IHWL 01

Chapter 1

The night I checked my acceptance letter to Korea University—one of the most prestigious universities not only in Korea but internationally—something felt very strange.

“Where am I?”

The scenery was completely different from the hospital room I had spent my entire life lying in.

A golden chandelier hung above, and the walls were made of ivory marble.

Even the faint floral scent in the air was nothing like the usual sterile smell of a hospital.

“Where are the doctors? The nurses?”

Excuse me?

I tried to speak…

“Waaahhh!”

…but all that came out was a cry.

“W-what? Is this some kind of hidden camera prank?”

I blinked my eyes.

My body wouldn’t move properly.

Ugh… come on…

I forced my hand up, but my arm was incredibly short.

“Waaahhh!”

My throat kept crying on its own, completely against my will, and I barely managed to turn my gaze to look at my tiny arm.

It looked like a plump little sausage.

Then I heard a voice.

“I-it’s a girl!”

I was slightly shocked.

That language wasn’t Korean.

And yet, the moment I heard it, I understood it naturally—

as if it were my native language.

“Th-the imperial princess has been born!”

Wow. I think I’ve been reincarnated into another world.

“Or… did I possess someone?”

I listened closely to the midwife’s words.

Then I heard someone sobbing.

“A girl… in the Bilottian imperial family…”

I wasn’t entirely sure, but it sounded like my mother—the one who had just given birth to me—was crying.

It didn’t seem like she was happy at all.

But I was pretty happy.

“Oh! Bilottian! I know this!”

Bilottian was the name of the imperial family in the novel “After the Terminally Ill Villainess Dies.”

It was a cold-blooded lineage that valued only strength, worshipped martial power, and judged worth solely by it.

They didn’t see their children as children, but merely as candidates for succession.

And for 500 years, only boys had been born into the family.

“This is where Princess Isabel is born… That must be me?”

The Bilottian swordsmanship had been developed to suit male mana circuits.

In other words, women couldn’t learn it.

In a family where strength was everything, being born as a girl was a curse.

“A shocked midwife, a crying mother, the Bilottian imperial family… the first princess in 500 years… My name is Isabel?”

There was no doubt.

This place was inside the novel “After the Terminally Ill Villainess Dies.”

I had reread it over 17 times.

I knew almost every character, the setting, and the entire plot by heart.

After all, I had spent my whole life bedridden, with only solving math problems and reading novels as hobbies.

“Oh my… I must have possessed someone.”

Honestly, it would’ve been more logical to believe this was a dream—

but I preferred the idea of possession, so I decided to believe that.

“Waaahhh!”

Even while crying, I was happy.

I wasn’t lying—I really liked this whole possession situation.

“This place is way better than Korea.”

Back in Korea, I was an orphan.

My biological father ran away before I was even born, and my mother abandoned me soon after.

I didn’t even know what they looked like.

Then, at age four, I was diagnosed with pediatric cancer.

I became a tragic child often featured in the media.

Thanks to donations from countless strangers, I managed to stay in the hospital and survive.

Fortunately, I was quite smart.

[“A miracle achieved in a hospital room!”]
[“The miracle child accepted into Korea University.”]

My acceptance made it onto the news.

Many people congratulated and praised me.

I was grateful—but not truly happy.

“I’m going to die soon anyway.”

I knew my death was near.

And it hurt so much.

So often, I wished I could just die quickly and be free from the pain.

“Wow, everyone! My body doesn’t hurt at all!”

Even though I was crying loudly, I felt no pain.

Normally, my chest should’ve been wracked with agony.

That alone made me incredibly happy.

“If I really possessed Isabel… I’ll die at 21.”

Isabel was born terminally ill.

She carried the “Mark of Narvidal.”

It was an hourglass-shaped mark engraved on the wrist.

Sand would continuously fall throughout one’s life, and when it ran out, death would come.

A curse from birth.

But who cares?

Right now, I wasn’t in pain at all.

At least until I turned 21, I could live a healthy, happy life.

For someone who was already on the verge of death, gaining 21 more years was like a miracle.

“Jackpot!”

Even if I was terminally ill, I had possessed a healthy and beautiful Isabel.

“Wait… does that mean I can eat cookies whenever I want?”

I had only ever eaten hospital food.

I had never even properly tasted cola.

Once, I took half a sip and got scolded badly by a nurse.

“Does this world even have cola?”

Somehow, I had become very serious about food.

“There probably isn’t tteokbokki, right?”

It’s Korean food, so probably not.

Though I knew the recipe—

Wait, why am I thinking about tteokbokki right now?

…But once the thought started, it didn’t stop.

“C-can I try alcohol before I die?”

It must be really good if people get addicted to it.

They say it’s bitter… but that’s probably just a lie to stop kids.

Before I die, I want to try it at least once.

Like a real adult—sipping wine while looking at a beautiful night view.

It was just a fantasy, but it was my wish.

“Alcohooool!”

I tried to shout—but all that came out was another “Waaahhh!”

Then another voice spoke.

“Something useless has been born.”

Just like in the novel.

I rolled my eyes to look at the face that suddenly appeared—

and instinctively cried out:

“Waaah (He’s handsome)!”

I wasn’t exaggerating.

I had never seen such a handsome being before.

The novel’s description was spot-on.

A man so beautiful no one hesitated to call him such, though he was known as an emotionless doll. Countless noble ladies fell lovesick because of him.

His black hair was short, his brows and eyes sharp.

His gaze was fierce.

And yet, he was breathtakingly beautiful.

That man… was my father, Ron.

“Hehe.”

The moment I saw his face, I felt ashamed of my poor imagination.

“He’s way more handsome than I imagined.”

He was so handsome that even I, a newborn, stopped crying.

“Wow, that scary gaze… still handsome.”

The way he treated me was completely normal in this world.

Ron loved his wife deeply—but he had never once loved his children as children.

I wasn’t scared.

In the novel, Isabel—who lived a short life—grew into a terrible villainess.

She committed countless evil acts before dying naturally at 21.

And as a side note—the imperial family would fall on the day she died.

The male lead she had tormented as a child would return awakened and destroy the Bilottian family.

That’s why the novel was titled “After the Terminally Ill Villainess Dies.”

“So basically, no matter what I do, the family won’t touch me!”

No need to be scared.

My father turned away.

He didn’t spare me even the slightest affectionate glance.

It was a little sad—but as someone who had read the novel many times, I understood.

“Now they’ll probably confirm my terminal condition.”

At that moment, the midwife spoke after noticing something on my wrist.

“Your Majesty! The Mark of Narvidal is present.”

Children born with that mark all died at 21.

“Now he’ll say he doesn’t care and leave.”

“I have no interest.”

Bang.

The door shut.

I didn’t feel particularly bad.

“21 years.”

I had been given 21 extra years for free.

My mother continued sobbing.

“My baby…”

She would apologize to me.

For giving birth to me.

“I’m sorry for bringing you into this world.”

“Waaahhh!”

No, really—I’m completely fine.

I wanted to tell her, but I couldn’t speak.

I decided I would tell her once I learned how.

“I may not be able to learn swordsmanship…”

…but I’m pretty smart.

And I know the future.

Even the strongest figures in this world.

“This world even has something like cryptocurrency.”

It had a different name, but similar concepts existed.

In about 10 years, its value would increase tens of thousands of times.

I even knew the creator, Narmor.

And I knew the names of future promising mages, engineers, and businessmen.

If I thought about it carefully, there were plenty of ways to avoid destruction.

“Wow… I can think of at least ten ways to live these 21 years meaningfully.”

Ugh… come on…

I squirmed.

“Yep, definitely a fantasy world.”

A newborn moving on her own!

Well… considering I had possessed someone and understood everything, it wasn’t that shocking.

If anything, it was probably because I was born into the Bilottian imperial family.

Anyway, I kept trying to move.

The midwife seemed touched.

“It seems she wants to go to the Empress.”

She picked me up.

The floating sensation was surprisingly fun.

“Being a baby makes everything enjoyable.”

I was placed beside my mother, Serna.

Squirm, squirm.

Like a little caterpillar, I wriggled into her arms.

It was the first time I felt a mother’s warmth.

Serna’s body trembled.

She was crying tears of emotion.

“It’s warm… and I’m sleepy.”

A newborn needs a lot of sleep.

Before I knew it, I drifted off.

Holding tightly onto my mother’s finger.

And then—

a year passed.