Chapter 2

Jessica had picked up some acupuncture skills and said she wanted to help me get rid of the chill. But while I was asleep, she swapped the acupuncture needles for rusty nails and drove them right into the key points on my feet and knees.

I woke up screaming in agony, but Jessica's wailing drowned out my own cries.

She said, "I'm sorry. I just thought the needles were too thin and hard to hold, so I grabbed some nails instead. I didn't expect there'd be so much blood. So much blood. I'm so scared."

I wanted to kill Jessica right then and there, but Dominic shoved me to the ground.

He said, "Jessica just thought nails were the same as needles. She's as clueless as a kid, but that's what makes her so adorable.

"Rosie, you're being way too hard on her."

When he saw me lying there, unable to get up, he sneered, "Quit faking it. It's just a couple of stabs. You're not dying."

He was right. I didn't die, but that day, I lost the use of my legs and ended up bedridden for the rest of my life.

After I lost the use of my legs, my body grew even weaker from the miscarriage.

But even bedridden and frail, I was still a natural stunner, the kind of tragic beauty you only read about in stories.

Late that night, Jessica showed up with two maids, held me down, and announced she was going to give me a cupping treatment.

"Ms. Houghton, you look so pale. Mr. Lowe said cupping can help your blood flow and make you feel better. I just learned this. Let me give it a shot on you?" she chirped.

She pulled off my robe, smeared oil all over my back, and then, while trying to light the fire, fumbled and dropped the fire starter right onto me.

The moment the flame hit the oil, my back went up in flames, burning all the way up to my neck and right cheek.

Dominic rushed in and put out the fire, while Jessica held up her scorched finger, crying as she tried to explain.

"Mr. Lowe, you know how much I fear fire. The flame burned me, and I lost my grip on the fire starter. I swear I didn't mean to hurt Ms. Houghton," she sobbed.

Dominic glanced at my burned face and tried to talk me down. "Jessica nearly died in a fire when she was little. She's been terrified of flames ever since. You should try to understand her."

He gently held my face and said, "Rosie, even if your face is scarred, I'll still love you.

"Don't let your appearance weigh on your heart. Just let it go and forgive Jessica. Besides, you're not exactly mortal, are you?"

Right then, Dominic watched me, now scarred and crippled, suffering from arsenic poisoning, and still said, "Rosie, don't blame Jessica. And stop acting so dramatic.

"I know you're immune to all poisons. You're not dying."

When I started coughing up blood, he covered Jessica's eyes.

"Don't look. You'll just have nightmares. Let her sleep a bit. She'll be back to normal," he said.

"Really?" Jessica asked.

"Seriously. She's immune to all poisons. Back when she tried wrenchgut for me, she just slept it off and was totally fine," Dominic said.

Back then, whenever I tested poisons for Dominic, he'd be crying his eyes out, holding my hand all night and refusing to leave until the poison was gone.

He'd hug me, sobbing, and swear that once he became the legendary healer everyone talked about, he'd give me the best of everything in the world.

But now, Dominic was busy protecting Jessica, the one who poisoned me, and had just left me to deal with the pain on my own.

Before he left, he only said one thing. "Jessica's sleeping right next door. If you're hurting, try not to make too much noise. She's a light sleeper, and you don't want to disturb her rest.

"I'll come check on you tomorrow."

After they left, the System finally popped up.

It said, "Host, after all these years tagging along with you, this is the first time I've seen you so down bad and messed up."

If the System hadn't chimed in, I'd almost forgotten how I used to breeze through this world, cool, confident, and totally in control.

Whether I was dealing with a general or an emperor, I could always walk away without a scratch, never getting emotionally involved, never leaving a trace.

But Dominic was the one exception.

Ten years ago, I dragged Dominic, just ten years old, out of a heap of corpses.

He was determined to become a miracle doctor, so to help him out, I made a deal with the System and got myself this body, immune to every poison, basically impossible to kill, or as Dominic liked to call me, his medicine girl.

Originally, all I had to do was help Dominic become a miracle doctor, and that would've been enough to finish my mission.

But as I watched him grow up, after seeing so much scheming and manipulation, I was genuinely moved by his burning passion to save the world.

He saved soldiers with missing limbs on the battlefield, nursed dying babies through plagues, and then went on to treat high-ranking officials, royalty, and even the emperor himself.

Whenever he ran into a tough case, I'd be the one testing every herb myself, whipping up the perfect cure for him.

With my help, Dominic became a world-famous miracle doctor before he was even old enough to grow a beard.

The day I finally finished my mission, I asked the System for the first time if I could stay in this world. I wanted to spend the rest of my life by Dominic's side.

The System had warned me before. "Host, based on my stats, every player who catches feelings for their target ends up paying a heavy price and regretting it."

But back then, I was too busy planning my wedding to Dominic to care. I swore up and down that I'd be the exception.

After all, ever since I became a player, I'd always been the cool-headed, decisive type, always the winner, never the loser.

Thinking back on all that pride I used to have, I couldn't help but give myself a bitter, self-deprecating chuckle.