"P-please, please... Stop..."
A weak, heart-wrenching sobs from a woman could be heard coming from the room of Princess Viana Yanis and her husband, Count Lazarus Bloodworth.
However, once again the sound of punches and slaps was heard, followed by the rough and hoarse voice of the Count, who was trying to satisfy his lust.
"Shut up! You shameless woman!"
His curses could be heard, making the faces of the servants outside the room turn even paler.
They stared blankly at the closed bedroom door, thinking that tomorrow they would see the princess's bruised and swollen face and body again.
Then the sound of the Princess's scream was heard once again, and then everything fell silent.
Suddenly, the bedroom door swung open wide, and the Count stepped out wearing clothes that looked like they were hastily thrown on.
A strong smell of alcohol came from his body.
Roughly, he shouted at the group of maidservants gathered near the Princess's bedroom, "No one is allowed to enter that room tonight!"
The frightened servants quickly responded in unison, "Yes, yes, Master."
***
Viana, the Princess, curled up weak and in pain in her bed.
Her cheeks were red from her husband's slaps, and her whole body felt sore.
Wrapped in a blanket, she tried to get out of bed and walked towards the small wardrobe at the end of her room.
She opened the drawer, her trembling hand reaching all the way to the very back. She pulled out a small glass bottle filled with a red liquid.
With great effort, she sat back down on the edge of the bed and stared at the contents of the bottle. She gave it a slight shake before opening the cap.
Closing her eyes, she drank the entire red liquid in one gulp. As it entered her body, her eyes shot open, and an intense pain burned through her throat.
Then, she crawled onto the bed and lay down on her back, her body covered by a blanket.
Her entire body ached, every part of it. She gazed weakly at the canopy ceiling above her bed and murmured softly, "Finally, I will be free from all this suffering..."
She closed her eyes and felt her consciousness fading away. Her breathing came to a stop.
However, now she felt something entirely different from what her body had experienced before.
There was no pain anymore. She opened her eyes and found herself floating in an empty space, dark with hues of purple, scattered with countless tiny lights like distant stars.
With confusion in her eyes, she looked around the entire place, trying to understand where she was.
'Where am I?'
Her body floated, unable to move up or down, though she could still move all her limbs freely.
But when she looked at her hands and feet, she realized they were completely transparent.
'Is this the afterlife?'
She glanced around her surroundings again, then thought to herself, 'Oh, well. At least I don't feel any pain now.'
Smiling, she allowed herself to float aimlessly, closing her eyes with a sense of bliss.
Suddenly, a sound startled her.
Ring!
'Huh? What was that? It sounded like a bell.'
She opened her eyes and saw a screen appear in front of her.
[Are you willing to be given a second chance in your life?]
"What is this?" she muttered, confused as she looked at the transparent screen with text in front of her.
She examined it from the front, left, right, and even behind it. But the screen stayed in her view, following wherever her gaze shifted.
"A second chance? What do you mean by that?" she asked the screen after she read the sentence, her tone filled with confusion.
[A second chance to go back to your past life and fix everything, including your own life.]
The screen responded as though it could hear her question, displaying its message clearly in front of her.
Viana stared at the screen with a blank expression.
Did she really want to return to her previous life, knowing she might have to endure the same suffering and marry that horrible Count again?
She said, "No," then closed her eyes and floated as if she were lying down, enjoying her newfound freedom.
Curious, she opened one eye and saw the screen still displayed in front of her.
'Why does this message keep pushing me?' she thought.
"Leave me alone!" she shouted at the screen.
The screen disappeared, but moments later, it reappeared with new words displayed.
[Don't you want to change your fate and live happily with a kind and wealthy husband?]
"What the..." Viana muttered under her breath.
"No. I just want to live peacefully," Viana replied, frowning slightly.
The screen disappeared for a moment but reappeared again. This time, it displayed a new message.
[Do you want to stay in a place like this? There's no one here to keep you company.]
Viana froze.
'The screen is right, there's no one here,' she thought.
She started to panic and said, "But what guarantee do you have that if I return, I won't live in misery again?"
The screen disappeared again but reappeared moments later with new words.
[The System will assist you.]
Viana thought for a moment, then asked, "What kind of help?"
[We will give you guidance to start your new life. You'll understand once you return to life.]
'So annoying,' she thought, frowning. She ignored the screen and went back to floating in the air and lying midair as if nothing else mattered.
But the bell sound rang again.
This time, Viana chose to ignore it, keeping her eyes shut and savoring the peace around her.
Ring!
A little annoyed, Viana turned her body to the side.
Ring!
Her eyebrows twitched slightly.
Ring!
Finally, utterly frustrated, she sat up and glared at the screen in front of her. This time, the screen displayed a new message.
[You are being given a second chance to live. Are you willing to accept it?]
"Okay, okay," she finally answered in an annoyed tone.
But then her body started to disappear, and Viana screamed hysterically, "Nooooooooo!"