— New York, USA. A bustling night.
"CRACK—!"
A sudden golden lightning bolt cleaved through the clear night sky.
And so, fate took a turn, and the story began...
[Your life is over]
[How to use this new life]
[It's depends on you]
A deafening explosion carved a massive crater in the middle of the street. Sparks flickered amid chaotic arcs of electricity.
In the center of the crater, a silver-haired girl slowly opened her eyes, her golden gaze trembling as she surveyed her surroundings.
Confusion. Surprise. Fear. Bewilderment. Loneliness.
"Huh? Didn't I... die?"
Meet Kagura Hitomi—17 years old, high school girl, virtual streamer (VTuber), and die-hard otaku.
On her way home one day, she died after saving a child from being hit by a truck.
Her fragmented memories felt distant, as though separated by millennia. No matter how hard she tried, only scattered fragments surfaced in her mind.
Kagura rubbed her forehead and shook her head vigorously.
"Ugh... What the heck is going on?"
A lock of silver hair drifted past her vision.
"Silver... hair?"
Startled, she lifted a handful of her hair and then looked down at her body.
Western-style blouse and corset, an indecently short pleated skirt, white stockings, and polished loafers.
Her skin was fairer, her figure more elegant. She no longer looked like her old self.
Actually, her appearance now resembled the avatar she used as a virtual streamer—Automaton Girl Kagura Hitomi.
Silver hair, princess-cut, golden eyes.
A slim waist, long legs, and a generous bust housing two mischievous monsters.
Hmm, perfection itself. She was definitely prettier now!
Wait—does that mean...
"I... transmigrated?"
As she glanced around, Kagura Hitomi realized she was standing at the center of the massive crater.
The shattered ground around her still crackled with stray electrical arcs.
'Bzzzt...'
Suddenly, faint electronic sounds echoed in her ears as blue lines and symbols flickered in her vision.
Confusing patterns, like static interference, danced before her eyes, drawing incomprehensible shapes.
"Ugh..."
Instinctively, Kagura touched her eyes, confirming she wasn't wearing glasses or any headgear.
She rubbed her eyes, hoping to clear the annoying lines and symbols—but to no avail.
The symbols continued to flicker.
Holographic-like windows kept appearing and disappearing in front of her.
The girl tried to focus her thoughts.
As she concentrated on the chaotic symbols, they gradually arranged themselves into readable text.
[Your life is over]
[How to use this new life]
[It's depends on you]
"A new... life?"
Her golden eyes trembled. "So it's true! I not only died but got transmigrated too!"
The blue lines began to organize themselves.
Various information windows overlapped in her vision.
[System initialization...]
[Initialization complete]
[Self-diagnosis in progress...]
[Self-diagnosis complete]
[Core energy remaining: 99.7%]
[Subsystems functioning normally]
[Confirming Automaton Frame appearance and basic information...]
[Holder: Kagura Hitomi]
[Information import complete]
A larger holographic window flickered into view.
[View Frame Attributes?]
[Y][N]
"Frame attributes? What's that?"
Her curiosity briefly quelled her panic. Kagura took a deep breath and focused on the [Y] option.
[Automaton Core Level: Lv.1]
[Core Upgrade Progress: 0/100]
[Infinite Concept Skill System Deployed]
[Memory Scan Complete, Data Updated]
[Activated Combat Abilities]
[Basic Combat Techniques/0: Master all military-grade combat skills]
[Activated Defense Abilities]
[Basic Self-Healing/10: Rapidly repair bodily damage within 30 seconds]
[Activated Mobility Abilities]
[Short-Term Boost/5: Activate supersonic acceleration for 20 seconds]
[Activated Support Abilities]
[Basic Electronic Hacking/5: Perform a single hack on a valid target]
Are these... skills?
Though she mostly stuck to anime, as a streamer, Kagura Hitomi had played a few games.
The UI before her resembled a skill system straight out of an RPG.
As she mentally zoomed out, the holographic interface shifted again.
An enormous ability upgrade system appeared, resembling a vast galaxy filled with countless stars.
The skills were divided into four quadrants: Attack, Defense, Mobility, and Support. Most were marked with question marks.
[QP Held: 0
[QP Required to Unlock Next Skill: 5]
'This...'
Kagura experimented by moving the UI with her thoughts.
'This looks like... a game system?'
'Whoa! There's even a shop! Though it's empty right now...'
She had never seen or heard of such a game system before.
And it was definitely not part of any existing game. No way her era could produce something this realistic.
That left only one possibility. She clutched her chest.
Am I like those characters in web novels who die, transmigrate to another world, and get a weird upgrade system?
With no other clues, She settled on that assumption.
Oh, and automaton...
'Come to think of it, this appearance and the automaton reference—does that mean I'm no longer human?'
Whoa... I actually became an "Automaton Girl" for real...
"BOOM—!"
Before she could examine the UI further, a nearby building suddenly exploded.
Flames burst forth, smoke billowing in all directions.
Debris scattered in the air as shards of glass and rubble formed a chaotic, gray rose blooming in the sky.
The fire surged, riding the shockwave of the mysterious explosion, sweeping across the once-peaceful street.
The violent wind lifted everything around it, tossing burning car fragments into the air.
Time seemed to freeze.
Kagura beautiful silver hair and short skirt fluttered in the wind. Her slender, elegant silhouette stood against the raging inferno like a masterpiece painting.
Her golden pupils contracted sharply.
The holographic UI reacted to the sudden situation, rapidly shifting and expanding windows in her vision.
[Explosion detected. Safe distance. No threat. Source unknown]
[High temperature detected. Safe distance. No threat. Source unknown]
Through the billowing smoke, a hulking green figure, wreathed in flames, crashed heavily onto the scorched ground.
[Mutated Entity Identified: Threat Level - High; Status - Neutral]
The ground fractured once more. The green giant struggled to flip himself over, attempting to rise.
His massive hands dug deep into the asphalt, leaving ten deep grooves on the relatively intact surface.
"Hulk! Your mercy will be your downfall!"
A voice boomed from the direction where the green giant—referred to as "Hulk"—had flown.
Kagura turned her gaze in that direction.
A massive black figure marched forward, each step reverberating through the ground. Clutched in his hand was a thick, heavy chain.
[Mutated Entity Identified: Threat Level - High; Status - Hostile; Recommendation: Eliminate]
[New Task]
[Defeat a Hostile Target: Reward 5 QP]
Her golden eyes narrowed as the tension in the air thickened. The battle had only just begun.