IWHERSFL 01

~Chapter 1~

Muriel Terni tried to kill herself.

No—more accurately, she only tried.

The poison she swallowed turned out to be a sleeping drug.

“Did she really try to die?”

“No way. She was just acting to fool the lord.”

The servants, who had felt uneasy at first, soon decided it was nothing serious and went back to blaming Muriel as usual.

The villainess of Terni.
A devil-like woman who only did evil things.
A terrible wife they wished would disappear for the sake of the poor lord.

That was who Muriel Terni was in Winterberg Ducal Castle.

I was sure I had died, but when I opened my eyes, I was in a strange place.

Not long after I realized that, a woman rushed into the room and slapped me.

Smack!

I staggered, holding my cheek, and let out a small groan from the pain.

Then I heard a graceful but dramatic voice.

“You’re truly disgusting. Muriel, you’re the worst.”

I slowly turned my head to look at her.

Pink hair like spring flowers and clear, water-colored eyes.
She was unbelievably beautiful.

“You caused a fake suicide scandal just to get Raul’s attention? You went that far? On the anniversary of Duke and Duchess Winterberg’s deaths, no less!”

Muriel? Raul?

I knew those names.

Muriel Terni.
Raul Winterberg.

They were the main characters of a regret novel I couldn’t stop reading even right before I died.

“…She called me Muriel, right?”

If I was Muriel, then this woman had to be—

“Siena Castel.”

A princess of the neighboring country Castel, and Raul’s childhood friend.

“Your father, Duke Terni, brutally killed Raul’s parents! How could you—!”

Siena, shaking with anger, took a deep breath and bit her lip.

Then she regained her royal composure and scolded me coldly.

“After committing so many crimes, you dare pretend to be a victim and deceive everyone. And now you cause this ridiculous mess. Have you no shame?”

“….”

I opened my mouth, then closed it.

I didn’t even understand what was happening. I wasn’t the real Muriel. Still, I felt wronged.

All the crimes Muriel was blamed for were actually false accusations.

“I’ve already told Raul. You should be exiled to the polluted land, according to Winterberg law.”

“Ah…”

“That place is the ending that suits you best. Villainess of Terni, Muriel.”

Siena looked down at me with contempt, then turned away and left.

“….”

I sat there blankly. Only when light slowly filled the dark room did reality sink in.

I think… I possessed someone.

The heroine of a regret novel with a sad ending.

Muriel Terni.

I was an orphan, and at twenty-one I was diagnosed with an incurable terminal illness.

Maybe that’s why I became so attached to Muriel, who suffered in a similar way. I wanted her to be happy.

But Muriel lived a miserable life and died.

Meanwhile, the male lead Raul only regretted things for a tiny moment.

Why did the story end like that?
Why couldn’t Muriel be happy?

I obsessed over those questions until my last moments.

Maybe that’s why I became Muriel.

“….”

Clatter, clatter.

Inside a shaking carriage, I sat across from Raul and stared out the window.

Since the moment I got in, I could feel his sharp gaze burning into me, but I refused to look at him.

Ignoring my silence, his cold voice cut in.

“I’ll admit your acting was impressive. Did you really want my attention that badly, even pretending to die?”

“…?”

I actually did try to die, though.

I was speechless at the unfair accusation.

“And on the anniversary of my parents’ deaths. You insulted Duke and Duchess Winterberg.”

Honestly, Muriel was mentally broken at the time.

Do you really think she cared about anniversaries?

The Terni and Winterberg families were sworn enemies.

Then why did Muriel marry Raul?

Because the king wanted to end internal conflict. It was a political marriage forced on both of them.

Raul treated Muriel coldly, insulting her constantly.

Not only that, everyone in Winterberg Castle rejected and bullied her.

“The one at fault was Duke Terni, not Muriel. She wasn’t even his real daughter.”

Unable to endure the hatred, Muriel drank poison.

But it was actually a sleeping drug. The pharmacist had scammed her.

She slept like a corpse for two days, then woke up.

That was the story—until I possessed her.

“It was unbearable that you sneaked into my bedroom every night.”

“….”

That was because the maids released rats and insects into her room.

“Do you really think I would want to sleep with you? I’d rather die than touch a woman who makes me sick just by looking at her.”

Wow. Truly trash behavior.

I mentally applauded his perfect regret-novel male lead lines.

“Your punishment is already decided. Stop pretending to be a victim.”

Pretending? You know nothing.

I wanted to argue, to clear Muriel’s name—but—

“No matter what I say, he won’t believe me. Just like in the original story.”

Fine. Don’t waste energy. Ignore him.

I turned back to the window.

Soon, the carriage stopped.

“This is where you’ll live from today.”

A shabby cabin backed by a black forest.
A barren wasteland where not even grass grew.

This was where Muriel was exiled after endless false accusations.

“Do not take a single step outside. Live as if you are dead. That’s the minimum mercy I’ll give you.”

So the real suffering begins.

“As a criminal, even if you die here, the Terni family won’t object.”

Object? They’d celebrate.

Muriel was a discarded piece to them.

“Food and daily supplies will be delivered once a month. As you can see, this area is polluted.”

Yes. This was polluted land.

Living here wouldn’t kill you immediately, but staying longer than six months was dangerous.

Your body would weaken. Your skin and organs would rot.

The original Muriel eventually became seriously ill.

“One more warning.”

Raul’s blue eyes flashed with hatred.

“I could poison you without evidence and make it look like an accident. Be grateful I let you live.”

Ah, yes. Thank you so much.

“…If you need help, request it from Winterberg Castle. A servant will come once a week.”

They probably won’t.

Everyone in Winterberg wants Muriel dead.

“Reflect on your sins and live quietly.”

After the unlucky regret-filled man left, I entered the cabin.

“As expected…”

Old furniture, drafty windows, dusty floors, cobwebs everywhere.

I sighed.

“…Let’s clean first.”

I opened the windows, shook off dust, swept and wiped the floor, cleaned the walls and frames.

After about thirty minutes, it wasn’t shiny—but it was clean enough.

“Heh. I’m good at cleaning.”

I looked around proudly.

Old, but livable.

I stepped outside and sat weakly on a bench.

“How am I supposed to survive here?”

I needed to last at least one or two months.

With Muriel’s weak body, traveling alone was impossible.

“I need to build stamina first.”

But food was the problem.

In the original story, Muriel barely survived on monthly supplies.

But…

“Nope.”

Why?

“They stole everything.”

There was a small storage shed nearby. The boxes inside were completely empty.

“This is different from the original.”

The servants weren’t supposed to be this cruel.

“Sigh… I possessed someone too. Where’s my buff?”

That was when—

“…?”

I felt something strange.

I lifted my head.

A faint blue light floated in the air, almost within reach.

Then—

▶▶▶ Adjusting connection… Please wait.

It turned into a game-like window.

“What is this…?”

I rubbed my eyes.

The blue screen was still there.

“…Is this a status window?”

▲ Connection complete! Updating soon. (Estimated time: 29 seconds.)

Flash!

The screen grew brighter and larger.

Then familiar words appeared.

Congratulations!

You have obtained the ☆Healing Farm Life☆ bonus!

From now on, skills and items for farming life will be provided.

Enjoy a happy farming life with a system that guides you anytime, anywhere ♡