She lived a miserable life, farfetched from the life she bestowed upon me. When I was living a lavish life as the duke's only daughter, she had to work from one part-time job to another just to make ends meet. And the reason for it was her relative who, posing as her guardian, stole what her parents had left for her. She's an exploitative, weak, and gullible person who let her relative mistreat her for years, before finally throwing her out of her own house when she was of no use. Just thinking of her memories, it is making my blood boil with rage. I had to munch a glass of ice to stop myself from going berserk.
I planned to live a new life. I didn't intend to confront her aggressor and take my revenge on that bastard that she loved more than how I loved the one she created in her story. But seeing in person the people who abused her for years, mocked me thinking that I am 'her', tried to exploit 'her' again, and lay their hand on me…I finally snapped.
"She did what?" The police officer who was questioning us in the police station looked at me with disbelief when he heard what I did to my aunt, uncle and cousin.
"I hit him with this stick four times." I pointed at her cousin then turned to her uncle. "Kicked that old bastard in the groin." I looked at her aunt with a mocking smile on my lips. "And slapped that old hag." I explained to the officer with no traces of remorse in my tone.
"And you did all that because…?"
My expression darkened and glared at 'her' relative, piercing the tip of the Arnis stick in the floor like a sword. They flinched upon seeing the wrath in my eyes. I almost laughed sarcastically because of how weak these people in her world are. I aimed the stick at them.
"These people tried to extort me and trespassed on my place." I moved the stick near 'her' aunt's face. "And this old hag tried to slap me when I refused." I explained to the officer which made 'her' relative refute.
"Mr. Officer, we are not just someone. We are her relatives. I am the younger brother of his mother. I am her guardian." 'her' uncle tried to explain, so the officer once again looked at me as if waiting for me to retort.
"Are you telling me that it is okay to extort your niece and hurt her when she refused?" The way I speak to them is calm yet whoever could hear my voice knew that one wrong answer from these bastards, and there would be a funeral next. The officer can only shake his head while typing on his computer. I bet he doesn't know how he will close our case since I am left unscathed while 'her' relative has bruises and clearly hurt from what I did.
"I don't want them to ever appear near me again, Mr. Officer. I am now an adult and I don't need any guardianship from these people." My gaze went to his relative, looking at me like some cornered mouse when they saw me glare at them. "Don't make me throw you out of that house and make you pay all the money you stole what my parents left for me. I can even file for assault against you for all the years you abused me. I have all the receipts and medical certificates that would prove your abuse in all the years that I stayed in our house that you coveted from me and even the latest one which was just a month ago."
Although I may not be the real Karina who experienced those abuses, I saw and felt everything that she experienced. From bleeding mouth and nose, to fractured bones, every single kick, punch, and slap that she got from them, I could count it with my eyes closed. That is why even a bucket of ice would not be sufficient to suppress my rage when they tried to extort and hurt her again. Unfortunately for them, she is not the Karina that they expected me to be. That 'Karina' created the exact opposite of her, summoned her, and disappeared for eternity.
"Wait…what?" The officer looked at me with disbelief upon hearing all the things I revealed. Her relative's face went white as they shook their heads, trying to deny my accusations but I stopped caring about them. The only brilliant thing that that 'Karina' did was to keep all her medical records when she was abused by these bastards starting when she was with them and after they found her again. I placed neatly all the medical records that she kept at the table and gracefully smiled at the officer.
"I believe you can make it possible…" and turned to her relatives who has a disbelief look on their faces upon seeing the stack of paper I gave. My smile faded as I continued what I was saying. "…for them to stop bothering me again." Once more, I faced the police officer who seemed unable to process in mind the medical records that I handed him. Even I couldn't believe how cruel her relatives are, and how did she managed to survive that kind of abuse for years. I guess it was the reason why she created me as someone who can protect herself, because she can't.
They were put in jail after seeing all the medical records. The officer asked me a few more questions before he let me go home, promising me that he would never let those people bother me. I gave him my thanks and left the station in a greater mood only for it to be ruined again upon seeing the man waiting for me outside the police station with a straight face.
The reason why 'she' fell in love with 'him' was simple. He saved 'Karina' from her abusive relatives. He was the one who pulled her out of her miserable life not knowing that he would only push her into a much deeper abyss. When he gave her a new place to live, feed her and treat her like a proper human being, that was the start of how 'she' made him her world. And for that exact reason, she made me do the same.
I wasn't saved by Achilles, but I still made him my world. Looking back on how I fell in love with him the first time I met his cold and uninterested gaze, it feels surreal, like I'm in some sort of spell. Time stopped ticking, and it felt like we were the only people left on that crowded dance floor. He has a dashing appearance and a very manly build, a master swordsman and an intelligence and cleverness befitted for a king. I thought of him as a man with no flaw at one point, not until my world collapsed before my eyes because of him…and turned my everything into nothing.
Seeing him again in this world only opened the wound that the other him in my world created. I wanted to erase the ingratiating smile on his lips upon meeting my gaze. Their uncanny resemblance somehow made me stiffen for a moment. At some point, after coming into this world, I assumed that the Achilles of this world was not the same as the one in my world. I was wrong. 'Karina' truly made him her muse. From head to toe, his mannerisms and even those beauty mark on his neck that I found attractive…she made them exactly the same, except for one thing.
This bastard is a lot more hateful than the one in the book.
With that thought in mind, I walked past him not even giving him a chance to mock me. It surprised him but not for too long. My gaze went from his hand that was holding my arms, stopping me from leaving, back to his scowling face.
"You haven't answered any of my calls and texts for three days now. Are you still mad? I'm sorry, okay? That bet was only for fun. I didn't intend for you to be a laughing stock. Don't be too sensitive, hmm...?" If the original 'Karina' did not see the remorseless tone laced on his voice while gaslighting her, I did.
"Unhand me." His expression changed upon hearing the coldness in my voice, but his hands stayed where they were. This world's Achilles stared at me for a while, unable to look away from my uninterested gaze; a gaze that told me as if he was a stranger that I met for the first time.
"You…" He finally found his voice after our staring-out game, finally letting me go. "Are you really that mad? I know it was my fault for telling them that I was your first, but-"
"Get lost." My voice wasn't loud but the words I uttered were clear.
"…W-what?"
I smirked and flipped my ebony hair that 'she' grew long because of him, thinking that I should get rid of it. "Get. Lost. You ballless bastard."