"Big Sister Pear, do I really have to drink this bowl of white fungus and lotus seed soup?"

Vivienne Ashford stared at the little girl in front of her.

She looked no more than twelve or thirteen, dressed in a worn, half-old set of ancient-style clothes. Her hair was dry and yellowish, her face sallow, her skin pale. She was so thin she was almost all bones. Only those eyes were still striking. Her tiny face had no flesh on it at all, which made those eyes look even bigger, and the look inside them was far too heavy, far too sharp for someone her age.

Vivienne’s mind went blank.

What... was going on?

She looked the girl over again, then quickly swept her gaze around the room.

It was an old-fashioned chamber, plain and faded, nothing like the gorgeous sets she had seen on television. If anything, the whole place looked dull and dusty. Even the two shabby window frames were leaking cold air.

Then she looked at herself.

She was holding a bowl of soup in her hands, halfway through offering it to the little girl lying on the bed. And that same little girl was staring at her with a gaze so eerie it made Vivienne’s fingers twitch. She jerked her hand back on instinct.

What kind of situation was this?

Was she dreaming?

She raised a hand and pinched her thigh hard.

"Ow—"

That hurt like hell.

So... not a dream?

She clearly remembered being at work pulling overtime. And while working late, she had hidden in the restroom to sneak a few chapters of a novel.

So how had she ended up here?

Had she worked herself to death?

Had she transmigrated?

She lowered her head again and saw that she was dressed in ancient clothing too. Her heart skipped.

Could it be real?

If she had really transmigrated, then... shouldn't the original host's memories be coming in by now?

She waited.

And waited.

Nothing.

There was no dramatic stab of pain in her head, no sudden flood of memories like in the novels.

Vivienne cursed in her heart.

Damn it. What now? This isn't how books write it at all. Don't panic, don't panic. Think. Let me think this through. How did I get here?

What was I doing just before this?

I think... I was in the restroom. Yeah, I was using my bathroom break to read a novel...

Wait.

I—was—in—the—toilet.

Now I've transmigrated.

Did I pull my pants up or not?