episode_0005

The last scene of my life is my deceased sister’s face.

The final sound is the pouring rain.

I must have died.

Yet, the loud rain continued to drum in my ears.

I want to get up and escape this rain.

However, my body refuses to move as if it has melted away.

Like my dead comrades…

Perhaps I have died like them and arrived in another world.

Then, is this place heaven or hell?

If it’s one of the two, I hope it’s the latter.

I tried to abandon my sister and run away.

I even sacrificed my whole life to glimpse into her dying heart.

So, when I open my eyes again, the world I see should be filled with ash-colored skies and lava.

It must be so.

“…”

But the world that unfolded before my eyes was not hell.

It was a damp room filled with moisture, not dry at all.

I involuntarily coughed in the musty air.

Even though it may not be hell, it is undeniably difficult to breathe.

I moved my pupils, wondering how such an unpleasant smell could come from a human dwelling.

And soon, I realized that this place was neither heaven nor hell but reality.

A nauseating studio apartment.

Trash scattered on the floor.

“—.”

The source of the tormenting rain noise turned out to be television static.

I turned off the TV with the remote by the bedside.

Only then did the world fall silent again.

Alone in the quiet room, I examined my reflection.

Short hair brushing against my shoulders.

Thin arms and legs.

Down to the t-shirt clinging to my chest and shorts.

One thing was certain; this body was not mine.

It felt like reincarnation or possession one might see in a movie.

Due to the unfamiliar sensation in my body, my gaze kept dropping downwards.

Perhaps because of this strange feeling, my whole body felt hypersensitive.

“A new life…”

I murmured in a cracking voice.

My spirit sharpened upon hearing my voice for the first time in this lifetime.

A husky female voice.

I had completely detached from my past self.

But there was no joy in it.

Just a warmth in my eyes.

All the memories and sins of the past remained intact in my mind.

Even though my body had changed, I still trembled with fear of death.

The vivid images of my dying comrades lingered in my mind.

Hyunsoo hyung and Gyuseon melting away.

Jisoo noona violated like a toy.

And the insane Rankers who played with her.

Their images replayed in my mind like madness.

A fresh start everyone had hoped for.

I couldn’t be part of that ‘everyone.’

Clutching my throbbing chest, I leaned against the bed wall.

With a dreadful ringing in my head, I tasted the ecstatic first day of possession.

On the second day, tears finally began to flow.

My soul had finally started to communicate with this body.

Not many tears, just a single drop trickling down my cheek.

This vessel allowed me only that much sorrow.

On the third day, I started to feel the sensation of fading away.

Sitting in one spot for three days, neglecting food and drink.

Exhausted, I scanned the floor.

There rolled a medicine bottle.

White pills oozed between the lid cracks.

I immediately recognized them as sleeping pills.

My continued grogginess after three days indicated I must have been a patient with a prescription.

Probably suffering from depression or schizophrenia.

In that case, I’d prefer schizophrenia.

That way, all the memories I had, this pathetic ego, would be mere illusions created by the illness.

I reached out and grabbed a pill.

The feeble heartbeat grew louder.

This arrogant vessel, which had been numb to everything until now, finally responded.

Now it was my turn to ignore it.

I pushed the pill into my mouth.

I don’t want to live with this guilt forever.

Rather than living like that, I’ll fulfill the wishes of the original owner of this body who wanted to die.

“!!!”

As the round pill touched my throat, my body twisted violently.

With crimson blood and a pill barely swallowed, it spills out.

Experiencing pain like never before, I roll off the bed.

Gasping for air on a black trash bag.

“I can’t even die on my own terms.”

I muttered with a cracking voice.

“The worst.”

The worst.

Suddenly, a familiar word makes me burst into hollow laughter.

To think I said those words myself.

It’s ridiculous how I cry and laugh.

But that laughter strangely had a calming effect on me.

I stretch out on the pile of trash.

And take a deep breath.

An old one-room apartment where sounds from outside are audible.

I strain to listen to those sounds.

Someone climbing the stairs.

Loud car honks.

Even the pounding of my heart in shock from the suicide attempt.

Those sounds seem to whisper to me, begging me to live.

Is it a plea to live and atone for a lifetime?

Remembering them.

“…”

Should I try living once more?

Very deeply and for a long time.

So that when I meet my comrades after death, I won’t be ashamed.

“System…”

I murmur into the void.

Soon, a blue holographic window appears in the air.

“Welcome, Master Shiho.”

The AI, with colors slightly off and subtle noise, greeted me as if it were its true owner.

“Have you slept well?”

“Slept…?”

“You were instructed to rest until summoned again.”

Resting for so long.

That thought makes my heart ache.

I feel like AI left behind like a lonely pet.

“I’m sorry, but I’m not the Shiho you know.”

“Have you become a different person from yesterday?”

“No… Completely different. The girl you’re talking to right now isn’t that woman.”

Even as I speak, I feel foolish.

AI remains unresponsive, almost as if frozen in lag.

Eventually, it types ‘Searching for information’ on the system window.

“What search is this all about?”

“The nearest psychiatric hospital from your current location is ‘Hope Hospital,’ a 10-minute walk away…”

Right…

No matter how advanced AI is, it probably can’t comprehend the current situation.

“My name is Kwon Dohyun. Your owner committed suicide with sleeping pills, and I seem to have possessed you due to being killed at the same time.”

“I will search for information about Kwon Dohyun.”

Age: 28 years old.

Occupation: F-rank Hunter.

Ability: Angelic Hand.

Can read happy memories of the target.

When used on someone, they see their happy memories as illusions.

Information: Recently deceased during the Wyvern Raid.

“Does this mean you are this person?”

“Yes.”

“There have been no reported cases of successful soul transfer before.”

How do I make this stupid AI understand?

Is there a way to prove that I am Kwon Dohyun?

I review the information about myself.

Suddenly, my attention is drawn to Angelic Hand.

Yes, this should work.

“Look.”

I reach out my hand.

If my soul remembers, I should be able to use it.

Concentrating all my strength at my fingertips, a faint light begins to envelop them.

It’s working…!

The skill is manifesting, albeit weakly.

“Angelic Hand.”

“So, do you really think Shiho is dead…?”

“You, as the system, would know better than me.”

“As someone who was originally quiet and timid, I don’t know.”

If even the system doesn’t know, who possibly could?

I sigh deeply.

Nevertheless, let’s start by finding out who this ‘Shiho’ person was.

We can uncover the reason for her suicide later.

I gesture to search for personal information about the person ‘me.’

Age: 21 years old.

Occupation: Moment Inn staff.

Ability: None. (Recently inherited Angelic Hand, but not registered in the system.)

“Incompetent…?”

Seeing the ‘None’ status, I unintentionally let out a loud exclamation.

Due to my hastily spoken voice, a cough burst out.

I’ve heard of the existence of incompetents before, but seeing one in person is a first.

It’s not an extremely rare category, but… it’s still quite surprising.

“Hah.”

A small chuckle escapes me involuntarily.

I don’t feel too bad about it.

In a world overrun by monsters, is there a more terrible punishment than living with just one healing skill again?

Strangely, it eases my guilt a bit, and I feel relieved.

After reading through the personal information, I stood up.

I need to get rid of this bloodstain and smell.

I head to the bathroom and stand in front of a full-length mirror.

Then, I call for the AI.

“System.”

“Yes, Mr. Siho.”

Mr. Siho, huh.

It’s the first time someone has called me by a different name in my life.

“Tell me about this kid’s past.”

“Shall I start from when they were 1 year old?”

“Skip that far back. Start from five years ago when the gate opened.”

“I will list Mr. Siho’s past starting from major events.”

“On the day the gate opened, parents died at the hands of a Grade 8 monster species, Ware Wolf. Sister, a military officer, went missing.”

“Shocked, they lived as a shut-in for several years.”

“They recently exhausted the inheritance and started working part-time at a nearby inn.”

“But even that was abandoned by them.”

“With the remaining money, they purchased a large amount of illegal sleeping pills at the night market.”

Gloomy.

I, too, lost my family when the gate opened.

Facing the Black Wyvern’s breath, a Grade 5 monster species, they vanished without a trace.

At that time, I was in the middle of my military service, never getting a chance to see them for the last time.

It almost felt like I had been living in this world alone from the beginning.

The kid must have felt the same way…

I look down at Siho’s hand.

Long red scars run along her wrist.

The skin is torn open from how deeply she cut herself, now grotesquely healing.

“How foolish…”

I gently touch the rough scar with my fingers.

Still, being only 21, it’s a youthful age.

It’s too early to give up on life.

I gaze into the mirror.

Untidy eyes, a small mark under the right eye.

Looks intact, though…

Despite the annoyance of long hair, I can tell that much.

To tidy up that unruly mess, I open the bathroom cabinet.

“Ugh…”

Cobwebs fill the compartments, making it daunting to reach in.

I take out a comb and clear away the cobwebs.

Then, I retrieve a rusty pair of scissors.

“What are you doing now?”

“I’m going to cut my hair.”

“Mr. Siho does not possess a beauty skill.”

I pay no mind to the AI’s cold statement.

I simply block the sink and turn on the hot water.

“Don’t worry.”

Warm steam envelops the mirror.

“Human beings aren’t creatures who rely solely on skills.”

It’s something someone I knew used to say often.

Suddenly, thoughts of her make my chest ache.

“—?”

However, the world doesn’t give me time to indulge in such contemplation.

The previously flowing water abruptly stops.

“Why is this happening…?”

“The water was cut off due to unpaid utility bills.”

The system states firmly.

The water cut off?

Even if the bills were piling up, it’s uncommon for the water to be shut off…

I quickly gesture to check Siho’s financial status.

Instead of an amount, there are several harsh red notices stuck to her balance.

Already five months behind on rent, it demands a payment of 4.5 million won, including utilities.

Revenge against the Rankers who killed me.

A fresh start through the life I regained.

Those things didn’t matter.

What’s important right now is probably to savor this air.

And to do that.

I’ll need to start saving this damn money.

Let’s go to the inn for now.

In reality, as an incompetent person, that’s all I can do.