The pawn's second life

The dream, a recurring nightmare of an innocent life tragically cut short, climaxed with a horrifying finality. It was Valentina Isidor's demise, her brother's, and her child's—a brutal end I’d witnessed countless times in my mind. Yet, today, the impact was different, a raw, overwhelming grief that seized my very core.

“No!” I gasped, jolting awake, my body drenched in a cold sweat. The vision lingered, a vivid tapestry of betrayal and bloodshed. "This time... it's real."

Later, as I navigated the bustling streets, a sudden, blinding flash. Then, darkness. I felt the hit, the sensation of life draining away, but I wasn't gone. I was in a void, a liminal space, until a radiant light appeared, coalescing into a figure of warmth and immense power. A Goddess. She revealed a truth that shattered my understanding: I, Kim Eun-Jae, was Valentina Isidor, reincarnated to escape a bitter fate, yet bound by a subconscious desire for vengeance.

Now, returned to the past, waking in Valentina's opulent room, the reality of my second chance hit me. The familiar luxury, the maids bustling to prepare me for the day—it was all real. Today, the Emperor Feliz awaited, ready to finalize the contract that would seal my first life's doom. But this time, I wasn't the naive pawn. This time, I had a plan, and a smirk that promised a very different outcome.