I didn’t plan it. Didn’t even notice it happening. Then one day, I looked around… and I was a bodybuilder.
Which is stronger: instinct or reason? Where are the limits of body and mind?
That was the universal the of my life. Training was my thod for pursuing those answers.
I kept pushing my body. I conquered the Japanese nationals. Next up was the world championship.
Then on that night when I was 27 and locked in my motivation, I got stabbed.
“Aghh, hah, hah, aghhh...”
“Making fun of , looking down on with those smug eyes! I killed you! Hahaha! When I put my mind to it, I can kill the Pri Minister, the President, even so athead like you!”
Walking ho from the gym, my legs were so fried from leg day that I was stumbling like a newborn fawn.
That’s when I made eye contact with this guy. Sothing about his vibe scread danger, so I looked away to avoid setting him off.
A fat lot of good that did .
He was one of those guys with nothing left to lose. Talk about unfair.
“Hah, aghh, ahhh...”
Damn it. This sucks. What a waste.
Even these muscles I’d built by constantly pushing past failure couldn’t beat six inches of stainless steel. One hit and it was over.
Knives are way too OP. Sobody nerf that shit.
“I’m calling an ambulance!”
“Aghh, ngh! Hah, hah... th-thank you so much... but I’m gonna die anyway, so here’s my bank account PIN. Do whatever you want with it...”
“Huh?! Wait! Um! Why are you suddenly—?!”
“Gotta... return the favor... that’s... my way...”
My consciousness started fading.
I’d managed to do sothing that vaguely resembled returning a favor to the girl kind enough to help a dying athead, so I had no regrets.
Next life, I’m definitely going to beat knives sohow.
With that new goal in mind, I sank into darkness.
* * *
I wake up to the sound of rain. Thunder rumbles in the distance.
My vision is pitch black.
It’s a strange feeling. It should be over, but it’s continuing.
What the hell is going on?
Rustle rustle.
The darkness opens.
Rain hits my face. Pretty intense.
“Another child with a Soul Brand.”
“How could soone abandon such a tiny baby? It’s horrible.”
An old woman and a young woman are peering down at .
Sothing is way off about the scale, though.
Am I too small? What a weird cara angle.
“Ba-ba-boo... bah?”
“Co on, let’s go. It’s cold out here.”
“We’ll get you sowhere warm right away.”
This is the first mory of my second life.
It takes a while to get my bearings. Reincarnation, being reborn—I never thought miracles like this could happen.
* * *
One Week Later
* * *
After accepting the miracle, I focus on gathering intel through my eyes and ears.
My new ho seems pretty well-off. After all, there are real servants wearing what look like maid outfits.
Their attire is a bit different from what I rember, but they’re all won dressed in black and white fabric, so they have to be maids.
Everyone speaks Japanese, so geographically, this is probably Japan.
Several things bother .
First, I can hear children playing nearby. Too many for siblings. So families have lots of kids, but still.
I also hear the sound of an organ in the distance. A pipe organ. And voices singing with it.
Maybe there’s a church nearby.
Another thing that bothers is the absence of my parents.
The people taking care of are all maids. Getting held, getting fed milk. It feels like so kind of kinky roleplay, which makes feel guilty.
Not that I have anything against maids… but since my ntal age seems to be getting dragged down by this tiny body, I can’t resist the loneliness of not having mommy and daddy around.
One possibility I think of for why my parents aren’t around is that one of the maids is actually my parent.
Or maybe since this is the kind of wealthy household that employs maids, the master and lady of the house are too busy running their global empire.
A baby’s day is full of hazards.
First, the urge to pee and poop. Extrely dangerous.
When I feel it coming on, I raise my hand to signal. But since they can’t understand , I have no choice but to let it out.
Humiliating.
Kids often approach my cradle, too. Extrely dangerous.
They try to pick up. In those cases, I go “Grrrr!” to intimidate them away.
I an, co on. You don’t want to be held by children.
What if they drop and I get hurt?
Why are there so many kids here, though? Could this be a daycare or sothing?
But no, you wouldn’t leave soone at daycare for days on end, and there wouldn’t be maids at a daycare…
As I fend off various hazards, the days pass.
Eventually, I arrive at the truth.
The reason my parents aren’t around, the reason the maids are taking care of .
The reason there are so many kids everywhere.
The place I’m living is an orphanage. A place for children without parents.
By the way, the won in black and white that I thought were maids are probably nuns. They had the black and white color sche, but I’d known sothing was a little off.
So that’s how it is.
On that rainy day, I was abandoned by my parents.
Apparently, I was an unwanted child.
“Aww…”
Learning the truth definitely brings down.
The loneliness of being parentless hits hard for a zero-year-old.
* * *
One Year Later
* * *
The truth of my parents left a gaping hole in my heart. Still, life keeps moving.
I’m still living the “institutional life” at Akai Orphanage. Since I rarely get outside, I call it that.
That said, I’m not imprisoned or anything.
Sotis the Sisters take us out for walks.
Feeling the changing seasons, observing plants and animals, stuff like that.
The most interesting discovery is a massive mansion right next to the orphanage.
Putting together pieces of info I overhear, I figure out the mansion belongs to the Akai Clan—our benefactors whose na is on the orphanage.
When one god abandons you, another takes you in.
The Akai family are my saviors.
I have to repay this debt.
Making that vow, I start looking for sothing I can do.
This is for my own sake, too. Being a baby is painfully boring.
I heard in my previous life that humans find wasted ti and boredom to be the most painful experiences. That’s why I crave motivation and purpose.
On my first birthday, starving for a new training program, I…
Before I know it, I’ve started strength training.
“Ikaku, get down from there!”
“Director! Ikaku is doing pull-ups on the monkey bars!”
“Don’t be ridiculous. That child just turned one—WHAAAAT?! What perfect pull-up form! He’s really targeting his lats!”
By the way, Ikaku (nace) is what they call . I earned the na by always intimidating the other kids to keep them from picking up.
I wish the Sisters and Director had put more thought into it, but I actually kind of like it. It sounds strong.
Ikaku. The kanji looks pretty cool, too.
Now, why did I start strength training to repay my debt?
Don’t think it’s because my brain is made of muscle, too. Of course I have my reasons.
There’s a saying: your body is your capital.
Conversely, that ans capital is your body.
If that’s the case, then training your body increases your capital value.
The capital value of the orphan they took in goes up. Then they can think, “We’re glad we raised him.”
This is exactly how I can repay the Akai family.
I’m building capital through training.
Plus, it’s pure fun.
I still feel regret and frustration from having my old life cut short halfway.
If I have a second chance, I want to reach even greater heights this ti. That’s human nature.
I have the knowledge and technique. I can apply them starting from age zero.
What kind of view is waiting at the end of pushing the limits of body and mind?
“Hm?”
As I finish my set, my vision blurs, my arms fail, and my body obeys gravity, starting to fall.
The Director and Sisters scream, reaching out to catch before I hit the ground like volleyball players diving for a save.
I watch the whole disaster unfold from a slight distance.
I can see my own tiny body, and the Sisters and Director with their panicked expressions.
“…Huh?”
What’s going on?
Soone explain this. Help out here!
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