Chapter:1

...CHAPTER:1...

Arella finally stepped out of the hospital after another exhausting shift, the cool night air hitting her like a reminder that she was still alive.

The fluorescent lights inside the emergency ward still flickered behind her eyelids every time she blinked.

But outside…

Outside was quieter.

Outside she could breathe.

Her feet ached, her back ached, her shoulders felt like stone and it drooped, her messy hair looked like it had fought a hurricane and lost. She dragged herself toward her tiny apartment, mumbling:

“Today is Friday… tomorrow I took an off from hospital… I’m going to sleep like a corpse tonight. Tomorrow will be a movie night… aaah finally.”

The relief hit her so hard that she began jumping down the road like a kid who discovered chocolate was a personality trait. And of course, she didn’t notice she was saying all of this out loud like a broken radio.

“For the past one month I’ve been suffering. Accidents left and right—All of a sudden people has decided dying is a hobby!” she groaned. “Even that famous actor, Vian, attempted suicide! What is happening to humanity?! But now—” she pumped her fists into the air “—I worked overtime for one whole week just for THIS Saturday. Today, I will REST. Only rest. ONLY rest.”

She skipped along the road, lost in her own world.

“YESSHHH! I’m going to turn into a sloth! I’ll cling to my bed like a koala!”

People stared. Some stepped away from her like she carried seven contagious diseases. One man checked if he had mistakenly stepped into a psychiatric documentary.

Arella blinked at the weird looks.

“Huh? Why are people acting strange— Oh…”

The realization slapped her again.

Her fridge.

“NOOOOO! All my food must have expired! I ate hospital canteen food for a month! My vegetables, fruits, meat— everything is probably rotting inside like a zombie horror movie.”

She sighed dramatically.

“Fine… let's go to the convenience store before going home, way to gooo.”

...----------------...

IN THE CONVENIENCE STORE:

Arella pushed her cart, still sulking. She hadn’t bought real groceries in ages, and she didn’t spend on fancy clothes anyway. So naturally, she started listing things out loud again.

“I need chicken, carrots, potatoes, onions, capsicum, garlic, ginger, chilies… chili flakes too. And fruits! How did I even forget fruits?!”

She stuffed avocados, kiwis, strawberries, ramen, spices, vegetables, fish—basically the entire store—into her basket like she was preparing for an zombie apocalypse.

“I’ll sleep, eat, feed stray dogs… OH biscuits! Need biscuits for the dogs!”

She reached the billing counter with the mountain of items—when her phone buzzed.

Notification:

“Dr. Arella, your Saturday off is approved. Sunday off as well. Starting Monday, however, from 21/07 to 03/08, you are assigned to two cities for free health checkups.”

— Director, Neurology Department

Arella froze. Bought a awkward, bitter smile and her eye twitching.

She told the worker,

“Sorry ma’am, I… need to go to the restroom. Please bill everything before I come.”

She marched to the restroom, locked the door—

and gently banged her forehead against the wall.

"Why does this happen ONLY to me?”

She washed her forehead—because “stay healthy, avoid germs” is her lifelong motto—

then punched the wall so hard her fist turned red.

“ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! Two weeks of traveling with NO rest?! At this rate I’ll become a patient in my own hospital! That old director—he KNOWS I’ve been doing overtime. Working shift after shift. Still he chose me. That oldie!”

...----------------...

IN MAVERICK EMPIRE (6TH WORLD)

Duke Kael paced left and right in the grand hall, pulling his hair like an unstable noble.

“No, no, NO! I’m done, like seriously! That pink hair… that smile… that weird white jacket—coat—whatever it was! And her… pants? WHY were they so BIG?! And her top was oversized too! I will lose my sanity!”

Marquees Layton slammed his head against the wall.

“She’s ghosting us! I can’t sleep! I thought being immortal and being a werewolf was the worst curse but NO—this torture is worse!”

Count Rowan smiled quietly.

A peaceful, bright, suspicious smile.

Kael and Layton immediately froze and a chill ran down their spine.

Rowan removed his glasses.

Archduke Adrian’s instincts kicked in.

He grabbed the two idiots by their collars and dragged them away.

“Adrian, why are you—?”

SPURT.

Blood sprayed dramatically from Rowan’s mouth and eyes like a stage fountain.

He collapsed—still smiling.

Servants rushed in hearing the noise and they froze.

Adrian clenched his jaw.

“If this continues, our immortal life will be a disaster. We’ll lose control on the next full moon… and we might wipe out humankind.”

...----------------...

AT THE DIVINE CHAMBER

The goddess lounged on her couch, munching grapes while checking her worlds like a bored CEO.

Her golden gaze landed on the 6th World.

“Oof… the boys are suffering again. Should I bring Arella to them? Or bring the boys to her? Last time I brought a girl from the world 287th to the male lead of the 5667th world and then guess what, 5667th world exploded after two months… The priestess of 5667th world told me shadow God strained their relationship...maybe this time sending the boys is smarter.”

She sighed.

“Arella already has enough trauma. If history repeats, the shadows will destroy this world too. Shadow God is really testing my patience. Noah said we’re running out of power stones to rewind time.”

Kitty, her divine cat, meowed.

“Meow meow.”

(Translation: Master, stop being dramatic.)

The goddess laughed.

“Yes kitty, you’re right. It’s time to show that Shadow God who the REAL boss is. Gods don’t make mistakes I wonder!”

She lifted Kitty.

“Want grapes?”

Kitty jumped excitedly.

“Meow meowww!!”

(Then what are you even waiting for, let's goo.)

...----------------...

IN HUMAN WORLD (1109TH WORLD)

Arella woke up panting, heart thundering. Sweat dripped down her forehead.

“That dream again… Why is it still coming…? I thought it was stress or maybe because of those couples I kept seeing in roads, hospital campus and everywhere which basically annoyed me…”

She punched her pillow.

“Who do those men think they are?! Calling me cat, pig, troublemaker—HUH?! And that black-haired guy—what was he smirking at?!”

In her dream, four men stood a few meters away:

A brown-haired one.

A bright orange-haired one.

A green-haired one.

And the last—with unsettling black hair.

The brown-haired one called her cat.

The orange one called her pig.

The green-haired one called her troublemaker.

The black-haired one whispered something she couldn’t hear.

But they all extended their left hands toward her.

Like they were reaching out… calling her… waiting.

Arella screamed into her pillow.

“If this continues, I’ll die before 25 or become a psychiatric patient! I’m 20—youngest doctor—smart, pretty, hardworking—so WHY am I still single? And even in dreams, handsome men INSULT me?!”

To distract herself, she cleaned her apartment, ate a fruit salad and avocado sandwich, and watched her favorite soap opera—until she remembered her upcoming two-week torture.

She sighed, switched off the TV, washed the dishes.

“If I think too much, I’ll stress myself. Let me go feed the stray dogs.”

She put on a hoodie and scarf.

Outside, the wind brushed her cheeks, leaves fell slowly, and a nearly leafless tree stood alone.

“It seems autumn is coming.”

She sat beside the dogs, patting them softly.

The dream returned to her mind like an echo.

“Everything felt real… The grass… The distance… Like they were just meters away and also… an entire world apart.”

She forced a smile.

“How is that even possible? I’m on Earth. I’m just… tired.”

“Tired of life or work… who knows…”

While thinking all this, she patted the dogs for the last time and went to her apartment.

...----------------...

MONDAY — NOTHEIR HILL CITY

Arella and the medical team arrived at the hill city famous for its scenic views—and lack of healthcare awareness.

Patients lined up from sunrise. Arella treated each one patiently, sending serious cases to the National Healthcare branches. Seeing sick kids made her heart numb.

While writing healthy routines she muttered:

“They won’t follow the diet anyway… but at least they’re strong for now.”

Every breath of hill air refreshed her.

“No wonder they’re healthy… fresh air and hardworking lifestyle… these people are tough.”

...----------------...

IN MAVERICK EMPIRE (6TH WORLD)

Adrian, Kael, Layton, and Rowan sat in a quiet private dining room.

Kael broke the silence.

“We have to do something. If this continues, we’ll lose control on the next full moon.”

Layton sighed.

Rowan finally spoke calmly.

“I saw the girl again yesterday. A golden-eyed cat guided me. Normally we cannot move in dreams—but after the cat appeared, I could. It led me to a door. Inside was a magic circle and a spell. It said—

‘Use this and go to her world.’”

All three men stiffened.

Adrian leaned forward.

“You’re saying… we can meet her?”

Rowan nodded.

Layton gulped.

“She has… pink hair. And we barely know anything. Lifting our curse is impossible. We’re immortal. Me and Kael are werewolves, Rowan you have immense magic and Adrian you have immense power and you are a vampire. And she’s… a stranger.”

Rowan’s eyes softened.

“We won’t know the truth… until we meet her.”

...----------------...

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***