Chereads / Solo Leveling: Banishment of the Anomaly / Chapter 3 - A Plan in Motion

Chapter 3 - A Plan in Motion

Joo-Hee spent the rest of the day in the hospital, carefully navigating her new reality. The more time she spent in Lee Joo-Hee's body, the more she realized how different everything felt. It wasn't just the physical changes—though those were certainly challenging—but the emotional and psychological shifts that came with them.

As she sat by Sung Jin-Woo's bedside, watching him sleep, Joo-Hee's thoughts drifted back to her old life—the life she had left behind when he made that impulsive wish.

Back then, everything had seemed so simple. But now, trapped in a completely foreign body, everything felt complicated from head to toe.

She still thought of himself as 'Jake', but the body she inhabited was undeniably female. The way people interacted with her, the way she saw herself in the mirror, the way she felt—it was all different.

She could even feel it—something had changed, as if she were being subtly influenced by this body. And then there were the 'emotions'. The subtle, creeping feelings that had started to take root, especially when she was around Sung Jin-Woo—a tingling, familiar sensation that Jake had felt before in his previous life when looking at someone he liked.

Her mind raced as she struggled to make sense of the emotions flooding through her. 'This is really weird... I can't even explain this feeling. Now that I've inhabited her body for only a couple of hours, I can feel that I'm starting to integrate into it… I'm even feeling all her emotions.'

Then, a thought struck him. 'The author never described Joo-Hee's emotions in the novel or the manhwa, but now that I'm inside this freaking world, I-I can feel it so vividly… Joo-Hee really did like Jin-Woo. Now, I have to live with this lingering feeling, for goodness' sake!'

She covered her mouth, overwhelmed and frustrated by the surge of unfamiliar emotions. 'But this is so frustrating! If Joo-Hee had just confessed, she probably would've been Jin-Woo's wife by now. And then I wouldn't have made that stupid wish… or ended up becoming her.'

Jake's thoughts spiraled. Does this mean I'll have to feel this way every time I see Jin-Woo? The idea unsettled him. I'm a guy, and now I'm feeling this way toward a man? He shook his head, trying to shake off the confusion.

"No!" she whispered firmly to herself. "Jake, you are still you. This is just… a side effect of inheriting Joo-Hee's body. I'm straight. I've always been straight."

But as she looked at Sung Jin-Woo, sleeping peacefully despite everything he had been through, Joo-Hee couldn't deny the warmth blooming in her chest. It was a feeling that was becoming increasingly difficult to ignore. Her eyes stung with the threat of tears as a heavy realization washed over her—never in her wildest dreams had she imagined a day where she'd be forced to reexamine her life down to the most minuscule details. The sheer absurdity of it all left her spiraling into an existential crisis.

'Sigh... Let's just forget it for now. I still have too many problems to solve,' Joo-Hee thought, pushing those unnecessary thoughts aside. She couldn't afford to get distracted—not when the stakes were this high.

She reached into the pocket of her hospital gown and pulled out a small notebook she had found in the room earlier. It was blank, but it would serve as the perfect place to start planning her next moves. She opened it to the first page and began writing, her thoughts flowing quickly.

1. Integrate into this world as Lee Joo-Hee.

That meant continuing to pretend that she had lost most of her memories, relying on the vague recollections of the original Lee Joo-Hee to fill in the gaps. It also meant strengthening her healing abilities and getting used to the Sage Enlightenment System. She needed to be ready for whatever challenges lay ahead.

2. Pursue a friendship with Sung Jin-Woo.

This was the most crucial part of her plan. Sung Jin-Woo was the key to everything—surviving in this world, growing stronger, and eventually finding a place in his life in a way that real Joo-Hee never had in the original story.

3. Explore the Sage Enlightenment System and its potential.

Joo-Hee had no idea what this system was truly capable of, but she was determined to find out. The class, Sage of Eternal Leaf, suggested a connection to nature, perhaps even plant-based magic. She needed to test these powers, understand their limits, and find ways to use them to her advantage.

4. Survive the dungeons and grow stronger.

Lee Joo-Hee's body had an innate fear of dungeons, a fear that Jake would have to overcome if he wanted to survive in this world. She would need to train, to build her confidence, and to push through the fear. 

Joo-Hee paused, staring down at the list she had just written. It was a start, but she knew that this plan was just the beginning. The world of Solo Leveling was dangerous, filled with powerful enemies and deadly challenges. She would need to be resourceful, and adaptable if he wanted to survive.

Closing the notebook, she glanced at Sung Jin-Woo again. He was still asleep, his breathing slow and steady. Joo-Hee felt a pang of something—an emotion that was becoming all too familiar. She then quickly shake her head and pushed it down.

"Now that I'm here, I want to see it with my own eyes—the story behind the author's imagination. So I'll stay by your side for a while, Jin-Woo, watching as your story unfolds and ends," she whispered, her voice barely audible.

With that, Joo-Hee stood up and quietly left the room, determined to start putting her plan into motion.

The following days later, passed in a blur of activity. Jake, still adjusting to his new identity as Lee Joo-Hee, focused on recovering physically and mentally. The nurses and doctors continued to check in on him, but he managed to avoid any awkward questions about his past by sticking to his story of memory loss.

Meanwhile, she spent as much time as possible with Sung Jin-Woo, slowly building a connection with him.

At first, their conversations were brief and filled with awkward silences, but as the days went by, they began to talk more—about the incident in the double dungeon, about their lives before the tragedy, and about their hopes for the future.

Jin-Woo, who had miraculously recovered from his injuries, seemed to appreciate Joo-Hee's presence.

These days, Joo-Hee finally understood why the real her had liked Jin-Woo.

He was kind, gentle, and protective—traits that even she found appealing.

One evening, as the sun began to set, Joo-Hee sat on the sofa in Jin-Woo's room, intending to visit him, only to find that he was asleep.

Jin-Woo was dozing deeply, his face relaxed and peaceful, as if he had been through something exhausting.

She glanced at him, a small smile tugging at the corners of her lips, knowing that the reason Jin-Woo was so tired was because she had already started his training.

She could only sigh in response as her system remained unresponsive these days, still waiting for a quest to arrive.

With the time on her hands, she took the opportunity to learn more about this world, spending entire days doing research.

Still, there was so much she didn't know—about this world, about the system, and about the future that awaited her.