between the guardian and Lina, under which she had been granted a new life in another world and assigned the destiny of becoming an empress. The document contained numerous clauses concerning the nature of her rebirth, the conditions attached to the arrangement, and the requirements she would have to fulfil before the contract could be considered complete.
Then she read it a second time, hoping that she had somehow misunderstood the meaning.
Unfortunately, the words remained unchanged.
The contract was real, and so the guardian had been real.
And the gods had apparently taken her joke as a formal declaration of intent.
Lina slowly lowered the parchment.
She had wanted a fresh start, but she hadn't expected to receive one quite so literally. She had imagined herself joking about palaces and imperial authority while drifting peacefully toward whatever afterlife awaited her. Instead, she had somehow signed a supernatural contract that required her to become an empress in a world she knew absolutely nothing about.
What kind of compensation was this?
And why hadn't the guardian warned her that the offer was binding?
Lina was beginning to suspect that the gods had a rather questionable sense of humour.
She took several deep breaths, determined not to lose her composure. Whatever had happened, there was no point in crying over a decision she could no longer reverse. She had survived one life already, and even if this new world presented unfamiliar challenges, she would simply have to find a way to adapt.
After all, she had chosen this path herself.
Or, more accurately, she had chosen it while believing she was making a joke to a man she had assumed existed only in the final moments of her dying consciousness.
The distinction was becoming increasingly important.
With a weary sigh, Lina set the parchment aside and finally turned her attention to the body she inhabited.
Something had felt wrong ever since she regained consciousness, but the shock of finding herself in a strange forest had prevented her from examining the matter properly. Now that she had a moment to think, she realized that her hands looked unfamiliar.
They were delicate, with slender fingers and smooth, pale skin. Her nails were neatly trimmed, and a gemstone ring adorned the finger of her right hand. The ring was elegant rather than ostentatious, but its craftsmanship suggested that it was not an ordinary piece of jewellery.
She turned her hands over, studying them from every angle.
These were not her hands; hers were old and wrinkly.
She raised one hand to her face, touching her cheeks, nose, and chin before cautiously tracing the outline of her jaw. The features felt real, yet they were unmistakably different from the ones she remembered. When she reached behind her head, her fingers disappeared into a mass of long, slightly curly hair that fell well beyond her shoulders.
Her original hair had never been that long, nor had it been curly.
Lina hurriedly gathered a handful of it and brought it before her eyes, staring at the golden strands in disbelief. Then she looked down at her arms, her shoulders, and the unfamiliar clothing covering her body.
She was wearing an enormous dress with puffed sleeves, a fitted bodice, and layers of fabric decorated with delicate lace and bows. The material had a smooth, satin-like texture, though it was difficult to identify precisely what it was made from. The workmanship was surprisingly elaborate, particularly around the cuffs, neckline, and hem, where intricate patterns had been carefully embroidered into the fabric.
Her shoes were equally unfamiliar. They appeared to be made from fine leather, with modest heels and small decorative stones embedded into the design. Crystal earrings adorned her ears, while the gemstone ring on her right hand completed an ensemble that looked far too expensive for someone who had been abandoned in the middle of a forest.
Lina examined herself more carefully.
Judging by her height, which she estimated to be around one hundred and sixty-seven centimetres, and the proportions of her body, she was inhabiting the form of a young woman. Her skin was exceptionally pale, and her facial structure was clearly different from her own. She had no idea whether the girl she now resembled was a noblewoman, a merchant's daughter, or someone from an entirely different social class, but the quality of her clothing and jewellery suggested that she had not been poor.
That was something, at least.
If she had to begin her new life in a strange world, she would much rather do so with a little money and a respectable background than as a penniless beggar.
Unfortunately, she had no idea who this girl was, where she had come from, or why she had been left alone in the forest.
Lina touched her face one last time before letting out a long, exhausted sigh.
She had died, met a guardian angel, chosen to become an empress, and awakened in an unfamiliar body in a world where she couldn't even read the local language.
All of this had happened because she had made one careless joke.
Lina felt an overwhelming urge to lie back down, cover herself with the blanket, and pretend none of it was happening.
Instead, she forced herself to sit upright.
Whatever her circumstances, she would have to face them eventually. She had been given another life, and whether she liked the arrangement or not, she intended to make the most of it.
After all, if the gods had decided to compensate her for the injustice she had suffered in her previous existence, she would be a fool not to take advantage of the opportunity.