A fortune-telling princess

Title:

Received a Handwritten Letter from My Favorite Actor!

Oh my god! I still can’t calm down!

I’ve been a fan for three years! Discovered their drama during my military service, and it gave me the strength to keep going. I’ve attended every fan event possible!

But yesterday, for the first time, I received a handwritten letter!

:

Look at this! That cookie! Sia made it with their own hands! 😭😭😭

“Sia.”

“Yeah?”

“Aren’t you tired?”

“Not at all.”

Hyunseok, Sia’s manager, glanced at her as she scribbled another letter in the car. He shook his head slightly, a mix of exasperation and wonder on his face.

Even back when Sia was inundated with gifts and fan letters, she rarely went out of her way to respond to individual fans.

Lately, however, posts claiming to have received personal letters or gifts from her had been popping up on fan cafés and social media. Hyunseok sighed softly.

Taking care of fans was a commendable gesture, but sending personalized letters or gifts carried risks. It could make other fans feel excluded or spark unnecessary misunderstandings.

“This person said watching my drama gave them hope to live.”

“…I see.”

Hyunseok decided not to interfere for now.

Seeing the radiant smile on Sia’s face as she read fan letters was unusual for her—but not unwelcome.

He had been wondering about this since that day, a few months ago, when he found Sia fast asleep in the waiting room—a deep, peaceful slumber unlike anything he had seen from her before.

“Hey, Sia? Are you feeling okay? We need to head to the next filming location.”

No matter how much Hyunseok shook her shoulder, she didn’t respond. Finally, she slowly opened her eyes and stared blankly at him.

“….”

Her expression was strange. She looked around, slack-jawed, as if dazed or disoriented.

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

“…Manager Hyunseok.”

“Huh?”

Her voice trembled slightly as she spoke.

“You alright?”

She nodded, though her reaction was slow and sluggish.

Hyunseok was worried, but with their filming schedule tight, he quickly ushered her into the car.

“Got a lot of gifts for you at the office today—your birthday’s coming up, after all.”

The larger and more cumbersome gifts had been sent straight to Sia’s home, while more valuable or personalized ones were packed into the car.

Hyunseok glanced at the rearview mirror as he heard the sound of packages being opened. Sia was going through the gifts. She never did that in the car.

“…Ugh.”

“…?”

“Sniff…”

Hyunseok slammed on the brakes.

“Sia! What’s wrong? What happened?”

To his shock, his actress,

Sia, was crying.

“What’s going on? Did an anti-fan send something nasty? But we checked everything at the office!”

Sia clutched a letter tightly, tears streaming down her face.

Even if someone had sent her hateful words, she was the type to laugh it off, not cry. This was entirely unlike her.

“…They like me.”

“What?”

After a long silence, Sia managed to speak.

“They said… they like me.”

“…”

“They said they’re happy because of me…”

Her sobs grew louder, and everyone in the car exchanged bewildered glances.

Was this really Sia?

Sia? Crying over a simple fan letter?

“They said they’re grateful I exist…”

With that, she broke into uncontrollable sobbing.

The shoot that day had to be canceled. Filming with swollen, tear-filled eyes was impossible.

From that day forward, Sia began writing back to her fans and even making small gifts to send in return.

2

(

)

“Not bad,” Sia murmured, a satisfied smile on her lips.

She genuinely enjoyed writing back to fans and sending them gifts. It had been a fulfilling experience, and the reward points were a nice bonus.

When she first awakened in this world, it had been overwhelming. But the system that came with her new life had been a lifesaver.

Her “Replication” trait allowed her to mimic the extraordinary acting skills of the original Sia.

“EX-level acting, huh,” Sia muttered, eyeing her stats.

Her own acting skills were currently at C-level. Bridging that gap and reaching a point where she no longer needed the replication trait seemed daunting.

Sia allocated all her remaining points to acting.

“Miss Sia!”

As she walked down a broadcasting station corridor, a younger actress approached her with a bright smile.

“I heard you landed the new phone commercial!”

Sia recognized her—Han Hee-joo, an up-and-coming actress who had appeared in several of her dramas as a junior co-star.

“That was supposed to be my gig, you know,” Hee-joo added, her smile sharp and eyes glinting coldly.

“First the fridge commercial, and now this. You have a knack for taking things that aren’t yours, don’t you? I wonder how you manage it.”

Her tone was saccharine, but the malice was unmistakable.

“Is it the agency’s power? Or are you… ‘networking’ with the sponsors? I heard you had quite a cozy meeting with one at a hotel—”

“And why do you think that is?” Sia interrupted, her calm smile unwavering.

Hee-joo faltered.

“Excuse me?”

Sia leaned in closer, her smile sharpening.

“Because you’re outclassed.”

“…What?”

“Your acting, your popularity, even your looks. You’re just not on my level. That’s why they keep choosing me.”

“How dare you!”

“Face it,” Sia continued. “There’s a hierarchy in this business. Just like there’s a hierarchy among actors, there’s one among advertisements too. Maybe now you’ve realized that relying on… ‘private meetings’ only gets you so far?”

“You—!”

Hee-joo raised her hand as if to slap Sia.

“Go ahead,” Sia said coolly. “Think you can afford it?”

Her voice stopped Hee-joo cold.

“You know my worth better than anyone. Can you handle the consequences?”

Shaking with rage, Hee-joo slowly lowered her hand.

Sia’s hand connected with Hee-joo’s cheek in a sharp slap.

“I can afford it.”

Her smile deepened as she stepped even closer.

“People see what they want to see. Don’t project your behavior onto others. Not everyone stoops as low as you do.”

“…”

“Next time you pick a fight, choose your target wisely, junior.”

As Hee-joo sputtered in disbelief, Sia casually held up her phone.

“Oh, by the way, I have a habit of recording my conversations. You know, just in case.”

“…!”

“You started this. And I’m ready for any public fallout. Are you?”

With that, Sia walked away, leaving Hee-joo fuming behind her.

“Good work today, Sia,” Hyunseok said later.

“Thanks.”

“I’ll pick you up tomorrow at 8.”

Sia nodded as she entered her apartment building.

Taking the elevator to the 17th floor, she stepped out—and froze.

(Y/N)

“Is it today?” Sia muttered, already guessing who it was. She had seen this scene play out countless times before.

It was him—her father.

How he had managed to bypass the high-security building baffled her, but it didn’t matter.

“Yes,” Sia said, pressing the Y button without hesitation.

Running away again wouldn’t change anything. As the system had warned, he would keep coming.

She had been preparing for this moment. Though she hadn’t been able to locate him despite her efforts, she had fortified her defenses as much as possible.

Entering her apartment, Sia was met with darkness. The usual sensor light at the entrance was out.

Unfazed, she stepped inside, noting the mess—evidence of someone ransacking the place for valuables.

“Enjoying your life here in this nice apartment?”

The voice was unmistakable, cold and mocking.

Turning, Sia saw him: a man in his early fifties, standing by the window, a knife glinting in his hand.

“You don’t even flinch,” he scoffed.

His disappointment was palpable. Had he expected fear?

“Still as irritating as ever,” he spat, stepping toward her.

Sia chose

without hesitation.

“What the—?!”

The man froze mid-step, his body locked in place as if held by invisible chains. His knife remained extended toward her, but he couldn’t move.

“What is this?! What have you done to me?!” he screamed.

Sia stared at him calmly before pulling out her phone.

“…Brother…” she said, her voice trembling slightly.

“Sia? Sia, what’s wrong?!”

“Call the police… Please…”

“Sia?! Stay with me!”

She ended the call, letting Hyunseok handle the rest.

“You… What did you do?!” the man demanded, his voice a mix of rage and fear.

“What do you think?” Sia replied, stepping closer.

“Y-you crazy—!”

Sia grabbed his outstretched knife and drove it into her own shoulder.

“You… You!”

The man’s eyes widened in panic as blood blossomed from the wound.

Her lips curled into a victorious smirk as she collapsed.