Two weeks had passed since Yeong-ja had transmigrated to Stella's body. She had been obediently taking her medicines and eating what the doctor had recommended for her.
Despite that, she still did not know what kind of illness Stella was suffering from.
It was never specifically mentioned in the novel.
Likewise, Doctor Arnold never mentioned it to her. She had assumed that Stella's parents must have told him not to reveal the details.
However, what she did not expect was that the body pain she experienced got worse as her body healed.
If she was to be completely honest, she would have preferred just dying instead of suffering the excruciating pain every single day.
She had to take sleeping medication so she could sleep at night. And the painkillers were working less and less the more she took.
'Why do I have to suffer all this?' she wondered once again.
She could not recall ever harming anyone as Yeong-ja. She was just a perfect office worker. She did not do anything to harm others.
She still could not figure out why of all people, why did it have to be her that got dragged into the mess that the novel was.
"Was I a tyrant in my previous life? Or maybe an assassin? A murderer? Or a bloody ruler?"
If screaming would have helped ease the pain, she would have screamed her lungs out.
Sometimes it felt like her bones were being crushed. At other times it felt like it was getting melted. And sometimes it felt like her bones were getting nails impaled on them.
With the excruciating pain that she was feeling, she was certain she was being punished. And the more she suffered, the angrier she got at the author who created the book.
Blaming the author was her only outlet left in a world where she had no one she could talk to about her problems.
'Ah, was it because I was badmouthing the author? But she deserved it. How could she just kill off Stella like that? It wasn't fair. Now I even have to suffer all this because of her. Grrr. Do I have to apologize to that author now?'
Yeong-ja still did not feel like apologizing to the author. She despised how the story ended and hated her current situation even more.
'After all that Stella had contributed to the story, it was simply not right to do that to her. Humph,' she harrumphed.
'The least the author could have done was spare Stella of all this pain. She didn't have to give her a background full of suffering.'
"Still, how did this happen to me?" Yeong-ja wondered. She finally recalled that she actually went to work without sleeping after she finished reading the novel.
She had no time to sleep since it was already five in the morning so she had bathed, ate breakfast, and went to work on time as usual. But she did not know what happened after that.
'Did I die? Or was my body in a coma and I'm a vegetable in the hospital right now that my soul is here with Stella?'
Yeong-ja wondered if she could go back to her own body. She surmised that perhaps after the plot in the story was over, she could go back to where she was supposed to be.
But she also worried that if she died here as Stella, she might not be able to go back as Yeong-ja. Or that she might have completely died and her body was already cremated or buried. That would mean that her life was only as Stella now.
"This is making my head hurt," she sighed.
If she had known that she would be in a situation like this, she would have re-read her favorite fantasy romance novel that she loved so much.
It was well-written and she was in love with all the characters in the book that she would not have minded even if she became the villainess or one of the support characters.
"What hurts, my lady? Should I call the doctor?" one of her maids asked with worry. If she recalled it right, her name was Sarah. She did not notice her entering since she was lost in her thoughts.
"No need. I was just speaking to myself," she quickly said.
Everyone would be gathered again if they heard that the doctor was called into her room. That was until she suddenly coughed up blood. There was so much that even Yeong-ja panicked.
The maid was swift as the wind as she ran to find the doctor.
'Am I really getting better? Is the doctor sure this body is recovering? What if I die just like this? Both Stella and I would have no future.'
The doctor finally arrived and eyed her carefully. He seemed so calm that she started to worry if the Duke had hired a quack doctor.
If the doctor tending to her was not the real Doctor Arnold, then it would really be the end of her.
In the novel, Stella was cured of her sickness only because Duke Henry had found Doctor Arnold before everything was too late.
"Doctor, am I finally going to die?" Stella asked with a wistful smile.
She froze when she realized that Duchess Amelia and the whole family were standing by the doorway. They looked like they were about to enter when she spoke.
"Oops. Sorry. I did not mean that," she said but blood dripped from her mouth when she did and she coughed up more blood.
Everyone gasped and turned deathly pale at the sight.
Duchess Amelia was shaking with emotion and was already crying. The duchess lost her strength and almost fell on her knees on the floor, but Duke Henry held her by the waist to support her.
Hendrick and Zafir were also crying as they remained frozen by the doorway not knowing what to do. They both looked scared that she might die any second.
Even the duke himself finally looked shaken. He was rattled by the sight of his daughter spewing blood. He gave the doctor a deathly glare as the outlet of his unstable emotions.
"WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS DOCTOR ARNOLD?!" Duke Henry hissed in an icy voice that reverberated with so much venom. His bloodlust was oozing.
If he was not supporting his wife, he might have been pointing his sword at the doctor once again.
The doctor ignored everyone and calmly continued tending to Stella. He cleaned up the blood and checked her vitals. He made her take medicine before he finally turned to the panicking family members.
"Please calm down. I understand how you must be feeling. But you are going to worry and stress the patient," Doctor Arnold said and ushered everyone to sit down first.
All the men glared at the doctor before sitting. The duchess was too worried and shaken to even react but the duke carried her to the couch.
"Lady Stella is truly on the road to recovery. A few more days and she would be cured of her illness," Doctor Arnold explained.
"How could that be true? Little Stella's vomiting so much blood. How can we trust you?!" Hendrick voiced what everyone wanted to say. He was still sobbing even as he spoke.
"I can assure everyone that by now, I am sure that the lady will survive her illness. We have passed the most critical stage. The pain she would be feeling would gradually decrease in the following days."
"Is that true?" the duchess perked up.
"Yes, Your Grace. I am speaking from experience. This happened to my daughter as well," Doctor Arnold confidently replied. Everyone was surprised by his response.
"Your daughter?" Hendrick verified.
Yeong-ja recalled that in the novel, Doctor Arnold knew how to cure Stella's illness because of his wife and daughter.
His wife died of the illness so he studied it like crazy. When he realized that his daughter also had the illness, he gave his all to curing her.
In the novel, his daughter became his first patient that survived it. Stella was the second.
Doctor Arnold revealed his story to everyone and they felt sorry for him. They realized that they had been jumping to conclusions.
"We have wronged you," the duke admitted. He and everyone else apologized for doubting Doctor Arnold.
"It's alright. I understand the feeling.
"I had always panicked with every little change that happened to my daughter too.
"When it was my wife, I was so helpless because of not knowing how to cure her. After she died, I am glad I still studied it with everything I had.
"My daughter survived it. And now, I believe that your daughter will survive it as well.
"Please believe in Lady Stella. I will do everything I can to help her as well. I do not want to ever feel as useless and helpless ever again in the face of an illness I could have cured."
Everyone was touched at Doctor Arnold's words and Duke Henry promised to increase his reward after Stella was cured.
The doctor refused but everyone in the family insisted that it was a form of their apology and gratitude.