All Chapters of Reborn to Unmask the Cafeteria Killer: Chapter 1 - Chapter 9

9 Chapters

Chapter 1

I took deep breaths, filling my lungs with the fresh air.As I stared at the tray in front of me, it hit me that I had been reborn.Before I could even process the fading, suffocating despair of my past life, Mom waved a hand in front of my face. "Leia, what's wrong? Why'd you suddenly zone out?"I snapped back to reality and stared at the food on my tray.The scoop of steamed cabbage had pale stems mixed with tender yellow leaves, completely unseasoned. There was just a single, tiny dried chili sitting off to the very edge.Next to it was sauteed chicken, a bowl of pasta, and a bowl of mushroom soup.Nothing looked even remotely spicy. Yet, my heart hammered against my ribs.They were just ordinary home-cooked dishes, light in color, with barely a speck of pepper.Yet, in my past life, a single bite had been so excruciatingly spicy it nearly took my life.What went wrong?I tugged gently at Mom's sleeve. "Mom, there's chili in these. Can we go out for lunch today instead?"

Chapter 2

The very next second, a tidal wave of scorching heat exploded in my mouth.My entire tongue burned and stung, and a prickling heat crept down the back of my throat.My airway rapidly swelled and constricted. That familiar feeling of suffocation was taking a death grip on me.My mind went completely blank.These were just veggies boiled in plain water! How could they still be this spicy?Seeing me turn beet red and cough uncontrollably, Mom and Dad rushed off to buy me a bottle of ice water. They twisted the cap off before shoving it into my hands.I gulped down more than half the bottle. Only then did I feel the burning sensation in my throat ease up slightly.Suppressing his temper, Dad marched straight over to the counter to confront the cook. "What's the deal with your food? We specifically asked for no chilli! How did my daughter end up in so much pain after just one bite?"The cook panicked and quickly stepped out from behind the counter.She peered closely at my bowl. "T

Chapter 3

My health checks came back totally normal, yet Mom's unusual attempt to stop me from getting checked left me suspicious.A sudden thought crept into my mind.Before this, every time we got food, Mom had insisted on carrying my tray for me. She'd always tell me to go find a seat first while she handled the food.Could Mom really have something to hide?The more I thought about it, the more uneasy I felt.That afternoon, when Mom and Dad said they wanted to walk around campus, I used feeling unwell as an excuse to stay behind in the dorm.The moment they walked off, I headed back to the cafeteria and ordered another portion of plain boiled veggies. I kept my eyes glued to the cook the entire time and made sure nobody else touched it.Back in my dorm, I held my breath and took a tiny bite of a vegetable leaf.Immediately, the familiar, searing sting swept through my mouth, burning its way all the way down to my stomach. My throat constricted in waves, and that terrifying sense of

Chapter 4

"Come on, everyone! Dig in!" Toby stood up and addressed everyone. "If we run out of food, we'll just order more. Eat up!"Everyone chimed in with agreement, picking up food and filling their plates. Compliments echoed around the room.I was the only one sitting completely still.Abby, sitting right next to me, chewed on a piece of meat and turned to look at me. "Leia, why aren't you eating? The food's really good."I forced a weak smile. "I-I'm not really hungry. You guys go ahead.""Even if you're not hungry, you've got to eat a little. It's our welcome party!"As Abby spoke, she used the serving spoon to drop a piece of broccoli onto my plate."You kept saying everything was spicy today. Here, this broccoli doesn't have a speck of chili on it. Eat up."As I stared down at the broccoli on my plate, my stomach knotted in fear."I'm really not hungry…" I nudged my plate slightly to the side.A student sitting across from me leaned forward and offered a friendly smile. "Leia,

Chapter 5

Mom spoke into my phone. "Officer, I am so, so sorry! My daughter is just talking nonsense. You don't need to send anyone over…"Only when she heard silence on the line did she realize I had hung up long ago.Everyone around us put down their plate and stared at me."Leia, calm down. What's actually going on?""If something's wrong, just tell us. There's no need to call the cops, right?"I ripped my arm free from Mom's grip. My chest heaved as I looked her dead in the eye. "Someone is secretly targeting me, drugging me so that everything I eat tastes excruciatingly spicy. Why shouldn't I call the police?"A collective gasp echoed across the room.A flash of panic darted through Mom's eyes before she put on a helpless facade and reached out to pat my back. "Leia, what are you talking about? Who would drug you? Didn't you say you got a full-body checkup? You even sent the food for testing, and everything came back clean."Abby nodded in agreement, looking totally confused. "Yeah,

Chapter 6

I yelled, "That's impossible! And another thing. You're not even my mother! My mom is right-handed! But just now, when she held me and snatched my phone, she used her left hand! She's not my mom! If you don't believe me, check the security cameras!"The woman froze. A flash of utter panic darted through her eyes.A few seconds later, her eyes welled up with tears, and she broke into sobs right on cue. "I was just panicking! I used whichever hand was faster. That's all! Besides, my daughter has issues. She blows every little thing out of proportion."With that, she pulled a sheet of paper from her bag with trembling hands and shoved it directly toward the officer.The officer took it and scanned it for a few seconds. His previously composed expression instantly darkened."Alright. Why didn't you mention this earlier? We will call the hospital to verify the authenticity of this report, and we also strongly recommend you two undergo a DNA test to confirm your relationship."I let ou

Chapter 7

After that, I was shoved into a car and taken on a bumpy ride. I was eventually wheeled into a stark white ward.A nurse grabbed my arm and plunged a syringe of sedative straight into my skin. The drug spread rapidly through my system.My limbs felt so heavy I couldn't even lift them, and my hands and feet were bound tightly to the bed rails with restraint straps.Everything I owned had been confiscated, including my phone and any device with internet access.I had no idea how much time had passed before that woman walked in, dressed in a crisp coat. Her face no longer held even a shred of fake concern. There was only unadulterated triumph.She pulled a chair to my bedside and looked down at me. "Didn't see this coming, did you, Leia? From now on, this is where you'll stay. Nobody can save you, and you're never getting out."I thrashed wildly, but the straps dug painfully into my skin. "Who are you? How did you even pull this off? The scorching spiciness I tasted wasn't a halluci

Chapter 8

As I stared at Alice's arrogant expression, the wave of hatred in my chest completely overrode my fear.I looked past her, and a cold sneer spread across my lips. "Do you really think you've won? Did you seriously think I'd come in here with zero preparation?"The smirk on Alice's face froze solid.Right on cue, a flurry of rushed footsteps echoed down the hallway outside.Half an hour ago, after a nurse injected me with a mild sedative, an orderly was sent in to keep an eye on me.I seized my one and only chance and thrashed with everything I had to spill the entire truth to her.The orderly assumed I was just having an episode. Her eyes were filled with impatience, and she didn't believe a word I said.Desperation turned my eyes red. I wriggled my wrist free, tore off my bracelet, and slammed it onto the floor. The silver plating cracked open, revealing a glint of pure gold inside.I shoved the bracelet toward the orderly, catching her completely off guard. "My mom gave me th

Chapter 9

Alice's eyes flashed with malice. She tried to spring at me despite the police officers blocking her. Her arms flailed wildly, desperate to grab me."Leia Gordon! I spent years planning this! You ruined everything! Why? Why does your family get to have all of this? Why do you get to live a life I couldn't even dream of? Let go of me! Get the hell off me! Nobody stops me!"She thrashed nonstop, spewing a barrage of vile curses.It took two officers pinning her shoulders down just to keep her subdued.Just then, the female orderly rushed over, holding up her phone with the audio recording inside.All the evidence was laid out right in front of the police. It didn't take long for the officers to piece together the entire truth.Alice had been spraying a new synthetic capsaicin analog onto my utensils over a long period.The substance was colorless, odorless, soluble in fats, and metabolized rapidly by the human body. Routine medical checkups and food testing would never turn up a s

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