"And the winning numbers of the lottery are..."
The sound of a television played faintly in the background. Just below it were whispers, loud enough to know sothing was being said, but not what.
I found myself standing in a dark hallway, the faint glow of the television softly illuminating one end, and it was there the whispers originated from.
I found myself moving toward it steadily, the TV growing clearer the closer I got.
"... 7, 6, 11, 5, 9, and 20. That’s all folks, better luck next ti. As a consolation, please enjoy this piano piece by Robert Giovanni."
Soon enough, I got a clear view of what lay at the end. It was a dingy, familiar-looking living room with the only noteworthy piece of furniture being a lone couch, and a desk where the TV was mounted.
The faint glow from the television gently highlighted the two occupants on the couch — a woman and a young girl. Their backs were facing , but I’d recognize them anywhere. I spoke unconsciously.
"Mom, sis?"
The whispering paused, only to resu imdiately. I could barely make out what it was saying,
"Wh...h....W..."
I moved closer, the whispers growing louder as I approached.
"W... Wh.."
Before I knew it, I was right behind them. The whispering stopped completely, their heads snapping to face , bringing their terrifying faces into full view. Blood holes where eyes should be, cuts and stabs pockmarking most of their faces, and the red liquid gargling out of long gashes in their twisted necks.
"WHY!"
I woke with a start, accidentally pushing myself off the bed and onto the cold floor. I could feel the half-rembered details of my dream already fading away.
"Ugh..."
It took a good half a minute to rember how I’d ended up here.
’So it was all real, huh.’
I sighed before pushing myself off the ground. At least my symptoms had receded. I could still feel them though; they were just dull and suppressed. I had a feeling it wouldn’t take much for them to flare up again.
Sunlight stread in from the window, gently illuminating the room in orange rays of dawn. Beyond the window was a garden, with rows and rows of flowers and beautiful bushes lining its front. Within were occasional rabbits running between bushes, and a few birds nesting within so nearby trees. The almost musical sounds of nature filled the room.
’I almost can’t believe it’s all fake.’
The dorms were located underground, as was the case with most things in the academy. Even if it were above ground, views like this were almost impossible on the surface. These windows were rely simulations.
’It’s all just monsoons now.’
Given how much I hated the rain and the fact that I lived in good ole Florida, I’d decided to make my characters suffer as much as I did. In this world, it rained heavily almost constantly for roughly 80% of the year; the rest was just bitter winter, then a one-week spring.
’Is this hell?’
This world seed almost customized to piss off. Of course, I had no one else to bla but my stupid past self.
Regardless, I was stuck here now. It probably wasn’t even possible to get back to my old world — after all, I’d killed myself there.
’It’s not like there’s anything waiting for back there.’
All that I could do was make the best of the situation, and try to survive this hell I’d created. That began with taking a long shower.
Even I could tell I reeked.
I stood before a body-length mirror after having what was possibly the greatest shower of my life. From behind the silver pane, a gangly pale boy stared back at . He... no, I looked exactly like the boy in that picture, just a few years older.
’I am him, or is he ?’
I had no mories that belonged to the previous host. I wouldn’t even know his na without help from the status. I did know my age though — it was most likely 17, but I felt like I was looking at a 15-year-old.
’Probably malnutrition.’
It wasn’t my first ti being short, but it did sting a bit that I couldn’t escape the curse in this life, especially when most characters tended to be taller than their actual ages here.
Well, it wasn’t all bad. I’d never been much of a looker in my previous life. I wasn’t here either, but if I could fix my shaggy hair, put on so at, and get on a better diet, I’d reckon I would be well above average here.
I decided to stop ogling myself there — it wasn’t like staring would change anything.
I stepped out of the bathroom and into the room again, heading toward the wardrobe. Luckily, the academy provided a grey T-shirt and sweatpants as casual wear. I’d never written them, of course, but when I thought about it, it would be rather weird to wear a uniform all the ti.
’The world fleshes itself out.’
This was one of the major dangers I faced currently as well. Back then I’d rely elaborated on things I thought were interesting, or related directly to the plot. The things I skipped might have no effect on the plot, but they sure as hell could have an effect on .
I threw the clothes on before moving to sit by the desk, frowning all the while.
’I need to plan my next moves.’
I started with what I knew.
"I’ve transmigrated into my novel. A novel which was left unfinished at the end of volu 3, with each volu covering a year in the academy. The third volu was the final year, and the beginning of the civil war."
I found myself unconsciously tapping my desk.
"Currently, I only need to concern myself with the events of volu one. Most events take place in the academy, which is isolated from the mainland on Jeju. I’ve already t the primary antagonists for this volu as well."
Skinwalkers. The attempt on Maki had only been the first one; they would make nurous more attacks on the students. As I ntioned earlier, the attack had only been a diversion. This was done to fool the school into thinking they’d won. After all, attacking an heir of a clan with a re whelp and expecting success was utter foolishness. The skinwalkers were anything but foolish.
Definitely, so at the school had noticed sothing odd, but their guards would still be lowered. I couldn’t bla them for it either. This was the first ti monsters had ever coordinated such a complex, large-scale attack intelligently.
Their goal was naturally very simple — to wipe out the greatest generation of hunters before they could reach their potential. Simply put, even the loss of a single potential S-rank was a massive blow; if they wiped out the potential SS or SSS ranks, then humanity was done for.
Of course, the republic was well aware of this as well, which was why beyond the capital based in Hokkaido, the academy was possibly one of the safest places in the world. Even with almost a century of reduced attacks by skinwalkers, their asures against them were still highly robust. All that though, had been completely negated by one thing.
"A Terror-ranked skinwalker."
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