Chapter 1
"So big!"
A girl exclaimed in shock as she saw the spectacle in front of her.
Curious, her friends rushed over to see what had caught her attention. To their surprise, she was pointing at an enormous pizza, fresh out of the oven and covered in an outrageous amount of toppings.
It was a pizza so big that it could easily feed the entire group.
In the group of friends was a guy named Finn, who was also speechlessly looking at her.
They were initially in the living room enjoying some music when they heard her.
Considering their age, they all shared some dirty thoughts when they heard her words.
They were here for the Christmas party and it wouldn't be surprising if their friend was doing something suspicious in the kitchen alone.
Fortunately, it was not the case or the remaining party would have become awkward.
Finn was also relieved.
He, along with others, returned to the living room, and the party resumed again.
They enjoyed the food and drinks, with some music, the party was soon over.
One by one, everyone started leaving, it was snowing outside and Finn had brought his umbrella along.
With a final goodbye to others, he also left.
He was quite satisfied and full; it had been a great time for him. The scenery was also beautiful with all sorts of colorful lights around.
People were still out and partying even at late night so the streets were lively.
'It's snowing a lot...'
Exhaling slightly, he thought... for some reason, the street lights were flickering a lot as he went by.
It was quite dark and lights were flickering, but he still continued walking. He predicted that the snow won't be stopping anytime soon and it was better to reach home as early as possible.
Swish!
He heard some rustling sounds as he crossed the dark road, narrowing his eyes, he looked over and in that instant, his life flashed before his eyes as a massive truck sped towards him.
The driver was out for some reason, maybe alcohol or something. A terrible carelessness.
Unfortunately, Finn soon suffered the consequences of the driver's inappropriate action as the truck rammed into him.
A moment of pain before it all blacked out for him.
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'I died. Fuck!'
He was shocked beyond belief. At the moment, he was unable to see anything or feel anything, it was as if he was nothing more than a ball of consciousness.
He was unexpectedly calm which scared him. Usually, he should be panicking at the moment or even wailing in pain but he was unable to feel any intense emotions.
Such calmness scared him but he was unable to do anything at all.
Suddenly, he felt as if something was tugging at him.
Initially, he didn't feel much but soon the tug became stronger and stronger.
It was as if someone was yanking him, trying to pull him somewhere.
And with such strong force, he had no choice but to be pulled wherever he was being taken to...
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In a dimly lit room.
Cries of a baby were the only sound that could be heard in the room.
The room was simple, open space with straw mat flooring. Sliding doors made of paper screens separated the room from the outside. Inside, low wooden tables were placed on the floor, surrounded by cushions for seating. The room was well-lit with soft, natural light filtering through the thin screens.
Pants of a woman echoed throughout the empty room—after all, the woman had just given birth.
Murmurs of midwives filled the room as they shuffled around, tending to the woman and the baby.
The cries of the baby slowly ceased as the infant opened his small eyes, the world before him blurry, getting used to the light.
'HUH!?'
'This... did I reincarnate?'
The baby thought, an expression of curiosity mixed with shock on his tender face.
He was an avid reader of fantasy novels, he was familiar with this kind of setting too, he was just surprised that this fantasy of his turned into a reality.
He could not help but remember his family back in the previous life, and felt quite uncomfortable in his heart.
He was keenly aware that he won't be able to meet them again, and this saddened him greatly.
'They might be in too much of a shock...'
He pondered, his mind going to his caring mother who was always worried about him, truth to be told, he was a disabled person and had some vision problems.
But thanks to god's grace, it was not too hard on him and he could still perform daily tasks.
It was also because of this that he had to strain himself to spot the incoming truck in the night.
'I hope they don't feel sad too much... I would like to let them know that I am quite fine here.'
He decided to not think much on this matter for now. Although he was sad, he also was excited about this scenario, he no longer felt his vision problems and this was a new world that he wanted to experience.
He looked around the room and felt that this room resembled the old-Japanese design.
As he was scanning his surroundings, his gaze fell on a designated alcove showcasing a piece of artwork.
For some reason, he felt that the symbol etched on the wall behind was quite familiar.
Before he could think of anything more, he felt himself being lifted by the midwives and handed to a woman lying on a bed.
He observed her features and felt a chill.
The woman before him had short ashen gray hair with a pair of piercing silver moon eyes, she had a gorgeous face, with soft looking pink lips and a button nose.
But her expression at the moment was nonchalant and her gaze was cold as ice, he felt her eyes scanning him as if he was an object whose worth was being measured at the moment.
He didn't know why but he felt her eyes become colder and colder as seconds passed by, his heart stirred at the sight.
Although he felt a feeling of déjà vu when looking at her for some reason but at the moment, he did not think much of it.
He heard her say something, a cold monotone voice was all that sounded in the room as she expressionlessly commented.
"Useless."