Death was my new beginning

A dull day

On my first night in this new world, one maid came in and attended to me. She gave me fancy food and even bathed me. As a modern-day woman, I felt utterly mortified that a complete stranger would look at my naked body and wash it all over that; when it came to cleaning my front, I told her I would do it.

She looked at me as if, out of the two, I was the strange one. She then changed my bandages and put me in a different nightgown. I can't believe I have to get used to this.

As I looked out the window, I heard the maid say, "Good night, lady Mina."

Who is she talking to? When I turned to look at her, she bowed and headed towards the door. Then it hit me. She was referring to me! Before she exited, I said, "Good night, miss."

She turned to look at me surprised, she smiled and did a slight bow once again, then left, closing the door behind her. I wonder if that earned me some points with the staff. Mina wasn't really nice to anyone, so maybe she'll tell the others, and they'll start to like me more.

When I went to sleep, I had a dream that wasn't even about me. I dreamed about walking down what seemed to be a market, and I held hands with a beautiful woman with blue eyes. We passed by a mirror shop, and I noticed I was a younger version of Mina. Maybe 6?

I looked at the woman again, and she looked down at me with a loving smile. Is this woman by chance Mina's mother? If she is indeed Mina's mother, she doesn't look like a p********e at all. Just an average lady.

Suddenly we changed scenes. We were in a wooden house, and it was dark. The place looked small, but it felt warm and cozy. Mina's mother was looking at me worriedly. She took my arm and ran with me towards a bookcase. She moved it to the side, and there was a small hole on the wall. It was so small that it could only fit one person.

"Stay here and don't make a sound. Mommy will tell you when it's all right to come out," she said.

From the gaps on the bookcase, I could see what was going on outside. Mina's mother looked scared, suddenly the door opened with a bang and three men came inside. It was so dark that I couldn't see their faces, but I saw how they grabbed Mina's mother.

"Where is she?" one of them asked. She spits on his face. I saw how they pushed her down. "If you don't talk now, maybe this will make you talk," he said. I noticed as she started struggling and how the others took turns. I knew what was going on, but I felt how Mina's young version had no idea and just stared in horror. They continued asking the woman, "Where is she?" but the woman just screamed and struggled to get out of their grasp.

Then, in an instant, the woman had suddenly stopped screaming and struggling, "That was fun," one said.

"Quick check everywhere for the girl."

I opened my eyes and gasped for air. My heart was going crazy, and I was covered in sweat. What the hell was that dream? Was that supposed to be a memory? But I don't remember something like that ever happening in the novels. Sure, the novel series had heavy scenes, but they never mentioned anything like this happening to Mina's birth mother. Now that I think about it. The book never really went in-depth on Mina's character; she was just the villainess that was jealous of Priscilla.

…………

I sat up on the bed and contemplated my dream. Having a dream about Mina, the moment I turned into Mina? The timing is just too perfect, is this novel trying to tell me something, or are Mina's memories from before the novel slowly started creeping into mine?

The door opened, and in came a different maid from last night; she looked to be the age of my now dead 24-year-old self. She had a cute complexion, almond-shaped eyes, and a small nose. Her hair was a dark brown, and so were her eyes. She was also a bit on the heavy side, but that just made her look cuter, but of course, she's nothing compared to Mina. I don't think anyone can be prettier than Mina. Not even Priscilla, but sadly Priscilla is the one that ends up with all the love.

"Good morning, my lady," she said.

"Good morning," I answered, "Did you sleep well?" I asked her. She looked at me, shocked, and didn't seem to know how to respond. I should say something; if not, it'll just be more awkward, "The house seemed to be in a panic yesterday because of me. I was wondering if things managed to calm down after everyone had a good night's sleep."

The maid looked at me in awe, as if I was a mythical creature.

"Are you alright?" I asked her.

"Ah, yes…I am…my lady," she said; she sounded nervous. "Um…everyone is fine. They're all just worried about my lady's condition." She came over to me with a bowl of water so I could clean my face.

"I saw how you all looked at me yesterday, so you shouldn't fake, worry. You should let the others know that I don't mind." I said without looking at her. I got out of bed and headed to the bathroom. When I looked back, she was still holding the bowl and looking at me with pitiful eyes; behind them, I could sense a bit of shame.

"Should I bathe myself today? I have I feeling I did that a lot too," I added.

The maid's eyes started to water, and tears streamed down her eyes. I didn't plan to make her cry; sure, I would like everyone in this house to feel a bit guilty for how they treated Mina over the years, but I didn't expect her to cry.

"I'm so sorry, my lady," she said, "I…I…" she dropped the bowl and got on her hands and knees, "I knew how difficult it was for you, I knew what they were doing was wrong, yet I did nothing to help you. I'm so sorry, my lady."

"Saying sorry isn't going to make what happened to me go away," I told her, "Get up. It feels weird having someone get on their knees and apologize for something I don't even remember." And I'm glad I don't remember; I'm sure I'd be crying my eyes out right now at her saying sorry since it's something I'm sure Mina always wanted to hear.

The maid got up. She kept her head down and wiped away her tears.

"Hurry up and help me bathe," I told her. She looked towards me and nodded.

"Yes, my lady."

When she was done, she told me to call her whenever I need her. As she made her way towards the door, I told her to stop. "What's your name?" I asked her.

"Lillian, my lady," she said.

"Any last name that goes with that?"

"I'm but a mear commoner, so I don't have a last name" I was surprised by what she said. Do commoners really not have last names? Weird.

"Alright. You may go," I looked away, and as she was leaving the room, I said, "Thanks for the apology, Lillian."

I turned in the direction of the door because I didn't see it close. Lillian was looking down with a saddened smile. Did she hear me? She noticed I was looking at her and looked at me nervously. She bowed once more and left.

Well, I don't care. My intention is to gain sympathy and make everyone in this house feel ashamed of what they've done to Mina, which then would slowly lead to them favoring me.

I sat down on the desk to write stuff I remember about Mina from the novel, but one thing that stood out was that Mina was mentioned to be blessed by God, but it was never mentioned again. Maybe Mina has holy powers? But if that were true, why wasn't it mentioned again? I didn't want to spend too much time thinking about it, so I just crossed it out. It was probably a misprint that didn't mean anything.

The days passed, and I was visited by different maids. Now that I mention it, it was never the same maid twice. I didn't see Lillian again after that one day. Did they all hate the idea of serving Mina so much that just one day with me was enough to make them sick? I made sure to be friendly with all of them and, of course, make them feel guilty for treating me horribly, but none of them got on their knees to apologize like Lillian. They just stood there quietly while feeling guilty.

It had already been a week since I arrived in this new world, and I haven't left this room once. I've spent my days writing what I remember about the novel, its characters, and coming up with ideas on how to survive. The only good thing that's come from being stuck here is that I can now turn my head when I'm called Mina, and I've learned some of the maid's names. But there are so many of them that I've already forgotten a few of them. Planning on how to survive for the past week has got me sick and tired. I'm so bored! I want to leave! I swear I feel more like a prisoner than a patient.

As the sun was setting, I laid down on the bed annoyed, thinking it would be another dull day full of stress, but, like clockwork, there was a knock on my door and, the Count came into the room.