I Reincarnated to Another World as a Woman-Chapter 278: A Man Lost

Arthur is sitting at his desk in his room, working.

No, that’s not true. Trying to work would be more accurate.

The laptop in front of him is open. Documents, reports, and emails are neatly arranged on the screen. Numbers, charts, and contracts stare back at him, waiting for decisions that only he can make.

But his mind refuses to cooperate.

His brain keeps circling back to the same question Maeve asked earlier.

"Let’s say it is true that Theo is inside Thea... what would you do?"

When he first heard the question, he froze.

Not physically, but inside.

For a moment, he genuinely had no idea how to respond.

He remembers turning slowly back to Maeve, studying her face, trying to gauge her intention for asking something like that.

Because it wasn’t a casual question.

It carried weight.

And he wanted to know why she asked it.

It must have been written all over his face, because the next second Maeve spoke again.

"I’m just curious, Arthur. Nothing more."

She said it softly.

Gently.

Her tone carried that familiar warmth she always had when she spoke to the others.

Innocent.

Like it was nothing more than a passing thought.

Just a harmless question.

A genuine curiosity.

But somehow, it didn’t feel harmless to him.

Not at all.

Instead, it made something tighten inside his chest.

Because for reasons he couldn’t quite explain, it felt like something else entirely.

Like he had just been probed.

Tested.

Measured.

And the faintest shadow of something darker lingered behind that gentle question.

Something... ominous.

He remembers that he didn’t say anything for a few seconds. He only stared at Maeve.

He believes he must have looked lost.

At the end, the only thing he managed to say was, "I don’t know. I really don’t know, Maeve."

Maeve simply nodded. No further questions. No pressure.

She quietly returned to what she was doing in the kitchen, moving around as if the conversation had been nothing more than a passing moment.

But Arthur knew better.

Because ever since then, he hasn’t been able to think about anything else.

The question keeps replaying in his mind.

Let’s say it is true that Theo is inside Thea... what would you do?

Arthur exhales slowly and rubs his temple.

His unfinished work still sits on the screen in front of him, untouched.

"I’m curious, Arthur. Of your answer."

The voice suddenly appears.

Calm.

Almost amused.

It comes from the corner of the room.

Arthur’s chest tightens instantly.

His fingers freeze above the keyboard as his eyes slowly drift toward the shadowed corner.

A man steps out from the darkness.

Arthur II.

Even though Arthur already knows who it is before looking, the sight of him still makes his chest tighten.

Every single time.

Arthur clenches his jaw.

Frustration begins to build inside him again.

He doesn’t know how to get rid of Arthur II.

He has tried everything.

Talking to him.

Arguing with him.

Ignoring him.

Even shouting and cursing at him.

None of it worked.

Arthur II always comes back.

Always.

Arthur admits there was another option he considered many times.

Burning him with magic.

Just incinerating him completely.

But every single time that thought appears, something inside him pulls back.

Stops him.

And he still cannot figure out why.

Arthur II noticed that hesitation long ago.

And he mocked him for it.

"You’re afraid you’ll hurt yourself."

Arthur II had said it with a wide grin.

"Somewhere deep inside you, you’re worried that I am you."

His grin stretched even wider.

"Am I right... or am I right?"

Arthur couldn’t argue back.

Because it was true.

And he didn’t realize it then, but ever since that moment, he had stopped referring to Arthur II as "it."

"So, what do you think, Art?" Arthur II presses.

Arthur exhales slowly and closes his laptop.

The soft click sounds louder than it should in the quiet room.

There’s no point pretending he’s working.

He knows he isn’t.

And he’s never been the type of person who likes to pretend otherwise.

"I don’t know," he answers sincerely.

Arthur II is taken aback.

This is the first time Arthur has actually answered him.

Arthur II carefully keeps his face neutral. He doesn’t dare allow himself to feel pleased.

Not yet.

"It’s a very difficult question," Arthur continues after a moment. "And for some reason... I believe the answer is very important."

He leans back slightly in his chair, his fingers loosely clasped together.

His mind is still tangled.

Still circling around the same question.

Still searching for something that makes sense.

Right now he feels so lost that he is willing to talk to Arthur II.

Because at this moment, he honestly doesn’t know what else to do.

Or who else he can talk to.

Arthur lifts his gaze again.

"If you’re really me, you must already know the answer."

His eyes meet Arthur II’s.

"Then why do you say you’re curious?"

He studies him carefully.

Watching.

Waiting.

"Oh, reverse psychology. I like that." Arthur II grins. "But it won’t work on me, Art."

He walks forward, his footsteps slow and casual, as if he belongs in the room.

Arthur watches him approach but doesn’t move.

Arthur II pulls the chair across from Arthur’s desk and sits down like a guest who has been invited.

"But," Arthur II continues, leaning back slightly, "I’m willing to help you."

Then he raises a finger.

"Only if you’re willing to, though," he quickly adds.

Arthur says nothing.

His eyes stay on Arthur II, studying him carefully.

"I’ll take your silence as an agreement," Arthur II says with a small shrug.

He leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees.

"Now, let’s break down the question and try to answer it little by little."

Arthur II tilts his head slightly.

"When you say Theo is inside Thea... what exactly do you mean?"

Arthur looks confused and instinctively tilts his head in the same direction.

"I mean exactly that." He says and frowns.

"Do you mean there are two souls living inside Thea? Like multiple personality disorder or something?" Arthur II explains, waiting.

Arthur stays silent.

His fingers slowly tighten together.

After a moment, he shakes his head.

"I don’t know," he says quietly. "I really don’t know."

Arthur II studies him carefully.

Then he asks suddenly,

"What are you afraid of?"

Arthur exhales, frustration seeping through the sound.

"I’m just trying to find a logical explanation for why Thea sounds like Theo sometimes."

He rubs his forehead.

"Not always. But it happens when she explains magic. The way she speaks, the way she explains things... it’s exactly like Theo."

He pauses.

"And her personality is different from before the coma."

Arthur II nods slowly. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

"Well, Maeve already explained it to you," he says. "And part of you thinks it’s logical too."

He begins counting on his fingers.

"There are documented cases where someone wakes up from a coma with a completely different personality."

"Some even start speaking foreign languages they’ve never learned before."

"These claims aren’t just theories or urban stories either."

Arthur II shrugs lightly.

"They’re backed up by evidence. Scientific explanations. Medical reports."

Arthur says nothing.

His eyes drift downward.

Arthur II watches him carefully.

Then he tilts his head again.

"Have you considered the possibility that this isn’t about Theo or Thea at all?"

Arthur slowly looks up.

"That it’s your own fear talking?"

Arthur II’s voice softens slightly.

"Your guilt about not being able to protect Thea."

His eyes narrow.

"And that guilt costing her the coma."

Hearing that, Arthur closes his eyes.

Arthur II continues, his voice calm, almost patient.

"You’ve talked to her. She’s talked to you. Both of you cried and hugged. You made up."

He gestures lightly with one hand.

"You already know why Thea acted distant."

Arthur II pauses for a moment, taking a slow breath as if organizing his thoughts.

"I’ll remind you again."

He raises one finger.

"One, because her magic went haywire. Theo explained this to her. She didn’t understand what was happening to her. She thought she had become some kind of freak."

Arthur’s jaw tightens slightly.

"So she withdrew from the world."

Arthur II lifts another finger.

"Two, because of that Bradley."

His voice carries a hint of disdain.

"He preyed on her vulnerability. He saw a confused girl who felt isolated and different, and he took advantage of that."

Arthur II leans back in the chair.

"And Thea fell for it."

Silence hangs for a second.

"But she already took her revenge."

Arthur II tilts his head.

"You’ve seen it yourself."

A faint smirk appears on his face.

"She put that delusional boy in a mental asylum."

He shrugs casually.

"Well... technically it was Sam who arranged that. Under your orders."

His eyes narrow slightly.

"But we both know the truth."

"Thea broke his mind."

Arthur II lets the words settle.

"You know all of this already, Art."

He studies Arthur carefully.

"So what are you still feeling guilty about?"

Arthur II waits.

"That now the role is reversed. She’s now protecting me instead of me protecting her. As I should."

Arthur whispers.