Spirit Conjoining

"You knew from the beginning?"

"Yep, come inside. You're the special guest for today, and I wouldn't want you waiting out in the cold."

His demeanour didn't change at all, even when he figured out I lied to him. But I didn't mind it that much; I was a bit embarrassed that I had been caught.

When Anton and I went inside, the lobby was so sophisticated and nice that everything from the top to the bottom didn't have a single speck of dust.

"Do you like what you see? Destiny's Touch is a fortune-telling shop, the best in Eichenburg. We use palm reading to evaluate a person's life span, how many kids they will have, their lovers, and almost everything else. But underneath all of that, I run everything. But you'll have a different reading. Follow me."

Anton leads me to his office, which gives off a comforting scent, like a snowy winter day when you're all cuddled up together to get warm and drink hot chocolate.

"I'm going to get to the point, So-Jin; I'm probably the only person who knows about your situation. You see, Count Pavel, the father of the original Liselotte, recently came in for a reading before you went back in time to another person's body. I didn't tell him about my predictions about you, just simple ones like how old you will die, your future son-in-law, blah, boring stuff like that."

"You see, I'm good at my work; Count Pavel asked about you, but since the original Liselotte didn't want to do a palm reading, I had to read Liselotte's destiny using witchcraft. I use witchcraft when it's necessary. Of course, I said no at first, like many times, but Count Pavel was persistent. So, I gave in and did a reading. But I saw you instead of Liselotte. That's how I know you're not Liselotte but a girl from modern Korea."

"But I saw something I had never seen. It's called soul conjoining. It's when both souls inhabit one body. But a body cannot contain two souls at one time. Since you are the one in "control," Liselotte's spirit is fading away. 

After Anton's speech, I may find a way to go back home through him!

"I see, but what will happen if Liselotte's spirit fades away?"

"Then you will never return to your rightful place in time and the right body."

Now I'm panicking.

"Wait, what? So how much time is left before Liselotte's spirit fades away??" I asked

"Let's see how long you have been in Eichenburg."

"For a month at most."

"I can predict you have around one year before you cannot return." Anton is now dead serious. 

"A year? Can I go back in under a year?"

"I don't know how you ended up in the past, especially in another person's body. But you might be related to Liselotte somehow."

"In my timeline, Liselotte and Kaiserin were just a myth, and nobody knew they existed. Until they found Liselotte's casket and opened it."

Anton starts to chuckle a bit as I finish my sentence.

"I'm like you, but I have a different timeline. I'm also from modern Korea. This isn't my body. The person who was originally in this body died long before I could go back to Korea."

"You're from Korea?! That means we can work together!" I was excited to know that I was truly not alone.

"Yep! Do you have any questions? I'll try my best to help you!"

"Well, I heard a voice for the first week when I came here. I'm sure I'm not crazy or dreaming. It said, "Though my mind erased you from every aspect of my brain, my heart has been able to paint it with a vivid sight of you."

"Hmm, So-Jin, let's keep in contact for now. The next time we meet, I'll give you answers."