[Growth Period]
[Growth Period]
'Ah, shit. Why did I die?'
That was the thought Jin had while lying quietly in his baby crib.
Did his memories suddenly return, or did his brain finally develop enough to actually think?
Well, it didn't matter to him right now. Either way, he used to be an adult, and now he was a newborn.
Anyway, he could think for himself now.
'There's nothing to do but think.'
A little baby shouldn't just escape their crib because they're curious about the outside world...
So, today's topic of thought: What was the cause of death?
...Or did I not die at all? That was the question.
Let's try to recall. Was there anything that could have killed me?
Where was I in my last memory?
Did I go outside? Did I get hit by a car?
No, that's not it. I was just cooped up at home.
Hmm, then what was I doing at home?
I slept. When I woke up, it was this bullshit.
To be precise, I didn't fall asleep in bed, but in a chair.
It was a holiday, so I was playing a game. I was determined to see the ending of a new release.
Relying on caffeine, I was pushing toward 24 hours without sleep.
I must have passed out then. My stamina wasn't what it used to be.
'Did my heart or brain give out?'
One plausible hypothesis.
'Did I get electrocuted while sleeping? Was there a short circuit?'
Another plausible hypothesis.
'Is this a possession? The world seems pretty normal, so it's a bit ambiguous...'
One thing I saw in novels.
'Fuck, I should've stayed awake a bit longer... Then I would've seen if the monitor glowed or if a game message popped up.'
One regret.
'...Did the house collapse? Did I get crushed to death while sleeping?'
One... possible hypothesis.
There are four in total... but...
'Is there no Goddess-nim?'
In truth, they were all things that couldn't be confirmed.
I'm already here, so what can I do?
So, I won't dwell on the past anymore.
I'll just have a debate in my head about which is cooler: swords or magic...
Jin. An age where his pronunciation was becoming quite clear.
"Sta! tus! Win! dow!"
Nothing appeared.
"Eomoni."
"Son...? Did you call for eomma...?"
"It is nothing, eomoni. I have caused you unnecessary concern."
"O-oh, okay...!"
Unfortunately, things like Status Windows or stats didn't exist at all, so he moved on.
...
...
Jin, an age where it was time to enter school.
Tonight, he planned to confess his hidden feelings to his abeoji.
He knelt before his abeoji, who was reading the newspaper, and spoke.
"Abeoji. This son has a request."
"What is it?"
"I want to try learning magic."
A firm resolve to reject conventional studies and forge his own path since he had come to another world.
"You'll learn that once you enter school."
"Oh, really?"
"It's late. Go to sleep."
"Yes, sir."
Anyway, Jin had accomplished his goal.
"Abeoji. I want to drop out."
"Stop talking bullshit."
"Yes, sir."
It didn't take long for him to realize his magical talent was close to rock bottom.
-The winner, Jin!!
"Hi, hieek...!"
Fortunately, while Jin might not have had any magical aptitude, he was good at swinging a sword.
Time passed, and he reached the age where he would have been a high schooler in his original world.
In other words, he entered the Academy in this world. As a swordsman.
...Sometimes he thought he should have just been a gunslinger, but swords are cool, after all.
His hair was black, and his eyes were slanted. He quite liked his overall appearance.
He had a good physique and was fairly handsome.
Actually, it seemed like people in this world generally had good looks, but regardless, it was better than his past life. That was enough.
"Huu..."
If he had to nitpick one thing, it was his slanted eyes.
It wasn't that he couldn't see. He could see just fine.
It was just that other people often got confused about whether he was sleeping or awake.
So, incidents happened occasionally.
'Jin, are you sleeping during class?'
'I am not sleeping.'
'Then why don't you answer this question?'
'Wasn't that the part we were just about to start?'
'...You were listening.'
And for some reason, if he just maintained an expressionless face, people would misunderstand in a different way.
'Even so, do you think it's right to glare at a teacher like that?'
'I have never glared at you...'
'Tsk...! Fine, I was wrong. I apologize.'
'...?'
He couldn't understand. He was just normally expressionless. He wasn't in a bad mood at all.
However, he definitely wanted to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings.
Jin chose the path of changing himself. It was easier than changing the world.
He would walk around with his eyes wide open.
...But that failed due to his innate limitations.
'Ji-Jin...'
'What is the matter?'
'I was wrong... So please forgive me...'
'? What did you do wrong?'
'Hieek...!'
'??'
The reaction wasn't particularly good.
So he just walked around with a moderate smile. A smiling face is good.
They say happiness comes to those who laugh. And isn't there a saying that you can't spit on a smiling face?
Above all, when he checked in the mirror, it was an expression that really suited his eyes.
He even felt regretful that he hadn't done this sooner.
"Good work. Here, let me give you a hand."
"M-Monster...!"
"...."
Today was a sparring day at the Academy.
His opponent was a white-haired boy who was highly anticipated for his sword skills.
Still, Jin won. Jin personally thought it was largely because the guy had let his guard down.
Anyway, it was a fairly satisfying spar. So he reached out his hand to help him up.
...Even though the boy rejected it and ran away. He thought the attempt was good.
Time passed, and he would graduate next year.
During that time, Jin hadn't made any friends or groups to hang out with.
It was hard to approach others first. It wasn't that people were difficult, but because of his past life memories, his wavelength didn't match with the kids at all.
Still, he thought that since he had decent looks and his personality wasn't flawed, someone might approach him.
'Should I try talking to him...?'
'No, let's not... I'm uneasy...'
'??'
Of course, that wasn't the case. So he was alone.
...No. There was someone. Just once.
One day... a year ago.
"Hey, Jin! You're stronger than I thought!"
"You flatter me."
It was after a spar, just like today. He probably won that day too. In the first place, the days he lost could be counted on one hand.
The leader of a fairly noisy clique in class spoke to him.
Well, they didn't do anything that caused major problems, but their words and actions were a bit aggressive.
The reason he spoke to him... was it just because he saw his strength and thought it would be good to have him on their side?
He was blatant. He blatantly asked if he wanted to hang out with them.
A fresh friendship blooming between peers? There was none of that.
He just asked metaphorically. If you join my group, I can give you these benefits. Are you interested?
If you don't want to, there's nothing I can do, but I hope you make a wise choice.
He wasn't particularly interested. He seemed to be a kid from a well-off family, but he was still just a kid, and there was nothing about him that interested Jin.
"Well, it's not bad."
"Really? Welcome, Jin."
But Jin didn't push that hand away.
He couldn't find a reason. No reason to push away the hand of someone who reached out first.
He knew the reason for reaching out wasn't pure.
At the same time, there was something Jin knew. The world cannot run solely on pure emotions and reasons.
Realistic calculations are bound to be involved. He didn't deny that, nor did he think of it badly.
No matter how close a relationship seems, it can crumble over a small incident, and something that looks shallow can last a long time if handled well.
The only catch was that they didn't seem like very good guys.
But they didn't cause major problems. So it could be interpreted as the bravado of youth, just barely on the line.
If it stayed at this level, there was no need to push away the hand that was extended first.
...And if they really were bad people, he could just distance himself then.
There was no way he would be influenced by them.
In fact, knowing he had that possibility, he thought it wasn't bad to get closer.
Unless he intended to be a complete bystander.
He decided to be a bit reckless. The recklessness of an adult trying to resolve things to some extent if a problem arose.
"Heu-euk, heu-eu-eu..."
"Oh, you're here, Jin?"
"...."
And it didn't deviate from his expectations at all.
After class, during dismissal time. He followed the summons to an abandoned warehouse.
A girl he had never seen before was lying on the floor, covering her half-torn clothes with her hands.
The clique was gathered around her.
...Hmm.
Now... he could have asked what they were doing with a serious face.
He could have told them to stop while showing his disappointment.
But he was tired of that, so,
"Shouldn't we lock the door here?"
"Oh, you're quite serious about this?"
Ignoring the snickering voices, he began to lock the abandoned warehouse.
To the point where it would be difficult to get out from the inside.
And... well...
"This fucking bastard is betraying—"
"Stop talking bullshit."
Regretting that he hadn't brought his wooden sword, he used his fists.
He swung his fists. He hit their faces. He hit their solar plexuses.
If they guarded, he hit their abdomens. He mixed in feints in case they tried to dodge. He gritted his teeth and endured the attacks from behind.
He hit them. He hit them and hit them again, fucking hard. He bit. He stabbed. He scratched. He clawed. He trampled. He picked up things rolling around and struck them down. He beat them until their faces were crushed. He just snapped their joints and everything. If he could bite, he bit. If he could tear it off, he tore it. Whether it was fingernails or sharp objects, he just stabbed or scratched.
Shit,
Fuck,
Goddamn,
Fucking,
Beat them,
And while he was beating them like that,
"...Can you stand up?"
"...."
"I will hold your hand. Let's go out..."
He saw the trembling girl and the blood-stained warehouse.
...
...
He admitted it. It was excessive. He received some disciplinary action. But it wasn't major.
Those guys were kicked out of the Academy.
They would probably face further trials, but did he care anymore?
The girl's help was great. She testified diligently.
He heard that she had been continuously bullied in that warehouse. The scars remained clearly on her body.
The day he met them was just before that bullying crossed the point of no return.
"I'm sorry..."
"It's okay."
"If I... if I had more courage..."
"Because you had courage, I wasn't falsely accused."
The girl blamed herself. Even though she had done everything she could, she was sad.
Aside from the fact that Jin didn't receive much punishment, because the situation wasn't properly explained and his methods were excessive, others feared him.
That was probably when even fewer people approached him.
But he didn't regret it. Both he and the girl did what they had to do.
Time passed. He still had no friends.
He graduated from the Academy.