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The Second Male Lead Syndrome

TheBald
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Synopsis

Chapter 1 - Chapter 1

The park, usually echoing with the laughter of children playing on the swings and slides, was unexpectedly silent. It was a weekday, after all, and the little ones were tucked away in their classrooms, leaving the playground eerily still.

Not far from the empty park stood an old house-its once-proud walls now weathered by time. The wooden panels bore a tarnished hue, faded by the years, while a single window, clouded with age, allowed a soft stream of golden sunlight to pour in.

Inside, resting on a bed near that very window, lay a frail woman. A damp cloth rested on her forehead, hinting at a fever that kept her bound to the bed. Her hair, a cascade of grayish-blue curls, framed a face marked by delicate, long eyelashes. But the most striking detail was her skin-pale and fragile, dusted with white spots that stood out like stars against a fading night sky.

Then, something shifted. Her breath quickened, her fingers twitched against the sheets. A faint furrow creased her brow as if she were lost in a dream-no, a nightmare. Her pale skin, marked with scattered white spots, seemed even more fragile in the light.

Suddenly, her eyelids snapped open.

A sharp pain throbbed in her head, dull at first, then pounding like a drum against her skull. Was she in a hospital?

No-impossible.

The last thing she remembered was the blinding headlights of a speeding truck, the deafening screech of tires, and the sickening impact as it crashed into her motorcycle. She should be in an emergency room, wrapped in wires and surrounded by the beeping of monitors.

Blinking against the haze clouding her mind, she turned her head, looking at her surroundings. She reached out instinctively for her phone, expecting to find a bedside drawer-only to grasp at empty air. Instead, there was a small wooden table, its surface smooth and unfamiliar beneath her fingertips.

Her brows furrowed. Was this some kind of elaborate prank? No, her friends wouldn't take things this far.

She hadn't had time earlier to truly look at where she was, but now, as she let her gaze wander, unease crept over her. The room was unfamiliar. And yet... something about it felt eerily familiar, as though she had seen it before-just in a different time, a different way.

She had barely begun to sit up when a sharp buzzing filled her head, a sudden, piercing sensation that made her vision blur. Then, without warning, a flood of unfamiliar memories crashed into her mind, overwhelming her like a tidal wave.

Scenes that weren't hers played out in vivid detail-memories of a world she had never lived in, of people she had never met. And then, realization struck.

She had transmigrated.

This wasn't just any world; it was the setting of an Omegaverse novel-a dramatic, cliché-filled story where romance and conflict intertwined. At its center was a persistent, puppy-like but somewhat toxic female Alpha, hopelessly in love with the gentle and reserved Omega female lead (FL). The problem? The Omega already had a fiancée. But that didn't stop the Alpha from clinging to her, determined to win her over despite the obvious boundaries.

Both women came from wealth-the Alpha, a second-generation heir, spoiled by privilege, and the Omega, equally well-off but far more restrained. Their love story was riddled with twists, misunderstandings, and heart-wrenching drama, a classic push-and-pull that kept readers hooked.

And the body she now inhabited?

The second female lead.

A timid Alpha who had been nothing more than a footnote in the novel. She had feelings for the Omega FL but never acted on them, knowing full well that her friend-the bold and relentless female Alpha-had loved her first. From afar, she watched, keeping her emotions buried. Her only real moment of influence in the story was when she warned the FL about how toxic the Alpha could be, knowing firsthand about her friend's playgirl past and flamboyant personality. But even then, she had softened her words, unwilling to truly tarnish her friend's image.

The readers, however, hadn't been kind to her. They disliked her character, branding her as unnecessary, even annoying. After her brief warning to the FL, she had faded into the background, barely appearing again until the novel's ending-when she attended the wedding of the Alpha and Omega, silently watching the love story unfold without her.

And now... she was her.

She stepped toward the mirror, her reflection staring back at her with an unsettling familiarity. Her features hadn't changed much-her face still looked like hers-but one thing was different. White spots dotted her pale skin, stark against its milky tone.

That hadn't been there before.

Her fingers brushed over them, tracing their odd patterns. A strange thought crept into her mind-was this some kind of mark left behind from how she died in her past life? She had never believed in things like birthmarks being remnants of past wounds, the way some people claimed. But now, standing here in a body that wasn't originally hers, experiencing something she never thought possible... maybe there was truth to it after all.

This body was only seventeen years old. Its skin was soft, almost too smooth, and her face still carried the roundness of youth. Experimenting, she stretched her cheeks, pressing and pulling at the skin as if trying to convince herself that this was real.

The most frustrating part was that the original character had the same name and face as her. It felt way too coincidental.

Did she have a system at all? Aurora Perish called out "System" three times, but nothing happened. Normally, when people transmigrate, they have a system to support them. But having a system isn't always a blessing-most of them manipulate their hosts. That's why they tend to choose people who are easy to control.

But never mind that she should focus on presence right now, she look at her surroundings. It was identical where she used to live in the same room and place.

The only thing that stood out was the family photo. In this life, she had two fathers. Her Alpha father, Sky Perish, was petite for an Alpha, standing beside her Omega father, Jamie Osorio, who looked strong-more like an Alpha than Sky did. Their naming sense were different from the ones she knew in her previous world.

"Who would name their son as Jamie?" Aurora Perish she said it in her mind while being puzzled about this strange world.

A sudden question struck Aurora Perish

Did I transmigrate... or regressions

Before Aurora Perish could think any further, a gentle knock interrupted her thoughts.

Knock, knock.The park, usually echoing with the laughter of children playing on the swings and slides, was unexpectedly silent. It was a weekday, after all, and the little ones were tucked away in their classrooms, leaving the playground eerily still.

Not far from the empty park stood an old house-its once-proud walls now weathered by time. The wooden panels bore a tarnished hue, faded by the years, while a single window, clouded with age, allowed a soft stream of golden sunlight to pour in.

Inside, resting on a bed near that very window, lay a frail woman. A damp cloth rested on her forehead, hinting at a fever that kept her bound to the bed. Her hair, a cascade of grayish-blue curls, framed a face marked by delicate, long eyelashes. But the most striking detail was her skin-pale and fragile, dusted with white spots that stood out like stars against a fading night sky.

Then, something shifted. Her breath quickened, her fingers twitched against the sheets. A faint furrow creased her brow as if she were lost in a dream-no, a nightmare. Her pale skin, marked with scattered white spots, seemed even more fragile in the light.

Suddenly, her eyelids snapped open.

A sharp pain throbbed in her head, dull at first, then pounding like a drum against her skull. Was she in a hospital?

No-impossible.

The last thing she remembered was the blinding headlights of a speeding truck, the deafening screech of tires, and the sickening impact as it crashed into her motorcycle. She should be in an emergency room, wrapped in wires and surrounded by the beeping of monitors.

Blinking against the haze clouding her mind, she turned her head, looking at her surroundings. She reached out instinctively for her phone, expecting to find a bedside drawer-only to grasp at empty air. Instead, there was a small wooden table, its surface smooth and unfamiliar beneath her fingertips.

Her brows furrowed. Was this some kind of elaborate prank? No, her friends wouldn't take things this far.

She hadn't had time earlier to truly look at where she was, but now, as she let her gaze wander, unease crept over her. The room was unfamiliar. And yet... something about it felt eerily familiar, as though she had seen it before-just in a different time, a different way.

She had barely begun to sit up when a sharp buzzing filled her head, a sudden, piercing sensation that made her vision blur. Then, without warning, a flood of unfamiliar memories crashed into her mind, overwhelming her like a tidal wave.

Scenes that weren't hers played out in vivid detail-memories of a world she had never lived in, of people she had never met. And then, realization struck.

She had transmigrated.

This wasn't just any world; it was the setting of an Omegaverse novel-a dramatic, cliché-filled story where romance and conflict intertwined. At its center was a persistent, puppy-like but somewhat toxic female Alpha, hopelessly in love with the gentle and reserved Omega female lead (FL). The problem? The Omega already had a fiancée. But that didn't stop the Alpha from clinging to her, determined to win her over despite the obvious boundaries.

Both women came from wealth-the Alpha, a second-generation heir, spoiled by privilege, and the Omega, equally well-off but far more restrained. Their love story was riddled with twists, misunderstandings, and heart-wrenching drama, a classic push-and-pull that kept readers hooked.

And the body she now inhabited?

The second female lead.

A timid Alpha who had been nothing more than a footnote in the novel. She had feelings for the Omega FL but never acted on them, knowing full well that her friend-the bold and relentless female Alpha-had loved her first. From afar, she watched, keeping her emotions buried. Her only real moment of influence in the story was when she warned the FL about how toxic the Alpha could be, knowing firsthand about her friend's playgirl past and flamboyant personality. But even then, she had softened her words, unwilling to truly tarnish her friend's image.

The readers, however, hadn't been kind to her. They disliked her character, branding her as unnecessary, even annoying. After her brief warning to the FL, she had faded into the background, barely appearing again until the novel's ending-when she attended the wedding of the Alpha and Omega, silently watching the love story unfold without her.

And now... she was her.

She stepped toward the mirror, her reflection staring back at her with an unsettling familiarity. Her features hadn't changed much-her face still looked like hers-but one thing was different. White spots dotted her pale skin, stark against its milky tone.

That hadn't been there before.

Her fingers brushed over them, tracing their odd patterns. A strange thought crept into her mind-was this some kind of mark left behind from how she died in her past life? She had never believed in things like birthmarks being remnants of past wounds, the way some people claimed. But now, standing here in a body that wasn't originally hers, experiencing something she never thought possible... maybe there was truth to it after all.

This body was only seventeen years old. Its skin was soft, almost too smooth, and her face still carried the roundness of youth. Experimenting, she stretched her cheeks, pressing and pulling at the skin as if trying to convince herself that this was real.

The most frustrating part was that the original character had the same name and face as her. It felt way too coincidental.

Did she have a system at all? Aurora Perish called out "System" three times, but nothing happened. Normally, when people transmigrate, they have a system to support them. But having a system isn't always a blessing-most of them manipulate their hosts. That's why they tend to choose people who are easy to control.

But never mind that she should focus on presence right now, she look at her surroundings. It was identical where she used to live in the same room and place.

The only thing that stood out was the family photo. In this life, she had two fathers. Her Alpha father, Sky Perish, was petite for an Alpha, standing beside her Omega father, Jamie Osorio, who looked strong-more like an Alpha than Sky did. Their naming sense were different from the ones she knew in her previous world.

"Who would name their son as Jamie?" Aurora Perish she said it in her mind while being puzzled about this strange world.

A sudden question struck Aurora Perish

Did I transmigrate... or regressions

Before Aurora Perish could think any further, a gentle knock interrupted her thoughts.

Knock, knock.